Costume Ideas for Siblings, Couples or Groups

It's that time of year again, fall is on the horizon and for us, that means costumes...lots of costumes. 

I know how hard it can be to come up with costume ideas so below is a compilation of some of our favorite costume ideas with contributions from our family and friends...hope it helps!

Peter Pan Characters

So many options for boys and girls when you go with Peter Pan...it was our pick last year when we had a large group.

Pirates

Jake and the Neverland Pirates

(photo credit: creativejamie.com)

Phineas and Ferb

(photo credit: disneymovielist.com)

Last year our friends who have 3 boys all did this...Mom was Candace, Dad was Dr Doofenshmirtz, older boys were Phineas and Ferb and the baby was Perry.

Superheros

Thanks to Pinterest girls can join in on the hero fun...

Source: epbot.com via Brianna on Pinterest

Toy Story Characters

In addition to Buzz and Jessie, you can do Woody, Bo Peep, Slinky Dog, Mr and Mrs Potato Head, Rex, Hamm, Bullseye, Aliens, Sarge (complete with a bucket of soldiers), RC, Wheezy, Stinky Pete, Zurg, Lots-O, Peas in a Pod, Ken and Barbie

Star Wars Characters

This is the one we may do for Halloween this year with the boy as Luke, our princess as Leila and Joshua and I as Darth Vader and Queen Amidala

The best part of going with a Star Wars route is the number of available options...and you can always throw in an extra Jedi or Storm Trooper.

Dr Seuss Characters

Oh the things you can do...

And do...

Classic Disney Characters

*tip: you don't have to go to the parks to get the ears...you can go to Disney's Shopping website and buy them there

Just add Bert to Mary Poppins...or dancing penguins and you'll be a unique and totally fun group.

Flinstones

In addition to Bam Bam, in 2010 Joshua and I were Barney and Betty Rubble and an itty bitty Pebbles, Fred and Wilma (the boy's Godparents and their daughter) met up with us for some trick-or-treating fun.

More fun options...

The Brady Bunch

A Magician and Bunny Rabbit 

(particularly good if you have an older boy and a little bitty girl)

Police and Criminal

(we thought about doing this and making our one year old the cop and the rest of us crooks since she's so clearly in charge)

Bo Peep and Sheep

(another good one if you have a particularly "in charge" kind of little girl...everyone else can be her sheep)

Peanut Butter and Jelly

(the sandwich board type of costume...bigger kids or adults would probably be better at walking with these types of costumes)

A Gaggle of Ghosts

(before pirates were the go-to group thing, ghosts were a popular back-up option)

Beauty and the Beast

Dorthy and Toto 

(or any other combination of characters from Wizard of Oz)

Milo and Otis

Raggedy Ann and Andy

Dora and Diego

Elmo and Zoey

Sully and Boo

(you can always add Mike Wizowski, Waternoose or the CDA agents for a group option)

Bowling Ball and Pins

(great for a big group and gender is irrelevant)

Hanzel and Gretel

Wilbur and Charlotte

Jack Sprat and His Wife

(cute if you have a little chubby baby girl and an older lean brother)

The Adams Family Characters

Mario, Luigi and Princess Toadstool

Whatever theme you decide to go with, have a great time and take lots of pictures!

Why Would You Not Send Them To School?!

I recently read an article about a family's decision to start homeschooling. More accurately, it was one woman's story of how she went from saying things like "That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard! The bus stops right here! It takes them away for eight luxurious hours of the day! Why would you not send them to school?" when she learned their new neighbors were homeschoolers to becoming an active proponent of homeschooling herself.

We only made the official decision to homeschool within the last year and although it was something we were strongly leaning towards for years, I wasn't always on board and Joshua REALLY wasn't sure of it. In fact, to say we were both anti-homeschool would be an understatement. Words like those kids, overly religious, under-educated, and freaky were tossed around like they weren't insulting, ignorant and rude. 

My first serious exposure to homeschooling came when I worked for a family with 10...yes, TEN children who technically practiced what's called un-schooling. I didn't like it. I saw deficiencies in their education but surprisingly, I also saw what it did for them as a family. I saw how close they were and how mature the children were. I saw how secure the parents were-they were totally open with me and I with them. I tried to be tactful about it when I told them I was "unsure" of the whole thing. I didn't understand it and didn't expect to do it when we had our own children. 

