Harry Potter Halloween

The Little Man, who could do it all *hisself*, thank you very much.

The full effect, with BB in his costume, too.

The Little Man has *so* been looking forward to Halloween.  I think its his favorite holiday :)  He *loves* making decorations, he *loves* setting "spooky" items around the house, he *loves* scaring BB with goblin and ghost talk....

And he was super pumped to hand out candy this year (his favorite part from the last two years).  To that point, he chose an enormous bag of some noxious mix and then brought it home to examine it all.  He sniffed it, but never even ventured a lick.

Other preparations included creating small, clay pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns.  He made spiders with dozens of eyes and dangerous pinchers, and we made long, long rows of bat garlands with silly eyes and shiny fangs.  And, of course, the spider webs came out too!

The house covered, his costume in order, and thus fully prepared for the weekend, Saturday saw E and P off to a fall carnival in the nabe (while I sprawled at home, pitifully, on my side :()  The kid came back, flushed from the cool air and delighted with the haunted house he had braved.

Sunday, D-day, the boys crossed the park for the last carousel ride of the season (it was bedecked for the day) and returned just in time for Trick-or-Treating.  The child, reticent to wear costumes in public in the past, wavered in his duds decision.  He talked to BB about it, worrying that people would laugh (E's delight always takes the form of a loud guffaw.  Its his way of expressing happiness.  This is totally unacceptable to the Little Man.)  or comment.  He wanted to wear it, but he wanted everyone to treat him Exactly. The. Same. As. Always. ;)

BB, ever the very best Baby Brother, just listened.  And, standing up for Phoenix in a way only a younger sib can, he told P that P didn't have to wear anything he didn't want to, darn it all to heck.  This was just what the Little Man needed - permission to do what he wanted.  And so he happily slipped on his treasured cloak, carefully wound his embroidered scarf, purposefully pushed up his little lenses and shouldered his pet owl.  As he passed the full length mirror he stopped to stare at his reflection.  "I look absolutely brilliant" he quietly summarized - and then trotted off to grab his candy bucket and BB.

The fab duo of Seth and Alicia joined us for the crowded walk up 7th Ave.  The kid politely pandered at the appropriate shops, not really knowing what he was missing.  His native midwestern parents were a bit shocked at how hard a kid has to work to cover the bottom of a bucket here.  When we were little (and walking uphill in the snow both ways;), we could easily pop from house to house, sans crowds, and score candy galore.  Here, the child was pushed and pawed, repeatedly.  After a few stops, the kid quietly whispered to me "I want to say "trick or treat."  I realized the street was just so damn loud, it was almost pointless.  And out of fashion, apparently.  It hit me that all of the other kids were just walking up to the dude holding the candy box and holding out their stash for a new addition.

So, despite the stops being few and far between on the side streets, we steered the child that direction.  Then we were able to enjoy the fall leaves, the crisp air, the jack-o-lanterns flickering against the brownstones.  Here, the child could say "trick or treat" and actually be heard ;)

We eventually rounded back to the parade, where P watched from E's shoulders while bands and floats and costumes drifted past.   Such a long way from our childhoods' (comparatively) dull, dark streets, with *doorbells*.  But with family just down the block and great friends on all sides of us (who even found the kid candy he isn't allergic to!), the child seemed just as happy as I remember being on Halloween.

Defrosting at home, we had a carpet picnic while P poured over his hard-earned confections.  He had fun looking at the colors and learning the different names.... while eating olives, hummus and eggs ;)  But it was all good, we'd surprised him with some fair trade chocolate eyeballs in the morning (which he'd gobbled until giddy) so he seemed happy just reliving the evenings adventures, sans nasty chemical concoctions that make his skin creep!