Stranger Things Halloween 2016

Every year (meaning last year and this one, so far), Blue and I throw a Halloween party. Since last year was our first one, we didn't really have a theme. This year, however, we went with Stranger Things. (If you haven't seen the show, you need to. It's SO good, and not gory at all!) One of the things within the movie is all of the 80's references, so if we couldn't think of something related precisely to the show, we went with an 80's motif- for instance, our goody bags were a mix of Nerds, Smarties, Gobstoppers, Laffy Taffy, and some chocolate (and pretzels, because who doesn't like pretzels?!). 

Things we have every year- a photo wall for pictures, goody bags for every guest, and a costume contest where everyone votes on a winner or couple's costumes. My favorite part of this year was the chicken and waffle bites, because Eleven had a love of Eggos. We used popcorn chicken and mini Eggos and they were delish! We had pigs in a blanket and bagel bites, as well as salads, and lots of desserts. Oh, and a birthday cake for our 3 friends with October birthdays. Also, we tried to do this cocktail with a mini Eggo or Stroopwafel garnish, but we couldn't find maple bourbon :( Our "signature cocktail" was Cinnamon Toast Crunch (Rumchata and Fireball), and there was a superb collection of 80's jams along with the Halloween classics. Anyway, enough chatter. I'm going to let the pics do the talking!

Our "photo wall"- shadows coming out of the wall

a zombie-esque covered liquor stand, for no reason other than
 we had a zombie mask lying around

goody bags

our alphabet wall, drinks, and chicken and waffle bites

dead construction worker and hippie

Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein

Joanna and Mr. Lumbergh from "Office Space"

Dustin (Stranger Things), vampire, and a Nascar driver

Clarice and Hannibal Lecter from "Silence of the Lambs"

Cowgirl, referee, and Julius Caesar

our costume winners- Wilma and Fred Flinstone

group shot with the football player

dance party!!!

The hosts- 011 and Dustin from Stranger Things

Do you celebrate Halloween? 

What's been your favorite costume this year? 

Linking up with Biana for Weekending!

Peace Be With You

When Alyssa listed this prompt, a lot of little things came to mind. Here, my stream of consciousness style list that I pulled from the "notes" section on my phone, while enjoying #3... 

• Knowing that taking an Uber won't break my bank account 
• Coffee/tea anytime, but particularly in bed
• A glass of wine at night on my patio while the neighborhood sleeps
• Crossing that nagging task off your list
• Time by the ocean- and the sounds that come with it like waves and kids in background 
• Reading on my couch without cares
• TV time with Blue, holding hands under purps (purps is my fuzzy purple blanket)
• Kitty cuddles before bedtime

letting us love on him a little

• Doing the right thing (like taking an Uber late night instead of waiting on trains), thereby giving others/Blue peace of mind
• Coming home to a clean space
• Fridge full of groceries, clean clothes hanging in closet
• Phone peace- no notifications, updates, enough storage space, 99-60% battery, wifi

What are some things that make you feel peaceful? 

The Ones That Got Away

...blog posts that is. I currently have 82 posts in draft (after a recent purge of nearly 20). The culprits:

Travel Posts

I currently have 6 travel related posts- 5 trips that I took and started to recap, and one about packing for an long (4 day) weekend. But the latest of those trips was 6 months ago, and the earlier 4 are from 2013. 2013! I loved all of these, but I don't even talk to any of the people from the earliest ones anymore. Not to mention  that I'm not even sure if I moved the pictures from my old laptop to my new one to upload to a post. And what's a vacation recap post without pictures?! I may still do the packing one though... maybe.

Weekly Linkup Posts

I don't know about you, but I participate in a lot of linkups (case in point!). Mostly because there's already a prompt, particularly with the weekly ones like Humpday Confessions, Weekending, or Friday Favorites. Except I don't do Friday Favorites or weekend recap ones anymore, Humpday Confessions have changed from weekly to monthly, and some of the other ones don't even exist anymore. For instance, I have 3 Friday's Letters- a linkup that (unbeknownst to me) ended in 2012. Why didn't I know about this? Well, because I hadn't participated since 2011, and I just assumed it was still a "thing." It's not, but I also haven't deleted those posts because they were real and heartfelt and sometimes I go back and read them and think of how I felt and was thinking when I wrote them.

I'll hit publish on some of these because I've already started them and they're still relevant, but I'm just waiting on the calendar.

Waiting on the Calendar Posts

These are the posts that go live on a certain calendar date. Confessions are now on the first Wednesday of the month, so I'm waiting until then to post those drafts. I usually post my Sh*t Blue Said posts on the 3rd Thursday of the month, and I have 3 of those ready to go. Last year I wrote 32 things I learned by [age] 32. I already have 20 out of 33 for my birthday this year... in December.


Music-Related Posts

Right now I have about 10 of these. 2000(s)  rock songs, my favorites from the 90's, my favorite cover songs (even though I say I don't like covers), my favorite ones from movies, the most embarrassing songs on my iPod... I have no idea why I haven't actually published these other than the fact that I think nobody really cares and it wouldn't be that interesting. 

