The Queen of Halloween

Oh hello there. Welcome back! Today's post is in dedication of the greatest holiday around, Halloween. I'm not only saying that because you can take a break from reality, personify someone or something completely out there, and wear the most ridiculously large fake eyelashes ever....but you also get to watch scary movies, stuff your face with candy, and have a justifiable excuse to be creepy.

In my last post I ranted and raved about the glorious time of year, where ghosts, cats, witches, skeletons, and pumpkins are in full effect. Think of this as a continuation. Let's get to it, shall we?

In case you haven't met him yet, this is Freddie. Word on the street, he's the hottest dog around.

Speaking of hot...it was the opposite of hot this last weekend when I volunteered with some other Junior Leaguers at Atlanta Zoo's annual event, Boo at the Zoo. We arrived around 9am, where the temperature outside was hovering right around 40. We were assigned to the "really really good" Candy Station in the back of the zoo near the reptiles *icky creepy crawlies* . Just my luck, there was no sun and it was super windy, but we did have the best candy. So that was a plus. By the time the 2nd shift of volunteers arrived, none of us wanted to leave. My fav costume was the little girl who dressed up as Si from Duck Dynasty....so creative! If you've been living under a rock, please Google and/ or watch an episode. You're welcome in advance. And honestly, it took all I had when little lions came up not to get them to do diamonds with me.

So after that was my Spinarella Halloween showcase. Our routine was awesome, and incredibly creepy. We dressed up as demented dead children throwing temper tantrums. Utterly terrifying for most people in the room. If you want to be creeped out, please click here . I'm jumping rope and on the right side.

Immediately following the Showcase, the good doctor and I headed out to a local bar crawl. Note to self: you're not 22 anymore and cannot do sugary room temperature shots unless you want to be severely hungover in the morning. After about the 3rd bar (where some very drunk youngin' ran into me and broke my Paper Doll costume....RUDE) we decided to do the responsible thing and drop out of the bar crawl. And buy a beer tower of Bud Light instead. Like I said, responsible.

Fast forward a couple days and we arrive to Halloween Eve. Nails painted all scary-like and spooktacular, Kitty costume laid out with my work clothes, cupcakes were made, and bags of candy purchased for our Trick-o-Treaters. My vanilla candy corn cupcakes didn't turn out quite as planned considering the bf ate almost all the candy corn before I got a chance to drop it in the batter. I mean, they still turned out pretty good. Someone even went so far as to say "the best cupcakes ever" but I don't think they've experienced the wonder that is Cami Cakes. I highly recommend.

So now here I sit, writing about my favorite holiday. Still wearing my cat ears. Watching all the gloriousness of ABCFamily and their 13 Days of Halloween programming. Only slightly disappointed because; 1) Hocus Pocus isn't on 2) we didn't get a single knock on our door and 3) there's leftover cupcakes which I will undoubtedly devour at some point this weekend 4) I have to wait 365 days for this holiday to be on a weekend - where I can actually enjoy myself.

One final thing. It's my 10,000th day on Earth. Yay me! Okay, I'm slowly slipping into diabetic shock since I decided to eat all the candy meant for the kiddies. Sorry not sorry.

Until next time,
The Queen of Halloween

A Slight Obsession with Halloween

I personally blame Walt Disney Pictures for bewitching me into making my favorite holiday Halloween. Hocus Pocus is one of the best things about Halloween, and if you try to argue that point, then you can just click here and the good people at Buzzfeed will walk you through why I'm right. After doing the math in my head, Hocus Pocus came out when I was 7, and I loved Halloween far before that.

I can remember dressing up in costume from a very early age, since I could dress myself. A princess. A parrot. A pirate. A bride. I just loved to put costumes on. My first dance recital costume reminded me of Minnie Mouse, so I wore it all the time. My first cat was a black cat named Spooky. Poor little Spooky was catnapped 2 weeks before Halloween when I was 6 years old. My mom and I had 6 little wooden pumpkins that we'd decorate with sharpies every year. Of course we'd have to paint over them each year, but that didn't matter. Decorating was an art. Cobwebs, black lights, etc...Even in college, I decorated the door and windows of my tiny little 10x10 room in the sorority house.

Now I have a place of my very own (with my roommate/boyfriend/life partner and pooch). Luckily, they don't mind the decorations, or my need to watch Sally and Jack in The Nightmare Before Christmas.

Did I also mention that my 10,000th day on this Earth will be on Halloween? What are the odds? How cool is that? Cooler than a polar bears toenails if you're as obsessed with Halloween as I am.

So let me show you what I've been up to in terms of Halloween crafting. I've added a few things to my Pinterest DIY list, and actually completed Number 29 - Pinterest Projects!

1. Glass apothecary jars. These little babes were made from a combination of glass vases, glass and wood candlestick holders, terra cotta trays, ribbon, paint, and a buttload of hot glue. Yes, "buttload" is the correct form of measurement.

