A So Cal Girl in the Desert

Our first Halloween in AZ went off without a hitch. My husband and son carved pumpkins on Halloween eve while I made the pumpkin seeds. I really dislike carving pumpkins. I feel obligated to carve every year because my dad used to really enjoy it (I think), and he would always make a big deal out of it when I was a kid. He would spread the newspaper all over the kitchen counter, get out all the tools, and make sure we drew out our patterns and planned ahead. This was before you could buy patterns. This was also before the "Pumpkin Cutter," which is probably why I'm not real hot on carving. I guess I feel like I should carve to honor his memory. But this year I realized I could just smell the pumpkins and think of him. I didn't have to pretend like I enjoyed carving. Sorry, Dad! And to help me along with the memory, my husband acted all serious just like my dad used to. The only part of pumpkin carving I truly enjoyed was sitting with my dad in the dark and admiring his lit jack-o-lanterns...then we would place them in the front window just so and walk out to the street to check it out. Good times. This year the dogs got up on the table and helped as the guinea pig chewed on the pumpkin top. My dad never would have let me do that, but now that I'm all growed up, I can do it if I want (as long as my husband has his back turned).

On Halloween night we went to The D's house. We had a great time taking the kids trick-or treating and handing out candy. We sat in the driveway with bags and bags of candy. There were a ton of kids. Mr. D had decorated their house pretty elaborately, complete with spooky music and strobe light. My son dressed as an army dude, Kermit dressed like a weenie, and Nasha wore a mohawk. The dogs didn't get to come with, but we took pictures anyway. My son has graduated from the cartoon character costumes to something a little more mature. Hopefully next year he'll go for something really horrific with blood and guts. Little Mr. D was a cute froggie!

Mrs. D had this candy bowl from hell. She said "Isn't it cute?" I said "Cute? Actually, it's kind of frightening." This is the stuff nightmares are made of, folks. It's a little kid's body dressed in Halloween garb with a pumpkin bucket head. See for yourself. Please vote "cute" or "oh my God, run for your lives." Isn't it reminiscent of a certain clown we all know and love? Yeah, that one under the bed. Except this one is even freakier because the head is hollow. And it just sits there. Like a real person. And he's pictured here in Little Mr. D's stroller. What happened to Little Mr. D?

Happy Halloween! Can you believe it's November?!!! (And our house still isn't done!!!)