 |
| Halloween cake pops from Pop Cakes |
Every year, it has become a family tradition to go Trick or Treating at Acropolis where my in-laws Owen and Ging host a Halloween party at their lovely home. Last year, I came to the party well prepared. Weeks before the event, I ordered some Pop Cakes (thanks Bea!) - bite-sized dense chocolate cake balls artfully coated in Jack-o-Lantern, One-eyed monster, Werewolk, and Ghost designs. From the act of selecting a design, to picking up the cakes, bringing them to the party, and eating them of course! it was such a treat!
 |
| My niece Julia, enjoying her One-Eyed-Monster Cake Pop |
Another thing I prepared in advance was Narra's costume. My sister Marion bought Narra a ballerina dress, a lovely toddler's tutu in baby pink, with ballet slippers to match. I had Narra try on the outfit way in advance so I could do alterations as it was still a little big on her. The shoes, sadly, were too small on her. I bought her tights, and a headpiece, and I did several dress rehearsals so she would be comfortable in her fussy clothing. I had a really enjoyable time last year and my secret then was preparation.
 |
| With my nephew Mateo and my daughter Narra. Halloween Party 2010. |
Then came this year's Halloween - I wasn't as prepared. My sister Marion again bought Narra a lovely new costume for Trick or Treating. On one of her trips to India, she got Narra an exquisite bejeweled dress, in rich hues of turquoise and burgundy, with gold threads. The fabric looked opulent. It was costume-y enough for Halloween, and was unique, I knew no other kid would be walking around the block with the same look. I tried the dress on Narra once, just to see if it would fit, and I also looked for gold shoes to match. I thought that was enough preparation. But alas, I did not prepare Narra enough.
 |
| Narra, Guijo, and Mateo, right before Trick or Treating. Halloween 2011. |
On the day itself, she would not wear the thing. She was screaming and kicking, and crying, and we had a colossal clash - an epic battle of wills and boy I did not want to lose! I was really tempted to bully my way to victory over my daughter when I took pause. I do not subscribe to the "might is right" principle - is it really worth it? Making my daughter cry over a costume? I engaged her in dialogue: "why don't you want to wear this costume?", I asked. "Masakit kasi, tsaka makati" (it hurts, and it's itchy) she said, and "I want to wear the ballet dress" she added. I found out from her yaya that she tried on her tutu while I was out, and she was dancing around in her room joyfully pretending to be a ballerina. Oh wow. I learned an important lesson. The costume is not the point - rather, it is the enjoyment one derives from being in costume that matters. If my daughter will enjoy herself in an old costume she is comfortable in, why force her to be in an uncomfy new costume she'll be miserable in?
 |
| Narra and Mateo Trick or Treating at a neighbor's house. Acropolis Village, Libis. 2011. |
It was a breeze getting her into her old tutu. Her cousin Mateo, likewise, happily donned his Superman costume from last year too. I am sad that the other costume went to waste, and my preparation was all for naught, but my frustration vanished in an instant when I saw Narra and Mateo clowning around as they excitedly waited to start trick or treating.
I look at them and I'm thinking how weird it is that they've grown so fast in some ways, but at the same time they're still babies, they still fit into last year's clothes! I don't understand how that's possible... how could they have grown so little, and yet also grown so much? I'm trying to do the math and it doesn't add up. And then there's the simple math of additions: our family is growing, we have new babies joining our trick or treating entourage this year: Guijo and Marko!
 |
| The cousins who are like brothers: Oliver and his son Guijo with Thunder and his son Marko. |
Oliver would often recount to me how, growing up, whenever there was a need to be in costume, he and his cousin Thunder would be dressed as Batman and Robin. Sayang! If we were better prepared for this Halloween, we could have dressed our boys in coordinated costumes. Our group was halo-halo, or like a gado-gado salad, a "mix-mix" of different characters: heroes, a ghost, a Disney princess, a ballerina, a strawberry (Marko), and a bumblebee (Guijo), and even an Octopus (my cuz-in-law Rakel). I'm thinking maybe next year Rakel and I can plan something and think of a creative way to get coordinated.
 |
| Our trick or treating entourage: 2 babies, 2 toddlers, 3 yayas, 4 kids, and 2 moms. The rest of the family stayed at home. |
While we were walking around the village, getting candies from house to house, we came across this cute barkada of young teens all dressed as different crayons. Their enthusiasm was infectious! Their costume design was a hit, and people, young and old alike, were drawn to them. I saw in these girls something I really like: creativity and preparation; charm and energy; but also sensibility: they didn't go overboard, they used simple materials, and they were in comfortable clothes! Most importantly, they were having a lot of fun. I suspect they got more candies because they were spreading cheer as they were soliciting goodies. They didn't need to execute a mega production number to be refreshingly different. They just thought of a novel costume idea, and enjoyed themselves. And that's the trick.
 |
| A barkada of teens dressed as crayons. |
No comments:
Post a Comment