Flashback Friday: Halloween Edition

**Disclaimer: This is one of those selfish posts that is kinda just for me...and my family...and my precious friends who like to reminisce with me by looking at pictures of my children whom they have prayed for and loved since the beginning. And for my mom...who checks my blog everyday for new posts. Every. Single. Day. Love you, Mom! This one's for you! 

Yes I know Halloween was last Friday, but we were just having too much fun for me to blog about it until this week. We love Halloween at our house. We do the same thing every year. Sonic corndogs for 50 cents while carving our jack-o-lantern on Halloween afternoon. Then it's off to our friends' house for trick or treating in the evening. Yes, I know. Some people disagree with celebrating Halloween. But for me, I feel like it's one time when my children can use their imaginations and enjoy being kids.  

 

I love the fun of pretending to be something else for one evening. I love the fun of community and friends...oh, and the candy. I kinda love the candy too. (Rolos and Reece's Peanut Butter Cups are my favorites!) And I especially love that until this year my little ones dressed in coordinating costumes. Melts my heart every time. 

Before we get to the pictures, you should know that I love homemade or unique costumes. My mom always made our costumes. Always. I love that memory and I love that even though my children might dress up as a popular character or theme, that their costumes are unique and different in some way. So special!! Let's take a look back at Halloween past in the Parkman household. 

Halloween 2009

Channing was 10 months old for her first Halloween. We didn't really know how we should dress her up until I found this little outfit at a second-hand store on a whim. So I added some babylegs and a headscarf with one of my gold bangle bracelets sewn onto it and we had ourselves a trendy little pirate baby! I LOVED this costume!! 

 

Halloween 2010

For our second Halloween as a family, we went from 1 baby to 2 babies!! Eeks! Chaz was only 3 weeks old and Channing was 22 months old and this year I did not make a thing (for obvious reasons!). But their costumes were just as special because Channing's cheerleader outfit was a hand-me-down from my local BFF and Chaz's Longhorn onesie was a hand-me-down from my Austin BFF. Anyway, it is really hard...like really hard...to get pictures of a newborn and a toddler. Just saying. But I think I did pretty good considering I had just given birth and all. ;)
 

 

 

 

 

Halloween 2011

This Halloween we dressed the children up as Tinker Bell and Captain Hook. We bought costumes, but not the traditional costumes for these characters. Chaz's costume was actually pajamas that he wore many times after that! (#momwin) I made Channing's hair and shoe accessories, but her costume came from the mall. I love it that they coordinated in a "non-obvious" sort of way. Channing really started to "get it" this year and it was so fun! Chan was 2 years old (almost 3) and Chazzy was 1. 

 

Ummm, yeah. Chaz is about to eat an acorn here. Silly boy!!

Halloween 2012

Now this year was when it really started to get fun! Both children were old enough to really understand and enjoy the festivities of it all since they were 3 and 2. And the costume ideas for this Halloween came from a picture I found while cleaning out my foyer table. Recognize this cutie?

 

Yep, that'd be me. I loved Wonder Woman when I was a kid! Like really loved her! My mom made this costume for me (side note: I was really mad at her that she put straps on it because the real Wonder Woman didn't have straps. Sorry about that, Mom!). Surprisingly, I still had this very costume. So Channing got the pleasure of wearing it. I added a lasso and some tights to complete the look. And Chazzy was Superman. This is the first year Brad and I started dressing up some too. 2012 was a fun Halloween year!

 

 

This is them using their super hero powers!

 

Halloween 2013

I thought for sure 2013 would be the year that my children would have their own opinions about what to wear and that this would be the first year that they wouldn't have coordinating costumes. Chaz was totally into Star Wars and Channing loved anything princess. Chaz decided he wanted to be Darth Vader and Channing shocked me when she said she wanted to be Princess Leia. They both made my year by this wonderful news!! And this was the first year that I finally had my stuff together enough to make their costumes from scratch!! We had SO much fun this year and I got some GREAT pictures because my kiddos were totally into it! I think it was  because of the authentic costumes. ;)

 

 

Chaz is using the force right here!

 

Halloween 2014
Ahhh. Here we are in good ol' 2014. This year the kiddos each decided how they wanted to dress up. I knew in my heart that their matching costumes days were over. I was a little sad about that because that means they are growing up. It sure does happen fast...that growing up business. Channing wanted to be Elsa (like every other girl between the ages of 3-13).  And I chose to "let it go" when she wanted to wear her "fancy" Elsa dress instead of a homemade costume. But I did figure out a way to make her some gnarly hair extensions so she could have the famous Elsa braid. :) And Chaz has totally been into Mario Brothers so he wanted to be Mario. I got to make part of his costume and this made me a happy mama. These sweeties and their friends went trick-or-treating for over an hour and a half! They had so much fun this year being "big kids." Tear.

 

This was the easiest year to get pictures of Chaz in his costume.
Note to self: Masks are our friend. ;)

 

Dad confession: Brad did not want Chaz to be Mario because he didn't really want
to dress up as his sidekick Luigi. But once he put on that mask he was totally into it!
Like really into! :) And I think it was kinda perfect!

 

The boys acting like Mario and Luigi and Channing and I using our ice powers!

Hope you all had a safe and fun Halloween! Until next year...
XOXO