Vintage Halloween Hop

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

I was totally charmed by the Vintage Halloween Hop link party when I came across it on NewlyWoodward's blog this morning. So, when Joseph and I went to my mother's for some happy pumpkin painting fun, I brought my scanner and took a little stroll down Memory Lane.

Memory Lane started with a 3 month old bunny named Caroline. I still have that long new baby stare, but my Mom is really cute!

Since my Dad was in the Army, we promptly moved to Germany before my next Halloween. Living off base in Germany for 3 years means that you don't really celebrate Halloween. Thus, no costumes or Trick or Treating.

The next time we hit the states I was 4 and I finally got to remove pumpkin brains with my Great Aunt Meg. I think we had fun:

But, still no Trick or Treating until the following year. I was 5 and my sister Amy was 3. I got to be a fairy princess. Amy got to be a one handed pirate.

I was clearly in love with my fairy self. Amy was less than thrilled. She didn't have pink wings or a sparkly wand. So. Not. Fair. Also, having lived all of her life in Germany and having a naturally skeptical mind, Amy didn't trust this whole "Trick or Treat" thing. At the first house, Amy turned to my Mom and said something like this: "You expect me to believe that I just walk up to that door, ring the bell, and they will hand over the candy?! Yeah right! Good one, Mom."

At the age of 6, I vehemently told my Mom that I wanted to be a rose for Halloween. Not just any rose, mind you. Beauty and the Beast had just come out and I wanted to be THAT rose. The sparkly one under the glass dome that controlled the Beast's fate  with the fall of its petals.

Really. Every other girl in the world wanted to be Belle that year. Me? I wanted to be The Magical Rose... because I'm weird like that. My Mom, supportive as ever, set about creating a rose costume for me. She's awesome like that. All I was missing was a glass dome to float around in. My Mom searched and searched for one of those clear, narrow dome umbrellas, but couldn't find one. That's ok. I was still a very, very happy domeless rose. Amy finally got to be a princess and she gave me her patented, "My sister is such a WIERDO!" look.

Along came our sister Kate. She got to revisit my fairy princess costume and proceeded to cast spells all over us. Since we always made her play the evil witch in our very dramatic Rapunzel plays, those probably weren't nice spells, but you never know with Kate.

At the age of 9, I decided to be a bat. That's right. A bat. As in, the creature. Me. The woman who hates bats. Maybe it was an omen of things to come?? Most kids would decide to be a vampire for Halloween. Me? I go with bat. Wierd. My leggings have glittery, orange bats on them and there's even a stuffed bat hanging upside down from my shirt. I just don't understand it now, but I thought I was SO cool. After all, I made that costume.

This is a before school picture, so Marshall isn't dressed up, but he went trick or treating as an Indian brave.

When I was 10, I went candy begging as my beloved stuffed bear Muffy who, sadly, had been lost during one of our many moves. Yup. I chose to be one of my former stuffed animals. Who does that??? Wierd. I even made that costume myself out of an old brown towel and a nightgown. Kate went as Queen of the World. Possibly Empress of the Universe. Marshall switched sides and went cowboy. Amy was a witch again. All black was going to become a Halloween pattern for her.

Due to moving around and getting older, I may have skipped a few Halloweens here and there, including whatever year The Matrix came out. That year, Amy decided to be the oh so cool Trinity from The Matrix. Kate wouldn't be left out of that action. Thus, the Year of the Two Trinities:

Amy was ticked, but at least she got to continue wearing black. I'm pretty sure she was Trinity again the following year. More black. She may have had something of a black fingernail polish goth phase.

Sometime after Pocahontas came out, I made yet another strange choice in costume. I decided I would be Meeko. You remember Meeko? He was Pocahontas' raccoon sidekick. I loved the biscuit thieving critter and made myself a raccoon costume. Yup. Most girls would want to be Pocahontas. Me? I wanted to be her pet raccoon. Wierd. Marshall actually ended up wearing my raccoon costume for Halloween 2000.

Amy, continuing to embrace black, was a ghoul. Kate was a Brownie. As in the miniature forest race in the movie Willow. The one's who prance around screaming, "I stole ze Baby!!" I was... a fairy queen? I was working part time at a community theater and had access to fluffy dresses in their costume department. What 14 year old girl turns down fluffy dresses? Never mind that I'm too old to be trick or treating. I was small for my age and young at heart.

Obviously... since I went trick or treating with my friends again when I was 15. We were the three blind mice. Walking canes, sunglasses, inside out school gym clothes, paper mouse ears attached to headbands, and no tails. I'm the short one.

In college, I always dressed up, but I aimed for more clothes than lingerie. Eighties chick, Princess Leia on Planet Hoth, and other dorky things. But the best year was when my roommates and I went as The Golden Girls. You know. To protest all of the lingerie. We were really, reeeally hot.

Goodwill is so helpful when one is trying to dress like these lovely ladies...

All of this reminiscing reminds me of the Halloween Dance Party in 2008. Which half of me is embarrassed to share... but the other half reasons that you already know about The Rose.



I miss my roomies. Nancy went as Sarah Palin with a shotgun. Peaches was a doctor. I forget what Laura went as... but I think it had to do with the 70s. Did you enjoy the bad eighties prom dress and big hair? I did.

Lastly, I'd like to leave you with, what is possibly my favorite Halloween picture of all time... My parents:

My Dad is a standard male Monty Python member dressed as a female. He does the voice so well! My mother is a Monty Python gumby. The picture of my Dad dressed as Saddam Hussein came in close second to this one.

Of course, if you don't get the Monty Python Flying Circus references (and I comfort myself with the knowledge that at least my father-in-law gets it)...  Then you can always just laugh at my brother in this next picture:

He hasn't changed a bit.

Fear not... Adorable Joseph the Lion Halloween pictures are in your future.