one mom's guilt trip

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Do you ever feel guilty for not spoiling your children? That's where I am right now.  With two kids, small outings and holidays get expensive pretty quickly if you don't watch what you're doing. 

Before Katie was born, Alex always had deluxe Halloween costumes, but I was working and between my income and Grandma adding bits and pieces (like a leather coat for an Indiana Jones costume), we could do that.  Last year, I made his Jedi costume and it turned out pretty well.  Earlier this year, I made a Luigi costume for him to wear to a birthday party, thinking it would double as his Halloween costume.  However, I neglected to realize that shorts would not be appropriate attire for the end of October.  Oopsie.

So, I've started looking at costumes for both him and Katie.  I've thought about sewing them, and I still may, but I've been browsing the Halloween sites for inspiration.  Good golly!  I kinda forgot that costumes can be so pricey.  To get Alex what he wants, and to buy something cute for Katie, we're looking at nearly $100 just for Halloween costumes.  Is it just me or is that completely crazy?!

So, I want to give them something nice.  I want Alex to be able to dress up as what he wants.  Honestly, I never would have blinked an eye at a forty or fifty dollar costume a few years ago.  Now, I might have waited for it to go on sale, but we still would have spent at least $30 on it.  So, I feel bad that now I'm hesitant to blow that much dough on something that will be worn a maximum of three times in my son's case (he doesn't play dress up anymore).  I also feel guilty because, at age nine, he might not even want to dress up many more times.

My solution is to have him identify a costume he likes and then reproduce it at home for (hopefully) less money.  I'm also going to sew up something for Katie.  We had been looking at a monkey costume for her, but now I'm thinking more along the lines of Little Red Riding Hood.

Since we all know that home crafting projects take on a life of their own, I'm going to challenge myself to really stick to a budget on this one.  Let's say, $40 for two costumes.  Can I do it?  I sure hope so.  I'll post the finished products when I actually finish (you know, after I actually get started).  Want to join me?  Leave a link to your super-fun, budget-friendly homemade costumes below.