Running With Quills: The leaves are falling...

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Thursday, October 11, 2007

The leaves are falling...

I love this time of year. The colors, the brisk air,
the... Trick or Treating!

My boys loved dressing up when they were young, and I loved coming up with fun costumes for them. Every year they chose their favorites, from pirates and cowboys, to Frankenstein and a mad scientist. There were also the usual Power Rangers, Ninja Turtles, and Superman!

Now they're all grown, and where we live, the houses are really too far apart for us to get any little ones asking for candy. But this year I have a two year old grandson, so I felt justified in decorating!

We put out several pumpkins and goards on hay bales, framed by corn stalks. I even wrapped it all in orange lights, and I have to admit, it looks neat!
We have ghosts and bats, but they're the smiling kind, and our wind sock is a really colorful guy!

I also wound decorative autumn garland through the front porch rails, and we put up a scarecrow... or two or three!
My grandson named them!

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Have you noticed the current trend of dog costumes!? Every store has them. My dogs would never tolerate it, but look at some of these cuties:

What about you? Do you decorate for Halloween? Do you have little ones who dress up and go Trick or Treating? Do you dress up your doggie?
Ever made a costume yourself?
A lot of adults dress up, or attend costume parties. I never have, but what about you?
And lastly, what's your FAVORITE costume, either that you wore, or that your child has worn?

I hope everyone is having a wonderful Fall! Drink some hot chocolate with whipped cream or marshmallows, or hot apple cider, and watch those pretty leaves fall!

27 Comments:

susan andersen said...: Great blog! I laughed like crazy at some of the dog costumes.
I went to my dentist yesterday to have my teeth cleaned and his office is always a hoot at this time of year. Halloween is his favorite holiday and he has a full-sized mummy who groans when you get close to it, black cats in all sorts of poses with rats near their paws, two huge black trees with leafless branches wrapped in orange twinkle lights and filled with black crows and owls etc. Fun, fun, fun.

We live in a neighborhood where kids trick or treat-- starting at around 5:30 with the littlest ones until about 9pm when the teens hit the streets. Some of the costumes are fabulous!

My son, who is thirty two, still talks about his Clark Kent/Superman costume. It was simple but cute. He wore a Superman Underoos t-shirt with a white dress shirt half opened and black rimmed glasses. He thought he looked so hot in fact that he insisted he needed glasses and didn't let up until we spent money we couldn't really afford at the time to have his eyes checked.
Sigh.

Love the snapshots of your sons, Lori!; 6:32 PM
karende said...: Halloween was a lot of fun when my kids were little. We spent a lot of time getting ready, making their costumes and such. I made them each a trick or treat bag from denim with a big orange jackolantern on one side. I should have gone into business with those babies - the plastic ones the other kids used always tore and fell apart, but my kids’ totes lasted forever, until they finally outgrew the whole thing.

We didn’t decorate because living off in the woods there wasn’t anyone but us to see, and we saved our efforts for Christmas.

As for the dog costumes, they are kind of cute, but I’ve only known one dog that actually seemed to enjoy getting dressed up - she was a shih tzu who had her very own Harley Davidson jacket, and she loved wearing it and riding with her owner on his bike. I’ve seen a few others, and they always looked seriously embarrassed, like “HOW could you DO this to me?!”

I'd like to comment on your pix, but mostly all I got is those blank boxes with a little red X in the corner. Dialup strikes again.

karibear; 6:55 PM
Brandy said...: Those animal costumes are hilarious!
Is it bad that I have 7 cats and we have a Santa Hat, and Leprechaun Hat, and an Elephant Hat for them? *g*

Enjoy your Halloween decorations!; 7:52 PM
Lori Foster said...: Susan, what a cute costume idea! You know, as a kid, I always went as a hobo. ALWAYS. I'd grab one of my dad's flannel shirts, stuff a pillow underneath, blacken my jaws a little like beard shadow, and that was it. :-/
Maybe that's why I like all the fun now! LOL

