Costume planning for Halloween usually began in September for my family. It was an unspoken rule that all costumes would be made from scratch, so they required a fair bit of forethought, lots of materials, and time to assemble. I decided what I wanted to be and Dad would figure out a way to transform me using cardboard, paint, fabric, and random household props. The result was a spectacular array of strange homemade costumes.

Read More: 50 Quick and Simple Do-It-Yourself Halloween Costumes

The best was the Knight in Shining Armour. Using varying sizes of sono tubes (the cylindrical cardboard molds used for pouring concrete footings), Dad made a set of hinged armour that fit my torso, legs, and arms. We painted it silver. I had a wooden sword, a cardboard shield, and a helmet with a movable visor. That year I won the prize for Best Costume at the local Halloween party. Over the years, our family costumes have included a paintbrush, a carrot with a leafy top, a sunflower, a

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Here's the thing about Halloween candy: At 80 calories apiece, a fun size peanut-packed bar is a perfectly innocent treat. But the trick, at least for me and most people I know, is to stick with just one bar. With all the candy lying around, it's so tempting-and all too easy-to swallow hundreds of extra calories over the course of the night, not to mention the days that follow. So in order to avoid weeks of candy binges and sugar comas, here are a few healthier ideas for Halloween giveaways that will leave your kids happy and your waistline intact (that is, if they're willing to share).

1. Wonderful Pistachios "Frankenweenie": Packed in Halloween-themed individual bags, pistachios are delicious, fun to eat, and loaded with antioxidants and healthy fats. "Frankenweenie" bags can be found in Walmart stores nationwide.

Related: Tricks for Eating Halloween Treats without Gaining Weight

2. Angie's Authentic Kettle Corn: Popcorn is a surprising source of whole grains. Each 70

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By GalTime.com Sr Editor Jessica Ashley

In the eight years I've been outfitting my son as a Star Wars character, furry animal or superhero, this is the first Halloween I've had to put a cap on spending for the costume.

Crazy enough, the cap was placed on the wig he decided was THE MOST IMPORTANT PART of the costume. I'd already spent $40 on the bodysuit strangess/hilarity, which is not far off from the $30 Batman suit with sculpted muscles from a few years ago, the $35 Clone Trooper after that and the $27 construction worker in late toddlerhood. It is slightly less than the $60 Jack Sparrow spree of last Halloween -- damn you, makers of pre-fab costumes with enticing, awesome accessories not included.

With the wig, my kid's second-grade costume tallied $56. If he wants any other accessories, he's going to have to dig them out of the thousand-dollar costume box in his closet.

Related: 12 Hottest Kid's Costumes for 2012

That's how my brother and I put togethe

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Confession: I don't love the gory parts of Halloween. So I'm always on the lookout for decorations that will feel festive and spooky, without grossing me out. I veer toward natural materials and pretty compositions. And Halloween is just a day away, it's not too late decorate! Click through these slides for more ideas that fit your last-minute lifestyle. - By Gabrielle Blair

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For the first time in 39 years, New York City's massive Greenwich Village Halloween Parade has been cancelled, thanks to Hurricane Sandy. And now, some parents are wondering whether their communities will be able to hold Halloween at all.

Related: After Hurricane Sandy, what's it like in your neighborhood right now?

Even with the parade's marshals stranded in Brooklyn, the floats warehoused in New Jersey, and bridges and tunnels closed, the parade's artistic and producing director Jeanne Fleming told Yahoo! Shine that she was hoping the parade would go on.

Related: Does Halloween belong in school? One district says no

"We were the first major event in the city after 9/11," Fleming pointed out. "The parade is led by the dancing skeletons. What they tell us is is that in the face of death, in the face of destruction, in the face of trial, you have to know you're alive, so you have to dance. So our mission is, in the same sort of way, to show that no matter what happens to us we keep on

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