I’m going to admit it: I hate Halloween.
There, I’m out of the closet, and for the record:
- I don’t like chocolate, or what having a sack of the stuff laying around for a few days does to my sugar junkie kids. Heck, by election day I’ll need to send them to glucose rehab.
- How is it otherwise God fearing parents allow their kids to dress up as devils, witches and the like? I’m not the most religious guy around, but I do want my kids to get a clear picture and the oxymoron that is Halloween is no help.
- We don’t have nearby neighbors, so I have to drag the kids to the nearest development so they can beg for candy. It makes me feel like a carpet bagger.
Okay, that stuff I can probably live with. By far, my biggest problem with Halloween is the costumes. Every year the stuff at the costume shop seems to take another step towards Fredricks of Hollywood. As a father, I am compelled to draw the line. Which is really fun in my house, where the oldest has Asperger’s Syndrome, which manifests in an utter unwillingness to compromise.
A few rules to live by for girls and Halloween:
- Halloween is cold, so no exposed skin. When it doubt, wear a leotard.
- If the costume would display your belly button, you’re wearing a leotard.
- Halloween involves a lot of walking, you should wear appropriate shoes. Spike heels have no place on young girls.
- If the costume is too suggestive, as defined by your dad, you’re not wearing it.
- If you’re over 10, you need to make your own costume, at home, with stuff from the house, and yes, all of the previous rules still apply, possibly even more so.
- Even in costume, you still are a representative of this family, and will act accordingly.
With those rules, Dad won’t be needing a costume himself. Everyone is already going to see him as an Ogre, but when you get right down to it, it’s the right thing for a Dad to do.
Unfortunately, I didn’t get these rules in place this year before the kids got their costumes. This is the first year I wasn’t there and hadn’t set the ground rules. Luckily, mom handled it exactly the way I would have (and probably better), although she did have to invoke the “You’re wearing a Leotard” clause.
Hope this helps, let’s hear your Halloween stories. And yes, as much as I dislike the holiday, I’ll be dressing up and taking the kids out. Because that’s what Dads do.
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I’m not sure I hate halloween, but I certainly don’t like it much. We pretty much let our kids dictate their costume choices but then, we’ve been so lucky that our girls have chosen cats, tomatos and prisoners so far. One year, my daughter was a vampire, but she went the classic Dracula route as opposed to something that would lead to fishnets, exposed skin and such.
I’d love to buy into the “make your own costume” rule, but for some reason, I’m thinking that isn’t happening in our house (mom’s not going to go for that I don’t think).
My eldest is 11 and this year, for the first time, she’s going to a different area with her friends than we are with our younger daughter. Oh boy.
My one rule is that I get to check the candy FIRST (for needles and such LOL) and as payment, get to pick any of the following IF there are at least 2 of such candies: Butterfingers or any thing with the word Reese’s on it.
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I’m not sure I hate halloween, but I certainly don’t like it much. We pretty much let our kids dictate their costume choices but then, we’ve been so lucky that our girls have chosen cats, tomatos and prisoners so far. One year, my daughter was a vampire, but she went the classic Dracula route as opposed to something that would lead to fishnets, exposed skin and such.
I’d love to buy into the “make your own costume” rule, but for some reason, I’m thinking that isn’t happening in our house (mom’s not going to go for that I don’t think).
My eldest is 11 and this year, for the first time, she’s going to a different area with her friends than we are with our younger daughter. Oh boy.
My one rule is that I get to check the candy FIRST (for needles and such LOL) and as payment, get to pick any of the following IF there are at least 2 of such candies: Butterfingers or any thing with the word Reese’s on it.
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Lol – yeah, I like the idea of payment. Daddy get’s to wet his beak, so to speak.
You’re probably right, while it’s easy for Daddy to say “Though must make thine own Costume,” it does generally put the burden on Mommy, especially for those of us who have stay at home moms on the payroll. That little bit did raise an eyebrow when we talked over the rules at the dinner table last night. She asked if my sewing skills have improved any since making homemade dolls two years ago, which pretty much tells me her stance on the issue.
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Lol – yeah, I like the idea of payment. Daddy get’s to wet his beak, so to speak.
You’re probably right, while it’s easy for Daddy to say “Though must make thine own Costume,” it does generally put the burden on Mommy, especially for those of us who have stay at home moms on the payroll. That little bit did raise an eyebrow when we talked over the rules at the dinner table last night. She asked if my sewing skills have improved any since making homemade dolls two years ago, which pretty much tells me her stance on the issue.
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Mark — Halloween doesn’t have to be cold (though where we live in Chicago, it’s often that and wet). We’re taking our daughter on a Disney Cruise next week and she’s looking forward to dressing up as a Pirate IN the Caribbean. Will let you know how it goes!
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Mark — Halloween doesn’t have to be cold (though where we live in Chicago, it’s often that and wet). We’re taking our daughter on a Disney Cruise next week and she’s looking forward to dressing up as a Pirate IN the Caribbean. Will let you know how it goes!