Upcoming Events

There's A LOT happening during the next month ~ Birthdays, Halloween Parties, Decorations to put up, Baking to be done.... Oh my!
But for all you wonderful people out there in Blogland, you won't have to lift a finger. Well, maybe just to scroll down the page.....

Anyhoo, here's what you get to look forward to on my blog next month ~

* We'll be doing something DAILY to celebrate Halloween, October, and Autumn when we join Domestic Witch for a month long Blog Party!

* And we can't forget about Mrs. B and her 31 Days of Halloween! She has a ton of giveaways planned for the month and I am contributing this set of CANDY CUPS. I will also be on her Haunted Walking Tour! (I'm scheduled for October 4th) The Haunted Walking Tour will be a daily feature of hers about a blog that is all dressed up for Halloween! How cool is that!?

* On October 17th, we'll join with Vanessa over at A Fanciful Twist to celebrate this Halloween in a magically haunting way!

* My Daughter, Jenny, will celebrate her Birthday on the 19th
* Hubby's Birthday is the 30th

So, just sit back and enjoy the ride!

They need your vote!!

Very, very seldom will I ask all you wonderful people out in Blogland to vote or sign a petition or whatever. But this is one of those instances......

There are only two causes that I will get on my soapbox about. Native American rights/causes and the care/adoption of Shelter Animals.

American Express in conjunction with NBC Universal will be recognizing an inspiring small business. Numerous small businesses submitted their information and three finalists have been chosen. The winner will receive $100,000 in grant and marketing support from American Express. I am asking that you go to this website, Shinealight, and vote for Sacred Wind Communications.

Sacred Wind Communications (SWC) is a for-profit telecommunications company with 40 employees and has a non-profit educational arm of the corporation which serves the Navajo people in New Mexico. They are building a state of the art telecommunications network to reach their current customers as well as over 6, 000 homes without access to telephone service of any kind. This is a very worthy cause and they need our votes! Thank you! ♥

*** you will be ask to register on the Shinealight website in order to vote.***

And the Winner is......

GRUVKITTY !!


CONGRATULATIONS! You're the lucky winner of the Autumn Moon. Please ship me an email so I can get your address!
jeanne.wildwoodsart@gmail.com

An Award!

Crafty Cutie graciously bestowed an award on me. The Kreativ Blogger Award. Thank you SO MUCH! I'm honored. Stop by her blog for a visit!

And here's the rules:

1. Thank the person who gave this to you.

2. Copy the logo and place it in your blog.

3. Link to the person who nominated you.

4. Name 7 things about yourself that no one would really know.

5. Nominate seven 'Kreativ Bloggers' .

6. Post links to the seven blogs you nominate.

7. Leave a comment on each of the blogs letting them know you nominated them.

Here's 7 things about myself that you probably don't already know....

1. I have a fear of water. (Don't worry, I still bathe!)
2. I have a large collection of Nutcrackers. Hubby has given me one every Christmas since we have been together.
3. I'm a book-aholic. I can't walk anywhere near books for sale without buying at least one.
4. I've experienced every kind of natural disaster except for a tsunami.
5. I LOVE to bake. Especially bread. Kneading dough is very therapeutic.
6. I love going to Indian Pow-wows. And eating Indian tacos. And eating fry bread!
7. I believe in The Little People. How about you??


And here are the seven Bloggers I am bestowing this award to:

1. Courtney of The Cajun Hillbilly Housewife. She's the absolute sweetest person!
2. Pixie of Pixie's Ponderings. Love her sense of humor!
3. Val of Yarni Gras! I always enjoy a visit to her blog!
4. Missy of Fairy Child Heirlooms. She sews the most beautiful things!
5. AwtemNymf of The Faerie Wysperer. She's so creative with the Annies that she makes!
6. Deb of Debvandet Designs. Such beautiful photography and lovely jewelry!
7. Jenny of Seize the Moment. She's so creative with her girls! ♥

Take a moment to visit all these wonderful Bloggers! Leave 'em a comment and tell them "HI"!

And a Great Big THANK YOU to all my faithful readers!

