Sunday, October 17, 2021

Sunday Brunch #Halloween Memories + #Giveaway hosted by Maya Corrigan




MAYA CORRIGAN
: Halloween will be the focus of Mystery Lovers' Kitchen's posts for the next two weeks. To kick off the celebration, let's talk about a favorite Halloween memory. What costume, trick or treat, food, or party from the past still haunts you?

When I was growing up, Halloween wasn't the huge holiday it is now it. Costumes and trick-or-treating were for little kids. Older teens and adults didn't "dress up" for the festivities. But by the time I was working for a tech start-up, that had changed. One Halloween the thirty of us in the company came to work to compete in a costume contest. None of us wore masks because we had to work all day in our costumes. I dressed as an avatar from one of our software programs--a little girl with long black hair, an orange bow, and a yellow dress with black polka dots.


Until I sat down at my desk, no one recognized me. My husband was away that week and, when I later showed him a photo of the group in costume, he identified some of my colleagues, but he couldn't find me in the photo. He insisted I wasn't in it. I realized then that if you have short blond hair, you can disguise yourself by wearing a long black wig and clothing different from your usual outfits. In a book that came out fifteen years later, one of my characters did exactly that to hide her identity. By the way, the costume contest winner dressed as a cocktail. She's on my left, wearing a martini glass on her head with a monster-sized olive in it.

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MADDIE DAY: That's a great story, Maya! I did something similar. I've always loved costumes and fooling people. From when I left high school until I became a published author, I haven't worn makeup or lipstick or heels (still don't wear heels). So I went to a work Halloween party (in the evening) decades ago in a black puffy wig, a tight white jacket, tight short skirt, fishnet tights, and red heels. Red lipstick, black pointy glasses (from eighth grade!) and a cigarette rounded out the outfit. NOBODY knew who I was. I have pulled out that wig and those glasses for many a party over the years. Here's a pic of my best friend and me in matching crazy outfits, the same black wigs, and clownface at a party. We fooled people there, too.


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LUCY BURDETTE: I love Halloween too and we often had costume parties in graduate school! Luckily, Key West is a town big on costumes too, so I've been able to weave quite a bit of that fun into my books. Knowing how to sew makes the costumes easier to produce. I'll show you a few of my favorites from over the years. Here's me as Wonder Woman, circa 1982:

And here's me as Kermit the frog with a pumpkin cornmeal poundcake to celebrate the season. Believe me, absolutely no one knew who I was as this party!


And finally, this is my hub and me getting dressed up for the zombie bike ride in Key West. This was research for a scene in Killer Takeout!


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LESLIE KARST: I loved Halloween as a kid (though not so much now—the ringing doorbell and strangely-clad kids terrify my poor dog). And what I loved the most about it (besides the candy—duh!) was being able to dress as I wanted. These were the days when girls had to wear skirts or dresses to school, something that even as a seven-year-old I detested. So here’s how I dressed for Halloween that year:


As far as my adult years go, my favorite memory of the holiday is the Pumpkin Fest my friend Craig used to host on a yearly basis, where friends would come to his house and mass-carve pumpkins for the entire community to come and admire. (And on the big night, he’d also host a terrific meal at his house.) One year we carved about 700 jack o’lanterns!



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LESLIE BUDEWITZ:  This topic sent me back a few decades remembering the fun my parents had helping us dress up for Halloween. One year, they blew up giant balloons and we covered them in papier-mache with strips of cut newspapers and white glue, then when they hardened, burst the balloon and cut it out, cut a jack o'lantern face, and spray-painted the whole think orange. Voila, the pumpkin kids! Not that easy to walk in, but fun. And my dad thought bobbing for apples too messy -- not good to get kids wet and send them home that way on what could be a very cold day -- so he tied apples to long strings he attached to the ceiling and we had to bite the apple that way! (Obviously, I dressed myself the year of this photo!)

