TadadadadadadDAH....

BUZZ BAT!!!!!!!!

Initially SS requested to be Iron Man, but P and I immediately nixed the idea. First, she has not even seen the darn movie, and second, too violent a character for our taste. Besides, that was two months before Halloween, and there is no way a four year old would stick to her guns that long. Well, sorta, after stomping her feet and trying emotional blackmail on the weakest parent (P), SS realized we were not budging. OK, no iron Man, then she toyed with the idea of being a fireman. She was emphatic though, fireMAN, not fireWOMAN. She would not even accept the neutral firefighter. We both could live with that as they wear the same uniform regardless of gender. But that choice lasted all of an hour, I guess SS was not feeling it. Quickly after she settled on Batman, although we suspect it was between that and Green Lantern.

Here is where it gets interesting. When I started looking for costumes I was think Ad@m West Batman, because I was born in the age of the dinosaurs. It wasn't until the third store that the classic Batman vs. New Batman issue came up. I preferred the less menacing original version, but I was not the one wearing the costume. When I asked SS she was very sure "Mama, I want to be Batman the Dark Prince or the Dark Night." except that I could not find a dark prince costume in SS's size, the original version was in toddler size, the black version medium (8-10). UGH! And SS would not accept any other options.

I came home frustrated and empty handed. Then after a full day of work, P came to the rescue and retraced my steps hoping to find the one Dark Prince costume that would fit his petite bat without success. P e-mailed me a picture of the Batgirl outfit that I had already tried to sell to SS without success. True to form, our Baba's girl liked the idea when it was Baba's suggestion. Huh? WTF? Well beggars can't be choosers, so I ran with the idea, even though it stung. Yeah, I'm petty that way. But SS still had the last word. So what is the key to get your Batman hell bent four year old daughter sold on a less desirable Batgirl costume? You still call it a Batman costume, and she would not accept otherwise. She does make a freakishly cute bat, no matter the gender. And I talked her out of the Buzz Bat she was sporting in the above picture. She was serious about it.

The Bat has arrived.

Love her "super hero" hands on waist pose.

We took turns making sure her "boots" remained up.

SS loves being line leader (and lunch helper).

Senior class picture. SS's tenure in the Junior room was so short that she never had a chance to be part of a group picture.

With Ms. T, SS's greatest fan at school. She drops whatever she is doing as soon as SS walks in, and they spend free time drawing and doing crafts. Ms. T had been trying to convince SS to choose "something girly" for Halloween. She was very pleased when she saw SS. Why do we place so much importance on gender roles?

We took our bat out for Japanese for lunch. SS, as usual, is mastering a skill in her own way. Her chopstick technique is different, but gets the job done.

P planned the dreaded Mall trip to perfection. We had planned to return to Chico, but even though P took the day off (it is the most important day of the year) he did not feel like driving two hours. Our last experience at the Mall was terrible, a mass of people pressed way too close together. We arrived early and left just when it started to get too crowded for our taste. SS was getting candy by the handful, very rarely was she given just one piece of candy. She also received a lot of compliments on her costume, much to her delight. We were chuckling at the squeals from adults, because really, it's just a little girl in a store bought costume. I told P we should skip the costume next year and put a paper bag over her. Then we'll be hearing how she is the cutest paper bag evah.

SS's pumpkin was heavy, but greed is a powerful motivator and she would not allow us to help. When I finally held it while P buckled SS up I was surprised that she was able to carry the darn thing for so long. Stubborn little bat.








I was behind the door making sure each child "fished" one piece of candy. That is the baby room, where they had 5 kids under 2 years old, and it was quite a task to keep them off my lap and out of the candy bowl.