A doorbell is rung. Did it ring? Try again. I didn’t hear a bing-bong, did you? I think we have to push it harder. Third attempt. The door suddenly opens. A harried mom says, not unkindly, “I have a baby in the bathtub! Can you come back later?” I apologize from my spot at the end of the driveway. It takes the girls several moments of standing in front of the closed door to actually move away, giggling over and over, there’s a baby in the bathtub baby in the bathtub baby in the bathtub.

A very nice lady comes to the door. “I only have this,” she says, holding out a twenty. “You will need to give me some change. Do you know how?” Little Miss Sunshine nods her head, and hands her a five dollar bill. “Now another one,” the lady says. The Little Miss frowns, but hands over a second fiver. “One more,” says the lady sweetly. The Little Miss scowls. I have given you LOTS OF FIVES ALREADY she points out. She earns a chuckle from the lady but has to hand over more change, anyway.

An older gentleman comes to the door. Would you like to buy some cookies? “Who are they for?” he asks. The Little Miss is confused. For you! she explains.

After ringing, then knocking, then ringing, an elderly Asian woman comes to the door. She hands the girls a can of pop, then makes shoo-shoo arms until they go away. We add the pop to the cookie box and I spend the rest of the evening trying to explain. “She wanted to do something nice for you. She wasn’t sure what you wanted so she just tried to help,” I say. Maybe she thought we were trick-or-treating says the Little Miss. Maybe, maybe.