Wordless Wednesday

More Halloween Cuteness

I thought these were so cute I just had to try another Halloween craft. As it turned out, it was SUPER easy!! I'm thinking I may go back to the store and buy another 6 pack.

 

Start out with a bottle of orange Crush. There might be other bottles of orange liquid but this was the first one I saw so I took it. Plus as a kid I loved Crush! Take the label off. It came off fairly quickly after I picked at a corner. I did use a little Goo Gone to take off the stickiness.

 

 

You now have a smooth surface on which to put the jack-o-lantern's face. I used left-over black vinyl from my Silhouette and just free-handed cut out eyes, nose and smiles. (There are lots of ideas if you Google jack-o-lantern images.) I didn't get too fancy cuz I thought the simple jack-o-lantern face was the cutest.

 

A little ribbon and a gift tag and they'll be fun to pass out on Halloween to my co-workers!

Protect Your Pet This Halloween

My daughter has so much fun dressing up her dog for Halloween. Maybe it’s because she doesn’t have any children or maybe it’s because she just really likes dressing up her dog. While Halloween is great fun for adults and children it might not be so fun for your pet. Here are a few tips to keep your pet from harm this Halloween.

*All of the doorbell ringing can leave your pet frightened or excited. Dogs should be kept away from the front door. With many people visiting the home in strange attire, even normally calm pets might overreact.

*Keep your pet indoors. Animals that get scared may run away or grow disoriented and get lost. Remember that it is a natural instinct for dogs to protect the family from strangers, and on Halloween there will be no shortage of strangers. It would be a shame if your pet was caught up in someone’s idea of a prank. (black cats…)

*While candy and chocolate are the highlight of most children’s Halloween, it poses a risk for your pet. Even small amounts of chocolate can be harmful to dogs and cats. Hard candies could get swallowed and become lodged in your pet’s throat. (Halloween is second to Christmas for pets ending up in the animal ER for eating stuff they shouldn’t and right behind the Fourth of July for being hit by a car.) Candy wrappers could also get swallowed. Artificial sweeteners can harm your cat or dog too.

*Don’t take your pet trick-or-treating. Even if your dog is usually calm and well-behaved, the crowds of trick or treaters may excite your pet. Other animals out and about or those pets that could get loose when the door opens may provoke your dog. It could be hard to keep an eye on your children and your dog.

*Be careful with Halloween decorations. Fake spider webs, lights, jack-o-lanterns and candles could be tripping hazards for pets or could be a safety risk. You wouldn’t want your holiday spoiled because your pet tipped over a lit candle.

*Have your dog get used to costumes. Your dog is not going to recognize you when you are all dressed up. Before the kids put them on, allow your dog to scent the costumes. If your costume has a mask, keep the mask off when you are with your dog because dogs can become confused when they can't see our faces.

Halloween is the most dangerous holiday for dogs but with a little planning ahead you can all enjoy this spooky night!

Wordless Wednesday

My Attempt at Halloween Cuteness

You know you see all of these super cute Halloween ideas on Pinterest and you think "I could make that". Yeah, right. So I thought making Nutter Butter mummies would be no fail. How hard can it be to cover those cookies with almond bark?

Well, that was the easy part. I melted the almond bark, dipped the cookies and added the eyes after they had set a bit. Next, I popped them in the refrigerator while we ate supper.

Then I tried something I hadn't ever tried before. Melting almond bark in a ziplock baggie. So far, so good. But when it came to snipping off a corner and using it to pipe the "rags" on the mummy...yikes!! That bag was scalding hot! I tried holding it with a pot holder but that didn't work out the best. I finally got all of the almond bark squeezed out when I realized something. It was still liquidy. Duh, I could have let it cool a bit before trying to squeeze it. My "rag strips" would have looked way more like a mummy I'm sure.

Oh well, between the grandkids and hubby I'm sure there will be no mummies left by Halloween. Do I dare try another Pinterest craft?

Give It Away Before It's Given Away

Kind of a weird title for a post but it's good advice. It really hit home this weekend as I spent time at an auction of my godmother's things. My aunt Angeline was a saver. I heard that she had saved every greeting card she had ever gotten. (She lived to be 90+) So you can imagine how much stuff was at this auction. There were 9 trailers filled, furniture on the lawn and more behind her barn. So much to sell that there were two auctioneers going at once.

 

                                                             9 trailers like this one!

This was a hard auction to attend because it brought back so many memories. As a child I spent many hours playing with her children and slept over often. One trailer had all of her shoes (lots of pairs all in their original shoe boxes--who saves the boxes?), purses and hats. You know the kind women wore back in the 30's,40's 50's? I bet there were 50 hats. I would have loved to have taken some home with me but they were bought up by people willing to spend more than I was. Sad to see her clothes strung on a line.

 

 

 

I'm looking around at all the stuff I have accumulated thinking who wants to go through my stuff when I'm gone? Do I want it all thrown into boxes and sold to strangers? I don't think my children would do that but who knows? (One of my daughters is the total opposite of a saver--she's a thrower!) I think it's so sad that my aunt didn't give away more of her stuff when she was living. I think she would have gotten some joy out of seeing her friends and family using her things.

 

So that brings me to think about taking my own advice. I really need to clean out some closets and give away what I'm not using. Goodwill and the Salvation Army would be happy to take whatever I want to donate. But I'm thinking there are things I have that family and friends would use if I give it to them. Why not do it now?  Lord knows I'm not getting any younger and I shouldn't wait until these things are so old they're considered antiques!

 

What about you? Are you a saver or a thrower?

 

(On a happy note I did manage to score some of my aunt's things as a remembrance of her.)

 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday