I feel like the world is divided up into people who really get into Halloween, and those who feel rather ambivalent about it. I definitely fall into the latter category. I don’t think I’ve really dressed up in costume since third or fourth grade. Otis, however, enthusiastically falls into the first category. Thanks to the relentless hinting of Fifth Aunt Grandma K, he’s been talking about his costume for ages. (Ahem, she’s also been talking about Christmas for the past month or so.) Luckily for me, Otis is pretty decisive. He went to see the Ringling Brothers Circus a few months ago, and well, the rest is history:

Halloween costume

The costume was surprisingly easy to make, despite how scary and stretchy swimsuit lycra is. And, well, if you’re going to make one spandex Halloween costume, you might as well make two:

Two acrobats!

Hers was a little more challenging because I actually had to make a pattern for it myself, but it came together without too much fuss. I basically traced one of her old onesies. Here’s F, working with the kids on the show they’re going to take on the road. What a stage dad!

We're taking our show on the road

And I just love this picture with his friend, Mr. Incredible:

with his friend, Mr. Incredible

It feels so indulgent, making Otis a costume just to wear for this one day. And not just any old costume, but one that is flamboyant enough to guarantee embarrassment by the time he’s got a fuzzy upper lip and a driving permit. I’ve felt guilty and embarrassed each time people have commented on how much time it must’ve taken to make his costume because for sure, there must be more worthy ways to spend my time. But it has also been so totally worth it to see the shameless pleasure on his face. I can already see him starting to feel self-conscious here and there, and it breaks my heart to think that his innocent enjoyment will soon be replaced with something more grown up. I want to enjoy this too-short time for as long as I can. Pretty soon, he won’t want a homemade costume anymore. So for now, he will get the costume that he wants. And of course, the tenderness in my heart doesn’t stop me from putting on video tape an interview where he states quite emphatically that the idea was his and his alone.

F and I are staring at his bag of loot, wondering what our candy policy should be this year. Hope you all had a great Halloween!