What Ana Does

The best part of having open shelves in the kitchen means I can decorate them for holidays. I went all out for Halloween this year ...  Such fun. 

Every Halloween, we throw a party. It's really just an excuse for me to create centerpieces and eat M&Ms. But conversing with out adults around my island is a huge bonus. And the girls get added time to celebrate this holiday and run off their sugar highs with friends. Here are some pictures: Creepy! The Graveyard Outside My Door Everyone's Doing It! The Vomiting Pumpkin! Centerpiece We Had a Fancy Witch and a Disco Union Jack Bast from the past: 1st Annual Halloween Party , and 2nd Annual (2014) Halloween .  

Leah's Rendering of Costumes In the town we live in, they DECIDE when Halloween trick-or-treating takes place. And it's not on Halloween. Oh no, it's far too dangerous in this very rural suburb to let kids walk around subdivisions in the dark. Sigh. So, on Sunday we celebrated Halloween by trick-or-treating at 3pm in the afternoon. We got a sunny, 60degree day. And the streets of our neighborhood were littered with Elsas and superheroes. Leah went as a witch . I made her skirt and pinned on the shawl, belt and bustle. We bought the hat and broom. She was dead-set on finding boots -- which she did at Old Navy. I wanted to do more make-up, but she only allows eyebrow enhancement. We found Alice's costume in a catalog. We had to vote on it, since she liked two different outfits -- shiny mermaid and Little Red Riding Hood . We all voted for Little Red. (I looked into buying the velvet to make the cape myself but it was almost as expensive as the costume.) There ...

Remember these Halloween lights I made out of salsa jars? Spooky, Right?  Well, never one to waste. I used a washable paint, so ... I washed them. Scrubbing Frankenstein The paint peeled right off with very little scrubbing and they're ready for some festive holiday usage. Not sure what that will be yet. I'll have to consult the Pinterest pins for some fantastic ideas. Waiting Creativity Will keep you posted!

Just sharing a few more pictures from the Halloween Bash. Silly me, I didn't take any pics of the actual party, but a few friends did -- so I'll share them when I get a copy. "Mummy Dogs" -- Thank You Pinterest  Beverage Center ... Drink, Anyone? The Food Spread Across the Island. Who's Hungry? Scary Castle with Kid-Decorated M&M Embellishments "Beware" Of These DELICIOUS Cupcakes! More of My Dangling Spider Globes Dining Room - Spider Over the Table Happy Halloween!

The town we moved to in Illinois does Trick or Treating the Sunday before the actual Halloween. WHY?! To "keep the kids safe." Because, you know, it's terrible dangerous to walk around your neighborhood at twilight. And to not disrupt dinner or our normal after school/work chaos. It's total bunk.  They're in just as much danger wandering around on a Sunday afternoon. They're still knocking on stranger's doors begging for candy -- day or night.  We played along last year and it was a total let down. The girls begged all Sunday morning to get in their costumes -- which we did after lunch. It took them all of 20 minutes to get into costume and face paint. We headed out at 2:30 and as we hit up the neighborhood for free candy. But no jack 'o lanterns were lit. The scary lighting and music neighbors had strung up where summarily ignored. And we were back at the house less than an hour later -- completely DONE with Halloween. That's was it?...