Happy Halloween!

Jazzy would like to wish everyone a happy Halloween!  

We were those kind of pet owners.  We decided to dress Jazzy up in a costume for Halloween.  Here she is as a little cow.  Adorable, right? 

Jazzy is not a fan of wearing anything.  She does not care for her collar.  And she did not appreciate the reindeer sweater we put on her last winter.  Despite her dislike for wearing anything besides her fur, we made her wear a cowbell.  Not all day, just for 10 minutes so we could get some cute pictures.  Like this one.    

She handled her cowbell better than I thought she would.  She wasn't crazy about it, but she did pose for some pictures.  I think she secretly likes getting her picture taken.  She always stares up at the camera and does a very good job of looking cute.  

It will be interesting to see how she does with all the trick-or-treaters tonight.  I'm sure she'll want to get right in on all the action.  But I highly doubt we'll see any kids as cute as Jazzy.

Happy Halloween! 

I Just Had a Heart Attack

Well, not a literal heart attack, but it was pretty darn close.  Let me explain.  I have the day off from school today.  We had parent-teacher conferences this week and we get a day to recuperate relax.  Isn't that nice?  I sure think so.  Anyways, I slept in later than usual, which was downright heavenly.  After getting up around 9:30, I let Jazzy out in the backyard.  Usually she doesn't spend too much time out there, especially when it's cloudy like it was this morning.  After about 20 minutes, I thought I would go check on her.  I stuck my head out the door and called her name and...nothing...crickets.  So, I found my slippers and walked out on the deck.  I called her name and she still didn't come like she usually does.  I started to wander around the yard looking for her and I saw this:

This would be where the heart attack came into play.  The gate was wide open!  And Jazzy was nowhere to be seen.  I stood there for a moment in shock and tried to figure out what I should do.  Should I start running through the neighborhood in my pajamas?  Should I go back inside and put on real clothes?  Should I start screaming Jazzy's name at the top of my lungs?  

By the way, this is what I looked like at this point in my day-off-from-school-morning:  

Not exactly how I would like my neighbors to see me.  I think I stood there in my backyard with my mouth gaping open as wide as the gate was for a good minute.  I was shocked!  Who left the gate open?  Did I leave the gate open?  Where did Jazzy go?  Was she halfway to Vegas by now?  Had she been run over by a car?  Had someone else realized what a sweet dog she was and dog-napped her? 

My heart was pounding in my chest and I was on the verge of tears.  I finally snapped out of my daze and started walking out the gate towards the front of our house.  I thought maybe she would still be close enough that I could call to her and she would come home.  

After I got to the front of the house, I turned my head towards the porch and saw this: 

The most beautiful sight in the world.  My sweet, little Jazzy was just sitting on the mat on our front porch.  She is such a good girl!  I told her how proud of I was of her and we went inside and got a cookie right away.  Then I called Adam to brag about our little girl.  Turns out the sprinkler company was supposed to come out today and winterize our sprinkler system.  Adam told me he would call them and give them a piece of his mind.  Glad I'm not them...don't ever get between Adam and his Jazzy! 

Simple Halloween Decor

I like to add little bits of holiday decor to my home as the seasons change.  I don't have the energy to go all out, but I do manage to put out a few simple decor items for each upcoming holiday.  Halloween's almost here, so I added some simple Halloween decor around my house.  

I decided to change up my little entryway table.  I kept a few of the items that were already there, but added some hints of Halloween.  I painted some wine bottles to resemble a ghost and a pumpkin.  And I also filled a glass pumpkin with some candy.  My intention is to hand out the candy to trick-or-treaters...that is if Adam and I don't eat it all before then.  

I swapped out my dining room table centerpiece with some simple paper pumpkins.  I made these cute pumpkins using the directions found here.  They were easy and I like the fact that they can stick around for Thanksgiving, too.  

Last year, I found these cute placemats at Bed, Bath and Beyond.  I bought a couple to put hot dishes on in the center of the table for Thanksgiving.  They are nice and thick and made of felt.  They worked out well as hotpads, but also look cute as a simple centerpiece.  I stuck one in the middle of my kitchen table to add a little something.  All it does is remind me of the leaves piling up in my backyard that need to be raked up.  Oh, the joys of fall! 

After visiting my parents this weekend and seeing their cute hand towels hung on their stove, I decided to copy them.  I added some leafy hand towels.  And that happens to be homemade chicken noodle soup cooking on the stove.  (And by homemade I mean I used frozen noodles and boxes of chicken stock.)

There you go!  A few easy ideas to get your home in a Halloween (and Thanksgiving) kind of mood!