Halloween

I love Halloween. Love it. Especially helping the kids get the perfect costumes. 

For a number of years now our Tourism Bureau has organized a trick-or-treating through town for the last weekend that the stores are open. This year my son decided he wanted to be a bride: a beautiful bride wearing his great grandmother's mink stole. I was worried he'd take a lot of flack from the other kids (and adults) he knew in town given that a bride is not a typical costume for a ten year-old boy. Thank goodness I was wrong., he got lots of positive comments.

He knew back in August he wanted to be a bride, so we started looking. From the moment he saw it, he loved that dress! We found it at the thrift shop for $25.00. It was a vintage wedding dress with a beaded bodice and a long train, but it had to have been a size zero because it was tight when he wore it with his fleece underneath it. We found the veil at another shop for $5.00. Score! Once we got it all home all I had to do was take the dress in at the bust, add some tucks to shorten it and add a bustle to the back.

Sadly, the "marriage" didn't work out, and by Halloween night my beautiful bride had passed on, started to rot and returned to life as a zombie - who, for some reason, was still wearing the same dress. (Though this time over his coat because once we factored in the wind chill, it was 17 degrees here on Halloween night; about -8 C.) 

He loved being a zombie, but I must admit that I have a personal problem with zombies.  They give me nightmares. We were a little worried about the little ones at school, so the zombie bride only came out at night.

My daughter is now reading her fourth Harry Potter book, so it did not surprise me when she decided she wanted to be Hermione Granger for Halloween this year. I made her Hogwart's robes but I found the tie for $1.50 at yet another thrift shop.  Allen even made her a wand with a tip that could light up.

All afternoon as we trick-or-treated through town people kept saying, "Look, there's Harry Potter." So on Halloween night she changed her mind, had me add a scar to her forehead and decided to be Harry instead.  Her costume was perfect for a Northern Michigan Halloween. She was snug as could be wearing her coat under her robes. 

And just in case you're wondering, the kids trick-or-treated through around 1/2 of the village and each brought home about eight pounds (about 3.5 kg.) of candy. Yum!