Counting Down to Halloween

Halloween is just around the corner, and there are signs of the season everywhere one looks. Come with me on a tour of some fun yards decorated for Halloween for this week's Outdoor Wednesday with our hostess Susan @ A Southern Daydreamer.

Let's hear it for Halloween. Looks like these cheer leaders are ready to get us in the spirit.

Oh, my! There seems to be a game going on here.

#4 is running down the field while....

the quarterback races with the ball toward the goal.

Witchy ref is waiting to call the play.

This big guy is full of grins.

A little ghostly dancing in this yard.

Goblins at the ready for their treats.

Dare you try to enter here?

Not me! To many gruesome things have been going on here!

This black cat knows the horrors of this yard and watches as . . .

the rats scamper about.

Halloween goblins will have to make their way through this real live pumpkin patch for their treats.

Looks like some more ghostly dancing going on here too.

Boogie - Woogie

Boogie - Woogie

Boogie - Woogie all night long.

Colorful walkway to greet the tricksters that come to this house.

Another inviting entry.

Ohooooo...who among us is brave enough to enter here?

Black widows abound . . .

the owl watches from his perch . . .

ghostly figures float through the gates.

But this ghoulish figure hangs about in wait of those who come to trick or treat at this home.

ON HALLOWEEN NIGHT!

Thanks for joining me. Please leave a comment below to let me know who stopped by today. I hope to see you again tomorrow for Tablescape Thursday, but until then you can click here to head on over to A Southern Daydreamer for a list of other Outdoor Wednesday posts.

Halloween Treats @ Susan's

Today begins the countdown to Halloween....13 days to go. Sharon @ Fiberdoodles and Whimsy is hosting a Halloween Bash with a Count Down to Halloween. To join in the fun, you just need to post something related to Halloween during the count down days. You can post once or for all 13 days. Today, I'm posting a visit to my friend Susan's home. Susan loves holidays and parties, and her home is always a treat.

There she is looking out the window to 

see who is here to visit today. Let's go on in.

The entry is always filled with 

fun vignettes, warm and welcoming.

This cute little group of 

pumpkin people stand ready to greet you!

To the side is a silver tray filled with with orange glass ball ornaments mixed in among some of Susan's collection of silver baby cups. Susan always thinks for some clever way to mix in this collection each holiday.

Susan likes to fill this entry hall bench 

with loads of fun seasonal pillows and dolls.

Another silver tray holds glass Halloween ornaments and petite Limoges type boxes with a Halloween theme. I like the way Susan mixed in the ornamental pumpkin looking pods with greens cut from your yard. They really accent to blue and white vase.

Her mantel is ever changing with the seasons. 

 Here she uses her collection of antique majolica 

with little sprays of dried pods on the left side.

The right side is balanced with more of 

her charming majolica and a wooden pumpkin.

The pine cupboard is full of beautiful blue and white china, 

but I focused on the whimsical vignette Susan arranged across the top.

The dining room chandelier is another feature 

that always figures into the seasonal decorating. 

 This time she has strung it with 

ribbons, lanterns, and decorated cones.

The center piece 

features a pumpkin clown.

This colorful vignette 

sits in the corner on her kitchen counter.

The wooden witch is hand painted, 

and the witch and pumpkin in the vase are made of felt. 

 Clever use of these stick puppets.

Susan's collection of vintage Halloween containers 

flows onto the built-in shelving on a wall in her kitchen, 

and these darling tea towels were made from ticking 

and embellished with the a black cat and jack-o-lantern. 

 What could be more perfect for Halloween.

Hope you enjoyed your visit to Susan's. Leave me a comment below, and let me know your favorite decorating idea. Then click here to go to Sharon's @ Fiberdoodles and Whimsy to see a complete list of all the others participating in her Halloween Bash.

I'm helping to host the Quimper Club International's 10th Anniversary Annual Meeting this week, so my time at the moment is pretty scheduled. I'll post and visit as often as time allows, but my comments may be limited. Check back as I've plans to post for Outdoor Wednesday and Tablescape Thursday. Hope to see you then!

