... And the Goblins Will Get You if You Don't Watch Out

When I was a kid Halloween was a one day holiday. For that night my 5 siblings and I would carve a pumpkin, assemble a costume (or use a sad-looking store bought one), grab an old grocery bag and head out for treats.

Oh have times changed. I think that Halloween now rivals Christmas for its level of celebration. Zo Peep's Halloween is an almost month-long event with parades, parties, and Boo Fests. She's really into Halloween this year. So for the first time ever, we did a major job at house decoration. Our house is covered with cobwebs, window stickers and a multitude of jack-o-lanterns -- some real; some not.

When we went Trick or Treating last night, she didn't want to stop. In prior years we never stayed out for more than 45 minutes. This year we almost hit 2 hours.

After my first Halloween with her, I realized that I needed more than one costume each year because the weather can range from a balmy 70F to a chilly 40F. This year I got a third costume because she had so many events to attend and I was sure one of these outfits would fall apart when I washed it.

So here is the fashion show.

First for the dark side -- Here is Zo Peep at a local Halloween parade dressed as a Vampire (although someone said she looked more like Morticia Adams of the Adams family). This was her favorite costume and the one I liked least:

Next the Scholarly Side -- here she is for her school party. She went as the minor Harry Potter character - Cho Cheung. And for you Potter-philes -- Please don't notice that she's not wearing a Ravenclaw robe or that she is carrying the wrong species of Owl.

Zo Peep decided she wanted to be Cho. Honestly, I was surprised because she always seemed to show more affinity for Hermoine -- smart, confident, brave. I love this costume. It was her 2nd favorite look.

Finally for Trick and Treat -- We went for history. Zo Peep went as Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile. The weather last night was really warm and the other two outfits would have been unbearably hot. I really liked this costume too. She wasn't that much of a fan -- until she saw the reaction of people when we went out to Trick or Treat.

I guess because this costume was very different than what any of the other kids were wearing , I think it helped her get more candy. People kept on saying, "You're so cute. Take 2. No, take 3."

We ended up with a huge bag of candy and treats. Fortunately, Zo Peep's school was collecting candy today to give to food banks and homeless shelters. I was able to donate more than half of our haul this morning -- and still have plenty for occasional snacks. I'm sure I'll still end up throwing most of it away in the next few weeks.

Goodbye Halloween. On to Christmas.

(BTW -- the title of today's entry comes from a poem my mom used to recite to us every Halloween. My mom passed away in 2004. I think she would have enjoyed celebrating Halloween with Little Zo Peep)