"I Pity the Fool!"

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. It's the day when we're allowed to dress up however we want, and use the excuse "This is my costume!" to explain ourselves. Well, at least that's what I did back my wilder days when I'd prance around looking like a you-know-what. But I digress... For new parents, baby's first Halloween is chance to get the little one dolled up and looking even more precious than usual. For most, that means dressing up their little one as a pumpkin, a teddy bear, or a bumblebee to a chorus of "ooooohs!" and "aaaaaahs!" For me, it means draping my baby in bling and waxing up that mohawk to a chorus of "I pity the fool!" If you're scratching your head quizzically at this point, then you're too young to be reading my blog.

Because I wanted to make sure that I didn't sacrifice Benjamin's safety for the sake of his costume, I had to fashion my own Mr. T bling. I purchased some basic materials at the local craft store - velcro, fabric glue, gold braid, and felt - and got to work. It was actually surprisingly difficult to put these two necklaces together. I can't tell you how many times I accidentally glued the materials to my own clothing or to the couch. Don't tell Vince I said that. He loves that couch.

It's a good thing that we had a bazillion Halloween events to attend, or all that work I'd put in would have been wasted! There was a get-together in neighborhood park, where Benjamin kicked it with his neighbor Franken-Nolan and classmate Grant the Friendly Dinosaur.

We also attended a green Halloween event at Eco Station with Nolan (who had to chuck the costume in the heat), his dad Shawn, and mom Julie. Shawn and Julie dressed up as a mad scientist and the Bride of Frankenstein, and in a stroke of genius, Vince put on his own clothes and told people he was Murdoch from the A-Team. Nice try, Murdoch.

Of course, Playa Vista put on its own Halloween party, where we met up with neighbors Holly and Isabelle, who were dressed as a chef and a crab. Dad Rusty (not pictured), was a crab fisherman. Not to be topped by our neighbors' ingenious costumes, Vince upped the ante and came dresssed as an accountant on his day off from work who was very lucky to have scored a date with me, Foxy Brown.

The great thing is that the fun isn't over yet! Benjamin and I still have a few Halloween events left to attend today. I don't think I'll be wearing my costume again, though. This was Benjamin's face when he saw me in my wig:

Scary indeed!