Halloween is Coming!

A man is walking home alone late one foggy night... when behind him he hears: Bump... BUMP... BUMP... Walking faster, he looks back and through the fog he makes out the image of an upright casket banging its way down the middle of the street toward him. BUMP... BUMP... BUMP... Terrified, the man begins to run toward his home, the casket bouncing quickly behind him FASTER... FASTER... BUMP... BUMP... BUMP... He runs up to his door, fumbles with his keys, opens the door, rushes in, slams and locks the door behind him. However, the casket crashes through his door, with the lid of the casket clapping clappity-BUMP... clappity-BUMP... clappity-BUMP... on his heels, the terrified man runs. Rushing upstairs to the bathroom, the man locks himself in.  His heart is pounding; his head is reeling; his breath is coming in sobbing gasps. With a loud CRASH the casket breaks down the door. Bumping and clapping toward him. The man screams and reaches for something, anything, but all he can find is a bottle of cough syrup! Desperate, he throws the cough syrup at the casket... and, (hopefully you're ready for this!!!) The coffin stops .

Flashback Friday - Let's Do the Monster Mash

Halloween. Do you celebrate it? Participate? Dread it? Avoid it? I have mixed feelings about it. But that's not what this post is about. Linda at Mocha with Linda wants to know about our childhood memories of Halloween. Here's her prompt:

What  was Halloween like when you were growing up? Did your family participate? If not, was there a substitute activity? Did your school or church have a fall festival or carnival? Were there stipulations regarding costumes? What sorts of activities did they have? What about Halloween parties? Have you ever bobbed for apples or been on a hayride? What are your memories of "haunted houses"? (I'm not referring to the ultra-scary, secular ones, just the fun kid ones, with bowls of grapes and cold spaghetti!) If you went trick-or-treating, what were the rules, both for trick-or-treating and for candy consumption? What types of costumes did you wear? Were they store-bought or homemade? Did you carve a jack-o-lantern? How are your children's experiences similar or different to yours? And the most important question: Do you like candy corn? What is your favorite (and least favorite!) Halloween candy?

When I grew up, we didn't worry about the predators and lunatics who derived pleasure from hurting small children. Not as much as we worry today. Rarely was there a report of a razor blade in a popcorn ball or a drug injected into Halloween candy. That type of activity was reserved for large metropolitan cities not small rural towns.

I remember my brother and I going out trick or treating together. The rules? We had to stay together. That was it. We went everywhere. By ourselves. For more than two hours. Crazy right? Not back then. We would come home with a brown paper grocery bag half full of candy, apples, and popcorn balls. We loved it.
Tomorrow, I'm taking the grand-boy and niece trick or treating to a few of the local businesses downtown and the mall. No door-to-door trick or treating in neighborhoods where you don't know the residents. How the times have changed.

Another big change. We came up with our own costumes with clothes we already had. We didn't wear store bought outfits. We didn't carry plastic pumpkins to put our loot in either. Those grocery sacks worked just fine and held more goodies.

My favorite treat was the popcorn balls. Do people still make them? That sounds so good. Maybe I'll make some for the grand-boy and niece this weekend and teach them to do the mash:


What about you? How did you participate in Halloween? If you'd like to join in on the fun, hop on over to Linda's and join in the fun. Have a scary but safe Halloween weekend. Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting. 

Peace and Joy,
Susan

Deuteronomy 18:10 (NKJV) There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer,

My Girls Reunion Weekend - A Preview

ahahahaha! j/k Thanks for stopping by and visiting.
Peace and Joy,
Susan

Ecclesiastes 9:7 (NIV)  Go, eat your food with gladness, and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for it is now that God favors what you do.

Desultory Deuce

My dear blog peep Linda has been hosting this meme for months. THANK YOU, LID! But the poor girl is Taaard. Who can blame her? Certainly not me. This will be the last regularly scheduled Random. I will be sad to see it go. Lid's questions have been fun and thought provoking. I've answered some seriously and some silly. The best part, I've gotten to know many of you so much better through your answers. I've also revealed things about myself I probably wouldn't have otherwise. Now I have to come up with my own post every Wednesday. *heavy sigh*.

Appropriate for this season and today, for The Random, that is--Robert Frost wrote:

Nature's first green is gold
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf's a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.

1. What scares you the most

A) Physically
B) Emotionally

I can scare myself emotionally with imagination. Seriously! Watching the news. Reading the newspaper. Allowing the mind to drift on "what if's." 

But being burglarized. Home invasion. That's one of my biggest physical fears.

Why does it scare you, and how do you cope? My hubby works for the prison system. Nuff said! I cope with it by believing that God protects His children. By praying for that protection daily. By believing in Him and Mr. Smith...and Mr. Wesson. lol

2. What comes to mind when you read the phrase, "Nothing gold can stay?" That this world is temporary and I should be laying up treasure in heaven not depending on the things of man.  


Thanks for stopping by and visiting. Please hop over to Lidna's at 2nd Cup of Coffee and visit the other "Dozenettes." Or join in the fun by posting your own responses and linking up.


Peace and Joy,
Susan

Matthew 6:19-20 (NKJV) ¹⁹ “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; ²⁰ but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.

Monday Musings - Animal Crackers

When the mother returned from the grocery store, her small son pulled out the box of animal crackers he had begged for, then he spread the animal-shaped crackers all over the kitchen counter.

