Halloween

I am not at big fan of Halloween.  As a kid I loved dressing up and getting a pillow case full of candy.  As a parent I struggle with this holiday.  I don't so much mind my kids wearing costumes or getting candy but dislike the gory decorations and inappropriate costumes they can be exposed to.  I tend to side on the "Harvest" theme not "Halloween".  That being said with no other alternative we let our kiddos go trick-or-treating this year in a friends neighborhood.  They had a blast and didn't seem to mind (or notice) the creepy houses we strategically tried to miss.  I on the other hand struggled.  As I saw bloody handprints in windows, dummies hanging in nooses from trees,  and creepy skeletons I questioned what I was doing out there.  I miss having a Harvest Festival on Halloween.  I miss the safe alternative for our kids.  Even if it didn't bother them, it bothered me.  I don't want my kids to be conformed to this world and I certainly don't want them to be exposed to such gruesome ideas at such an impressionable age.  Why should they see grave sites with arms sticking out, people with knives through there head or bloody images?  How could that possibly benefit their little minds?  I don't have a perfect answer or belief...I do however have 3 very inquisitive children who see, hear and ask.  What are ghosts?  Are they real?  Are they always white?  All this came from a Doc McStuffins cartoon...one Joe and I wish they never saw.  I don't know what we will being doing next Halloween...but  I have a lot to think about between now and then =0)  For now I am glad it is over and we are moving on to a month of Thankfulness!

Halloween was also "Crazy Hair Day" at Michael's school so I bought a few cans of hair spray and went to town.  Michael decided on blue hair with green spots and his two best buds joined in of the fun.

Despite my questioning the rituals of Halloween...my kids were adorable cowboys and cowgirls and had a great time with their friends =0)  Here are a few shots from the night...