Last year, my daughter was sick on Halloween.  Like, pale as an actual ghost lying on the couch and falling asleep in her costume sick, poor thing.  And while she was three years old and therefore pretty oblivious to everything she was missing out on, I was as crushed as a Kit-Kat on the sidewalk the day after Halloween.  

So if you’re finding yourself adrift on the sea of Post-Halloween sadness, allow me to provide some hairpats.

First of all, everyone posting cute photos of their happy kids in charming genius amazing costumes suuuuucks when all you’ve got is one of your sick kid asleep on the couch clutching her pumpkin pail.  It sucks! It is okay to just feel like it sucks! But the great thing about Halloween costumes is that at least they generally don’t turn into real pumpkins at midnight; you have the potential to let your kid enjoy that costume all year long if you want and it’s not like, made of glitter dust (if you made a costume out of glitter, that is your own grave you’ve dug).

I know.  It’s not much consolation.  But at least it’s something.  

Second on my list of things I had to tell myself last year: I didn’t Trick or Treat ever as a kid, and I turned out okay.  I know, I know — the “I didn’t ____ and I turned out okay” is anecdotal evidence and is anyone really the best judge of their okayness?  But, missing out on the door-to-door Trick-or-Treating will probably not be the tragedy to your kids that it feels like to you, if they’re young.  

Third: Imagine me gently sliding a piping hot pumpkin spice latte your way.  This is a blip. It’s a sucky blip. But this shall pass, and you have so many exciting family memories to make together after this sickness has subsided.  

Fourth: Who says Halloween only has to be on the day?  If you’ve got candy, hide it around the house, or hide it in Easter eggs (sacrilege? maybe!) or mail your kid a special package of candy as a surprise delivery.  There are other ways to scrounge up the candy-coated joy you were looking forward to for them.

Finally: Again, this sucks.  But — and I say this from experience — do take a photo of your sick little kiddo asleep in their costume, because later, when they are better, when this is all a memory, you might look back and smile a little at them saying, “Oh, that Halloween, that poor thing!  This year just might be better, I’ll bet.” And maybe it will be next year — or maybe it won’t, and you can start a gloomy family tradition of illness-ridden Halloweens. Talk about spooky and ghoulish right?

It sucks that this sucked.  I see you in your suckage, all the costume planning, all the hard work, down the drain.  Mega hugs. And as soon as your kiddo is feeling up to it, stuff them into that costume and snap photos, and flood your social media feeds with them long after everyone else is done with theirs.  Bet you’ll get allllll the likes that way! 😉