My two older kids are dressing up as a ghost and a princess for Halloween again this year. If only it was as easy as that sounds.

Last year was the first year my son had a specific idea of what he wanted to be for Halloween.  (Previous years, I simply took him to the store and let him choose between a few of the cheapest costumes I could find.)  He wanted to be a ghost.  I thought that would be a piece of cake.  Or rather, a piece of white fabric, make a head hole so he could see and we’d be all set.  Then he drew me a sketch of what this ghost should look like. 

It bore an oddly striking resemblance to Inky, Pinky, Blinky or possibly Clyde.  I say it was odd because I wasn’t sure he had ever played Pac-Man.  He was quite sure it should have a “wavy” mouth and zigzags on the bottom, otherwise it wouldn’t be spooky.  This was when I realized our disconnect.  He wanted a costume that was spooky and I thought we were going for easy.

We spent some time at the sewing machine.  (If you really want scary this Halloween, put your hands on a sewing machine while a five-year-old has his foot on the pedal.)  He insisted that it needed to cover his head.  I cut eye holes and drew that wavy mouth.  He insisted that it needed a nose.  Okay.  It was his costume.  I had no pattern and quite frankly was a bit embarrassed with how it tuned out.

Y, on the other hand, was very satisfied and spent the next few days jumping out at me around the house while making spooky noises.  I tried to be frightened at the small boy screaming “ooo” from under a funny-looking white sheet and he was very happy with his ghostly self.  Until Halloween when he wore it for more than a few minutes and began complaining that the eyeholes were difficult to see through.  In a rather proud moment, I refrained from saying “I told you so.”

This year we made a new ghost, full head hole and white makeup.  It’s really not bad.  Next year he will probably want to be something else entirely.

J is wearing most of her costume from last year, but this is a story, too.  It starts Christmas 2007.  She received a cute, green princess costume.  It was a bit big.  I tucked it away somewhere, thinking it might be just right by the time Halloween came around.  But by the time Halloween did come around, I had forgotten we had the costume so I borrowed a purple princess dress.  Then I made a crown to go with it.  It was cut from a cracker box, painted gold with plastic gems glued on and yes, I did feel like a very crafty mom for having created it.  But J didn’t like it.  She did not want or need a crown and only let me put it on her head long enough to take a picture.  I didn’t try to save it.

Then came another Christmas.  I found that green dress and put it where I knew we’d have it for this year.  I put it on J last week to check the size.  It fit well and she was adorable, naturally.  Then she said, “Why can’t I wear the purple one?”

She was only two years old last Halloween.  I could not believe she remembered the dress.  But we went back to the source, the same source that gave us the green dress to begin with, and re-borrowed the purple one.  Then she saw my niece, who doesn’t need a holiday to dress as a princess, wearing a crown and decided that she needed one, too.  At least this was something I knew I could make.

It seemed that we were finally ready.  And then Y asked what costume I was going to wear, and J thought that was a very good question.

Mandy appears weekends on TriangleMom2Mom.