Tired of being tired?

Five simple things

Hello.

Something wicked this way comes... Halloween was a success this year, and with over 600 trick-or-treaters, it was exhausting. We spin cotton candy for the community and it's a lot cheaper than passing out loads of candy treats, and honestly, it's a lot more fun. We enjoyed seeing some repeat visitors and a lot of them reminded us of who they are and we did a proper catch-up. It was nice seeing some of the kids another year and it made us feel great that they put our house on their list for another year.

Today we have taken down the decorations and we've steered clear of the rain so far today, but I think tonight will bring more showers. The temperature has dropped a lot in the last few days and we've had to fire up the fireplace in order to stay a little more toasty than the heater can bring. I enjoy this time of year, but the rain makes it a little less enjoyable, so we are hoping if it does rain that it won't stick around for days on end. I've gone through all of the Halloween decorations as we take them down to see what we can part with and no longer store throughout the year. The Goodwill box is overflowing and we are now down to a small cardboard box with only a few things we feel set the mood for Halloween night. And the minimal journey continues. Oh, for a zero-waste household. Definitely a work in progress still. *sigh*

Here are the things that made this week great!

1. Monopoly man.

The Bean went as the Monopoly Man this year and he rocked it well.

 



2. Cookies.

I did a bit of baking for Halloween night and decided to give Annie's Organics a try since they are USDA Organic. I normally make a pot of chili for the night and call it good, but I think baking some of these cookies might be an addition to the tradition now. 

3. Persimmons.

I contemplated on whether I should include these or not, but then I thought, my mistake might help others that are interested in the persimmon seed weather predicting. So I purchased these persimmons in the hope of cutting them open and viewing the seeds. The folklore is sort of ongoing fun in our house and this year we decided to give it a try. Well, we purchased the wrong persimmons. I guess there are a variety of different ones and the ones we picked up are the seedless variety. Ooops. Well, now I know that the ones I need to look for are called the American Persimmon. I am not sure which ones we have here, but they are seedless and do us no good. So watch out for that if you decide to give the weather prediction to persimmons a try. We will give this another go with the right persimmons and update on what we find.

4. Mightynest.

This month's Mightynest was olive wood spoons. These are great and much needed in this house. If you haven't given Mightynest a go, try it out here. They send you an item(s) that helps your home be greener and more environmentally-friendly with each shipment.

5. November books.

This month brings us "Simple Matters" by Erin Boyle. She is the creator behind the blog 'Reading my Tea Leaves' and gives such helpful ways on helping one live more simply. I've been following her advice for the past year now and it has brought a new thought process to our home. It's a great read and her blog is a necessary addition to your daily internet cruising. The other books below are suggestions for this month as well and there are new selections each month that can be found here. 


Have a great weekend!

Five simple things

Hello.

We've had a pretty good week so far and with no rain today and I am hoping that it will stay away this weekend and stay clear into Halloween. We hit the pumpkin patch this week and also worked in a night where we went out to eat with some good friends. I would love to have a rain-free weekend to put out more Halloween decorations and get ready for trick-or-treaters. We reserved our yearly cotton candy machine for the night of Halloween and are raring to go. We have been giving out fresh-spun cotton candy instead of actual candy on Halloween night for the last few years now and it's just plain fun. This will be our fourth year doing cotton candy and we are anxious to see how many we get this year. We handed out about 200 cones the first year, the second year we spent in Arkansas and spun cotton candy there for a Halloween party, the third year gave us about 550 kids and adults, and this year we are prepared for more. We love the fact that the kids around town know to come to our house for some warm, hand-spun, cotton candy treats. We add a new thing to the mix each year and it's something that The Mr., The Bean, and I prepare for all year long. Can't wait to have another great Halloween night filled with laughter and some great cotton candy. With that, here are the things that made this past week great!

1. Pumpkin patch.

This past week we went to the pumpkin patch and loaded up on some large pumpkins to display this year. Right when we pulled into the pumpkin patch I saw the one I wanted right away. The stem of it was amazing! I love unique things and this one had my name all over it. It ended up weighing over 55 pounds. We decided not to carve them this year and "possibly" just draw a face on, but as the days are getting closer to Halloween I think we will leave them as they are. 

The Bean and The Mr. got some good ones too. The Mr. went with one that was tall and skinny and The Bean went with one that was a perfect pumpkin size-short, round, and the stem being everything you imaging a "perfect" pumpkin to be.


2. Mr.'s bike.

The Mr. finally upgraded his bike options and decided to grab himself a new Raleigh. It looks pretty slick and suits him perfectly. More on this later.


3. This box.

I can not help myself when it comes to some subscription boxes and this one has been peeking my interest for a bit now. I decided to grab one in the off season and see what the hype is about. Being on a minimal journey it seems counterproductive, but I decided the things I don't want, need, or like for myself I can shift them to Christmas gifts and pass along something great for someone else. This box however, was pretty nice. I got a $10 off on it, so it was worth the try. If you haven't seen, heard, or been told about this box, give it a go here.


4. Baz's ashes.

I had mentioned last week about finally getting Baz's ashes back to us. I find myself talking about him now without bursting into tears. I am glad we finally have him home and we'll decide what to do with them in time. We have looked into a company that will turn the ashes into a tree, but we aren't sure what we want to do exactly, as of yet. I will share here once we figure it out.


5. New shop.
I've decided to give Big Cartel a try and sell some of my items again. I never liked being on Etsy, so I was discouraged about starting up another online marketplace. I've been pleased with Big Cartel so far and have listed my hand painted burlap prints on there. I like the clean layout on Big Cartel and how everything is easily accessible. Plus, one benefit over Etsy, you don't have to be a member or sign up for anything in order to purchase. You can access the South North South shop here.


Have a nice weekend!