Saturday, October 21, 2006

Laundry and Halloween

They were actually sleeping! And to think I was wasting that potential nap time by surfing the computer! Oh, well.

Today is catch-up on housework day. Change the sheets, do multiple loads of laundry, sort, fold, and put away, vacuum the stairs (somehow they catch as many dust balls as Don's bellybutton! Sorry, probably too much information...), encourage Scooby to finish his book report book...

And then I have a show tonight. Thursday's went well - Don's friends were late because of traffic, so that stressed him out a little, but I think he enjoyed the show, and it went well. On the way to tonight's show, I'm going to try to stop at Red White and Blue Thrift store and find a white button-up shirt for Scooby's magician costume (the only one he has is the one he wore to Steve and Heather's wedding, so it's a little small!) and a pair of "pedal-pushers" and a gray 1950's suit for myself, for the Christmas show. It's supposed to be a 1950's variety show, and I play the wry, side-kick writer. Kind of like a 50's Tina Fey. I'll also be looking for cats'eye glasses. Mom, you don't still have yours, do you?

So Halloween's coming up fast. As I mentioned, Scooby wants to be a magician, so sometime this week I need get out to Party City and get him a black hat. We've got the cape, pants, bow tie, gloves, and wand already. Even some tricks that he wants to carry around with him and do at EVERY HOUSE. I'm trying to figure out how to discourage that idea, without discouraging HIM. Tarzan wants to be a skeleton, wearing the same skeleton PJ's that Scooby did a couple of years ago. The bones are pretty worn by this time, but he says it looks like someone hit them with a hammer and they crumpled, so he likes them that way. Cinderella wants to be Tinkerbell, and I think I can get her to wear one of the many ballerina type dresses we already have. I told Tarzan I'll paint his face like a skeleton, and Cinderella that I'll paint fairy designs on hers. She wanted to try it out today, but I think we'll wait. We have a neighborhood parade on the 28th, in the morning, then Granny's going to take them to a costume pumpkin patch at her church that afternoon. On the 31st, Scooby has a costume parade at school, and then there's trick-or-treating that night.

What are some of your favorite Halloween costumes/memories? My three most memorable were the years I dressed up as a Dutch doll, and wore the authentic wooden shoes trick-or-treating. (Ouch!) The year I made a "Missing Link" costume out of a cardboard box...not the genetic missing link, the puzzle that was popular the same time as the Rubik's Cube, with the colored links that you'd have to slide into place. While making the costume, I cut out the head hole first, and then tried it on, without thinking to cut the arm-holes first. Of course, I fell flat on my face. And finally, the year I was Snoopy chasing the Red Baron, wearing a ten pound airplane on my shoulders that my Dad made out of an old barrel, and a paper mache mask on my face with limited visibility. I'm lucky I survived the night. I have to say, I was kind of relieved when I grew too old to trick or treat. So how about you all? Any fun memories?

4 comments:

J said...

I remember those - especially the missing link. For which I was present, and horrified. I can't believe you actually trick-or-treated in the wooden clogs! OW! I remember being the ghost in the yellow spotted sheet. We didn't have any white ones...There were plastic masks of some variety. I don't remember what they looked like, but I still remember how they smelled. (not bad, just plasticky) I remember never knowing what to be...I don't think I was creative enought to carry around that plane...
-m

J said...

Speaking of which witch - What was the name of that book with Dori the witch in it? It was for halloween, black, hardcover...smelled like the Potsdam libraray...I can't find it anywhere!
-m

Anonymous said...

I don't remember the missing link costume. I do remember the game though so I can picture it.

I also wore the plane costumer (as a pilot). And that thing weighed much more than 10lbs. What a painful exhausting costume.

I was a ghost (white sheet, cut up without permission I believe), a robot (more cardboard boxes) and that's all i remember as a kid.

In highschool and college I dressed up as The Crow and that was EASILY my best costume. I'm sure I have a picture around here somewhere...

-s

Kylie said...

Ok, so this is a really OLD message, but I was bored and going through old blog posts. I remember the missing link costume...I am pretty sure Kara and I went trick or treating with you guys that year. I am fairly sure I was Strawberry Shortcake and Kara was Oscar the Grouch... both with the plasticky masks... Or maybe I was a cheerleader... Hm. Mom has pictures somewhere.