Halloween Trunk or Treat of '13

Have I ever mentioned I love Halloween? When else is it socially acceptable to dress up in some fantastical outfit?  Besides Walmart at midnight (Thank you Tiffany for the suggestion).

And every year I learn more about sewing.  In 20 yrs or so I'll actually be able to make something cool :)  Also, Tammy Bennet will be happy to hear I used the duct tape dress form she wrapped me in in 2010.

This year, I decided to be Robin Hood.  No, I have no idea where the idea came from.  Yes, Robin Hood is a boy (Robin is a girls name now, just saying) ... but after Pumpkinman (a week and a half before the 31st) I decided I wanted a bow and arrows and a hood.  The rest fell into place from there.  Bethanie is the one that came up with the props.  She is the best when it comes to props!

Here follows a series of pictures that were taken at the very beginning of the evening by an obliging ward member (Thanks Shawna!)...

As you can see, the kids had all been eager to help me set up.

They came running when they saw me pull up. We were trying to quick take some pictures before... my hood isn't on right and don't get me started on the bow..

I might have spilled kerosene in my cauldron while driving to the trunk or treat. Spent much of my planned set up time running to the kitchen in the church and trying to wash away the smell before putting in candy.

Can you imagine?  Daddy, this candy smells like lighter fluid...

Robin Hood, robs from the rich and gives children lighter fluid.

Anyway, you probably can't tell but I did rearange a few things during the evening... ie, bringing my treasure chest closer,  pulling the pine trees away from the spreading pool of spilled hot chocolate.

Here I am with the bow on the correct way... kinda.  Never did look up where one stows ones bow.  Its hard to remember where one's bow is, ie knocking over pine trees and hot chocolate all evening.

This is how I spent most of the evening, giving out candy from the cauldron.

My legs were so sore the next few days.

The bow I'm now wearing in the pictures is actually my spare.  The Thomas boy broke my big bow trying to show me how to shoot.  Good thing I had made two :)

Heres my loot... A couple of girl trick or treaters wanted the crown but I wouldn't give it to them.  It was mine!  I paid good money for it...

When the kids said trick or treat, I asked them which one? Most looked at me blankly but a few did decide they wanted a trick.  So I gave them a fake gold coin.

Yes, I'm hilarious.

When asked if I was Katniss... I asked them to please look at my sign...

And of course the wanted posters.

I had made more than a few wanted posters which I gave out to trunks... like the people giving out hot chocolate and another to the hotdog peoples.  I don't think anyone actually noticed them there but it made me happy.

Bethanie suggested food too... cuz I robbed from the rich and gave to the poor.  And the poor need food.  The baguette is Smiths day old bread bought the week before.  Hard as rock and the perfect prop.

There are probably a bunch of pictures of me like this giving little kids candy posted by their parents on facebook.  I was surprised at how many people took my picture this time.

I told Pat I should have put a hashtag on my posters so I could see the pictures.  She suggested #smarthelm.  Next year!

A few people said when they saw me "I found Robin Hood!  Do I get the money?"  My response was "first you have to bring me in... and I'd like to see you try".  One boy said he could so I asked him "who would you turn me in to?"  "....Um... The bishop!"  "Ha! I'm pretty sure the bishop wouldn't pay $10000 for me."

After a short 2 hrs the trunk or treat was over :(.

Sigh.  Its always hard to put everything away after the hrs of work and superfluous stress... So I set it all up in my living room when I got home. You might remember that I'm single. Besides, actual event pictures didn't really convey how awesome it was.

After looking at this picture compared to the actual evening I really wish I had done a trial run the night before.  Normally I do, but I had thought setting the tree up in my front room was good enough. As you can see, my cardboard tree looks way different against the wall than it does against a car.  I just didn't think about the support it would need against a curving background.  You might have noticed in the car pictures I had tried to fix it on the fly by tying and setting the tree to the side of the car rather than directly against the back... Oh well. Next year.

You can also see that I used many of the same props from previous years... My fire...

