This Halloween marked my first trick-or-treating venture with LPP and I loved it! Last year K & I had to work, so my younger brother kindly did the honors. But I was so excited to not miss out this year. I had a long day of tedious household chores that had to be dealt with, but once 5pm hit, I got my boy dressed up in a jiffy - now mind you, this involved me using a washcloth to remove every sticky ounce of CARAMEL that LPP managed to smooth into his hair like a pomade while eating a caramel apple that I guiltily left him as a bribe of sorts to keep him occupied while I dealt with some professional shredders that came and removed SEVEN boxes of papers from my apartment (WOO HOO)! Silver lining: more caramel in the hair, less caramel in the mouth. Once LPP was de-carameled and completely costumed, we went out with his babysitter (who I babysat when he was LPP's age), his babysitter's wife and their daughter, LPP's best friend (and sometimes "girlfriend"). I felt my age as I neared their car and noticed that my babysitter and his wife were all decked out in costumes and I looked like I had just rolled out of bed. I told myself it was my costume and kept it moving.
I wasn't sure about the timing of our outing because LPP hadn't had a nap and literally five minutes before we left, he was shaking his sticky head at me telling me he DID NOT want to go trick-or-treating. And I almost gave in, because frankly, I was bone-tired! And there was the caramel to contend with. But I really didn't want to let this opportunity pass, so we rallied and got into my babysitter's car and parked on a ritzy stretch not too far from the house. I got out to get LPP out of his car seat and lo and behold... he was ASLEEP. Silver lining: I got to sneak a jacket on him because it was chilly and let's be honest, I haven't completely shaken my "new" mom anxieties and didn't want him to catch a cold. But this meant I had to carry him trick-or-treating, happily snoring in my arms. Did I mention LPP weighs a ton! Well, it's more that he is so long-legged. Anyway, after 3 houses and a hernia, I just knew that LPP would be so disappointed that he missed out (even though he probably won't even remember this day ten years from now), so I stood him up, or tried to, until he woke up... and then insisted that I CARRY him for the rest of the way. I managed to get him to walk for the last few houses. His little voice was so priceless as, after waking up fully, he excitedly echoed his little friend, "Trick or treat!" And to watch his little hand reach into a bag and grab a shiny prize of delectable sweetness was totally worth it all!
Now I just have to find creative ways to erase the memory of all that candy from LPP's brain because there he was, in his high chair, eyes in a sugar trance at the prospect of actually eating all those sweets. He was licking the outside of the unopened candy wrappers, he was so excited. K and I gave him a limit on the candy eating, which was more than we would normally allow, but you know, it was Halloween. I went out quickly to walk Brooklyn and as soon as I came back in, he said without any prompting from me, "I'm not eating it Mommy! I'm just looking at it!" smile, wink. And then I caught him crouched down low by the couch an hour later, just chewing his little heart out, his bucket of candy magically beside him. When I caught him, he just stared me down, still chewing but more slowly, as if by slowing the chewing down my eyes wouldn't be able to detect any motion. He gave a sideways glance at K to see if he'd noticed, but he hadn't. And then we locked eyes again. It took everything I had to not crack a smile. I've since hid the candy in a cupboard and surprisingly he hasn't asked for it.
Caught in the act with the culprit caramel apple. LPP looks like a red head.
My lion cub.
Trick-or-treating. That's my babysitter's wife's back there in her cool Bumble Bee costume. Did I mention that I looked like I rolled out of bed? Did you notice there are no pictures of me? So smart!
Home with his spoils, licking the unopened candy in its wrapper.
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