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The Queen of Halloween...

My friend, Janet, that is..and she has a sign to prove it...

 

You may remember I mentioned we went to a party at her house last Saturday..actually the party was outside, but I snuck in for a few pictures to share..she decorates for Halloween like some people decorate for Christmas..lol...

Her dining room was all set for any ghouls that may stop by...I mean, really, have you ever seen Royal Doulton china mixed with skulls, black candles, and spiderwebs? It was delightful...

 

and on her buffett, "Twisted Treats", "Rotten Sweets", and a few eyeballs if you have a craving...

 

a few crows had flown in to join the party...

 

and then in her guest bathroom, just a few cute little things here and there..I LOVE her guest bath..isthat weird? they turned an old chest of drawer type thing into the sink and it's just neat..love all her little touches..

 

I almost had to stick this candle in my purse and act like I had no idea what happened to it when she realized it was missing..lol...

 

Her mantle..it's kindof hard to see, but those little figurines are the cutest things you've ever seen..she got them at that cool store I mentioned awhile back called "The Vintage Flea"..I remember when she got them..she went crazy over them and kept going back and buying more and sneaking them in her house..naughty girl...but they ARE THAT CUTE..very quirky, which she and I are all about quirky decorations...I wouldn't mind a few myself..click to see the pictures larger...

 

 

I need this pumpkin to have out all year..I've been a tad "witchy" lately..ha...seriously, I've got to stop yelling at my kids so much..but dang, they are some hard headed kids...however, I digress...

 

 

This little guy is super cool..he had different colored lights inside and fades from one color to the next on the inside..and look at those cupcakes! Believe me, Chaz was all over those..

 

Alex's playhouse was all decked out too and it was so funny..after it got dark, the kids had one of those "spooky soundtracks" BLASTING from inside it..screams, wolves howling, chains rattling,ghost sounds..it was hilarious...

 

 

 

Some of the girls..me, Janet (next to me) and the two blonds in the middle back have been friends for a long time..great, great girls..back in the day before kids, we used to do a supper club every month and it was so fun..those were fun days...and I met the blond on the end (on the left)through Janet and shes' awesone too, and the brunette in the back is Janet's sister, and the girl on the end on the right is a mom of one of Alex's friends that I didn't meet until this party...

 

and I thought I would end this post with this warning on Halloween...

"What happens when Trick or Treaters eat too much candy"..haha..

 

Have a fun Halloween...!

gotta get to bed..busy day tomorrow..taking Bailey to the downtown square for trick or treating with several other Mom-friends and then to lunch at my friend Joanne's house..and then we're out again tomorrow night for more candy..Chaz and Bailey are psyched, let me tell you..and I'm dreading the "Mommy, I want some candy" multiple requests that are going to be happening..ugggh..and then Chaz has a race on Saturday..and then church, out to lunch for my Mother in laws bday, and then straight to my photo shoot on Sunday..busy busy...

Crafty...

Been getting some layouts done...(click all of them to see them larger..hate that the pictures NEVER look clear like they are in real life..just can't figure that out?)

First one is for my Cathy Z class ..this is actually from last week's assignment..I'm running a tad bit behind...

 

Journaling reads: In my opinion, the best part of camping is gathering around the campfire together. We sit and stare, we talk, we snuggle, we roast marshmellows and hot dogs, Brad pokes at it to keep it going, we yell at the kids to not get too close to it, we get warm by it. Brad is the best fire builder too, so we are lucky. This is why I think camping in the cool weather far outweighs camping in the hot weather. I'm all about cozy.

