An Invitation from the Witch Herself!

I have just posted my Halloween decorations - the Witch's Lair - on my creative blog, Out of the Attic. They are better than ever. Come take a peak,

if you dare!!!

http://atticgals.blogspot.com/2010/10/witchs-lair-dead-ahead.html

Cast of Characters

Sheriff Luke, the hero of the story, rides into town on his handsome steed.

The Great Calebdini amazes his audience with a flick of the wrist and a few magic words.  Ta Da!
Indiana Dylan, rescues a priceless golden idol from the Nazis.  All in a day's work.

The dread pirate Derek Sparrow is cursed to become a skeleton in the light of the moon.

Nate Kazem protects the holy grail and helps Indiana Jones.

Alex, the dead mortician finally gets a dose of his own medicine.

I, Elphaba, aka the Wicked Witch of the West, cast a spell on my true love turning him forever into...
the scarecrow.  

That's the cast of characters.  With such a cast, you can only imagine the story we can tell.

All Hallow's Eve

On Halloween night my little goblins went to haunt my parents' house for some spooky food and trick or treating fun.

We have a tradition of making a freaky food meal every Halloween.  This year my new dish was Mummy Meatloaf.  Isn't he great?  I made a meatloaf, but instead of putting it into loaf pan, I formed it into a rounded lump on a baking pan and covered it with a ketchup/brown sugar/mustard sauce.  After is was cooked I wrapped my mummy head with cooked lasagna noodles, that I had cut the ruffles off.  The eyes are mozzarella balls and black olives.  Now, let me just say that I am not a meatloaf lover like my husband, but I thought this recipe was really, really moist and tasty (it was probably all the brown sugar in the sauce!  I'm a sucker for sugar.)  I will not be waiting until next Halloween to make this meatloaf again (but I'll probably make it the traditional way - loaf pan, no bandages, no eyeballs.)

We also served severed fingers. Finger lickin' good.

Mom made each of the boys a special Halloween treat - these darling little packages made out of TP tubes and tissue paper.  Very clever, Mom!

Taking Luke trick or treating was more trick than treat.  Let's just say that he isn't very efficient.  When we got to a house, he would hold up his hand to me and order me to "Stay there, Mom!"  He would not let me take him up the walkway.  I had to stay on the sidewalk.  Then he would say his trick or treat line which sounded more like "EEE EEE", and when the person tried to give him candy, he could never seem to get his bag open.  Then he'd ask for more candy and start talking to the people.  When the door closed he'd closely inspect EVERY Halloween decoration, pointing and exclaiming mock surprise. Then he'd wander around the yard, or start running back down the street the way we had come.  Sometimes, he'd just sit right there in the walkway, blocking the way for other trick or treaters until I came to get him, then he's take of running.  Halloween is so fun with a two year old.  His brothers were annoyed with the slow pace too, but Lukie was just so stinkin' cute galloping around in his cowboy and horse costume that is was OK.  Funny kid.  That's trick or treating with a two year old, and I'll never have to/ get to trick or treat with a two year old again, so I just enjoyed it.

Caleb is sweaty and tired, but look at that load of candy he collected!

Nate and Alex roaming the neighborhood in bloody surgical scrubs
After a long trick or treating trek around the the block, Luke finally settles down with his mummy.  It has been a great Halloween season, but I am exhausted and so glad it is over!  I will try not to need my witch hat until next year.

Kindergarten Carnival Magic

On Halloween all the kindergarteners went in the morning.  It was their annual Carnival!  All my boys have had a chance to attend this magical carnival when they were in kindergarten and it is such a treat for them.  The teachers and dozens of parents go ALL OUT to pull a rabbit out of a hat and give these little guys a really terrific Halloween.  It is one of the highlights of their year!

Caleb the Great was having a high time playing at the dozen or more booths.  Amazingly, every kid wins every game.  There is a lot of cheering and prizes and smiling.  No tricks, just treats!  Caleb had a great time and got loaded down with tons of prizes (most were not candy, thankfully.)

Here Caleb fishes at the fishing booth where I was working.  I got to hand out the poles and somebody else, poor thing, had to crouch in the booth to attach the "fish" to the poles.  Abracadabra!  There's a prize! 

The Great Calebdini and his lovely assistant, and teacher, Mrs. Cathcart.

How lucky we are that our kids have all been part of the same absolutely Amazing kindergarten program!  Kindergarten is the most wonderful age.  It's magical!  (Just like Caleb the Magician!)

Boo Bash!

