Anything can happen on Halloween.

Ever see The Worst Witch? I absolutely adore it! If you haven't, it's a must see for Halloween. As much as I love Harry Potter, I think J.K. Rowling totally ripped it off, I mean, was inspired by it.

In any event, Halloween around here is becoming as big of an event as Christmas. Friday was Lauren's school party /parade, last night was our second annual family bash and then tonight is tricks or treats. Lauren is going to be escorted by two young gentleman, both of whom she's pledged to wed. We haven't educated her about the anti-polygamy laws just yet, but we'll get to it.

In any event, on with the cavalcade of costumes!



Here is our little Jedi family. I've all but given up on getting some decent photos of Lauren in her Luke Skywalker costume. Darth Vader had to threaten to take her lightsaber away just to get her in this one shot.



Yes, we do realize that in the context of the Star Wars universe, that this is inappropriate, but in the context of our marriage, it's really good.



I wish I would have gotten a photo of him raking the leaves.



Aren't you a little short for a stormtrooper?



Witchy Poo Phyllis and her pig in a blanket, Craig.



Mel C doing her best Elphaba impersonation.



A witch getting her pig on.



The pig really gets around.



Would you let these people operate on you? I wouldn't - I happen to know that they're not wearing their glasses!



The Pink Lady and the Village Person.



Here's a Star Wars super fan and his long suffering wife.



Jack Shepard finally found a way off the island - he was rescued by Buzz Lightyear!

More photos can be seen on Flickr.

The 400th post.

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail. - Ralph Waldo Emerson









Fall is the best year EVER! - Lauren Ross

2010 Fall / Halloween Decorating

The blog has been getting several hits from individuals looking for fall decorating ideas, so it's about time that I put up some!

This year, dining room mantel decor is inspired by Edgar Allen Poe's, "The Raven." Still using the candlesticks as pedestals for the pumpkins and the black framed mirror is ever present, but there are a few new additions.



"The House of Usher" is a luminary from Bath and Body Works. I usually don't purchase things like this, but when I was placing my quarterly order, I couldn't resist because it was on sale for super cheap. I can't wait to put a candle inside it!



Although I keep all the banners that I make, I can't seem to use the same one twice! I really like how this one turned out - whimsical and foreboding all at once.



The idea for the candy corn tree came from Woman's Day. This was a family effort. Lauren helped me hot glue the candy corn to the branches (Girl is a pro with the glue gun!), and Mark spray painted the urn for me (I purchased it from Target several years ago and could never quite find a use for it. Now it has one!).



Here is our dining room centerpiece. Mark picked out the the fairytale pumpkin (Named, I assume, because it looks like Cinderella's carriage.). He feels that it looks fake because it's almost too perfect. I got the idea for the hurricanes from Pottery Barn. The little skulls came from the good ol'Dollar Tree (9 in a package).




Next is our side board. I just love my See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil Owls! For the life of me, I can't remember the name of the catalog that they came from. If I do, I will be sure to post the link. Anyway, the three of us went on two collecting expeditions in order to find a nice variety of leaves to display. They are clipped to an antique photo holder, another item that I've had trouble using effectively. The lanterns are from Pottery Barn, as is the idea to put gourds inside of them. I steal from them a lot - who can help it when they send us 20+ catalogs a year? It eventually gets into your subconscious!



Lastly, here's our minimally decorated front entrance. Mark thought the pumpkin on its side had fell over. So much for being unpredictable with my pumpkin display...

I love a parade.

Today was our town's annual Homecoming parade. It's the biggest event of the year in our community, and seemly everyone in town turns out wearing their gear to show support for our high school team.

This was the first year that Lauren had the opportunity to march in the parade. She could have marched with either her primary school or her dance school, but because she loves kindergarten so much, she chose to march with her school. I volunteered to march with her.

We arrived at the meeting place a half hour before the parade started so that we could queue up and get our big bag of candy to toss to the the parade onlookers. Lauren's school has a student body of around 300 kids, so I was disappointed when only around 15 kids showed up to march. Nonetheless, the low turnout gave Lauren the opportunity to carry the school banner.

Since Mark was going to be watching from the sidelines, I entrusted him with photog duties. This lead to a small freak out moment when the parade started. It went something like this:

OHMYGOD BAGPIPERS!! THERE'S BAGPIPERS! AND CLYDESDALES! MY CAMERA!! MY CAMERA!!!

So I pulled out my phone and sent him a text:

PLEASE TAKE GOOD PHOTOS FOR ME. LOVE, YOUR WIFE.

And I wasn't disappointed - Mark did a great job! He gets the credit for almost all of these photos.

So without further ado, he comes the parade!



This year's theme was "A Hero's Welcome." Our neighbor Ron, who is a veteran, was one of the flag bearers. He's in the middle carrying the State of Pennsylvania flag.



Here are the aforementioned clydesdales. The fearless leader of our group warned us to watch out for the poop. Nevertheless, one of the kids stepped in some just as we were at the end of the parade route. As we all let out a big groan, one of the onlookers yelled, "That's okay! It'll wash off!"



Here come the bag pipers - YAY!



So cool...



Like every parade, there were lots of vintage cars.



Mark wants to get one so that we can ride instead of walk. I think I'm going to investigate how your car qualifies. Maybe they'd let us ride in the MINI.



Speaking of mini, here are some mini cheerleaders.



Unlike that Phillies fan, these spandex men were welcome in the parade.



Here's one of the littlest marchers. Alumni march in the parade as well. The oldest was from the Class of '36 (Do the math!).



There was also a colorful kid sized train.



By this time, we caught up to Mark on the sidelines. Who is that women who is far to happy to be in the parade? Yeah, that would be me.



When Mark saw how small our group was, he decided to join us!



This one has a good perspective of the crowds.



When we got to the end, my dad took a photo of us. Then, we got to enjoy the rest of the parade.



You want tissue paper floats? You GOT tissue paper floats.



Buzz and Woody!



Then the band finally arrived!



The best vantage point - Daddy's shoulder, of course.




And when it was all said and done, we marched on home.

Summer antiquing: Western Reserve Academy 2010

On Labor Day, we attended our second antique fair at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio. Again, lots of interesting, quality (Albeit expensive) items were to be had.



One vendor had a really cool display of handmade string instruments.



Right next to the instruments, hung this awesome advertisement. Is that cowgirl the spittin' image of Nicole Kidman, or what! I shoulda bought it.



Here's the other arrow sign that I mentioned in the Zoar post. We came across it again later in the month at the Great Geauga Antique fair and came thisclose to buying it. Maybe third time will be the charm.



Check out this retro aisle marker! Again, love to have one, but what would we do with it? We don't have a plush animal aisle in our home. [peers into Lauren's room] On second thought, maybe we do.



A genuine RCA dog!



One vendor had her stall set up like a child's bedroom, complete with a darling assortment of children's clothing.



These shows always have something for the taxidermy fans. Nice to know that Lauren is about the size of a bear cub.



These dapper gentlemen entertained us with their mighty fine jazz tunes. Seems someone enjoys their Crown Royal.



Remember what it was like to eat in your high school cafeteria? To stare wistfully at the painted portraits of the great men and woman (purposefully singular) who came before you? To dine at large oak tables while chandeliers hung from above, casting a warm glow upon your lunch? No? Me neither.



Two random antique browsers, as taken by Lauren.


I think that about does it for this year's antiquing. But don't be sad - it'll be summer again before we know it!