The crate with food, the blanket under my bedroll, and of course my lantern.

I'm really proud of my tree and sign.  I just wish it had turned out a little better at the trunk or treat.

My favorite is the wanted posters (Thank you Bethanie for the wonderful idea!). Does it look like me?

That's because it is!  Emily says I look like a jedi knight...

I had actually printed posters with three different poses but I only got back with copies of two out of the three. The one on top with me looking down was my favorite anyways.

I had a lot of fun with my outfit this year, including making the arrows and the case that went with it.  Maybe I'll do a seperate post on that.  I also had fun sewing suede.  It was half off at Joanns and just the right sage green color.  Much easier to work with than I thought it might be.  Probably cuz its just fake suede :).  It did take me longer to finish the outfit though cuz I ended up having to topstitch everything since suede won't press a crease.  Oh yes, and I also didn't have time to put the holes in my armguards for lacing so I just tied them on.  Actually looked pretty good, although not very authentic.  And I kept having to rearrange the laces from sliding down the suede.

Note to self: Its just a costume!

Another nicely lined and topstiched costume.

So all in all a very successful Halloween!

(I made myself a medal and took it to church Sunday...)

A New Car!

I imagine Bob Barker saying the title of the post.  Jared suggested I say I won it at Pumpkinman.

My male family members have been bugging me to post pictures or asking me all sorts of questions about the car that I can't answer.  Ask Dad for details. I can, however, post pictures.

But before I post those pictures... I want to tell you that my wonderful parents came to cheer me at pumpkinman.

They love me. Dad took all the pictures on Moms camera and since I don't have a card drive thing I couldn't download em.  I imagine sometime I will get them and post about it.  Perhaps in Nov... or January.

But we did other fun things afterwards... Like Mom tried on my boots.

Isn't she way cute in boots? They were too big so she didn't wear them to church.

Of course we also went to the belagio to eat, look at the seasonal display in the atrium,

and see the fountains...

And watch an old barbie car get towed. (the license plate)

But the bulk of the time (and Dads favorite part) was trying out new cars (2) but I didn't get pictures of that. Woulda been a little awkward I'm thinking.

Then I had to say goodbye to my old car... it was such a good little car. Never gave me any trouble.

Still had the pass on it to get into Lake Mead for Pumpkinman.

I took a few other pictures of it that night but it was too dark, so I found some old pictures of it... mostly at halloween.

It made a great wagon..

 And tent.

 And poor thing only saw snow once a year in New Mexico during the holidays.

Perhaps its new family will take it out in the snow more often.

I miss my old car... I might have a hard time with change... case in point, see the following;

The new car.

 Wait... another blue forester?

Yup, 2014 model.  These pictures are taken at my work parking lot yesterday.  There was an older brown Subaru forester sitting all by it's lonesome so I parked right next to it.  Now you can compare.

Everything is a little bigger... a little more stretched out.  Why does everything get bigger instead of smaller?  Perhaps in 5 years I can go back to the Impreza hatchback cuz it will be as big as the old 2008 foresters :)  I like that older station wagon look.  You get the room without the length or overall bulk.

Mine does have a sunroof and back up camera and seat warmers but that's cuz apparently the forester is the new craze and everybody wants one.  Had to upgrade if I wanted blue with a light fabric interior.  Kinda weird when 5 years ago I had the pick of the lot.

As you might have noticed it is tinted.  tinting is free so they did it for me before I came back after work to pick it up.  I don't like it but mostly just cuz its different.  I'll get used to it and it isn't quite as weird anymore after a week.

So there you go Jared.  A whole post.  Thanks Mom and Dad for coming!

PS.  I used my stamp to sign some calcs yesterday.  Second time in my engineering career! I signed the drawings today but now that's the third time using my stamp... old hat.

A Small Quiet Book

This weekend is pumpkinman!  If the federal parks open up... not going to go into that today.

I wanted to share my latest sewing project before things get all crazy with Pumpkinman and halloween.

I've been way into quiet books or "things to entice children to my pew (evil laughter)" during church.  It's so fun because then I don't have to listen... I mean...

