click here to open post Oct 26, 2012 | posted in parenting | 22 comments

Above photo from beautiful cousin Nicole and her darling Baby Dash. Halloween, 2011.

I introduce to you. . . the Great Pumpkin!

Every year, on Halloween night, the Norton boys bag up all their Halloween loot and leave it out on the front porch for the Great Pumpkin. Once the the boys are in bed and the house is quiet and dark, the Great Pumpkin emerges from the darkness and sizes up said offering. If he deems the sacrifice sufficient, he takes it with him and leaves some long awaited toy, of one kind or another, in it’s place!

I know. I know. Y’welcome.

Great Pumpkin Tips:

1. If you’re worried about the kids being on board, make it optional. Chances are, they’ll be so curious about the surprise, they’ll be all over the idea. If not, when siblings get their presents, they’ll have at least learned their lesson for next year!

2. Let the kids each pick 5-10 of their favorite pieces of candy to keep! “Live a little, mom.”

3. You could always have the Tooth Fairy come pick up the loot instead of the Great Pumpkin! That’s a pretty practical mythical creature to use in a case like this. . . She could leave money, just like she does for teeth. . .

4.  Have the kids write a letter to the Great Pumpkin, the way they do for Santa for an extra touch of festivity!

5. Parents! Be sure to dig through the goodies and hide a stash of your favorite treats before the Great Pumpkin shows up and walks away with all that deliciousness. . . ;)

Happy Halloween!!

**This was originally posted on October 31,2011. It appears here as a revised copy of the original post.