Halloween decorations!

With Halloween (and trick-or-treaters) arriving tomorrow, I thought I would finally put some effort into the decorations. I picked up a few supplies last weekend, but didn’t get to it then – and with how early it’s starting to get dark now, didn’t get a chance to do it during the week, either.

I’ll have to take pictures of the outside tomorrow, since I forgot to today (oops), but instead you get to learn how to make ghosts.

Go and pick up some sheets at the thrift store. I’m not made of money here (and it’s not like I’ll be sleeping on them), so the two sheets cost me $3 and $4.

While you’re out, also pick up some balloons and elastics. I already had the elastics on hand, though.

Inflate the balloons. Decide you’ve discovered a homegrown method for measuring your lung capacity.

Cut the sheet in 3 parts (that’s the size that seemed to work the best), wrap one of the sections around the balloon and secure with elastic. Go search for images of ghosts on google to decide how to draw their faces. Repeat from the top.

Line up the little dudes on the couch, to wait for husband to hang them up tomorrow. Pat self on the back. Not bad for less than half an hour worth of effort. I think I like Googly (middle) and Angry (far left) the most. Who is your favourite?

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Kitties!

What have our own kitties been up to?

Not much. With the onset of cold weather, they’re also starting to nest. Sometimes, this involves aggressive grooming. He held her down for a good 5 minutes, licking her whole back and head.

Other times, they feel the need to burrow into things. Like packing materials. Oh Shakey, you kill me.

And of course, BB has a unique talent for getting under covers when she’s cold (or scared, but that’s a different story). Many times we’ve been unable to find our kitty, only to spot a lump under the blankets on the bed… Here, she got under that blanket all by herself. No forceful cuddling necessary. And yes, I know that couch is hideous… I’ll be working on slip covers… at some point…

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Garden – step 1

At long last – a post about everything we’ve done to the garden so far!

Obviously, lots of weeding. And trimming. And merciless chopping down of a bush or two. But I’ve already talked about that.

A few weekends ago we tackled the raised beds for the vegetable garden. The soil along the side of the house is kind of crummy, so I wanted a repeat of the raised beds we had at the old house. Except I was smarter this time, and made them a more manageable size – two 3×6 ft beds, and one 4×6 ft bed. I also decided to make them a full 18″ tall this time, instead of the 12″ they were before – I figured that even if I may want 12″ of soil, it’ll be nice to have a little bit of space near the top to work the soil without worrying about it falling over the edge all the time.

I started by clearing the area in question – covered in unidentified tall (and very smelly) weeds, as well as some very mature lily and hosta plants. Nobody wanted them, so in the brown bags they went.

Starting with a nice clean-ish slate, we put together the boxes in the driveway, and carried them over to the garden area.

Aren’t they so pretty and new?

Well, that didn’t last long.

In my ambition, I ordered 8 cubic yards of soil.

How much is that, you might wonder?

A half-driveway-size pile.

130 wheelbarrows.

Enough to fill the raised vegetable garden beds. [The holes you see above are from last weekend, when I finally planted my garlic. You'll also notice a future project that must be done - the wall at the left side of the picture is the shed, which is getting a lot of dirt splatter when it rains. This is from the water cascading down from the roof of the shed, so the shed will need to be outfitted with gutters at some point.]

And then add 4-6″ of good-quality soil to the existing gardens, where the roots of some poor trees and bushes were starting to show.

Ahhhh. All better now.

And it seems like I’m not the only one enjoying these improvements – I saw a nice black kitty deposit this little guy in the garden just as I was coming home today.

Maybe the softer soil makes for better hunting? While I appreciate the gift, dear kitty, maybe next time you could give it to someone who actually knows what to do with a dead mole?

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Hello, old friend

It’s been a while since I’ve seen you, my dear!Since the old house, in fact. I had been convinced I had lost you (or, maybe, that a confused househunter had picked you up on their way through the house). Instead, I guess I went for a walk with you in my down vest, and forgot to take you out of your cozy pocket when we were done. Ooops.

Lost: late April, early May

Found: last week, in the pocket of a vest packed away with the winter clothes

Dan has complained for the last few months that I don’t answer my “new” phone. I realized yesterday that my brain must have been conditioned to the ring of the old phone, since I heard it right away after months of absence (it was sitting on my desk after I had found it, and Dan had helpfully swapped the sim cards and called it to let me know it was working). Funny things, those brains.

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Boxes

Ah, good old reliable Shakey.

Whenever there is an empty box in the house, fear not – it will not stay lonely and empty for long. Shakey to the rescue!

If he was a little waddlier, and I a little less lazy about recording his box-related antics, I think he could give Maru a run for his kibble.

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Spider wars

I had my first brush with Halloween-ey stuff yesterday.

As I was leaving the house for my ultimate game, I saw a spider scamper across the dashboard. It was gone before I got a chance to get out a tissue with which to squish it (because, let’s face it, spider guts on my hand or car dashboard – ewwwwwww).

Next thing I know, as I’m driving down the 417, there’s a thread that appears less than a foot away from my face, and a (spidery) object starts lowering itself from it. It felt straight out of a horror movie.

Horror for the spider, of course, as I proceeded to bat it away and then remember about the tissue I could squish it with. And squish it I did. The End. (What kind of horror movie were you thinking of???)

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Name-tag

Dan informs me I’m behind the times, and he had a similar one 6 years ago, but I still can’t help but be excited about this.

A magnetic name-tag, people!

This really made my day when I got it, because it means no more holes or snags in my shirts. Lame, you say? Well, this is all I can muster up for a Tuesday night post. So there.

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Fall is here!

Do you know how I know?

It’s been cold and rainy and miserable.

We’ve had to turn on the furnace because mornings have been rather chilly lately.

We’ve had to pull out the down comforter for the same reason.

But the biggest reason why I think that fall is here?

The kitties are napping together again. The lump in the foreground is BB. The poor thing has been spending most days under the covers on our bed – it’s so adorable!

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