Questionnaires/ Lists

25 Questions, 50 Questions, #tbt High School Survey, The Nectar List, The Last List, Reality TV Shows I Actually Like (even though I say I don't like any reality TV), Shows That Shouldn't Have Been Cancelled,... you get the idea.Some of these haven't been published because I haven't finished them, others because I have an uneven number and I don't like it. 

What are some drafts you haven't hit "publish" on and why? 

Sharing today with Alyssa! 

Party of 4

I saw this over at Love, Fun and Football, and it had been sitting in draft form for like 2 years, and then Steph did something similar last week, so I'm finally sharing it! 

4 Jobs I've Had
1. Camp Counselor
2. Cashier at Duane Reade
3. Special Events Coordinator
4. User Support Specialist -one of those IT people most other people hate :)

4 Movies I've Watched More Than Once
1. Pretty Woman
2. Elf
3. Stepbrothers
4. The Proposal

4 Books I Would Recommend
1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett
2. Little Bee by Chris Cleave
3. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
4. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers

4 Places I Have Been (In the last 3 years)
1. Florida 
2. Puerto Rico
3. Kentucky (The Bourbon Trail)
4. California 


4 TV Shows I Watch 
1. This Is Us

2. Married At First Sight
3. Blindspot
4. Big Bang Theory


4 Things I'm Looking Forward to This Year

1. A short vacation- I think NOLA?
2. finally going to my first NHL game
3. seeing Cirque du Soleil: KURIOS
4. Celebrating my birthday :)

4 Favorite Vegetables
1. POTATOES 

2. spinach 

3. broccoli 

4. bell peppers

4 Shows I Watched Faithfully From Beginning To End
1. LOST

2. True Blood

3. Dawson's Creek

4. Gilmore Girls

4 Places I Want To Visit Inside the US
1. New Orleans

2. Nashville 

3. the PNW

4. San Francisco

4 Places I Want to Visit Outside the US
1. Italy

2. Iceland

3. Australia

4. Dominican Republic

4 Random Things I'm Thinking About
1. I have to call Nordstrom to see if they have Hunter boots in stock before I go there

2. Do I have work to do?

3. Crap, I have to do my self-evaluation...

4. Hmm, what's for lunch?

Show Us Your Books: September Edition

Well well well, look who (finally) showed up to the party! After linking up since March, it looks like I *finally* found my reading groove again. I think I was trying to read e-books when I was in the mood for some physical books, and forcing myself to stick to Netgalley deadlines and such just wasn't working. And then i found a book sale and picked up 13 books for $5 and BOOM! I read some! Here's what I got through last month.

Labor Day- Joyce Maynard: 4 Stars

From Goodreads: The  unforgettable story of a mother and son forever changed during a long summer weekend when a mysterious man comes into their lives. 

My Thoughts: I read this book in a day when a normal book takes me at least a week, so that's saying something. Also, I had no idea that this had been turned into a movie (with Kate Winslet! And Josh Brolin! And Tobey Maguire and Dawson!), and now I'm very curious to see it. I liked that it was told from Henry’s point of view as an adult remembering back to that time. Though I found the beginning of the relationship between the mother and the stranger completely creepy (I had to read one part several times to make sure my eyes wasn't deceiving me),  it eventually made complete sense, even if it was a bit far-fetched. I was SO ANGRY at Henry towards the end, but that fueled me to finish faster. And I loved the ending. I usually his is one that I will be keeping and probably re-read at some point. 

Belzhar- Meg Wolitzer: 3 Stars

From Goodreads:
If life were fair, Jam Gallahue would still be  at home in New Jersey with her sweet British  boyfriend, Reeve Maxfield. She’d be watching  old comedy sketches with him. She’d be kissing  him in the library stacks.

She certainly wouldn’t be at The Wooden Barn, a therapeutic boarding school in rural Vermont, living with a weird roommate, and signed up for an exclusive, mysterious class called Special Topics in English.

But life isn’t fair, and Reeve Maxfield is dead.

My Thoughts: This is not a book I would have picked up on my own; I received this in my Litcube box. It is definitely YA, but a quick read for sure, another one I finished in a day! The story was original, the ending was certainly NOT what I expected, and I really enjoyed the magical element. Unfortunately I didn't like the main character, but I could relate more to her friends. As Steph would say, this "passed the time just fine." 


Mother, Can You Not?- Kate Siegel: 1/2 Star

From Goodreads:
Based on the wildly popular Instagram account @CrazyJewishMom, Kate Siegel's essay collection about life with the woman who redefined the term "helicopter mom"

My Thoughts: I wanted to read this book because I had been a long time follower of the Instagram account @CrazyJewishMom, which I found to be outrageous and hilarious. Unfortunately, this was the book form of that account. There was nothing new here. It was regurgitated "stories" and screenshots of text messages that I had already seen/read before. Whereas the IG account was fun, the book version seemed forced. Like, "Isn't my mom so crazy?! You guys will never believe what she did next...!" While there may have been a little bit of a fuller description in the book, it was completely unnecessary. Also, Siegel came off as being really immature; I felt more like I was reading about some pouty teenager than someone over the age of 21. I wanted more from this book, I wanted new stories, I wanted to like it, but I was sorely disappointed. It was a fake, unoriginal, and completely fluffed up version of "essays." I think she should have kept these stories in Instagram.

