All Hallows Eve 2021!

 ...So does anyone even keep a blog any more?  I apparently don't.... 

It looks like I didn't make a Halloween post last year?  We did go trick-or-treating but pickings were scant, as was to be expected.  Maybe after I finish this post I'll make one about last year too.  It's always fun to have a record of everyone's costumes.

spoopy...

This year any plans we had were complicated by the fact that a cold is currently dragging its miasmatic way through the family.  We decided not to get together with friends, for sad -- we weren't even sure until the last second who would feel up to trick-or-treating.  But customs must be upheld!  Traditions must be maintained!  Health be darned -- candy must be solicited!!

And after all the effort we made to throw our costumes together last second lovingly and painstakingly assemble each costume, it would have been a shame not to.  

It's been ages since we chose a family theme for costumes, so the last couple years it's been every man for himself.  Let's begin with the child who has been desperate for Halloween to come for the last 6 weeks: 

Last year someone gave us this doggie costume, and Nicky has been wearing it off and on all year.  The only thing he wanted me to add was a collar.  (Well, and paws for his hands and feet but that's where I drew the line.)

Katie did a fantastic job helping him carve his pumpkin.  It even has a tail!

 

The creative juices were not flowing in Andy this year.  Transcript of conversation about choosing his costume:
Mom: What do you want to dress up as?
Andy: Can't I just go as myself?
Mom: Do you want to dress up as St. Andrew?
Andy: No, I want to wear just regular clothes.
Mom: Well, if you want to get candy, you have to earn it by dressing up as SOMETHING.
Andy: FINE, I'll just be a fisherman then.

(note: that hat came off about .6 seconds after this shot.  Also, Andy assembled the fishing pole about 15 minutes before we left.)

 

Let's-a go! 

I'm most proud of this one -- I actually made the overalls using one of Danny's pairs of pants as a pattern, then fudging the rest of it.  (I've gotten a lot of inspiration and encouragement from watching Micarah Tewers' hilarious videos.)

Also, Mario's mustache sweated off after about 20 minutes.  Should have used waterproof eyeliner.

 

Jojo seems to enjoy choosing the most obscure characters to dress as.  Does anyone recognize this one? 

...No?  Here's a hint:

...Still no?

aaaand zooming in...

This is another one I ended up being pretty proud of, only because we were actually able to find all the pieces in time.  It came pretty close to the wire -- Mom getting sick during the week before Halloween was not helpful, especially when Mom is a noted and confirmed procrastinator (ahem).

 

I don't know if anyone will get this next one, unless you're into Dream SMP, which for the uninitiated is an apparently really popular Minecraft... role-playing... thing?... on Youtube?  I'm just a lame parent, what do I know?  And while doing research for this caption I just realized I've been pronouncing this character's name wrong all along.

Anyway, it's Katie's interpretation of the character Ranboo.  (It's a Minecraft character, so there's a lot of leeway in adapting it for a normal-looking person.)  She put the costume together herself in a matter of days, in time to attend a local con earlier this year.  It looks really awesome -- it's a pity this picture doesn't do it justice.  (She did a picture shoot with a photographer friend -- I'll see if I can get her permission to post some of them.)  (Tchah -- teenagers!)

I love that Katie still went trick-or-treating this year, despite the fact that a) she's 16 and b) had to leave the house and c) interact with strangers.  So proud!  And as to point a), as she said she's short so she looks younger -- although that advantage was kind of offset by the three-inch platform boots she was wearing.

There still weren't a lot of houses distributing candy this year -- the kids really had to work for their loot.  Still, they made it back with a decent haul.

The best part of trick-or-treating -- trading loot!  Oh my goodness the wheeling and dealing that goes on.  (Also apparently one neighbor forgot to get candy and so was giving out chips instead?)

In re: not many houses distributing, there were also not as many collecting.  I overestimated the number of kids that would go back to trick-or-treating this year.

...GROSSLY overestimated.

 (This is going to be our movie night candy for approximately the next 6 months.)

Jojo's pumpkin keepin' it real!

Happy Feast of All Saints!