Somehow the danger of taking candy from a stranger melts away on Halloween evening. I for one couldn't be happier about that. I had the opportunity to see over a hundred children tonight who came to our door asking for candy. I saw all kinds of costumes and excitement in the faces of the children and all kinds of parents smiling with pride at the cuteness of their kids. Halloween around here doesn't seem to be about scares or the macabre - it's more of a parade of cuteness and candy. No wonder I love this holiday.
With Nana and Papa in tow, Alicia and the kids (all five) went on their own parade of cuteness this evening. Ben was a bumble bee, Claire was a clown, Jason was Thomas the tank engine (he had a last minute change of plans from being a caterpillar to Thomas), Ethan was a skeleton, and Emily was Princess Peach from the Mario Bros. game. 
The evening was unseasonably warm for this time of year - about 50 degrees after the sun dipped out of sight. So the cold didn't affect the kids' fun and they all stayed out for nearly an hour. Ben enjoyed the comfort of his stroller and a few bags of M&Ms and Claire filled her little plastic pumpkin halfway with candy and was the recipient of many cuteness compliments. Then the two of them came home with Nana and Papa and helped me pass out candy for the remainder of the evening.
Meanwhile Alicia had the older kids out for another hour. At almost every house, Jace would say "Trick or Treat" with the others and then excitedly dash back to the sidewalk exclaiming, "Mom, I said it!" When it was all done, Ethan and Jace had filled their plastic pumpkins to the top. They dumped their candy out on the living room floor and compared their loot with each other.
After having a sensible amount of candy, the kids were readied for bed and tucked in with smiles on their faces. It's likely that many other kids in the neighborhood had similar sleepy smiles tonight. So who cares about this holiday's shady past, it's presently a wonderful night.
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