In my community, so many kids live out in the country or in areas where trick-or-treating house to house isn't safe, and a Halloween snowstorm is not an uncommon thing. So the village merchants---you know them from my Food Lovers' Village mysteries, based on my real town---turn our main street into Halloween Central. Business and traffic all but shut down, and merchants dress up and stand in their doorways handing out candy. Mr. Right and I have been known to wander into the village, find a rock wall or bench to perch on, and take in the sights. For a few hours on a late October afternoon, the streets are filled with joy as aspiring superheroes, ghosts, wizards, and other costumed creatures roam freely and safely, and just about everyone in town sports a grin as wide as Mr. Jack O'Lantern's. 
 
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TINA KASHIAN: I loved Halloween when I was young, and I still do! My teen girls still dress up and help hand out candy at home and then go to parties with friends. When I was young, my mother sewed our costumes. I learned how to sew from her, but I am not as good and rarely practice. Here’s a picture of me as a kid wearing a costume my mother sewed.

 


Here’s a pic of me from last year. Happy Halloween!


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PEG COCHRAN: So fun to recall all those Halloween memories! One childhood memory that wasn't so fun was the Halloween it rained and I was carrying my candy in a paper shopping bag...which was a bit too big for me so I alternately carried it and dragged it along the ground.  You guessed it--the bag broke!  Better memories include making costumes for my daughters. I remember my younger daughter watching in amazement as I turned a bolt of fabric into a harem costume for her.  I made a Dalmation costume for my older daughter--complete with glued on spots--and no one recognized her when she got to school!  To complete the 101 Dalmations theme my younger daughter went as Cruella de Ville.  Many years later, I went to a Halloween costume party as Cruella de Ville bringing things full circle! 




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MARY JANE MAFFINI:  I love Halloween. Always have, always will.  The photos and stories here today are so much fun.  Thanks to everyone for hanging on to those photos and sharing and to Maya for the entertaining topic. 

As for me, I look back fondly to the days when hordes of shrieking kids would burst forth onto our street as soon as it was dark, scrunching through dry leaves.  Most were wrapped in crepe-paper costumes and brandishing lit sparklers or firecrackers or both.  We waltzed into strangers’ houses and collected pillowcases full of treats and, if we were lucky, lots of candy cigarettes with bright red tips.  There wasn’t a parent in sight.  What could possibly go wrong?  

 When my kids were growing up, we were more safety conscious and I went out with them on Halloween. I could never resist wearing a costume, although I drew the line at trying for treats. These days we take a more homey approach and wait to answer the door. But as the day approaches, my husband carves the Jack-o-lanterns and I get the dogs’ costumes ready.  


Penny is dressed as Miss Pumpkin and Ivy always feels she's Wonder Woman anyway. As you can see, they are eager to trick or treat even if it's at home.  They've been promised something special if they stay still for the camera.






Some of you may recognize our daughter Victoria's Peachy the Pug aka Walter from the Victoria Abbott Book Collector mysteries. There's always a pug on the cover!

We always haul out the black cast-iron cauldron and fill it with Reese’s Pieces.   If Victoria is around we pop spiders in our hair or we may go with witches’ hats and cue the spooky music.   

If we are lucky on our dark road we’ll get four to six kids and an equal number of parents. The dogs are always a big hit. Last year with COVID we saw only our next-door neighbor’s child.  We were distanced and all wearing masks.  As you can imagine, this left a lot of Reese’s Pieces and they went straight to our waistlines.  I have high hopes for this coming Halloween and look forward to hearing what all of you remember or look forward to on October 31st.   Maybe it's reading the fabulous batch of books in the giveaway.  Whatever it is, enjoy!



CLEO COYLE: Great topic, Maya! Halloween is such a fun holiday. I have many wonderful memories over the years: from my childhood all the way up to viewing the fabulous floats, puppets, and costumes in New York's annual Greenwich Village Halloween Parade (check out a parade video here). I love how this holiday gives kids (and adults!) a chance to express their creativity, imagination, and a way to interact with their communities. When I was a little girl, my sister and I carved our own pumpkins and made our own costumes (we always made them ourselves, no need for store-bought anything). We went trick or treating with groups of friends and had fun visiting the neighborhood houses, many of which were imaginatively decorated. Some even had sound effects (ghostly moaning and thunder rumbling). Afterwards, Grace and I would dump out our bags of candy booty on the living room floor and trade favorites (2 Clark Bars for 1 Baby Ruth, deal)! And speaking of favorites…
 
Click the photo for Cleo's recipe:
Candy Apples with Honey

Homemade Candy Apples continue to be among my favorite treats at this time of year. I even came up with my own version of the recipe, swapping out corn syrup and using honey instead (it’s delicious). In another version, I went for a spiked candy apple for adults. I’m happy to share both recipes today, just click here or on the photos (above or below). There’s a free PDF of both recipes that you can download with plenty of tips and photos. Happy Halloween season, everyone! ~ Cleo 

Click the photo above for Cleo's recipe
How to Spike Candy Apples for Adults



GIVEAWAY! 

To be entered in this week's drawing,
join us in the comments.


What costume, trick or treat, food, or 
party from the past still haunts you?


Include your email address,
so we can contact the winner!

Comments Open through
Wednesday, October 20


>> CRYPT SUZETTE by Maya Corrigan

>> MURDER AT THE LOBSTAH SHACK (ARC) 
by Maddie Day

 >> KILLER TAKEOUT by Lucy Burdette

>> THE WOLFE WIDOW by Victoria Abbott


Comments Open through
Wednesday, October 20

 🎃


93 comments:

  1. I went to a costume party dressed as a sexy devil with all the glitterized accessories and won second place. A Yeti won first. I still think I looked better! 3labsmom(at)gmail(dot)com

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  2. I love dressing up. Nothing really haunts me from Halloweens past. It is always fun! I love embarrassing my family LOL

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  3. My favorite costume was when our daughter went as a rodeo clown. She was in my Dad's (he was a large man) held up by suspenders, my Mom's shirt, her own rodeo straw hat and her face made up. It was a fun costume to put together with elements from everyone in the family. It also taught her that costumes didn't have to be bought to be fun.

    As for food, nothing beat my Mom's caramel apples or caramel popcorn balls. Maybe it was because it was the only time we had them that made them special, but I think it was the love they were made with.
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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    1. Good costume and a good lesson to learn. Thanks for commenting, Kay. ~Maya

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  4. As kids, we never had anything fancy for costumes so as an adult I like coming up with something good. One of my favorites was going to work as a trick-or-treat bag with real candy bars stuck all over.
    kozo8989(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  5. My favorite memory was my seventh grade Halloween party. I went to a rural school that went through eighth grade, and back then everyone got to have a party and dress up. I dressed up as a mummy and my miniature poodle got to go to school with me, as my mummy dog. She wasn't super cooperative though, so I only put a couple of strands of "mummy wrap" around her. She did like the attention everyone gave her while she was there, which was like 15 minutes, before my mom reached her and took her back home.
    Mickeymania1@aol.com

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  6. I remember dressing up each year and loved Hallowe'en. We would walk through our neighborhood on our own and never had a worry since this was the 1950's and fun. The best costume was Anne of green gables. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Thanks for your comment, traveler. Costumes based on book characters are great.

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  7. Every Hallowe'en was wonderful. We so looked forward to this amazing time. Dressing up in costumes which our mother created and walking the streets where we lived was a memory which still stand out even though things were simple and quiet we enjoyed it. My costume of a ballerina was my favorite. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  8. Raggedy Ann and friend Andy was my favorite costumes- painting spots on cheeks and black eye lashes was great fun! We would walk for blocks, collecting candy and apples. Where we live now- the neighborhood businesses set a time for trick and treaters to wander up and down the street - collecting goodies!
    Kcrabtree4320@gmail

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  9. In 4th grade, I wanted to dress up as a Barbie bride. The store bought costume included a mask with an attached tiara and white plastic dress. I thought it was super cool! I was crushed when on costume day at school, all my friends thought it was creepy instead of beautiful and glamorous.

    Marciawythe@hotmail.com

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  10. What a marvelous collection of memories.
    I lived on a street with only one other house. Any treat or treating had to be elsewhere. The town had a party at the rec. center.
    It's great to live in a neighborhood now that has families with children. I go out with my daughter and granddaughter and a crew of neighbors. My husband stays home so he doesn't miss any cuties coming by while we're out.
    libbydodd at comcast dot net

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    1. I love seeing the kids in their costumes. Unfortunately now that we live in a condo, none of our neighbors have children.

