10 Years of Lanker Family Punny Halloween Costumes
10 Years. Our family has been dressing up in punny Halloween costumes for 10 years now.
I think that means we’re either complete nerds who find Dad jokes pun-tastic OR we’re just SUPER committed to annual traditions.
I’ve said many times, “We at least need to make it to a decade.” Which we just did! But truthfully, I don’t think we’ll ever stop. We’re having too much PUN!
10 YEARS in 30 SECONDS
Let’s kick things off with the CliffsNotes version of our punny history… a 30 second primer of all 10 years of Lanker family punny costumes. (Don’t worry, we’ll go through each one in the post below.)
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A Walk Down Punny Lane
And now, for those who enjoy a more leisurely pace, won’t you join me for a walk down punny lane as we look back on our Lanker family punny Halloween costume history? Maybe you’ll even find some pun-spiration for your own family costumes this year!
We’ll travel back in time to a time B.C. (before children), to our first fall in Orlando and my first year of blogging, when I decided to Google “Last Minute Halloween Costumes” and came across an idea that changed the course of our Halloweens forever….
10 Years of Punny Halloween Costume History
Cue the Wayne’s World sound effect as we wind the clocks back a decade:
Doodly-doo, doodly-doo, doodly-doo.
2012: The Black Eyed Ps
First, there were The Black Eyed Ps. They may not have given out much candy that year because apparently they lived in a neighborhood without candy-loving children, but it was still a WIN because this costume marked the first in a long line of annual punny Halloween costumes. “Tradition…tradition!” (Name that musical.)
Lauren shared the costume on her new blog, and it quickly became one of her most popular posts. Maybe there were more pun-lovers out there just like her and her fellow P….
Click HERE to check out the post on “The Black-Eyed Ps.”
2013: When Life Gives You Lemons & Blessing in Disguise
Then came along When Life Gives You Lemons…
And his friend, Blessing in Disguise.
They eluded party guests with their clever, clever puns.
Is it possible to be TOO clever? What a silly question. Part of the fun of puns is that long, awkward pause and head-scratch as folk try to figure out what in the world you are dressed up as. The Lankers live for that long, awkward pause. Bring it on!
Click HERE to check out the post on “When Life Gives You Lemons” & “Blessing in Disguise.”
2014: #Hashtag
Next came along two feisty hash browns playing tag…cough…in other words, HASHTAG!
And this costume was such a hit, it landed them in the #1 spot on this round-up that seemed to show up in every single one of their Facebook friends’ home feeds.
‘Twas their internet claim to fame! (Or infamy, more like it.)
Click HERE to check out the post on “#Hashtags.”
2015: The Second Amendment & Copy-Cat
Though these two cheeseballs were running out of ideas (and time!), ’twas nothing a trip to the dollar store and Party City couldn’t cure!
Allow me to introduce you to The Second Amendment (a.k.a. The Right to Bear Arms)…
…and his sidekick, Copy-Cat. “Are you kitten me right meow?”
Click HERE to check out the post on “The 2nd Amendment: The Right to Bear Arms” & “Copy-Cat.”
2016: Ice Ice Baby
Just when they thought their tradition might be coming to a close, a new pun-ster came along to shake things up.
They were now a family of 3! And they couldn’t miss the opportunity to try their first punny costume as a trio.
So, they did. And it’s just as pun-tastic as you might imagine.
Presenting, “Ice Ice Baby.” It doesn’t get more literal than this, folks.
And now Vanilla Ice’s classic hit is probably stuck in your head. (You’re welcome.)
Check out that hip hop style grimace Juniper is rockin’ there.
Click HERE to check out the post on “Ice Ice Baby.”
2017: Stranger Things & Eleven
Just when the Lankers thought that perhaps they had exhausted every idea under the pun–err, I mean, sun–they were struck with some inspiration from one of their favorite Netflix series, “Stranger Things”…with a dash of Dr. Seuss for pun.
Introducing, the Eggo-loving “Eleven” and her “Stranger Things.”
If there’s something strange in your neighborhood…it’s probably The Lanker Family.
Click HERE to check out the post on “Stranger Things” and “Eleven.”
2018: Disney-Themed Puns!
