Kitty and the Soldier

It was a cold and windy night. A three quarters moon was our only light, as we set off in search of sugary snack treats. Our plan was simple. We would disguise ourselves in fiendishly clever costumes, choose an unsuspecting residence, and ring their doorbell. When our victims answered the door, a shout of "Trick or Treat!" would give the poor, shivering home owners no choice but to fill our bags with candy and hope that we spared them and would then proceed to the neighbor's house. A plan so simple, so perfect and so diabolically genius could not fail. (Cue lightning crash).

Our first stop was to the local pharmacy to get a picture of the kids in their costumes. The pharmacy will make a picture button for us on Friday. The kids also got their first piece of candy for the night. And the plan wasn't even in effect yet. Sweet Pea picked a tootsie roll, then saw that her brother got a Hershey bar, so she wanted to exchange. Now that the sugar rush was officially started, it was time to plot our route.

The Soldier and the Princess Kitty and I piled into the pick-up to our first street. We went to see our old neighbor. He was dressed as a pirate, and he even had a real parrot on his shoulder. The kids were ready to trade their whole nights candy for the bird. Since we had only been to a few houses by then, it was no deal. After the first street I asked, "OK, is that enough? Should we go home?" Princess Kitty showed her claws in disagreement. Even though it was forty-five degrees with a stiff northern wind, we kept going.

We then drove to our next street. Number One Son wanted to visit every house with a light on. I had to remind him that we don't go to strangers' houses. Unless they have Peanut Butter Cups, then we load up once, switch costumes, and return for a second haul.

By now the kids' arms were being stretched by the weight of their bounty and Sweet Pea had lost her Kitty tail for the third time. I could see signs of fatigue in Sweet Pea. The cold wind and her short Kindergarten legs were starting to discourage her. Then she dropped the bomb.

"I have to go to the bathroom!"

"Ungh, Can you wait until we get to our house two blocks away?", I pleaded. I believe anyone who has a daughter knows the answer to this question.

Luckily, at that point we were close to a friends' house that graciously let us in the back door to use their facilities. I hope the Kit-Kat bar we left on the sink was enough payment.

Now that we were warm and dry, we ventured out into the cold again.

One more street and we would be home free. The last street is, of course, our own street. I parked the Pixie Stix Pickup and we started our final push to fill our bags. It's a good thing our street goes downhill to the other end, or else Sweet Pea wouldn't have even started. I didn't tell her that we would have to come back up the hill to home. It's a good thing that we visited our own street because N1S, got to see the coolest Yoda pumpkin ever. He found this pumpkin at the same house that had the puking pumpkin last year. This is also N1S's favorite house because the home owner wears a cool Darth Maul costume. I think he wears it on other days of the year too.

Well, we got to see a parrot, a Yoda pumpkin and our neighbor's bathroom. It was now time to go home.

Lady Di and myself are two of those mean parents who let their kids eat only one piece of Halloween candy on Halloween night. And since Halloween landed on Wednesday this year, it was extra important to limit the sugar before bedtime. Otherwise, getting up for school in the morning would be just as scary as Halloween itself. N1S was lagging behind as we headed for home with a trail of wrappers following him. This surprised me. That is something I expect Sweet Pea to try, but I guess she was just too tired for tricks. In the house they each got a chocolate bar and a package of Sour French Fries. I thought the combination was just too good to break up, so I let the kids have two pieces of candy.

I'm sorry if you think my kids are getting a raw deal on the candy. They worked hard for it. They deserve it. They don't need it though. A little candy here and there is fine, but a Snickers Bar a day is not a habit I want to encourage. Plus, N1S's attention span seems to worsen in direct relation to how many M&M's he's eaten. The main part of Halloween is to have fun and be safe. We accomplished both goals. The kids had fun showing off their costumes to our neighbors. They also enjoyed seeing their friends' costumes and comparing bag contents. I got some new ideas for Halloween house decorating and pumpkin carving too. This year's pumpkins can be seen in the previous post.

Now I have to find a way to sneak most of the candy out of the house without the kids seeing. I guess I'd better start with the Peanut Butter Cups.