Tag Archives: halloween

The Year I Dressed Up As My Favorite Condiment

How is it already November 4th?

I ran into Trader Joe’s for milk and eggs this morning and the 99cent Christmas advent calendars are out, the candy cane green tea is on the shelves and the Thanksgiving staples are stacked up high! Turkey Day is 3 weeks from Thursday…

Halloween was celebrated here for what seems like weeks with a church trunk-or-treat outing mid-October, the school Fall Festival the following week and the piece de resistance last Friday night. Not to mention the school costume parade on the morning of October 31st, too.

As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t really give too much thought to the kids’ costumes. As a matter of fact, I picked up a Michelangelo Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle costume for Holden last year at Target for 90% off {$2} and he was thrilled with it for this year. Elliott wanted to be Wednesday Addams which I thought was brilliant. I started my hunt for a white collared shirt, black dress and striped tights when I came across a darling {dead bride} costume at Ross for $12.99. It was different and well made so I picked it up and she ended up loving it so that is what we went with for her this year. I guess that means I have 12 months to procure the proper Wednesday Addams attire!

For truck-or-treat I literally went into the dress up box and pulled out two super hero costumes. Bam. Easy.

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{the fall festival wasn’t ready for this motley crew}

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{apparently pizza isn’t the only thing TMNT’s like to eat}

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I wanted them to participate in the school parade, obviously, but tried to keep the costumes simple. Elliott begged me to take her to Party City for these suspenders and I found a cute “nerdy” math equation tee at Old Navy for under $3. Holden decided to don an old AYSO jersey and go as David Beckham. Done and done.

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{a friend’s older teenage daughter did Elliott’s make-up for Halloween night}

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The Tuesday before Halloween I needed some serious hocus pocus to come up with a costume for me. A friend posted a Sriracha costume on Facebook awhile ago that was from Target. I checked my local Targets for it with no luck and then decided to try Target.com. I found it on sale, but had to pay expedited shipping to guarantee it here for trick-or-treatin’. I ordered it on Tuesday and it was at my door the next afternoon…

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{the best $8 I’ve ever spent ~ I’ll wear it for years to come}

That’s about it, folks. We managed to carve a couple pumpkins and Elliott decorated one for the contest at school…

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{Elliott’s “Girly Pumpkin”}

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Is it just me or does it seem like after Halloween, the holidays are downhill from here?

Fasten your seatbelt.

Sugar Overdose

Wanna know what’s more sickening than stuffing your face with Laffy Taffy, Almond Joy, Snickers, York and Pay Day candy?

Going into the archives and pulling up your babies pics from every single one of their Halloweens.

Time is so cruel. So, so cruel.

A reminder to take each day and appreciate them while they are monkeys, and peacocks, and candy corns, and butterflies….

A stroll down October 31st memory lane:

{2005}

{2006}

{2007}

{2007}

{2008}

{2009}

{2009}

{2009}

{2010 ~ Fall Festival}

{2010 ~ Trick-or-Treating : ballerina & chicken}

{2011 ~ Fall Festival}

{2011 ~ Trick-or-Treating}

{2012 ~ Fall Festival}

{2012 ~ Trick-or-Treating}

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There you have it….eight years of costumes {some recycled!}, candy and sweet, sweet memories.

I’m in a sugar coma.

Happy Halloween!

XO

Vampire Teeth

Another Halloween down in the books.

I really wish Halloween would ALWAYS fall on a Saturday night. This Monday evening business is no fun. Even though Elliott didn’t have school today {smart school district!}, I still felt like we had to turbo trick-or-treat and get home at a decent hour.

We had a little Halloween Happy Hour before doing the rounds in our neighborhood…a fun new tradition, I think!

My little mummy opted for some bloodshot eyes and vampire teeth over my fabulous make-up artistry as seen on my {zombie cheerleader}.

Thanks again TJ Maxx for hookin’ this non-sewin’ mama up with some fun costumes this year!

Now to get the Kit Kats, Almond Joys, Snickers, Butterfingers, Skittles, Tootsie Rolls, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, m&m’s, etc. OUT OF THE HOUSE! I am pleased to report that I have not have one piece today {a record} and I don’t plan on having any tomorrow or the following day.

I am training myself to believe that Sunsweet Ones {prunes} are just as good as a fun size Halloween treat.

We’ll get there.

Jillian and I are hooking up again. I’ve missed her so.

