It is the morning after Halloween and the house is quiet, save the occasional whine or bark of one of the dogs. In the kitchen there are no plastic pumpkin pails or bright orange bags filled with candy.  There are no empty wrappers for me to pick up off the floor, left strewn about by over zealous, over stuffed, sugar over-dosed, sweet-toothed children. There is no bountiful booty for me to secretly pick through, taking only my favorite bite sized Snickers and mini M&M packs from amidst the candy corn, goobers, jelly beans and assorted junk.

IS HEARTACHE BETTER THAN A TOOTHACHE?

This post Halloween morning I don’t have to worry about breaking my healthy eating habits by devouring countless chocolates until I am embarrassed by the sheer number of empty wrappers I have tossed into the trashcan. I have no such worries because all three of my kids are too old for Trick or Treating. They have long since outgrown the allure of knocking on neighbor’s doors with the pleasure and joy of knowing a sweet prize awaits at every walkway. As I look at a picture from a happy Halloween past, and see the happy little children who are now happy young adults I am reminded how fast and fleeting those magical moments of childhood truly are. I miss the days when a scary story held them rapt with fear and the belief that every word out of dad’s mouth was true, real and important.

RECOGNIZE THE SWEET SPOT…

Sure, I miss the candy (the calories, not so much), but I really miss the days when my kids were kids (and the parents were scared!)

How was your Halloween?  I hope you have cherished the moments and recognize that the sweetest part of Halloween is not the candy… it is the shared fun you and your children can have together.

Jeff Sass is the proud dad of ZEO (Zach, 20, Ethan, 18 and Olivia, 17).  He is also a seasoned entertainment and technology exec and active social media enthusiast.  You can see more of Jeff’s writing at Sassholes! and Social Networking Rehab.

Photo Credit: Rick Sargeant – Fotolia.com