A Different Kind of Halloween at Home

Halloween at home this year, and it looked different than most. The older girls spent the morning getting into their anime costumes — wigs, petticoats, torn tights, the whole thing — and posed in front of the Salem Broom Co. sign and the pumpkin banner in the dining room. They made faces at themselves in the entry mirror for a while, next to the trick-or-treat chalkboard.

Instead of the usual door-to-door setup, we put a candy table out on the front steps by the skull, so kids could come by without anyone handing anything over. The youngest went out with two friends anyway — one in bunny ears, one carrying a Jason hockey jersey and a striped mallet — all three in masks under or over their costumes, which is just how this year goes.

The inflatable pumpkin creature stayed up out front and the cobwebs held through the evening. The sun went down orange over the hill while they were still out with their bags.