HALLOWEEN 2008

4 years old is such a great age to be mystified by the holidays! Lo was really into Halloween this year. She was both intrigued with the costumes, decorations and the "Trick or Treat" ritual and disturbed by some of the images she saw. Halloween is a difficult time of year to remain consistent with the Waldorf philosophy of providing our children with an environment of beauty and safety. Sometimes starting as early as the end of summer, everywhere you go there is the gratuitous explosion of Halloweenism. A simple trip to the grocery can be a scary experience for a small child. Giant mummies that burst to sudden electronic life, laughing skulls with blinking red eyes, werewolves, dismembered hands, frightening canned “Halloween “ noises(Lo totally freaked out every time this commercial with creepy music came on the radio)-enough to implant some pretty scary imagery into a child’s brain and haunt them when the lights are turned out at night. I've tried to keep her sheltered from the onslaught. Lo delighted in the more innocent aspects of trick or treating, the other little kids who were out there before it got too dark, the friendly faced Jack-o-Lanterns, the kind people dolling out candy -and she’s still little enough to enjoy yelling “Trick or Treat” when the doors open-the older kids just stand there…..weird. She was also notably more freaked out about some of the sights and sounds this year. It didn't really seem to phase her in the past.
When Dea was small, we would take her to the Anchorage Halloween Symphony Concert on Halloween night. The symphony would play well known classical pieces to coincide with goofy Halloween skits on stage! Later, the 3 floors making up the concert hall would be set up with tables sponsored by various local business and companies(free advertising and capitalism at it’s finest!)so that the children could trick or treat from table to table. It was a fun but expensive evening. A little cultural exposure and a huge bag of candy to boot. Once, we tried Trick or Treat Town(Pretty much the same deal as the symphony, sans the symphony)…but so did the rest of the town. It took 10 minutes of waiting just to get a piece of candy thrown in her pumpkin at each station. Kids + candy+ “waiting”= TEMPEST.

Since then, we’ve simply enjoyed good ole fashioned Trick or Treating with our friends, the O’s . In Alaska, most people don’t T&T in their own neighborhoods. The houses are too far apart. Instead, there is a mass exodus to the nearest zero lot line neighborhood. We meet up with our friends down in town to storm the rockinist Halloween neighborhood, Eaglewood. Houses built within an arm’s reach of one another are conducive to full heavy pillowcases and plastic pumpkins . You can cover a lot of ground in a short period of time and get a TON of candy. Huz and I always make sure each child pays up the “Parent Tax” in candy before the night is done.

Sadly, this year was the first year that Wolfman O (14) opted out of trick or treating. Dea hung in there with us-it’s easier when you have a little sib. You can experience it all from their perspective and it’s probably not so lame to the peers when you’re T&Ting with your little sis. Nature Lady, Liesel O and her friend joined us.

Another thing about Halloween in Alaska. It’s usually snowing and/ or very cold. You HAVE to wear your snowsuit. So costumes are usually incorporated into said suit. This year Lo was a “Princess Dragon”. She had the perfect costume for an Alaskan Halloween. A fleecy dragon hood and “claw” gloves, a tie on tail, wings and, of course, the tutu. Earlier in the day Dea helped her BFF paint her room and got paint all over herself-actually, I suspect most of it was there due to paint fights and self- adornment – and Voila! An instant costume! Painter!
We lasted for about an hour before everyone got cold and we headed to the O’s warm home for dessert.

HALLOWEENS PAST:

Last year's Fairy, Penguin, Skeleton and Cereal Killer.

Who can guess what I was?!!

2006 Ladybug and Padma Patil(Harry Potter)

2005 Mother Earth and Kitty