Halloween is laid to rest for another year

Halloween went off without a hitch this year - we had about 44 kids come to the door. And despite all the jokes about vast amounts of "Elsa's" coming to the door, I think I only had two Elsa's and two "Brave" and other than a puppy and a couple of Spidermans, the rest were rather nondescript - possibly all zombies?

The biggest thing for me is having a dog who doesn't care at all about fireworks. The number of years my poor sweet Jazzie suffered are enough for a lifetime. Thank you Eco, I love that about you!

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Many people curse Daylight Savings time because their kids or dogs are up too early - not in this house. Do you know who's having trouble adjusting? Me! Yes that's right. I'm the one still getting up at 5:30 ! LOL. Maybe not tomorrow since I have dance tonight and I usually sleep pretty well after that.

It did take me a bit to figure out why there weren't kids at the door at 5:30 on Halloween like there used to be - because this year Daylight Savings was after Halloween and so it was still light outside!

How was your Halloween weekend? Anything spooky?

Needles aren't just for Sewing

Yesterday was a beautiful and warm (22 degrees Celsius!) autumn day. And I spent most of it outside prepping the garden for winter. Putting ornaments away, covering furniture, repotting plants to take inside and reroofing the shed (I thought). Bad news was, when I pulled the roll of roofing from the shed and tried to put it on the shed it tore apart. Crap. Well I ended up nailing it up there and then covering it with a tarp - with the help of Jp and the kid.

Good thing too because today it is pouring rain. Pouring I say!!! LOL. Overly dramatic, that's me.

Welcome to winter now.

I'm itching to hang up my Halloween decorations but I have a note from last year telling myself not to do it too early as there are always some windy days that end up blowing everything all around or cause the ornaments to bang against the house. Maybe by the end of the week? One week should be fine I suppose. And yes, I could do some inside, except they are all in the same container so if I'm going to pull them out of storage, I'll do it all at once.

I've also been dealing with neck and back pain for the past little while. The good news is, it seems to be muscles and not bones. I'm just really tight. A little voice in my head keeps telling me to get back to yoga and as of this morning, I could no longer ignore her. So after I got up and fed Eco, this morning I did a bunch of poses. Then this afternoon I went for some acupuncture. I feel better at the moment and tonight is dance class so that should loosen me up a bit as well. We'll see how that goes.

Do you have any experience with acupuncture?

Punk in

Happy Halloween!!! 

Scary Halloween Costumes

Oh boy, you think Halloween decorations are scary and gory -and yes many of them are (like that dead dog prop that everyone was upset about last month). Well check out these SCARY costumes!

I love the caption they put below it "He puts the laughter in manslaughter." Yup, that about sums it up.

End of Summer, or Beginning of Fall?

The beginning of September for many is like January 1st. For many it means new things - new pencils, books, clothes. For some, it's a new way of living as they start university living away from home in a dorm.

I imagine that last night there were many tears as parents tried to kid their young ones off to bed early for the first day of school after a summer of late nights. Which is why, I presume, the first day of school is also usually only a couple of hours - probably EVERYONE is exhausted.

But I too, like the beginning of September. Sometimes I take a new course. Or start a new hobby or journal. I take advantage of the cute notebooks and school supplies out there and pick up one or two items for myself. And each day I start my dog walk in the dark, waiting longer and longer for it to be light enough so I can put away my flashing light and to turn off Eco's collar light  - once I assume that people can see her (being dark brown has it's disadvantages in the dark).

I assume this time of year is meaningful to others when you hear songs like "September Morn" or "Try to Remember the First of September"  which longingly recall the glorious days at the end of summer. For us, we had a wonderful, textbook summer which was a little dry for our area, so even though it hasn't gotten cold yet (still no less than 12 degrees celsius) in the mornings there are some leaves falling due to our heat and the dryness. It's starting to feel like fall, and I'm starting to think of Thanksgiving and Halloween, and of course the fact that Christmas is only 3.5 months away -but I try not to get too far ahead of myself. And you? Does this time of year instill any great thoughts or memories?

I forgot to show you

I forgot to show you that I made this big spider web for Halloween: 

It's about 2' across and took more yarn and time that I thought it would  to make. I have even more respect for all those spiders - how do they produce so much silk from such a tiny little body! And to think they spend a whole day making one just to have the wind, or a big animal, or us blast through it and toss it away. This is no easy task! 

