[A gypsy and Steve Urkel from Halloween in the 90s]

 Halloween as an adult is definitely different than it was back in the day (see below for example), but it’s still so much fun to me. We plan a big staff potluck at the Center for Puppetry Arts every year, and I think this was our biggest turnout yet. Some colleagues show up in costumes, and my favorite was the homemade DORITO suit! (No Doritos were harmed in the making of this costume — the construction is way more impressive than that.) We feasted on chili, slow-roasted pork wrapped in banana leaves, “zombie guts” (cajun sausage), “gall bladder stones” (mini pita pockets filled with pasta, beans, and veggies), spooky s’mores cupcakes, and so much more. I love how creative my coworkers are with their dishes.

Our neighborhood is the absolute best on Halloween. It’s overrun with young children on a daily basis anyway, but I love seeing the streets filled with lots of tiny superheroes, princesses (Elsa this year, obviously), animals, and other funny costumes on 10/31. And the family costumes are even better. This year, the winner was the family of five Legos — so creative and actually pretty simple to make with cardboard boxes, paper cups, and colored paper or paint. Genius! 


In addition, our next door neighbors go all out with their scary decorations — but they don’t set up until the day of Halloween to make it extra exciting. My absolute favorite detail this year was the table full of fancy skeletons dining on jello brains and drinking witch’s brew. 



Happy Halloween from the Hayes family!