happy halloween

horray, halloween is finally here! my favorite holiday. unfortunately i have to work tonoight so i don't have any exciting halloween plans. we will probably watch a horror movie tonight after work, my vote will be for for Nightmare on Elm St. its one of my favorite scary movies, not to mention johnny depp has a bit part, which makes almost any movie worth watching (well any movie other than secret window or the astronauts wife).
its only 3pm and i have already had my first halloween fright while unloading groceries from my car. as i was getting the bags from the trunk, i glanced at the van beside me and saw a head sticking out from the space between the tire and the fender. it startled me so much that i actually dropped one of my bags on the ground (luckily i dropped the bag with the boxes and toilet paper, so i did not break anything). i find mannequin heads super creepy to begin with, and especially when they are sticking out of a car. i did not have my camera with me, and by the time i had a chance to go back down to the parking lot someone had moved it. i wonder what other eerie events the day has in store.
in honor of holiday, i decided to showcase some of my favorite examples of handmade spookiness. all available on etsy.
i love this "black scraggy cat print" from elle j. wilson


"darla the devil girl" is just one of the many amazing dolls by Colleen Downs of Loopy Boopy


i would hang this "catch me if you can" plate by Re Jin Lee of bailey doesn't bark on my wall year round.


"tabby girl" necklace from Maid of Clay


an awesome "skull and cross-utensils fruit cup" by folded pigs

this "black kitty ring" by studio.halo is definitely on my wish list.


i wish my cats would wear this adorable tutu by jiniaj. but since i can't even get them to wear their collars, i know they will never go for it.

pumpkin!

i found this recipe for Saskatchewan Mashed Pumpkin on Pumpkin Nook and thought it sounded delicious. the recipe, contributed by Christina Mader from Saskatchewan, Canada, is as follows:

ingredients:
3-4 cups pumpkin, cooked, mashed
1 onion
2 tbs olive oil
1 bell pepper
salt
pepper

directions:
1. To cook pumpkin, clean one pumpkin and peel it. Cook until soft. Then, mash it with a mixer.
2. Re-heat mashed pumpkin in a large saucepan.
3. Thinly slice an onion.
4. Fry the onion in olive oil till brown.
5. Add browned onions to pumpkins. Mix in.
6. Add coarse salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

we decided to give it a try. never having attempted to crack open a pie pumpkin before it turned out to be quite an adventure. who would have thought something so small would be so hard to open. after several unsuccessful attempts using 4 different knifes i decided to bring out the heavy artillery.
making progress
the guts
cooking
mashing
ready to eat!
although it was a lot of work the results were delicious, and it was a fun way to spend the afternoon. not to mention, i got roasted pumpkin seeds with old bay as a bonus.

schmap

i was just informed that on of my photographs from the Historic Voodoo Museum in New Orleans was included in the 5th edition of the Schmap New Orleans interactive travel guide. you can see it here in the tour du French section. this is perfect timing as we returning to New Orleans for vacation next week. New Orleans is my favorite city to visit and i am counting down the days, almost hours, until our super early (6:00 am, eek) flight out on monday. i can't wait to get back to the French Quarter. i love its sense of history and charm and of course the food. i'm already planning meals, crawfish etouffee for dinner the first night and beignets at cafe du monde every day for breakfast.

my included photo

and another photo from the museum.

jackson square

statue of joan of arc