Halloween Decorating

We’ve had some fun the last two weeks showing our American roots. Halloween didn’t use to be celebrated in Singapore but is sure catching on. We are expecting a massive crowd in our neighborhood this year. Last year a family on our street gave out over 4000 pieces of candy and ran out before the kids stopped coming. This year the American trick-or-treating tradition was featured on the front page of the Sunday paper with a three page article and full color photos.  It’s going to be a madhouse.  We've all contributed money to hire police to properly close the roads and security guards to monitor the mayhem. People come from all over the island to enjoy the excitement and collect some free candy.

I knew about this so I bought candy for about 750 kids. Good, yummy things.  Somewhere between our move in January and when I checked the bags in September the bags burst their air tight seal letting the humidity in. We didn't realize the candy mix had Jolly Ranchers and they effectively melted all over EVERYTHING.  I tried in vain to wash the candy but we probably had more casulties lost to the water than I had hoped. The kids had a fun afternoon eating a massive bucket full of soggy candy. I figured it was a free for all for two hours and then it all went in the trash.  They loved their early Halloween even if it was soggy.

I then bought enough candy for 2000 kids to get the equivalent of 5 Jolly Ranchers each individually sealed to be air tight.  Looks like I’ll need to reduce my offering by a lot so we don’t run out in the first half hour.  On the up side (if you can call it that) Brian will be out of town on Halloween night and I can’t take the kids out and hand out candy at the same time. I’ll only have half the time to hand out if I take my kids out.  We won’t want to stay out too long I hear.  The roads are so jammed with people that you have to keep a hand on your kids so they don’t get swept away in a moving crowd.  I’m stressed already about keeping three kids together.

All around the streets by the American school there are decorations popping up thanks to all the American kids that are excited.  We pulled out our preschool pumpkin garland and hung it in the house. We taught our fun Aussie friends, the Pitmans, how to make paper plate skeletons while Brian made rice krispie treats for them to try for their first time (they are fans).  Then Kristi and I went to the market to buy more paper plates, other Halloween craft supplies and boxes of rice krispie cereal while the kids played at the house with Brian. Later that night I stumbled across something that jogged my memory about how to color and shape the rice krispie treats into pumpkins. They tried it that weekend and they looked delicious.  The Pitman house is definitely spooky these days.

I scoured the internet looking for waterproof décor for the yard.  We ended up buying some pumpkin sparkle garland for the fence and the kids made ghosts and a giant tarantula for the front gate out of white and black trash bags.  Jacob was beyond proud to help me tie the spider to the gate. At first I thought it looked funny but he's growing on me.  The kids of course love being all decorated and ready for Halloween and trick-or-treating.