I’m constantly surprised by the thoughts that disturb my sleep. Last night I went to bed weary from a day of stresses coming from all angles, but the one thought that kept me staring at the ceiling was, “They don’t sell size 14 Angry Birds underwear.”
Casey is obsessed with Angry Birds. It’s the substance of his autism-strength focus right now. He saw little boys’ underwear with Angry Birds on it, so of course he wanted it, too. Casey’s big for his age. At only 9, he’s at the small end of his size 14 clothes. His size betrays his age, his age betrays his heart. Casey is truly young at heart.
That thought lead me to thinking about Halloween. It’s the first thing I woke up to this morning. There was Casey, kneeling by my bed, willing me to wake up. My eyes opened and met his face RIGHT in front of mine. “It’s Halloween tomorrow!” He yelled so loudly that Lance startled beside me. Then he kissed my face and ran out, arms full of his Angry Bird plush toys that never stray too far from him.
Casey loves Halloween, which is a big deal for a kid with autism. He used to hate it. We’d have to drag him screaming and kicking just to visit the neighbors. Up until a few years ago, he was content to spend it at home with me or Lance, passing out candy. There were monsters and dark and the scariest thing of all- people. One Halloween at his grandparents changed all of it. We cheered and high-fived after every trip to the door. He was hooked. He loves Halloween. He loves visiting the neighbors. He loves dressing up. That love only grows as years go on. I worried what would happen next year, or years after, as his enthusiasm for Halloween seems unlikely to disappear with age. How would we get him to be okay with giving up Trick or Treating when it became socially inappropriate?
Then, as I was scrolling through my Facebook feed today, I came across this article that my good friend Patty posted: What you need to know about 6 foot Trick-or-Treaters. The article details a mother letting her 15 year old son go trick or treating with his friends. I have always rolled my eyes at teenagers who come Trick or Treating. That article changed my mind about it. Read it. For me, too, it opened up a new idea: letting Casey Trick or Treat as long as he wants to. Not discouraging his love of Halloween. To be honest, I absolutely love Halloween, too. If I didn’t have crippling anxiety, there’s a very good chance I’d dress all up and join him as well. Why force growing up on a kid that is lucky enough to not give a damn about social norms?
So, this Halloween, if a bunch of teenagers come to your door, or child with his parents who looks to be a couple years past his Trick or Treating prime, smile and give them candy like you would any one else. You never know.
We should all be so lucky to live our lives young at heart.
Lexi Mag 
I have seen men’s Angry bird underwear before. Maybe a size small would fit him. I know that’s a weird thing to comment on but I kind of know how it feels to have your kid obsess over material things.
What a wonderful post! I think there is something awesome about teenagers going trick-or-treating. Wouldn’t we rather them dressed up in full spirit, in their neighbourhoods having fun rather than in the forests or allies participating in non-legal activities? Also I have seen angry bird under ware here in Canada- if I see them again I’ll ship them your way. Does he wear boxers or just plain under ware?
Hope you have a wonderful evening tomorrow night!!
Happy Halloween!
I found some on amazon (hope it’s not weird that I looked for underwear for your kid)Hope the link works….Love the post by the way.
http://www.amazon.com/Fruit-Loom-Angry-Birds-Multi-Colored/dp/B00BBSOXGW/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1383175739&sr=8-7&keywords=angry+birds+underwear
I totally get it. My 5 year old wanted to be Mickey Mouse so bad, and his poor 7 year old (in size) body wouldn’t fit in any costumes. We had to make one, which was just fine!
Happy Halloween!
Okay the ones I posted did not come bigger than a soze 8 so sorry about that….here is a pair of boxers that are mens size small.But 13 bucks for one pair of boxers???
http://www.amazon.com/Angry-Birds-Mens-Boxers-SMALL/dp/B00E4CARFI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1383176492&sr=8-3&keywords=mens+underwear+angry+birds
http://www.amazon.com/Fruit-Loom-Angry-Birds-Multi-Colored/dp/B00BBSOXGW/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1383184800&sr=8-6&keywords=angry+bird+underwear
http://www.amazon.com/Angry-Birds-Boxer-Short-Trunks/dp/B00EZ5N832/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1383184800&sr=8-3&keywords=angry+bird+underwear
Geez Lexi, did you not check amazon for the underwear?
Well.. I’m autistic and I still love it and even dedicated my last blog post to it at 53…
Lord knows it is the best holiday for imagination and it is a great way to develop right brain thinking that unfortunately screen stimulation does not usually do nearly as well unless it is used for creativity…
Yeah, this article really changed my outlook in a lot of ways. before I had read it, I had just been thinking of how much Danny loves Halloween. He’s 10 now, so it’s still socially acceptable for him to go trick or treating. He’s probably good for a couple more years, but the thing is, he loves this holiday with a passion only those with autism can really understand, and I don’t see that changing anytime soon. I always worry when he’s interested in stuff that seems too young for him (which is often). This article gave me some hope, especially since it wasn’t even about kids with autism. And it made me feel good. Why not let kids be kids as long as they damn well want to be? Growing up is hard enough as it is.
My personal rule is: if they’re wearing a costume (however “lame”) they get candy. I don’t care if they’re 9 months of 30 years. But that’s just me 🙂