Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Spooky Halloween 2012



Ok, I am just going to say--right off the bat...It has been a crazy couple of days.
Sandy has been terrible for our friends and family up North, but our area just kind of
got side-swiped...about the worse thing that happened to us was that we had to take
all the outdoor Halloween decorations down and inside..

but we got two days off work and school....


And probably the best news of all: Halloween, for us, wasn't cancelled.




May I present: The Queen of England and a gallant knight...(who forgot his shoes.)

The big Halloween party was scheduled for Saturday night and at that point, there was no rain
and that night it was like high 50s/low 60s...perfect weather for a party.
We had about 15 kids and 15 adults from the neighborhood over...

so, I did a little decorating...






I drew a spooky village on the chalkboard that we have in our kitchen and sewed some orange ric rac on a black table cloth...I LOVE ric rac...






I tried to make as much as possible but I broke down when I saw this 
and bought the skeleton wall cling giant sticker art..

(complete with moths and spiders)

And, an excellent idea--I might add,  because there is no way I could have made it myself
plus it added very nicely to the over all look of things!





L. I turned the entrance way into a bat cave and covered the walls with lots and lots of cut out bats.
(special thank you to Mercedes and Cecilia for their many contributions!)

R. As a way to block off the stairs
(and prevent the kids from swarming the upstairs),
I turned the staircase into a crime scene, 
complete with a creepily hanging skeletor--of sorts...lots of cheese cloth!




This is a bat pinata that I made...

I wish it showed up better; this was one of the best things I made.
I got the idea here.







ok...wait!! I take that bat--I mean, BACK...these jello worms are actually the best thing I made..
I served them on a bed of crumbled brownies--(you know, for dirt!) and they were a HUGE hit.

Got the idea from here.




L. For the party, we had some crafts on hand...skeletons out of dried pasta, anyone?  




I turned the living room into a haunted laboratory. 







I filled jars with all sorts of stuff: eyeballs, snakes, bones, spiders...a brain!
ok, well, it was really a cabbage in green milky water, but it looked like a brain!










So, this was the setting.  

Saturday night, we had the fire pit going in the back yard and all the kids gathered round while some kids took turns telling and reading spooky tales.

Earlier in the evening, we took the kids on a haunted walk down thru the park, where an occasional parent would jump out from behind a tree and scare the daylights out of the kids...it was so awesome.

There were lots and lots of treats...
and there was this really, really good apple cider/bourbon punch 
with lemon and ginger that Greg made.

You know... for the adults...

So, everyone, ahem, had a great time.


The hurricane definitely put a damper on things but we consider ourselves 
very lucky that we had such a great party and a fun halloween. 

I am going to go pass out now...







Tuesday, October 23, 2012

A Weekend in West Virginia




We rented a cabin in the beautiful Canaan Valley of West Virginia 
with friends this weekend.  We had a great time...we drank
hot apple cider, played chess, went for a hike, had a few dance parties...



But mosty...we played in the leaves.











There were A LOT of leaves...




And we had a great time!!
I think West Virginia may be our new favorite place..





Monday, October 15, 2012

Greg's Big Day!





Greg ran the Baltimore Marathon this weekend!! 
He did an amazing, amazing job...
the kids and I cheered him on at mile 15 
on the corner of S. Linwood and O'Donnell
Streets in the Canton neighborhood of downtown 
Baltimore with--our home-made signs...














We waited and watched for him--very patiently...










Magda was a little nervous for him...





But then!! Out of the blue--we saw him running towards us!!
(that is him below with his hand waving hi to us)





Here he comes!! Doesn't he look good!!




 Really good!!



and there he goes...the kids tried to keep up with him for half a block or so...






but then we just had to bid him farewell and wish him good luck!













We cheered other runners on too, 
but we are so proud of our Dad and Husband--
he did a totally kick-ass job!  

Go Daddy Go!!

We love you!!



Monday, October 8, 2012

It begins...Halloween 2012!


Its been slow going, because of how busy we have been, but the Halloween decorations
are slowly starting to make their way up from the basement-- into their proper places in our home...

As you may know, I went a little over the top last year.  You can see so here.  
Its nice to have so much already done but I want to keep the kids on their toes
and mix it up a bit, so this is what we have new this year so far...





 Yes, that is a wreath made out of bones...part of me REALLY loves it but then I think it
may be slightly inappropriate for children under the age of 6.  I go back and forth.
I thought adding a burlap bow would help soften things up a bit!

Love the owls!!  




For the haunted house party this year, the theme is going to be a mad scientist's laboratory.
I am just starting to break out the props...will fine tune in the weeks to come.





How awesome is that bunting?!? Huge thank you to my
fab mother-in-law who not only picked up the fabric,
but helped make it to boot!








This ghost is something silly I did last year--we will see how long it lasts.
Its supposed to rain tonight, so it could be sooner rather than later...




I like the idea of it peering in the window!



Monday, October 1, 2012

A Perfect Fall Day



This weekend we teamed up with Luca's best friend and his wonderful family 
for a day of fun on a nearby orchard/farm.

Its that amazing time of year when we get to pick apples that I hope to bake into pies
and pumpkins that we will carve for Halloween.







Homestead Farm is wonderful place to visit and there is lots to do there...























What a gorgeous place--I love coming here...





There are these huge bails of hay the kids can jump off of...







Lots of room to run around and play catch the big Sis..









You can have your very own wheel barrow pushed by your very own dad...






Picking Pink Lady apples...






Eating Pink Lady apples...







Heading off to the pumpkin patch..
















The booty.








Waiting patiently for lunch complete with  caramel apples...








Our day on the farm...so wonderful!! 

A perfect way to spend the day.



Hats on...


Hats off...

They are cute, aren't they??