Eleanor was an owl this year, and August was a hedgehog. I went as a mommyblogger with a large camera, apparently.

This is the shot that I got from that position. (I’ll bet you didn’t know hedgehogs could be so ferocious.)

We painted our pumpkins this year. August’s was interpretive, Eleanor’s had a smiley face, mine was crawling with bugs, and Brandon’s was a severed eyeball (which he worked on while watching Dexter at night). Together, they were cute, cute, creepy, and gross.

This was the first year that I didn’t make the kids’ costumes. Eleanor was a Katamari Damacy Prince the first year, Olivia the pig for her second Halloween, and last year Eleanor and August were the Gruffalo’s Child and the Big Bad Mouse. This year, they got store-bought costumes from Pottery Barn Kids. They were adorable and akin to what I would have made had I done them myself, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit guilty (especially as the neighbors asked if I made them again this year). I spend just as much when I make them myself, and of course there’s a huge time commitment, but it also makes me feel really good.

But then, Halloween isn’t about the parents, is it? My little owl and hedgehog loved to go trick-or-treating, and they loved stuffing themselves with candy all night afterward.

I loved it too.