Tickled Pink

Yes, I was absolutely tickled pink . . .

so I packed some pink boxes with a picnic lunch and headed for the airport one recent Saturday . . .

to meet a fellow blogger who flew into the area to meet up with friends for a girl's get away.

Laurie

Yes, I am tickled pink because I got to "chat" live with Laurie! You may know Laurie from her blog, Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie. Laurie had flown in to meet some of her friends from high school days to celebrate birthdays together at a friend's lake house. She and her friend, Susie, had an hour layover before meeting up with another girl and driving to the lake house where they would spend a week with friends. Laurie contacted me to see if we might meet for lunch, so with only an hour to work with, we decided on a picnic at the airport.

Sarah and Susie

Laurie's friend, Susie, was with her so there were three of us for lunch. For those of you who follow Kathy @ Life in the Slow Lane, Susie is her sister-in-law. Go visit Kathy's blog and you'll discover there are several previous post about this charming lady.

Laurie and Sarah

So here we are, two bloggers who met in cyber space because of a shared interest in Quimper. I felt like we had been friends for years. I can't begin to tell you how much fun it was to sit and chat with Laurie and Susie, two absolutely delightful ladies. An hour may not seem like a long time of chatting and getting to know each other, but we found that we share a lot of things in common. It was such a treat to meet Laurie and Susie.

I was thrilled when Laurie wrote to ask if we might meet for lunch while she was in the area. I have followed Laurie's blog since I started this adventure in Blogville last August. She has the best sense of humor and is so talented. Check out her blog Bargain Hunting and Chatting with Laurie to get a peek at her trip to Texas. Looks like Laurie and her friends had a fabulous week together.

Thanks for stopping by today. I hope you'll leave me a comment below to let me know you were here.

I'd like to recommend you visit Ana @ A Petite Cottage. She is one of the new participants for Pink Saturday. Last week she posted the most charming little pink bear in honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but take a look at some of her other posts. Ana is amazingly creative and talented.

Then click here to go over to Beverly's @ How Sweet the Sound to see a list of others with Pink Saturday posts.

Happy Pink Saturday!

Soup for Lunch

It's Thursday and my favorite weekly blog event with Susan @ Between Naps on the Porch. Welcome to Tablescape Thursday. Today I'm serving lunch on our porch.

It's been raining for the past few days, so lunch on the terrace is out of the question. But with cooler temps, the sun room is the perfect spot to enjoy a cup of soup and a casual lunch with my husband.

So come on in from the rain and

 enjoy a little lunch with us.

Today's Menu includes...

Spicy tomato chipolte soup 

with a garnish of ripe avocado bites,

fresh, warm focaccia bread,

and a glass of chilled 

Chateau St. Michelle chardonnay.

I met a sweet friend for coffee this week, and she greeted me with this beautiful bouquet of flowers. I popped in a few yellow blooms and a little seeded eucalyptus to fill out the rustic metal basket.

The mix of colors pulls 

in all the colors of the table.

Yellow is such a happy, cheery color. 

 It always puts a smile on my face.

The soup is served in simple 

white French porcelain bowls.

The accent plates, shaped like pumpkins, were an after Halloween find last year at a favorite local store. They only had two but I knew they would come in handy for various serving needs. They are the perfect accent for our fall lunch today. I've placed them on Nantucket plates to set them off against the fall inspired placemats.

The detail of the hand painting on these little pumpkins is amazing. I wasn't familiar with MSC Mainstreet Collection, but if these plates are representative of their product line, I'm impressed.

The napkins are a plaid in fall colors 

that I found at World Market a few years ago.

I like using these decoupage placemats because they are square. They were a special find in Paris a few years ago. The colors and the details are wonderful and perfect for any fall table. I used my husband's favorite flatware, Talisman by Christophe.

The above information is on the back of the placemats. 

 Check out the Siecle web site.

Bon appétit everyone!

Thank you for visiting today. I always look forward to your visits and comments.

Click here to see Susan's fabulous tablescape for this week and a list of others who have shared a tablescape this week.