This Is Halloween!

Now that I've got that stuck in your head...

Every year (meaning last year and the year before), Blue and I throw a Halloween party. This year we went with Game of Thrones, or "Medieval." As we've done in years past, there was a photo wall for pictures, goody bags for every guest, and a costume contest where everyone votes on a winner or couple's costumes and the winner wins a bottle, this year we chose vodka. Luckily we had a non-alcoholic prize too (a pumpkin carving kit and TJ's pumpkin muffin mix) because our winner was our youngest guest, my friend's 12 yr old niece. (This is an adults-only party, but she's always around and she's pretty awesome.) All of the decorations are from the Dollar Store and Amazon. We usually have about 20 guests, there's lots of snacks and dancing, and though we do have beer and wine, our only request is that you bring what you're drinking.  Anyway, enough chatter. I'm going to let the pics do the talking!

The Invite:

"Halloween is coming,
prepare to raise your glasses,
Because this year we're going medieval on your asses!

Be a king or a queen or a knight or a wench,
But any costume is fine if you're still on the fence.

We'll have plenty of food and treats if that's what you're thinking,
our only request is that you bring what you're drinking!

We hope you can come, we'll see you at seven, but our Kingdom requires we shut down at 11!" (written by Blue)
The Decorations: 

Castle photo wall, banners, and a 6 ft. "Mountain"/Knight

knights and banners- party prep time

goody bags

The Menu: 

Chicken "Littlefingers"
Theon Greyjoys in a Blanket
Bagel Bites
(meatless) Baked Ziti
allthechipsndips
Halloween cookies
Oreo Pumpkin Cheesecakes
Red Wedding Punch (with a giant brain shaped ice cube)

The Costumes: 

"The Dude" The Big Lebowski

Our 1st place winner- Thing 1

Game of Thrones- 2 Melisandres, Dany, her dragon, and The Night King

Dead Construction Worker

Hot Mess Express

Unicorn

Our "true" winners- Belle and the Beast

Dana Barrett and Louis Scully from Ghostbusters

Yours truly- Daenerys Targaryen and her dragon

The Mountain Mamas group shot

Do you celebrate Halloween? 

What's been your favorite costume this year? 

Unread Books On My Bookshelf

I didn't think I had a lot of books on my shelf that I hadn't read, because I try to get rid of the ones I don't want to keep in the slight chance I re-read them (which has literally never happened except with Maniac Magee). So I was surprised when I counted 26/54 unread. Some of these have been there for years, and have moved with me from apartment to apartment. Most are ones I've picked up along the way at library sales or Paperback Swap and was just never "in the right mood" to read. I've even started a bunch of them only to put them down for something else. Sometimes I tried to work them into challenges just to finally read them, but you can't force it if you're not feeling it, ya know? So here's what I hope to read in the coming season. 

Unaccustomed Earth, Goodnight Nobody, Best Friends Forever, The Things We Do For Love, What Alice Forgot, The Invention of Wings, Summer Sisters: I've read other works by these authors and loved them, so I thought I'd enjoy these as well. 

Summer Rental and Ladies' Night: I've always read great reviews about Mary Kay Andrews' books but never read them, and these looked like I'd like them.

Reading Lolita in Tehran: It looked like a "smart book" and I liked the description. 

Memoirs of a Geisha: I wanted to read this before watching the movie, but that didn't happen. Usually I won't read a book after seeing the movie, but it was so long ago and I've hear d so many rave reviews about the book that I feel like I need to read it. At some point. 

At First Sight: I feel like I "should" read something by Nicholas Sparks.

Beautiful Ruins, The Paris Wife, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, Orphan Train, Me Before You, Some Girls Are: all inspired by Show Us Your Books linkups. 

Shantaram: Originally borrowed this from a friend but had to give it back before I finished it (because it's nearly 1000 pages and whoa) so I bought it.

