Wanna know something? I’ve never been too fond of Halloween. Sure, I enjoyed it as a kid, but by the time I got to my early teens I was pretty over it. It all seemed kinda silly.
But then I had a kid and EVERYTHING changed. No seriously, I think I was more excited than her this year (and that says A LOT). There’s something about witnessing her joy that fills me with such deep fulfillment. One of those magical parts of parenting, I guess.
They don’t do trick-or-treating in Peru, so the Embassy throws a huge party to celebrate. They don’t just half-ass it either, it’s a full-out Halloween spectacular.
The event starts with Trick-or-Treating through the Embassy. Each department (Consular, Management, USAID, etc) comes up with a theme for their department and decorates floor to ceiling. So much so, in fact, that in some of the rooms you couldn’t even tell it was an office building anymore! We’re talking full costumes, sounds, décor, lights – the whole shebang. It’s really quite impressive. A few of my favorite themes this year were Peter Pan, Alice in Wonderland and Harry Potter. Unfortunately I don’t have any photos of that part because cameras are prohibited in the Embassy. You’ll just have to use your imagination!
After collecting their candy, all the kiddos move outside to play on the lawn. The Embassy had rented a fabulous array of blow-ups and trampolines for the kids to play on.
Nia spent most of her time in the pink castle and on the trampoline. She desperately wanted to go on the big kid blow-outs but after a near-collision with a 10 year old she decided against it.
We had big aspirations of making it to 5 PM so that Nia could participate in the children’s parade and costume contest. Unfortunately our little peacock started to fade and we called it a day.
Definitely my favorite Embassy event of the year, thanks to all those who put in the hard work to make it such a success. We are so grateful to be able to enjoy familiar traditions while living overseas.
What a happy little girl, so so sweet!