I Fixed It!

We've all been there ....... you know ...... the time when the whatchamacallit broke and you had to use the thingmajig to fix it??
How often have you fixed something rather than go buy a new one? And maybe fixing the item took a bit of imagination?

Check out this website for some VERY ingenious ways to FIX something. There, I Fixed it!

Autumnal Equinox Giveaway!

Autumn ~ It is a time when the leaves begin to turn colors, the flowers and grasses have begun to form seed heads, and cooler temperatures usher in shorter days. It is also the time of the Autumnal Equinox.
An equinox occurs twice a year, when the tilt of the Earth's axis is inclined neither away from nor towards the Sun. Day and night are roughly the same length of time. Equinoxes have been observed by many cultures and religions throughout time. Quite often a celebration or festival was held on or around this time.
Whatever you may do or however you may celebrate, enjoy your day! Have a cup of cider or maybe a crisp apple! Rake up a pile of leaves and then jump in the middle! Let the kid in you come out to play!
Autumn officially begins at 6:18 pm (CST) on September 22, 2009

And to celebrate this changing of the seasons, this Witch's Thanksgiving, I am having a give away! What am I giving away you ask? Why, this cute little Moon. He measures approx. 3" long and has a Swarovski crystal star hanging from one end.


Here's how to enter:
1. Become a follower ~ if you're already a follower, then you're already entered!
2. Leave a comment on this post about why you like Autumn ~ before midnight (CST) on September 26th .
3. Blog about my giveaway. Leave a comment (and link) for me about your blog post.

** Limited to US residents only. **

That's three chances to have your name entered into the drawing! On Sept. 28th, I'll have Hubby use his fancy algebra calculator to generate a random number (I knew a college education would be good for something!) & then I'll announce the winner. The winner has 24 hours to email me with their shipping info. If I don't hear from you, then you forfeit your prize and I announce another winner.

What is it ??

What an amazing photo! This is the trail of an intercontinental ballistic missile. Read more here

Last Vestiges of Summer's Blooms

With Autumn just around the corner, Summer's blooms are rapidly fading. The flowers are putting forth one last showing before the nights turn crisp. The trees will soon be taking their turn on stage.

Surprise Lily with Black-Eyed Susan

Bat-faced Cuphea


Coleus with Black-eyed Susan

Can anyone identify this plant? At two years, it is a small shrub and expect it to get larger as it ages. I purchased it at a Master Gardener's Plant Sale and it was labeled 'Butterfly Plant'. But it is like no true Butterfly Bush (Buddleia) that I have seen before.

A Gold Star

Hubby has recently gone back to college. He is attending our local community college, where he will receive a 2 yr degree in Computer Information Technology and Computer Forensics. He was accepted into a Workforce Improvement Program sponsored by the State of Arkansas which takes care of his college tuition. After graduation we plan on moving closer to our kids. (You've been warned!)

This all came about because Hubby was laid off of work many, many months back. He worked for an aircraft refurbishing company building custom cabinets for aircraft interiors. There were once quite a few businesses at our local airport that did aircraft refurbishing - from interiors to exteriors to mechanical. This type of industry is considered a luxury industry. It relies on the opulence of big corporations as well as individuals. But when purse strings are tightened then luxury items are the first things to get cut from the budget.

Hubby and I are both quite excited about this opportunity. So far the homework load hasn't been too bad. One of the classes he has to take is Algebra. Oh, I can already hear the groans .... but Hubby is a math whiz! He got the highest score ever received here at the community college on the college assessment tests. But we all have a tendency to get a bit rusty at the things we don't do a lot of and well, Hubby's algebra skills need some refreshing. So he went to tutoring and hit the books!

He recently took his first Algebra test. And got an A.
(as if there was any doubt!)

CONGRATULATIONS!

This next little bit is for you, Dear. Keep up the good work!

{It's okay, you can sing along too. Or even get up and dance! )

Pumpkins, Giveaways, a Swap & a New Lisitng!

Yesseree folks! The Holiday Season is beginning to get busy! I want to announce a couple more giveaways ~
Cindy at Thimbleprims Studio is having a giveaway for the most awesome Pinkeep!

