Christmas is coming,

The goose is growing fat

Please to put a penny in an old man's hat

-Nursery Rhyme

Holidays

Children don't know the reasons for some holidays, but they still enjoy any extra treats or adventures which the holiday brings with it

The calendar shows many holidays, but for small children the feeling of the parents or the atmosphere of the neighborhood determines what happens.

From the standpoint of small children, the more holidays celebrated the better.

It's surprising that efforts put forth for the children are equally fun for the adults.

Halloween

Halloween means dressing up-dressing up to go out after dark to ring doorbells and have people put goodies in your sack. It is easy to dress two-year-olds for this occasion. Being uninhibited, they will ring doorbells wearing their everyday clothes and a lampshade on their head. Another disguise is father's old hat and a black mustache.

But when they get older, they want to be something or somebody. If you have a talent with the sewing machine, this is no problem for you. You can run up ballerina and clown costumes for all your children.

Warning: Don't spend too much effort because they often take a notion not to wear your creation.

Here are some costume suggestions for mothers who either have no patience with sewing or very little time or money:

Masks: Let the child decorate a paper bag with crayons or poster paint before you cut the eyes, nose, and mouth. He can paste yarn for hair, mustache, sideburns or beard, or tape pieces of soda straws for whiskers. If he doesn't want to wear his mask, add handles and he can use it for a "trick-or-treat" bag when he goes collecting.

Man from Mars: Cut off or roll up the bottom of a brown-paper bag for the headpiece. Cut an opening in the bag the size of his face. Scotch tape a piece of cellophane over the opening. On a white undershirt, use crayons to make a lightning streak. He can wear shorts or a swimming suit, long black socks or boots.

A Witch: An old black dress can be pinned up or a black blouse will cover most small children. He will need a fireplace broom or child's broom with black and orange crepe-paper streamers attached with a rubber band. The hat can be purchased or made by first making a cone shape from a sheet of black paper, 12" x 18". Add the brim with scotch tape or paste.

A Ghost Put an old pillowcase over the child's head and cut openings in the side for his arms. Cut circles for eyes, nose, and mouth, and outline in black crayon. Tie a ribbon around the neck.

A Skeleton: Same as for ghost, except outline bones with black poster paint or black crayon.

A Pirate: .Tie a red bandana around the child's head. He can wear real earrings or brass curtain rings attached by scotch tape. Tuck his trousers in rubber boots or cowboy boots, or notch a pair of old blue jeans. A rubber knife or cardbord knife held between the teeth is fierce.

A Queen: A crown can be made of cardboard covered with gold or silver paper. Scallop the top of the crown and add sequins or colored stars. An old lace tablecloth or curtain can be draped and pinned. Queens need lots of jewelry.

Nylon stocking over the face: Very spooky. A child will probably not wear it very long, but let him try it out on the family.

A Squaw: Tie a ribbon or piece of sheet around the child's head. Put a feather in the back. Wrap a blanket around her and pin it with a safety pin. Wrap a dolly in a small blanket and pin this on the back of the blanket. Wear bedroom slippers or moccasins.

A Brave: Wear the feather in the middle of the forehead. Decorate the body with war paint from a lipstick or red poster paint Wear shorts and bedroom slippers. If it's a cold day, decorate only the face and cut off one of father's khaki shirts and fringe the bottom of it Do the same with an old pair of the child's trousers. Hang a tom-tom made from an oatmeal carton around his neck so he will have his hands free. (See You Can Make Your Own Music).

Costumes From Sleepers

Black Cat: Dye the sleepers and an old snow cap with black dye. To make the tail, sew a long strip of black material and stuff with newspaper, old nylon stockings, or cotton batting. Attach to back of sleepers. Ears can be made from heavy black paper or cardboard covered with black material and sewed to the cap. An eyebrow pencil, black crayon, or burned cork are all good for making the whiskers on the child's face.

Rabbit: The sleepers do not need to be dyed. Attach a piece of cotton on the back for the tail. The long ears can be cut from cardboard and covered with pink material and attached to a white snow suit cap. Make whiskers with eye brow pencil or ink.

Leopard: The tail and ears are the same as that of the black cat's. Cover sleepers and cap with black and brown circles, making them with either crayons or paint

Advice-If you do not recognize what a child's costume represents, do not ask him what he is.

Jack-O-Lanterns

Most parents cut the top from the pumpkins, let the child scoop the seeds out, and that is his part in making the jack-o-lantern; the parents then proceed to make the face while the child watches.

Jack-o-lanterns don't need to have the conventional look, and they certainly won't if you let your child do the carving. Most kitchens have a paring knife sharp enough to cut pumpkins and dull enough not to cut fingers.

If your child is small or the pumpkins are hard to cut, let him draw the face with a pencil and you can follow the lines he has made.