Preparations for All Saints Eve

Trick or treat,
Smell my feet,
Give me something nice to eat.
If you don't,
I don't care,
I'll pull down your underwear!!!

Ben trying on our witches wig.

As a child Halloween pretty much came and went as we were all looking forward to celebrating bonfire night five days later. We knew kids in America went trick or treating and by the time I was a teenager, children in the UK began to come knocking at the door, but it was never many and always children we knew.


When I moved to Ireland 12 years ago I found that things were very different here:-

Firstly, there was no bonfire night which meant no fireworks and I love fireworks.

Secondly, every single child in the vicinity comes calling looking for treats. This could be well over 100 children and teenagers mostly in fabulous costumes looking scary, cute, funny or just weird! The first year I had to drive up to the local newsagent when we ran out of sweets, now I'm always well prepared with copious amounts of goodies which I always hope will go otherwise I'll end up eating them all!

Thirdly, even when you say trick they don't have one prepared and just laugh and ask for a treat.

Fourthly, even though private fireworks are banned here and there are no displays on Halloween it doesn't seem to deter people from travelling up north to purchase them or finding someone down here to buy them from. So I still get to see some fireworks!

Before you say anything Sam, no it's not me with the pumpkin!

And so began the Halloween preparations in the O'Sullivan household. Mollie's costume was made last week as she went to a fancy dress party, Ben decided to dress up as a soldier which means he wears his army gear and Dillon doesn't dress up. The pumpkin was purchased and the house was decorated with pumpkin lights, dragonfly lights, ghosts, skeletons, bats and witches on Friday. Mollie designed the face the pumpkin should have on Saturday. Plenty of treats were purchased and I cut out the pumpkin design on Sunday. Finally today Halloween fairy cakes were made.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN