When it comes to costuming my young daughter for Halloween, I am of a decidedly lazy sort:  I am all about the store-bought costume.  Oh, I do a little improvising -- a creative hair style here, glitter there (and admittedly, I am all about the glitter), but other than that, I don't really put myself out.  The result is certainly acceptable enough:

... but clearly not homemade.

I am therefore always in awe of parents who actually go all-out and make their kids' costumes.  Where do they find the creativity?  Or more importantly, the time?  And so this week, I thought we'd take a tour of the parent blogosphere, so you can see the coolness that existed on Halloween night:

Maggie Mason of Mighty Girl and her family went with a seafaring theme -- how cute is Hank, her son, as a little goldfish?  And her costume, as a jellyfish, was just inspired.  Well done.

Katherine Center also went all out with her two children, and her costumes are brilliant.  First, her son, was Fire Man -- and I'm sure he was trick-or-treating in a blaze of glory.  His older sister, naturally, was Water Girl, in a beautiful irridescent blue -- postiively breathtaking.

And finally, the person who clearly holds the title of Queen Costume-Making Parent of the Century, Gabrielle Blair of DesignMom.  Gabby outfitted her five children in all hand-made costumes that I swear are better than their store-bought counterparts could ever be.  Let me rephrase: this woman made five handmade costumes. Check it out.

Well done, my sisters.  Next year, while I probably won't make my daughter's costume, it is entirely likely I'll call on one of you to do it for me.

Karen is a writer and a photographer in Houston, Texas.  You can read and see more of her work at Chookooloonks.