Lauren's First Halloween and Long Distance Memories

Perhaps the most memorable Halloween of my life to date was my sister Lauren's first Halloween. I have blurry memories of those days.

My sister was barely a month old, and somehow my mother had time to make costumes. We were bunnies.

Me and Lauren on October 31, 1986.

The cat and her two bunnies. Here she was showing off Lauren's pom-pom tail!

Shortly before Lauren was born, my grandma Joan came to stay with us for several weeks. I remember sitting together in the kitchen on Lauren's birthday before we went to the hospital to see her for the very first time. I was eating Goldfish crackers that she brought from California out of my favorite red bowl. I can still see those crackers in the bowl after all these years, and I can hear her telling me it was almost time to go meet Lauren.

My grandma Joan and her granddaughters. 

As you can see, we loved having her with us. Now that I'm an adult, I realize just how difficult it must have been for her to be away from her house, her dog, her job and her life for that many weeks. It's funny how time does change our perspectives about some things. 

Long faces (and whatever face I was making) as my grandma prepared to leave us to return home to California. She sure was dressed nicely for that long flight from London to LAX!

I'm pretty sure she was telling me to be nice to my sister and help my mommy. 

In the days before Skype and the Internet, London and Los Angeles felt like different worlds. Visits were never long enough, and all of the cards and presents that were mailed lovingly back and forth across the Atlantic couldn't replace the feeling that existed when we were all in one place. It was a little easier once we moved to the States, but long distance phone calls were still expensive. During the last years of her life, she purchased a Gateway computer and we were able to enjoy using Internet messengers (specifically ICQ and Yahoo Messenger) and email to talk back and forth. I still find myself wondering what she'd think about iPhones, Skype and FaceTime. She would have loved being able to connect with us, but she probably would have hated seeing herself. I must have inherited that trait from her. 

What are your favorite Halloween memories? 

Make Your Own Halloween Ghost Decoration

Our new neighborhood has some legit Halloween decorations. Other than a few pumpkins, we never decorated the outside of our house for Halloween. As we're on a tight budget, I decided to decorate using items we already had on hand. The result was a trio of spooky Halloween ghosts. To make your own inexpensive spooky Halloween ghosts, you'll need:

- A tennis ball - A white garbage bag (ours was 13 gallon) - A white zip tie - A black permanent marker - A corsage pin - Fishing wire - Scissors

Before I started, I cut off the drawstring part of my bag. Then I took my tennis ball and put it inside the bag, right in the center of the bottom:

Place one hand on the ball to keep it from moving, and use your other hand to cut off about half of the bag. It doesn't have to be a perfectly straight line. Here's what it should look like after you've made the cut:

The cut piece is basically a big circle. I made a cut at both ends (along the bag's seams), and I was left with two identical pieces. I placed both of those pieces on top of the original bag, pulled them tight and then secured the zip tie around them. Then I used the scissors to cut off the end of the zip tie. Here's what it should look like once you've done that:

Next, I placed my corsage pin through the tennis ball at the very top of the ghost's head (yes, I felt like I was stabbing it in the head). I tied the fishing line around the head of the pin and knotted it a few times. It should look like this:

Finally, I drew a spooky face using the marker. My finished ghost looked like this:

I made two more and hung them around our front stoop. When the wind catches them, they "fly" around. Pretty spooky!

DIY: Handmade Halloween Pumpkin Card

On Sunday, the weather turned, and all of a sudden, it feels like fall around here. Thanks to the slight chill in the air and the falling leaves, we've had Halloween on the brain. For that reason, I decided it was time to create a Halloween card. Although I love all of the Halloween motifs, I decided to make a pumpkin card.

Here’s what you’ll need to join me in the card making fun!

- A variety of colored card stock - In this case, orange, black and green

- An envelope

- A cutting mat

- An Xacto knife

- A metal ruler

- Paper glue

- Basic scissors

- Sticker letters

Start by using your mat to find the center of your card base (5.5 ” for this card). Then score it by running the knife lightly down the center once or twice. Fold in half.

Using your scissors, round off the short sides of your card, taking care not to cut too much off the folded side.

Grab your envelope, and made sure you leave enough room for your pumpkin's stalk. Glue the stalk to the card case.

Cut out three triangles (your pumpkin's eyes and nose). I free-hand the first triangle, and then use it to cut out the other two. This way I know they are all the same size.  I also cut out a half circle for a mouth. If you want your pumpkin to have teeth, carefully cut two rectangles out of the half circle. Arrange your face to make sure everything fits nicely. Trim the pieces down if necessary.

Once you're happy with your face, glue the triangles and half circle to your card base.

Open your card, and use your sticker letters to write a happy or spooky message. I chose a happy message for this particular card. Add your personal note, and you're ready to send a friend or family member some Halloween cheer!

Like this card but don't think you can recreate it? Contact us, and we'll create one for you to purchase via our Etsy shop. The Halloween Pumpkin Card is $3.50, plus shipping and handling.