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  11. Live by a lake and there were tons of houses so we would come home dragging our bags they were so full. cheetahthecat1986ATgmailDOTcom

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  12. Until he retired a Greek friend owned a restaurant/bar that we visited frequently. We were part of a group that got together once a week to socialize and we often met there. Louie would have a costume contest every Halloween and we entered every year. The best year was when six of us all went as Louie. We wore jeans, black tees or polos and a face mask that was a photo of Louie's face. He was absolutely floored when we all lined up and danced in for the judges. Everyone had a good laugh and we won!
    patdupuy@yahoo.com

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    1. What fun! I don't imagine he's ever forgotten that!

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  13. I am not a fan of Halloween but, I love to just ride around and see all the fun displays that people put in their yards.
    lindalou64(@)live(dot)com

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    1. I walked around with a four year old (and her grandma, my bestie) this morning to see all the displays!

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  14. What a fun post!! I loved dressing up for Halloween as a kid. I wore a Rainbow Bright costume one year that was just a favorite. As an adult, Wonder Woman was another favorite.

    Thanks for the chance!

    jarjm1980(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  15. I remember when I was 15 years old, I dressed as a Cowgirl, and my dad was looking for a costume. At that time McDonald's Filet a Fish used yo be in a Styrofoam square box. My dad got the Styrofoam filet a fish box and made holes in the middle. Then he pit rubber band on each side if the box and wore them like glasses.lol I will never forget how embarrassed I felt as he was riding up and down ghe street with a Filet a fish Styrofoam box made glasses. lol

    strgth4yu(at)hotmail(dot)com
    Linda Ortiz

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    1. Ha! Nothing like a dad to embarrass their teenage kid! Love that, though!

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  16. I remember how excited we were on Halloween. At that time we were able to go trick or treating without our parents along. We would be gone most of the evening
    And would come home with lots of candy. Luckily we didn't have to go to school the next day. Halloween was always a good time.
    diannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. I didn't have to go to school either. I went to Catholic school and the next day was All Saints Day and we always had it off.

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  17. But that this haunted me but was one of the most original (at that time many years ago) costume I made. I was a die 🎲. My head was one dot, my arms were 3 and 5. The front was 6 the back was 4 my legs were 2. I had black leggings on as well. I won the contest. That had to be over 35 years ago. Thanks for showing me to remember a fun and nice memory from so long ago. Shawnstevensbooks(at)Gmail(dot)com.

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  18. I had the most fun creating costumes for my children. My son was once a haunted house that I created out of a box and my daughter was a baby in a carriage, also out of a box. Also among my favorites, my son was once a globe and my daughter was Medusa.
    lisacobblestone(at)aol(dot)com

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    1. How very clever! Homemade costumes are the best!

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  19. My favorite Halloween was in 1958 when we lived in San Antonio, Texas in a nice, friendly, calm middle-class neighborhood with stay-at-home moms who loved to bake. There were about a half dozen of us who were in the trick-or-treating phase & we were allowed to go to every house in a two-block area. We were treated to SO many homemade candies and cookies but my favorite was a lady who gave us two huge fresh pecan chocolate chip cookies. Those were at the time the best cookies I'd ever eaten. Our daughters were allowed to go only to friends' houses & to friends' Halloween parties so we have a lot of good memories of the two of them enjoying specially made treats. Their favorite characters from year-to-year dictated their costumes. I don't even remember a costume I wore. Today we live in the country & have only had our granddaughters as trick-or-treaters since we moved here in 2000.

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  20. I like most any child enjoyed Halloween,but as an adult and mother I enjoyed it even more because I made costumes from scratch for both my son and myself and take lots of pictures together the joy 😂my son shared with me was pure and priceless,it filled my heart overflowing. That's the best joy in Halloween 🎃😍😊 Kat

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    1. Everything is more fun when you share it with your children!

