Boo

So immediately when I wrote the subject line for this, my mind jumped to To Kill A Mockingbird and I've gone on a full and complete mental tangent before I've even started into this post...focus, girl.

I'm planning Halloween. Actually, I will admit, I've been planning Halloween since about March, but we can just gloss over that point. Starting in August sounds much better than starting in March.

And when I say "planning Halloween," really that's just code for "I have it all planned out and now I'm just collecting my materials." And my excuse is that then I have that long to find the best prices, find the best costume pieces, and to sew things...which for me to finish (or start) sewing something is an absolute heroic and epic event. But the truth is, I just love Halloween.

No, it's not even that I love Halloween. I love the excuse to dress up in a costume. Because now that I'm an adult, if I put on a cloak or a full ball-gown and went to Target, people would look at me weird. Sometimes I envy those little girls who get to go out in their Cinderella dresses and people just chock it up to "Oh, Mom lost that battle this morning." But I'm way beyond that.

You see, I have an extremely active imagination. Always have. And to be able to be someone else for a day or a few hours is so much fun. That's why I love acting. It's like big-kid pretend play that's socially acceptable.

Anyway, going back to Halloween. Remember what I was saying earlier about the mental tangent? Apparently I do it more often than I thought. So the costumes are all planned out, and I have some small pieces of my costume and Ben's costume. E has informed us that she is going to be Cinderella, Daddy is going to be the Prince, and I am going to be the Cruel Stepmother.

Why doesn't the prince have a name? That always bugged me. Sorry, tangent.

Ben and I also need costumes for an adult Halloween party we go to. So, for that, we have Sherlock Holmes (yes, I know...my obsession has waned, but is far from over...see previous post on my Sherlockian fixation) and Irene Adler. I'm currently in search of some red hair dye that looks good and will come out in 1-2 washes.

Sigh. Believe it or not, this is actually better than I used to be. When I was younger, I used to start planning on November 1st. Maybe the 2nd if I was lazy. For your perusing pleasure, I've taken another mental tangent down memory lane and complied a list of my most memorable costumes below.

Point being, I can't wait for when Ellie really gets into dress-up. I will SO TOTALLY play with her whenever she asks. And of course, it won't be that I'm enjoying myself at all...I'm just being a good mommy. :)

Princess '85
Little Bo Peep '86
Snow White '87
Sleeping Beauty '88
Bride '90
Cheerleader '91
Maid Marion '92
Native American '93
Japanese Girl '94 (The sleeves of that kimono were awesome candy receptacles)
Juliet '95 (I really wanted to be King Arthur, but it just didn't work out)
Tooth Fairy '96 (this was one of the best)
Princess Leia '97 (of course)
Princess Eilonwy '98 (NO one knew who I was)
Hermione Granger '99
Gospel Girl '01
Zombie (in a haunted house) '02
Wednesday Addams '03
Eliza Doolittle '04 (though most people thought I was the bird lady from Mary Poppins)
Violet Baudelaire '05 (Again, no one knew who I was....problem with being little-known literary characters)
Christine Daae '06 (Ben was the Phantom)
Witch '07 (in a really sweet 70s thrift store dress with an 8-months pregnant tummy)
Queen Amidala '08 (E was Princess Leia and B was Anakin...I looked really freaky)
Glinda the Good Witch '09 (E was Dorothy, B the tin man) and Morticia Addams (with Ben as Gomez)
The Cruel Stepmother '10 (hopefully Fairy Godmother or something instead) and Irene Adler (with Ben playing a very handsome Sherlock)