I was concerned about "socialization" because growing up in the public school system had taught me that my children HAD to be with other children of the same age. That gave them more "real-world experience" because they'd learn to work out problems with others in the classroom. Now, I see that being locked inside a school, forced to be silent for hours and unable to do the most basic things like go to the bathroom without first raising their hands does nothing to show them the real world. And in our son's case, it would have only led to bad behavior marks...he's an active four year old boy who needs the freedom to be able to study for a bit and then go outside, run, play, yell...basically, just be a child.

My next concern was what about subjects you're not (meaning the parents) naturally good at?--really I was wondering what I would possibly do with a child who needed to learn complex mathematical theories when I struggle with them myself. But eventually, I learned that the basis of homeschooling is to teach your children to teach themselves. To be independent. If there's a subject they need to learn that you're not comfortable with, you work through it together, or you find someone who can teach it to you both. It fit with our perspective of parenthood. We believe it's our job to prepare our children for the world-a world which is unfortunately putting America to shame academically.

I learned that despite spending more and more money-on average over $10,000 per year per student, America ranks 14th in reading, 17th in science and 25th in math (source: 2010 PISA). Homeschooling gives our children the academic advantage they desperately need in a global economy...

(graphic from homelifeacademy.com with source documentation HERE)

I also learned that a parent's dedication and hard work can overcome a lack of specialized training...

I began seeing children behaving in despicable ways. Talking to their parents with absolutely no respect. They weren't bad kids. They had good parents but they would go to school to be "socialized" and ended up just like everyone else...which I guess is one of the reasons people send their children to school. But it's not something we want anymore.

Deplorable behavior and inexcusably low test scores were only enough to make me seriously consider homeschooling. I still thought about ways we could avoid homeschooling because it scared me...we'd live in a "good" school district and I would supplement their education...we would be strict and would fight the negative influences...light inside the dark and all that but once we had our children and looked them in the eye, we realized that we couldn't accept something that wasn't the absolute best for them. Sending them to school wasn't the best academically or socially. It's not always easy and there are days that I think I'm in over my head but it's worth it-our kids are worth it and that's why we don't send them to school.

Whatever you decide to do, just remember before you say you could never homeschool, I said the same thing not too long ago and now, I wouldn't have it any other way.

Furry Friday Link-up

I'm super excited to be linking up with my bestie/favorite blogger JG from Me and My SoldierMan for the very first Furry Friday Link-up. Click on the link below to join in all the furry fun...

I thought I'd use the Furry Friday Link-up as a good excuse to take pictures of more than just our two-legged children as they have most definitely overtaken the dogs on the family totem pole but as usual the two-legged children have completely monopolized my time this week and no new pics happened (of anyone) so I thought I'd just us this week to introduce the two best not-so-little dogs in our life...

Balak (a Rhodesian Ridgeback-best. breed. ever.) who was named Balak because Ridgebacks are rough and tough (although AWESOME with children). The name Balak has a Hebrew root meaning of "destroyer" and since Ridgebacks-named such because of the ridge of fur along their back that grows backwards are also known as "Lion-Killers" because they were originally bred in Africa to protect farms and families from lions, we thought it would be fitting. In fact, a single Ridgeback is said to be able to take down an orangutan alone. I don't doubt it because when Balak really runs, you can see all the power in his muscles. It would be intimidating if it wasn't for the fact that Balak is the single laziest, most apathetic, least dominant, excessively emotional dog I have ever met which is why we call him Bubba more often than Balak.

Translation: "I WANT TO GO TO BED. NOW."

He's not allowed on the bed...yeah, so he threw a fit and pulled all the bedding off the guest bed.

Bubba loves us but I'm pretty sure he loves comfort more. He's the 90lb dog that will refuse to get into a vehicle in the summer if the a/c isn't running. The big, bad Lion-Killer doesn't move an inch  and when you try to pick up the beast to force him in, he taps into his inner civil-disobedient protester and spreads eagle. All four paws go in all four directions and block you from pushing him in. We now just turn the a/c on and let it cool off before getting him in. He's a special dog for many reasons but mostly because he was our first born. I bought him for my husband's birthday shortly before we got married nearly seven years ago. A couple months later, we decided we needed another dog (read: Bubba loved Joshua more than me and I wanted a dog too) so we rescued Murray (a husky/yellow lab mix...we think)...

