Okay, like, what the freak happened to Halloween? It's just not the same as it was when I was a kid. Most of the kids mumble, instead of shout, "trick or treat", and some of them don't say anything...they just hold out their Walmart sack to collect free candy.

And then there are the kids that don't even wear costumes. I had one kid come to the door in a t-shirt and blue jean shorts. Even if you are poor (like we are) and can't afford a costume, you can easily find stuff laying around the house and use your mother's black eyeliner to make a cool homemade costume. Actually, a lot of times, the homemade costumes are the best, most creative ones that get the most compliments.

And then....this one kid...he couldn't have been more than 10 years old...he came to the door and said he was a pimp. A PIMP!! What kind of parent lets their child be a PIMP for Halloween? Sure, you can say "Oh, lighten up, it's just kids having fun." Yeah, well, kids can have "fun" being things other than a pimp!

I don't go for the scary, gorey costumes either. I had a 5 or 6-year-old kid come to the door in a white t-shirt that he cut holes in and put red paint or marker in big blotches on it to look like blood and he had black circles painted around his eyes. I go for the more cute costumes, like princesses, genies, Spiderman, or some other kind of superhero. Not ghosts, goblins and ghouls.

The scariest (if you want to call it scary) thing I was for Halloween was a witch. Other than that, I've been a princess, Cindy Lauper (lol, don't laugh...I was in Kindergarten and I was copying my older sister), a cat, a clown, and a couple other things I can't even remember. After about the 6th grade, I didn't go trick or treating anymore, and only dressed up if I got invited to a Halloween party, and I think one year in high school they allowed us to dress up for Halloween.

I'm not trying to say Halloween is ALL bad...just saying there are some parts of it I don't want my kids to participate in. Sure, it's cute while they're little...when they dress up as bumble bees and puppy dogs, but it's when they get older that it becomes a problem. Teens are more likely to get into trouble going out like that. I went out one time with my sister and her friend and they silly-stringed the high school principal's yard. And we were typically "good" kids. What would kids with parents that "don't care" get into?

A lot of churches these days do Harvest Festivals, which has its good and bad points. Some people say that churches have no business participating in that, but if it keeps kids safe and out of trouble by giving them an alternative activity, then I'm all for it.