And We're Done!

 So, I am at the point where I know my Halloween decorations have been up awhile because they are starting to get dusty. Luckily, I am leaving tomorrow and by the time I get home, Halloween will need to come down and Thanksgiving will go up...so, I don't actually feel an overwhelming need to start cleaning. Lol

There really isn't a lot left to show you so let's get going. In the guest bath, I didn't put up my Halloween shower curtain this year. I love that thing but this was my nod to starting to "simplify".  Lol

Then, even though I can never get a good picture, there are a few nods in my bedroom because I just can't leave out any of our cute pictures from years past.

And, as always just a bit in the master bath...not all that impressive but it makes me feel good.

And look where the other two funnel jack-o-lanterns ended up.

So I think that officially ends this year's Halloween tour. I can't wait to share my adventures in St. Pete with you when I get home. Unless things are different this year, you can get ready for a definite photo overload. See you then. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Another One for the Memory Books

 

 What a special day I had yesterday! While it was quite different from all of the years past when all of the grandchildren would be here for the holiday weekend for fun at Nana and Papa's house, yesterday started out with just Presley and me. I went over to her house and we did a bit of menu planning. Since, at this point, we thought it would just be the two of us, we went pretty simple. After shopping we picked up Hazel (a Golden) and headed to my house. Of course, since this was pretty extemporaneous, I hadn't even thought of a craft idea but, since we were going to make some simple cookies for dessert, we fell back to our old stand-by, the napkin decoupaged plate. This child has done this so many times she could probably do it in her sleep. lol

Then ,we were off to make the cookies. In reading the recipe before hand, we failed to see that the dough needed to go into the fridge for at least two hours-and more would be better-before cutting. We didn't have the luxury of that much time so we decided to put it in the freezer for a bit-what harm could that do? I seem to never remember that baking is a science and NOT to be messed with. The cutting of the cookies went well but the baking part just did not. We couldn't seem to get them baked all of the way no matter how long they were in the oven. They came out very cute but ended up tasting like Play-Doh. I did highlight that part of the recipe in the RARE instance that we would want to make these again. Lol!!

Somewhere along the way, we found out that dad and brother would be back from their out-of-town lacrosse tournament in time to join us for dinner (my daughter is in NC at the High Point furniture mart so we were missing her and Har who is off at college in CT) so we got busy on that. Again, since we thought it would just be the two of us, we went pretty simple but thankfully I had planned enough for left-overs to send to the boys so we were good. We made "eyeball" spaghetti, mummy garlic bread and Halloween salad. It actually all turned out delicious!

We decided that Hazel had to get into the picture taking fun. She was actually a good sport about wearing that little witch hat. She even gave me lots of kisses to prove that there were no hard feelings. Lol

I have to remind myself that Halloween is still more than two weeks away so there are lots of fun things still to come but for now, Halloween at home is pretty much done. I will be spending the rest of the week getting all of my "witchy" outfits ready and the house all caught up so I can head out of town. I'll be back at least once before I leave so I can finish our tour. Stay safe and stay tuned.
 

 

And the Rains Came!

Be careful what you wish for! We have needed rain for awhile but boy did we finally get it! We are getting the fallout of the latest storm that came across the Gulf. We have had two tornado warnings already this morning and looks like we will be on "watch" for awhile longer. My pool that was quite low on water-I really should have added some but I read about the predictions and figured if they knew what they were talking about, it would take care of itself...and I was right. I just checked it and it is almost too high to skim. Feast or famine!?

In any case, I also just heard from daughter #1 and it seems as if she will be heading here today instead of tomorrow if the weather breaks. And then, I also heard from grand daughter #5 and it looks like she will be here for the weekend. So, I thought I would go ahead and take you to the family room while I have a few minutes. I changed up a bit in here and I think I like it.

I love this little witch that was made for me by a friend many years ago. Every time I take her out I am amazed by the detail that she always put into every piece she made...look at the shading on the tiny pumpkins...and the border on her dress...and that face. I think she must have used a brush that didn't have more than one bristle-her strokes are unbelievably small!

I love the Halloween Ouija board tray that I found at Target a few years back. The funny thing is that I had just seen a vignette using a Ouija board and was on the look out for one. When I saw this, I knew it was what I needed-you know I'm a sucker for black and orange and I can always use another tray. Lol

I changed up the mantle a bit. I took off the two electric candelabra and found other places for them. I then put the new, large black urn full of the preserved leaves on one end and an old black vase with the dead branch on the other. The plan had been to put a raven on that branch-and I still might if I see one-but, I used all of the smaller ones I have left. I do have a really large one but he just looked silly and kind of distracted from the "witch" mantle.

The other thing that I am not completely sold on is the placement of the broom on the mirror. Last year it was higher and the witch boots hung below. But, try as I might this year, I couldn't get them to hang that way. And so, I gave up and thought I'd catch it another day...and I haven't. I think if I didn't know I would be gone so long, I might just drag the ladder back in and see what I could do. But, right know the urge hasn't moved me. Lol

I still love my clock from Grandin Road clock that "strikes 13" and lights up and makes unbelievable noises but I try to remember to turn him off when I'm home alone because he is sound activated and catches me off guard all the time!