Karibear, I'm sorry that you couldn't see the pics. Bummer. Dial-up is the pits.
But I would LOVE to live in the woods! One of these days I'll have a cabin in the woods, but also somehow near water. LOL

Brandy, if the cats will wear the hats, then I say go for it! LOL. But I agree with Karibear, if it embarrasses them or makes them uncomfortable...
My dogs wear little sweaters in the winter, but not for dress up, just because they're COLD!
;-)

Hugs,

Lori; 3:59 AM
Lori of Canada said...: I have never had a dog that enjoyed costumes.... and my current dog thinks fetch is pointless so I don't see her enjoying costumes. ;) Like Karibear, I don't like seeing dogs who look miserable in a costume. Poor puppies.

I love Fall. It is my favourite season because of the changing colours (And I prefer the colder weather to the warmer weather; well, except for paying to heat the house).

I have never been a huge costume person. For some reason, it has never excited me. However, years ago, when I worked at a video store, we volunteered at a charity event the store was helping to sponsor. I dressed in a Victorian style dress and enjoyed it. ;)

Like Lori, we don't get a lot of trick-or-treaters because of how far apart our houses are (and how far in my house is off the road). Last year, we had 8, I think, which incluedd a group of 4 teenage girls who wanted a picture with me because they were taking pics at every house to celebrate their final Halloween. It was cute.

Today, it is raining so I am home on my sofa for the day. ;); 4:17 AM
DFender said...: Lori,
Awesome Autumn blog! LOL. As for your questions...

What about you? Do you decorate for Halloween?
Pumpkins and indian corn decorate the front porch.

Do you have little ones who dress up and go Trick or Treating?
Nope, at 16 and 19 they hang out with friends and cause trouble...lol.

Do you dress up your doggie?
Hell no. Sillyness. Juno is much too sophisticated for such nonsense...lolol

Ever made a costume yourself?
If you consider a white sheet (for a ghost) "making a costume". Ha!

A lot of adults dress up, or attend costume parties. I never have, but what about you?
I went, a few years ago, as a Nun to a party. Many years ago I dressed up as a flapper girl for a costume concert by Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes...lol

And lastly, what's your FAVORITE costume, either that you wore, or that your child has worn?
When my son was a toddler he was dressed as Casper The Friendly Ghost and when my daughter was about 5 she dressed as a cow. Those are my favorite Trick or Treat costume pictures of the bunch.

Happy Autumn!!!! Thanks, Lori :-)

Deb; 8:01 AM
Anonymous said...: Lori, loved the costumes, especially the alligator and bananas!

I have 3 cats who would ensure that I need emergency surgery if I tried to dress them up for ANY occasion.

I have thought about dressing my 25lb cat (yes, she's 25 pounds) in a purple tutu. It would look stunning with her gray fur and lime green eyes! LOLOLOL

Have a great day!!

Karen in Klamath Falls
(she who cannot remember her username and password); 10:06 AM
susan andersen said...: Karen in Klamath falls--I remember my username and password. I wrote the darn things down, but this !@%&! program refuses to recognize them anyway. I have to come in through the back door where we blog to leave comments. Then it will leave me alone for about 3 weeks before it asks for it again.; 11:22 AM
Ladytink_534 said...: My aunt-in-law has two pugs that would look adorable in some of these costumes!!!; 12:57 PM
Lori Foster said...: Hey Lori M., I hope you're not getting too antsy with that cast on. I bet you're wishing you could take a nice fall walk, huh? Soooo many beautiful leaves to look at it. Hang in there, it'll be off soon!

Hey Deb! I LOVE Casper. Sooo cute. And darn it, I forgot my Indian corn! It's screams FALL.
:-)

Happy Friday!

Lori; 2:59 PM
Lori Foster said...: Karen! Wow. A 25 lb cat. That's a BIG cat! If you ever get her in a tutu, I want a picture!

