Pirates, Fairies, Pink Poodles and a Lot of Nose Squeezing

We had lots of trick-or-treaters last night. We went clear through three bags of candy before finally turning off the light (just as well, because the late-comers were all teenagers dressed as, well, teenagers...how creative). And, of course, all evening long Baxter had to fully announce each successive wave of little doorbell-ringers with a rousing "Egad, there's a pirate on our doorstep!" round of alarmed barking. Some of the children looked alarmed as well, but as I opened the door, Baxter immediately melted into his usual child-loving self, curiously sniffing the little costumed strangers as they reached into the bowl for candy.

By far, our favorite moments were when a couple of extremely cute toddlers...a fairy and a pink poodle respectively...decided that Baxter was more interesting than the candy and reached out to grab his nose. I'm not sure what Baxter made of all the nose-fondling and moustache-pulling, but he just stood there with a most dignified expression and let it go on. My husband and I, however, found it particularly charming, especially when Baxter reached out to lick their little faces and rounds of giggles ensued.

I don't think we've ever had so many trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood and I haven't enjoyed a Halloween as much in years. But I was looking forward to having some leftover candy...