The above picture was taken on one of only 2 or 3 years that my children participated in typical Halloween activities in my 32 years of parenting my seven children.
We tried a few years previously to attend a church harvest festival on Halloween, but the next day my kids were wild, and I found the cost of having crazy, amped up on sugar and dye children not worth the dubious fun of hanging out in a loud church activity hall with a lot of other people.
A few years later, we tried again, opting to go trick or treating with a sweet family who hosted a yearly chili dinner followed by door to door candy gathering in a nearby neighborhood. The ghoulish decorations were frightening to my spiritually sensitive kiddos (despite the battle blood costume one of them was wearing) and the evening was followed by my children getting the flu.
The sugar induced sickness was reason enough for me to opt out, and since most of my years of child rearing we lived out in the country where we didn't get any trick or treaters it wasn't hard to do.
As well, since it is a night with so much dark spiritual activity, it felt like a good time to be praying for protection over vulnerable children, and praying for restoration in our land instead of gathering unwanted candy (I'm like the dad in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory commenting, “cavity on a stick, eh?” before tossing it in the trash)
Most years since the above photo we gather with friends for a worship night, keep a bowl of candy handy for the rare visitors, and eat a few treats.
Simple celebrations like these offer the added benefit of feeling great the next day (no sugar/overstimulation hangovers here!)
Saints and Martyrs
But for other families, it's a valuable evening to honor saints and martyrs, to enjoy making family memories with creative costumes, and to be a good neighbor. I read a post earlier this week talking about how the holiday was created to help Christians remember these heroes of the faith, and that we shouldn't let the enemy of our souls co-opt it for his purposes. These families dress up in costumes based on Christian saints, and enjoy the holiday as a prelude to All Saints Day or Reformation Day festivities.
If this is you, you might love these Saint related resources from the Peaceful Press shop.
Saints Art and Memory Cards- Each card contains a fine art picture and content featuring a Christian saint. These would be a great resource for choosing saints to celebrate on All Saints Day
Precious People Saints Guide- This guide features learning about Saint Patrick, Saint Augustine, Saint Francis and Saint Elizabeth of Hungary. A reading of the prayer of Saint Patrick and the Apostle's Creed are especially useful in these days when paganism is on the rise.
For other Christian families, it's just a regular old American holiday, featuring bats, skeletons, and witches. Still, filtering out the adult world is important for young children, and protecting them from scary images is one of the ways we help them regulate and feel safe.
In the Peaceful Preschool Volume 2, we feature a few fun fall books and activities with nature elements like bats and spiders that are non-scary and delightful. You can find the Peaceful Preschool Volume 2 booklist here.
However you celebrate, we pray you stay safe, and enjoy building precious bonds as a family and honoring our faithful Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Which Halloween camp do you fall into? Take time to reflect on your family celebrations and create a meaningful plan.
