Hallowecarvedpumpkinstoosoon

Halloween is tomorrow, and this is the sad state of our super awesome jack-o-lanterns.

Oh, Sweet Dee. We hardly knew ye.

My scared pumpkin is now a squished pumpkin.

Doesn't look too bad...

Oh, jk. It looks awful. Just not quite as bad as the other two.

Thank goodness I just set up some new autumn decor...so much nicer than dead pumpkins! The sad thing is that I think we'll have to compost them before Halloween tomorrow night.  They are, sigh, moldy and fly-infested. Yeah. Not so great for trick or treaters. If we even get any around here.

Lovely mini pumpkin and eucalyptus wreath from Trader Joe's

The centerpiece of the dining room table.
Festive! 

I love me some festive gourds.

So what now? Do we run to the store and go through the whole carve-a-pumpkin-so-we-have-something-out-tomorrow thing? We do have to go get candy anyway...but I don't know if I have the energy for another afternoon of pumpkin carving.  Sigh...Halloween fail?  At least we have a little bit of fun decor?

Pumpkin Patchery

Last Sunday, we visited the Peter Pumpkin Patch at our favorite creamery, Spring Hill in Petaluma. We hadn't been in two years, and I was really excited to go back.

Activities included

 

letting a baby cow tickle our fingers

milking a cow

hanging out with a cute baby

and her awesome parents

not pictured: eating homemade ice cream, picnic lunch, and HOW DID I NOT TAKE PICTURES OF DIGGING FOR POTATOES?!  Most fun ever.

oh wait - Andrea got a photo of Claire

digging for potatoes. yessssss!

Also there was this.

A little confused...and yes, that's a different

outfit. Girl's gotta stay fresh, yo!

After several hours in the sun, we came home and carved our pumpkins...maybe not the BEST idea, since Halloween is now several days away and our pumpkins are starting to wilt.  Oh well. It's been fun.

Some photos of our masterpieces:

variation on a classic
(thank you, stencil)

This pumpkin was oddly-shaped.

I started making a bunch of triangles, thinking I'd do a random pattern.

Then I decided the triangles looked like eyes,

and I thought it would be fun to do a bunch of faces.

Here are 3.

Here are two more of its 5 faces.

It actually turned out really well!

Will's amazing creation.

Can you identify this woman?

All in all, a successful weekend.  Peter Pumpkin Patch is always a lot of fun!  And now that I've committed to decorating a little bit for Halloween, I'll have to post pictures of the little bits of decoration in the house :)

our porch 

Wedding Dress Madness

By popular demand, the Post About The Wedding Dresses I Didn't Buy! As you know, I bought a dress. So very excited! Because I have my dress (it arrives around January 10, ready to be altered), and a whole photo album of dress pictures, and because y'all keep asking me, I thought I'd share some of the other contenders (and not-contenders).

Side note: I'm watching Say Yes to the Dress...a show that gives very unrealistic expectations of wedding dress budgets. These ladies are buying dresses that cost more than our entire wedding. Wow.

Anyway, enjoy!  And if you're not into wedding stuff, just ignore this post.  Warning: lots and lots (and lots) of pictures ahead.

This one was super cute. A lot of fabric, but
really cute.

What is going on with this dress?
This cannot look good on anybody.

The back of this one was rad. The front,
not so much.

I really liked this short one. Thought about
buying it just for fun, but it was still like
$400.

The flowers had tinsel on them.
Strangely (minus the tinsel), I liked this one
more than I thought I would.

swaddled.

What is happening?

I look skeptical, but I did like the foofy.

Welcome to the Saloon!

Who decided that these roses were a good idea?

BATWINGS!

This one had a cool lacy bolero
(only an extra $250 or so...ha)

This one was a contender fo sho - really
liked it. Very fun. Side note: David's
Bridal is a crazy place.

This put me to sleep.
Sorry Vera (Wang).

What is this face? What am I doing?
I liked the shape, but not the weird ferns.

Convertible dress! WHAT?
(apparently this is a trend right now)

I kind of fell in love with this dress.
But I love the dress I ended up with more.
A lot more.
Perfectly more.

I never thought I would love a dress.  But I love it.  And I am so excited to marry this guy, lemmetellyouwhat.

Getting Carded

I am a fan of Shutterfly.  I've used it for photo books and photo storage/sharing for years, so when they contacted me about doing a review and giveaway of their holiday cards, I jumped on the opportunity!  I've never sent holiday cards before, but I do think they're fun to receive! Why not be on the giving end this year?  ...now I just have to decide what to do!

