#100Daystohalloween2023

The Little Pumpkin Carver

/ animar64 / 2 Comments
RDP Daily Prompt: SPOOKTACULAR
This October I had the best, the most spectacular Halloween EVER.
I had my first Halloween as a ” Lola ” ( Filipino kids call their Grandmothers  “Lola ” ) with my Granddaughter Jemma .
My son Julio, his Fiance’ Nicole and Jemma drove to Beaver Dam and saw two incredible Halloween displays. We went to Jemma’s school for her a Halloween Party and a Dance and Fox Lake hosted their yearly “ Fall  Spooktacular” in downtown Fox Lake,  so even though it wasn’t Halloween yet, I got to take Jemma trick or treating after all.
She dressed up as ” Sally ” from A Nightmare Before Christmas.

Jemma as Sally
Photo A.M. Moscoso
October 2023

But I would have to say, the biggest kick I got was watching Jemma carve her pumpkin.

She passed up a cat pattern, a traditional pattern for a ” Puke Pumpkin ” and then she went about carving it.

She asked for a big knife but of course she got the small one that came in the pattern kit.

That didn’t mean she didn’t enjoy that first cut with her little saw- she didn’t look pensive when she started to carve- she kind of a had a smirk on her face and I know it was smirk because my son, Julio, had the same look before he pulled one of his stunts as a kid.

Jemma and Julio
October 2023
Photo A.M. Moscoso

Once she started to carve, she really got into it.

Photo A.M. Moscoso
Julio and Jemma
October 2023

When she was done she jumped up, grabbed the pumpkin by it’s stem and she yanked the top off-  she really enjoyed that. I mean, she enjoyed it a lot.

Jemma
October 2023
Photo A.M. Moscoso

Jemma with her future ‘ victims’.

Photo A.M. Moscoso
Jemma
October 2023

I’ve written at least a dozen stories about pumpkin carvers who enjoy their craft a bit to much and I guess it shouldn’t surprise me that in real life, one of those carvers is someone close to me:

Photo A.M. Moscoso
Jemma
October 2023

Happy Halloween- I hope you will have as much fun as I did !

anita

I Only Need One Wish

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Mischief Night, 1994 by Andrew Wyeth 

On the night before Halloween-

If a Witch were standing outside my window- and she was dressed from head to toe in black, if she were holding a broom in one hand and sitting on her shoulder was a cat named Harley and she said she was there to grant me three wishes, what would I ask for?

Why. That’s Easy Peasy.

I’d ask her to fly away with her cat to my neighbor’s house down the street and I would wish that she would offer my remaining two wishes to her instead.

Then I would steal down the street, shrouded in the Witch’s shadow, to my Neighbor’s house and I would watch her gobble up those two remaining wishes without chewing on them- she would just swallow them whole.

Wishes taste like caramel- something about that burnt sugar is irresistible to the tongue and people devour them before they wrapper is even off.

Maybe a few hours later, maybe a month later I would watch those two poisoned wishes blossom and bloom- and as they did I would hear a voice at my shoulder say, ” Oh you are a wicked thing, you are a crafty little devil you. ”

And I would reply indeed I am I am a wicked little thing and a crafty   Devil to boot and all of us know that  Mischief Night isn’t just a date on the calander- it’s a way of life.

100 DAYS TO HALLOWEEN

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For: #100daysofhalloweenhappy-#1

artist unknown

It is OFFICIAL

There are now 100 Days to Halloween.

Today I thought I would share some of the things that I am looking forward to doing

in these next 100 days:

First Up:

Looking for the perfect costume for my dog:

Hamish Macbeth
Photo A.M. Moscoso
October 2022

Saturday Nights are going to be Spooky Movie night at Taigh Anita. I used to do this during the winter

but I thought I’d shake things up a bit. This is a movie I am looking forward to seeing:

My goal is to watch a new horror or suspense film every Saturday and to make some Halloween treats.

Which leads me to this:

I bought  a skull cake pan after Halloween a couple of years ago.

I got it after Halloween and because

the stores were asking a crazy amount of money for it and it wasn’t

a decoration so I decided to wait. This year is go time and I can’t wait to try  this out:

( more recipes HERE )

Photo A.M. Moscoso

I am going to be in Wisconsin about two weeks before Halloween to spend the best Holiday in the World

with my Granddaughter. Her hometown holds  a festival called Spooktacular – check this out:

The Annual Fall “Spooktacular” Festival takes place along downtown State Street (Hwy 33). Festival activities include pumpkin-carving, face painting, children’s costume contest and pet costume contest, brat fry, fire trucks, flea market and candy treats galore. Bring your camera and take photos of your family with our many face painted BOO boards! Many of the downtown businesses will also be spookily decorated for the event.  Citywide trick or treating will also take place on this day, making it a great family day to spend in downtown Fox Lake. The Fox Lake Chamber of Commerce is always looking for vendors, groups and local businesses to display and share their wares, as well as zombies and ghouls to walk the streets!

In addition, I’ll be doing  some Cemetery exploration and taking loads of pictures. How great does this sound?

Photographer Unknown

These are just three things I’ll be doing and I am sure I will be doing more and I’ll be sharing all of it here because

HALLOWEEN IS A 100 DAYS AWAY EVERYBODY!