Blog: Dadmissions: Halloween Hangover

I was a man on a mission..a Dadmission to get home in the middle of my night shift from work to trick or treat with the girls.

I got home, made them a nutritious dinner (chicken nuggets and smiley fries), carved a pumpkin (hacked at it till it somewhat resembled a black cat), helped them get in their costumes (stood there while the wife figured it out), and then we went on our way out the door.

I love trick or treating. When I was a kid, I have fond/traumatic memories of my dad getting in the big blue 1970's Plymouth Fury and slowly, stalkingly following us down the street with his headlights on as my sister and I walked door to door trick or treating so he could protect us from the weirdos! I prefer the more natural approach of actually walking with your kids.

For Halloween 2012, we had a southern belle and a cute little fairy, two sisters walking hand in hand through South Pasadena. My apologies to the people who called 4 year old Andreya a princess only for her to correct them and say she was a fairy. My apologies to the Viking who almost went down when he tripped on 7-year-old Alicia as he walked in costume! We did Meridian Ave and part of Oak street and then made the turn to Diamond which has become the closest thing to Mardi Gras that I've ever seen.

The kids were cleaning up big time. Their candy bags were bursting. They walked behind the guy in the skeleton mask because he was too scary. And they avoided the haunted house for the same reason, although dad still wishes he was able to go inside. There was a band rocking out on Diamond, costumes everywhere, and my two little kids soaking it all up. It was awesome. My time was limited and I was about to turn back into a pumpkin if I didn't get the kids home and get back to work. We brought the kids back to the house as they guarded their candy stash.

My wife then began the Halloween negotiations.

With these full bags of candy, she convinced the kids to pick two candies each, and she told them the rest was going back with dad to work. So unfair. My friend at work analyzed the situation just right saying it's more of a "catch and release" type Halloween. The kids are in it for the joy of the hunt, the sheer incredible fortune that for one night, for one night only, they get to go door to door getting candy even if they aren't allowed to eat it. I dropped the kids at home, got back in the car, and headed back to finish my night shift at work. I couldn't help but think that if the ADULTS trick or treated on Halloween and the KIDs gave out candy, that I'd hope they'd give fun size bars of spare time and sleep, the things adults yearn for most. On the way to work, don't tell anyone, I rifled through their candy bags on a little mini candy binge.. got myself an Almond Joy, a Reese's, a Kit Kat and maybe a couple of others that shall remain nameless.

I was like a kid in a candy store.