Gotta cut back for the next few weeks before Mr. Turkey and his side dish friends come to visit.

Happy November!

Sunset Strip

Time to get out the plastic crate from the garage. The one with the orange and black stuff in it!

It’s under the Spring/Easter one, so I have yet to go out there and move a few things around and dig it out.

I did, however, make another paint chip bunting for the month of October.

{do you ever choose paint, lipstick or nail polish for the name of the color? I do…one of the oranges on these cards was [sunset strip] so I picked that one over another one with not so [hollywood] names}

These are the easiest things to make. I’m addicted.

Just hung the blue and green one from my mom’s birthday brunch in the laundry room and it makes the chore a little more enjoyable.

So, run to Home Depot this weekend and pick up some paint chips and make one. Or have your husband pick some up for you…men seem to go to HD a lot.

They add an instant festive touch to any room. I hung ours above the couch in our great room and it’s the first thing you see when you come in the front door.

Now to venture out into the garage and get the rest of the ghosts, goblins and witches!

Have a fabulous weekend, friends.

The Mummy & The Cheerleader

Today I was able to already check off {Halloween costumes} on my October to-do list.

Thank goodness.

I always stress over this.

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Surprise!

Elliott wanted to be a cheerleader.

AGAIN.

I suggested she be a {scary} cheerleader and she was all for it. Rah. Rah. I found a cheerleader costume in orange and black sequins with a skull and crossbones on the front at TJ Maxx ~ just $19.99 and it came with skeleton pom poms, black and orange striped knee highs and some little fingerless glove thingys. Score.

She already has silver sequined high tops so we’re all set.

So this year we have a little mummy and a spooky, sparkly spirit girl.

Awesome. Now I can breathe and enjoy the whole month of October.

Halloween decor coming out this week.

How is it possible that it’s already that time?

I don’t know, but I’m not complaining.

Enjoy the last hour and fifteen of September!

Night night.

XO

All Hallow’s Eve 2010

Phew!

Halloween was lots of fun, but I am pumpkin’d, witch’d, goblin’d and candied out!

I’m so glad I decided to dress up this year…it added so much to the night. I spent a grand total of $8 on our costumes this year ~ Elliott reused her dance recital costume, Holden borrowed his and I spent $5 on handcuffs and $3 on a cheetah print beanie that I fancied up with some orange rosettes to match my inmate threads!

A gal stopped me on the street and commented on my rosettes…why thank you! She asked me if I sell them…well, no I don’t, but maybe I should. Which got me thinking….stay tuned!

Getting back to trick-or-treating…we decided to go to our friends’ neighborhood this year as they have a street that goes all out and has haunted houses and stuff. There were swarms of people, my goodness!

Holden was finished before we even started:

10 minutes before we were to leave!

He rallied and we were on our way…

Perpetual mouthful of candy!

LOVE, love, love the red door on this house…

Holdy was always about 3 houses behind the group, but would catch up every now and then…

We had a great time and all was well and good until we got separated and Elliott began to worry about me {she was with her friends and my mom and Jay and I were with Holden}. Apparently she thought I was “lost” and then saw a Sheriff’s car and thought that maybe I’d gotten picked up since I told her I was an escaped inmate! Oops!

We had our annual Halloween chili and cornbread for dinner and enjoyed cobbler with the fresh peaches we picked a couple weeks ago. The cobbler was a breeze to make and turned out much better than I thought it would. Here is the recipe I followed.

This year’s ghoulish cocktail was “swamp water“…

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We kept ours green, but you can add a touch of grenadine or blue curaçao to change up the color {as seen in the above pic}. Personally, I thought it was just fine the way it was. This is the perfect group cocktail to make in a big bowl with lots of ice and a ladle and people can serve themselves.

Already looking forward to next year and planning my costume! I’ve been missing out all these years…

I Must Say, I Do Love The Color Orange

Well, I decided to dress up this year thanks to my friend, Hollie.

While at her place the other day, she pulled out a big box of costumes…

…this is what I chose…

Any questions?

I’m sure there are a gazillion more appropriate costumes, but I had fun with it and we had a blast trick-or-treating in a new neighborhood.

SO glad I was able to {escape} for the night!

More to come tomorrow, of course.

Hope your Halloween was spooktacular!

Somewhere Over The Rainbow

It wasn’t an easy task, but we got little Dorothy to the yellow brick road this morning!

