Wednesday, October 7, 2009

The Halloween Grinch

I feel like a Halloween Grinch. I've seen lawn and door decorations for Halloween since early September and it bugs me. Some of these are "cute" and harmless, others are gory and downright spooky...like the ring of floating ghosts holding hands around the tree on Center St. Yeesh! I hate to run past that thing.

I don't want to "celebrate" this "holiday" this year, I want to skip it. I really don't feel like buying or coming up with costumes for the kids (or myself). (Though Jim mentioned that if our little kids go to school without costumes, they will be labeled weirdos. Imagine, a 4-foot vampire or spiderman calling my daughter a weirdo.)

I don't want to buy candy to hand out at home and at work that I REALLY SHOULDN'T eat. I don't like the idea of kids going door to door on a dark, cold night, begging for sugar and forgetting to say thank-you. Then getting sick on it for hours...or days. I can see why my parents didn't let us trick or treat when we were kids. (The begging factor, the safety issue, a candy haul, etc.)

Don't get me wrong. I like bobbing for apples, pumpkins on the porch and suspenseful movies. Just not all the gory yard decorations, giant spiders in grocery stores, candy wrappers all over the lawn, smashed pumpkin bits on the street, etc. I wish the whole thing would just go away. Can we skip it this year? Please?

10 comments:

Kim said...

Ha! you are so funny!

Wendy said...

We feel the same at our house! I only make us participate because of Sophie. I think she is cute all dressed up. I think it is just weird to dress your kid up and have them go beg for food. Who came up with this?! So this year Sophie is going to be a pumpkin for our ward H party. We'll see what happens in future years when she really wants to go out...also, teaching junior high, I became cynical because Halloween really became code for "dress like a hussy and come to school" day. Eww, gross!

TracyH said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
TracyH said...

You know, I have always thought Halloween was overdone here in UT. And yes, it could have been because we were not encouraged to beg for candy from neighbors we rarely saw any other time of year. Amen on the gory and trashy too.

Marcy in TX said...

I guess I'm a wimp. I don't fight it. I only have one neighbor that already has decorations up. It will mostly go up the last week of October. I let my kids dress up and go to their closest friends homes, then they stay home and hand out the candy. When we get trick or treaters taller than the hand-outers instead of shorter or at 8:15, whichever comes first, we turn off the lights and quit handing out treats.
We get lots of high school kids after 8.

The Campbell Clan said...

Of course I agree...I agree with you too Wendy! (I got a bitter taste in my mouth from school seeing everyone transform? their image. It is fun to go to parties with friends, and see kids have fun, but I never push this holiday on my kids. School will do that enough.

karrijhartman said...

Um . . . I vote we not skip it. It's the day the world was blessed, remember? ;) And hey, everyone is in the mood to play that day. That's not such a bad thing.

Jules said...

I may have a couple spare costumes if you need them. I don't get into all the decorating, but I like dressing my kids up. I also like trunk or treat, but I could do without the rest. It is definitely not my favorite holiday and I have to say I know lots of adults who really love it, dressing up and all (Adam is related to them) weird.

Jules said...

P.S. Adam doesn't care much for the holiday either and is embarrassed by his family that get into so much. One of his brothers actually used their halloween picture on their Christmas card one year, yikes.

Rachel J said...

I love it! Cute costumes, and yours is so creative! So much for the Halloween grinch... ;)