Halloween 2014 // Black Widow and Bob Ross oh my!

For all those who know me, know I absolutely love Halloween. I can't get enough of it. Erin and I begin to decorate for Halloween on Oct 1st and the scarier the better. We pretty much buy all the Halloween decorations we can without making the house look tacky, but sometimes it looks like Halloween threw up on our front porch! We love it!

 

Every year, we host a Halloween party. This year was no exception. The guests are required to dress up and bring a treat for the party. We had so much yummy food this year. From mummy hot dogs to boiled peanuts and kitty litter cake to jello shots! I am so grateful that most of my friends love getting into the Halloween spirit as much as Erin and I do. 

 

 

   

The day before Halloween myself, my mom, and Erin begin to really deck out the inside of the house for the big bash. We dangle bats from the ceiling, set up a Freddy Krueger in the bathroom, dust the house in cob webs, and set multiple strobe lights around the house. Like I said, we go all out. We even have a fake cemetery set up in the front of the house adorned with fake grave stones. 

 

 

 

 

 As the trick-or-treaters rolled in on Halloween, they began to tell us we had the best and scariest house on the block. Mission accomplished! Erin and I were so proud. Plus we were excited to have a few dozen trick-or-treaters as opposed to our two last year. 

We had a great group show up for the party! New friends and old friends alike! My brother and sister-in-law brought the twins who were dressed as strawberries! How adorable! My parents came for a bit and showed up with the best costumes - Lucy and Desi Arnaz! I love my family! 

 

  

 

  

  

  

  

 

The night was so much fun and I truly can't wait for next year!

November 2nd, we celebrated Dia de los Muertos! For the past 12 years, Birmingham has held an amazing festival downtown. I had never been, so we decided to dress the part and join the celebration! I was so excited to paint my face and participate in the festivities. The face painting was A LOT harder than expected, but I think our skeleton faces turned out awesome. Despite the COLD COLD weather, we had an amazing time. We enjoyed tamales and tacos from the food trucks and listening to the jazz parade. If you have never attended Dia de los Muertos of Alabama, you should! It was a great experience, and I will definitely be going back next year!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you all had a fun and safe Halloween!

Until next time!

-H

Auburn vs. LSU // WDE

Last weekend I made the trek back to Auburn for the first full weekend since I graduated college. Yes, I had gone back for the Alpha Psi Rodeo – but that doesn't count in my book.

My dear friend, Jack, let us use his lake house for the weekend which was incredibly generous on the part of his parents. Very thankful, because in the long run it saved us hundreds of dollars. Over $300 a night for a hotel room for LSU weekend? No thank you! Just wish Jack could have been able to make the trip down from Winston Salem! 

Will, Lindsey, and Lee joined me for the weekend trip. I was so excited to see everyone again and to finally get to spend the whole weekend in Auburn. Will had bought two tickets to the game – one for Lindsey and one for himself. I had no luck finding a ticket, so my plans were to tailgate and watch the game on TV. As we were all finishing getting ready to head out on Friday night, I walked into my room to find a football ticket placed on my suitcase. Sneaky Will. He had acquired a few extra tickets and being the sweet friend he is, he gave me one. I was ecstatic! 

We had planned on trying to eat someone nice on Friday night but literally EVERYWHERE was over an hour wait. So we grabbed a quick bite to eat downtown. It was like the old days. Going before nine to get a stamp at Sky Bar to avoid paying cover then heading over to my old stomping grounds, Quioxtes. To tell the truth, I felt SO OLD. Everyone looked like they were eighteen years old. Well, a lot of them probably were. After seeing a few familiar faces and grabbing a few drinks at the Q, we braved Skybar. And man has it changed. It is enormous! We could only handle a hour or two once we decided to head home for the night.

Saturday morning was accompanied by cold weather. Perfect football temperature! We started the day pretty early with a breakfast of corn nuggets (closest thing to a corn dog that we could find) since you know, we were playing LSU! We got into Auburn and did a little bit of game day shopping – J&M Bookstore, Kinnucans, and of course ABC! 

 

We mixed our drinks and decided to walk to the amphitheater to tailgate. We passed the stadium, the RV park, and probably over a thousand Auburn tailgaters. It was officially game day on the plains! Throughout the day we saw old friends and relived our college days. Once it was time to head to the stadium, I was pumped. This was my second time to attend a game this season! I was on a roll. We were pretty much at the top of the stadium, so the crisp breeze was definitely not welcomed like it was that morning. We happened to sit next to a group of dads who were from Charlotte and were hilarious. A definite plus! 

The best part about sitting high in the stadium is seeing the breathtaking sunset. Everyone around us were taking pictures – including myself. 

As our game was starting, the Alabama/ Ole Miss game was ending. And lets just say it was not a great turnout for Alabama. Poor Lindsey was surrounded by thousands of Auburn fans as her team lost. Still love you, girl! You are a real trooper! 

Auburn played a heck of a game and beat the hell out of LSU. I couldn't wait to head down to Toomer's and roll downtown! I know I have said this before, but Toomer's is not the same after the poisoning of the trees. They now have wires erected to help, but the effect is nowhere near the same. 

We ended the night with another trip to Quioxtes and a stop at Checkers to grab late night food. So typical and so like the college me! Maybe that is where the freshman fifteen came from! 

It was sad to say goodbye to everyone Sunday morning, but we had such a wonderful weekend. It is truly great to be an Auburn tiger!

Until next time,

-H