Oh Murray. How to describe Murray? Insane. That about sums it up. Long, long story short...we rescued Murray after he had been SEVERELY abused, starved and then eventually abandoned. He fought to live and we fought to teach him that he was safe. The first four months we had him, he would pee out of fear if Joshua stood up too quickly or unexpectedly walked into the same room Murray was in. He never fully got over his fear of baseball caps or hangers which we now assume were the things used to beat him the most. It took two years before a scar on his nose healed. We'll never know if the scar came from a beating or from when he literally chewed his way out of the abandoned house that his previous owners had dumped him in when they moved to Florida. He had a rough life his first few months but once we rescued him, he loved us...well, he loved me. He was MY dog. He would have done anything to protect me but he never really accepted anyone outside our little family. In fact, he frequently scared the crap out of strangers-to-him that came over. He tolerated Joshua and loved Bubba too but he adored me until our son was born. Actually, Murray's affection started to change even before then...

I should have seen it coming but I didn't until our boy was about two weeks old. I was tired so the fresh laundry was piled up on one side of the boy's crib while I laid him down for his first nap in a crib (we kept him in our room and until this particular day, he had napped in his swing, bassinet, or our arms). I left his bedroom door open because I wanted to hear him if he woke up while I started dinner and then I heard the noise I'll never forget. I now know it was the sound of Murray jumping into the crib. He had apparently and thankfully looked before he leapt and landed perfectly on the fresh load of laundry, curled up and had decided to sleep next to the boy. From that day on, if the boy was alone in his room, the door was shut but as soon as I opened it, Murray was right there. No matter how many times I scolded him not to get into the crib, he couldn't stay away from his boy. The feeling was obviously mutual as the boy's very first word wasn't Mommy or Daddy but Murray. They loved each other endlessly and when we unexpectedly had to put Murray down two years ago while Joshua was away training, something in our family broke. We still consider ourselves a two-dog family because that's just who we are but it's taken until now to even consider getting a new dog. Murray was MY dog. I'll never replace him but I'm starting to open up to the idea of having another.

Epcot-World Showcase

Yesterday, we covered one half of Epcot, Future World. Today, we're going to break down the other side of Epcot's hour-glass layout, World Showcase.

World Showcase is a compilation of eleven permanent country pavilions plus a growing but not official pavilion area for Africa. Each of the country pavilions have shops and restaurants which are staffed with citizens from the respective pavilion countries. Some of the country pavilions also have rides or shows which depict the history, art and culture of the individual countries. Oftentimes families with small children have thought World Showcase wasn't an area for them. We disagree. In addition to fun activities for small kids like the kidcot craft stations in each pavilion and the "Epcot Passport" kids can get and have stamped in each country pavilion, the newest adventure for little ones who want to save the world is an adaption of the former KimPossible Adventure called Agent P's World Showcase Adventure. The interactive experience pairs kids (and their parents) with Perry the Platypus from Phineas and Ferb via a high-tech secret agent device (read: cell phone) which will send clues for each "case." Solving the clues will send secret agents to different country pavilions in an attempt to defeat Dr Doofenschmirtz. Although we haven't done the Agent P Adventure (we surely will next month), we did the previous KimPossible Adventure and it was a blast for all of us. Some of the secret agent clues were amazing...in one country pavilion, our clues lead us to find a hidden water fall that we never would have known existed otherwise.

Below is a list of the eleven permanent country pavilions and a brief explanation of the shows or rides they each offer...

*tip: if visiting other cultures is your thing, consider a trip to Disney World during the Food and Wine Festival which takes place every fall and brings in world-renown chefs from all over and more than doubles the number of country pavilions in World Showcase...it's a great opportunity to eat and drink your way around the world.

