"This is our kickoff. We just started doing this. I've been promising them all week," Nancy Mendoza said.

A kickoff to Halloween shopping for the Mendoza family of Rockford. And so far, that perfect costume is up for grabs.

"Mario or something scary," Manuel Mendoza said.

The store offered some white gloves that could work with Mario.
But there's still more searching before a final call.

"We're still looking for mustache and the hat," Manuel Mendoza said.

Similar indecision faces Patrick Dolan of Byron, out shopping with his family Wednesday night.

"A doctor or a buccaneer. I can't choose," Dolan said.

Whether you're the guy from Scream or a news reporter, there's one thing for certain around here, a lot of Halloween shopping.

"With the purchasing that people have been doing, I haven't really noticed a big recession in people's pockets in terms of spending for Halloween," Spirit of Halloween Manager Joseph Oppe said.

Oppe says Halloween falling on a weekend helps. So far, the big buys aren't the costumes yet. But decorations for the house.

"Real big ones right now are a lot of the fencing. The foggers have been really big and the Michael Myers," Oppe said.

The Halloween movie icon comes armed with frightening music,
hoping to "scare up" shoppers this holiday season.

The store manager also says he's seeing lots of families stopping by to shop. And overall he says sales are 100 percent more than what he expected so far this year.