Our "Not So Haunted" House ~ Outdoor Halloween Decor

While I am still working on my indoor decor, I thought I would share with you the little touches of Halloween that are gracing my doorstep with their oh-so-scary presence.   I say all this with complete and utter sarcasm, LOL!  

Fun D Family Facts ~ First of all L HATES Halloween!  He hasn't gone Trick or Treating since he was 4 years old & even then he was positively the grumpiest Superman you ever did see.  After that I started just getting him costumes to wear basically so he wasn't left out of the festivities (and the pictures, if I'm being completely honest).  He never went door to door, just put on the costume for pictures and then proceeded to raid his sister's candy stash at the end of the night. :)  As he got older, my mom found him the perfect t-shirt that said "This IS my Costume."  Not sure why, but it has never been his thing.  Add to that Miss B is EXTREMELY afraid of bugs, especially spiders.  I am by no means dismissing this fear, because truth be told I have the same issue with birds.  (But that's a story for another time)  So when I start getting out our Halloween decorations, both of my kiddos are less than thrilled with the changes and additions that are made around the house.  Keep in mind, I too am the BIGGEST chicken when it comes to anything scary ... Haunted Houses ~ NO! Scary Movies ~ HECK NO!  Freddy, Jason, Michael Myers, Hannibal Lector ~ oh and don't even get me started on the new remake of IT!  UGG!  Now, with all that being said I LOVE TO DECORATE FOR HALLOWEEN!!  I love transforming the house into a tasteful display of witches, skeletons, pumpkins and yes... spiders.  (All pre-approved by Miss B, of course)  It's so much fun!!!  

Our front side landscaping is home to these adorable wire ghosts that I purchased a few years back from Michael's.  (Please ignore the hack job I did in trimming the bushes ~ no pun intended.)

Then using Dollar store pumpkins, I filled them with mums to line our steps leading up to the house.  Thank you Pinterest for this cute idea!

As you get to the landing, ~ I switched out my summer flowers for coordinating mums, added some ping pong ball eye-balls attached to floral picks, a bow, and a pumpkin decorated with our name & BOO!!  Halloween is in the house!  (or at least the outside of it is anyway)

I used the Happy Halloween cartridge to Cricut out the letters and cat for the pumpkin.  I then simply glued them on.  I went back over the letters and added straight pins for a studded effect (and extra stability).  Super simple & an easy way to decorate a classic pumpkin.  Love it!

Finally, I hung my DIY Googly Eyed Wreath on the front door (directions on how to make your own can be found HERE).  

And there you have it, our simple yet festive outdoor Halloween decor.  I am looking forward to showing you what we've got going on inside.  Lots of new additions this year!  The kids are going to LOVE it!  LOL!!!

Happy Monday!
N

Our Family Fall To Do List 2017

It's officially starting to feel like Fall around here.  The weather is starting to cool, the leaves are changing, and everything under the sun has now got it's very own Pumpkin Spice flavor. :)  Summer is obviously my favorite season, but I do love the festivities, decorations and traditions of the months to come.  Now having said that, if your house is anything like mine, October, November and December tend to fly by faster than you can say "Pass the rolls, please."  Between the day to day tasks of homework, show choir, band, dance practice, work and now Puppy Training ~ we often forget to stop and enjoy the seasons.  I feel more now than ever, that it is important to take the time to enjoy the little things.  Time moves too quickly (especially this time of year) and before we know it it will be New Year's Eve.  (Oh my gosh, did I actually just say that!?!)  

So this year, I created a To Do List similar to the one that we have each summer.  I've printed it out and hung it in our kitchen.  This seems to always help us make sure to do all the fun things we want to do each summer, so I thought why not carry it over into the fall.  :)  This way not a single thing gets missed, right down to that very last gooey bite of THE best caramel apple you have ever tasted!  YUM!!

If you are reading this, you may notice "Marathon Training" as one of our To Do items.  Yes, Honey & I are officially signed up and training to run in the 25th Anniversary Disney Marathon in January!!   It was one the many goals that I set for myself & Honey graciously agreed to join me.  If you know anything about these events, you also know that costumes are a must!  :)  So having said that, we are currently taking ideas as to who we should dress up as ...  Belle & Beast, Rapunzel & Flynn Rider or maybe Moana & Maui???  We would love to hear your ideas!  I can hardly wait!

I'm off to finish putting up our Halloween decorations ... It's beginning to look quite spooky around here.   (insert evil laugh HAHAHA)  :)

N