Lately, especially with these class assignments, I've really been thinking "what story do I want to tell"? I'm over making the just pretty pages for the most part and want to spend my time telling about something, not just showing pretty pictures...Ali Edwards talks about that a lot in her books and blog when she's doing her layouts and mini books..she figures out what stories she wants to tell first and then finds pictures, etc..I like that idea..and by the way, she has been getting me way inspired with the mini books she's been showing on her blog..there's a Halloween album that I'm in love with and she's starting to put together her December album..LOVE that idea and may try it...love the way she just tells the story for the day or event or whatever..go to her blog if you want to get way inspired! Her projects are just so full of life, bits and pieces of cool stuff, and so interesting to look at..she will forever be my most favorite scrapbooker ever...  :)

Ok, back to layouts..here's the first installment in Chaz's school album, you know the one I talked about a while back that will have two spreads per grade?...I used one of the rectangular photo collage templates from here for that left page..and I hated his school picture from last year (well, it was good of him, but the background was taaaaaaaaacky), so I  used his first/last day pictures...from now on, I plan to use his school picture...each picture in the collage is numbered and then I talk about it on that little strip of paper...love how this turned out...used Scenic Route paper for all this and that little owl I cut off the back of one of his little reading books they would send home...

 

and on this layout, I also used one of the photo collage templates in 8x8...and that butterfly I ran through my Cuttlebug and used the Swiss Dots folder to emboss it..LOVE...

 

another thing I wanted to share was Saturday night before we went to the party at Janet's, I wanted some kind of festive pin for my jacket, so I whipped this up with some scrapping supplies hot glued together..it was the first thing my friends commented about when I walked up..lol...

 

and one more funny little thing..yesterday was really cold and windy here, so we let Buster into the house to hang and warm up for a little while..I had put this old beach towel down for him to lay on..well. I had heard Bailey off in the distance saying something about him needing a pillow...later, when I went walking by, I saw this..she had put one of my nice sofa pillows for Buster to lay his head on..excuse me? that stinky little dog, bless his heart, does not get need one of my topiary pillows to get his hair all over..but it was funny because Bailey worries about things like that..she's pretty sweet most of the time...ha..

 

ok, gotta get my booty moving..see ya...

So cute, it's scary...

(ok, doing this post for the second time...typepad ate the last one..spooky...)

So, anyways, here are my little goblins all decked out in their Halloween finery...

Her Highness, complete with real make up, high heels, hair spray, and the signature Snow White red ribbon in her hair...

  

   

(the make up became an issue when we were getting ready to go, they were all loaded up in the van and she realized that she had forgotten "Baby" and started crying..so I had to jump out, go back in the houe, grab Baby, and makeup remover and powder for touch up because she had mascara down her face..uggh..lol)

and my Superhero, Spiderman, saving the world and catching bad guys in his web...

 

 

and holy cow, I got a picture of BOTH of them together, standing close to each other..!! crazy, I know..

 

ok, gotta run, back later...

My girl at the beach...

So, I finally edited the pictures of Bailey from the beach...and here's a few...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ha, this next one cracks me up..a tad bit Shirley Temple, isn't it?  

 

the condo we stayed in had floor to ceiling windows in the bedroom, so it made for nice lighting for pictures...

 

and then the guys joined us because they were ready to go eat, but not before a few races down the beach...

and I promise I took just normal beach pictures too..will get to those soon...

sigh...off to Walmart for groceries..we're out of everything..don't you hate that?

We're some pretty dang good pumpkin carvers, if I say so myself...

    

(click to see full size) 

and really, pumpkin carving isn't really a kid's activity..we wouldn't let them touch anything because everything was sharp..however, we did offer a hand full of pumpkin guts, but that didn't get much response..Bailey, being the brave one, did touch and smell them though..ha...

anyways, I was pleasantly surprised at how good they came out..we did use templates, I have to admit..our new single guy neighbor, Jason, brought us over a pumpkin and a carving kit with templates..he's cool like that..I do take him lots of food on a regular basis though, and that makes him happy..glad to have someone to pass off our leftovers to...

and I have to say the smell of pumpkin innards brought back Halloween childhood memories from when my parents and I used to carve pumpkins..even had to call my Mom and tell her that..weird, I know...

We're all tired now from our day's activites..Bailey was the most beeeeautiful Snow White today and Chaz the coolest Spiderman even though he complained about the head cover the whole time...and we had a great time at Janet's..many pictures to share...

(and yes, I'm obsessed with these vintage digital frames and words from Designer's Digital..sorry, you'll just have to get over it because I love them..lol)

Night...

Our little buddy...

 

He's getting old...we love him..and he gobbled that pancake up in two seconds flat..that's why he looks so tense in the up close picture..he really just wanted his pancake...lol...