 And I still love my knock-off Grandin Road wreath so much! He is definitely a keeper.

So that is the family room for this year. Just saw somewhere the weather is supposed to get pretty bad again this afternoon so I guess I'm off to wind down some pool umbrellas so they don't end up down the street. Lol Then, I think I'll start planning some Halloween food and crafts for this weekend just in case we go in that direction! 

I'm going to try to get back before I head out of town. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Thought I would give you a glimpse of what this room looks like all lit up at night. I can never get a good picture once it turns dark but this might give you an idea of what I see from my vantage point.

I think I must be single-handedly keeping the Luminara Candle Co. in business. Every room in my entire house is lit by these candles at night. Guess maybe I'm keeping Duracell in business also. Lol

 

Tempus Fugit!

 Time definitely flies. I really hadn't planned on being back so quickly but, I looked at the calendar and, even though Halloween is still a bit away, once I head off I won't be able to add any posts until I get home-which will be after the big day. And so, if I want to get my house tour done, there is no time like the present to move along. Let's head into the dining room today.

I love this table runner that I got at Bombay Co. so many, many years ago. I actually loved that store and all of their seasonal treasures. Lots of my favorites came from there. It doesn't hurt when you make friends with the manager. The closest store was an hour away so I only got in there when I was in Gainesville. The manager would actually call me and tell me when things were being marked down and I would either hustle up there or he would put them on hold for me. I miss those days. Sigh...but, I digress. In any case, this beaded runner with the dimensional spider is just perfect!

I added the empty picture frames thinking maybe it would give more of an old, attic feel full of old family photos. Not sure I'm sold just yet but it is what it is...for now.

I switched up the bar area just a bit. I left the window frame and leaned the tray up against it. That way I had a bit more surface room to add the new wine bottle holder I was gifted last year. I just randomly put him where you see him and someone pointed out to me that it was "genius" where I put him. I actually just placed him there until I could purchase a new bottle of wine that was a bit more "Halloweeny" than the white wines usually in my house. Lol I truly had no idea what she meant until I saw it through her eyes-it looks like the skeleton has his hands up to catch the wine possibly spilling from the bottle in the tree (which, I just realized, is also from Bombay). In any case, I no longer feel the need to hunt down a bottle of red wine-and I'm feeling like the genius I was credited with. Lol

So that is it for the dining room. I'm off to talk to my pool guy-it seems as if the pool timer has died-right along with my Dyson vacuum and the outlet on my gazebo! Good times! And, I'm keeping my fingers crossed for the latest update on my grand dog, Bruno. He spent all of yesterday in Gainesville at the ER Vet clinic where he ended up having a VERY long and, as it turned out, very complicated surgery to remove what they think may have been a lanyard with a metal clip and plastic tag removed. No one got to see him last night so we are all anxious to hear how he is doing today-and when he may get to come home. Pets in our family are family so this was a rough one but hopefully he will be home soon and will have learned his lesson-we shall see. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Yippeee!

I know it might not last forever just yet but I was finally able to throw open all of the windows this morning and feel a true bit of autumn in the air! It is really just a beautiful day here so before I head out and see what's happening in the yard, I thought I would take you through the next room on our tour-the kitchen. Come on in.

I'm loving my new gift of the vintage image towels.

I honestly don't remember where I got this menu sign-maybe $Tree last year or maybe someone else picked it up for me?-but I think it's pretty appropriate for my kitchen. It could use a little make-over-and that might happen-just not yet. Lol

Here is where one of the funnel jack-o-lanterns ended up.

So that is the kitchen for this year...not a lot to say I guess. Most of it is pretty much as it has been. One of these days I'm really going to shake up all of my decor -just not this year! I have so much "stuff" that the thought of just piling it all up somewhere and starting from scratch is a bit overwhelming. Perhaps even scarier than Halloween! Lol

I had some unexpected company yesterday-my 2 local grand dogs came over for the day. Daughter #3 and her family made a quick decision to head up to the UF Homecoming game and didn't want to leave the puppers alone for so long so they came here with me. Hazel (the Golden) is here all of the time and she fits in just perfectly and is really fun to have. Bruno (their new rescued Labradoodle) has never been here. He knows me from being at their house but he is only a year old and BIG, so I wasn't sure what to expect for his first visit. I will say, he is "no Hazel". She sticks to my side like glue while he was busy checking everything out-which is truly only what one would expect him to do. But, he is truly a sweet dog-and almost as easy as his sister. He is pitch black so he's not easy to keep track of outside at night but other than that, he too was a joy and I'm pretty sure they will be back again soon. I watched my grandson's football game on my IPad propped up in my bed and this was my company for those 3 1/2 hours.

Time to get a move on. After the yard work, I'm going to make another pot of my favorite Martha Stewart vermicelli vegetable soup. I guess I'm optimistic that maybe autumn is here to stay...we shall see. Stay safe and stay tuned.