Spicy Dragons & Dinosaurs

Halloween Story time.

Julia wanted to be a dinosaur for Halloween. It is not a surprising choice but last year it was her choice to be a bat and not a dinosaur. So she wanted to be a green dinosaur, and last weekend, she and I went out shopping for a sleeper and material to make a tail and scales and a hat. She helped me pick everything out and was very patient when there was an awfully long wait to get material cut.

That same night, a friend told me that she had a great costume that was a bit smaller than I really needed but that she thought that Julia could use. When I saw the costume -- a blue dinosaur -- the next day, I knew that it was really better than anything that I would make -- it even had a roar button in one paw. Paw? I'm not sure if you call a dinosaur's upper extremity a paw. Or claw?

Julia took one look at the blue dinosaur costume and did not want to even try it on because it was blue. I tried to insist telling her that I could not make something this neat and she told me that she wanted to wear "her" dinosaur costume. Suddenly the conversation changed direction. Now, we were talking about some existing costume and I was lost. She took me up to her room, rummaged through her make-believe box and pulled out a dinosaur costume that another friend had sent be a long time ago -- it was either a size 3 or 4, very tiny, and also very thin. Julia could get into it but it was too tight to put much under it and the legs came up to just under her knees. She pulled on a skirt and explained that she was a dinosaur girl. She wanted a bow on the little hood and agreed to put leggings and a shirt under the costume. But it was going to be a squeeze. I wondered about her being cold, she told me she would be fine.

Forward to Sunday evening and Julia getting dressed. We put on the long sleeved shirt and leggings and I opened the green costume for her to get into it. She looked at me like I was nuts. "Mommy, I have to wear the blue dinosaur so that I will be warm." Yes, mommy was crazy trying to put her darling into a costume that was going to be way too cold for her. She loved the blue dinosaur costume.

We put a bow on her head and a few on the tail, and she was a dinosaur girl.

And she had a great time collecting candy, telling grownups to take off masks, and educating everyone about dinosaurs. She is a wonder!

My goodness, I can't get these in any order. The picture below is after candy gathering. Time for a pickle!

And just look at that tail. it is what the best dressed dinos are wearing this fall.

Julia made the bats with one of her therapists. I have to get a closer picture because their decoration is really neat.