Boo! Welcome to My Un-Scary Fall House!

I hate Halloween.

In today's society, I feel that makes me an outcast, but it stems from deeply rooted childhood issues. There was the year my mother made me a Raggedy Ann costume with a red, crepe paper wig, and the neighbor turned the sprinklers on me as a mean joke and my entire head turned red. Then there was the year I was knocked to the ground and mugged for my candy. It was all very sad and traumatic and caused me to shun anything that even remotely resembled Halloween.

Until last year. Emma and I were in Lowe's picking out a pumpkin and she fell head over heals in love with a big, sparkly, black spider which we brought home and hung on our porch. We called him "Mr. Pider" and he was a Very Big Deal. We loooooooved him. But my family thought I had flipped.

When I pulled him from the fall box this year there was renewed excitement over our little entry way guardian. He has once again resumed his rightful spot by the annual pumpkin.

He's part of a whole fall welcome theme we have going on the porch, and without him Mr. Scarecrow would be lonely.

Today I picked up a willow basket from Walmart so Emmie could add her beloved pine cone collection to the mix, and we have now reached (and probably far surpassed) a reasonable quota for seasonal paraphernalia allowed in a single square yard of space. Rest assured, I do my best to squeeze in as much as humanly possible. :-)

Mr. Pider seemed to throw my entire family for a curve. They could hardly reconcile that I had made such a purchase. So, imagine their surprise THIS year when I hauled this little beauty home.

It was mayhem, I tell you.

No one could BE-LIEVE I put a black cat on the mantle. There was much eyebrow raising and tongue clicking and exasperated finger pointing. He was immediately declared a "Halloween decoration" and my family became concerned for my mental awareness.

I beg to differ. To me, Halloween decorations are spooky, and he can't possibly spook because he's so...so...sparkly. He's Mr. Pider's twin!! Plus, I added a cheerful little bow to up the cute factor. And since I couldn't wrap a feather boa beneath him like I wanted to thanks to my cat who I was just sure would wreak major havoc trying to jump to the mantle to destroy the feathers, I instead created a fluffy little nest of fall foliage sprinkled with baby pumpkins for him to frolic in. Darling, right? Not spooky. Sparkles. And frolicking.

My family was undeterred. I took it as an odd personal challenge to really push the Halloween hating envelope, so I stooped to an all new low. I made a trick or treat banner. Just to pull their chain a teensy bit. Then, I went all out and hung spiders from that too. Off my rocker, I tell you.

It's almost as if the red crepe paper wig never even happened.

It really all started because I saw these autumn colored jingle bells on sale and knew I needed to somehow work them into a craft. Ring the bells for trick or treat. Get it? Oh, do stop.

Don't worry. I've pledged to stay non-spooky, so I gave the spiders hair bows. It's all very legitimate and non-Halloweenish.

But really, fall is my MOST FAVORITE time of year, and certainly my favorite season for decorating. Come have a peek at the rest of the house....

The Currier and Ives plate belonged to Buzz's aunt and was given to me from her house.

I love the piece above my piano because it is from my Oma and Opa's house. It always hung in their dining room, and now I have it filled with a few of my Oma's hummel figurines from her collection.

I don't bring the rest of my pilgrims out until the first of November, but I always set these little mice out early. My Mom gave these to me years ago, and they were my very first fall decorations. They are Fitz and Foyd. There is a set of candlesticks and a salt and pepper set. I just love them!
The colors in my Threads of Hope tapestry remind me of this time of year. They are warm and rich and vibrant. I have this hanging in my kitchen.

This is my new addition this year. I found this little house the other day on clearance. It is a fall version of my Christmas Dickens village.

When Aunt Sarah and Papa John moved to their new house this past summer, she passed along this wonderful Harvest sign. It is the perfect piece for my quilt rack, and I love that I think of them every time I look at it! How sweet to be reminded of a harvest of friendship.

Speaking of a harvest of friendship, today was a very special day for us. Hannah's Godmother came and joined us for lunch. We have not seen her in a long while, so it was wonderful to have the chance to reconnect and get caught up on each other's news. She and her husband have been a sweet source of encouragement to me through the years. I invited her to my spooky spot for lunch. She's just beautiful. Boo-tiful. You get it. I know you do. :-)