Why I Oughta...

In a little bit more than a week, we've gone from one water putty witch on our mantle to four!  There's a lot of Dremel work left to be done to grind the seams - and bottoms - down to make them smooth.  Then the painting/decorating will begin.   Maybe I can send one of these home with my brother-in-law when he goes back to Denver this weekend?  He's the real artist and would likely be able to do the best job.

I carved this guy into an apple, stuck some rice teeth in his mouth and dipped him a lemon juice/salt wash.  Now we wait a few weeks for him to dry up and shrink.  Hopefully we'll have something creepy looking just in time for Halloween.

I was in DC this week and on the cab ride to my hotel, we drove past the Washington Monument.    That's the only 'sight' I had time to 'see' while I was there.

I spent a few hours yesterday pulling together some pieces of my outdoor Halloween project.  With the help of my father-in-law (and his workshop!), I was able to get the wood cut.  With the help of my mother-in-law (and her craft supplies), I was able to get the sign painted. I'm going to put a layer or two of polyurethane on top of it so the sign lasts and then figure out how it will attach to posts before getting it set up in the front yard.

This Santa face would look really great hanging off the top of the pavilion in our backyard, wouldn't it? I'm planning on adding another reindeer to our front yard blowmold collection this year, so maybe I'll splurge and get both.  

Menards is nothing if not predictable.   A year ago this weekend , I first spotted the Enchanted Forest getting set up.  Today, I took both of my girls there to pick up some water putty for the 'witch' project and we came across Santa and his sleigh.  Along with thousands of little twinkling lights. The Enchanted Forest isn't quite complete.  It is still about half patio furniture, but in the coming weeks, they'll bring in the trees and we'll be all holiday'd up.  Can't wait.

For most people the weather turning cooler means sweaters and leaf raking and the like.  But, here in the Parrillo household, that means a return to pizza making.  Putting together skins, cheese, meats and sauce is something we do from September through April.  Besides the whole 'firing up the oven' part that heats up the house, we just aren't inside enough on Friday/Saturday nights during the warmer months to make pizza-making practical. This first set of skins is Buddy's of Detroit clone and has been proofing since last night.  Had a 12 hour cold rise and will spend most of the rest of the day rising on the countertop.

I was in the Jewel a few days ago buying garbage can stickers (so we can throw away more than the one can we are allotted for the week) and during my purchase, the cashier (yes, I went through the manned lines because that's the only place you can buy the stickers.) asks if I want my free 2 liter of Dr. Pepper 10.  "Sure", I say!  And...off I went with it. Turns out, this is a weird soda.  I like soda.  But...this one isn't quite Diet Dr. Pepper.  And it isn't quite regular Dr. Pepper. It is in between.  Who's it for?   Apparently....dudes . Seems some guys have trouble ordering a "Diet Coke".  Really?  Having a diet soda isn't manly?  Guess I'm not thinking my beverage choice though enough.

That is the 2012 witch freshly pressed from the mold.  I made her with the help of the Babe and after a bit of grinding/dremeling, we'll have something we can paint.  If you look closely, you can see a void on the witch's face right where her right eyeball would be.  I'd rather be lucky than good, I suppose.

Took a few days, but we finally got the rooted hydrangea "Incrediball" cutting in the ground .  Have to stay on it water-wise to make sure it establishes itself properly.  I give it a 1 in 10 shot.