Halloween was fun, but I have to say I’m glad it is over. For one thing, I now have a huge bucket of candy to dig through that is sure to satisfy any sugar cravings I may have for the next month or two. For another thing, I’m absolutely exhausted.
For Zach, it was a very busy day. At school, he had a field trip to a nearby retirement community where he got to Trick or Treat and have a little party with the residents. Then, that afternoon they had a costume parade and got to Trick or Treat through the church offices. I managed to get off work a little early so I could be there for this. It was really fun to see all the kids dressed up in their costumes. After the parade, they went back to their classroom and had a little party where Zach scarfed down an entire cupcake while his classmates licked at the icing on theirs. His teacher commented that everyone really loved his Buzz Lightyear costume.
After the school party was done, we picked up Hubby at home and headed up to my sister’s house. We had a quick dinner and then got the kids dressed up to Trick or Treat around the neighborhood. Dylan and Ryan were very into the Trick or Treating, while Zach was lagging behind a bit. He was actually more interested in checking out the stars in the sky than rushing up to the next door.
We were hoping to go by my dad’s house as well, but it seemed like things kept happening to slow us down. By the time we did a quick walk around the neighborhood the kids were pretty worn out.
When we got back to the house, Hubby put Toy Story 2 on and Zach and Ryan were glued to the TV. Zach hadn’t seen the 2nd one before and was completely mesmerized. There was no way he was going to leave until it was over, so we stayed while he finished the movie and then headed home.
Unfortunately, the ride home was not very pleasant because Zach spent the entire drive throwing a massive tantrum. He had been playing with Ryan’s Woody and Buzz toys and really wanted to take them home. I finally convinced him that he needed to leave them with Ryan, but when we got to the car he started screaming. He wanted a BIG Woody and Buzz like Ryan’s (he has some small ones but they apparently aren’t good enough). It was at least slightly humorous to listen to him scream, “I want a BIG Woody!”
The night pretty much went downhill from there. Zach did not want to go to bed and ended up in bed with Hubby and I. He spent most of the night tossing and turning and having the night terrors. It is so hard to have to sit there and watch him go through that. I feel so helpless and it is hard to remember that he’s not actually awake when he is screaming and thrashing around the way he does. I have learned over the last couple of nights that when it does happen, I need to just sit back and wait it out. If I even try to touch him, he gets more hysterical. If I just wait it out, eventually he’ll settle back down and be fast asleep. The worst part of all of it is that no one in our house is getting much sleep and it is starting to show. We’re all a little crankier than we should be and that isn’t really helping things much.
So, to make a long story short (or at least a little bit shorter), Halloween 2007 started out very fun and ended with massive tantrums and night terrors. I’m just hoping that when I look back on it later I remember the good parts and not the bad.
