I know I say this about every holiday, but Halloween really is the best night of the year.  The flurry of costume construction in the days before, the actual day, where the children are far too keyed up to do anything but talk about how much candy they are going to consume and then, finally, FINALLY, they are let loose to roam the streets, going to door, with the universal language of lights on, someone’s home and all you have to do is knock on the door and they will give you candy.  The air is filled with fun and the sense of community.  Parents wandering with a red solo cup in hand, looking after a group of kids that got just a little bit ahead of them while they stopped to chat.  Or refill as the case may be.

Edie decided to be the Mad Hatter some time ago – Labor Day to be precise, which has long been my deadline as to choosing a costume.  I know, I do everything at the last minute, with this exception.    It takes time to craft a good costume and back in the day when I sewed her fabulous things like this, I needed those two months.

Sleeping Beauty, 2006

This year, she set out to make her costume all by herself.  I was one part proud mama, one part slightly sad mama and one part relieved mama.

I was briefly tasked with helping, then promptly fired when she realized I am not to be trusted around a hot glue gun.

While she is not to be trusted to clean up her crafting messes in front of the front door.

When she arrived home at 4:15 yesterday afternoon, pumpkins still needed to be carved, she needed to attend to the dogs she walks every afternoon, the finishing touches needed to be applied to her costume and I was determined to get dinner in her before the girl gang showed up to hit the trail at 5:45.

She had stopped off at Amy’s on her way home from school for some fake eyelash assistance.  As she sat there, carving pumpkins with her father (their tradition, yet another thing I’m not to be trusted with – carving pumpkins or christmas tree selection), I grabbed my camera for some shots.

She was just so utterly gorgeous, I kept snapping pictures.  As I walked away, she said, Mommy, you should get some good close up shots of my eyelashes.

I did sweet baby girl, I did.  About 75 of them.

She modeled her costume after Johnny Depp’s Mad Hatter, printing out images and hanging them all over her bathroom mirror. I was tasked with spray painting the hat – I could tell she had her reservations, but I think I did okay.

I also donated a ribbon and a brooch for flair.

The peacock feather was her doing.

This being Audrey’s last year to trick or treat, the girl gang was determined to send her out with a bang.  Edie & Audrey discovered from their friends that the trick or treating here is amazing – handfuls of candy at every house.  The other girls had never even heard of back up bags, where as Edie & Audrey knew I had them in my pocket, ready to go.

The best house of all to go to is the one on the corner with all the blow-ups.  They spend days getting ready for Halloween and the goody bags are the last word in trick or treat.  If you are only going to trick or treat one house, that’s the house to go to.  Cheetos, pretzels, popcorn, cheese balls, chocolate, gummy candies, starburst, mary janes(!!!), dum-dums and more are crammed into the ziploc quart bags they give to every child.  They might be the most generous house in the ‘hood, but not by much.  Children get spoiled rotten in this neighborhood Halloween night.

The princesses, Halloween, 2006.

Another Halloween is said and done, with nothing left to do but eat candy.  I suspect next year’s Halloween, when it hits Edie that her best bud isn’t going with her on the trail, will be quite different.

The witch and mad hatter, 2013.

Our days on the trick or treat trail are limited, I know.  As the mom who threw the neighborhood Halloween party in the park for years, I have a sneaking suspicion that we will somehow end up being the house that has a Halloween party in coming years.

I do love Halloween.  It’s the best night of the year.