Halloween is, of course, my favorite holiday.

I love handing out candy, and I love going out with the nieces.

Last year we had 108 children. This year we had 125 - and not only did I not go outside until after they'd been coming by already (more about that later), but we're going to get another 5 - 10 stragglers before I turn off the light! Three of the kids were friends of Ana's from school - twins and their kid brother. I duly called them all by the wrong names and told them I'd tell Ana hi for them - why calling them the wrong names is funny I don't know, but it just is and they request it of me every time I see them.

Thank goodness I bought the Halloween bags of pretzels or I wouldn't have had enough! (And this is *with* not giving candy to those with no costume and no story to explain their lack of costume, either. Though I give pass to teens singlehandedly chaperoning a gaggle of little ones if they're polite about it. Their costume for the night is "responsible adult", and I don't begrudge them a little candy in exchange for giving up their night.)

In other news....

ANA LOST HER FIRST TOOTH TODAY!

I took her out of school early - this was school-sanctioned, so I removed her after she was in the school parade and had a few cupcakes at the party - and made her take a nap. (Promised her that next year she can stay in for the whole party, but *this* year she's still five and I wanted her rested before we went out.)

When they woke up I quickly made some steak and potatoes to eat. Not the most healthful meal out there, but it's hot and it sits in your stomach and it'll prevent you from getting very cranky as you go around begging for sugar and artificial coloring, right?

Ana took one bite and started freaking out that her tooth was out of place, and it would hurt to fall out, and she was scared... so I took a peek. Sure enough, the tooth was extremely askew and there was a little blood. I told her that the best thing would be to take a bite of apple, and I brought one out, but she was having none of it. (Evangeline took that apple and ate it in lieu of her dinner. Whatever.)

She ended up sobbing hysterically in my lap. She calmed down a bit when I told her of the times I'd lost teeth, including the time it came out when I was eating bean dip and I didn't even bother to tell my parents for a few hours, just dealt with it myself, but then she bumped her tooth and freaked out again, sobbing and - and this was interesting to me - flapping her hands.

I've always said that I just don't see it when various friends of mine online have said, in the past, that Ana seems vaguely spectrum-ish. What is it, broader autistic phenotype? Yeah, I've always said that I don't see it, I don't look at Ana and think "Yup, that was me at her age"*. But now, comparing her to her sister at the same age and all this, I can see where people get that idea. (Not sure I agree, but I can see it at least.)

Anyway, she eventually lunged at her sister and pulled her close screaming "EVA! EVA! EVA!" (Evangeline took this more or less in stride, though I think she thought it was a little weird) and in the middle of an EVA!!!! she suddenly stopped, blinked, and spat out her tooth. "Hey, look, my tooth came out! And it doesn't hurt!" (Well, I'd told her that it'd stop hurting once it came out!)

I quickly whisked her to the bathroom to rinse her mouth with some salted water before she could realize there was blood in her mouth, and we put the tooth aside for later. (Ana thinks it is "cool" and wants to take it in to show and tell.) And then I sat her down and made her eat her dinner - she was ravenous. This explains why she's been having seconds and thirds and fourths of her oatmeal every morning, you don't have to chew that!

But yes. All this is why we didn't make it outside until 4:45, when I know the kids start coming by 4:10 at the latest.

*_POINTING. When Ana started pointing at the age of 16 months I was so startled that I checked the WTE, and then called my mother, certain that what was in black and white (most children are pointing at this age) couldn't be right. And when my mother said "Yes, they do that" I paused for a minute, working this out, and went "But... I didn't do that, did I?" and *she* paused before going "Well, no, don't you remember...?" and of course, I do remember, though I never really thought of it often. I didn't point at anything, for any reason, until I was closer to eight years or so. And I would get very upset and tell people flat out that I didn't understand them when they pointed at things. Still don't. I know what pointing means, of course - and must have then - but I have great trouble identifying what they're pointing at and really think it's simpler to just walk over to whatever-it-is or describe it instead.

So, Evangeline.

We went out with Su and Deniz. Down our block, down another, up a hill, and back to our block in a bit of a loop. Right after the hill, Evangeline decided she was all done. She was heading home... just so long as everybody else headed home with her.

Everybody else still wanted candy.

At one point, Evangeline is at the head of all four kids. Su is right behind her - and man, is Su ever a bossy child, but I guess she has to be to compete with her equally bossy older sister! - going "Eva is the leader! Follow Eva!" and physically blocking people from going in front of Evangeline. Right up until Evangeline marched past a promising looking house. "Evangeline! Turn here!"

When Evangeline suddenly blinked and realized that all the other children had hopped onto this woman's porch she paused, bit her lip, and finally said "Okay. I guess I'll have some more candy".

I LOL'd. This child, she's so easygoing sometimes! Soon as we turned back onto our block she *ran* to my mom, though. She really wanted to sit down and eat her bounty by that point. (I made them both take some of an apple before I let them dig in at all. I'm not paid enough to deal with sugar highs.)

Apparently she had no such qualms when she went out again with Daddy. Not sure why, but I'm guessing being further from home had something to do with it.