I can't stop laughing to myself as I watch our two year old twins, Theo and Sienna, toddling down the street in their Halloween costume. I always knew the holidays would be great as a family when we found out you were pregnant, but watching Theo and Sienna dressed up as Slinky from Toy Story is just brilliant. Theo in front with the ears on his hat flopping as he walks, Sienna at the back and the little tail wiggling as she follows.
We've had a few near misses with them being connected by the slinky. Sienna ran clumisly when she saw my mum approaching, pulling Theo backwards off his feet, he landed on his butt with a loud 'oof!'. Sienna tripped over her own feet and Theo continued to walk, thankfully you managed to pick her up and help her back onto her feet before he dragged her along or fell backwards.
It's all good, no bumps or bruises so far.
Their little pumpkin buckets are steadily filling with sweets as we go house to house in Holmes Chapel. The same houses I'd gone trick-or-treating around when I was a kid, like some kind of full circle moment.
My mum and sister came out with us, both eager to see the twins on their first proper Halloween, since last year on Halloween I'd been preforming in Sheffield. So it's nice to do a 'normal' family thing without all of the noise and chaos of performing day after day.
We've circled around the streets back towards my mum's house, a few houses left and enough sweets to last the twins til Christmas.
I stand back, watching as my mum helps Theo knock on the door, my arm draped over your shoulder. They look cute as hell standing there with their little buckets and big smiles as they shout 'trick or treat!' I look over your shoulder as you snap a photo of the two of them beaming as they show my mum all of their sweets.
God, they're so cute.
"We're doing a pretty good job, aren't we?" I say, pressing a kiss to the side of your head.
Sienna and Theo come running back down the path towards us. "Look at all the treats!"
As we move on to the next house, there's a group of older kids in Teletubby costumes. Sienna and Theo get distracted, crossing paths, toddling forwards, backwards. It isn't until you stumble a little and grab my arm to steady yourself I realise. They've tangled around you.
"Oh, okay, let's stop a minute," you laugh, trying to get their attention as they keep walking, the slinky caught round your legs, "mummy's a bit stuck."
Neither of them notice because, well, they're two and distracted by a group of Teletubbies, probably thinking the cartoon they watch in the morning has come to life.
I laugh as I spring into action, picking up Theo and moving him to the other side of you to untangle them, but I think I've made it worse.
"No, Harry!" You giggle, the slinky somehow even more tangled, criss crossed and wrapped around your legs.
Sienna and Theo thing it's hilarious, tiny giggles mixing with ours. When I pick up one twin to move them, the other thinks it's a game and runs away to tangle you even more. The carefully constructed slinky now stretched out and tangled to hell around the two of us.