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09 October 2014

Best Halloween Memory #TBT

Unfortunately I do not have any pictures of my childhood Halloween costumes.. but that doesn't mean I don't have the super awesome memories that went with them.

Despite being right outside of Orlando, my hometown of Winter Park can be quite small sometimes.. I grew up in a really great neighborhood, one filled with old gorgeous homes and some old money families. (mine not being one of them- we had a nice average home on the outskirts of this world).

Halloween was a huge deal to these people, and every year we brought home pillowcases of the best candy you could ask for. There was the large plantation style home on the corner that always handed out full packs of gum. Several houses that gave out king-size bars. An older woman, whom with the help of her aid, gave out goodie bags with hand-baked and decorated treats. My favorite was the dentist and his wife, who was about halfway along the trick-or-treating path, that left their front door open as a pit stop for weary feet and tired parents. It was always a mini-party at their place, filled with people coming and going. They liked to hand out fresh popped popcorn and grape kool-aid.


This was all before people became crazy about candy and strangers. I can only hope to recreate this atmosphere with my children one day. 

I don't have one particular year that stands out in my mind because from Pre-K to probably 7th or 8th grade because it was the same each year, the same friends, houses, and wonderful neighbors that made Halloween a joy to celebrate. People who made Halloween a community event, where we said our hellos, welcomed us into their homes and made it as fun as Halloween should be.

My best costume over the years though- they year I was a sandwich. That's right, a sandwich. Oh boy, do I wish I had a picture for you. Maybe I will find it someday to share with...


Helene in Between


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13 comments:

  1. haha totally hope you find this sandwich picture!!! i'll bet it's cute :)

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  2. Hi Rebekah,


    Saw your post in Sits Girls under the New York thread and decided to check out your blog. This was the first one I saw and I was hooked on reading it because you said you were from Winter Park, FL. I lived there for a brief time between 2005-2008 and I think Winter Park was a wonderful place to live. I used to take my girls trick-or-treating in Baldwin Park, the new development that was being constructed during that time.


    Will definitely be catching up on more of your blog and will be adding you to my blog roll.

    ~L.

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  3. wow they really did it up! now i want some candy....

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  4. Your WP neighborhood sounds like the perfect place for kids to go trick-or-treating! I'm hoping my neighborhood will be just as kid friendly when it's time to take some little ones out :)

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  5. I'm sure it exists in storage somewhere- actually for a really long time we kept the actually costume so that might be around too!

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  6. Hey! Thanks for stopping by, small world! What part of Winter Park did you live in? It is such a great place- I love going back and visiting (and the library is awesome!) I'm sure Baldwin Park is a fantastic area to trick-or-treat in! So many houses, safe streets and walkways. That whole area changed so much from the time I was a child until now. Where do you live these days?

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  7. It was crazy- I swear we had candy in our kitchen for months after Halloween each year.

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  8. It's all what you make it! The adults really made Halloween a treat and night that we could enjoy. I just wish they had banded together to make a haunted house or backyard walk-through. May have to do that with my own kids!

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  9. I believe it was made from foam poster board. Two sides cut out for bread and then large ribbons connecting them that was worn over my shoulders. Then it had a bunch of different toppings sticking out, lettuce, tomato, so on. I helped my mom paint it and everything. Wasn't the easiest thing to walk around in but it was fun!

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  10. We lived off of Aloma and Semoran. The address said Winter Park but we were actually a part of Seminole County when we purchased our home. My mom still lives in Downtown Orlando near Lake Eola.


    When we came back to NY we returned to Sunnyside/Woodside area in Queens because it was what we were most familiar with.

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  11. It was a pretty epic costume- one day I will find pictures and share them..

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