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halloween

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Two sisters go viral for their ridiculously functional roller coaster costume

The screams and synchronized movements really help sell the whole experience.

Sisters go viral for realistic roller coaster costume

Spooky season can be a fun time of year for people. There are folks that wait all year for the official start of fall just to decorate for Halloween. Costumes are bought in advance and bags of candy are purchased and stored, but not everyone buys their costume. Some spooky season lovers get really creative with their Halloween costumes out of household items.

There are some homemade costumes that are so funny and realistic that you have to do a double take. Two sisters are going viral for their ultra realistic roller coaster costume made out of cardboard and foam noodles. But it's not just their costumes that are stealing the attention of millions, it's their acting skills.

In the video uploaded to TikTok by Laurie Dabbs-Gayton, the sisters stand side-by-side, though it looks like their sitting. They begin to shake and jostle as if they're on a track before screaming like they've just rounded a bend or flew down a hill quickly.


The pair is in total sync with each other adding to the realistic vibe of their costume for their employer's costume party. It was so convincing that people watching the video were confused at first thinking it was a coin operated ride. Commenters didn't realize it was a costume until the women stood up fully.

"I thought it was a mini roller coaster," one person writes followed by multiple rolling crying laughing emojis.

"Took my brain a few extra seconds to process what my eyes were seeing," a commenter says.

"I thought for a second it was like the pony ride machines outside a grocery store," someone admits.

"It took me far longer to figure out than it should have," one woman writes.

Watch the fantastic combination of acting skill and costume design below:

This article originally appeared on 10.31.23

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We asked the Upworthy community if trick-or-treating should have an age limit

Should Halloween trick-or-treating have an age limit?

Some seem to think so, arguing that anyone past the age of thirteen has less sincere joy for the holiday, and merely uses trick-or-treating as a candy grabbing “scam”…thus potentially ruining the experience for the littles.

Certain cities have even implemented laws to enforce an age cut-off somewhere between 12-16-years-old, depending on the location. Punishment for breaking these rules vary, but in Chesapeake, Virginia it included up to six months of jail time up until 2019.

And yet, when we asked the Upworthy community this question, there was a very different answer.

Seemingly across the board, after scouring through thousands of comments, the resounding opinion was that Halloween was for all ages.

“I think trick or treating could be a lifelong adventure.”

“There is no age cut off. It’s so wonderful to see community out interacting no matter what your age!”

“Anyone who comes to my door on Halloween saying trick or treat can have a treat. Adults supervising young children, teens who chose to do something wholesome over doing something destructive, special needs adults whose mind is younger than their body, etc. If a Snickers or a pencil decorated with black cats will make someone happy, let’s do it.”

“I think if people are trick or treating and staying out of trouble who cares how old they are.”

“A kid that is older that is trick-or-treating means that they are enjoying their innocence and not off doing something bad, wrong or illegal. Let them enjoy the little things while they can:)”

And it’s not just our readers who feel this way. According to a 2021 YouGov survey, about one in four Americans agree that children can never be too old to go trick-or-treating.

Even experts share the opinion that there is no real harm in letting older children, teens, college kids, etc., participate in going door-to-door, so long as they are respectful.

And to that end, a few suggestions. Lizzie Post, co-president at the etiquette blog Emily Post Institute, recommends that big kids make little kids the “priority,” noting that they might want to steer clear of costumes that would seem too scary or uncomfortable for small kids, saying please and thank you while taking candy (be the example!) and generally leaning into the more friendly side of Halloween, rather than the ghoulish one. (TIME)

via GIPHY

Bottom line: If dressing up and asking for candy helps someone hold onto a bit of that elusive magic for just a little while longer, why not let them, so long as they are being kind?

Childhood goes by too fast—one minute you’re a toddler and the world is big and exciting and the next you’re thrust into the mundane throes of adulthood. But that inner kid never really goes away. And maybe, just maybe, seeing another big kid out and about on All Hallows Eve offers a gentle reminder to let ours free once in a while. Yes, even now.

Two kids going trick-or-treating on Halloween.

Christmas and Chanukah may be known as holidays that are part of the season of giving, but let’s not forget that one of the greatest joys of Halloween is handing out candy to neighborhood children.

Well, a guy on Reddit could be the perfect candidate for the Scrooge of Halloween because he has a real problem with children from disadvantaged neighborhoods trick-or-treating in his “affluent” suburb.

Seriously, who gets mad about kids trick-or-treating on Halloween?

The aggrieved man shared his story on the AITA page, asking if he was in the wrong for being hostile towards the trick-or-treaters that come to his neighborhood every year.

“For the past few years, the neighbors and I have seen a growing amount of people come to our neighborhood for Halloween. This has caused a lot of people to ‘turn off’ for Halloween, which you'd think would get the crowd to lessen but it keeps growing,” he wrote.