2. Candy Corn Wine Bottles.
Step 1 - Drink lots of wine.
Step 2 - Scrape off labels.
Step 3 - Spraypaint white. Then yellow. Then orange.
Step 4 - Touch up as needed.
Step 5 - Enjoy your creation.

3. Painted Pumpkins. I think I need to get a better close up so you can see how stinking cute these little guys are. I bough 3 pumpkins from the farmer's market...each was $1. What a bargain. The biggest one has black chevron. The middle child pumpkin has a white stem, white polka dots and tiny black x's. The tiniest of all the tiny pumpkins has black and white stripes.

And look who it is.....Little Freddie Monster wondering: a) why momma is outside
b) why I'm not outside with momma
c) is it time to put on my Hot Dog Halloween costume yet?
d) is it time for food yet?
e) all of the above

 My guess is E.









Last but not least, project numero quattro (number four for all you non-Spanish speakers)....Wooden Spooky Plaques. Granted, they look more happy than they do spooky. There's 4 in total, but Mr. Spider/Bat is not finished yet. A spider doesn't really scream Halloween, but that's what Pinterest told me to do. I'm thinking about giving him RedBull - so he can get wiiiiiiiings and be a bat instead. Then he will join the likes of Mr. Pumpkin, Mr. Frankenstein, and Mr. Casper on the shelf above my TV. Right in front of the cinnamon broom....ahhhhh the smells of fall.

Beware: I'm sure I'll do another Halloween post, complete with costumes, recipes, and other spoooooooooky shenanigans.

Until next time,
L

The Only Constant is Change

I'm about to drop some knowledge on y'all. Get ready. The Greek philosopher Heraclitus was the genius behind the quote "The only constant is change". I know, I thought it sounded a little like Dr. Seuss too. Instead of sharing with you my Top 10 Dr. Seuss quotes (is it weird he's one of my favorite authors?) I'm going to talk about change. More specifically, changes to my list.

When this list was created, the first 80 or so flowed out of me like wine at an Italian wedding (or a Junior League meeting - whichever you prefer). Breaking it down by weekly, monthly, and yearly goals was a stretch. Instead of being authentic, a lot of things seemed forced. Either that, or I just gave up completely. So I'm doing a little editing of my list. Meet the new members of the gang -

12. Feel beautiful, comfortable, and confident in my own skin
89. No booze for one month

90. Vegas, baby

91. Go home for my 10 year reunion and not HATE it.

92. Learn how to drive a manual car

95. Find and stick with a good skincare regime

The six new and improved additions are meant to improve my life. Wearing my retainer twice a week, although beneficial to me and anyone gazing at my pearly whites, is not as important as going balls to the wall in Vegas. Or learning how to properly take care of my face. Or learning how to drive my bf's manual Audi.

And now I leave you with not one, but two of my favorite quotes from the good Doctor....

Until next time, 

L

Saying No to Love

It's not what you think. Me and the bf did not break up - even though after the few weeks we've had, I'm shocked he's still around. I'm about one crisis away from a full on mental breakdown, AB style.....yowza!

Moldy old apartment - sick for 3 weeks, but allowed to break lease (yay). 2nd degree burn on upper thigh due to rogue hair wand being placed on bed (no, it wasn't me...I know not to put something 400 degrees on a polyblend comforter where someone could potentially plop down on). Move into new apartment - which floods 20 hours into our lease thanks to a loose hose on washing machine. Then normal stressors like work, being a puppy parent, and really just life in general. Ugh.

This entry relates to "Saying No to Something I'd Normally Say Yes to" - or the second half of number 78.

Many many moons ago...back in my sorority days...lived a smiling, giggly, beautiful, bubbly, charismatic brunette (nope again not me. I was bleach blonde back then) who all the girls wanted to be around, and obvi the guys too. She was one of my sisters, and to be more specific my Secret Little Sister (SLS to be sneaky)- my bad, secret's out now D. 

As the story goes....boy meets girl, girl flirts with boy and gives him "Sweet Kisses" on the cheek (PS those are the best thing in the world...I digress), boy and girl become and item, eventually they get engaged, married, and live happily ever after. By the way...the pic to the right is their first official picture as a couple, remember D?

This is where my story comes in. Thanks to the stressors in my life - see paragraph one - I can no longer attend the Big Day. Something about flights shooting up to $550, my inability to sit on my burn for an 8 hour drive, etc...So I am mournfully having to say No to my SLS on her wedding day. I've set up some FaceTime dates with the bridesmaids and demanded that a small gift be given to my sweet SLS on her big day. So this little post and picture montage is dedicated to her, her future hubs, and me - obvi. I had to cut down the picture selection from roughly 1000 to 6. 

Sorry I can't be there D, but I'll be there in spirit...throwing popcorn and twerking like it's my job. Again, in spirit. Because if I did that at your wedding, it would be embarrassing. I'm just glad I got to jump on board the Hot Mess Express aka her Bachelorette Party and show you some moves. Wishing you and K all the love and happiness possible. Love you both.

Until next time, 

L