Hey Ladytink, pugs look cute even NOT dressed up.
;-)
My fur babies would be adorable in a costume, but they are sooo not into that! LOL

Lori; 3:01 PM
talpianna said...: My favorite costume was when I dressed as Joaquin Murietta, the Bandit of the Goldfields--but it wasn't for Halloween, it was for a New Year's Eve costume party with a Forty-Niners theme. I wore jeans and a black sweater (carefully padded with a pillow to disguise my feminine appurtenances), an authentic antique felt sombrero I'd inherited from my grandfather, and a black mustache devised from clippings from my own hair. It would have been an even greater success if anyone else at the party had had the faintest idea who Joaquin Murietta was....

I love Fall, and the changing of the leaves. I miss living in Indiana, with the wonderful fall colors. And the first snowfall on the litter of crisped brown leaves, looking just like sugar piled on cornflakes.

Pause to allow everyone to read this:

'Spring and Fall, to a Young Child'

Margaret, are you grieving
Over Goldengrove unleaving?
Leaves, like the things of man, you
With your fresh thoughts care for, can you?
Ah! as the heart grows older
It will come to such sights colder
By and by, nor spare a sigh
Though worlds of wanwood leafmeal lie;
And yet you will weep and know why.
Now no matter, child, the name:
Sorrow's springs are the same.
Nor mouth had, no nor mind, expressed
What heart heard of, ghost guessed:
It is the blight man was born for,
It is Margaret you mourn for.

-- Gerard Manley Hopkins

I have a black cat on stakes that fits onto the lawn. The eyes are supposed to glow green at night, but they don't.

I think, along with Jay Leno, that costumes for dogs are yucky--especially this one:

http://www.chosencouture.com/images/products/doyaandta-l.jpg

.; 3:58 PM
PJ said...: I love Fall. It's my favorite time of year. Halloween has always been a big holiday at my house. I decorate the outside with lots of lights and ghosts and goblins. I make bags of homemade chocolates for the children I know. It's fun to hear dads trying to convince their children to let dad carry the bag of chocolates. I've had to start giving some of the dads their own bag just to keep the peace. (grin)

I usually get from 60 to 100 trick-or-treaters. My nephew, his wife and 19 month old daughter come over and we set up shop on my large wrap-around porch. My dh and I started dressing in costume to great the trick-or-treaters when we first married in 1976. We've had some great costumes over the years, most of them hand made.

Our first year in a new neighborhood in 1985 my 6'2", 220 pound dh dressed as a cheerleader and that set the tone for the 11 years we lived there. Every year kids (and then parents) would come to our door to see how we were dressed. We were spiders, frankenstein, teenage ninja turtles, fairy godmother, and many more. Our most elaborate was our last year in that neighborhood when I dressed as a chef and dh was "dinner". We made a cardboard table with a hole for his head then covered him with a domed lid and scattered candy on a tin foil tray around his head. Green makeup on his face with red around his eyes completed the "look". The reactions of kids was hysterical. One neighbor girl refused to leave until we lifted the tablecloth so she could see that he was still attached to his body. Another little girl wanted to know how long I had to cook him. A little boy just stared for about 5 minutes then asked if dh "took batteries". LOL

I still dress up to greet the kids. My favorite recent costume was a gypsy fortune teller. You wouldn't believe some of the questions those little kids asked!

No dog costumes here. My two dogs would never forgive me for subjecting them to the humiliation.

~PJ; 5:22 PM
Lori Foster said...: Beautiful, Tal!
Thank you for sharing.

PJ, I LOVED the costume ideas. Sounds like you really get into Halloween. How fun!
I do miss it. I love living away from the neighbors, but it's times like that I miss the old neighborhood we were in.
HUGS to all!

