Halloween Safety

With Halloween a month away I thought I'd post some Halloween safety for both children and adults.

For children:
* Look both ways before crossing the street.
* Don't eat candy without your parents permission.
* Don't eat opened candy.
* Use face paint instead of masks if possible. Masks may cause vision and breathing restrictions.
* Carry a flashlight.
* Go to only homes that have a front light on.
* Accept treats at the door--don't go inside a stranger's house!
* Use sidewalks. If there are none then walk on the left side of the road facing traffic.

For Parents:
* All children under 10 yrs. old should be trick-or-treating with an adult.
* Try to make children's costumes a lighter colour. If not possible, use reflective tape for easier night visibility.
* Your children's costumes should fit properly and not be too long. If possible, get ones that are fire retardant.
* Plan a trick-or-treat route for your children.
* Feed your children a nutritious meal before going trick-or-treating as this can help prevent them from eating treats before being inspected.

Browsing the isles...

Yesterday I finally got the time to browse the isles in Walmart in their Halloween section without kids I might add happily! That meant I could take my time to look and not have to feel rushed or hearing the usual..."I want a drink of water" or "I need to go potty!" or hearing them whine saying they are tired and want to go home. Someone like me who doesn't get a chance to go anywhere alone without the kids is truly a blessing for me.
There they had many outdoor/indoor lights to hang whether they be in the shape of pumpkins or bats or whatever, then the large outdoor figures that you have blown up. I passed by all those without a second look. There were an array of costumes and I hope that I can get the kids what they want to be before they are all snatched up by others. There were alot of fairy and princess stuff with wings, wands, lots of nylons of different kinds. They had different trick or treat bags and containers for little ones to carry and keep their precious candy hoard but I prefer using the pillowcases. They are stronger, easily just toss them in the washer to clean and bigger. ;)
Onto the masks...not so much gore this year but creepy/scary looking. So I carefully proceeded to look through them all to find an old woman's facemask for my own costume. The one I chose was a witch. (there are a couple different ones of what they termed 'witch') It looked more of an old woman's face with a red and white checkered scarf for around the head which will be perfect to hide anything I need to around the mask and to make it look more real and not clumsily put together.
Before I had gone to the store to browse I had taken the baby sleeper and stuffed it with stuffing from old stuffed animals that were too old to pass on and were no longer used. No need to waste the stuffing and save money to boot! I sewed the mittens on as well and along the snaps on the body of the sleeper so no stuffing will peek out. It's slowly coming along and I think in a couple weeks or so I will be finished...depending on if I can find a large black dress to wear. I might have found a dress...but it's not black...it's more of a dark blue denim that I think if it comes down to it I will buy it (It's at the Salvation Army clothing store just a block from my house)

Signs of Halloween

Besides the usual display of Halloween magazines that are out and have been since the last week in August (at least here they were) there are now other tell-tale signs of Halloween. First was the dollar store getting their shelves stocked after school started. Walmart is now getting their shelves stocked. In the dollar store I found a great wooden cane for my costume! :D My only concerns are to find a large dress...everything else isn't a problem to find.
With the chill in the air I went to the Salvation Army to see what they have for sweaters for what I have a feeling will be cold this year. On one rack were some used Halloween costumes. Now there were none that I could use or have my kids use. My youngest daughter wants to be a tiger and my son a bat. All I need is to find a black sweater and he is done...just a matter of putting it together. My older daughter can't seem to make up her mind so we shall see what the stores have for costumes and maybe she will finally decide. lol! I don't blame her...so many costumes and you have to just pick one! Not fair! LOL!
Another sign of Halloween...at least in this house is my kids bugging me over and over every day once school started to decorate for Halloween...every year! lol! This year it's my older daughter who is doing the most bugging, whining and pleading. I told them I don't decorate till AT LEAST the 15th of October. But she is stubborn like me so I relented...sort of. I decided to bring up the Halloween movies last night so perhaps that might make them content for a little while...either that or it will backfire and cause them to be even more impatient and bug me all the more. LOL! We shall see. I will try to prolong it as long as I can and as close as I can till the end of the month.