ModernMom: Halloween Scares Me

It’s not the ghouls or goblins. It’s not the thought of having my house egged. It’s not the idea of asking strangers for candy, or even the things that will undoubtedly go bump on that night. The thing that really gets me nervous about Halloween is coming up with the right costumes for my kids.

My daughter is relatively easy. After all, at 2 and a half, while she excels at telling me what she doesn’t want (“no, mama, no!”), she’s not quite as adept at expressing what she does want. So I’ll attempt to put her in the store-bought costume of the ladybug or the dragonfly. She’ll either let me or she won’t, and that will be that.

My 5-year-old son, on the other hand, is another story entirely. In the last three days alone, he’s told me he wants to be Darth Vader, a gingerbread man, a police man, and a leaf. Not being the craftiest gal in town, I was hoping he’d go for something simple…like a ghost. (I have plenty of extra sheets, and how hard can it be to cut two eyeholes?) Now I find out that not only will he be wearing his costume for trick or treating, he’s also supposed to wear it to kindergarten for a school-wide parade. That means that all the other moms and dads will see just how not-so-crafty I am. It means “no accessories are allowed,” (no light saber?) and that he’ll be on display for hundreds of kids and parents in his new school community. If you can think of a clever and simple costume, please let me know. In the meantime, I’ll hold out for Thanksgiving, where all I have to be scared of is burning the turkey.