3 Genius, Last Minute Kids Halloween Costumes

Originally, for Halloween, Forrest was going to be going as one thing... but then, my mom found my vintage, circa-1989, pumpkin costume. And considering Forrest is absolutely bonkers for pumpkins, it was meant to be. However, we have his other costume as a back up for pre-Halloween parties and activities; it's much easier to wear than a pumpkin costume! 

This got me thinking though: sometimes, it's just not practical to dress a toddler or young child in their "official" Halloween costume, either because it is too bulky or not appropriate for school. (An example is one of my friend's is dressing her child as the Little Mermaid; it has a flesh colored netting that isn't allowed at a school function, so she can only wear it trick-or-treating.) 

So here are 3 easy, last minute kids costumes: things you can make with just a few hours notice or that you already have. 

1. The ABCs

This was Forrest's original costume! I bought a black long sleeve and a pair of black sweatpants from Target, plus foam sticker letters and fabric glue. Wash the clothes, then unstick the letters and fabric glue them. (Make sure to put a piece of cardboard inside the shirt to prevent it from gluing it together!) Once they're dry, voila! You're the ABCs. Quick, easy, education, and affordable; the entire thing cost about $14. 

2. Cat (or dog) fan 

This costume sometimes gets called "Crazy Cat Lady," but I hate that term. (It's ableist and sexist.) Even more fun, you could make this cat or dog Instagram star! Basically, dress in normal clothes, carry around a dog or cat toy, and either a toy phone, an old phone that you're not using anymore, or make one out of cardboard. Perfect! 

3. Bat

Almost every kid has a slightly raggedy, almost-outgrown sweatshirt somewhere. It's so easy to turn into a bat costume! Just cut fabric into two triangles, with a triangle-scallop on one edge. Then fabric glue one straight edge to the torso of a sweatshirt, and the other straight edge to the arm; repeat on the other side. Voila! You've got a quick-and-easy bat costume. You can add a black hat with ears (you can fabric glue these on too or find one with ears at Target or TJ Maxx). With a few changes, this would also be a cute vampire costume: just add teeth, a little bit of make up (pale face, dark under the eyes), and all black clothes. 

5 Snacks to Make For Halloween

1. Hocus Pocus Halloween Punch 

This punch uses V8 juice, Mango Izze, and peach sherbet. Does that not sound like the greatest thing ever? Plus, it's orange, fizzy, and looks deliciously cool. The V8 is a nice touch if you have kids! 

2. Caramel Apple Slices

I love caramel apples, but dipping entire apples is really daunting. These slices are a little bit more manageable, plus they reduce the amount of sugar you end up eating. 

3. Fruit Kabobs

Forrest is still a little too young for marshmallows, but, I am fully planning to make these fruit kabobs somehow! They're so cute and perfectly healthy. 

4. Halloween Pretzel Rods

Chocolate covered pretzels are actually my favorite dessert or treat. These pretzel rods are super easy to make and really delicious. 

5. Mummy Brownies

These brownies are so cute! And how easy? You could use boxed brownie mix or even premade brownies if you're short on time. 

3 Beauty Products for Halloween

Can I just say something about Blogtober? I am exhausted. I brought this on myself though. I’ve massively neglected my Instagram in favor of writing so many blog posts. The page in my bullet journal dedicated to my writing goal is dominated by writing blog posts in advance every single day… and I haven’t even started thinking about NaNoWriMo. (Gosh, am I going to take on NaNoWriMo after this!?) 

But I’ve also been loving Blogtober—having the chance to write all these posts that I’ve always wanted to write… like putting together my favorite outfits, finding new beauty products, sharing the best tutorials I’ve pinned on Pinterest… it’s been a lot of fun! 

I decided to take it easy on myself with this post. I love Halloween make up; it’s my favorite time of the year because, duh, Autumn, but also, Halloween and spooky-themed everything is so much fun. Here’s a round up of some of the cutest, most fun, and most spooky beauty products. 

1. Pumpkin Bath-o-Lantern Bath Bomb

Before every busy Halloween, we all need a little self-care. This pumpkin-shaped bath bomb is scented with “exotic pimento, sweet vanilla and cozy, warming cinnamon,” and promises to turn your bath water a pretty, pumpkin orange. What could be better? 

 

 

 

 

 

2. imPRESS Matte Halloween Nails with Glitter Accents

Press on nails are not something I ever thought I would recommend… or wear. But I really love imPRESS nails—I went through a phase of wearing them every week a few years ago (post-baby it’s much more difficult to rock a long nail) and they always last 7+ days. Seriously. 7+ days! These ones feature a gray-and-white matte color scheme with a spooky church yard and several glitter accent nails. Perfect for a subdued Halloween look. 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Make Up Revolution Vampire Night Lip Kid

This is such a fun lip kit! It features 1 matte liquid lipstick and a matching liner so you can contour your lips (or just prevent feathering—hello aging!) in the color Vampire Night, a rich, bloody burgundy color. Perfect for a vampire costume or just for fun. 

5 Non-Scary Halloween Movies for Kids

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and I love all the movies related to Halloween. I think I've written so many lists of my favorite Halloween movies that it would be impossible to round them all up. But trust me when I say: if a Halloween movie exists, I've probably watched it. 

Now that I have a toddler, I've had to adjust my favorite Halloween movies. Some are just too scary for Forrest to watch, especially if they have dark scenes or any really suspenseful parts. For my fellow moms out there, I've put together a list of our favorite non-scary (or not too scary movies) for kids. You'll notice one of my favorite movies ever is not on this list; I find Hocus Pocus to be just a little too scary for Forrest yet. But maybe next year! Here are our favorites right now. 

1. Halloweentown 

I love Halloweentown and thankfully, Forrest does too. This is one of those movies that has some slightly scary parts, but not scary enough to really scare a toddler. I have great nostalgia about this movie because it was one of my absolute favorites when I was little. We recently bought the double feature of it from Amazon. 

2. It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! 

This is such a classic; everyone loves this movie! I've been searching for this movie relentlessly for months and finally, it popped up on Amazon for $10. Thankfully, though, it starts being played on TV as Halloween gets closer so we've watched it several times already. 

3. Trick or Treat on Sesame Street 

Forrest's number one obsession is Elmo and Sesame Street. He loves this DVD. It's basically a collection of Elmo trick-or-treat episodes and scenes. There are also some great special features on it about dressing up in costumes that aren't along the gender binary, which is my favorite part. As with any Sesame Street DVD, there is lots of subtle teaching: counting, learning how to talk to others, being creative, and how to deal with jealousy are the biggest themes. 

4. Spookly the Square Pumpkin

This is a TV movie (that you can buy on Amazon) that came out when my oldest nephew was a toddler. It's about a square pumpkin named Spookly who is different from the other pumpkins. It's a really cute, slightly spooky (but not scary) movie with lots of cute Fall imagery and a really great message about how being different makes you special. It's one of Forrest's favorites. 

5. Hotel Transylvania 

This is one of those movies that... really starts to grate on me after a while. But as a parent, I have to put up with it a little bit! It's definitely not on my list of favorite movies, but Forrest really enjoys it, it's not scary, and it doesn't have anything that I particularly object to (unlike other movies).