Stamford Skeleton Display Brings Joy To Family, Neighborhood

STAMFORD, CT — Erin Dummeyer takes her daughter for a walk around her Springdale neighborhood at 7 a.m. each day because she knows the skeletons in her yard will change positions when she returns home.

No, it's not because of any type of spooky Halloween magic but rather because her husband, Mike Dummeyer, loves to make his family smile.

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"It's really been his brainchild every morning," Dummeyer said. "I like when [the skeletons] look really creepy, like when they're creeping out from behind our wall."

The skeletons, of course, are plastic. In fact, they were a birthday gift Erin specifically requested her husband purchase for her.

"I've wanted skeletons since last Halloween," Dummeyer said, "but I was afraid they were an impulse purchase. After wanting them for a full year, I figured I truly do want them, so he got me the two skeletons and we just decided to put them in different poses."

Each day, Mike arranges the two skeletons in a fun new way on the couple's front lawn while his wife and daughter are walking around their neighborhood. That way, they will be surprised when they return home.

Anyone passing by the couple's Palmer Street home may find the skeletons riding a bicycle together or painting a portrait of each other. One memorable day, Dummeyer even found one of the skeletons, dressed as a magician, trying to saw the other in half.

Since Mike started arranging the skeletons before Oct. 1, Dummeyer estimated her husband has come up with over 20 poses for the duo, and he plans to continue coming up with new ones until Halloween arrives.

"I kept telling him that he should lower his expectations," Dummeyer said, "but when my husband does anything, he does it 110 percent."

While the poses come from his head, the props her husband uses for the displays are typically items found in the couple's home.

"He sometimes pulls out props that I didn't even know he knew where it was in our house," Dummeyer said. "Sometimes I will notice our basement light is on and think it's strange, then I'll realize it's because he was walking around the basement looking for props for the skeletons."

While it may be an ambitious effort to come up with a new idea each day, it brings her husband a very important reward.

"I like seeing my wife and daughter smile," Mike said.

Though his wife typically laughs out loud when she sees each new pose for the first time, the couple's daughter, who is only 15 months old, is a little less fazed by the skeletal duo.

"She likes to wave at the skeletons and blow them kisses," Dummeyer said. "She is not old enough to find them scary yet. She'll play with them and crawl up to them and hand them books to read to her."

The ever-changing display has also caught the attention of the couple's neighbors, many of whom have started visiting the skeletons on a regular basis and taking photos.

"Lots of people come and take photos," Dummeyer said, "and we've heard from multiple people that they send the photos to their co-workers each day."

According to Dummeyer, other houses in her neighborhood are typically decked out in decorations each October, as the area is "very Halloween-friendly." As such, she looks forward to passing out candy to kids in costume each year.

"We had a little one come up to our front door [one year]," Dummeyer said, "and the grown-up with her told me it was the very first house she had ever trick-or-treated at in her life. That's pretty much why I purchased a house, for moments like that."

It is a joy she will have to miss out on this year, as the city announced this week that residents are advised not to participate in any type of trick-or-treating activities with people outside their household in light of the coronavirus crisis.

As a Halloween enthusiast, Dummeyer said she understands the city's decision, and she and her husband will likely fill goody bags this year and put them socially distanced out on her front lawn in case anyone walks by.

"We're going to follow whatever the mayor tells us and not do traditional trick-or-treating," Dummeyer said. "I'm sad about it, but I understand, and I'm glad that the mayor is keeping the safety of all of us in mind. Like most things with the [coronavirus], we've had to give up a lot, but it's worth it if it keeps people safe and happy, so we're fine with it."

She also noted her daughter will still be dressing up in her lobster costume this year. Ironically, she was dressed as a skeleton last Halloween.

"She's too young to understand or care about trick-or-treating," Dummeyer said, "so we could just do it ... in our own house, and she would think it's cool."

It's one more reason the couple takes such delight in the mischievous skeleton duo on their lawn bringing them — and anyone who passes by their home this month — continuous smiles.

"I mean, 2020 is scary enough," Dummeyer said, "so we might as well have some good scares in our front yard with our silly skeletons."