I was staring at the empty Halloween costume aisle at Target, fighting back tears because everything decent was either sold out or sixty dollars, when my eight-year-old daughter looked up at me and said “Mom, maybe we could just make something?”
It’s been three months since the divorce was finalized, and I’m still learning how to stretch every dollar. Halloween used to be Jeremy’s thing – he’d take Sophie to the fancy costume store downtown and let her pick whatever she wanted. This year it’s just me, a twenty-dollar budget, and no clue how to be the crafty mom.
Sophie wanted to be a rain cloud, which seemed impossible until I remembered some polyester batting from an old project. We found a yellow raincoat at Goodwill for eight dollars, grabbed blue felt and ribbon at the dollar store. Total cost: twelve dollars.
That night we spread everything on the kitchen table. Sophie helped me glue batting to an old party hat while I cut raindrops from felt. She was so focused, and I realized this was the first time since the separation that we’d worked together without her asking when Daddy was coming home.
When I posted the finished costume in a parenting group on the Tedooo app, asking if it looked okay, dozens of moms shared their own budget ideas. Three people actually asked if I’d make costumes for their kids – apparently there’s a whole market for handmade Halloween stuff there. I ended up selling two more cloud costumes that week.
On Halloween night, Sophie beamed as neighbors complimented her “creative” costume. She kept telling everyone “My mom made it!” with such pride that I almost cried.
Sometimes the best things happen when you can’t afford to buy your way out. Jeremy can keep his credit cards – we’ve got imagination.
Credit – original owner ( respect 🫡)