harvest mix

Oh good glory be it's here. Halloween is upon us. And I couldn't be more happy about that.

The costumes are all ready for the kids. The mantle is decorated.  Candy corn is purchased. Yes, I am that one individual that loves candy corn. Oh, the Sugar Daddy does too.  You know the harvest mix Brach's puts out every Halloween? We buy it. Like five bags of it. It's amazeballs* mixed with peanut M&M's.

I really do love the fall. The fashion. The food. I love it all.
For me it's a little like Christmas Spirit come early.  It puts a skip in my step.

The Sugar Daddy has been bitten by the harvest bug as well. Which, if you knew him,  you'd realize this is a huge step in the right direction.  He generally hates anything in the least bit commercial or where people run around with big stupid grins on their faces. What can I say? He's a wee bit grinchy.

But the other night he announced that instead of Halloween candy, we are going to hand out shave ice. Did I mention he bought a shave ice machine? He did. I was flabbergasted at first, then curious, and now I'm allllll over it.  We have like a kabillion flavors and it is now our new family tradition.  Thom had a huge bowl of shave ice with candles instead of cake for his birthday.  Clearly God knew I just couldn't get a cake made this year with the babies and all,  so he blessed us with a shave ice machine. He works in mysterious ways.

So we are handing out Hawaiian shave ice cones. Which could be a huge hit or a huge disaster.  We'll see. Parents may hate us.  Live and learn. Live. And. Learn.

So there's that. The shave ice news and also  I bought the most amazing pair of pointy-toed, sling-back heels at an antique store last weekend.  Talk about amazeballs. They make me feel like I just might be Jackie O. reincarnate.   I'm sure I'll be sharing pictures of them down the road sometime.

Speaking of down the road, we are packing up and heading out of town on Sunday which means I will be forced to do some wash so everyone can have clean knickers for the trip.  Which in turn means I must get in the right frame of mind to do this most dreaded of all domestic chores.  No love lost there.

It's going to be a busy busy week my friends and I'm wondering if I'm really up to it all. I'd much rather sit around and eat Harvest mix.

Here's my Halloween mantle from last year. I'll share this year's mantle later this week.  Stay tuned. This week's gunna be a doozy.

* This word belongs to one Margie Romney-Aslett, but I have stolen it, and I claim it as my own from now on.

Also, will spell check ever learn that I like to make up words and to just roll with it?  Enough with the little red dots already.

photo credits 

runner up

Fashion really is what it's all about, BUT the treats are a close runner up.


Wilton has some really fun baking kits out this year. They really spice up your goodies.

Too bad I can't actually eat these morsels. Alas, Nazi Natalie is sticking to the one treat a week rule.

A big wet raspberry to that.

birds of a feather

You may be wondering what I am up to today.

Probably not, but I'm going to tell you anyway. This is Thomas in 2004. He went as a bald eagle for Halloween.

He was the cutest bald eagle this side of the Mississippi (m-i-s-s-i-s-s-i-p-p-i right?).

Although, to be honest, I can't really say that I've ever seen a cute bald eagle. Surely there must be one in New York somewhere. He probably lives in Manhattan by this store that I am dying, just dying, to go to.

Five years ago I was head-over-heels happy with my baby boy. This year I am head-over-heels happy with two babies.

Isn't life grand?

For Halloween Birdie is going to be, you guessed it, a bird.

An owl to be precise.

Today I am working on her costume and carving stamps, not to mention the ever present laundry.

Just in case you were wondering what I was doing this fine Fall day.

october 1

Good heavens.

I do love this season.

this witch's brew

Is this torture for a five-year-old boy? Why yes is it, but if ever there was an appropriate time for torture it would definitely be Halloween. And Halloween is in full swing at our abode. I spookified the house last Thursday. (Yes, that is a finger you see amongst the M&M's.) Here's a look.

Ye Ol' Mantle

My work station, or laboratory, if you will.

Our "Rare Halloween Pixie" which we keep on our kitchen table for observation.

I saw this idea on another blog, but I can't remember the address. She used an apothecary jar which looks really great too. Our "fairy" is really Thom at age two.

Thom was a little worried that I had made him look like a girl, no thanks to his father, but in the end he liked being a pixie.

Now go. Go and spread some ghoulish goodness throughout your house. Stuff like this is the spice of life. And if you haven't already, scroll on down and check out yesterday's give away. There are three monsters up for grabs and you have until Monday morning to enter.

the monster mash

Ahhhhh. Here we are again. Feature Friday. Where yours truly touts the merits of some of my artsy friends and bestows upon lucky people the wears of those artisans free of charge. I think I might have missed my calling in life. I should have been a philanthropist.

First up today we have Cuthbert, who likes baked beans and trampolines but not at the same time. He heralds from the Weebeastie family of Torquay, England. He was made by Kate Dowling who after making a sock monster for her pregnant boss, was overcome with a complete obsession (to make monsters that is) which has lead to a shop and website. She is an interior designer by day, monster maker by night.

Meet Angela. Angela likes putting her head in the fridge and waiting for time to stop. She talks to birds. She was made in Poznan' by an doll artist from Buenos Aires. She is from the KooKoo Doll Family owned and run by Maru.

Maru is a charming Argentinian living in Poland. She describes herself as a traveler, teacher, dancer and artist. Here is a message I got from her:

hi! marla is sold, la llorona (angela) no, so angela will be. i am very sorry for
not giving more info right now, i am going rightaway to berlin, do not want to loose my train. on monday we can talk again.

have a nice weekend!

maru

See, I told you. She's charming.

Last but not least, we have Harold. He enjoys walks in the park and granny smith apples. He's from a monstrous-looking, furred race. They have enormous eyes. They move by dragging themselves along the ground. They are omnivores. They have only one child at a time making Harold a rare breed indeed.

UltraPunch!™ TOY Co. is an independent toy company located in Central Pennsylvania. Dedicated to the idea of handmade and imaginative toys for children and the young at heart.

So there it is. The monster mash. Here's how to play. Leave a comment saying which monster you would like to win. If you would like to be in the drawing for more than one monster you must leave a comment for each monster. I will use my handy dandy random selector thingy on Monday morning and announce the winners.

If you aren't lucky this week, and you don't win a monster, look around these sellers shops. You may just find a buddy that suits you. Oh, and if you had to look up Torquay and Poznan', your not alone.

a big orange crush, oh i mean bang. a big orange bang

{collage by jek in the box}

Well here we are one day away from October. I sit here writing and blinking in disbelief. When did time speed up? Where was I?

I'm thinking we need to start the month off with a bang. How about a give away? How about TWO giveaways? Sheesh! I wish I had a friend like me who was always giving stuff away.

Okay, I'm ready to send out these little hair pins to anyone who leaves a comment. I make hair accessories in my spare time. Have I ever told you that?

These little darlins will snaz up a bun in no time. I call this set "Fancy Schmacy Fall".

Also, Holly from Winklepots is poised and ready to ship this fun pair of candy corn pony bows.

Holly is an accountant turned mom/children's designer. She has two little bambinos that run around while she creates hand painted children's clothes and little curly bows.

Please leave a separate comment for each item you would like to win. The winner will be announced on Thursday morning.