Keeping it short and sweet today with a little glimpse into our two Halloweens in Charlotte and various weekend festivities!

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: People in Charlotte love Halloween. Many people decorate outside their homes for Halloween just as they would for Christmas. And Halloween parties abound. We really did a lot of Halloween stuff these past few days, and we enjoyed it all. I was never much into Halloween, but seeing how fun it can be through Brady’s eyes has made me truly love this holiday now. It’s all about the memories!

Brady had a chance to wear his Halloween costume two school twice (once for a Halloween parade), then he also wore his costume to a birthday party, to the gym, to two Halloween parties and to a friends get-together, all in the span of four days. We really got our money’s worth out of that outfit this year, which makes me very happy.

A tale of two Halloweens in Charlotte

Because our area always holds trick or treating on actual Halloween and because Halloween fell on a Monday this year, that meant Sunday was a great day for an additional Halloween celebration — thus the two Halloweens in Charlotte this year.

This was our first year wearing matching family outfits too. In California, oftentimes, Dave and I wouldn’t dress up and we’d just put Brady in a costume (or wear something super minimal). Then last year (our first one in Charlotte), we each did our own thing for a family party with friends.

But this year, I wanted us to match, and I’m glad we did. Brady wanted to be a skeleton, so Dave and I went along with that theme. I bought all three of our costumes at Spirit Halloween, and that made things super easy. I would absolutely do matching outfits again, if we can find something we all agree on. 

Also, I made this little video about our costumes, in case you missed it.

A festive family Halloween gala at our country club on Halloween Eve

On Sunday, we got all decked out in our costumes, took a couple of pictures and then went to a neighbor’s birthday party, which was also a costume party. Then, shortly thereafter, we went to our neighborhood country club for a family Halloween gala.

The event was from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., and we showed up right at the start and left right at the end. We weren’t sure what to expect, and it was so fun — truly perfect for kids, adults and the whole family. And very different from a regular night of trick-or-treating too.

There was family friendly food, a little dance-floor with a deejay spinning spooky/regular music, face-painting for kids, arts and crafts and a haunted trail walk outside. It was pretty busy, so when we got there, we staked out a spot at a big round table as a home-base, then worked our way around the party, always meeting back at the table here and there.

My Mom came with us, and she was so excited to be able to celebrate Halloween with us and with our friends too. Several of our friends and their kiddos were at the party, so we weren’t on our own.

We had dinner, socialized, and I even got Brady out on the dance-floor with me and my Mom toward the end of the party. The deejay was a little loud, so Brady insisted we stay at the back of the dance-floor further from the speakers, and that was fine by me. I really love dancing with him, and I can tell he’s a big fan too — but he’s just not a fan of loud music.

We were home and tuckered out by 7:15 p.m., and I love getting home that early, so I still have time to get organized and relax before going to bed.

It was super cool to get a chance to dress up and have fun together in costume, knowing that we still had another full Halloween celebration the next day too.

A neighborhood block party and trick-or-treating fun on Halloween

We had been watching the weather on Halloween all week and it looked like rain was imminent on Monday night, which was the actual Halloween holiday. In fact, it actually rained really heavily in the afternoon of Halloween, and the skies were dark. But somehow, someway, right around the time we were scheduled to head out, the skies cleared, and the rain stopped. And because it was so wet outside, I opted to braid my hair instead of wash it and style it, so that sure saved me some time (love that). The good news is that because we had taken so many pictures the night before, I mostly had my phone/camera tucked away the actual night of Halloween (which felt good).

We were invited to a neighborhood block party about a mile from us in our own neighborhood, so we joined our friends there. The party was well done, and they had sectioned off an entire cul-de-sac, so kids could run around, while adults chatted. Also, check out these super-festive cupcakes one of our neighbors gave to Brady, right before we left home …

There was pizza, treats and drinks too. Brady played the entire time, while Dave and I talked to our friends. Also, instead of having to bring food (we didn’t have time to make it to the store), we had the option just to Venmo one of the hosts who organized and paid for everything, which I totally preferred, and that’s the method we chose.

Around the time it got dark, we decided to break off into a small group and head around to hit some houses for trick-or-treating. I love that so many people in our neighborhood are so into Halloween, because there was a decorated walking trail, decked out spooky houses and plenty of good candy for our treaters. We went around with some friends for about an hour before calling it a night. 

We had put out a bowl of candy at our house when we were gone and it was empty when we came back. But because it wasn’t even 8 p.m., Dave and Brady sat outside our front door in costume and were able to greet a couple of trick-or-treaters and give out candy in person, which they both enjoyed.

When we took Brady’s costume off him on the night of Halloween, it was officially the last time he’d wear it for this season. And we’re certain we used it to its fullest extent this year. 

Overall, it was an eventful and fun Halloween weekend, with plenty of chances for fun, treats and hanging out with good people. Also, I can’t believe we’re heading into our second holiday season as Charlotte residents — we’re so happy here and so glad we made this change for our family.

And that’s a wrap on today’s short and sweet recap of our Halloween weekend. Thanks for stopping by the blog, my friend! We’re already well into a busy week, and I’ll see you back here for our first faves post of November. Be well! 🙂 

Other posts you may like

• All the details on Brady’s 5th birthday party at our house
• One amazing girls’ weekend in Nashville
• Brady’s 5-year update

Questions of the day for YOU

How was your weekend?

Did you dress up for Halloween?

What’s your favorite holiday?