Lori; 5:59 PM
Lori of Canada said...: More than a little ansty, Lori/ ;) I would love to be able to go for a walk but think I am going to miss most of the leaves falling this year. :(

12 days from today I find out what happens next.....; 6:28 AM
Ranurgis said...: When we drove up farther north to my sister's place near Orillia last Sunday for Canadian Thanksgiving, we had some wonderful "color" views. The one I liked best was when we were in a somewhat hilly area and from time to time we could look down on the colorful display of trees in all sorts of colors.

I pretty much live in a concrete jungle with only a tree here and there so I especially appreciated this.

No Halloween decorations anywhere in my apartment. The store downstairs is selling all manner of witches and such but our family's never been big on this "holiday". In fact, one year when Halloween fell on a Sunday, the city decreed that the actual trick or treating would be on the Saturday, Oct. 30 which happened to be my mother's birthday. My father decided to take her out for the evening anyway and I guess none of my siblings were available to "mind" the house (I was still in Germany). When they came home, they found that the house had toilet-paper stuck all over it with paint daubs, even though--or maybe because--we lived in a dead-end street. After that, they made sure somebody was always there for Halloween. It's odd but in Winnipeg we always used to sort of sing "Halloween apples" when we came to a house. Here in Ontario we always had "trick or treat."

The only costume I can remember is one my mother made for me for school one year. She took a bunch of brown-paper the grocery bags we had at the time, folded them and cut pieces out of them in different shapes. When the pieces were unfolded, I had nice doily patterns all over the "dress". I don't know if I ever got dressed up for any other Halloween but I remember going out with the younger ones to get our "apples". Of course, that was before the time when people started to contaminate the "goodies".

And dressed-up pets? I can see getting them something warm for the cold weather here if they have to go outside. But costumes? Though they might be cute, I can't imagine trying to force an animal into one. I think it's just another way for manufacturers to force people to spend money on totally useless and silly items.; 7:55 AM
Jayne Ann Krentz said...: No, we don't dress up for Halloween but there is something about that holiday that I really like. Maybe because there aren't any "musts". A "no rules" holiday. Gotta love it!

--Jayne; 8:24 AM
Elizabeth Guest said...: LOLOLOLOL at the photos, Lori!

The houses in our neighborhood are pretty far apart, so we don't get a lot of Trick or Treaters. And our city has a strict time period, so it's mostly little kids in their costumes--which is always fun the fun part, anyway. :-)

And I do love fall!!!!
~EG; 1:26 PM
Judy F said...: I really don't remember my halloween costumes. My sister used to do themed ones for her three kids and then would make calendars with the pictures. My fav was Mike as a wounded soldier and the girs as nurses.

I don't get any trick or treaters at the apt. When my sisters girls were little I would help her with them.

Now that we have Amya that should start up again once she gets older.

They had a ton of dog costumes at the Sauerkraut festival today. I could not see any of the old family dogs wearing them.

Lori my friend told me that at the Library she goes to (north central) you are the local author on display... cool; 2:43 PM
DFender said...: The HHP and I do have a semi-tradition that we enjoy a lot.

From the time we were dating we dress in some warm, comfy clothing, chill some boat drinks or some wine and sit out on the front porch with our jack-o-lanterns blazing bright, a big basketful of candy and, for the last couple of years, our husky, Juno. Watching and enjoying all the little ones shuffling down the sidewalks and up the driveway to the front porch just to say "trick or treat!?!".

Of course, for the teenagers, the HHP hides in the bushes and scares the crap out of 'em... lol.

Don't ask me why I felt like sharing...

Deb; 5:41 PM
Lori Foster said...: Gee Ranurgis, try a smile! LOL. You sound sooo negative. But then I guess having a house toilet papered could do that to a person. I'll never understand the need, or how it's "fun" to damage property.
HUGS!

