Top 10 Reasons Halloween is Better than Christmas

Yes, I know Halloween was so a week-and-half-ago. Tell that to my three-year-old.

10. There is more candy to pilfer. Not only that, but it was free and comes in a wide variety.

9.  Far less hype and overkill. You don’t have to listen to Halloween music being piped into every store for three to six months prior to the actual holiday.

Yes, that is totally a wig on me. I didn’t attempt one for Lil Diva. Not pictured: the teen-like breakout all over my face the wig helped hide or my daily “zombie hair”.

8. Anything can be interpreted as a costume. If you decide to give yourself a very visible head injury, people will compliment you on how realistic it is instead of wonder why you did not use makeup to cover it. (See what I did last October?)

7. The weather is nicer. Most of the time.

6. It is the perfect excuse for a bad hair day. Found the perfect wig? People will praise it instead of wonder why you’re wearing it. Find yourself wig-less? Any bad hair day can simply double as “trying out my zombie hair”.

5. Candy loot is excellent for behavior rewards or punishment. Five-and-half-year old isn’t going into time-out? Every five seconds he doesn’t listen you get another piece of his candy. He can try to earn it back before you eat it, but the window is very small…

We always try to go for the “least likely to look like an actual family” prize. Introducing: Rapunzel Without The Hair, the Athenian Goddess Who Used a Wig, Eye-ball Hat Dad, and The Robot Who Decided He Didn’t Want to Wear His Helmet, Arms, Legs, and Needed Last Minute Padding with Dish Towels for the Arm Holes but Whose Costume Rocked Once it Got Dark.

4. It makes a far more entertaining family photo. Forget green and red striped sweaters with snowmen. Bring on the eyeball hats, wigs, and costumes to show your family’s real personality.

3. There is less prep work. No one expects a large feast. You don’t spend months shopping and then give all of the credit to a fat dude in a red suit.

2. It can be a great way to market yourself. Are you crafty? When else can you knock on someone’s door with your design and not only NOT have the door slammed in your face, but be rewarded with candy (though it helps if the model is under the age of ten).

On the flip-side, why not advertise to those who have come to your house seeking candy? At one house a twelve-year-old was handing out fliers to families in the neighborhood advertising her baby-sitting skills. Ingenious.

The Tackler’s homemade robot costume was a HUGE hit once it got dark outside (sadly this means capturing a great photo of it while on a moving target, is impossible). CG programmed the LED lights to pulse. Never mind The Tackler didn’t wear half of his costume and the last minute dish towels under his arms…

1. It gives you an excuse to get your geek on. A Star Wars or Trekkie nut? When else (other than perhaps Comicon) can you dress up and not draw odd looks? Or say you promise your son a robot costume, but you completely lack the crafting gene? It gives you an ideal reason to buy LEDs and circuit boards to spend hours programming into a perfect pattern while eliminating any argument your wife could possibly have because she also finds it cool.

Night view taken without The Tackler. When he splintered off with CG while trick-or-treating, I could spot him from two blocks away, easy. Also called: Costume Least Likely to Lose Child In.

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What is/was your favorite thing about Halloween?