CAROLYN DZURKO: HALLOWEEN COSTUMES AND SATANIC FOOTWEAR

It was Halloween day.

Year, 1990.

My mom had just put me in the seat of a shopping cart at Hills. For those of you who haven't had the pleasure of frequenting a Hills department store, imagine walking into a Kmart that smells like popcorn.

I was waiting impatiently for my brother to get done with pre-school. Carving pumpkins, wielding plastic weapons, and eating gobs of candy- oh boy- the anticipation grew. I tweedled my toes and wriggled inside the red cart trying to release some excitement.

It didn't work.

At once, I begged my mom to put me in the clown costume my Aunt Marilyn had made. Years ago she had sewn it for my older cousin, last year she passed it down to my brother, and finally this year it was mine.

My brother, John, in the same costume years before.

"Momm, I want to be a clown."

"I don't have it here, Dimpy," she said. My mom often called me Dimpy because of my dimples. "As soon as we pick up John we can go home and get dressed-up."

"But Mommm," I dragged out in a tiny little whine, "I want to be a clown, now." I looked at her with big brown eyes and whimpered pathetically. "I want to have lopstick." (typo intentional)

Hours later (30 minutes in adult time) we returned home. I remember my mom gently helping me into my checkered costume, tying the frilly white collar around my neck, and placing sweet cherry lipstick perfectly on my nose and lips.

That day, I beamed as I waddled in to Calvary Baptist Church in my home-made Halloween costume.

Thanks mom for humoring me.

For this blog post, I decided to ask some of my dearest friends to share their fondest Halloween costume memories. From a home-made bride to a pre-packaged wrestler, each costume is sweetly special and outright adorable. Thank you to all of my friends and family who contributed these happy moments to me and my readers.

Are you ready? Get a load of all this cuteness--

"The Most Adorable Count Dracula Ever"

"I was always a big fan of the count. I definitely saw Bram Stoker's Dracula movie earlier than I should have but it was so worth it. In addition. the movie The Monster Squad has been a tradition to watch in October for as long as I can remember. Costume was modeled after the Count in that particular movie." -- Luke Lizik

"Circa 1986"

"I'm the devil. I thought the mask was incredible and used the pitchfork to torture my brother. It was a win-win all around." -- Jay Forney

"Shimmy All Day, Shimmy All Night"

"I was a flapper in preschool and I absolutely loved this costume because of the FRINGE. I enjoy that I got to wear a sparkly feathered headband." -- Alaina (Graves) Pattillo

"I Was Clearly Proud To Be A Bride"

"THIS was my favorite Halloween costume. My grandma made it for me. It was my favorite because she made it for me and from what I've been told, I wore it for days." -- Kelly Field

"He's Going To Get Me Back On This One..."

"Michael always wanted to be a cop or a cowboy. He loved the gun and the vest. This picture was taken in 1987." -- Christine Marozza

"The Littlest Mermaid"

"At the time, my favorite Disney movie was The Little Mermaid. My mom and grandma put it together for me. I loved the make-up. It was the best part." -- Nikki Gwynn

"I'm A Granny."

"One year my mom and my sister made me and my best friend be girls. He was the little girl and I was the old lady. But my favorite costume was when I dressed up as Bret the Hitman Hart. He was my favorite wrestler. The next picture features me in it with my classmates." -- Brandon 'Murda' Bonart

"Serious 90's Action Everywhere"

"I like the devil bunny picture best even though you are the focus. At the time, my favorite part was probably the cape. There is something transformative about a cape when you're a kid. In retrospect, my favorite part is definitely the high top sneakers. The most satanic of footwear." -- John Dzurko

"First Prize!"

"I wore this costume at Penn State. I sewed it myself with black material and stuffing. My favorite part of it was my tail. I'm holding in the picture, clearly I was very attached to it. In fact, I still have it!" -- Celeste Dzurko

"He's Groping His Roomate."

"Here is your father dressed up as a hillbilly. He threw it together last minute. His date in this picture was wearing my bathrobe to be a raggedly over-weight drunk old woman. You can't see it but he had curlers in his hair. Everyone thought they were hilarious! -- Celeste Dzurko

Dressing up played a large role our childhood, not just on Halloween. From buckets to oversized sunglasses, we continuously let our imaginations wander. To my family, thank you for making life so much fun. I love you.