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  21. I loved Halloween as a child, and liked it as an adult, but I think my favorite Halloween memory is when we moved from FL to PA in 2011. It snowed right before Halloween and was my 8 year old daughters first time seeing snow. We still had a little snow on the ground Halloween night, so she had a Cleopatra costume with snow boots! The neighborhood we moved into a VERY big into Halloween. Before living here we barely got 8 kids come to our door. We thought Halloween was going out of style. Not so here! The adults here have just as much fun as the kids. We usually have a firepit out front, and we sit outside to pass out candy. (We have a black cat, and are afraid he'll get out of the house if we are constantly open the door.) My husband had projectors set up in our upstairs bedrooms showing scary images in our windows. It's a lot of fun!

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    1. Great story, Renee. Thank you for sharing it. I'm still in a neighborhood with few Trick or Treaters. :-(

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  22. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups are a Halloween treat that are haunting for me in a delicious sort of way.

    Nancy
    allibrary (at) aol (dot) com

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    1. That's my husband's favorite. The other day he snuck one into the grocery cart when I wasn't looking!

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    2. It's a proven fact that the ratio of peanut butter filling to chocolate covering is the best in the holiday versions.
      I just wish I could find the dark chocolate version they used to have.

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  23. My daughter's loved The Matrix movie .They made costumes from some old black coats as Neo.They also as teens had Disney Tigger and Eeyor costumes their favorites.

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  24. The first Halloween my parents bought me a store-bought costume that I begged for, it snowed. I was so mad my mom made me wear a winter coat over my "beautiful" cheesy Cinderella dress. I whined and made a fuss for an hour but once I got all the candy we collected I was pacified.

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  25. Forgot my email. obriena73 (at) gmail (dot) com.

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  26. Growing up we didn’t celebrated so no fond memories 😩

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  27. As a adult, I’m not really a fan of dressing up for Halloween. Probably because I’m not very creative with costumes. My favorite Halloween was when I was in the 7th grade, at the height of Beatlemania, some friends and I dressed as the Beatles. I was John Lennon. cking78503(at)aol(dot)com

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  28. My dad always made my costumes growing up - we'd go to the fabric store and he'd let me search through the catalogue and feel fabrics for hours until I picked what I wanted and then we'd go home and sew it together. I won several costume contests as a kid because of how much love my dad poured into those costumes.
    Email is Claire.denning.11 (at) gmail (dot) com

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    1. What a wonderful memory, Claire. Thank you for sharing it. ~Maya

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  29. My brother and sister in law used to host a yearly Halloween Party. That ended when her cancer became so bad she was placed into home hospice. None of us felt like celebrating any more. Last year I bought a ton of candy and non of the children in our 64 family building even rang my doorbell... I had to eat all the candy myself. LOL This year we'll be on the road south for our fall vacation.

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  30. I held an all troop Girl Scout party for my daughters' school. We had a sub sandwhich shaped like a body,black punch,celery and carrots shaped like fingers. Halloween games were played and our finale was monster head boppers that lit up. What a blast for all.

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  31. My favorite costume was when I was 13. I dressed up as a Playboy bunny. Inhad an all black swimsuit and I made ears and added a tail. I loved it.

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  32. My parents didn't buy a lot of sweets when I was young so Halloween memories mostly revolve around the glee of getting lots and lots of candy.
    little lamb lst at yahoo dot com

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  33. my favorite memory is the year my big brother helped me make my costume - he went as an old woman and I went as robot. I can still picture it in my head.
    kkat(dot)edwards@gmail(dot)com

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  34. I remember as a kid one year a lot of parents went with us because the Zodiac Killer was at large.

