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The Last Minute Costume Change
Last week, my daughter got all gussied up in her fairy costume and we shuttled her off to the firehouse Halloween party that our ladies auxiliary (and in particular one incredibly mom organizer) throws every year. This week – she informed my father-in-law she wants to be a ghost for Halloween.
Yes, the request came just a few days before the big day – after I’d already gotten together the costume she’d requested (Tinkerbell), and found appropriate attire to go underneath said costume to make it upstate New York weather-proof.
Her reason? We’re not quite sure. Because other than a pronouncement “I have a sheet upstairs!” there was none given. So I did what any mother who is currently paying for a new furnace to be put in would do – I put my foot down.
Sorry, babe, but it’s less than week until Halloween, this is it. When that earned me the typical extended lip look, I appealed to her girly side. Ghosts don’t have detachable fairy wings, now do they? We’d have to stash those pretty golden wings somewhere in the attic and you wouldn’t get to show them off.
It worked. Then I bundled her into the car for the nursery school Halloween party, dressed in her fairy outfit. And then her best friend got in the car. “I thought she wanted to be a ghost?”
And there we were again – back on the ghost story. I thought this was just my fickle kid until I read much the same story over at Charm City Moms this week. She’s similarly put her foot down – she’ll buy one costume. If you want to change it, you have to make your own.
Not unreasonable – and with a full dress up trunk, a manageable feat even for my four-year-old. But then there’s this perfectly good costume – which would likely end up in the dress up trunk anyway (or passed down to my friend’s daughter). Not to mention that whole “consequences” lesson, along with the one about making good choices.
But she’s four . . . and did I mention fickle? We’re crossing our fingers that Saturday will be a fairy good day. Have you had the last minute costume change? What’s your rule?
Image: Aeromax
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5 Comments
Kikiriki commented on Oct 30 09 at 12:51 pmSeeing as I spent a couple of hours sewing my kid’s costume, the answer would definitely be “no.”
Tara commented on Oct 30 09 at 12:56 pmDS changes is mind every day, but I remind him that I gave him the choice and that we already have the costume he picked out. I am not going to buy a different costume every time he decides it’s not the one he wants. Who has the time or money for that? I believe they have to learn that somethings are just what they are and you can’t do anything about it.
feefifoto commented on Oct 30 09 at 1:18 pmComments Since my daughter starts planning her Halloween costume the day after Halloween and solidifies her plans over the summer, I’ve taken to announcing that there will be no mind changes once the costume has been acquired or compiled. One classmate of my daughter’s decided two days before Halloween that she wanted to change costumes and her mother not only bought a second costume but then paid for premium shipping. Uh uh — who’s in charge here?
Marj commented on Oct 30 09 at 7:33 pmMy brother buys his son a new outfit when he wants it, even though he and his wife are not doing well financially. This year he is desperately trying to convince the kid he wants to be a fireman because that’s what last year’s brand new abandoned costume was. Yeah. My kids are gonna get the same rule – once it’s purchased, that’s it.
Chuck commented on Oct 27 11 at 3:35 pmMaking costumes is so easy, that I always just saved stuff. If a kid is going to two different parties and trick-or-treating, why wouldn’t they get tired of the same costume? Is it really that hard to help your kid make a ghost costume out of an old (and presumably disposable) sheet? My kids are grown, but making costumes for and WITH my little brothers and my kids was some good together time.
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