It's the morning after Halloween, the kids are slowing stirring from their warm beds. Some still with wild tangled hair others with sweet dreams of being their favorite characters. All I can think is what a wonderful night of trick or treating it was and that we survived another year. My husband and now a few of my children have a fond love for horror. Which for boys I can easily see the attachment to the blood and gore of it all, the scare factor. My oldest has a growing collection of horror villains. Little 8 inch plushies of Freddy, Leatherface, and Jason, with an ever growing list of more to be added. Now I'll admit this momma loves Aliens and Predator's so I can't lay all the blame on my husbands love of horror.
To be honest Halloween is my favorite holiday, I love the dark and dreary, the spooky and cooccky of the season. Maybe not so much the gore. But I love that your imagintion can be creative and you get to play pretend, to dream any dream. The one day to be yourself and not have to fit societies mold of what everyone and everything should look and fit into a puzzle piece perfect picture. Because life is crazy, chaotic, and darn right Hell sometimes. I like that Halloween lets us drop the facades those perfect pretenses.
The last few years Halloween at the Helms has been rather bleak and close to non existent. Schooling through ARVA K-12 we were so burdened down with schoolwork didn't have time to set out our decorations. My husband's work schedule also kept us from going out and having fun because I was overwhelmed with the idea of so many littles of losing a kid or two and lets face it kids don't always listen and pay attention. I created so many blown out of porportion ideals I stopped us from having fun.
This year I've ventured out with my children and my boys are much older. So they helped out with all the hustle and bustle of preparing for the night. My husband and oldest worked on a costume for Leatherface. They sat and made a latex mask together, using my cosmotology heads for molds and had a blast. My little buddy Declan loves Sam form Trick or treat. We've looked the past two years at purchasing a costume for him but they were never available in his size. The poor kiddo has held out for two years and I wasn't going to let him down again. So as Sebastian and my husband worked together I put myself to create my Declan's costume.
At first I'll admit I was overly enthusiastic. Oh I helped sew my costumes with my mom and put things together growing up how hard would that be. Yeah you bet I ate my own words and thoughts on this one. So youtube it was. I spent lots of time researching how to make the iconic burlap head. I didn't have the time to make a plastered head and then sew, I didn't have the time to papermache a head. So I though of other ways, plus Declan has a sensitivity to fabrics and heavy, blocking visual senses. So I spent the better of a week to plan just how to make the head. When it came to me. To use wire to make a light weight, yet durable base, one that could be made slightly large to take of and on at Declan's will. Again having to think of a child and their degree of pulling masks off all the time and besides he might wear it for the better of 5 minutes right as per usual of children.
Now I don't know what's worse getting kids in and out of winter jackets and hoodies with gloves and boots just to go outside for 5 minutes then come in to take everything off, or the hustle of perfection of 6 kids for Halloween. All afternoon the kids were asking when we'd get ready, where we we going, is it time yet. With me making last minute alterations to the two with homemade costumes as well as hunting down articles of clothing for a rather chilly and windy night. All the while going through my head on our plans of executing a route for trick or treating.
Luckily for me Lincoln was an easy one to plan for as I've had his costume since my oldest was born my mom found the cutest little Halloween costume onsies for a 3-6 month old 12 years ago, of a mouse and a frog. I went with the frog option, since Quentin loves frogs and turtles.
Quentin has gotten into dc comics so all we hear about is Aqua man, Spider man, and Batman, again having boys we had a Spidey costume. Easy enough.
Clementine was planning to be Annabel again for this year but changed her min last minute to a Rag Doll. Luckily she still fit. I make small kiddos only being 5ft.
Another kiddos that changed his mind last minute was Fox, which woke up in a rather sick manor but overcame it with a long nap and so elderberry syrup before 4pm. Originally he was wanting to be a Zombie, but with the chill of the day he decided Harry Potter was more his fit and loved being bundled in the warm Hogwarts cloak with hidden pajamas underneath, silly boy.
Declan Not only got to done his costume for speech therapy for earlier in the morning but again got the trill of dressing as Sam.
Then Sebastian as mentioned earlier was Leatherface. Which lucky for us his apron we and costume for him and Declan were able to dry after adding coco powder for dirt and aging to cry as well as adding blood syrup. We normally try not to use the heat until later in the year with temperature in the twenties or low thirties. So we hung the costumes underneath the air vents to dry.
Our first stop of the night was to a trunk or treat at Dupree Park where the kids had fun collecting candy and strolling around. I put Clementine and Quentin in our red folding wagon and pulled them around. While Sebastian pushed Lincoln around in his stroller,. Lincoln was nicely wrapped up in his blanket and in a stroller bag snoozing the first stop away.
Our second stop was a last minute decision on my part I had heard earlier in the week that some senior centers open up to hand out candy per the elderly love seeing the kids in costumes and just the simple joy it gave them seeing all the kids. I myself have often thought of bringing the kids by some of the nursing centers because I've always thought it would be something both my children and an older gentleman or lady could benefit from. After yesterday It has reinstalled that desire to look into a center or two. The kids partnered up an older with a younger and they had a ball talking to and gathering candy from the residents.
Our last stop was to the church down the street from our home. I had planned on ending at the Sherwood forest but with how bus the Dupree trunk or treat was I decided against it. The kiddos had the most fun getting to know the members of our community, playing cake walk and other games. I've thought about stopping in before. And sadly I've always talked myself out of stopping in. With having so many little ones I know they can be a hand full and children are children lets not forget. Sometimes they are the best other times it's a no win situation of death stares and mamma angry snapping fingers or a long high pitched beckoning whistle to snap the kiddos back into their lovable out in public selves.
I was thoroughly happy that my youngest was so content. He has been a bit of a fuss with teething, and non stop wanting mamma. You know that whole breastfed, nobody else can hold or look at me phase without starting the whole snowball effect of sounds like a failed exorcism is at play so therapy we've hidden ourselves away in the van to save any other ears from piercing damage. He surprised us all, he was all smiles and laughter as he saw all the costumes and lights come and go, The friendly smiling faces of young and old.
This mamma survived Halloween with six kiddos in tow. I came home to a warm, crock pot dinner and loving husband who had just gotten off work. We shared our adventures, Our favorite trunk decorations, the seniors we met and the Neighboring Church and all the neighbors who helped make the night so memorable. I did it, one Halloween for the books. Now to mentally prepare for next year and maybe not wait till last minute for costumes.
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