Halloween

It should have been an epic Halloween -- a Saturday night with a full moon, and a surprisingly warm and clear night -- but instead there was Covid. 

Liesl and I decided to walk around our neighborhood, with masks on, in costume. I warned her to keep her expectations low, because I was not sure there would be any candy available, since we were not going to knock on any doors. We met up with her friend Maya and family at 6:45, intending to enjoy the company of friends and the over-the-top house decorations around here, and hoping (hoping!) for some trick-or-treating. As it turned out, everyone had as if by magic landed on the same basic idea -- put the candy outside on a table, and let kids help themselves. Liesl was THRILLED. There were obviously many fewer kids out, and fewer houses participating, but we had set expectations low enough that all of the kids felt so much joy.

 

Liesl and Maya, with full bags and big grins under the masks. 

We came home and Liesl sorted her candy, and then we put the whole bag in quarantine -- I don't really think Covid is transmitted through wrappers, but no harm in letting it sit for 48 hours. If she needs to eat candy, we still have scads left from our own birthday party/giveaway stash.

 

This was our setup, on our front steps -- a small table that we kept restocking with candy -- the purple lights were quite bright and alerted kids that there was candy here! 

Sebastian was invited to a house party, but given the recent case numbers in Oregon, we were uncomfortable with the number of kids who might be there, and asked him not to go. He was incredibly mature about it and agreed, but it was still an enormous bummer. He supervised the candy table, played some Fortnite, and posed for this sad photo. It might not reflect the actual amount of candy he got (Liesl and I gathered a stash for him), but it does encapsulate his mood quite accurately.