Last Saturday we went to a family Halloween “party” at a local community centre.
It was sheer pandemonium. We don’t always go to these kind of events, but I tell myself that we should “do it for the girls” because they’ll probably enjoy themselves. Problem: mummy gets grumpy and out of sorts when there is too much craziness going on around her. I must work harder to try to overcome my short temper and Sense of General Annoyance.
There were a couple hundred people there, all of whom had offspring in tow, ages ranging from 0-10 years of age. It took place between 4 –6 p.m., a time of day that many parents will surely recognize as a witching hour (at the best of times) because this is the time we’d all just rather be napping.
We brought our two princesses. There were about 100 other little princesses in their various guises (are you Ariel, Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, or Snow White, or just a regular princess?), and an equal amount of spidermen and batmen. In fact, one little spiderman gave Sarah an accidental wallop to the chin. I guess the excitement of the day caused him to break out his kung-fu moves. I stood there, waiting for spiderman’s parent to chime in, but no, there was nothing.
The redeeming part of the party was the magic show. It wasn’t exactly oriented to the adults, but the kids seemed to enjoy themselves. They did the trick where the girl climbs into a (seemingly) teeny box and they stick hugely long swords through it. I am waiting for the day Emma and Sarah decided to try this trick at home with a cardboard box and a set of Ginsu knives.
After the magic show there was a mass exodus into the gym, where there were crafts and cake and coffee for the grownups. This is where I felt my blood starting to rush to my head, causing major eyeball throb. It was hot in there. There were too many people, too much polyester, my own witch hat was cutting off the circulation in my head and the fake witch hair was irritating me, compounding my overall Sense of General Annoyance.
The girls did a little craft, ate some cake, and we left. I’m not sure if anyone enjoyed themselves. My lord. Does this ever get any easier? Why can’t I just let go and enjoy myself at these things?