My decorations were down on November 1st -but then spend several days in the car port drying out - I couldn't put them away wet and who knows when it would dry out around here! 

One month of a plain yard and then it's time to start the Christmas decorations! I'd like to put up something big but these inflatable things have noisy fans/motors and I don't want to listen to that all day since the room I work in faces the front and we only have single pane windows so I can hear everything. I tell you, I was regretting putting up my Halloween decorations two weeks early when the wind was whipped the decorations agains the house and I had to endure endless banging and flashes from the spooky "caution tape" as it flapped in the wind. 

What do you put up for outside Christmas decorations? 

Any suggestions? 

Just catchin' up

Remember when I said I was the only one here decorating for Halloween - well, the hubband surprised me on Wednesday by carving a pumpkin. I came into the kitchen and it was all done - how nice. And he left all the supplies out so I could do the other one - I didn't realize how awkward the little pumpkins are - it's hard to get your tools inside and around to thin out the walls, but I didn't worry about it too much.

This is what he did: 

Here's mine, I just freehanded the carving:

And I finished the Sugar Skull embroidery, he just needed some more things in the middle of his face and I finished the outlining - it's white on the outside, with black on the inside on the top of the skull and the opposite on the bottom of the skull.

I'm not sure what's going to become of him, right now he's just folded up in a bag  - maybe a pillow? or on a purse?

Oh and another update - we watched another James Bond movie, last night it was Goldfinger. So now I've watched the first four. This one was good because he's got more toys and gadgets and he's smarter when it comes to getting ambushed by the bad guy. And love Ms. Pussy Galore and OddJob - what characters!

Dia de los Muertos

Today is a day many also look forward to, for it is the "Day of the Dead" - in case you're not familiar:

Day of the Dead (Spanish: Día de los Muertos) is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and around the world in other cultures. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it is a national holiday, and all banks are closed. The celebration takes place on November 1, in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts. They also leave possessions of the deceased.

Scholars trace the origins of the modern Mexican holiday to indigenous observances dating back hundreds of years and to an Aztecfestival dedicated to the goddess Mictecacihuatl. The holiday has spread throughout the world: In Brazil, Dia de Finados is a public holiday that many Brazilians celebrate by visiting cemeteries and churches. In Spain, there are festivals and parades, and, at the end of the day, people gather at cemeteries and pray for their dead loved ones. Similar observances occur elsewhere in Europe, andsimilarly themed celebrations appear in many Asian and African cultures.*

and so to acknowledge this day, I have embroidered this Calavera, more commonly known as a   Sugar Skull - he's not quite finished but I'll show you anyway:

They are always so fun to embroider because you can use all your bright colours and as many as you want. Check this out for more creative variations. 

I hope last night went well for you - we only had about 30 kids  - the heavy, heavy rains had a lot to do with that.

*quoted from Wikipedia:

Happy Halloween!

It's finally here - the night that so many kidlets look forward to - dressing up as their favorite character and all that CANDY! Oh and I guess it's a night many people dread too -I will never forget the suffering my poor dog, Jazz, went through for years with her noise phobia. Even though firecrackers are illegal in our community and several of our neighbouring communities they are still around. My idiot neighbour let off about 20 last night. And the police and firemen probably dread this night too. To all the rescue and emergency workers out there tonight - thank you. Always a big thank you to these people.

And,  typical for October 31st in Vancouver  -  it is pouring - POURING - rain. And, even though we've been trying for over 2 months to get new gutters  we still don't have them which means I'll have to get up on a ladder today and clean out the drains to try to reduce as much of the dripping at my front door as I can. It had been my goal to have new gutters before Halloween so the poor kids didn't get dripped on when they were standing on my front step. All I wanted is gutters before October 31st, but nope, people don't show up and don't return phone calls and now here we are a couple of months have gone by and  still waiting for an install date. Why do service companies suck at this? In my business they call, we're on site  - sometimes within 1-2 hours. And we return calls. And we call people and tell them when we'll be on site. Granted we work with other businesses but still. Is the general public as unreliable as the service companies? Is that why it's so bad out there?

