Rite of Passage

We have known for months what the boys will be for Halloween. Quite possibly we have known since last Halloween.

A few years ago when I was pregnant with the boys we went to New York to scope out the area. My nephew Matthew was 2 years old and had a fixation with the movie Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. He would watch this movie over and over and over again. Or he would just watch the musical parts (under the special features menu) and actually try to act out the movie while it was playing. He would grab my brothers shoes from under the couch or use a wooden spoon for a cane and try to do the Wonka stumble when Wonka welcomes the people at the gate. I loved it! I was charmed by this little boy who thrilled me by showing me an idea of life with my own three sons would be like.
Matthew came out to visit us this past May. He still was enthralled by the story of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. When you would ask him his name, he would respond with "Matthew Oompa Loompa" sometimes adding his last name.

After talking about it with Matthew, it occurred to us again to make the boys Oompa Loompas for Halloween. It is a costume that just wouldn't work with just 1 child, but 3 is perfect! There's a vision of a cute little white and brown costume in our heads and that is exactly what they will wear. After many hours of Googling and costume searching, we have come to the conclusion that the "old style" Oompas and Wonka are now extinct due to the recent remake of the movie. Not a problem, it is just a little detour. We will just make the costumes ourselves... my mom and I are handy. She quilts, we made the boys quilts and bumpers, we have sewn many things in the past, we can do this. Halloween is not until the end of the month.

Except we have a Halloween party tomorrow afternoon and it would be soooo nice to have the boys in their little Oompa costumes all cute and striped. We looked high and low for a brown turtleneck and ended up buying a cream ones and a bottle of Dark Brown Rit. Don and I dyed it a few nights ago in a big pot on the stove and have washed it about 10 times since to be sure we got all the dye out. After that was done, my dad went out of town so my mom decided to spend a few couple nights at our house. She and I have been able to squeeze in some sewing time during naps and then we hit it once the kids go down for the night. We have just flown by the seat of our pants, making it up as we go.

Last night at 2 in the morning I was sewing little cuff covers. A thought had occurred to me. Never mind carrying the three of them in my womb for 32 weeks, or changing thousands of diapers, or even all the sleep we missed for one reason or another. Last night while I was hand sewing these little cuffs to their little turtlenecks I felt like I had encountered another rite of passage One where I acknowledged it wasn't just about getting through the day to day things. For the past 3 days Wyatt has been sick, dumping out his little stomach wherever he may be when the urge hits him. They are all down to one nap a day, taking up so much of my energy to keep them busy and not fighting. My computer time has been cut in half in this transition and now I need to get up earlier to get ready before the kids get up, or I may not get dressed until after the kids go down for a nap at 1:30. Last night I made an Italian Market meatloaf (has turkey instead of beef)and after cooking for 50 minutes of the 70, Don had let me know it is still sitting on the stove. I never even put it in the oven even though I did manage to set 2 timers for it, so I would know when to put the sauce on top.

But in the midst of the craziness, or at 2 in the morning, I was just loving that I was actually making our kids halloween costumes. What an amazing rite of passage.