Monday, October 27, 2008

Spooky Advice

Here is Ray's no-fail guidelines for having your child win costume contests year after year:

Rule 1:
for girls - don't dress-up as any Disney character
for boys - don't dress-up as any superhero and/or ninja/martial arts thingy

Rule 2:
Don't buy your costume at Costco.

Rule 3:
Dress up as anything that doesn't violate rules 1 or 2.

Those that know me know that I am not a frilly person. I don't decorate my house. I don't have an extensive wardrobe and neither do my children. I don't toll paint, stamp, or scrapbook. Martha Stewart, to me, is the epitome of useless froufrou.

That being said, I love to dress my kids up for Halloween. Often I end up sewing, glueing, painting, and rigging up elaborate productions that my children wear long enough for me to take a picture, then run screaming from. I also like the children's costumes to be related. So when my son wanted to be Batman, my daughter had no choice but to be Robin. Then when my older two kids wanted to be Harry Potter and Hermione, my toddler had the privilege of being Hedwig. One year I sewed a Buzz Lightyear costume that had 48 pieces and cost almost $50 in supplies alone (unfortunately my daughter was old enough to refuse to be Woody).

Of course this was all before I discovered the 3 rules to winning costume contests. I have since been dubbed the queen of useless Halloween costume froufrou.

8 comments:

Heather said...

I only wish I could be even remotely creative like that. I long for a creative bone to miraculously grow in my body. Each Halloween I see other costumes and think "Why didn't I think of that?"

Cheryl said...

I used to be the same way about Halloween costumes for the kids. (Then I had more kids and it was too much work!) I now have a whole tub full of costumes but no children to wear them.

Beckie said...

Did you take pictures? I would love to see some of those. I am not at all creative with our costumes, I sew them all (most of the time) but they are very traditional.

What are your chilren being this year?

ray said...

heather, the creative bone grows alongside the too-much-time-at-home bone which is attached to desperate-need-for-validation bone.

cheryl, my children would love to visit your costume tub.

beckie, I'm working on a facebook page where pictures will be available but I'm having trouble getting in tune with my inner adolescent.

Ambie said...

That's quite a feat Ray. Your my idol for sure.

I guess you threw your inner adolescent out with your "always tardy" tee a few years back.

Jillee Brown said...

Ordering a costume online and getting an XS (not being small) helped my creative bone grow fairly quick. I made everything! A little black dress, lady bug wings and EVEN A TUTU in just a few hours.

ray said...

So you were a lady bug ballerina? a little girl's dream.

Ambie, I know who got all the sewing skills in your family.

Ambie said...

itwernt me!

Hey that alien has a child ! Very creative.