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  35. My favorite Halloween costume is JACK...from "Jack and Jill". You and your spouse or partner carry a pail with the name "JACK" or "JILL. Bandage your head, putting red dye or ketchup on it to resemble blood. Wear torn jeans and a dirty top. Jill can also wear dirty clothes, since she came tumbling after :-)

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  36. I loved the year when I was about 8 or 10 my sister did my hair and makeup and turn my into a punk rocker

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  37. I don't purposely want to be a Debbie Downer but my mist memorable Halloween was when some people started putting razor blades and other hazardous objects in the candy that they passed out to innocent children!
    Not only was this so mean and cruel (not to leave out against the law!), but their actions made it impossible for kind hearted people to do what they'd done for years, handing out homemade treats to the littles that came to their doors. 😡

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  38. When I was a child our small Cairn Terrier ate the entire bowl of Halloween candy while we were out getting dinner. Her belly was so huge and I was sure she wasn't going to make it, but miraculously she did! kjp1025@gmail.com

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  39. I honesttly can't remember trick or treating as a child. Or dressing up. How sad. Did we do that in the 50's? Or, maybe it was just not done in the small town in New Jersey where I grew up. I do remember mischief night as a teen. That was fun. I dressed up as a flapper when I worked in an office when I was much older. That was fun.

    lkish77123 at gmail dot com

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  40. When I was younger, one of my favorite memories of going out trick-or-treating was my dad walking along with me and my cousin and uncle. We would walk around our entire neighborhood. Staying out until after the lights went out, and he would carry a pillow case to carry the overflow of what I couldn't carry.
    Now over the last 11 years this year Halloween has been even better. My son was born on Halloween and hubby and I promised to make sure every year would be better than the last. When Austin was 2yrs old we dressed up as a family as Disney's Incredibles!! We went to a family friendly trunk-n-treat in a parking garage. We did not expect to have as much fun as we did. Several people asking us to take pictures with them. It was an absolute blast. Hubby and I continued to wear the costumes as Austin and his sister dressed as Anna and Olaf one year and Lilo and Stitch.
    Those were the best times. (I wish he wasn't growing up because now we can't get him to agree to dressing up as a family any longer)
    likyanngill56(at)Gmail(dot)com

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    1. Thank you, Lily-Ann for sharing that fun memory of family costumes! ~Maya

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  41. My mother's Birthday is Halloween so I've gotten used to alot of silly things but I remember one time when my mom asked me to borrow one of my Cabbage Patch kids because she needed to hang him in the shower. I'm pretty sure I remember her taping a butter knife in it's hand and hanging it by a rope on the shower head. I asked her if it would hurt him/her, and as any mother would do, she said no, it will be fine. She won't tie the rope too tight. So ya, that's my strange memory fr Halloween time.

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  42. I loved trick-or-treating when we were kids. I remember wearing those plastic masks and costumes that came in a box; I was a princess, Bugs Bunny, Wonder Woman. We'd all load up in the car and drive around the neighborhood. It was so much fun!
    Heidiark@yahoo.com
    Heidiark (at) yahoo (dot) com

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  43. I loved Halloween as a kid. There was me & my 3 sisters, so money was scarce. My Mom made our costumes out of things around the house. One year I got to be a princess, wearing my Mom's long skirt and a silver metallic belt that sparkled. I had a star-shaped wand made out of cardboard & covered in tin foil. I felt so special! Once I was grown up I attended a party with some friends. I dressed as a woman of the night and started flirting with a co-worker, also at the party. He was embarrassed and didn't recognize me until my husband came up beside me, laughing!!! What fun!!!
    Sandyjb23@sbcglobal.net

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    1. It's so much fun when a Halloween costume serves as a disguise! Thanks for commenting, Sandy.

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  44. One year for Halloween when I was a kid in the mid1970's, I dressed up as "Mother Nature" from the Chiffon margarine TV ads. I wore an altered white choir robe and had a headband covered in flowers. Of course, I carried the margarine container with me to put my candy in. I won an award for most original. Bonus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDkiq5jD5Hc
    egoehner(at)roadrunner(dot)com.

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    1. A well-deserved award! Thank you for sharing that story, Emily. ~Maya

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  45. My son chose a Jurassic Park costume back in the day. The mask was a scary dinosaur. The only problem was it didn’t fit him well and the holes in the face didn’t align right. He could either see or breathe but not both at the same time. I led him around the block but then he had to go back and change into a different costume.

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  46. I was a flapper at work one year! loved the costume! went to thrift store and found all the vintage duds
    Thanks for the chance.
    Jess
    maceoindo(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  47. I was a punk rocker in grade school!! I loved it. I had neon pink hair and my outfit was neon pink and black. My mom made a microphone that was black with a silver top. I wore my favorite pink shoes. It was amazing and I thought I was awesome!!

