Halloween Memory...

Halloween is my favorite holiday, anyone who knows me, knows this bit of trivia. Growing up in New Jersey, it was usually cold on Halloween...we were poor, my Mother was raising us 3 on her own pretty much, so we always went "shopping" for a costume at my Aunt Doris' house. She had a large barrel in a closet under the stairs, full of all kinds of dress up stuff...a Mother to FIVE kids..she knew the value of the words "hand-me-down"! So, while I longed for a store bought, plastic flame catching costume with the hard plastic mask that had 2 very small nose holes for breathing..I never got one. I always got a previously worn dog costume, or the charcoal on the face hobo mask. (You wouldn't catch me in a princess costume!) We always carried a pillowcase for our candy, it held a LOT of loot, and easily slung over the shoulder. We went out in carloads with our cousins, and didn't have to worry about having our candy checked before we could eat it. The best house, by far, was Grandma & Grandpa Schnieder's. Lined up on top of the TV set, for Grandkids only, were individual Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, each one with a shiny quarter taped to the top!! I believe this is where my love for chocolate and peanut butter began! I have continued the tradition, and have been giving these out to neices & nephews, and sometimes to my older Sister as well..it always brings a smile to our face, and a fond memory of our precious Grandma Schneider.