Miley Cyrus is most well known for playing secret pop star Hannah Montana who is a superstar singer by night wearing a blonde wig and with a smart, urban, starlet style and is a normal teenage girl by day going to school and having adventures with her friends.  The show became a smash hit, and an album of songs from the show sung by Cyrus hit number one almost instantly. Miley does perform as herself and has released her own albums under her own name that have been wildly successful, with her single Party in the USA hitting number one almost immediately upon release. Disney announced this year that the Hannah Montana show would be ending in 2011 after just four seasons, but having performed as Hannah from the beginning, mounting numerous concert tours as her alter ego and starring in a feature film as Hannah Montana Miley Cyrus is ready to take a break and start following new opportunities.

The Hannah Montana feature film mirrored Cyrus’ own life and had the famous secret star wondering if she should choose to give up her stardom and return to a normal life or embrace her star status and delve more deeply into a musical career. Interviews with Miley Cyrus revealed that the star had grappled with those issues in her own life and had a tough time finding the right balance between performing as her alter ego Hannah Montana and retaining her own identity and goals.

Miley’s parents have tried to keep her grounded in normalcy so that she doesn’t fall into the trap of drugs and alcohol like so many other teen stars do when their shows end. Born and raised near Nashville, TN  both of her parents have tried to instill in the star small town values despite her huge Hollywood success.  Her godmother, another famous Tennessee native Dolly Parton, acts as a mentor and career advisor to Miley and Miley often speaks in interviews of her close relationship with Dolly. Hopefully Mily Cyrus will be able to make the transition from teen pop sensation to serious actress and musician without some of the blunders of other pop sensations like Tiffany, Debbie Gibson, or even Britney Spears.  She has already proven that she has the talent to be a major player, only time will tell if she can build a lasting career for herself.

Finding the perfect Halloween costume for tweens can be tough. Some costumes are still too mature, but some are too childish. Negotiating a costume that you approve of but that your tween likes can be a tricky business. Compromise is key when it comes to finding a great tween Halloween costume. To give you some ideas that might make your tween happy this Halloween here are some creative costume ideas that are appropriate for tweens but fun too:

High School Musical costumes – The characters from High School Musical are sure to be out in large numbers this Halloween. The good news for parents is that High School Musical tween costumes are age appropriate but also fun, so you and your tween can both be satisfied with the costume. Sharpay costumes and Gabriella costumes are going to be very popular, so if your tween wants something a little different choose a High School Musical cheerleader costume or a costume based on one of the supporting cast.

Hannah Montana – A Hannah Montana Halloween costume is also a popular tween choice. Tweens can have all the fun of dressing like a rock star without actually wearing any of the revealing clothing traditionally associated with rock stars. This wholesome version of a rock star is a costume you can approve of that your tween girl will really want.

Harry Potter costumes – Now that the characters in the Harry Potter movies are starting to get older tweens want Harry Potter costumes for Halloween. Ron Weasley costumes, Jeannie Weasley costumes, Hermione Granger costumes, Draco Malfoy costumes and of course Harry Potter costumes are going to be some of the hottest costumes this Halloween following the summer release of Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. If you are going to take your tweens trick or treating this year you can dress as one of the Hogworts teachers to go with your tween’s costume.

Transformers costumes – For tween boys the perfect costume this year is a Transformers costume. Your tween can choose to be an Autobot or a Decepticon and can use makeup and other accessories with a Transformers costume to turn into a robot for the night. There are a lot of characters to choose from when choosing a costume from the Transformers movie so start talking with your tween now about which costume he wants.

Shrek and Princess Fiona costumes – Shrek costumes and Princess Fiona costumes are still popular, and they are the perfect costumes for tweens. More grown up than traditional fairy tale characters Shrek, Fiona or any of the characters from Shrek are updated, modern, fun versions characters usually associated with children. Your tween will like being able to choose a more grown up costume while you can hang onto the nostalgia of seeing your little girl dress like a princess again.

When it comes time for your tween to choose a Halloween costume sit down with your child and set some costume ground rules. Letting your child choose his or her own costume, as long as they follow the ground rules, will help your child learn to be more independent and make decisions.