Anyways, I found this really cute and very easy quiet book pattern.  Much easier than the full blown pages I normally look at.

So I decided to make Emily and I one... and of course all my sisters for sisters weekend.

These were the first three I made... I didn't take pictures of the rest.

As you can see I didn't follow the tutorial exactly cuz I used fabric for everything with flannel for the eggs and inside of the pocket.  The only felt is the cutout pieces.

I have to admit that the most fun was doing the applique of the eggs on the background.  Weird I know, but I had never done applique before.  I got pretty good at it by the end if I do say so myself.

I sent a picture to Emily of what I was gonna send her cuz of course I can't keep a secret worth beans... I wanted her to tell me how wonderful I was twice :)

At sisters weekend I made them cut out their own felt pieces.  Emily had come up with lots more idea as to shapes to include.  I wish I could save the Skype video messages she sent me of the cute animals and faces she had made.

Jenny and Tom sent me these during general conference.

Sarah,

 Jacob.

I love it.

I thought I had more pictures of faces people made and sent to me but I suppose that was all in my head. Sisters, feel free to send me pictures! It makes me happy to see things I made being used. I told Jenny I want to have lots of legacy...

Sisters Weekend 2013

I'm having a hard time being motivated to blog... apparently lots the blogging bug.  But I do want share pictures of sisters weekend... so here they are.  I always say I'm not going to do alot of journaling between the pictures but this time I really mean it :).

Most of you know we (Jenny) planned sisters weekend for when we would all be together in Utah, ie when Jenny and Neita would be bring their daughters up to school in Provo.  It actually worked out rather nice cuz we got a cabin in Heber and were there over labor day to enjoy Swiss days at Midway and the sheepdog trials at Soldiers Hollows.  The only sad part was that Angela couldn't make it cuz she was just starting her student teaching :(.  Next time!

I actually didn't take alot of pictures. I asked Mom to send me some of the ones Dad had taken with her camera... so Dad send me a few.  Mom says she's gonna blog about it so she didn't want Dad to send me very many.  Sorry Mom!  Dad enjoyed sending them over skype :)

So here goes.

First there was there was a moose outside the cabin one morning.

 I never saw it.

I was asleep in the laundry room.  Amy showed me a video of it on her phone...

while i was in my pjs out on the deck.  The dog was a neighbor dog that came to scare the moose away.

There was much eating during sisters weekend...

 Dad was the griller extrodinaire...

much talking...

Hot tubing...

relaxing...

and pretty much lots of fun all around.

We went to Swiss Days and all the pictures I took were on the bus over..

 Looking for food... (Its a craft fair)

 And one of Amy and I all done :)

Didn't really stay there long as it was very hot and very crowded.  I did take a video of one of the entertainers yodeling but I will spare you...

Then that Saturday of course we went to watch the sheep dog trials.

Dad took great pictures with Mom's camera.

My cute nieces! They were invited to sister/girls weekend cuz we love them too :)

Serious watchers.

It was crowded but we still got seats under cover.

This was Dad's favorite picture..

Good thing only the cutest bums are showing...

That sunday a few of us went for a little drive up to the sacred hill... it has all the names of those who died in the wars that lived in the valley

I kept calling it the holy hill which Emily didn't like until she saw the sign on the way up.  It said this was a sacred place so please act accordingly...

Told her.

Dad took a bunch of beauty shots.

It really was pretty up there with the valley spread below

And the clouds and the rainbow.

Ya!  Pictures of me on my blog!  Weird... I know.

Emily and Dad.

And then we all went home... :(

It was so much fun to be with my family even though I was a little bit grumpy cuz of lack of sleep.  I liked that we spent quite a bit of time together just chilling at the cabin.  We got to just talk and discuss life things.  Can't wait to do it again!  Maybe we can do a siblings weekend....

PS.  This is the picture Bethanie and I sent to show everyone out dinner on the way back to Vegas...

Ice cream in Beaver!  Never miss a chance to stop.