Happy Halloween

Some of us parents from last semester's early childhood education class met up on Friday evening. And on a rare night away from our kids and the mundane tasks associated with taking care of babies, we well, talked about babies. And Halloween. With our kids ranging in age between 12 and 15 months, they just don't get Halloween yet. Heck, most can't even walk, mine included, and candy is pretty-much off limits for them, so the best part about Halloween, trick or treating, isn't a baby-friendly activity. Yet we all clearly felt a parental responsibility to do something for Halloween, but weren't sure if we were doing enough. Who had taken them to Boo Bash on Grand Avenue? What were our trick or treating plans? Did we buy a new costume just for the occasion or borrow one? But when we passed around photos of our kids in costumes and awwed at our adorable they all were, I realized that simply by dressing them up, we had fulfilled our Halloween duties as parents. As long as we had pictures documenting how darn cute they were in that duck outfit, we'll look back at previous Halloweens with fond memories.

Most early-childhood milestones are about the photo ops. The one-year-old smashing a piece of birthday cake. The child sitting on Santa's lap. And cute little babies dressed up as ladybugs, pumpkins and various cuddly-looking animals. Oliver didn't go to any Halloween parties this year (they occurred during nap time) or take part in Halloween-related festivities, (how did I know the kids were supposed to dress up for the baby story time the week of Halloween?) but Chris and I did dress him up in a lion costume we borrowed from a friend and took him to his Grandma Nan and Grandpa Dan's house for his very first round of trick or treating, followed up by visits to some neighbors.

When Halloween rolls around next year, Oliver probably still won't get it. But just as Chris's mom did when he brought home a new girlfriend and she hauled out albums containing pictures from early Halloweens, (Chris and his brother made cute dandelions!) we took tons of pictures for future generations.