Happy Halloween...Vintage Austin Style, with a Preece Twist

It started many years ago with a mad doctor. My dad. As a radiologist in a small town, he had access to all sorts of macabre items: full-size skeleton, skull, straight jackets, weird medical devices, etc. Perfect accessories for a freakishly fun Halloween spook house. So the tradition started with my older siblings where they would create a haunted show for the trick-or-treaters; the goal being to have some poor Cinderella or Spiderman cry in fear.

Through the years we had ghosts dancing in the window, a seance where our exchange student "arose" through the leaf of our dining room table, an insane asylum, and a birthday party for the Grim Reaper, to name a few. My kiddos have heard the stories for years, and this year Carter wanted to carry on the tradition. So after an hour of early trick-or-treating, we returned home to host our own trick-or-treaters to a spooky surprise. (Didn't get good pics of us the night before, so we posed in front of the "set" the next morning, sans costumes.)

The Actors:
Grave Digger (Carter)
Mad Doctor (Mike...totally type-cast:)
Catherine Von Sweet (Cate)
Catherine Von Sweet's Spirit (Sammie)
Grieving Mother of Catherine (Jennie)
Lion downstairs in the basement playing with our friends (Sofie)

The Setting:
The Grave Digger has  just finished digging the grave of Catherine Von Sweet. He is outside to greet the trick-or-treaters. Inside, the coffin is waiting to be interred while mother weeps over the dead body. A bloody bandage is wrapped around the corpse's belly. (I made the best fake blood earlier that day; even Mike was impressed.)

Grave Digger: I see you have come to visit the grave of Catherine Von Sweet. She died today from eating all of the Halloween candy. Come in and pay your respects.

(Spooky organ music and wailing of mother)
Mad Doc: Come in, Come in! Come see the body of poor Catherine Von Sweet. I see you heard about her poor fate...eating all the candy. We wanted to have some candy to give you, so I cut open her stomach and brought some for you, along with a few other things I found...

(Doc shows a bowl full of intestines-linked sausage, liver or something-lamb leg, veins, etc.-spaghetti, and some candy.Picture shows more spaghetti than other good stuff:()

Do you want some?

Grieving Mother: AHHHHHHH! (Good hearty scream:) Her spirit! I know Catherine is near! I can feel her presence!

Catherine Von Sweet's Spirit (appears descending the stairs, all in white carrying a bowl of candy, with a black light on her): I heard someone wanted some candy.

All the kiddos get candy, some check to see if Catherine is really dead (tickles, questions, etc.), and all have a merry Halloween. Had a bunch of friends come...a classic, hilarious night. Cate did say she was bored (tough being dead for 45 minutes), and Carter was a fabulous haunted tour guide out front, apparently keeping to "groups of seven, please." I love my family. Happy Halloween!!! (Insert scary music and loud scream.)

Close Curtain.

And I can't forget Sofie, the lion...ROAR!