Halloween Fun

One great thing about Halloween in Samoa is no snowsuits over costumes! Emma gets to wear all the warm weather costumes she always dreamed of. This year she dressed up as a cave girl. The main Halloween event on the island is a carnival hosted by the other private school. Paul gave Emma a cave-esque tatoo with Sharpie markers and I ratted her hair and added the sticks she had collected outside. After watching it pour all day, we headed out to the wet and muddy outdoor carnival. We spent a couple hours playing all of the games and Emma ended up winning 1st prize in the costume contest! It was quite exciting and she won a gift basket filled with random stuff from one of the Korean stores.

Last year pumpkins on the island were going for about $5 a pound, but this year Paul and Emma came home with a perfect bargain-priced $5 pumpkin. Maybe it pays to wait until 5:30 pm on Halloween night to buy your pumpkins. Emma did a great job carving her pumpkin, with minimal help from Dad. After her many lessons in the kitchen over the years, I think she now uses a knife better than I do.


As she was very hot with her authentic cave girl hair, Emma went for the more refined look of a bun the second time around. Despite the dogs and busloads of kids descending upon the palagi neighborhoods, we headed out for a bit of trick-or-treating with our friends. Nate was the cutest ninja. He's become my substitute nephew while we live so far away from Brendan and Caleb.