On the Day of Hallow and Dead Folks, I became the family disappointment this year.

The closer Halloween came, the less thrill of frights and delights tempted me. Maybe it’s because I’ve been wearing a foot and wrist brace for 2 months, never knowing if this is the week I’ll get them off OR MAYBE HAVE OPEN SURGERY.

But I’m going to back up first to my Mom’s Halloween party.

My mom is the Queen of Halloween.

She is also the queen of animals, and parties, and child entertainment, but I think her assignment in the next life will probably be regulating the decorations of the underworld. (Unless, Kylee, you’d prefer that role?)

Not because she’s a witch or anything like that. She’s very sweet. Just because she loves this holiday. And cockroaches. It’s very confusing but it is what it is.

We had our party in the middle of October. Trick or treating was still kind of up in the air at this time, so my mom thought the grandkids might as well Trick or Treat at her house at the annual Halloween party. (We kept it to just our immediate family members 🙂 )

I remember this night, because it had great food and great company. As we all handed out treats to my children going room to room, my sisters and I reverted back into children and found ourselves clutching our throats and gasping for air over jokes that probably aren’t even funny but were also the funniest thing we’d ever heard.

Then came the actual Halloween.

Maybe 2020 has freaked me out enough as is. Maybe it’s the fact that one of my students thinks I’m EXAGGERATING about the damage credit cards can do. For whatever reason though, I’ve been out-spooked.

I didn’t even want to put on my Halloween costume. Yeah, this amazing costume I found for $5 at Savers.

It made me sad.

But I was tired. And I had economics homework to do that Saturday. And people are dying. And 2020 is overwhelming. I really wasn’t feeling it this year.

Taylor’s parents invited us to their home for games and dinner that night. Normally, I would host our own Halloween dinner and throw out candy to trick or treaters and drink hot chocolate and enjoy the creeps and spooks.

Instead, we said sure. Please take feed our tired selves and spoil our grandchildren. If you need us, we will be napping on the couch.

It was just our family and theirs (under the mandated 10 social gathering limit 🙂 ). And it was SUCH a nice evening.

We ate pizza together. I offered my signature candy corn salad.

You guys. I’ve been making this dish for the past 7 years. It’s just a guarantee to have it no matter where we’re celebrating. And yet, without fail, every year I bring it and a sibling or parent is like OH MY GOSH THAT IS SO CUTE WHERE DID YOU THINK OF THAT?

And I’m like: I just invented it myself, actually!

Because they do not remember that I’ve directly copied this from Pinterest. Like I do every year.

After dinner, we dressed ourselves up and ventured into the open air. The neighbors passed out candy with those grabber stick things that old people use. We kept our distance and admired homes from afar.

A mechanical spider leaped out at Archer and he about lost his mind for a minute there. (It’s weird to be a parent. I both laughed and cried for him.) I guess we didn’t prepare the children that Halloween is actually gruesome and creepy and not just a time for dress up and totally safe free candy from strangers.

We played a couple card games with Taylor’s parents while the children immersed themselves in a frightening episode of PJ Masks.

Sweet ones.

Sander’s tummy, unfortunately, had something yucky in it, and expelled it through many poops. We brought these little tots home to bed and passed out ourselves before even considering what movie to put on.

I’m not sure if it’s 2020 or just a new season of life or covid or undiscovered cancer or what, but we were exhausted this Halloween season. And for that, so so grateful for parents who provided the entertainment and love for our family for us. Thanks for carrying us through this holiday, Moms and Dads ❤