Texas Monkey

Two more days til Halloween fun! I start planning our costumes around June of every year. I'm not sure why as I still wait until the last minute to actually make them. My goal is to do something easy but fun and not commercialized and something that I don't think is going to be very popular. I may buy certain pieces to put the whole thing together but I prefer to not buy a store bought costume. I have however rented costumes before because they are authentic and believable. I don't go crazy all out but I do put effort and thought into it.
I keep getting messages and emails asking what the monkey is going to be this year. Early on I had decided that she and I would go as flappers and Poppa and Maximus would go as a 20's gangster. Oh did I not mention that I dress my dog up as well? :) I already had his and my costume from a few years back so I would just need to make her's. Easy Peasy. Then the stores starting coming out with their costumes and guess what costume the major chains were showcasing? Yep Flappers. So that nixed that idea.
Let me tell you, coming up with an additional idea nearly caused panic attacks. I mean I'm trying to start a tradition where we all dress up in a theme as a family that includes the dog, something that makes the monkey stand out, doesn't embarrass Momma and Poppa, and that I can do with little to no sewing or spending $, and that is not going to be the same as every one else. Wow do I box myself in or what?
Then I get a letter from her school that they are having a Fall/Halloween party on Friday, need me to bring a bag of candy and sign up for something to make/bring and since it's a Christian school, no little witches, mummies, monsters, devils, etc, and no props like swords, wands, masks, etc. Talk about really boxing one in uh? :)
Well what's my plan? Sign up for home made cupcakes of course and do 2 different costumes, one for her to wear to school and one for her to wear with our family theme on Sat. Oh and let's still wait til the last minute to do it all. Why do I love to torture myself so?
So after changing my mind on the family costume about a zillion times, including as late as Monday, I've finally got it all figured out and worked on her school costume hoping to finish it last night so that I could do the cupcakes tonight and our family costume Fri night only to mess up her school costume and have to go out on my lunch break and get the supplies to redo what I messed up which means tonight finish that and do the cupcakes yes I realize I just wrote about 4 run on sentences, don't judge me I'm tired and mad at myself. :)
I am not revealing the costumes until they are finished but I thought it would be fun to view past Halloween costumes. Stay tuned tomorrow for her 1st costume reveal, I'm taking a half day so that I can go and volunteer and be at her very 1st school party and then Sat come back to see us on Halloween.
Happy Halloween everyone. Oh and can you believe my monkey will be 15 months on the 1st? Wow.
I can't wait to see everyone's posts in all their costume glory.

This was our freshman year in college, we'd been dating a few months, my Nana made us these genie costumes.

All dressed up for the Halloween night