This ad is from the coupon section found in the Sunday Indianapolis Star in November 2007.  For some reason Thanksgiving ads don’t seem to get much attention as everyone is eager to roll out the Christmas ads the moment Halloween is over.  That said, there wasn’t that wide of a selection to choose from.  But there are numerous Christmas ones showing up (which I promise not to post until after Thanksgiving).

The kids took in quite a haul last night since the weather was nice and since we took them to my parents neighborhood again this year since people actually give out candy there (including full sized candy bars…and hot dogs)…for some reason most people/households in my neighborhood don’t partake in much of anything that involves decorating, landscaping, mingling, etc.  That’s fine I suppose, but it makes for a boring Halloween through New Years.

(Our first Christmas in our house I lit up the entire roof with Christmas lights…which made it easy for people to find our house (and gave me quite an electric bill)…but lately I’ve just stuck with some “icicle” lights and can tell anyone who hasn’t been to our house to look for the house with Christmas lights…and I’m not exaggerating.)

Anyway, back to Halloween for a moment…

We didn’t get started until around 7 pm (so much for the “official” trick-or-treating hours) and wrapped things up around 8:15 pm or so.  Last year it was so cold that I think the kids might have lasted 45 minutes (probably less), but last night was truly ideal…a little brisk but not too cold, on the brink of raining but not raining, with the wind howling and rustling leaves down the street.  Very ideal indeed.

But Halloween is over and now it’s time to start talking turkeys, pies, football and Christmas and New Years parties.  There are only three weeks until Thanksgiving and eight and a half weeks left in the entire year.  Where, oh where, does the time go?

Apparently “trick-or-treating” will soon be a thing of the past in Indianapolis…

In Marion County, trick-or-treat hours are from 5 to 7 pm.

Police are reminding parents to keep their trick-or-treaters safe this Halloween.

• Try to finish before dark
• If trick-or-treating at night, carry flashlights
• Costumes should be visible in the dark

Ugh, hello, McFly? Need I really point out why this doesn’t make sense?

I’ll be *lucky* to have my kids ready to go by 6:30 pm…and that’s if we skip dinner. And due to new DST nonsense, the sunset is 6:45 pm this year, so for us that means it will be dusk at 7:00 pm.

Man, what happened to the days of 6:00 to 9:00 pm “official” trick-or-treating hours where you’d actually stay out until 9:30 pm when every last porch light was out? And when it was dark around 6:00 pm here in Indy.

Not that my kids really need to be out more than an hour, but still, this window just isn’t very realistic. I’m sure the police are thinking saftey first, as there is an abundance of kooks running around, but come on, this is a weekday.  Even until 8:00 pm would be much better for parents who have “day jobs” and don’t want their children wandering the streets alone.

Anyway, there’s an excellent chance you’ll find me toting my kids around after the 7:00 pm “close of Halloween”.  At least until the kids are bored or the last light has been turned off.

So when is the 2008 Valentines Day candy going to appear? I’m having a hankering for Sweet Tart Hearts and buying over priced flowers, aren’t you?

OK, I’m being a little sarcastic (maybe not about the candy part), but is it just me or are the retailers truly pushing out the various “holiday” merchandise much quicker than before? I began to see “back-to-school” supplies in early July (presumably to make way for the upcoming “seasonal” items), Halloween costumes and candy in late August (at both Target and Wal-Mart) and Christmas merchandise in mid-September (at Target and I’d assume the same at Wal-Mart and other similar retailers). Then in yesterday’s paper I saw Halloween and Christmas items in the Kohl’s ad on the same page. (Apparently fall/harvest/Thanksgiving is all lumped together with Halloween.)

Being a “marketing type” and knowing that Halloween and Christmas merchandise are both huge money makers for retailers, I can understand why you’d want these items in front of customers as long as possible. But it’s a little creepy looking at graveyards, skeletons, zombies, mummies, witches, werewolves, vampires, bats, rats, spiders and disembodied heads in crystal balls while hearing Bing Crosby singing “Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas” in the background. But maybe it’s just me…

This ad is from the coupon section found in the Sunday Indianapolis Star in October 2007.   Simple, nice use of color, and most importantly, it’s going to “save” me a dollar.  (I ran out of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups today, so it’s time to restock.)