Happy Halloween!

I'd like to say that Max enjoyed his first real experience doing the trick-or-treating thing, but I'm not so sure. He looked a little shell-shocked as I took photos of the boys as they got ready to roll. Then there was this photo:

I said, "Bye Max, have fun!" and he looked back at me with that expression. Seconds later he was running into my arms in tears. I know he was eager to go with his Dad and brother today; I could barely get him to take his nap. Maybe when the time came he just got nervous. Fear of the unknown? Separation anxiety because I wasn't going with them? Nap wasn't long enough? No clue. But I gave him a hug and told him everything was going to be OK and that they were going to have lots of fun. He stopped crying almost immediately and didn't hesitate to take his Dad's hand and head out.

I snapped this shot shortly after they got back home.

Still no smile. He seemed to enjoying sorting through his candy and then eating a bunch. No brainer there. And he really enjoyed going to the door to see the kids when the bell rang. All in all, I guess he liked Halloween. But I'm left feeling vaguely disappointed this year. We didn't even get around to putting our giant blow-up pumpkin in the yard. I didn't carve anything. I didn't roast pumpkin seeds. I did put on my goth cape that makes me look vaguely sinister and elegant. That was fun. But... next year I'm going to get a much earlier start with the planning and get the boys more involved with decorating. I think that will make things much better.