Woman concocts a special Halloween

Tracy Anderson knows how to throw a party.

And although Halloween isn't normally the time of year she pulls out all the hostessing stops, this year she made an exception to show local high school foreign exchange students how Americans celebrate Oct. 31.

Anderson, 39, and her family are hosting Mexican foreign exchange student Kathya Gamboa this year and other Flathead Valley families are hosting five other students from Mexico, Germany and Brazil.

Some of the students celebrate Halloween in their home countries, but they tend to take a more low-key approach to the holiday, Anderson said. Gamboa said that in Mexico, people typically restrict Halloween to trick-or-treating and costumes for young children only.

But Halloween is a time for people of all ages to get back to that sense of fun and excitement that children have, Anderson said.

"It brings the kid out in you," she said.

To fully indulge that urge, Anderson threw a Halloween bash Saturday night for the exchange students and other friends and family.

Anderson recruited friends and family to help prepare her 110-year-old farmhouse on Three Mile Drive in Kalispell.

Outside, numerous scarecrows and a graveyard greeted the 50-plus guests who showed up for the bash. Anderson and her family also carved about 15 jack o' lanterns, which was fun for Gamboa, who showed her mother the gourds via a Web cam.

"She was excited because in Mexico, with the weather so hot, we don't have pumpkins," Gamboa said.

Inside the house, sheets covered the furniture to give the house an old, abandoned feel and candles flickered eerily over various spooky scenes, such as bats and spider webs. Anderson also gave up dusting for a few weeks so that the house was covered in a thin film.

"It's authentic," she said of the dust.

Anderson is all for outlandish decorations, but she wasn't interested in spending lots of money to spook up the house.

"We pulled out 18 years of Halloween decorations," she said.

Anderson, a self-confessed yard sale-and-auction junkie, says she recycled many items and bought few things other than some spider webbing.

Anderson, who works at Posh 125 salon, even made use of an old mannequin head that is used to practice cutting hair. She took the head and "drowned" it in her old-fashioned bathtub.

She recruited friends and family to help with the decorations; her husband, Devon, even built a coffin.

Anderson said dressing up the house this year was fun because she was able to be creative, and a bit creepy, with the decor since most of the party guests were 15 or older. At past Halloweens, she has gone easy on the scare factor so she didn't traumatize younger children.

"We didn't want them to have to have counseling afterward," she joked.

As for costumes, Anderson had plenty of items on hand to dress up her family and Gamboa. Anderson's 15-year-old daughter, Alicia Hansen, went as a rodeo clown and Gamboa dressed up as a witch. Devon Anderson opted for pirate's garb.

Anderson used old clothes and a hat to create the costume of the pigeon lady from the "Home Alone" movie series. Ever attentive to details, Anderson perfected making pigeon droppings out of a concoction of whipped toothpaste dressed with a bit of spicy mustard, complete with the seeds.

She admits the party took a lot of planning.

"It's kind of like a wedding," she said. "You do all this work, then it's over in three minutes."

But for Anderson, elaborate parties are the norm, her daughter said. Her mom likes to go all out, but that makes the parties more fun, Hansen said.

Anderson and her family often throw parties, such as their annual ice skating party as well as big summer parties. Anderson said she thought Gamboa was surprised when they started planning for the party several weeks ago.

"She probably thinks we go overboard," Anderson said.

Gamboa admitted she was a little overwhelmed, but she said seeing a large-scale American Halloween party has been a fun way to experience the culture.

"It's cool," she said. "It's awesome because in Mexico we never have big parties like this."

Reporter Camden Easterling can be reached at 758-4429 or by e-mail at ceasterling@dailyinterlake.com