Halloween Photos: A Timeline of Childhood

The end of October is always a time of year I look forward to. I love how the light patterns change at the end of the day, and the crispness in the air. My birthday is also around that time, and the memories of that make that particular month very special to me. Halloween, that annual ritual of holding our little ones' hands as they trick or treat also makes October memorable. I am a mother of five children, all born during a 17 year span, so I have made many a trek through the neighborhood with my adorable tots dressed in their Halloween finest.

While looking through my many photo albums recently, it occurred to me what a timeline Halloween photos of our children are. Even more so than Christmas photos, each image reflects the various stages my children have gone through. Their interests, obsessions, and fantasies all wrapped up in a costume and captured in a photograph.

My oldest child, Patrick, took his first Halloween expedition at the age of two. I was a young, enthusiastic mother who could not wait to experience that with my little boy. I bought him a Superman costume. It was a set of Pajamas actually, with a little cape that attached with Velcro. I even donned a costume myself that night, ala Dorothy from Wizard of Oz, and held his tiny hand as we went to the doors in the condo complex where we lived, his eyes growing wider as treats continued to be put into the plastic pumpkin he held out. He wore those Superman pajamas for a long time after that too, as they were very special to him.

The years passed and more costumes were bought or created. A pirate costume was selected when Patrick was three as he was into anything that involved an eye patch and saying "Ahoy, matey!". He enjoyed that costume so much he wore it the following year. After his little brother came along, we saw quite a variety of disguises. Skeletons, vampires, ghosts, and of course the Barney ,Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and Harry Potter stages, each smiling photo from that time period a precious memory.

It became even more enjoyable when a little girl was born into our family. I could not wait to buy anything girly and frilly for her to wear. Her first costume was a white bunny. It had floppy pink ears, and in her first Halloween photo, her big blue eyes are shining and her red hair is peeking out from underneath the headpiece. I got such a kick out of watching her each year....from the parade of Disney princess costumes...(yes Belle, Snow White, and Cinderella all graced our repertoire)...to the doctor costume(mom's wishful thinking maybe?)...to the frightening female vampire...all captured on film holding enormous buckets of candy collected.

There were many humorous moments captured as well. We had difficulty one year convincing my son Nathan, who is mildly autistic, that wearing a costume is actually fun. He finally selected a Spider-Man costume, but refused to wear the headpiece that covered his face. So there is cute little Nathan wearing a headless Spider-Man costume, all smiles. Another year he refused to wear anything but sandals on his feet, but dressed as a vampire. A vampire in sandals...we called that the Jimmy Buffett Vampire. My son Joshua, at age 11 convinced three of his friends to dress as matching cheerleaders, complete with blond wigs. They were absolutely hilarious and quite the talk of the neighborhood. His final Halloween he wore a mullet wig and blacked out his teeth.

My youngest child is nearly six years old. I figure I have a good six years of trick or treating before we have to hang up the pumpkin for the final time. I think of a simpler time, holding my kids' hands as we make our way around the neighborhood and visit with friends. It makes me realize how fleeting and precious those childhood years are, and the memories that can be made....even on that one single night every October.