HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY HALLOWEEN

~~~~Well, here it is again one year later, Halloween. I used to love Halloween. We'd pick out costumes for our 2 children, then one of us parents would take the children into the neighborhood for Treats! We'd take turns doing this every year.
~~~~Jeffrey's friends would just love to come over to see how I had decorated our home for Halloween. I went all out. Every year I would find a new piece to add to our collection. It was so much fun scaring the kids (not the itty bitty ones!). We tried to tone it down for them when they came to the door.
~~~~~I had Halloween lights on the windows, voice boxes disguised as a spooky house, that would make a scary sound when you walked up to the door. Haha... it made quite a few jump, and then they'd laugh afterwards.
~~~~~Our front door acquired a squeak after a time, and I wouldn't let DH oil it cuz it made such a perfect Squeak for Halloween! I'd open the door slowly.... and, I'd be dressed up as a witch, usually. The lights would be blinking on the windows, and inside, I had black lights on outside. So, when I opened the door slowly and they saw me in costume, and I played the part... oh, the older kids were excited, and the little ones.... haha... sometimes I could not make myself "friendly", just cuz my voice was friendly, my looks certainly were not! LOL At least they had their parents to reassure them. :) I had so many decorations for the kids to look at, that they didn't mind waiting in line.
~~~~~ A couple of the years, I sat outside on a Rocking Chair, in my witch's costume with black lights on and just rocked back and forth, with a bowl of candy on my lap. Some of the kids were actually afraid to come up to me! I'd have to call out to them that it was alright, to come on over. I almost felt guilty telling them it's okay, I have candy. LOL
~~~~~It was funny, one year one of Jeffrey's friends inquired why was it that I had so many decorations out for Halloween, but didn't have as many for Christmas?
~~~~~After DH came home from trick or treating with the children, we finished off giving out the rest of the candy and then turn off all the lights so we could check out the kid's candy, and get them ready for bed. Those were fun times.
When Alexis was off to college and Jeffrey was already late in his teens, of course, he would go out to parties with his friends.
~~~~~ Every year, in the morning, we would awaken to Toilet Papered trees, and all kinds of new Halloween decorations in our yard.... NEW decorations, that we did not own! Jeffrey's friends (all girls - if you can imagine that -) would decorate our yard year after year.
Of course, we would get after Jeffrey and make him clean it up. He was none to happy about it, but the girls continued their tradition! We hurriedly hid our new decorations in our garage, cuz we had no idea where they had come from! We never used them for fear of retaliation! LOL
~~~We've missed this ritual these past 3 years. I now, of course, look back fondly on these times, and miss those days.
~~~ I sent a message to the girls today: Who is going to decorate our lawn tonight?