Tonight after work I'm going to attempt some speed carving. I have two small pumpkins that I'm going to try to get done before the night is over. I might not make it. Maybe I'll just decorate them with Sharpies and paint. It's hard when I'm the only one in the house decorating and participating in these types of events. Last night I gave in and watched James Bond's From Russia With Love. The world of Bond is rather new to me because when I was a little girl my mom told me that Bond movies were for boys. I remember my brother's 13 birthday party where they all went to the movies including my dad and other brother and I had to stay home with mom because I was too young and a girl. I don't know which one he saw - I bet he would say the name in an instant.  I think I saw my first James Bond movie somewhere in my mid-twenties on a date. Since then I've seen about 2 or 3. On the weekend we watched Thunderball and on Monday we watched Dr. No. It's quite enjoyable watching these early 60's movies  - it's fun to see how Bond progresses and all the lovely fashions and decorating styles. And I must say that I've been amazed by the picture quality - these movies are 50 years old and so many scenes are stunning  - the lighting, the colour, I'm in awe of the cinematography as well. 

Are you a Bond fan? What was your favorite movie? 

Oh yes , and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!!!!

Spirit Day ?

Sometimes I think we go to far trying to protect everyone from everything. Today I heard that some schools are not allowing kids to dress up in costumes and can't call it "Halloween" but they can wear orange and black for "Spirit Day".

First they discourage religious holidays and then they discourage non-religious holidays. Gee they just don't make school fun anymore. I am glad things weren't like that when I went to school. Oh sure we had some peace loving left over hippies that would sit cross legged on their desks or have sing-outs at lunchtime in their classrooms, but we could have Christmas and Halloween and didn't have a need for a dress code.

I've never really been one to dress up in Halloween costumes myself but that doesn't mean I don't want others too. I think it's great that people leave their houses in the morning and go to work with their clown costumes or wrapped in gauze for a mummy costumes, or paddle around in slippers for their big baby costumes. They have fun, everyone seems to have fun - what's the harm in that?

More on Halloween Costumes

By now many of you may have gone to Halloween parties on the weekend, but if you're still looking for costume ideas, watch this fab video for ideas:

Catchy tune isn't it? 

Grey Gardens, Tim Gunn, The Color Purple, Louis C.K...pretty creative

Also, check out the  "Oh Happy Day" blog  for some great kids ideas - this is one of my favorite kids costumes:

And I like this idea for a dog costume - especially with the glow in the dark bones:

But puppy would have to wear it before Halloween night because it's really not a good idea to have them out on the street on the 31st - too many loud noises, dropped candy and a multiple of other unpredictable occurrences that will most likely not be good for your dog. Even though fireworks are illegal in my community they are still around and go off quite frequently - so many poor dogs that suffer from noise phobia just as my past dog, Jazz, did for over 7 years - and almost every time I hear one go off, I am so grateful that Eco isn't affected at all. Jazz sure did suffer severely and if affected the whole family. 

What costumes did you see that made you laugh this year? 

Did you see any fresh new ideas? 

Scary Short Hair

By now you've probably seen this image that's been circling around the interwebs:

It's cute and funny, but I think it's time the bottom photo needs to be updated, because when I get up in the morning, my short hair looks more like Barnbus Collins from Dark Shadows:

'nuff said

Looking for Costume Ideas?

If you're looking for some ideas for dressing up this year - for men: check this out and for ladies: check this out.  Lots of creative ideas out there - check out the photosites like Flickr or  Pinterest.

Here's my dog's attempt at a costume.... 

You should see the hat she wears with it! LOL! 

Halloween Decorating Ideas

If you are looking for some fabulous Halloween decorating ideas - check out the Older and Wisor blog - here's a photo from her blog:

She shows lots of fabulous ideas, and if I lived near the shop, I'd be in there today!!!!

Halloween Paper Cuts

UK horror movie fan Marc Hagen-Guirey creates dimensional versions of his favourite haunted houses (here) from a single sheet of paper as well as presents them in equally spooky coloured lighting. Check out his site and featurette to get you in the mood for Halloween, or if you're in London anytime between November 1 and 14 you can see his exhibit of 13 famous horror movie houses at Gallery One-And-A-Half. Very creative! I love the calm, serine feeling of these presentations, how about you?

Spooktacular!

Happy Halloween!

This year it was much better than so many years prior; the biggest change is not having a noise phobic dog - that adds 110% of the stress! I put a bunch of decorations around the yard and on the house - not a lot but definitely more than my neighbours (not that I'm competing) - it seems people just don't get into it like they used to. And even though firecrackers are against the law in my community  - that doesn't stop all the bangs and pops and flashes that occur weeks before tonight. But now that's not so bad because my happy lab just don't care! And that means everyone is the house is much more relaxed.