Mexico

Attraction-

-Gran Fiesta Tour: A boat ride featuring a film with traditional

animation superimposed over live-action film clips starring The Three Caballeros including Donald Duck

Food-

Sit-down:

-La Hacienda De San Angel (overlooks the Lagoon)

-San Angel Inn

Counter service:

-Cantina De San Angel

Extras:

-Mariachi Cobre band performs seven 25-minute shows Tuesday-Saturday

Norway

Attraction-

-Maelstrom: A boat ride which takes you through the Viking history of Norway (spoiler: there are dark moments, a troll and even a slight

drop so if you have itty bitty babies, you may want to skip it or take

it in turns)

Food-

Sit-down:

-Akershus...a magical princess meal which is a great back-up option if you can't get into Cinderella's Royal Table

Counter service:

-Kringla Bakeri og Cafe...a pastry shop that will break any diet

China

Attractions-

-Reflections of China...a 360 CircleVision movie presentation

-Tomb Warriors...an amazing collection of ancient Chinese artifacts

Food-

Sit-down:

-Nine Dragons

Counter service:

-Lotus Blossom Cafe

Extras:

-The Jeweled Dragon Acrobats 20-minute performances daily (except Tuesday and Thursday)

-Mulan Meet and Greet

Germany

Food-

Sit-down:

-Biergarten...German restaurant complete with yodlers, dancers and lederhosen-clad musicians

Counter service:

-Sommerfest

Extras:

-Snow White Meet and Greet

Italy

Food-

Sit-down:

-Via Napoli...traditional table-service pizzaria

-Tutto Italia

Extras:

-Sergio: an interactive juggler who performs 20-minute shows Sunday-Thursday

-Ziti Sisters: 25-minute live comedy show daily

America

Attraction-

-The American Adventure...a 30-minute historical show on a 72-foot wide screen

Food-

Counter service:

-Liberty Inn...a huge indoor counter service restaurant

-Funnel Cake Kiosk...mouth-watering good

Extras:

-Spirit of America Fife and Drum Corps...15 minute show

Tuesday-Saturday (must-see)

-Voices of Liberty...a cappella group which performs 15-minute shows daily

Japan

Attraction-

-Bijutsu-kan Gallery...an ever-changing with beautiful exhibits

reflecting the Japanese art culture

Food-

Sit-down:

-Teppan Edo...a favorite for our family...hibachi-style meals

-Tokyo Dining

Counter service:

-Katsura Grill

Extras:

-Matsuriza...traditional Japanese drummers perform 15-minute shows Mon, Tues, Thurs-Sat afternoons

-Miyuki...a Japanese candy artist creates beautiful and delicious

works of art Sun-Thurs afternoons

Morocco

Food-

Sit-down:

-Restaurant Marrakesh

Counter service:

-Tangierine Cafe

Extras:

-MoRockin...authentic Moroccan music performed daily

-Alladin and Jasmin Meet and Greet

-Fun fact: Morocco's Department of Tourism actually owns the Epcot Morocco Pavilion and the King of Morocco sent his own personal architect to Florida to help oversee it's construction (and the lamp at the sit-down restaurant is awesome)

France

Attraction-

-Impressions de France...an 18 minute show

Food:

Sit-down:

-Chefs de France

-Bistro de Paris...a gourmet restaurant/signature meal on the dining

plan WITH a dress code

Counter service:

-Boulangerie Patisserie...French pastries and desserts

Extras:

-Several character Meet and Greet options...Princess Aurora (Sleeping Beauty), Belle, Beast and Marie daily each afternoon

United Kingdom

Food-

Sit-down:

-Rose and Crown Pub & Dining Room

Counter service:

-Yorkshire Co Fish Shop...a great place to stop for a quick order of

fish and chips

Extras:

-World Showcase Player...an improv comedy troupe with daily afternoon performances

-Character Meet and Greets...Alice in Wonderland, Mary Poppins and Winnie the Pooh and Friends daily in the afternoon

-British Revolution...British rock-n-roll from the 60's-80's daily

starting mid-afternoon

Canada

Attraction-

-Oh Canada!...a 14-minute 360 CircleVision movie narrated by Martin Short

Food-

Sit down:

-Le Cellier...our favorite steak restuarant

Epcot With Kids General Tips

*Start walking before you even get to the parks. You'll average 10-15 miles a day at Disney World and Epcot tends to be on the long end of the scale.

