Homemade Halloween

I didn't grow up with Halloween. Living in Australia nobody celebrated it there so it was just another  thing that we would see on t.v. but could never participate in. Like Christmas in the winter. 
One year one of my friends dressed up and attempted to trick or treat and a very angry neighbour said "Go to America where they actually celebrate Halloween."  As time went on more and more neighbourhoods started to celebrate it and I think it is now one of their holidays. So, my first Halloween after we moved to Canada (at 13) I went out with a bunch of youth trick or treating. I had a blast and got to really enjoy Halloween. We also may have watched the black and white version of psycho under the recommendation of a parent which traumatized me for many,  many years. Moving on...
In more recent years I have been more health conscious and have noticed the effects of consuming large amounts of cheap candy after walking around in the cold for hours. This would almost always be followed by a bad cold and crazy children...
Mark grew up not celebrating Halloween trick or treating. Instead, his family would have a bonfire and eat homemade marshmallows. So this year after talking with friends who felt the same way we decided to just have a little party where we would make our own treats, have a fire, and then eat them. We made homemade marshmallows and toffee. The marshmallows were so good roasted and with the toffee we did something a little wrong so it was too soft but still delicious. I made  sourdough buns and we roasted hot dogs while the kids played outside. We were super lucky with the weather this year as it went up to 20 degrees during the day and the evening was warm with no wind. Pretty much perfect weather. It was a wonderful evening and the best Halloween I've had in a long time. 

I also decided to make the costumes from scratch this year which I have never attempted before.  I happen to have a few boxes of fabric that I got at a garage sale with the idea that I may want to sew something someday. I don't sew very often... Actually with the exception of the odd pair of pjs and a couple of scarves, I hadn't done much sewing before I got married and not much after either. Mark was always trying to get me to sew and telling me I would like it etc. etc. but, I didn't agree. Then, a couple of years ago he bought me a sewing machine. I felt a little like when Annie gets a blender from her fiance in Father of the Bride. But, I started using it bit by bit and sure enough...I like to sew! I don't like to follow instructions though so I prefer to sew things I make up myself. They tend to look homemade, like the lop-sided rabbit I made for Addy last year.  But I had so much fun making the kids stuffies and you just can't buy love like that ;) So Leilani wanted to be either Anna or Elsa from Frozen (what little girl didn't?) In trying to get me to help her decide she sang me "let it go" followed by "For the first time in forever..." Then she said "Which one sounds better?" I told her she didn't need to sing, just wear a costume, but she didn't seem to care. In the end it came down to what material I had. So Anna it was. We spent hours looking over Anna costumes on google, trying to get all the parts together. I also called my mother a few times to ask how to make certain things. I have some fun embroidery stitches on my sewing machine so I decided to do all the stems and vines with embroidery. I couldn't do the the flowers so I decided to use my awesome stash of buttons that I have, also from my mother. I spent all my free time sewing, which sadly isn't much between homeschooling, doing hair, and house work...ok fine, I didn't actually do much housework and I'm sure Mark was very happy when I wasn't so consumed with sewing  anymore...

Then, I made Jacob a Peter Pan shirt, and Carter a Robin Hood tunic.

He has been dying for a cloak so I made one as well.  I was most nervous about making the cloak but it turned out to be fairly easy. Sleeves are still my least favourite and actually for Carter's tunic I didn't even cut the sleeves out separately and it surprisingly didn't look that bad.

Adelaide was Tinkerbell and we already had her costume so I didn't have to do anything for her.

I was happy with how things all turned out and  in spite of a few small hiccups, there was nothing too major. I did a lot of it without measuring which, lesson to me, things turn out better when you measure...
I have decided to try to make as many Christmas presents as I can this year which I am now excited to get started on. I think I have a new hobby!