On Thursday evening we went to the Boo Bash, the annual fundraiser at the boy's elementary school.  Caleb decided on a last minute costume change and went as a dragon.  Because I didn't want to be bothered with Luke's cowboy costume, he went in his Chinese outfit Dennis picked up for him in China.  He refused to wear his Chinese cap with the long black braid down the back.  He doesn't look very Chinese.  Oh well.

We were only there a few minutes before Caleb won himself a fish.  And at home the fish was in the turtle tank only a  few minutes before it became some tasty turtle sushi.  Poor Goldie.  Poor Caleb.  But he'll always have the memories.

So we buy tickets and pay to get in, and do the kids want to play at all the booths, go in the spook house, or eat?  No.  They go straight to the playground and play.  This is the same playground they can play in every lunchtime for free.  Here is Derek on the swings, after his hat and wig went flying.

Lukie was running around so fast I could barely manage to get a picture.  It took a lot of work to finally drag him, kicking and screaming, away from the playground.

Then Luke discovered this dancing/singing skeleton and he was completely enthralled.  He wold not walk away.  He stood there for a long time in utter amazement!  Every time the skeleton started dancing he would cheer and point like he had never seen anything like it before.  What a funny little man.

This is Alex.

Alex and Nathan weren't with us as we made our rounds through the carnival because they were both volunteering in the spook house.  They were so good and kind to serve their community my jumping out and scaring poor little kids half to death.  Those are my boys, always serving their fellow men.

Here is Nathan.  I had to go through the spook house with Luke in tow, so I could get pictures of my boys doing their thing.  As I walked through I had to keep calling "No scaring, please."  Luke was still scared by Alex in his mask.  When Alex lifted up his mask Luke was so happy "Its Alex!" he cheered - but he still wouldn't get close enough to take a picture with him.  

Luke was much happier in "Trick of Treat Lane," the un-spooky house for the little ones.  It was really darling.  

Welcome to the Witch's Lair

  OK, so I got just a TAD bit carried away with my Halloween decorations this year.  Maybe I wanted everyone who entered to know beyond a doubt that a witch lives here.

Care to come in, my little pretty, for a virtual tour of my lair?   Cackle Cackle Cackle

Weary?  Here is a nice comfortable chair on the porch.  Sit a spell.

I love the black weepy funeral wreaths on the doors.  Please, step inside.

My entryway is guarded by black crows on stone pedestals, a black cat, a gargoyle, and a huge back spider.  A warm welcome.

I made this darling "SPOOKY" pennant garland this week.  It is SO funky and fun, and was so easy with some fun papers and my new SU Big Shot.

My very FAVORITE vignette in my lair is the witches coat rack wall.

A long time ago I made this black rack with some antique glass doorknobs.  This year I used it to hold my hat, with an antique bone buckle, and cape, some antique black lace, a silhouette drawstring bag, striped witch stockings, some giant old skeleton keys with a tag that says "Dungeon Keys" on a black ribbon, a large rat, and a paper that says, "Save the Date, 10-31, Halloween"  Above it I found these 3 oval frames at a yard sale a few weeks ago, painted them black, and cut out silhouettes of a few witchy relatives.  I love them!

Don't you love my pumpkin glass ornaments on the chandelier?  I used to have a dozen, but each year a few get broken when my kids start swinging sticks on stuff around.  Now I'm down to 5.  BOO hoo.  Maybe I should cast a spell on those boys.

On the opposite wall of the entry way under the saying "Family is Everything" are the family portraits.  The family pose says "The Hal & Lou Ween Family" (on Dennis' side of the family- see the resemblance?).  The two portraits  change when you walk by from young,  to old, then to decayed corpse.  Super spooky, but they're family, so we gotta love them regardless.

The candy corn kept getting eaten out of my spider jar, so they have been replaced with wood candy sticks, ($5, TPT)

Another little vignette in the living room has some old books, a owl, a skull candle on a silver pedestal, and a bouquet of flowers.  I found the flowers at the dollar store and spray painted them black.  I found the candelabra years ago at a yard sale.  This year I sprayed it black, then I took old candles and dripped red candle wax on them to look like bleeding candles.  The orange boxes I printed off from the Internet.  They say "Tricks" and "Treats".

My new cat friend ($7 TPT) sits with my old book of spells on am old school desk.  Below is the fun pumpkiny pillow I picked up in Oregon.

Dine with me.  In the dining room is pretty creepy.  The centerpiece is a human skull under glass surrounded by vials, a mortar and pestle, and some ingredients I need to make my witch potions.  I know it's the dining room, but a witch has to work somewhere!

I have a bit of a bug problem.

On the sideboard I keep a Heart of a Champion, Extra Ears (you never know when you'll need them), and someone's Brain I picked once.  I'd love to pick yours!

Happy Halloween!