Thought I’d drop by and say hi October 26, 2009

I had a whole long post written and it disappeared into the ether so I’m just going to say that I lost my aunt over the weekend. I miss her already but I know she’s in a better place now. She lost her battle with cancer. Or maybe she finally won in the only way she could- she’s at peace now. Its the rest of us left behind who have lost someone dear to us but I like to think we’ve only lost contact for the time being. I know I’ll see her someday and that she and my other aunt and gramma are up there watching over us right now. I wish I had gotten a chance to say goodbye. I let fear hold me back. A good friend told me to ask her if she’d had a good life and I would like to believe the answer was yes. I know the part she played my life was good and I will miss her.

 Do not stand at my grave and weep,
I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am in a thousand winds that blow,
I am the softly falling snow.
I am the gentle showers of rain,
I am the fields of ripening grain.
I am in the morning hush,
I am in the graceful rush
Of beautiful birds in circling flight,
I am the starshine of the night.
I am in the flowers that bloom,
I am in a quiet room.
I am in the birds that sing,
I am in each lovely thing.
Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there. I do not die.                                                                                                                                                                                         

          -Mary Frye 1932

Back so soon? October 24, 2009

Why yes yes I am! I just dropped by for a few minutes because I’ve been feeling guilty of neglecting you dear blog. I have had readers galore due to the mix up that comes about from a post titled “Michelin man costume?” but unfortunately none of them have stuck around because it wasn’t actually a Michelin man costume. (as I mentioned last time around)

I do have some pictures of my more finished Halloween costume tho and I’ll share a few of them. This is photography stuff so they’re posed and I have some of the J’s too due the fact that we all took a trip to the cemetery to take these pictures.

This shot is one of my favorites altho it was one of the worst to sit for- the top of that tombstone is not even close to level and it was hard on the butt.

This one of the girls really makes me smile. I was trying to get a shot where they looked like they were conspiring together and I think I managed just that. They were so great about dressing up to go take pictures on a very cold day.

This one really shows the whole costume which I like. The shawl conveniently was one I bought when we were living in Mexico a couple of years ago. I bought two for myself (they were 12 or 13 bucks) and one as a Christmas present for my stepmom and I have loved them ever since. They’re a nice thick warm fabric with a lovely crocheted edging and since I am the tomboy that I am I can grab them in a pinch when I don’t have a nice jacket to wear over something like this.

I can’t help but wonder tho what the people who saw me pumping gas in this outfit thought….

Peekaboo… October 19, 2009

Okay so I’ll be honest. I’ve mostly disappeared from my blog due to Facebook. Strangely enough as Halloween (also known as my favorite holiday) draws nigh, I have had more and more visits to my very neglected blog. Sadly tho none of the visitors have stayed because what they were looking for I didn’t actually have to show. Namely I had no Michelin Man costumes. That’s right folks- the only reference to the Michelin man on this blog was actually aimed at my sister in law’s Renaissance Festival costume. Sorry to disappoint all of you but there it is.

I do have some pictures for you of random bits and bobs from the last month that I’ve been gone.This is my fireplace mantle in the main living room (our house has a double fireplace thats open on both sides witha  double living room as well) I added a streamer like you’d find at any party store that has been cut like paper dolls into the shape of bats. (not pictured are the red ones that look like blood dripping cut from red crepe paper streamers) The hanging skulls are from the dollar store and everything else lives on the mantle year round. The dolls are art dolls that I made a couple of years ago and the wine glasses came from a thrift store still in their original box. The picture is my mom’s original artwork. This small decoration makes me grin every time I see it.

I’ve been working on decorating our basement a little at a time for our Halloween party. I’d show you pictures but this blog posts to my facebook account and since I want it to be a surprise for as many guests as possible you’ll have to wait til afterwards.

 Jarell is still in Virginia and won’t be home in time for the party but at this point I’ll be happy if he makes it home for Thanksgiving because things have been going really bad for them out there. Its going to be rough waiting even that long for him to come home but the money is really needed after this summer with no work and when he gets home we hope he’ll have made enough to take the winter off which would be nice since he works outside in the cold.

This little church was a dollar store find as well. It was a paint your own Christmas village type of church that I mangled with a bead rasper and painted in spooky colors. Really simple  to do and a quick cute way to have some spookier decorations without spending 50 bucks a piece on the Halloween villages that they sell at Michael’s.