"What are you doing?" his Mom asked.

"The box says you can't eat them if the seal is broken," the boy explained. "I'm looking for the seal."


Thanks for stopping by and visiting today. 


Peace and Joy,
Susan

1 Chronicles 16:27 (NIV)  Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy in his dwelling place.

It's Time for Our Annual Girls Reunion

By the time you read this, I'll be on the road again. That's right. I'm off on another adventure. With this group of women: Jess, Myla, Alicia, Me, Dani, and Gretchen. Abby is behind the camera. This is our first reunion in 2008:

Here's Abby in blue:

This is us in 2009. Abby and Gretchen didn't make it, but Megan and Julz did. We talked a random guy into taking the pic for us so we could all be in it.

This gal is making it to this reunion. Super excited about that.

I'll be back Tuesday with photos and stories. Have a fabulous weekend. Thanks for stopping by and visiting.

Peace and Joy,
Susan

Psalm 20:4 (NIV)  May he give you the desire of your heart and make all your plans succeed.

Stirring the Pot - Feeding a Crowd

It seems that cooler weather begs for large gatherings and bonfires. I don't know about you, but in our neck of the woods we love sitting around a fire, swapping lies, and eating. OK, not lies.....but there are definitely a lot of stories floating around. Anyway, we eat chili, hot dogs, or my favorite....Sloppy Joe's. Here's a recipe to feed that crowd without a lot of fuss:



5 #s Ground Round
5 Vadalia Onions, chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, minced
2 Red Bell Peppers, chopped
6 Celery Stalks, diced
1 to 1 1/2 Bottles Ketchup (32 oz)
2 to 3 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 to 2 T Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste



Saute the celery, then the onion, garlic, bell peppers in the olive oil. Put in "turkey roaster." Season, brown, and drain the ground round. Add to the sauteed vegetables. Start with one bottle of ketchup. Pour it in and mix it up. If it seems dry, add more ketchup. Then add in the Worcestershire Sauce. Stir it all up really, really good. Check and adjust the seasoning.



Set the buns, plates, chips, and any other side dishes next to the roaster. This stuff will disappear. Go enjoy the party. Your work is done. 



Peace and Joy,
Susan

Psalm 51:12 (NIV)  Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

Where I've Been - Vacation

Yesterday was the last day of our week of vacation. We had originally planned to take a long motorcycle ride east to the Smoky Mountains. But we decided to use our home as a base and take short trips instead of one long trip. So glad we did. We had a great time. So....what did we do? Where did we go? I'm so glad you asked. lol

Saturday last weekend we met friends in Clarksville, Missouri. Unbeknown to us this quaint little river town was having their annual apple festival. There were people everywhere. We ate lunch at a cute little coffee cafe called Cool Beans. Wandering in and out of shops and down on the riverfront our afternoon whizzed by. You can kind of see the storefronts behind me.

The next day we headed towards Hermann, Missouri on Highway 94. Our first stop was a winery where we quenched our thirst and enjoyed some of their fresh baked French bread. YUM! Here's our group relaxing:

Can you see the ribbon of a road down there in the valley? That's where we're headed:

These are our bikes...all in a row! lol

The scenery was gorgeous.

The company was fun and adventurous.

More to come. Thanks for stopping by and visiting.


Peace and Joy,
Susan

Psalm 27:14 (NIV)  ¹⁴ Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.

Monday Musings - Census Taker

An old man was sitting on his porch, when a young man walked up with a pad and pencil in his hand.

"What are you selling, young man?" he asked.

"I'm not selling anything, sir," the young man replied. "I'm the census taker."

"A what?" the man asked.

"A census taker. We are trying to find out how many people are in the United States."

"Well," the man answered, "you're wasting your time with me; I have no idea."

Peace and Joy,

Susan

Job 8:21 (NIV)  He will yet fill your mouth with laughter and your lips with shouts of joy.

My Recent Check Up

Yesterday I went to the doctor

For my yearly physical.

My blood pressure was high.

My cholesterol was high.

I'd gained some weight,

and I didn't feel so hot.

My doctor said eating right

doesn't have to be complicated and

it would solve my physical problems.

He said:

Just think in colors.

Fill your plate with bright colors.

Try some greens, oranges, reds,

maybe something yellow, etc.

So I went right home

and ate an entire bowl of

bright colors. 

And Sure Enough,

I Felt Better Immediately

I never knew eating right could be so easy

Now stay healthy, eat your colors,

and have a fabulous weekend.

I'm joining Kim for Friday Funnies. Join in the fun by visiting the other players of this fun game. Thanks for stopping by and visiting.

Peace and Joy,

Susan

1 Corinthians 6:19 (NIV) Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;

Throne Trip Tuesdays - Prayer Warriors Needed

One of my dear blog friends, Teresa @ Grammy Girlfriend, desperately needs our prayers. Her sweet husband suffered a major stroke over the weekend. I do not know all the details. What I do know is that this precious family is hurting. They have a bazillion questions that need answered. They love the Lord and are seeking Him for comfort. They need me and you to pray for them.


So our trip to the throne today, This Day, is for Teresa and her family. Thank you for your prayers. If you are so lead, please post this on your page. There is power in God's people praying one for another.

Peace and Joy,
Susan

Isaiah 55:6 (NKJV) Seek the LORD while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near.