Halloween apparently is a dangerous event to leave to the collective output that is Laurel’s imagination and my problematic sense of proportion.

Laurel repeatedly asked to be a “big yellow grape” this year. And despite a sewing history limited to right angles, I was emboldened by “Project Runway.” If fiendish Laura could design, sew, and bead twelve evening gowns in a couple of months (during her final trimester at that...), a yellow orb shouldn’t be a big deal, right?

Several yards of yellow felt and some very sketchy geometry later, I came up with a rough plan to create two grape halves to be held together with shoulder straps, plus a stem hat.

Given our Halloween experience last year (Laurel refused to put on her costume), I wasn’t expecting much. And while we never actually made it out the door to trick or treat (partially my bad, what with the girth of this beast) Laurel was excited to try on her costume, and then was patient enough to pose for pictures (click thumbnails to enlarge). Even better, while I was stuffing these bad boys I realized that at the very least the grape halves could serve as big, fun cushions. Laurel agreed; the other reason we never made it out the door was because we spent the next hour sitting on the big yellow grape cushions, reading books.