All Hallow's Eve

Happy Halloween, America!

Honestly, this has been pretty anti-climatic for the Houghs, seeing how the pinnacle of our Halloween season is our annual Halloween Party and all.  The girls have classroom Halloween parties and a costume parade at school, we take them Trick or Treating, and thaaaat's about it.  Nothing super crazy, it almost feels like an Epilogue at this point in the grand scheme of things.

Still, we have to jump through the hoops with it all, because our kids - unlike Kris and I - look forward to Halloween itself moreso than our party.  I assume it's the candy.

So yeah.  Here's how All Hallow's Eve went down in 2018.  Behold. . .

Kris took the day off so she could swing into the school and help out in the girls' classrooms, take pictures, and watch the costume parade.

Alayna's 5th grade classroom (she's towards the left.)

Alayna and some of her squad (Maddie, Christina, Noah, and Jazmine.)

Abby, Larkin, aaaaand I don't know the other kid.

Back in 3rd Grade. . .

Abby shows off her 'Haunted House' shoe box.

Some of Alayna's 5th Grade Class.

Post-Halloween party.

Not sure what's happening here.

These must be out of order or something - this looks like when Abby's classroom was actually making their Haunted Houses.  Kris' phone must be messed up.

I had a half-day at work, so I was able to walk down and pick the girls up from school (this pathway that leads to the school playground is like a block from our house, which is super convenient.)

A few hours later, a couple pharaohs all ready to start Trick or Treating.

 

Ready for plunder.

Our friends, the Johnsons, host a 'base camp,' so to speak, during Midland's Trick or Treating hours.  They have a fire pit in their driveway, they cook up a bunch of hot dogs and appetizers, and otherwise just hangout while trick-or-treaters frequent their house for candy.  We parked our van over by their house and dropped off our cooler (filled with my designated Halloween-ish craft beers) before setting off around the block with the kids.

Eric stayed back, but Courtney and their daughter accompanied us and a group of others through the neighborhood.

The crew.

The Cannonball, hammin' it up as usual.

 

Houghs, Johnsons, and Davises.

After an hour or so of Trick or Treating, I headed back to the Johnson's to drink a few beers around the fire with a few of the other dads.  Eventually, the women and children returned from their Trick or Treating venture - bags filled with hard-earned candy - and we grazed on the spread that was set up in the Johnson's garage.  Around 9pm, we headed home, where I cracked open the final Halloween beer of the year - an offering from Michigan's own Vivant.

While the girls watched a Halloween movie (Casper, this time around), they ate, sorted, and organized their scores.

Watson had to be restrained.  He was pretty excited about the kids' newly-acquired loot.

  

. . . and that was Halloween 2018.  See ya next year, America.

- Brian

Laps Around the Block

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

Scooby, Velma and Daphne

Okay, so we have a month of build-up leading up to Halloween - the entire month of October - all devoted to a mere hour or so of running around the block a few times, knocking on neighbors' doors and asking for handouts.

Like Christmas, the build-up to Halloween itself is starting to become more fun than the actual holiday itself anymore.  Trick or Treating is over so damn fast that afterward, while your kids are watching crappy Halloween specials and gorging themselves on processed sugary garbage, you start to question if the hours and hours of house decorating, the multiple trips to Halloween City, Meijer, Target and Walmart, the costume purchases in-store and online, and obligatory quest to find and mutilate pumpkins is all worth it.

Okay, that's stupid.  Of course it is.

This year the weather was significantly better than last year's freezing rain crapfest, so the girls wanted to be out and about more.  Unfortunately for all parties involved, Halloween fell on a Monday night this year, so it was a school night for three of us. . .

. . . and trust me when I say that there's no greater hell on Earth than a Middle School classroom the day after Halloween.

Okay, maybe Valentine's Day.

Behold. . .

The Haunted Not-So-Mansion

Ready to take Watson around the block for some candy acquisition. . .

Reba and Sophie had already carpeted a few houses before swinging by to meet up with our girls. . .

Like last year, Kris volunteered to take the girls around the block first, while I stayed behind to watch Kung Fury and pass out Halloween Candy, then we'd switch places. . . which is exactly how we started things this year.

(This pumpkin beer was a little hoppy for my taste. . . probably wouldn't do it again.)

Ivy Squad

After their first lap around the block, I left our bowl of candy out on the porch, locked the dog back up in the house, and joined the neighborhood pack of kids and adults for a second lap around the block.  Needless to say, it was pretty hard to keep up with these guys.

I kinda wish I had taken the girls out around the block first, and had Kris stay back and pass out candy, 'cause Kris didn't take any pictures while it was still somewhat light out, and so all of our trick-or-treat pictures are, well, pretty shitty.  Next year I'll be sure to remedy that, America. . .

 

Is this a good look on me?

Back at the house, ready to call it a night. . .

The girls begin tearing through their candy while watching some Halloween movies (and while I pick out all the crap that we don't want them to eat, or that's questionable in nature - all that stuff I'll end up taking to my classroom to give out to other people's kids. . .)

This dog's a mooch.

- Brian