The Ghosts of Halloween Past, Mwhahahaha. . .

And present. . .

I like to dress up.
And I like candy.
For that reason I think Halloween is just about the best damn holiday ever.
I know I am getting old and I suppose to be mature but I don't care; I still like to dress up.
So I do.
Granted I am not very creative.
I basically have 2 costumes: Witch and Tooth Fairy.
This is me as the Tooth Fairy with Ryan (a 5th Backstreet boy) and Dusty (a werewolf). This is I think the first time I wore the Tooth Fairy costume. I don't think Ryan and I were yet married.

Here is another picture from the same Halloween with Ryan and Tara (a witch) so that you can see the shoes.
The shoes are a key component of this costume.
Actually they were the inspiration-- as when I saw them I thought of teeth and the costume idea came to me then. I will admit to wearing them without the costume to go "clubbing" in the past. And I will admit that the only people to ever compliment me on those shoes have been drag queens. This clearly tells me that they are for costumes and theatrical use only. They really are terrible shoes that nearly every time I wear them I twist my ankle. Which with the marathon coming up was a good reason for me not wear them this year.

Here is me as Tooth Fairy (again) with Carmella. She is 19 months old. She is a flower fairy princess who has a black eye. I can't remember what that particular black eye was from. Both she and Beau have had lots of them. My life as a parent is a blur of black eyes--both mine and the kids(Beau has given 3, Carmella 1).

In the later Tooth Fairy years you can see that I have gotten a bit slack about making my tooth crown. The first one was a tour de force of spray painted and glittered tooth brushes, tin foil, sliver pipe cleaners, and a foam board giant tooth. Later it becomes just a white paper tooth, staples and tinfoil.

And just for shits and giggles and to embarrass mom, here is a picture of Lala.
What is that crap all over her face you are wondering, right?
Well, those my friends, are kitty stickers.
Stickers of cats.
Why she thought to do this I will never know but it was pretty funny when her skin had an allergic reaction from the stickers and she had a rash on her face where they had been. I like it when people do dumber stuff than me. It is fun when I am not always the one being laughed at for dumbass ideas.

Here is me as a witch last year with Carmella. Really it is all about the hat and the orange and black striped knee socks that you can't quite see.

And here is me this year with Beau as a witch.
The dress is my 9th grade homecoming dress.
It is hard to believe that I took that dress to be anything other than a costume. It is fun though-- ugly as it may be. And one more of me with the "princess sisters":

Alright, I know you don't give a rat's ass about my costumery of the past or the present, so on to the kids. . .

First though, a few shots from the fall festival (I told you we loves a festival) at Beau's school:
The unhappy princess on the merry-go-round:
The happy princess on the now merry-go-round-- once commanded to smile:
The show down:
Some of Beau Vador's fancy moves:


Ryan carved our pumpkin this year. Some years we have a contest and I do one of the kid's and he does the other and I always lose because I have absolutely no patience for that sort of thing or eye for detail. I have no idea why I ever even entertained that I could be an artist much less stuck with the sculpture major for more than a quarter. Good thing I came to my senses after only wasting a year or two.
The debate between the kids was: Beau; scary pumpkin. Carmella; happy pumpkin.
They compromised on silly scary pumpkin.
Ryan complied.
We did Halloween this year at Meme and Pat's house. There was the requisite chili and salad and beer. Yummy, yum and uh, yum yum.
And then there was the impossible task of getting a Halloween picture of all 5 kids looking the same direction:

I've got to say: nothing, and I mean nothing, can cause a fight between parents faster than trying to get a decent photo of their little darling/s to record some precious moment.
And yeah, that is all I am going to say about that.
Again, the princess sisters:
Baby Pat the Puppy:
Off they go:
Trick or treat:
Thank you!!!