“I was openly annoyed with this leading up to Halloween, and my girlfriend would condemn it every time I brought it up because ‘Halloween's all about sharing,’ saying it shouldn't matter whether the kids are from the neighborhood or not,” he continued.

halloween, trick or treat, costumes

Kids trick-or-treating.

via Yuting Gao/Pexels

The girlfriend also noted that kids who come to their neighborhood may be unable to trick-or-treat where they live because it’s too dangerous. “Not surprisingly, this year at both entrances to the neighborhood, cars line the streets.. some with out-of-state plates (I live in a suburb of a city which is just over the state line.),” he continued.

When asked if he was wrong for “getting annoyed with parents who truck carloads full of kids to a neighborhood they don't live,” the commenters overwhelmingly agreed he was. The most popular comment was simple and devastating. "Yep, and sorry about your privilege," one commenter wrote.

Another popular commenter went to great lengths to describe why he was wrong.

“You are not required to hand out candy. You are not required to hand out more candy than you are willing to buy. If you don't feel like participating or when you are out of candy, you can hang a sign and turn off your porch light and go on with your night,” Spectrum2081 wrote.

halloween, trick-or-treat, costimers

Kids go trick-or-treating on HAlloween.

via Yaroslav Shuraev/Pexels

“However, when you start picking which kids are worthy of your Halloween treats, you are indeed an a**hole,” they continued. “Imagine being a kid, dressing up, knocking on a door on Halloween and saying, trick-or-treat to someone visibly annoyed by your presence. Imagine it is because of something like the color of your skin or because you are overweight. That would feel pretty bad. Now imagine it's because you are too poor.”

Another person noted that it’s much more difficult to trick-or-treat in an urban setting.

"Most of these families likely live in neighborhoods that are predominantly apartment buildings and businesses with few single family dwellings. This means that the ratio of homes handing out candy vs buildings in general is low. Secondly, these kids are not less deserving of the candy from your neighborhood than children who have parents in a higher income bracket. The fact that you seem to think they are hints at a bias that you probably haven’t examined too closely but probably should," SleepUntilTomorrow wrote.

However, a few people thought he could be right.

"I know this is the unpopular opinion," Glatog wrote. "But when it is just a handful of kids extra it isn't a big deal, and I'm sure you'd have no problem. But there is a neighborhood here that gets thousands of extra kids. That's a little absurd. Not all of those kids live in apartments or bad neighborhoods. The sense of entitlement is wrong."

It’s a little unnerving to think there are people of means who scoff at giving candy to kids from underprivileged neighborhoods. But it’s encouraging to see everyone step up and say that giving is a big part of the Halloween season, and it’s not a child’s fault if they live in a neighborhood where they can’t trick-or-treat.

The great thing about holidays is that, when celebrated correctly, they are a wonderful way to bring people together. The spirit of Halloween may be a celebration of spookiness, but at its heart, it’s the joy of seeing kids proudly filling their pillowcases with candy and toys given to them by people they hardly know. Adults should love that wonderful glint of mischief a child gets in their eyes while being out on a spooky night regardless of their parents’ tax bracket.

Lily wanted to get a gift for her baby sister, Violet.

There are few things more comforting than seeing a baby with their comfort object—a blankie, a stuffed animal or a favorite toy. Or, in the case of Baby Violet, a creepy demon doll that looks baby Shrek possessed by Beelzebub.

TikTok creator Brittany Christiana (@brittikitty) shared a video of her older daughter Lily in a Halloween store, holding the demon baby and asking if she could get it for "Baby Violet." Her mom doesn't even hesitate, responding, "Of course!"

Then we get a closer-up look at the creature, and phew, it's really something to behold. Not only is it demonic-looking but it's huge—about the size of Baby Violet herself.


If you're wondering if such a gift might be met with fearful tears or at least some slight hesitancy, nope. Watch how Baby Violet reacts when she's handed the demon child:

@brittikitty

Lily is so thoughtful 😂😂

Adorable, right? People in the comments loved her joyful reaction.

“It’s like the Addams Family 😂,” wrote one commenter.

“They’re definitely gonna have the best spooky costumes growing up,” wrote another.

Followers already knew of Lily’s love for Halloween, and seeing Violet share her sister’s joy was a relief. A big sister who loves horror combined with a little sister who hates it could create some problematic childhood memories.

Some people shared their or their kids' comfort items that others would find unusual (or terrifying).

"When I was like 5 I had this rubber sewer rat from Halloween and I kept it and slept with it til I was 10 and then my mom hid it from me," shared one person.

"My daughter's favorite toy is an old Halloween skeleton she calls "guy." Over time, he has lost his limbs so now guy is just a skull and torso," shared another.

Lily and Violet's love for the demon baby is reminiscent of Creepy Chloe, the Halloween doll that won 3-year-old Briar's heart at the Spirit Halloween store. Briar loved Chloe so much she took her everywhere and even had a photoshoot done with her at Disneyland.

You just never know what kids are going to love or hate. One thing's for sure, though—no scary monster stands a chance against Lily and Violet.