halloween is simply not complete without the sound of trick or treaters gathered at the door. after our first year here, we realized our street is not usually descended upon by many witches + ghouls, so we wanted to be sure we were creating as much excitement at our house as we could muster, in hopes of an increase in doorbell rings year over year. the neighborhood behind ours has been the place to be every year with cul-de-sacs full of children going door to door, + even a block party complete with pizzas piled high + a visit from the firetruck–oh, to be a kid again! even as a parent, drifting through the waves of people is like a scene out of hocus pocus.
there are many ways this could change eventually + i remain hopeful that around the time the girls are old enough to go treat-or-treating for a little longer with friends, we’ll have a few more kids on our street + who knows by then, maybe even…streetlights?! ryan + i have been dreaming up a festive return of our brews + boos gathering that will, with any luck, come together next year. in the meantime, we decorate the front porch with bats, floating witch hats + a creepy-cool doorbell that shrieks + an occasional mummy (wrapped) door with googly eyes. one year we set up a few witches around their brew, but i worried it was a bit too creepy.
on hallows’ eve, we put out candles + votives to light the way up to the porch. there our guests can find a few of our “bat bags” that have a handful of candy inside instead of a single piece, in hopes of returning any visitor’s investment. i know the tried + true trick is handing out king size candy bars + we just may need to try that next. if we only have a handful of visitors, it may just be worth it. do kids these days even know what to do with a king size candy bar? i barely do.
what about you? do you or your neighbors set up anything special for the kids in your neighborhood? do you go all out with decorations? whether with or without trick-or-treaters, i just love the silly fun factor + eerie ambiance of the evening this holiday conjures. the excuse to eat a couple extra pieces of candy, watch scary movies + remember the fun memories from octobers past aren’t half bad either!
happy halloween!
porches + pillowfights 