*Keep kids interested in World Showcase by doing something special in each country...buy something or eat something (like a piece of candy) in each country or if you're wanting a free option or something for the tween crowd...take a funky picture in each country and you'll be able to make a funny photo album showing you going all around the world

*Pin trading is super popular in Epcot and kids love it!-just be sure to read our pin trading post so your little ones can trade without costing an arm and a leg

*Don't forget to catch the nightly laser/fireworks show IllumiNations

*Epcot is a particularly great park if it's raining...most of the attractions are indoors but check out our Disney In The Rain post for more rainy day ideas

Epcot-Future World

Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow

EPCOT has changed repeatedly over the last 30 years but one thing has remained the same: Disney World's second theme park, connected to the Magic Kingdom via Monorail, both educates and entertains.

Epcot is laid out in an hour-glass form with two very different but equally enjoyable sections...Future World and World Showcase. Today, we're going to focus on Future World. Tomorrow, we'll cover World Showcase.

Future World is the section you'll walk into immediately after you enter the main gates. The iconic 18 story Geodesic Sphere (aka the giant golf ball) serves as both the main focal point of Epcot and houses one of the park's most popular attractions, Spaceship Earth which takes you on a journey through time from prehistoric man to the dawn of the 21st century and even allows you to create your own virtual future. It's a great attraction if you have small kids, if it's raining or if you just love history.

Other attractions within the Future World include:

Innoventions (sometimes called Innoventions East and West) consists of two separate buildings on either side of the main walkway just past Spaceship Earth. Essentially a science museum, Innoventions is full of virtual reality experiences, robots, interactive games (some that even teach life-saving lessons like how to get out of a burning building) and fun for all ages. If nothing else, it's a great place to avoid unfortunate weather.

Universe of Energy is a 45 minute show starring Ellen DeGeneres with our favorite Science Guy Bill Nye (sing it with us now...B-b-b-b-ill Nye the Science Guy). The show is all about energy and conservation but to be honest, it's not something we do usually. Although we love science, we find the show to be a bit long and more preachy about conservation than we would prefer on vacation (but that's just us).

Mission: SPACE simulates what an astronaut would feel blasting off and traveling to Mars. There are four people to a ship and each one has a job to do on the mission. If you're not good with spinning rides, you may want to skip it but if you're unsure, Disney has two options available...an orange mission for those of us who like to go all out and a green option for a slightly tamer experience. Even the tame experience can be too much for some so it's probably best not to do this one just after eating. If you're not confident you can do the ride at all (or you have little ones) still be sure to check out the post-show area (through the gift shop by the exit...ask a cast member if you need help locating it) where there are four different sections including an area where you can send an e-postcard from space to friends and family at home (or yourself as a keepsake).
*tip: Mission: Space has the highest height restriction of any attraction in Epcot at 44 inches so be sure to measure your kiddos before you go so you'll know ahead of time what they can and cannot do...also check out our Height Restrictions breakdown which has all the height restrictions for all four Disney World Parks

Test Track...currently undergoing a massive refurbishment...stay tuned...the new version of this popular attraction is set to reopen this fall...some speculate it will open on Epcot's official 30th anniversary October 1st. Before it was shut down, Test Track was one of, if not the most popular Epcot attraction. It turned guests into living crash-test-dummies to demonstrate the rigorous testing process for all new prototype vehicles.

The Seas With Nemo & Friends really changed the way many people view Epcot. The pavilion's new (2004) Nemo theme has made the park a favorite among small children that normally might have preferred Magic Kingdom. You enter the home to one of the world's largest saltwater aquariums in a "Clamobile" as you watch stars from Nemo magically appear alongside the live marine life in the 5.7 million gallon water tank. In addition to all the marine life, there's some great play/photo opportunities within the pavilion but easily the most popular attraction is Turtle Talk with Crush where through the magic of technology, children (and their parents) get to talk WITH Crush from Nemo. Crush is both informative and funny interacting with the children who sit in the front of the show while parents are sadly relegated to benches behind them. This is a must do if you have a child of any age who does or ever has enjoyed the movie Nemo...to be honest, it's a must-do for anyone. Even on kid-free trips, we stop to talk with Crush.

