Halloween

Growing up, we would always go trick or treating. In fact, my parents dressed up with us every year as Raggedy Ann and Andy. It was always a really positive family time, never thinking of ghosts, scary houses, or the devil. Then I got to around high school and I started seeing most churches around town advertising Fall Festivals. A place your child could come, dressed up (in no ghost or skeleton costumes because those aren't real), to have a safe and fun Halloween. I don't even think the word Halloween was used...it was just a Fall Festival. So I started thinking, "Yeah, this makes sense...make Hallow..oops...the time at the end of October, a fun, safe, Christian holiday."

I didn't think of it much through college and later years. It was only this year when we had our own kid that I started thinking about it. I thought about the excitement my brother and sister and I would have dressing up, getting loads of candy, inspecting it after (thanks crazy's who started putting needles in candy), and eating it until we were sick and falling happily in bed. I really want Elias to experience this. I was reminded of my old thoughts when I was in Old Navy and found the cutest spider hat...check out our flickr pics to see him or monster's blog. I wanted to get him a Halloween onesie to go with it. The only ones they had left was a ghost one and a "Little Pumpkin" one. I immediately thought, "I can't get the ghost one because ghosts aren't real." Where did that come from? I shook my head in disbelief as that thought ran across my mind. I put back the pumpkin onesie and picked up the ghost one and walked with my head held high to check out. (I have since returned the ghost one because I found a spider one that goes with his kickin' hat.)

As I have been driving around town this season, I have noticed most churches with a Fall Festival banner. Sicko's!! But they have added a new word to that Halloween-take-over-name..."Fun". So now it is Fall Fun Festivals. I got an F-word you can add to your name!! I am so sad by all of this. So when Elias is old enough to trick-or-treat, we will be walking with him in our neighborhood, dressed up right beside him. (Any costume ideas for mom and dad??)