Costumes

There does not exist, as far as I know, a single photograph of me in a Halloween costume, despite all those years of trick or treating.  Film and developing were expensive, so I guess we couldn't afford pictures of frivolous things like Halloween costumes.  So the pictures exist only in my head, and the truth is, I only remember a few.  Pretty sure there was a string of early years when a pillow case with holes cut out for eyes sufficed as a ghost costume.  (My mother was not exactly the creative type.)  Once we were old enough, my best friend Peggy and I made our own costumes.  Most notably, we donned an over-sized coat of her mother's and called ourselves a two-headed lady.  We had no idea what people were talking about when they hailed us as Siamese twins.  Another year, I recall trying to make a tree costume out of paper bags.  It rained that Halloween night, so I quickly became a hobo, always a good fall-back costume.  Just dress like a slob, put dirt on your face, and tie a bandana to a stick.

It was different for my kids.  I was that mother, the one who made clever costumes using fabric and a sewing machine.  Let me begin with my first child:

This is Katrina, aka Chiquita Banana.  She's hanging out with Bert and Ernie Pumpkin.

And then there was Jenna, child #2:

See?  Now Katrina has become a strawberry, and Jenna is Chiquita Banana.

But I'm not done yet.  Sam is child #3:

And there it is, my fruit salad.  Happy Halloween!  With love!