Halloween, 2012

As kids, Halloween would be one of those holidays that my sisters and I would go all-out for.  The three of us would enjoy scouring the local Eckerd Drug Store starting in September, looking for the best additions to a growing collection of Halloween decorations.  The dining room would end up filled with our finds and creations on display... bat trees (which consisted of construction paper bats hanging from sticks collected in the yard), cotton spider webs, a figurine that danced to "The Monster Mash," and spooky light-up ghosts and goblins.  Mom would let us have free reign over that room, but the rest of the house was all hers... beautifully decorated with reminders of fall like Indian corn, colorful gourds, and autumn-scented candles.  Dad would carve the pumpkins, always with triangle facial features but would change up the mouth from one year to the next.  In the days leading up to the big day, we would play a cassette tape with spooky sounds over and over on the Boom Box... I am sure my parents were ready to throw it out by the end of the holiday!  I always loved Halloween.  And, it wasn't about the candy or the Trick-or-Treating... it was about the creativity and imagination that went into preparations shared with my family.

Tony and I have taken a piece of this tradition to heart.  Like other years together, we enjoyed looking for our special decorations for Halloween 2012.  Of course, we already had Mummy.

But, we also added Welcome Witch to our collection.

However, in terms of the costume department, I was pretty much at a loss this year.  I realized when I became an adult that Halloween for most ladies turns into a good excuse to wear fewer things than you normally can get away with.  I remember in college, one girl showed up to a frat party as "Poison Ivy..." literally just wearing high heels and a thong bikini with freshly-picked ivy woven between strings.  And, it seems even the most unsexy ideas imaginable can be adapted to fit with this general theme

However, in the past I never really had a problem finding some great costume options.  But, since this was my first Halloween spent pregnant, I sadly learned that maternity options are much more limited.  I honestly lost a little of the Halloween costume spirit in the process.  It seems there are really just 2 choices...

(1) Hide yourself in the equivalent of a bag, because that is all that will fit....

(courtesy of Ebay)

or... (2) Adapt the sexy costumes to just include a little more room for the belly

(courtesy of Ebay)

This year, I opted to skip my costume and instead focus my creative energy on another (but maybe not so willing) friend.  As we don't yet have a little two-legged child to dress up, Butters had to suffer through a holiday dedicated to his least favorite activity.... wearing costumes.  As seen from my post about socks...

and St. Patrick's Day...

... Butters really prefers to go naked

However, I was pretty impressed by how good of a sport he was about the process this time.  The first costume option ended up being a bit of a fail...

But he handled it like a champ!

And, I think there is a tiny possibility that he may have even enjoyed the final costume choice.

Butters made a super cute lion, and seemed to have no problem exploring the backyard fully clothed.

Butters was all ready to greet friendly Trick-or-Treaters at the door.  However, as a tradition all of our own, Tony and I have a pretty terrible track record when it comes to Halloween visitors.  The last few years have consisted of us buying lots of candy in expectation of it finally being the year that we are bombarded by hungry, candy-hunting children... just to find at the end of the night that we are left with enough treats to hold us over until Christmas.  Living in a busier neighborhood now, we were hopeful that this might be the year for Trick-or-Treaters!  Of course we were prepared for the alternative... and only bought candy that we wouldn't mind eating for the next three months.

To our disappointment, 2012 continued our Trick-or-Treating losing streak.  We again did not get a single visitor.  At least Butters looked super cute waiting on the couch!  Tony and I happily passed the time with a Halloween classic, "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown..." and we ate chocolate without feeling guilty of depriving visitors of good choices.  

I am so thankful for the Halloween memories that I made growing up, as well as the new and old traditions that I have continued with my husband.  We look forward to when we soon will have a little one of our own to pass these on to.  And, we can't wait to discover the new traditions that we will form with our growing family!

Fall in Flip-Flops

Fall in Texas is very different from NY.  Palm trees line the streets instead of maples and elms dressed in autumn colors.

At "Pumpkin Patches," you are unlikely to find growing gourds... rather, you discover a field with scattered pre-picked pumpkins, from which you can "re-pick" a pumpkin of your choice for fall celebrations (Pumpkin photo courtesy of "The Express-News/SA").






And, fall drinks like spiced teas and coffees come in more cold varieties than warm.  You might as well add a paper umbrella to top off your favorite fall beverage.

Despite feeling a little at loss in our typical fall traditions, Tony and I agree that the perfection of the weather more than makes up for it.  Most days are in the 80's, with beautiful blue skies, sun shining, and a perfect light breeze.  Outdoor sports are at their peak, and there are many opportunities for visiting parks and exploring festivals.  Flowering bushes and trees bring a different sort of color to the fall season.  And, trading in our heavy fall jackets for tank-tops has been a welcomed change.

However, an unseasonable "cold front" made its way to San Antonio this weekend, bringing with it chilly temperatures into the 60's.  Tony and I seized this opportunity to return to some of our favorite autumn traditions: fall foods and beverages

Feeling nostalgic, Tony and I crafted our first true fall Crock Pot meal: Irish Stew.  In Batavia, NY, there is a cute Irish pub named "O'Lacy's," a favorite and frequented place of Tony and mine.  We used to meet my parents there halfway between Albion and Buffalo on chilly fall evenings.  Most of us would get "the regular:" draft beers with their famous lamb stew, seasoned to perfection with ample helpings of Guinness for flavoring.

The smell and warmth of our own version of the stew filled the house throughout the day

Butters also seemed to approve of the Irish Stew.  He spent most of the day sitting dutifully next to the Crock Pot, ready to help us sample the food.  And, when the meal was finally served, he was first in line to try to get his bowl too.

We were so pleased that our first try at this recipe came pretty close to the perfection of O'Lacy's.  Tony added some cheddar cheese as a finishing touch.

Although fall beers are my favorite, Baby Bean made me have to skip out on that side of the fall festivities.  However, Tony graciously told me how great the Oktoberfest beer tasted with the meal.

And, the fresh-baked bread made a perfect side to the tasty stew.

To complete our fall weekend, we added the finishing touch: Warm Cider.  Adding mulling spices (something I learned from my mom), I warmed up some fresh apple cider as a special treat to end the weekend.

Butters also seemed to approve of the apple cider...

...as did Mummy

The weather is set to go back up into the 80's this coming week, but Tony and I were happy to make the most of our special fall weekend!  We are looking forward to Halloween celebrations this coming week.

It's Just a Mummy

Butters has (thankfully) never been much of a barker.  We only hear a peep out of him about once a week... usually in response to a cat at the window.  He really does not make a very effective guard dog.  Overall, he is just more of a non-verbal communicator.

Recently, Tony and I found a cute little decoration at a local store to start off our fall/Halloween decorating.  Meet... "Mummy!"

He is so cute!  How can you ignore those adorable (although slightly askew) eyes.

Well, Butters didn't seem to agree with us on Mummy.  The morning after we brought Mummy home, I woke up to this...

My normally quiet doggie loudly announced his disdain for this intruder.  Clearly, Butters did not approve of Mummy.

Mummy seemed to bring out all of the bad habits in our normally well-mannered Butters.  Later that day, Tony came in to find...

...yes, Butters ON the table... trying to eat Mummy.

Thankfully, over the last couple of weeks, it seems that Butters may be coming around (a bit) on Mummy.  He now lets Mummy hold his space on the table in peace.  Our little guy no longer announces Mummy's invasion on our household.  And, I think the two might even be becoming friends...