FINALLY!...

A company created pants THAT FIT ME!! So I felt inclined to share about them in case you have difficulty finding pants that fit..my problem is that I have a very small waist and a, ahem, voluptuous behind and hips..basically, I'm pretty pear shaped..and finding pants that fit my booty and hips and that don't have a huge gap in the waist is pretty darn difficult..I hate wearing belts and usually the waist just gets all bunched up under the belt anyways...

SO, I went to Kohl's ( I love Kohl's..you just can't beat the deals there) the other day and the clouds parted and the angels sang when I tried these on..bought, ummm, several pairs..I think I've mentioned before that when I find something that fits, I buy in just about every color..no one notices that your pants are the same...and they had funky jeans with good pockets that ride a little lower on your behind..not all up high that make your butt look bigger and wider...now, I know that some of you may think the brand Lee is for dorks, but people, they have updated..and the pants version of these wonderous things have NON BULKEY pockets and not real back pockets although there's a flap that looks like a pocket..my mom and I are weird about pockets and cut them out of most of our pants unless they are the good kind of pocket, you know, the nice flat slit pocket at the top..cause when you have hips, you don't need extra bulk...and the leg is nice and straight to the bottom..the kind that look perfect with the pointy boots with heels that you can dress up some if you need to..our church is very casual, so that's all I really wear..and then bust out a really good accessory like a hot necklace ( I bought a few of those on clearance too) and you're good...and they have this band built into the waist that keeps them from gapping and makes them fit just right..not the old lady elastic waistband, people, ..really you can't even see it, but it's cutting edge technology, I'm telling you...

These totally follow the "What Not to Wear" guidelines for a good fit...NO TAPERED LEG PANTS LADIES.. and they are just a tad boot cut..but not the kind that cling to the back of your thigh which I have a problem with...just a nice straight leg all the way to the floor and flair just the tiniest amount at the bottom...

See why I hate to go shopping? it's a major ordeal..but when I find something good like this, it makes my days go so much better cause I know that what I'm putting on for the day fits and looks good and is comfortable and not all gapping in the waist or too tight etc...

OK, so here's the tag from the pants..run to your nearest Kohl's and grab several pair..they were on sale for like $25...my friend Meredith did..we are built alike, except she's taller than me (see, I have to battle with the being really short thing too), and I always call her when I find pants that fit well..she went and bought three pair of them right then..lol...

 

I agree, the most comfortable pant you'll ever wear...lol..

In other news, fun weekend ahead...trick or treating at the Avenue tomorrow (a local shopping area) and then over to my friend Janet's house for a Halloween party..remember I mentioned a while back that she is the Halloween Queen and her house is to die for when she has all of her decorations up..not tacky decor..COOL DECOR..so lots of pictures to come...

and right now, Brad has gone for pizza to bring home cause it's cold and rainy here (LOVE that weather every now and then) and then we're carving pumpkins...should be interesting...

Have a good weekend!

Edited to add: Just wanted to clarify that they not only have jeans, but also solid pants in black, brown, khaki, a dressier jean like fabric, etc...

Today's her birthday...

 

My mom looks good for 28, doesn't she? HA...

Bailey and I took her out to lunch yesterday to celebrate...

Hope you have a great day Mother! We love you!

Anyone interested in a photo session this Sunday afternoon, the 26th...

I had someone have to reschedule, so email me if interested...

I just couldn't resist...

I had to start editing my friend Meredith's pictures...I mean, will you look at this little girl? Pure perfection..snaggle tooth and all...there are so many good ones...she melts my heart...

 

 

 

 

Is that outfit adorable or what?

 

 

 

Funny little story..We've always called Perrin "P" since she was a baby...she used to be "Baby P"..well, I just call her that all the time..and while we were out by ourselves, I said something to the effect of "P, come over here and do this" or something like that, and she most politely, in the sweetest little voice said "um, Ms Heather, I like Perrin better"...and I thought, oh no, she's growing up!! Sorry "P", I'll try to remember to call you Perrin in the future, but inside, you will always be "P" to me, love...  :)