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  48. My last year going out trick or treating I dressed as a gypsy. I went all out. My mom found a perfect skirt and blouse at a white elephant sale at our church. We had lots of jewelry. It ended up being the coldest Halloween ever and I refused to wear a coat as no one would be able to see my costume. Thank you so much for this chance at your giveaway!! pgenest57 at aol dot com

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  49. When my Mom was in the hospital one Halloween, I planned a big Halloween party for my younger brother and all of his friends. We had lots of games and prizes, and the kids loved it.
    Denise C.
    dlc1228@gmail.com

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  50. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  51. Remember back before I was married,I worked as a hostess at a restaurant. Everyone dressed up for their shifts during the days just before and including Halloween. For 2 of my shifts I'll never forget my costumes. For one, a customer/ friend of mine had an authentic Indian headdress he loaned me and I was an Indian chief with feathers and warpaint! Quite a costume. Then I went as Dolly Parton complete with a square dance dress from when I was much heavier and Tupperware bowls for boobs! If I banged that strange huge chest into something once I must have done it at least a dozen times during that shift. Everytime I did you heard a big kerthunk of hard plastic and everyone would laugh!! Ah, memories Laurie(dot)anismom2(at)Gmail(dot)com

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  52. We weren't that creative and depended on store bought costumes that got handed down to each kid. Nowadays I enjoy seeing the creativity of others.
    wskwared(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  53. Growing up, money was tight so most of our costumes were creative hand-made or pieced together from a store bought piece combined with what we had. 2 favorite costumes come to mind. The earliest one was back in 1982 and in first grade. I loved watching Wonder Woman reruns back in the day and Mom made me a Wonder Woman outfit. Loved very much. the 2nd one was when i was bit older. Closet: long sleeve, button down white shirt, black jeans, black shoes; store: phantom of the opera mask and cape---Phantom of the Opera!! weren't too many Phantoms in our neighborhood that year and I managed to out candy my younger brother and his friends! Part of the fun trick or treating was checking out the holiday decorations!

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  54. I enjoyed Halloween as a child and continue enjoy it even today. This year I will be dressing up as a pumpkin. The kids and I always have a family Halloween party each year days before Halloween and we get to enjoy the goodies days before Halloween. We also decorate. Right now I am recovering from a fractured right foot so there will be less homemade goodies and more store bought goodies but we will still have fun. I believe in making the best of things. cherierj(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  55. To celebrate Halloween every year I (of course!) read a cozy with a Halloween theme and I also read The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and I watch Jeff Goldblum as Ichabod Crane in the movie. Rice Krispy Treats were and continue to be our family's favorite Halloween treat. That's a continuation of a childhood Halloween activity. Mom & I made Rice Krispy Treats every Halloween just for us! My Dad was a salesman for Kellogg Cereal Company so we always had a good Rice Krispy supply. lnchudej@yahoo.com

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  56. Our house was one street away from a rich neighborhood that always did Halloween up big. When I was 6, I remember dressing up as a witch and trick or treating with my older brother and sister searching for the “it” house that was giving out full-sized candy bars that year. We were in luck because it was our aunt and she gave us double! We really made a haul that year! I will never forget the big Hershey bars of 1970!

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  57. Everyone's posts are so much fun to read and see! Thank you for the killer candy apple recipes Cleo, looking forward to trying both versions! As for me, the one constant for my family has been to make a big batch of chili and boules for holding the chili, watch all of our Halloween related movies, nothing too scary, I'm more of an old school movie monster fan, and try not to eat all the candy before handing it out. This year I am starting a new tradition of baking/decorating gingerdead men to share with family and friends. Thank you ladies for sharing your stories and your books! Tracy.Condie@gmail.com

