Memories of Fall & Halloween

I know I have shared memories I have as a kid growing up in the 70's before.  I have such found memories of this time of year, in school at home and in our neighborhood. Life seemed to be so much more carefree then, but I guess life as a kid is or should be as carefree as possible. Unfortunately, that's not the case for many children and that is so sad!

I remember this time of year being much cooler in the 70's. I can remember having to layer up every Halloween to go trick or treating. We had fires burning every evening and as we played outside after dinner you could smell it in the air. That smell still takes me back to those times. We would spend hours making leaf forts that would connect to one another. The day before Halloween we would head to the one place in town that sold pumpkins and get one to carve. It wasn't a patch, just a farm store that had lots of them.

Halloween was a HUGE event. Everyone celebrated and went trick or treating. Parents dressed up with the kids and walked around with them. People handed out hot drinks and cookies as well. Halloween would start at noon and go till 8 or 9. People would take their young kids out in the afternoon, then the school age and older would do after dinner. There were lots of plastic face costumes that at the times were so cool, but now I look back and think how horrible they really were! The costumes came in boxes and were only a couple dollars.

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All elementary schools would celebrate Halloween and have school wide parades and HUGE parties. Everyone brought what was assigned for them to bring. Parents came to help celebrate also.

Life was simpler back then. Not much to distract us from just having fun, socializing with our friends and making our own fun from the things we had. I wish my kids could have been there to see how much fun they would have had despite not having all the modern technology.

My goal as a mom is to try to give my kids the opportunities to make great memories like I have.