Happy Halloween!

It's Halloween and it's snowing again!!!

Thanks to our crazy weather we didn't get to make another trip to the pumpkin patch, so these two will have to do. It's tempting to carve them as Burt and Ernie.

At least they're large!

Burt and Ivy like to treat pumpkin carving as a spectator sport.

Now, what looks best?  Old school candles . . .

. . . or multi-colored, flashing lights?

The candles won for now, at least until the snow turns into rain, ha!

Looks like there's more shoveling to do before the Trick or Treating gets started.

Ivy decided to dress up as a seasonally appropriate witch and Burt followed suit as a pirate. It's 34°F now but it did stop snowing! We are going to have lots of leftover candy bars. 

Their short trip around the neighborhood did yielded quite a haul of treats.

Peaches, huh? Imagine that!

Stay safe and have a Happy Halloween! 

Cupcake House

So soon?

After seeing this decorating kit on several trips to Home Goods, I finally gave into temptation and bought it. At least it was on clearance when it landed in my cart.

Since Halloween is tomorrow, there's no time to waste!

First, Ivy needs some coffee to enjoy while decorating the cupcakes. 

Naturally, Burt is planning on enjoying himself, too.

So is Ivy adding a secret ingredient? Yes, but it's just vanilla! Ha!

All finished. Oops! Not! Forgot the sprinkles!

Now, where is this cute box going to go?

Just what we need, another sugar rush! Are you ready for Halloween?

Thanks for stopping by! 

Lights and Snow

Nooooooooooo!!!

Seriously? This wasn't supposed to happen! Was it?

I'm afraid this is going to be one of those wintry Halloweens and the only fall color will be a faint glow of orange coming from lights buried in snow.

In order to get our minds off the unfortunate turn the weather has taken, His Madness and I decided to go for a drive tonight to check out the spooky decorations around town.

There are a lot of different themes but cemeteries are the most popular.

Isn't this a creative use of light-up skulls? The ghost seems pretty happy to have so many friends.

I'm not exactly sure what this is supposed to be but it's probably another haunted cemetery.

Inflatables are very popular. I feel sorry for this stressed out pumpkin!

These guys were definitely from a different store.

On the north side of some streets the snow still hasn't melted but these skeletons don't seem to mind.

Looks like its garbage day tomorrow, too. This is most like going to be an interesting Halloween!

Thanks for stopping by!

Ivy and Burt Make a Spooky Wreath

 It's getting very close to the big night and I need more pumpkins!

Preferably without so many warts.

A couple weeks ago, Ivy found a lot of really spooky, fake flowers on sale at Michael's.

So she stocked up even though she wasn't sure what she was going to do with them.

Eventually she decided to use them in a wreath.

Unfortunately, there weren't quite enough flowers to complete the wreath. So, with time running out, she decided to use whatever she could find around the house.

Then Ivy remembered the black feather boa she was wearing to keep warm!

It was more than enough to fill up the empty spaces on the wreath.

Burt thought his chain was a better idea and would make it more creepy.

Ivy disagreed.

After finishing the wreath, Ivy is thinking it could also use a nice, big bow and some lights.

Burt thinks it's working perfectly for him!

Thanks for stopping by! 

Potions by Ivy

Time flies when you're committed to doing a blog post everyday!

Ivy has been searching for a potion to put Burt to sleep. Not forever! Although he is technically already dead, being a skeleton and all. He just needs a good night's sleep.  

She definitely will not be using this plant! Aconite, aka Monks Hood or Wolf's Bane, is the only perennial currently blooming in our garden. In folklore it has a reputation for making witches soar. Definitely not what Burt needs. Plus, it's a deadly poison! Seriously, when it's time to cut it back in the fall, I make sure to wear gloves and put the dead stalks in the garbage instead of the compost. Eating it is lethal and touching those pretty purple flowers can leave a nasty rash.

After ruling out deadly herbal remedies from the garden, Ivy has decided on a few things that might cure Burt's insomnia.

She's pretty sure his affliction is psychosomatic so she gave him an all natural elixir made from the sap of the maple tree. It just happens to be great on pancakes, too!

    Burt thought it was really tasty.

Then she gave him these . . . pills.

Knowing Burt was never going to refuse Halloween candy! He looks better already.f      

So why is it so serious that Burt isn't able to sleep? It's not like he has a job but he does have a big night of haunting coming up and needs to be in shape! Apparently, too much caffeine is the culprit. Looks like the real cure will be a witches brew of plain old decaf, ha!

RIP Burt!

Thanks for stopping by!

Brown Bag Burt

It's getting closer!!!

The green tomatoes we picked before the frost are starting to ripen.

As usual, Spenser was skeptical that wrapping up green tomatoes in newspaper and storing them in a paper bag with an apple, would really ripen them.  

He was wrong but then he is a cat. It really does work but not if you forget about them.

By Thanksgiving they could turn into mush. 

Since the tomatoes that were in this bag are all ripe, Burt decided to have a little fun with it before it was relegated to the recycling bin.

Ivy is easily entertained.

So, what are you going to do with all those ripe tomatoes, Burt?

Ok, this looks familiar.

It's Burt's Extra Spooky Chili! 

Thanks for stopping by!