I took Eco for a walk a lunchtime today, past the primary kids at the elementary school - lots of Cinderella's and Belle and Wonderwoman and Fairies, not too many boys this time. But then a little policeman came up to say 'hi'. It was the little boy who lives next door - so cute. I'm always a little worried talking to kids on the street because I don't want anyone to think I have bad intentions, but I have to tell you the kids always approach me!

When I could finally break away from the group of kids,  we continued on our walk until we came across a house with fabulous Halloween decorations - there are fog machines and motion sensored creatures, and lights and all sorts of ghouls. My favorite is the mermaid skeleton - I have no idea why I like it so much but I really do! The homeowners were outside putting up more and more decorations and we talked for a little awhile about their decorations and all the things they are still going to do but soon Eco was getting restless - we'd been out for almost an hour but had only walked for about 10 minutes - so when the man brought out a 3' tall skeleton which Eco barked at and didn't seem to like, so we wished them a good night and continued on their way.

After work I added a few more decorations to the yard and when the trick-or-treaters started to come I turned up the scary music which could be heard outside. For years I used to have to deal with a freaked out dog and wait for Jp to come home because he'd be out with the kid but now the kid is old enough to go with his friends and Jp's at home and the dog is nice and calm and it's a nice night weather-wise and so it's  actually a pretty good Halloween.

How was your night? What happens where you live?

Halloween Tea Towel

This is what I have been working on for the past couple of days:

It's done on a tea-towel and the word is stitched with glow-in-the-dark thread. It was part of a Stitch-along, and you can see other people's interpretations here. The ghost's face was stitched in white which you can't really see in the photo but I left it that way as you'll see it in texture when you look at it in person.

Wee Pumpkin

This morning before we went out for the family lunch, I just had to make this cute little pumpkin to add to my Halloween decorations:

The pattern came from here. The yarn was in my stash. There are only so many things one can do with orange yarn, so Halloween is a perfect time to use it up. (Did you notice my last post contained a project using the same yarn? Two points for you if you did! )

For lunch, Jp and I packed up everything including cutting boards, knives and electric griddle to make his signature Grilled Cheese Sammiches for his sisters and mom. He did a fabulous job and everyone seemed very pleased with the yumminess - I'm sorry I did not take a photo of them, next time he makes them, I'll show you.


Instead, a have a cute photo of Eco - just because.....

It's Sunday Night Already?

Yesterday was a nice sunny day, so I spent most of the day in the garden putting away plants and ornaments and getting things ready for winter.

Then we were off to Jp's sister's house because we were  lucky enough to have a second Thanksgiving dinner, it's good to get the family together and enjoy yummy food. And one of the best parts was that his sister gave us the turkey carcass and leftover meat so we could make some turkey noodle soup! Yummy, guess what I'll be doing tomorrow.

I also worked on two little projects this weekend. The first is a little cuff to go around my thermal coffee container which sometimes dribbles if I don't dry the threads or the lid well enough, so I whipped up this little cozy using some leftover yarn and a crochet hook: 

I know I am solving the wrong problem - maybe I just wanted an excuse to crochet. 

And, I also did some embroidery as hand stitching is one of my favourite things.  I really liked these cute little Halloween bunnies plus I wanted to use my glow-in-the-dark thread: 

If you'd like to stitch one up too, the pattern can be found here. Be sure to tell me where I can see your photos in my comments as it's so much fun seeing how other people stitch things up! (In case you're wondering what's wrong with the Dracula bunny, my disappearning ink from my transfer pen didn't disappear fast enough and/or I didn't want to wait any longer for it to disappear! )

Now to watch TV - Boardwalk Empire and Dexter tonight.

Thanksgiving Already?

I can't believe it's already Thanksgiving weekend! It's interesting hearing all the different things people are doing this weekend. One person I know  in the Toronto area is going to their trailer for Saturday and Sunday - because it's expected to be 30 degrees! (that's a crazy warm temperature for October ) Another is cooking two turkeys for 17 people! Wow. I am not doing anything like that. I will be cleaning up my yard and working on my messy workroom/office. And Jp and I will have a quiet dinner  on Sunday.

I didn't think the turkey we bought was too small, until the cashier called it "cute". Oh well, we will eat well and we are thankful for the opportunity for good food and a warm house and a chance to rest and relax. I also better get some time for some embroidery or knitting too - it's been so long since I've picked anything up, especially since I was away all last week. I'd really like to make some Halloween crafts - it's time to start decorating for that.

What will you be doing this weekend?