Ahhh, the dreaded Halloween. Yes, I did say dreaded. Each year this holiday brings such turmoil. Do we or don't we?? I know full well the evilness behind the origins, I know that for the most part, it is just a fun time for little ones. I also know that Christ died so that we don't have to deal with legalism and earning our place in heaven. But, we do want to glorify God in all we do. Such a dilemma!! When Beth and John were little we "did" Halloween. Then we became convicted that we shouldn't. It was an easy conviction, there was a carnival at a local church. They had games, rides, the whole bit. Beth and John didn't feel like they were missing anything.
Then we moved into our current neighborhood. They make a big deal out of Halloween. There is a parade for the kids to be in, with dinner at the end. Almost everyone participates, in addition our trusty carnival didn't take place anymore. We saw that the holiday was becoming extremely important to our kids, overly so. So, we decided to let them participate one year. That was a good decision, because they decided that it wasn't such a big deal and didn't want to do it the next year. So, now we've got little ones again, and have to make a decision.
Well....my mom bought Abbey a cute as pie lady bug costume, and we knew she would enjoy it, so we participated again this year. She had a blast! She marched and waved in the parade. She then loved the trick or treating part. She said repeatedly, "We're going on a trick or treat!" One funny thing- Abbey has watched a Dora with a witch and is slightly afraid of witches. We've talked a lot about witches. I've told her that witches like the one in Dora don't really exist. Well, as she was trick or treating, one lady was dressed up as, yup, you guessed it, as a witch. Abbey went up to her and she asked Abbey what she was. She then told Abbey that she was a witch. Abbey's eyes got wide and she yelled, "Mom, she's a witch!" Then she ran down the sidewalk to John and said, "Dad, Dad, have I got something to tell you??" Later in the walk, I made the analogy that she wasn't really a lady bug, so that lady wasn't really a witch. She seemed to understand. Who knows what we will do next year?
Then we moved into our current neighborhood. They make a big deal out of Halloween. There is a parade for the kids to be in, with dinner at the end. Almost everyone participates, in addition our trusty carnival didn't take place anymore. We saw that the holiday was becoming extremely important to our kids, overly so. So, we decided to let them participate one year. That was a good decision, because they decided that it wasn't such a big deal and didn't want to do it the next year. So, now we've got little ones again, and have to make a decision.
Well....my mom bought Abbey a cute as pie lady bug costume, and we knew she would enjoy it, so we participated again this year. She had a blast! She marched and waved in the parade. She then loved the trick or treating part. She said repeatedly, "We're going on a trick or treat!" One funny thing- Abbey has watched a Dora with a witch and is slightly afraid of witches. We've talked a lot about witches. I've told her that witches like the one in Dora don't really exist. Well, as she was trick or treating, one lady was dressed up as, yup, you guessed it, as a witch. Abbey went up to her and she asked Abbey what she was. She then told Abbey that she was a witch. Abbey's eyes got wide and she yelled, "Mom, she's a witch!" Then she ran down the sidewalk to John and said, "Dad, Dad, have I got something to tell you??" Later in the walk, I made the analogy that she wasn't really a lady bug, so that lady wasn't really a witch. She seemed to understand. Who knows what we will do next year?
Cutie Pie Lady Bug Future Tarheel
Walking in the parade
Enjoying pizza after the parade
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