She apparently woke up on the wrong side of the bed {could’ve had something to do with a twister!?!} and didn’t want braids and complained of the costume itching…

But, she pulled it together and made the cutest little Dorothy Gale!

Complete with a green Toto…

Checking out a rainbow?

She’s sporting a little yellow rosette, too, to symbolize the yellow brick road!

And those shoes….

…there’s no place like {HOME}!

Meanwhile, Holden was parading around as a candy corn at his preschool…

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Click your heels three times, relax and fantasize a little on this gorgeous {85*} Thursday!

The Ballerina & The Chicken

Well, it looks like it’s going to be a low maintenance Halloween.

Elliott wants to be a ballerina instead of Dorothy.

{wah!}

I really wanted her to skip around door-to-door in her ruby slippers and blue and white gingham dress, hair in braids and a little basket on her arm with Toto peeking out!

Oh well. She wants to wear her costume from June’s dance recital…

Remember this one?

I tried to tell her she could be a “Dorothy Ballerina” and wear a tutu under her blue and white gingham dress.

Uh. No. Not goin’ for it.

So a recycled dance recital ballerina it is!

Holdy will also be going green and recycling a hand-me-down chicken costume from Babystyle.

Man I miss that place. They had the BEST costumes.

Both my kiddos were the peacock….LOVED that one!

{Google Images}

Of course, he will be an organic, free range, grass fed chicken.

There you have it.

The Aspiras’ are reducing, reusing and recycling this Halloween.

Done and done.

Looking forward to our annual pot o chili and jalapeño cornbread muffins after we trick-or-treat. Searching for my goulish cocktail for this year…last year’s was more like a trick, not a treat.

Any spooky suggestions for Halloween Happy Hour?

Happy Tuesday!

{F}alloween

Slowly but surely I’m getting the Halloween/Fall cheer spread around the house.

Even trying to keep it simple, it’s still a challenge to get it up!

I DESPISE those spider webs, but think they add so much to the haunted house feel that I put a few up anyway.

{doormat from kohl’s for super cheap}

{little wrought iron stand at the front door…the owl is something that i remember from when i was a young girl. it was always out in our yard and last time we were in san diego, it flew into our car to come and live with us! my mom said she’s had it since before i was born ~ i love, love, love it!}

{cozy couch…this couch was my grandmother’s cousin’s…she is now 101 years old and has passed it along to us. again, i love it. she couldn’t remember when or where she got it, but i know it’s quite old. i adore the shape and the rolled arms}

{this little secretary was a surprise gift from my dad to my mom. he told her that some “wood” was going to be delivered for a project…then this came to the door! again, this piece has been in the family since before i came along. when my mom downsized 10 years ago, i jumped at the chance to adopt it}

{spider webs on the mantel along with sweet birthday wishes from friends & family}

{i won this cute little pumpkin jar at my friend angie’s baby shower like 15 years ago ~ her son is now in high school and a big football star! oh man i feel old…every year i put goodies in it, but am trying to refrain this year. we’ve already gone through a bag of candy corn}

{buffet table runner from target for super cheap after halloween a couple years ago. the little candle lampshade thingy is from bath and body works a million years ago.}

{this fun little cabinet is also from cousin dorothy. i keep all our “fancy” stemware and barware in it}

{these little sconces were from a friend for my birthday like 10 years ago…from costco. i LOVE them! i fill them with different things throughout the year. for elliott’s birthday one year i just filled them with giant colored gumballs and it added some pizzazz to her party. the possibilities are endless with these things and i can’t imagine my walls without them}

{seriously, these are the energizer bunnies of flora! they have been going strong for over a week now. not a brown petal to be found yet. i love the sunflower & coffee bean combo}

{home fragrance burner from the body shop…today i am burning “sweet maple”. i love it, but it makes me want to devour a plate of pancakes}

{busted! as i write this post, a little rascal jumped on the couch where he’s not supposed to be}

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That’s about all I’m going to put up this year.

I may or may not have seen a few cobwebs while decorating, but I think if there is ANY month you can get away with them, it’s certainly October, right?!?

Hope you’ve been having fun haunting out your house! The kids love to see what all the neighbors have done as we walk to and from school each day.

I just wish the weather was a little more Fallish!

Have a {wicked} Wednesday!

{It is Wednesday, right?}

XOXO