Mood:  cool

Yesterday I talked about my Halloween memories from my childhood. My how times have changed. Gone are the days where you child could freely walk door to door in your neighborhood without fear. The innocent costumes of yesteryear have taken back seat to ugly, gross, expensive store bought masks and costumes. I can see why some churches condemn Halloween and have nothing to do with it.

I won't get into the debate about the history of Halloween and why some say that Christians shouldn't be celebrating this holiday. I won't take time to reiterate why Halloween costumes have become more gross than I could have ever imagined when I was young. I won't delve into what has happened to our world to make going door to door unsafe for our children. These things have been discussed into the ground.

I am of the opinion that, with a little bit of planning, Halloween can still be a safe and fun holiday that can be enjoyed by all. Here are some suggestions:

1. Don't sweat the costume. Homemade can still be great. Last year our son, Joshua, went as a ninja. We found some white pants, a white shirt, a black cloth belt and a black cloth headband and that was it. No one cared and he loved it! Jacob, our youngest decided that he didn't want to wear the army shirt that we had found, so he just wore the camouflage pants with a grey turtle neck shirt and called that was it. He was happy and so were we.

2. These days, I wouldn't suggest allowing your kids to go door to door by themselves anywhere. How about driving you kids to the homes of some of your good friends or pick a really nice neighborhood to trick or treat at. Always instruct your kids to never go into someones home unless you are right there with them and always be very visible and keep your kids in site. In a busy neighborhood it is sometimes hard to tell which witch is which. Perhaps have some tell tale sign that is unique to your child's costume so that mommy won't mistake some else's mummy for her mummy.

3. Church sponsored "Trunk or Treats" are really popular these days. That's where church members will park their cars with the trunks facing out. They open their decorated, candy filled, trunks and the kids walk through the rows of cars trick or treating and filling their bags with candy. Often the church will have inflatable jumping toys and other games to entertain your child as well.

4. Not sure about the trick or treating or dressing up part? Some churches sponsor "Fall Festivals" where you dress up like a Bible character or sometimes come as you are. Ask around. Most are open to anyone.

5. Still not convinced that Halloween is for you? Why not take your family to a corn maze. They are very popular these days. At least they are around here. Most don't have a Halloween theme at all and are a lot of fun. In fact, we just went to one today as a family and had a blast. Pictures are coming soon, but, until then, here's a picture from our adventure last year.

Even though Halloween is not the innocent holiday it used to be, it can still be a lot of fun. You just need to be creative, pick an activity that fits your family, and don't sweat it. Have fun!

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Dad Central Consulting and they sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

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Mood:  a-ok

I know what they say today. Some churches are horribly against Halloween. With all of the realistic vampire, witch and monster movies and TV shows these days I don't really blame them. It used to be that witches and monsters were black and white. They were almost always evil, and they were a joke. No one believed that they were real. These days, they blur the lines of good and evil. Witches and warlocks and vampires are glorified. They are worshiped. And doing evil things for the greater good is accepted. So, even my views of Halloween have changed over the years. But, that isn't what this post is about. It's about memories of Halloweens past.

Halloween used to be a fun holiday. I don't remember any controversy like we have today. Where I lived in Pennsylvania we dressed up like all sorts of things. If someone dressed up like a witch or a ghost it was always fun. Evil looking masks were not even known about. More than not, kids dressed up like a scarecrow, an old hag or something similar. And everyone knew each other. It was the norm to try to guess who it was behind the mask before you gave them the candy. Even at school, the principal would travel from class to class to guess who each person was.

I remember one year I dressed up like "Puss in Boots". It was a hodgepodge of a costume. We never had enough money to buy a costume from town. They weren't the norm anyway. I was almost the winner that year. Mr. Williams, our principal and also the sixth grade teacher, didn't recognize me! That was unusual, since Mr. Williams knew my family well. My brother went to a Bible study with him and my mom was a substitute teacher for the school. I was so thrilled.

Another time I dressed up as a cowboy and went trick or treating with my cousin. We were rustlers. We even made up a chant that we would say when someone came to the door. Halloween was fun in Central Pennsylvania. The air was cool and crisp. It was safe to go house to house in groups without your parents. Those were the days.

Really, my happy Halloween memories go back further than my days in Pennsylvania. We moved to PA when I was in second grade, but before that we lived in Indiana. Indiana was much the same. Everyone knew each other and things were safe. Even folks from my church held Halloween parties. I remember one such party held at the farm of one of our good friends. I had dressed up like a ghost. I remember we all had to walk around in a circle while our hosts judged our costumes. I was young, maybe in kindergarten, and could barely see out of the eye holes that had been cut in the sheet that I wore over my head. I recall suddenly being grabbed and lifted up. It scared me half to death. It seems that I had won a prize and they were just scooping me up so that I could accept it. Then later we took a tour of their innocent "haunted" barn. It was so innocent that one of the rooms held a trough full of feed with shoes stuck out of it to look like someone had been buried. That was the extent of the scare.

Another time I was paired with the daughter of one of my mom's friends. She dressed up like Raggedy Ann and I was Raggedy Andy. We marched in a parade and again I won a prize. I may only have been two dollars, but I won!

As you can see, Halloweens back...ummm...40 years ago or so, were innocent and fun. The worst thing that happened was some older teens threw corn at our house and broke our screen door with a pumpkin. My how times have changed. Unfortunately many things have made this formerly fun October holiday into something totally different than what it used to be. Tomorrow I will focus a little on Halloween today and how we can make it fun and safe for everyone.  

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Dad Central Consulting and they sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

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Mood:  a-ok

I'm sorry! We are down to one computer right now until we can get one of the others fixed. Soooo...that is the reason why I haven't been posting every day. I am one that writes when I post. There are talented bloggers that can write three or four posts at one time and then schedule them to be posted on certain days. Not me! I'm not that talented. I write and post all on the same day. Therefore, when I can't get one of the computers (or should I say the ONLY computer) to write on, then...no post. But, I feel good tonight, and even if Sarah wants to get on (which she deserves to, she's been helping out some of our Mission folks who have been in the hospital or at emergency rooms all day - but that's another story), then I will wait until late tonight to write it. IT WILL BE WRITTEN!

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Mood:  don't ask

 Of what? Well, not of me, that's for sure! But of the Halloween entry that I'm about to post tomorrow! Be very afraid!?!

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Mood:  happy

I was totally thrilled last year when I won the Homeschool Blog Award in the Best Homeschool Dad Blog category. It was an honor that I will never forget. Well, they are now taking nominations for the 6th Annual Homeschool Blog Awards. This year there are 20 categories including the Best Homeschool Dad Blog. I would love it if you all would nominate me again. This is just the first step. Right now I just need a few people (I think five) to nominate this blog so that it will be put on the official ballot. Then, in November, the official votes will be cast. For right now, if you feel lead, I would appreciate all the nominations that I can get just to make sure I get on the ballot. If you will click on the button above, it will take you to the nomination page. I think that the Best Homeschool Dad Blog category is the second on the list. I know it is right at the top. If you could just enter the following information in I would really be thankful. I really appreciate all of you faithful readers.

God Bless,

Tim

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