Halloween: Jake’s Perspective

Jacob’s Halloween story begins on Halloween Eve.  All Hallows’ Eve Eve?

So I come home that night and the boys are already gathered round the dinner table.  I give them each a kiss and offhandedly ask Jake why he’s wearing a different shirt from the one he went to school in.

“I threw up.”

And before he says another word, I somehow already know what happened.

Turns out they carved pumpkins in his class that day and it appears Jake’s aversion to pumpkin innards is perhaps something he will not grow out of.  My trusty blog shows that the “pumpkin incident” of yore was way back in October of 2011 when he was two-and-a-half.

This year they cut into a pumpkin at school and Miss Pali made the tactical error of asking Jakey to hold the insides in his hand as they scooped them out.  One whiff and he lost his lunch.  He claims it was the smell.  He also maintains his consistent stance on not ingesting any baked good made with gourd guts.

Unfortunately, James claims it’s not just pumpkins as JJ recently caught sight of a decomposing apple in the parking lot that was run over by a reversing car.  Jacob gagged multiple times and fortunately regained control.  For now, it seems to be contained within the seasonal fruit and vegetable category.  There goes my dream of my eldest son winning Fear Factor.

Moving on… Halloween day they trick-or-treated at the senior home down the street as a class field trip.  When James and I arrived for the parade, he was virtuously holding hands with Thing 1 and smiling his Super Jake smile.  The older classes gave us a mini singing performance of some Dracula songs and then we made our way home.

JJ helped me pick out the designs to carve pumpkins and didn’t look squeamish.  We made sure all our decorations looked good and passed out some candy before we set out trick-or-treating.  Jake has dramatically improved his ability to A) Ration only one piece of candy out to 600+ trick-or-treaters and B) Hit their bags with 100% accuracy.  We left Papa in charge and headed out into the night– Superman, Captain America, Top Chef Jaimie and a “Dad in a Captain America t-shirt.”

Just a few minutes in and Jake decided we were only going to the spookiest houses, much to Nate’s chagrin.  He liked the ones with strobe lights, the ones with coffins, the house with an array of goblins.  Nothing seemed too spooky.  People cheered at the site of Superman… everlastingly popular.

James and Jake paused after entering the house with the kelikans that sent Nate over the edge.  It was spooky outside, but it got even scarier as you went into their enclosed courtyard.  I wouldn’t know as Nate and I didn’t make it more than two feet up their front path.

After they came out, James asked Jake, “Are you OK?  Was it too scary?”

Jake answered, “Yeah, it was scary, but I kind of liked it.”

Superman & Superman dressed as Captain America