Halloween 2014

If I learned anything from Halloween 2014, it's that sometimes family costumes aren't meant to be.  Hubby & I made what we thougth was the wise decision to purchase a cow costume for Elyse.  She has a ridiculous fascination with all farm animals, most of all cows, and has recently been in LOVE with Sheriff Callie.  Since she didn't really understand Halloween anyway, I ordered the costume and just knew that she'd love it. 

 

WRONG!!! 

 

We tried two separate times to put it on her, discussed how funny it would be for Daddy to be Farmer Stinky (the skunk from Sheriff Callie) and Mommy to be Sheriff Callie herself...and while she thought this was a great idea, she was NOT wearing the costume.  As in, run to the other side of the house crying when we even discussed it. 

 

And so...we added the Halloween Costume Saga of 2014 to what will be an ever-growing list of "Battles Not Worth Fighting." 

 

Thankfully we had a backup hanging in the closet, and our sweet little holstein cow quickly transformed into Minnierella (per Elyse's description), who looked amazingly like a cupcake princess.  And while Elyse decided to change her mind...so did Momma.  Because there are only a few times in life when you can truly get away with a tacky pregnancy costume. 

 

So...I give you the Layman Family for Halloween 2014.  Daddy as a farmer, Elyse as Minnierella dressed up as a Cupcake Princess, and Momma...a jar of "Prego" spaghetti sauce or as Elyse liked to call me, Pizza Mommy. 

We had originally planned to make a stop at my brother & sil's Halloween party and then make a stop at our church's Trunk or Treat...however, it was super cold and Elyse was having a blast with her cousin Harper so we stayed at my brother's house, trick-or-treated in their neighborhood and then made a stop at my in-laws house to see Hubby's parents before calling it a night. 

My dad bought a simple crazy hat & bowtie so as not to scare Elyse or the other kiddos too much!

 Elyse truly wasn't all that excited about all these crazy people dressed up...but thankfully she warmed up and eventually figured out the whole Halloween idea. 

My two favorite cowboys...my Grandpa Herndon even got involved and dressed as Rowdy, the Dallas Cowboy's mascot.  Oh how I love that guy!

 After a quick dinner we loaded up the wagon with a blanket & Elyse & Harper were chauffered around the neighborhood for some quick trick-or-treating. 

This flashlight quickly became Elyse's "telescope" and wasn't giving it up...even for candy!  ha! 

Love these two girls, and can't wait to add a third one to the bunch!

Notice that Elyse is sans-jacket...yeah, she got a little fussy towards the end of the night...maybe because her hands were like icicles but she refused to wear a jacket or gloves!

 However, I have two Halloween complaints: 

 

1.  At no later than 6:30 as we made our way around a pretty quiet neighborhood in terms of quantity of kids, there was a house with all their lights on and cars in the driveway that had a giant sign on their door:  "Out of Treats...but Happy Halloween!"  Seriously, if you dont' want to participate just turn your lights off...DON'T BE LIARS!!!!

 

2.  I know that lots of people dont' want to be scrooges, but also don't want to get up every time their doorbell is rang; however, it seemed like over half of the houses we went to just had a "help yourself" bucket on the front porch!  Thanks for participating...but part of the fun for the little ones is actually ringing the doorbell and saying "Trick or Treat!" 

 

Rant Over. 

However, she definitely enjoyed the seemingly never-ending wagon ride and asking others for candy! 

 M & M's were definitely a popular choice for Elyse, but I think she enjoyed the giant marshmallow at the end of the night just as much! 

Overall it was a fabulous night...even if Elyse did originally refuse her cow costume.  Maybe we'll be able to break it out in a few years for Nora!