AwtemNymf of The Faerie Wysperer is having a giveaway for a wonderful Sugar Pumpkin Pinkeep Pattern. You must have a blog to enter her giveaway. And we have to share our favorite things about PUMPKINS! So here goes....


I Love Pumpkins because they're orange and round (I was a cat in a former life). Their appearance in the stores signal the onset of Autumn and the Halloween season (my favorite time of year!). I was born in a Pumpkin Patch (just kidding...). But Pumpkin Patches are quite magical - especially during a full moon. Because that's where the Great Pumpkin comes from. I love the smell of a pumpkin pie cooking but can't stand to eat a pumpkin pie. (I know, I'm a little weird!) And I love to create pumpkins with faces - not just scary jack-o-lantern faces but people type faces.

Pumpkin carvers start at an early age around our house.

* * * * * * * * * * * * *

Moving onto the rest of the items on the agenda....

Zan Asha of Wild At Heart Art is hosting a really cool swap ~ Monster in the Closet Swap. There's still time to enter. Check it out!

And my latest Halloween offering on ebay. A set of four candy cones. These are made from lined fabric and embellished with lace, velour ribbon and a little spook.

Until next time, Happy Haunting!

Another Giveaway...

Aelwyn at Hedgewitch Hollow is having a GIVE AWAY to celebrate her 100th follower. Fly on over to check it out!

Swaps, Soirees, & Lagniappe

It's that time of year again! Such a flurry of activity. I feel like the White Rabbit at times.

There are swaps to create for ~
1. Gypsy Mermaid's Vintage Spooky Tag Swap
2. Vivian's Halloween Shadowbox and Pinkeep Swap
3. Val's Witches Cupboard Swap

Halloween parties to prepare for ~
1. Mrs. B's 31 days of Halloween
2. October Blog Party hosted by Domestic Witch
3. A Hauntingly Magical Halloween hosted by A Fanciful Twist

And several Great GIVE AWAYS ~
1. Grim Vision is giving away a most awesome Skull & Book
2. Debb of Halloween Jinglesbells Boo is having a give away
3. Mrs. B is having a ton of giveaways beginning in October.
So mark your calendar to check her blog!


** Lagniappe is a word I learned in Louisiana. To the Cajuns it means a little something extra. A bonus. It is pronounced lan-yap

Clouds

Haven't we all pondered clouds at one time or another? Remember laying in the grass as a kid, staring up at the sky and seeing images in the clouds? I have. And I still do! Well, maybe not lay in the grass, but recline in the chaise........

Clouds can tell you a lot of things. Whether a storm front is moving in, or if it is windy or foggy. A while back a blogger friend, Grace of Going to Graceland wrote about some unique clouds.
Well here is some info on two other types of unique clouds.

Morning Glory Clouds are an enigma.

Noctilucent Clouds can now be seen further and further from their range at the polar regions.

Click on the links (in purple) to read more about the specific clouds.

Witch Hats for Sale!

I have recently finished a few Witch Hats. Four to be exact. Each with a different color band of satin ribbon and tulle fabric. These Hats would look good in a display year round. The ribbon and tulle is gathered in spots with metal stars. The display stand has a crackle glaze which has then been sealed. The Witch Hat has been permanently attached to the stand. It stands approx. 9" tall.


I have a Witch Hat with a red band for sale here on my blog - just look in the upper left hand corner. I also have a Witch hat with an orange band and an orange rose for sale in my Etsy Shop. And the purple hat is for sale on eBay.

New Halloween Creations!

The leaves are beginning to turn, school is back in session and it won't be long before the CANDY CORN is ripe! And to help get you in the mood for the upcoming Halloween Season, I have some new creations now available on eBay.


Two different sets of Candy Containers. (And they will hold other kinds of candy besides Candy Corn!) A set of Skelly Heads and a set with a Jack-o-Lantern, Ghost and Black Cat. And also a Memory/Shadowbox with all the things that are near and dear to a Witch.

Click here to view these listings!