Halloween Happenings

When my daughter was six months old I used store credit and bought her a pumpkin costume.  When she was eighteen months old and I was seven months pregnant I went to Old Navy and gave her a choice between two costumes in her size.  But, at two and a half she had an idea of what she wanted to be for Halloween, a yellow crayon, and Old Navy did not carry a yellow crayon costume, I checked.  I was about to give her a choice between two costumes at the store in her size when my husband said to me, “Why don’t you make it?”  The fact that I can hardly sew a button onto a shirt didn’t cross his mind.  Yet, with some felt and the simple up and down stitch I teach my students when we do lacing cards, I made my daughter a yellow crayon for Halloween.  She loved the idea of helping mommy maker her costume and was excited to help me measure felt and have fittings as the project progressed.  I was so proud of myself and she was thrilled to have her special costume (her 10 month old sister was in a hand me down costume as she could not tell me what she wanted to be for Halloween).  Halloween may have been pretty much canceled last year due to Hurricane Sandy, but we trick or treated the two blocks between downed trees and I certainly posted a picture on Facebook.

This year I am making two Halloween costumes.  I still can hardly sew, but I got such joy out of making my child’s costume that I am having a blast doing it again.  If you are feeling crafty, but lack basic sewing skills, such as myself, the internet can be a fabulous resource.  I love some of the ideas on parenting.com.

If making your child’s costume sounds like a bit too much, I understand, as my cooking skills are about as good as dialing the phone to order pizza.  If you are looking for some other ways to make a memory for your preschooler this Halloween, consider some not scary Halloween fun.  A trip to the pumpkin patch can yield lots of opportunities for a good time.  When I was a child, the rule was that the pumpkin I picked had to be carried by me, so I had to choose wisely.  If you’re not a fan of this rule, remember a wagon to haul your load.  Watching mom or dad carve a pumpkin can be fun, but putting the pumpkin insides into a deep-sided pan for your child to mush and squish is even more fun.  If you and your child like spending time together in the kitchen, pluck out the pumpkin seeds together, let your child sprinkle with salt, and roast them up for a yummy pumpkin snack.  Another preschool friendly way to decorate a pumpkin is to paint it rather than carve it.  Purple, black, green, and yellow paint can make a lovely Halloween decoration.  Be sure to outfit your little one with a smock and cover surfaces with newspaper.  When you are at the pumpkin patch, don’t ignore the gourds.  These funny shaped and often bumpy squash are great fun to touch and play with.  Often less than a dollar a gourd, bring some home to play with and talk about the similarities and differences.  When your child is done with them, they make for a lovely Halloween tablescape.

For next Halloween, if you have the space in your garden, you may want to plan ahead and plant your own pumpkin patch.  Pumpkins do take a lot of room to grow, but tending the plant from seed to harvest will be a story your child can share for years to come.

On a final note, one of my favorite ideas to address the plethora of candy is to participate in a donation program such as the one we will be donating to at PCC this year, Operation Shoebox.  The children will have a few days to enjoy their Halloween candy and then they have the opportunity to bring in the rest to package and donate to our Troops.  The candy collected by Operation Shoebox will be put in care packages that are sent to our military deployed overseas.  For more information visit operationshoebox.com or if you would like to add your candy to our collection, contact us at info@pcckids.org. 

Happy and Safe Halloween!