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  58. My favorite Halloween memory is of my sisters, cousins, and I going out briefly. But hurrying home for the party. couple of friends from school, cousins, and us kids doing the traditional games, such as bobbing for apples. Making popcorn balls. I had the silliest costume. I could not make up my mind what I wanted to be. So Mom humored me and did a mish-mash of my indecisiveness. When out we got a lot of laughs, which also garnered extra treats. I'd almost forgotten about that until two weeks ago when my sister shared the family album. There was that picture of us. She was her traditional (usual) cowgirl costume. The theme never changed. But the color of her costume changed along with an accouterment or two. Grandma always made her Applesauce Spice cake. It included a couple tablespoons of quality Kentucky Bourbon and The frosting which is called buttercream today, had a tablespoon of that bourbon as well. deepotter at centurylink dot net

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    1. The mish-mash costume is so clever! Thanks for sharing your story.

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  59. I grew up and went to college in a college town known for its large, raucous, oftentimes drunken-costumed student extravaganza. Many college students dressed up in costumes and ventured from bar to bar (and there were a lot of them!) I remember going out with friends my freshman year and having a great time just taking everything all in. I have no idea what costume I wore. But what I do remember is stumbling and taking a tumble in a disco bar that had a raised floor of blinking multi-colored tiles. Whether it happened because I had been imbibing or not I'll never tell. ;-) I got a little cut on my arm that left a small raised scar. Fast-forward to this year when I bumped my arm where the scar is. The bump was bleeding slightly and was sticking up slightly higher than it had been. I felt it and discovered after manipulatng it around that I had been carrying a small triangular shaped piece of clear glass inside my scar for decades! I had no idea! Ah college...good times. :-)

    Sue suemngirl(at)yahoo(dot)com

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    1. Wow! Finding a piece of glass under your skin certainly brought back memories for you!

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    2. It sure did! I also remember the joy of coming back to my dorm room my sophomore year the day after Halloween to hear my roommate tell me, "Mike from last night called. Spill! You didn't tell me you met anybody!"

      Mike and I were only ever friends but that story also contributed to my good feelings about celebrating Halloween, whether as a child or in college.

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  60. My favorite costume was when I was dressed up by Raggedy Ann. We would go out to trick or treat as a group. We had one neighbor that would make us candy apples. My Godparents lived in the next block. They would have a special bag ready for me. We had a lot of fun. I loved the chocolate candy. Thank you so much for sharing.

    Another memory was when I was in high school, we put on a Halloween party for the children at church including a "haunted house". I think we had more fun putting it on then the kids who came through.

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  61. Oopsie, wrote a reply the other day but it didn't post. I really enjoyed reading all these stories. Mom made most of our outfits in the 50s-60s and I was everything from a ballerina, Dale Evans cowgirl,princess,witch, hobo & Pocahontas. A couple of years when very young my great-aunt Aggie was a seamstress and made costumes for some of the Mardi Gras krewes in NOLA, and in her free time made me a beautiful Scarlett O'Hara magenta outfit w/matching hat, parasol and bloomers. Didn't know who Scarlett was yet,so just thought I was a "Southern Belle", haha. She made my brother a jockey outfit of silks,with the pants, hat and riding crop,& our youngest bro. was still a baby, so made him a polka-dot clown onesie, so cute! It was so much fun running wild in the streets of our suburban areas, with packs of friends and mostly grocery bags or pillowcases FULL of candy, then we'd trade some of loot w/best friends & family. We did the same when we moved to Long Island,NY in mid-5th grade. Blocks full of kids and tons of candy. Then when I was 12 I was too old to trick-or-treat so my bestie Joan & I supervised our same-aged younger brothers for a couple of years, then went to parties! As a grown-up, dh and I went to a few really fun parties, and once he won 2nd prize dressed as a rodeo clown. Hilarious. We've lived in 2 different places in the country since 1979, and no trick-or-treaters,so parties on occasions are fun. Past few yrs. since being caregivers to my late parents I enjoyed giving out candy to kids in their suburburan lake-side area home, but the dog really freaks out. None last year,and don't expect any this year, so dh gets my faves like peanut butter cups, Twizzlers and other stuff on sale the next day. Good memories. lola777_22 at hotmail dot com

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    1. Thank you for sharing the story of those fun costumes.

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  62. That was me, Lynn in Texas above.

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