Trick or Treat!

I love Halloween.

I have always loved it.

When I was a kid, my mom would decorate our house with paper skeletons and ghosts and all empty bowls would be filled and refilled with candy corn. Since my brother's birthday falls at the end of October, his annual party was--appropriately--a costume party, and that meant I was allowed an extra costume. (Bonus). It was tradition for us to start entertaining costume ideas early in the month. Costumes were a big deal. I have been everything from a clown to an ice skater to a dancer...one year I think I was actually Spiderman. (I'm not really sure what that was all about).

I'm fairly certain my mom no longer has too many of our old Halloween decorations and my brother, now in New York, has likely wrapped up his costume parties-- but that hasn't stopped me from bringing out the bats and plugging in the pumpkins. Homage must be paid.

On October 1st of every year, Cody goes to our storage unit (yes, the Halloween decor is kept in a storage unit) and brings home all the bins, tubs and boxes labeled HALLOWEEN. Our house is then transformed. Cody is in charge of the outside and he does a Halloween scene that can only be rivaled by the holiday window display at Barney's in NYC. The scene surrounding our front door area is classy and festive--even I want to go through the front door instead of the garage, but whatever, I'm lazy so I never do.

The inside is my domain: Halloween Central, USA. Pumpkins, ghosts and goblins...mugs, plates and placemats...candles, soaps and towels...mummies, witches and skeletons...tombstones, tinsel and bats...candy, candy, candy!!! No one enters without stepping on the howling mat, and no one leaves without a goodie bag.

I'm sure my love for Halloween is a direct result of my upbringing and the candy coated memories I continue to cherish. I'm also sure it's not going to fade anytime soon. (The owner of the storage facility should be happy about that). I have to believe that Frankie had a blast this past month with all the holiday traffic in and out of the house and all the partying, cookie decorating, candy eating and dancing she did on the big day. Of course I have no idea if, as an adult, she will love and observe the holiday as I do, and I don't know if she will be sad (or even notice) when she wakes up tomorrow to find that all of the decorations have been taken down and put away--but what I do know is this: There is a bunch of leftover candy in the junk drawer and a ton stashed in the freezer.

I'm going to get some.