"Trick or Treating - in February." Or " Drive-by- Hot Chocolating."

Don't come to my door asking for hot chocolate because I'm fresh out.

The story goes like this. I guess Grandpa hailed, or was hailed by, some young waifs of the neighborhood and was bragging on Aiden. Well, the little girls wanted to come meet this Wunder-Babe, but before they came to the house, they sped away on their little kiddy cart ( which looks like a mini-John Deere tractor) for no apparent reason ( maybe to ask their parents...?). Grandpa came in to tell me to expect visitors. Emma, 6, and Briley ( spelling?) 3, came to my door about fifteen minutes later with Grandpa and checked out Aiden, as he slept in the cradle swing. ( This swing was loaned to us by Bryan and Sarah and is worth its weight in GOLD - Aiden loves it.) Briley took it upon herself to rock the swing, a little too vigorously for my taste, and Grandpa quickly assured her that it was completely unnecessary, as it is battery powered. They were very cute and sociable. Suddenly, out of the blue, Emma pipes up with, " We just came by to get some hot chocolate! We'll take one package."

Oh? Will you now? (... as if this was some regular occurrence.)

Kids are so funny. Hi- I just met you- give me your hot chocolate! Lucky for them I HAD hot chocolate! And lucky I had it in packets and not in one big ol' can. ( Okay, kids, let me scoop out a cup's worth of powder into your upturned, grubby palms and then you can run on home...) I've actually been on a hot chocolate bender in the last few weeks. I ended up parting with my last two packets - and gave them the last of my marshmallows too. Why not? I mean- what good are marshmallows without hot chocolate? And they really didn't want to drink it here! I started to put the kettle on but they insisted they wanted it " to go", as it were. The three year old also wanted to make off with a bottle of Propel water, but her older sister wouldn't hear of it. I guess canvassing the neighborhood for hot beverages is one thing- to ask for a sport drink would be unthinkable. The whole thing made me laugh.

Ah well. I suppose since giving a child a cup of cold water is lauded in the Bible, then doling out hot chocolate packets to cute urchins is sort of being virtuous.