*I received this book from Blogging for Books in exchange for an honest review. 

Jemima J: A Novel About Ugly Ducklings and Swans- Jane Green: 4 Stars

From Goodreads: With a fast-paced plot that never quits and a surprise ending no reader will see coming, Jemima J is the chronicle of one woman's quest to become the woman she's always wanted to be, learning along the way a host of lessons about attraction, addiction, the meaning of true love, and, ultimately, who she really is.

My Thoughts: This is the 3rd Jane Green novel I've read, and while it was nothing Earth-shattering, it was well-written and I loved some of the twists I totally did not see coming. I really liked most of the characters, though the main character's obsession with weight seemed more than a little unhealthy at times. That got better at the very end, and eventually she realized she wanted to lose weight for herself, to feel better and healthier, instead of just to look better and "for a guy." And of course, who doesn't love a happy ending?! 



Currently Reading: Nantucket Nights- Elin Hilderbrand (my first Hilderbrand book!)

Celebrating two years with Steph and Jana! 

Click the button to visit the linkup!

Currently: October

pic from the Great Jack-o-Lantern Blaze last October

Reading... my very first Elin Hilderbrand book, Nantucket Nights. 

Listening (to)... the soundtrack from Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, which I'm realizing has a lot of covers on it. Not sure if I like that yet. Also Sting's latest "I Can't Stop Thinking About You" and a new artist (or at least new to me), Niall Horan's "This Town." 

Watching... movies for Jenn's Fall Film Challenge! So far I've watched 12 out of 25 of the films on my list. As for TV, I'm watching Blind Spot, Married at First Sight even though I don't care about any of these couples because they're so overly dramatic, Grey's Anatomy, and my most recent binge- Veep. 

Trying... to find a new planner for 2017. So far I'm between a Poppin, an At-a-Glance Academic 18 month weekly/monthly, the Sugar Paper line at Target, and another new-to-me brand, Me and my Big Ideas' Happy Planner. 

Eating... Pumpkin pie ice cream with graham cracker swirl- so happy this is back this season!

*nom*

Cheers-ing... a short week/long weekend away!

Going... on a weekend getaway to PA starting tomorrow afternoon! Blue is picking me up from work (a treat in itself), and we're going directly to Mt. Airy Resort and Casino because she got a free room there. Then we're heading to the Fall Foliage Festival in Jim Thorpe, PA. Small town USA, here I come! 

Grateful For... being late to work last Thursday. I commute to Hoboken, NJ every day, and last week the train directly in front of mine derailed and went directly THROUGH Hoboken Terminal. It's still there, because they are afraid that removing it might cause part of the building to collapse, and there might be asbestos in the walls. If I had been on time, I would have been walking through there at that time, but because I was running late, I was on a train behind that one, waiting on the tracks to enter the station. My train backpedaled to the station before it and I was able to make it home and work from there. Since the terminal is still out of commission, my coworker has been driving me to/from work. 

So actually, that's three things I'm grateful for- being late to work, the ability to work from home, and my coworker driving me. 

the station before the accident

Tweeting... a lot of political funny stuff. You can find me here! I love Twitter during election season. 

Organizing... my clothes. I mentioned last time that I'd be starting a purge, so I've been laundering and sorting all of my summer clothes to pack away and pulling out my fall wardrobe... slowly. My biggest clothing issue has always been nasty deodorant buildup on clothes (and I swear I've tried every "goes on clear, try it on black!" deodorant out there). I found this hack on Pinterest suggesting that the chemical reaction between baking soda and white vinegar would get the stains out, so I'm trying that. If it doesn't work, I'll try this other hack using dishwasher soap, hydrogen peroxide and baking soda. If you have any other ideas, I'd love to hear them!

testing the baking soda/white vinegar treatment

Buying... ALLTHETHINGS. After my spending freeze last month, I realized that I was desperately in need of some new shoes, so I bought 8 pairs online. Unfortunately, only two pairs actually fit. Womp. Then somehow I stumbled across Nordstrom Rack online and my bank account took another hit, but I got some really good prices on some techy stuff, and basically finished my Christmas shopping! I also took my first dive into Amazon Pantry and I love it! 

Dreaming... literally speaking, last night I had a dream about my upcoming work review. I'm nervous about it because I've only been in my position for 2 months, I still don't have a job description, and my boss has been unavailable to meet with me. Figuratively I suppose I'm always dreaming about a tropical Caribbean vacation, though I'm surely glad to be nowhere near there with this hurricane rolling through. 

What's currently new with you? 

Linking up with Anne, Jacqui, Kristen, Kristin, and Gretch!