A Happy Halloween Indeed

Halloween night has a smell to it. Something I can't really describe, but as soon as my nose encounters this smell I am flooded with good childhood memories of trick-or-treating. My dad would go trick-or-treating with me every year. I am not quite sure exactly how many years this went on, but I must have been at least 12 or 13, still insisting that dad would go with me just cause I wanted him there. He would map out our route and instruct me which houses to go to. After each one, he would ask about what kind of treat I got and then on we went to the next house. I really cherish those memories. I hope Molly and Dallin share a special close friendship like the one I have with my dad.

The smell of Halloween is cold. Pumpkins roasting. I don't know how else to put it into words but I have yet to come across someone who doesn't know what I am referring to. This year didn't disappoint. The smell was in the air, and with it came a very happy night at my house with Dal and Molly. From the second Dallin walked in the door from school he was dancing around the house in excitement. Every couple minutes or so he would run to the door and peer out, anticipating our first trick-or-treat visitor. We had a yummy dinner of meatballs and rice, which Dallin called "spooky meatballs and lice". Every time there was a knock at the door we would both get nervous and say "you get the door!", "no you get the door!". Of course, as the night wore on, the novelty of a child at the door in a costume lessened and simply whoever was closest to the door, would hand out candy. We have an old mail slot in our door that we had fun with, speaking to kids through it. And Dal loved scaring the kids with our candy bowl that has one of those hands that comes down when you reach for whats inside.

After dinner we ate chocolate chip pumpkin cookies and carved pumpkins in our living room. I gave Dallin the challenge of a mischievous pumpkin face and Dal gave me the carving assignment of a terrified pumpkin face. It was a very pleasant evening and a happy one to just be with my little family. We talked about future traditions in our family for Halloween and we agreed that we will always carve pumpkins together while eating chocolate chip pumpkin cookies.

As the trick-or-treat traffic slowed we turned on an old Alfred Hitchcock film that made us laugh our heads off. It was black and white, a film from like the 1930's, and it was anything but scary. All in all, it was a very fun and memorable Halloween. Molly's first. I look forward to the Halloween's in the future when we can take her trick-or-treating. Hopefully she will have a little of me in her and want us to take her trick-or-treating even when she is surely old enough to go by herself with friends. And of course I will always look forward to the yummy smell of Halloween night.