Hey Judy, thanks for letting me know! It's always extra special when a library recognizes me. :-)

LOL Deb! Teenagers love that stuff.
One year, I had a "bad" experience with a neighbor. This was from my old neighborhood, and he was a sickening drunk and druggie. Still is, from what I know. Anyhoo, he came over to the house during Halloween, and he was wearing a mask, so I didn't know for sure if it was him. I was sitting there - much as you described - and he kept doing stuff, like pretend-attacking me, trying to feel on me, and I was really uncertain... I mean, I didn't know WHO he was! And he was being far too forward.
Then Allen came out and realized what was happening and stepped between us. When Allen reached for his mask, the idiot started laughing and pulled it off himself.
What a jerk.
Now why did I share!? LOL. That story just came to me. I don't miss that guy at all. He was a menace to the neighborhood!

Lori; 6:59 AM
Anonymous said...: I couldn't get my cats to wear a costume to save my life. And I'm not very good at dressing myself. One year as a child I went as a gypsy - that was probably my best costume. As an adult, I am not very creative.

For adults who love the holiday, I have a friend up in Tiffin, OH who does a huge costume party/ scavenger hunt. The invitation states you need between $5 and $10 (some of it in change), a full tank of gas and a sober driver. She then sends us all over and across town finding clues. It takes her about two months to plan and get everything ready for it. The winners of the scavenger hunt usually get about $200 in prize money. To participate in the scavenger hunt, she charges everybody $10. The goofiest thing we ever did was have to take our picture in the TJ Willie's mens bathroom. They put the daily paper above the urinal and we had to all be in the picture so we had to get a waiter to snap the pic for us. It's fun to be crazy sometimes.

Chris S. (who doesn't have a google thing); 10:13 AM
Lori Foster said...: Chris, that sounds HILARIOUS! And loads of fun.
What a creative party. :-D

Lori; 10:54 AM
Linda said...: Now that I have kids and a great trick or treating street, I love Halloween. Our house is already decorated. We have more of a fall festival theme (scare crows, pumpkins etc...) going on than spooky stuff. My 5 year old is not as brave as he pretends to be.

On Halloween night I have the families on the street come over for a healthy dinner then all the kids trick or treat together.

Happy Halloween!

PS Lori, I just read my first Lori Foster book, "Causing Havoc." It really brought me into the MMA world which I knew nothing about. I turned to Spike TV that night! Can't wait to read Simon Says.; 7:52 PM
talpianna said...: Now I know it's truly Fall--I smelt woodsmoke this evening! I live in the Arizona desert, so I miss out on changing leaves and the like, but it's getting cooler in the evenings now and people are lighting fires. Hopefully, only the ones who have fireplaces....

wdqejse -- "Why don't quail eat jujubes?" she enquired.; 12:11 AM
Anonymous said...: Hey Lori it's Ashley (Kountrymusikchik) Right now in Virginia we are in a drought and the leaves are not changing colors, they are just kind of brown and falling off. I miss the falls I had in New Hampshire. Now those were beautiful.

Well I have to say that this year we are dressing our dogs for halloween. (i'll send you a pic) Daisy is a bunny and Harley is a panda bear.; 10:36 AM
venusloves said...: I love the pictures of the little doggies!! Halloween is actually one of my favorite holidays. I always loved getting into costume. I'm not sure I have a favorite, but I do remember my junior year in high school when I tried to make my costume--though I tried every year to make a costume. I got an old white sheet and some blue ribbon and I mainly hand stitched a southern belle outfit. I think maybe the sewing machine broke down and so I had to do a lot of it by hand. I'm not that great at hand sewing when it comes to a large garment, so the long skirt wasn't even at the bottom. One end was a bit sinched in. I took a turquoise blue tutu from my eighth grade costume and put it on under the dress so it would look like a hoop skirt. But, it was kind of cold where I lived so I put on a white leotard under the whole thing...which somewhat ruined the off the shoulder Scarlett O'Hara effect. LOL. But, I had fun making it, so it's stuck in my memory forever...; 12:58 PM

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Thursday, October 11, 2007

The leaves are falling...

27 Comments: