A new sort of Halloween

October 1990.  I'm the pumpkin on the right, my best friend Katie is on the left.

As a little kid, Halloween was my favorite holiday.  I was incredibly blessed to live on a block full of kids all of whom were relatively close in age.  And even better, we were all best friends.  Every year, we would count down the days 'til the leaves left the branches and carved pumpkins found homes on front porch steps.

That day would come, we'd eat a quick dinner, and get ready for the night of some tricks, but mostly treats.  As little ones, we'd run from house to house having to stay relatively close to our dads who were following us equipped with beer and 90s sweatshirts.  We made sure to avoid the one corner house a street over occupied by the crazy, scary witch and made sure to hit all the houses that we noted gave out the ever-coveted king size.

When we got home, we'd dump out our pillowcases full of treats and divvy up the good vs. bad.  We'd trade Mounds for Twix and gave the unwanted to mom and dad.  It was the one day out of the year that we didn't have to "call it a night" on a school night and we went to bed with sugar highs.

As we all got older, some of us made different plans to go with different groups of friends from school or groups, but Halloween for the most part remained a holiday that we celebrated with the kids on the block.  As years passed, our dads would still maybe get together for a beer, their kids off at work parties or friend's houses. The moms were of course always loyal to those pesky trick-or-treaters (the new round of block littles) and handed out candy year after year.

As I got older and went off to college, I forgot about Halloween.  In my experience, college Halloween parties are either 1 of 2 things -- awkward or dirty (or an unfortunate combination of both.)  You're too old to ask for candy but too young to go to one of those swankier, more grown-up Halloween parties.  And because of this, Halloween became a holiday that came and went with little thought.

But not this year.

This year is my first Halloween with my little one.  And I'm flooded with both nostalgia and the excitement I felt as a seven-year-old.

It will be a relaxed evening.  We'll have festive drinks and dessert, maybe some (very late) pumpkin carving.  A bowl will rest by the door full of candy waiting for anyone who yells "trick or treat!"  But the best part will be getting Ella in her costume, taking pictures, remembering Halloweens that once were, and getting so excited for this new phase of Halloweens to begin.