Sneaky and Squeaky

Weeks ago, Jillian decided that she was going to be a cat for Halloween. A "sneaky" cat to be exact. I thought this sounded like a brilliant (simple!) costume and we quickly came up with an ensemble that was acceptable to her. So, I got to thinking about Adrienne's costume and it just seemed fitting for her to be a mouse. That would be cute, right? A cat and mouse. Totally appropriate. I was feeling pretty pleased with myself, and suddenly realized I would have to do nothing to obtain this costume besides call my mom. She handmade a mouse costume for me when I was Adrienne's age (Halloween of 1979!), and I believe it has since been worn by both of my sisters. My brother in law nixed the idea for my nephew last year because of the pink ears, and I was set on another costume for Jillian her first year because of her birthday theme. So, enter Adrienne....our "squeaky" little mouse. Jillian thought she would be a squeaky mouse (and not just an ordinary mouse) because we have always referred to her as "squeaky" or "squeaks". My mom was thrilled to learn that Adrienne would wear the costume, and after doing some repair work on the bow and ears, she mailed it to me. Precious.

"Sneaky" looked smashing in her ears and whiskers. Look at those beautiful green eyes!! Wowza.

I know that pink tutus are not traditional cat-wear, but Jillian felt strongly about wearing it.

Showing off her tail

Jillian was very excited about the whiskers and was very concerned about them coming off. She periodically asked, "Mom, are my whiskers still on?"

The bummer of the day was that Matt was stuck working a late evening shift (for the second Halloween in a row, I might add), so he missed out on the trick-or-treating. Because of the climate here, our more rural neighborhood this year, and my lack of desire to haul both girls around outside alone, we hit the mall for trick-or-treating again when it began at 4:30. Jillian was so excited about the process, and really was independent with the activity. She was so polite (and clever) to think to say "Meow! Thank you!" after stopping at each storefront for a treat. I did not prompt her to do that. As we neared the end of our loop, she got a bit impatient waiting in line (it was more crowded) and kept saying, "Mom, we need to get more tricks! Is it my turn to get a trick?" Tricks and treats are apparently the same in her book. She also made was keen on noticing everyone's "costumes". For example, we walked by several Muslim women in full burqa and she shouted, "Wow, Mom, they have some really scary costumes!" Oh dear. Luckily no one around us seemed to know who she was talking about.
I originally intended to let Adrienne walk part of the mall with her little treat bag, but she was so cranky that day that I just left her in the stroller. For whatever reason (probably the snotty nose), she wasn't her usual smiley self that day. Still, she looked pretty cute riding alongside her sneaky cat.

We picked up dinner on the way home and anxiously awaited any trick-or-treaters that might come our way. Thankfully, we had a few neighbor kids stop by, and I must say that handing out candy was even more thrilling for Jillian than getting it. She excitedly ran for the door and yelled "Trick-or-treat, thank you!" to the kids as if trying to prompt them on their Halloween lingo. When they left, she cheerfully reminded them to "Have a great night!" All in all, I'd consider it a successful evening...especially since I convinced her that Halloween was over at 7, put the girls to bed without incident, turned the lights out, and spent the evening reading in my bed. Hopefully Matt won't draw the short stick again next year!