I capitalized on the assumption that this may be the last year I get to decide on Teagan's Hallowe'en costume. Granted, I could have taken better advantage of the opportunity and NOT used Nick Jr. as my inspiration, but I just couldn't resist. Kristina & Pablo got her a Dora backpack this summer and she looked so cute toting it around. In casual conversation with a friend, it came up that her sister had a Dora wig she'd be willing to lend us. Brilliant! When the wig came, Teagan couldn't bear to look at it let alone wear the thing. It really freaked her out. Couldn't even keep it on long enough to get a blurry photo. Hmm. What to do, what to do? I tried the wig on to show her it wasn't scary and it was as though a lightbulb went off above that football shaped mass of hair. I could be Dora! I had everything else I needed in my closet - although I'd never worn them together - and I printed off a template for The Map to roll up and keep safely tucked in the pocket of Teagan's teeny tiny backpack.
Teagan's costume was one we couldn't put together well on our own. Enter eBay. She loved wearing it, so I suppose it was an investment for the dress up bin.
As for Buddy, we grabbed a pair of "one size fits all" purple gloves and a $3 T-shirt from Wal-Mart. My industrious husband crafted his own Swiper mask and we whipped up a fox nose with a straw, pom pom, construction paper and a party hat. He really had Teagan going. She was constantly giving him the stiff arm and saying "Swiper, no swiping!" We were looking through Halloween photos this week and she'd point at each of us and say our names. "Mummy...Teagan...Swiper!" I tried it multiple times. Always Swiper, never Daddy.
Our first order of business was Trunk or Treating at the church - thanks to the Mountain's Edge Ward for letting us join in on the fun. Being a newly created ward, we wouldn't have had anything set up on our own. Teagan managed to eek out a "trkotrt" every time, usually without moving her mouth (hence the lack of vowels) and it was usually so quiet no one actually heard her. But she enjoyed it, and gave a hearty "da doo" (thank you) after each handout. She was eager to dig in, so we let her gnaw on a few pieces. Don't worry, she paced herself...that's inaccurate. WE paced her. It really was a lot of fun, and reminded us of the Trunk or Treat last year - we had moved (earlier that day) into the Coronado Ward and were lucky enough to have a Trunk or Treat with our new and old wards combined. It was hard to know who we should know, since we'd only attended our new ward twice, but everyone was friendly...and generous!
We'll probably head to a pumpkin patch next year but this time around we were content with pumpkins we found at Wal-Mart. I scored a short, fat one that was perfect for me :) and a big one for Buddy. We shared them with Teagan, but she'll probably get her own next year. She wasn't into the mess and only put her hand in a few times to scoop out the seeds. She had fun colouring the back of my pumpkin and eating the candy I had to bribe her with to sit still for a photo with the finished products.
The Big Dance came soon after and we decided to brave Trick or Treating around to a few friends in the neighbourhood. We headed out at 6 (an hour and a half after our first trick or treater. 4:30? Really?) and bumped into our friends, The Statens as they were leaving their house. We joined forces and began knockin' doors. We were 0 for 3 and I'm sure Teagan was expecting something a little more exciting. Our friends, The Phelps, came through as our first people home and handing out candy. Phew! People were really nice (despite what you hear about unfriendly Las Vegans), most hanging out in their garage or driveway, saving themselves a trip to the front door every 10 seconds. Genius. Some people were confused, but a lot caught on and knew who we were. I must confess to being surprised when The Joker and The Goth gave us a head nod and said "Dudes, you're Dora, Boots and Swiper. Awesome!" then went back to drinking beer in their garage, listening to satanic music. I guess you never know. Teagan wasn't as shy as I thought she'd be, but candy at every stop will do that to you. After a few streets we set out a bowl of candy on our doorstep and hitched a ride with the Statens over to a block party some of the Coronado Ward members put on in their neighbourhood every year. It was awesome! "Hay" rides, a bounce house and smores in the street? So fun. Glad we went - I think it will be a tradition for us. Love where we live!
We came home and put Boots to bed and formed a plan for the rest of the night. It seemed like the bowl on the porch was working out nicely and for numerous reasons we just left the bowl out there (one of them being the state of my hair underneath the wig, another the risk of incessant doorbell ringing waking Sleeping Boots and lastly but not leastly: laziness, pure and simple.) It worked out really nicely. I think I may do the same next year. Everybody wins. You can accuse me of not adopting the spirit of Halloween, but the comfort of my couch will help soften the blow. Now to hide the stash so a certain two year old doesn't point and grunt at it all day every day. Learned that lesson with the vase of "decorative" candy corn at the bottom of the stairs. It's half empty...or is it half full?
1 pennies for your thoughts:
You are so creative! I love these costumes!
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