Paybacks are Hell: The Halloween Chapter

Halloween just wouldn't be Halloween without a little bit of costume drama, would it?

I remember one particular Halloween of my childhood when it was the 11th Hour and I still didn't know what I wanted to be. Even then, I had trouble making decisions. I remember a lot tears and a flustered mother throwing out all kinds of unacceptable ideas. I do not remember what costume I ended up in, but I'm going to hedge a guess that it was either a hobo, a gypsy, or a hippie. I'm not sure I was ever anything else during the 7 or 8 years that I was of trick-or-treating age. I do know that we NEVER got store-bought costumes. Ever.

Mom, I'm sorry for the years of costume drama I put you through. I get it now. Kids SUCK at Halloween.

Tanner has been pouring over all of the Halloween mailers for weeks, debating on which costume to choose. He was campaigning hard for something scary and/or bloody and/or disgusting. I'm just not okay with that.

"But Mom," he persisted. "It's the one day of the year that I get to be scary!"
Ha! Wanna bet?

So earlier this week we set out on the costume hunt. We went to three places. None of those three places had decent costumes for less than $30. $30!!! Are you kidding me? He'll wear it twice, tops. Sure, they had Pilgrims for $12.99, but what 7 year old boy says: "Hey, Mom, I want to be a Pilgrim this year!" Really?? No way.

When he was younger, I was okay with buying brand new costumes, because he would play in it all year long. Plus, they were cheaper when he was smaller. I got my money's worth. Now that those days are over, I have a real problem with buying a full-price costume.

So I explained to him that they were just too expensive, and that he could either wear last year's costume again, or I would be happy to make him a costume. I threw out all kinds of brilliant, homemade ideas. He found them all to be completely unacceptable, but was shockingly agreeable to being a Clone Trooper for the second year in a row. Pfeww!

Until this morning...

World War III broke out, because tonight is Trunk or Treat, and he'll be dressing up. Suddenly, he was no longer okay with the Clone Trooper. He let me know - repeatedly - that I was ruining his life.

And I felt bad. Actually, I felt like shit. Because if I did have the money, I'd probably spend the 30 bucks on the Al Capone costume he'd decided on, and another $10 on the Fedora that goes with it but is, of course, sold separately. But the reality is, I don't have it. We have to eat next week. It's either food or Al Capone, and I choose food.

So I offered what I thought was a very generous compromise. I told him we could go costume shopping next Saturday, after pay day, and hopefully catch some last minute discounts. But for tonight at Trunk or Treat, he will have to suck it up and be a Clone Trooper. Or a hobo. Pretty sure I could throw that one together at the last minute. Lord knows I had years of practice at it.