Halloween Costumes

For the last two years, Chloe has dressed as a Star Wars character and she believed for a while that she wanted to be *Dar*th V*ad*er this year. That was until a new catalog came in the mail. She then had lots of choices and she couldn't pick one.

We spent Saturday morning looking on-line for Halloween costumes. I would rather gouge my eyes out than go to a Halloween superstore to buy a costume. Buying on-line is easier, quieter, and I don't have to dig for sizes. I do however go to a big box retailer after Halloween to snatch up some deep-discount dress-up outfits for the kids dress up chest. But that's after all the hype and excitement is over.

Chloe always gets really excited at the prospect of getting a new costume and she loves to scroll through the choices. Oliver even joined in on the fun. It became quickly apparent what Oliver wanted. Two guesses. Do you need that many? Hint: Perhaps it has something to do with CARS. Of course, when it comes to automobiles we don't do anything half-a*s---I wouldn't think of buying Ollie a basic race car driver costume. No, I had to troll the UK websites and UK Ebay to find this costume.

Looks plain, right? Well, if you are familiar with the BBC show, T*op G*ear, of which we are big fans, then you will recognize that this is the costume of the "tame racing driver" on the show, The Stig. Identity Unknown---until now. It's Oliver!

That was easy. Now, on to Chloe.

First, let me lament at some of the trampy Halloween costumes that are out there for girls. Unbelievable. But, I should note that after searching for Oliver's costume on UK costume sites that the trampy costumes for young girls seemed to be unique to the U.S. I didn't see one inappropriate costume for pre-pubescent children on those sites. Perhaps because Halloween is bigger business in the U.S. or the Brits are just more reserved? Who knows, but score one for the U.K.

When searching for a Halloween costume for Chloe, you NEVER look in the girls section. Don't even think about it. If I would rather gouge my eyes out than go to a Halloween superstore, then Chloe would rather gouge her eyes out than think of dressing as a princess, fairy or anything remotely girly for Halloween.

After throwing around different choices---ninja, Pow*erR*anger, monster, bandido, Star Wars, etc., it was determined that she favors a costume that requires you not see her face. I don't get this as she can't wear the mask during school on the day of the big Halloween parade. Whatever.

Here were two choices from her top three:

Really? I had to nix the creepy evil skeleton costume. What's with that!? No way. And, the Red P*ower*Ra*nger? She says she likes them, but I couldn't take it. Have you seen their show? It is possibly the worst thing I have ever seen---silly story lines and ridiculous monsters popping out of the ground. I think we both lost IQ points after we watched it.

So, this was Chloe's final pick. It is actually the first one she picked when the very first Halloween costume catalog arrived in the mail two months ago and it meets her selection criteria---it's not girly, it's got cool props and her face is covered. What more could you ask for?

A side note: After Chloe discovered that Oliver was to be The Stig for Halloween, guess what she decided she wanted to be too? After I ordered the above outfit. Grrrrr.