We're planning to take engagement photos sometime next month, so I'm thinking maybe we'll incorporate some of those photos in our cards?  They have all sorts of designs, from Christmas cards (and Chanukkah cards too!) to just general greeting cards and holiday cards, including some cute ones that just say "Happy Everything".  I like the ones with the snowflakes and pine cones too...very wintery. And though it's just barely starting to feel like Fall up in here, I get excited about the spiced cider and scarves and blankets and general coziness.

Some of my favorite designs:

This one is pretty adorable. Wintery without going overboard.

Do I just like this one because of the wedding?
And because of the pine cones?
Maybe.

Also cute. Especially with the snow.
Get it? Warm wishes? Cause they're all bundled up?
Oh, that's just something people say?
Whatever.

I like this one a lot.

It's hard to decide what kind of holiday card to send, since we're about to send out Save the Dates and Wedding Invitations, and we'd likely send holiday cards to the same people...but I'm sure I'll think of something :)  In those cold winter months when we're all feeling cozy, people don't mind getting a little extra mail, right?  Especially if it's a warm wish or a happy face smiling back at them, I'd think?  We'll probably just go easy on the cheesy and make it fun.  Or make some more generic thank you cards to send at a later date.

Do you send out holiday cards?  If so, what do they usually say? Who do you send them to? What's your favorite part of sending cards?  If you've never done it before (like me!), how come?  Would you ever want to? So many questions! 

For those of you who like sending cards, or for those of you who never have but want to start, Shutterfly is letting me give away THREE sets of 25 holiday cards!  This is your chance to get a head start on those cute and awesome photo cards of you and your kids or pets or partners or just your super sassy self - don't wait until the end of the holiday season to remember that you wanted to send cards this year!

How to Enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me about your favorite part of the holiday season. Let's get all warm and fuzzy up in here!
2. Share this post on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, whatever, and leave a comment for each individual thing that you do. 

Comments will be counted and THREE winners will be selected by the Random Number Generator on Friday, 11/4/11 - all entries must be received by 11:59pm on Thursday, 11/3/11.  There is no limit to number of entries, so share away!

The fine print about the giveaway:

• The prize codes are good for any 5x7 greeting or stationery card product. 
• Note that they do not apply to the cheaper photo cards (with the glossy surface).
• The codes can be used for any of the products found at the links below:
• 5x7 Holiday & Christmas Greeting/Stationery Cards (here or here)
• Other 5x7 Greeting/Stationery Card Types (here or here)
• The codes expire December 31st, 2011.

In the interest of disclosure, Shutterfly is also providing me with a coupon code for my own set of free cards. They asked me to write about their holiday cards in exchange for free cards for myself and three readers, but I am receiving no other compensation for this post. They did not ask me to write anything specific, or to give positive reviews; my opinions and thoughts are my own.  Enjoy!

Crafternoon

A few Saturdays ago, some girlfriends and I got together for what we've affectionally taken to calling Crafternoon.  I really hope we pull it together to do this more often, because it was super fun.  Dana hosted, and honestly, she provided most of the crafts.  And the motivation.  Good hosting, Dana!

We watched Bridesmaids and looked at wedding stuff, and oh the crafting.

There were attempts at string-balloon-lanterns...

puff paint pumpkins...

 

and a framed letter made of buttons...

a chore chart...

Silhouette die cut machine, I love you.

and a homemade stamp...

...not to mention the (not pictured) knitting trials and giant crocheted flower.  And oh,  the delicious food that I neglected to photograph.


It was a lovely gathering of ladies, and lots of (dare I say productive?) fun -- we must make this a regular affair!  Thanks to everyone for a lovely Crafternoon :)

Some Ethan Allen Houselusting

A few weeks ago, I took a silly little "what kind of style are you" quiz from Ethan Allan.  Not surprisingly at all, it turns out that my style is Vintage.

If you know me at all, you will know I am drooling over these photos...

So cozy and wonderful.

Perfect. Although...who lives here? And why are the walls
so empty? Maybe they just moved in.

A little too nautical, but I like it.

A little too whitewashed, but so romantic.

Dream breakfast nook situation.

Minus the his and hers and scottie dog pillows.

Not crazy about the throw pillows, but otherwise...

Now that you've wiped the drool off your keyboard (I know I have...ok, now I have), tell me what your dream house looks like!  I'll be back with some more beefy posts later this week...craft night, pumpkin patch and jack-o-lanterns, and yes, more giveaways!

PS this post was in no way whatsoever sponsored by Ethan Allen.  But if they found this and wanted to give me a gift certificate, I wouldn't complain. Hint. Hint. Hint. Sigh.