When Juniper turned two and fell in love with all things Disney, the Lankers’ punny Halloween costumes followed in suit.
Presenting…“Prince CHARM-ing,”…
Taco-bout some DIY intensive costumes…but they were so worth it!
Click HERE to check out the post on Disney-Themed Family Costumes.
2019: Dr. Pepper & Hawaiian Punch
The next year, a new little Lanker joined the punny bunch, and she was the pun-spiration behind this year’s costumes…with her adorable, spicy name: Pepper.
World, meet Dr. Pepper. Aren’t they soda-mazing?
And this second dynamic duo puts the “PUN” in Hawaiian Punch! {Yuk yuk.}
That was the Halloween they stayed plenty hydrated, drinking lots of yummy Dr. Pepper and Hawaiian Punch. 5 months old isn’t too young to start introducing soda, right? Kidding…sort of.
Click HERE to check out the post on these Dynamic Duos!
2020: HamilPUNS
When the entire world became “Helpless” for Hamilton after it hit Disney+ the summer of 2020, the Lanker family knew they were “Not Throwing Away (Their) Shot” at dressing up in punny costumes inspired by Lin Manuel Miranda’s ground-breaking Broadway musical, Hamilton.
Or as they like to say, Hamil-PUNS! And they added a punny animal-twist to the colonial characters!
Give it up for Alexander Camelton–here to help us get over the hump that was 2020 with the hilarious visual of his little legs riding that blow-up camel. This costume will “Blow Us All Away.”
Next, we had the Lanker family feline (or rather, the puppet understudy) in the role of “Aaron Purr, Sir.” Un-BURR-lievably cute!
“We’re lookin’ for some punny minds at work!” Presenting the Schuyler Sisters: Angelicat, Owliza, and Piggy.
“Look around, look around, how lucky we are to be able to make these puns right now!”
In fact, the source material of Hamilton was so epic, the Lankers went beyond their typical family photo shoot to film four–you read that right–four parody music videos. Talk about a Hamil-TON of PUNS!
Click HERE to check out the HamilPUNS post and watch all four parody videos!
“May your love of Dad jokes always be satisfied.”
2022: CHRISTMAS SONG PUNS
Since it’s the most PUN-derful time of the year for us Lankers, we thought we’d BRANCH out and incorporate some Christmas song puns into our Halloween costumes for 2022.
We have Christmas spirit from our head to our MISTLETOES!
Ready to get some Christmas songs stuck in your heads?
Here’s Pepper as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed RAIN Deer,” red umbrella, galoshes, and all! Oh DEER me, the cuteness is almost too much.
And here’s Juniper… one of four birds on cell phones. Could that be “Four Calling Birds“? We QUACK ourselves up with these imPECKable puns!
And here I am as “The 1st No L.” It would have been a catasTROPHY to miss this punny opportunity!
And last, but not least, Mark dressed up as my favorite Christmas song… “Silent Knight!” He’s lookin’ quite SHARP for a MIDDLE-AGED man, ha ha.
Click HERE to check out the post on our Christmas song puns!
Pun-Lovers Unite!
Well there you have it, friends: 10 years of Lanker family punny Halloween costume history!
For over a decade now, we’ve made it our own personal mission to infuse your Octobers with lots of joy, laughter, and a heavy-dose of silliness.
If you love puns as much as we do, you’re definitely a Thinking Closet kindred spirit. So, be sure to click HERE or use the sign-up box below to join The Thinking Closet newsletter. I send out monthly-ish virtual coffee dates to your inbox full of encouragement and creative inspiration. Also, you’ll be sure to be the first to know when next year’s costumes drop!
Speaking of… any ideas for next year? Drop ’em in the comments, so we can start prepping for the Pun Fest now!
Have a pun-derful rest of your October, m’kay?
Where to next?
If you’re as keen on the punny Halloween costume genre as we are, I have 100 punny costume ideas I’ve curated from around the interwebs to help inspire you. A lot of ’em are great for last minute. And are guaranteed to garner some groans and chuckles this Halloween! You can access them all in THIS post. (Scroll down.)
And here’s a pin-able image for my Pinterest pals:
What can I say? Puns: it’s how eye roll. {Yuk yuk.}