The Land Pavilion is a huge (covering six acres) pavilion which houses three attractions, a sit down character meal (Garden Grill-make your reservations EARLY for this one) and a large, food-court-style counter service restaurant (Sunshine Seasons). Whether or not you're on Disney's Dining Plan, it's a good place to take a break and have some food. Soarin' is the most popular Epcot attraction so be sure to go early and get your fast passes for later! It's a one-of-a-kind experience that simulates hang-gliding over California. You smell the oranges as you fly over a grove, you feel the mist of the ocean water as you glide over the coast. It's a breath-taking must-do. The second attraction we always do in the Land Pavilion is the Living With The Land attraction which takes passengers through unique Disney green houses and even an aquaculture facility on a 14-minute boat ride. The automated narration is informative and the lines are usually pretty short. The third attraction in The Land is The Circle of Life widescreen movie about conservation and hosted by characters from The Lion King. 

Imagination! Pavilion is the final pavilion in Epcot's Future World. It houses the classic Journey into Imagination with Figment which is a whimsical, if a bit outdated, journey to understand the human body senses. At the end of the Journey into Imagination ride, you come out at the What If Labs which allow guests to create and play with various sound and light effects. It can be a really fun place for preschoolers to learn about sight and sound but beyond that, it's generally not as popular as some of Epcot's other attractions. The last attraction inside the Imagination! Pavilion is a return of an old attraction that was gone for 16 year. Captain EO is a 17-minute 3D science fiction film starring a vintage Michael Jackson.

Epcot With Kids General Tips

*Check out Club Cool...it's a great place to stop for some easy a/c and free soda...there are 8 different soda options from around the world. If you want to have a little fun, have the kids try the Beverly from Israel.

*Start walking before you even get to the parks. You'll average 10-15 miles a day at Disney World and Epcot tends to be on the long end of the scale.

*Pin trading is super popular in Epcot and kids love it!-just be sure to read our pin trading post so your little ones can trade without costing an arm and a leg

*Don't forget to catch the nightly laser/fireworks show IllumiNations

*Epcot is a particularly great park if it's raining...most of the attractions are indoors but check out our Disney In The Rain post for more rainy day ideas

*Go to the Epcot Character Spot as soon as the park opens! The lines will be short and you'll be able to get all the classic characters' signatures and pictures checked off your to-do list quickly

A New First

Last weekend the boy had a first.

We took him shooting for the first time. 

Yes, he's four. Yes, we took our four year old shooting. 

The fact is my husband and I both enjoy shooting whether it's going to the gun range with friends or out to the farm for target practice. Joshua also enjoys hunting every year but I want to be clear, anything he hunts, we eat and if we don't eat it, we donate it to organizations like Hunters Against Hunger which work to bring hunters and meat processing companies together to distribute food to various charities in our area. 

We have multiple guns in our home (properly stored) and one of the things we want to teach our children is proper gun-ownership. We believe that a major part of proper gun-ownership is knowing not only how to use them but also seeing first hand how dangerous they can be. How is a child supposed to understand the difference between a "real gun" and a "toy gun" when you tell them "only play with toy guns, never a real gun" if they've never seen what a real gun looks like and what it does?

If you disagree, that's cool, you don't have to take your children shooting but please respect our choices as we respect yours.

Anyway, the boy had a GREAT time and if I might have a proud Mommy moment, he was pretty good! He listened patiently as Joshua explained "safety procedures" like always assume the gun is loaded, never walk in front of a gun and be sure to put the safety on when you're not shooting. They're rules we'll repeat a thousand times over the years but this was a great start.

He started with Joshua's old BB gun.

 

And because he listened so well, we went ahead and moved on to Joshua's SKS rifle. Since it was sort of a last minute decision to go, we hadn't bought the boy his own ear muffs yet, so he used my pink ones.

First, he watched Joshua shoot so he could get used to the noise.

Then, he laid next to Joshua as Joshua shot and lastly, Joshua held the rifle as Benjamin pulled the trigger (my camera battery died before I could get those pics). 

He only shot off a few rounds before we needed to go because the sun was going down but I'm proud that he did so well and I'm looking forward to our next trip.