Halloween Aftermath

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays. When I was a kid I, of course, loved tricking or treating but scaring other kids was the real draw. I'd spend days setting up my "home haunt." My grandmother was my number one cohort. She'd bring some creepy costume to wear and I'd rig up something to scare the kids before they got to the door, where she'd take over by creeping them out. We have always been an amazing Halloween team.

So in the early years I was a trick or treater, in the middle years (age 10-25) I was a trick or treater scarer, then I was more of a costumed party thrower or goer and this year I was an adult! Even I'm a little shocked by that last statement. This Halloween was made up of pumpkin carving, chaperoning kids and inspecting candy. Again, I'm still a little shocked I'm allowed to wield a knife, be responsible for children or the safety of what they eat. Times, they are a changing.

The pumpkin end of things was so so. I've never been one to use the jack-o-lantern stencils that are so popular. My mom always said that if you were going to create something, you should should be creative. No offense to folks that use the stencils. Those things are cool. I've just always enjoyed coming up with it on my own. I did start college as an art major after all, but as you'll quickly be able to tell - switching majors was a smart decision.

 This is my first attempt at a 3D pumpkin carving. Meh. It did win second place in a contest but that's just first loser right? It's tough to make out, but my second attempt is there in the group pic. It's a half jack-o-lantern, half zombie face. Meh.

The other pumpkins were painted, carved and crafted by the Harvey girls. They didn't have to use sculpting tools, and as you can see...it made for some much better looking pumpkins. Oh well. I'll practice a little in the off season.
Prior to the pumpkin carving extravaganza we had to find just the right ones. A search that took us to Wild Things Farm. It's a cool place located somewhere in Oklahoma. I'd never done the whole corn maze thing (should be spelled 'maize' don't ya think?) so this was a first for me.

The maze part of the pumpkin picking experience started with a ten minute hay ride. That I'd done before, but never with better company than these two. Loves them! The maze ended up being pretty complicated. I went high, Sascha went low.

This picture wasn't planned or posed for in any way. Captain Morgan is a distant relative of mine. They call me Captain Moron.

I always hate the pictures you get when you ask a stranger to snap it for you, but all in all I think this lady did a pretty good job. Too much head room, but that just showcased the corn. Hats off to strangers you meet in corn fields. Ignore everything you ever learned from watching horror movies, get a good photo. Quote me on that.

The Halloween season came to a close like any other for those pretending to be adults for the first year ever. Trick or treating. Heather (the hot red head) and I took Sascha (the cute short one) along with my niece, nephew and Heather's nephew. I think the line-up was Vampiress, Freddy Krueger, Ghost Cow and Futuristic Military Guy.

I went as Dexter the serial killer serial killer, but there are no pics of that. Needless to say, I nailed it but no one that I ran into knew I was in costume because Dexter just looks like a guy. So, I pulled off "guy." Thankfully, not tough to do. The lady working the counter at the gas station the other day was pulling it off too, so I'm not getting too big a head about it. I spent last Halloween in Houston visiting haunted restaurants and going to nationally known haunted house attractions. It was a blast! This Halloween I stayed at home and hung out with kids and pumpkins. It was the best Halloween ever.

I think my next blog will be food related in honor of Thanksgiving. Hmmmm, maybe I'll finally write that blog about candied bacon brownies I keep promising. Should probably perfect the recipe first though. The last one made a kid cry. That's not a joke. He actually cried. Maybe I'll just write about this new coffee I like.