Halloween..who is at your door?

[AlphaFrog]

Originally Posted by MysticCat

Son is 15 and a high school freshman.

Mind = Blown.

Wasn't he just 10 like yesterday?

[Xidelt]

The neighbor's grandkid. We get 1 or 2 trick or treaters every year. Yet my husband always insists on buying the big ass bag of candy bars.

[AGDee]

My son was on the fence this year. He felt like he was too old to go out. He was going to help me pass out candy. He had me find the CD of Halloween music and put it in. He put his werewolf costume on. He was very restless. I said "Why don't you just go?" He called his buddy, who was taking his little sister around (she's 6 or 7, the boys are 16). He went and met up with them and trick or treated for a little bit. I'm glad. It already felt weird without his sister around to carve the pumpkin... that was usually her thing.

We had about 100 kids, a little down from last year, but it was pretty chilly and damp. The rain did stop though.

[MSKKG]

I was thrilled that we got a record high 9 trick-or-treaters this year! I knew only 4 of them, so things are looking up for future Halloweens!!!

[AZ-AlphaXi]

We haven't had any trick-or-treaters in several years .. no change this year.

[thetalady]

I seriously overbought candy again this year.... now what to do with it all? I am NOT eating it, especially the non-chocolate stuff The mini Milky Way caramels are not going anywhere, though!

[Hartofsec]

Originally Posted by AGDLynn

Copied from my niece's FB page (she copied from a friend):

Tomorrow night, a lot of creatures will visit your door. Be open minded. The child who is grabbing more than one piece of candy might have poor fine motor skills. The child who takes forever to pick out one piece of candy might have motor planning issues. The child who does not say "trick or treat" or "thank you" might be painfully shy, non-verbal, or selectively mute. If you cannot understand their words, they may struggle with developmental apraxia of speech. They are thankful in their hearts and minds. The child who looks disappointed when he sees your bowl might have a life-threatening allergy. The child who isn't wearing a costume at all might have a sensory processing disorder or autism. Be kind, be patient, smile, pretend you understand. It's everyone's Halloween. Make a parent feel good by making a big deal of their special child.

When my son was small, we actually practiced trick or treating well in advance of Halloween. We so appreciated the houses that were patient with him, and especially those people who extended kindness in recognition of his efforts as an achievement.

Thanks to all of you who do take an extra moment to be kind and withhold judgement -- this understanding makes it possible for a child to be included in and learn from his community.

My son is now in high school, and declared last year that he was "too old" to trick or treat. I really miss having my own little ones all dressed up -- but I enjoy the kids who do come knocking.

And the older kids -- who arrive in groups dressed as a theme -- get extra candy for effort. Had a Wizard of Oz group this year.

.

[MysticCat]

Originally Posted by AlphaFrog

Mind = Blown.

Wasn't he just 10 like yesterday?

Crazy, isn't it?

[IndianaSigKap]

My fun for the day was watching three 17 year old boys try to put temporary tattoos on each other. The girls finally had mercy on them and took over the tattooing operation. Glad I picked those up. Not sure how amused the basketball coach was with the skulls and crossbones tattoos:...

[Munchkin03]

I expected to have a low turnout, but since the kids are out of school all this week, they got started early! My first trick-or-treaters came at 3 PM. I wasn't ready for them them! I had a steady trickle of kiddos until about 8:30-9 PM or so.