Halloween is over for another year.

What a lovely night! All manner of little fairies, goblins, gouls, superman,  monsters, a bride bleeding profusely,  some wierd mutations of mortica adams, some freak with blue hair? Fangs, blood, ripped clothes. I even had a princess of about 3yrs old. Little people just don't get the theory of halloween!

It was so lovely this yr. All little kids & not teens looking for free lollies unless they were taking the young ones around. Lots of mums waving as they loitered in my drive...  & 1 dad dressed to the scary 9's with his 3yr old asking for a lolly.

3 little girls had forgotten to bring their lolly bags so I gave them paper bags as they were so little they couldn't even hold two mini choc bars in their hand. They were very happy, now they could fill the bag up!

The dogs went right off when about 10 assort gouls & a tiny spiderman turned up. Spiderman was about 2-3yrs & was screaming. I ran to the door. I didn't want him to be scared! Only to realize he was screaming in sheer delight yelling... "puppies" as he looked in the security door!

What a lovely evening everyone has had.

I hope your halloween is as much fun.

Glad you had a fun Halloween!

I hate 'trick or treat' . Don't approve of it at all.

I never let my two go trick or treating when they were young, and I won't dish out 'treats'.

That sounds like loads of fun Tracy.

I'm glad you and all the little tots that called on you enjoyed Halloween, Tracy!

Well it's an American thing isn't it (I blame that film ET). And children, being the avaricious little beings they are, have caught on with enthusiasm.

When I was young we didn't have trick or treating, although some of us were aware of the superstition behind Halloween, and maybe bobbed an apple or ate an apple in front of a mirror by candlelight in fear of seeing our future husband appear in the mirror!

I am not a Halloween enthusiast and could explain why, but don't want to get heavy!

I'm not a huge fan of halloween as it's not an Aussie thing either but... the kids so love getting dressed up in their costumes & collecting lollies. I can't be against them having fun. I get some lollies ea yr. I couldn't bear their sad little faces if I didnt have a lolly for ea child! so ... no big deal. & I get to laugh at the outfits, meet new mum's in the area, ... it's a win win.

Don't be scrooges! Let the kids dress up & play in the dark for one special night ea yr.

Caryll wrote:I hate 'trick or treat' . Don't approve of it at all.

I never let my two go trick or treating when they were young, and I won't dish out 'treats'.

What do you do when a small child is at your door saying trick or treat?

I wish halloween had stayed in the US but, it's here & I couldn't turn a child away, all dressed up, on a fun day for them.

The problem around our area is that, running the risk of sounding insensitive, it's extremely dangerous. Predator central. In the middle of the night, kids are knocking on the doors of less than savoury people, asking for sweets and completely abandoning the 'don't take sweets from strangers' rule. If they're accompanied by an adult, it isn't as dangerous, but things can and do still happen.

We've never had trick or treaters, as our house entrance is separated from the street by a low wooden gate, followed by two sturdy garage-type doors, which then leads onto a strip of land with huge, locked metal gates at either end. And I know this will make me sound like a spoil sport, but if we get trick or treaters in the future, I wouldn't answer the doorbell. But it's probably different, depending on where you live.

When I was little, I never actually wanted to go trick or treating! So it wasn't an issue.

Like Lynda, I don't want to get heavy about it. Halloween, as it is today, is a very recent thing.

I don't like trick or treat for a few reasons
1. Some kids get quite malicious & throw eggs & break windows if they don't get a treat, or even a treat they like.
2. Some people just don't want to be disturbed several times in an evening.
3. Some people, especially the elderly, get frightened by it all
4. There are some very weird & nasty people out there & kids don't know if they're knocking on the door of one of them.

Plus, of course, there's the religious side of it. But let's not go there.

It goes from about 6pm for the littlies here to 9pm for the older kids. (Just after dark). We only give individually wrapped lollies, never a lolly that could be touched.

Halloween today IS very different.  Kids here don't " trick"  it's just a saying.
We put up a " no trick or treating" sign here if we don't want to participate & it's no problem.   They just go to the next house.
Nasty children are not a problem here, & mum is there near by unless there are elder teens with the littlies.

It is NOT AT ALL religion based here & there are NO TRICKS ( not in my knowledge anyway)... It's just the kids dressing up for fun, to go & get some lollies. Our halloween seems not to be like the US or UK.

It may be a different type of night there... but here, it is just kids having a fun night out. Getting dressed up & some lollies.

Goes on all night here. Also, because it's getting closer to winter, it gets dark at around 5. And some of the kids are out purely just to 'trick'. Tricks double when they see a 'do not disturb' sign.

Probably depends on the area you live in. A friend of mine went out to live in Australia, several years ago. She came back after a couple of years, though I never asked why. She said Halloween where she lived was just awful! Eggs, toilet paper and shaving foam all over windows, doors and cars! Same as here, I guess - some areas are quite peaceful, and then you get the 'other' areas.

I think you missed my point, Tracy re: Religion.

All Halloween is, is All Hallow's Eve. In other words, the evening before All Saints Day, which is a Christian Holy day.

Tradition says that evil spirits walk the earth the night before All Saints Day, and the Saints banish them in the morning.

It's the USA who dreamed up trick or treat.

Scaaaaaaary!

My understanding of the origin of Halloween is only slightly different from Caryll's in that in medieval times it was believed that when somebody died, their soul didn't go to heaven straight away. Instead, it hung around earthbound until All Soul's Day (November 1st), when collectively they were sent to heaven (or the other place!). Therefore, by October 31st there was quite a collection of disembodied "spirits" roaming around.

I know little children love dressing up and it's now a "fun night" for them (they get sweeties and money, why wouldn't it be!) although personally I think dripping blood should not be part of a small child's costume (especially the bleeding bride who visited Tracey).

I try not to be a killjoy, especially where little ones are concerned, and always have some sweeties on hand in case they call on Halloween (my son and I ate them today!). "Tricking" is thankfully not a problem round here, as far as I am aware, although the local shops display notices that they will not sell eggs or flour to children under 16.

Re: not selling eggs and flour - that's a really good idea!

Lynda, All Souls Day is 2nd November. 1st November is All Saints Day.

All Souls Day is when Christians pray for souls in purgatory.

That's the Catholic origin. The one that's celebrated now, with the traditions present today, was originally Samhain. I think.

Caryll wrote:Lynda, All Souls Day is 2nd November. 1st November is All Saints Day.

All Souls Day is when Christians pray for souls in purgatory.

Ah OK, thought I might be a day out, but wasn't sure!

What's Samhain?

Not really sure! All I know is the name!

Ah! There it is!

Eleanor wrote: A friend of mine went out to live in Australia, several years ago. She came back after a couple of years, though I never asked why. She said Halloween where she lived was just awful! Eggs, toilet paper and shaving foam all over windows, doors and cars! Same as here, I guess - some areas are quite peaceful, and then you get the 'other' areas.

I think if this is true for her? She would have lived in the western suburbs of a state.

I know it's the US that invented it. As said, I wish it stayed there, but I still can't be upset with kids dressing up having fun. Which is all it is here.

I'm not 'upset with kids dressing up & having fun '. What I am upset about is the total disregard for people who don't want to be disturbed, or who might be frightened by constant rings on the bell. If kids want to dress up, hold a fancy dress party, don't go round knocking on strangers' doors, threatening 'tricks' if they don't give suitable treats.

I know I sound like a killjoy, but I just think that other people's feelings/sensitivities are totally ignored.

I don't think she did, but I'll ask her later.

Linda (Serendipity) is the one to ask about things like Samhain - she's a Pagan.