Dreams of Significant Girls, The Friday Night Knitting Club: I liked the cover and the description on the back, and they were 10 cents each. 


Those are the ones that I'm still interested in reading. Below are the ones I'm ready and willing to part with. Some of them I've read, some I haven't but I just don't care/have no interest in reading them, so it's time to let them go. If you'd like any of them, let me know and I'll mail it to you! 

On the Road: I was slightly obsessed with Nelly Furtado when she first came out, and she said this book inspired some of her songs, so of course I had to read it. Also I feel like this is one of those classics that I "should" read, but I've tried (unsuccessfully) like 5 times, so it's time to move on. 

Why Not Me?: I also had a slight obsession with everything Mindy Kaling for a minute, and I really enjoyed the first one, and I got this as a gift after the panel discussion. 

Let's Pretend This Never Happened: I've tried to read this several times, but The Bloggess just seems so full of herself and like she's trying too hard to be funny. Her stories are all over the place, and I can't tell when she's joking or being honest half the time since it is a "mostly" true memoir. No, thank you. 

Revenge Wears Prada: I read The Devil Wears Prada and I loved the movie so I thought I'd get the follow-up, but I lost interest. 

Three Cups of Tea: I was all "wow, this guy is building schools in the far-reaches of countries, I want to read his story!" but then "60 Minutes" looked into it and it turned out that there were many "inaccuracies" in his story, so why read it if it's all bull?

The Tipping Point: I thought I'd like this because it deals with psychology, but it's too science-y/research-based. Also I didn't realize it at first but my copy has a lot of mark-ups in the margins. 

Do you hoard books? 

Which one should I read first? 

Linking up with Jenn and re-inspired by Kristen

A Few Good (Looking) Men

It's Thursday, which means I'm finally linking up with Jenn's Tuesday Topics! This topic was 10 Sexiest Men Alive. I noticed while picking my favorites that I'm a big fan of piercing eyes, some (not a lot) of facial hair, and a good set of locks (minus Jesse Williams, but that's okay too). I'm not really a fan of rock hard anything, because it just looks kind of uncomfortable and un-cuddly. Most of these are old favorites, though luckily some of them still grace my screens. (Apparently, I also like the "hand on head" pose.) Without further ado- here are my Top 10: 

Kit Harrington (Jon Snow- Game of Thrones)

Joe Manganiello (True Blood- Alcide)

Ryan Reynolds

Matthew McConaughey

Josh Holloway (Sawyer- Lost)

Jesse Metcalfe

Chris Hemsworth 

Eric Dane (Mark Sloan- Grey's Anatomy)

Jesse Williams (Jackson Avery- Grey's Anatomy )

Chris Pratt

Honorable Mentions: Jeffery Dean Martin, Gerard Butler, Scott Eastwood, Colin Farrell, John Stamos 

Who would you add to your Top 10?

Linking up with Quirky Pickings!

Show Us Your Books: Lately

Cheers to 3 years of SUYB! Thank you Steph and Jana, for creating this linkup as a place for fellow bookworms to share what we've been reading! This month I read a lot of light/easy reading to knock out Erin's challenge. And I'm almost there- only 3 more to go. I think I can do it! More on that at the bottom. 

Holes - Louis Sachar: 4 Stars
Read if you like young YA (middle grade)
library hardback

This is definitely a middle grade level story, and I'm sad I didn't read it when I was younger. It was cute and it pulled me in quickly with the mystery of the curse and why they were digging holes. I liked Stanley and Zero and seeing their relationship grow. And I really loved the ending. 

I Am The Messenger- Markus Zusak: 4 Stars
Read if you like YA msytery
library hardback

First, this is nothing like The Book Thief and I don't think it's fair to compare the two. They're not even the same genre (other than fiction). That said, I really enjoyed this one and it also had me thinking about it long after I finished it. It's the story about an average person who saves peoples' lives by doing little things that have a great impact in the long run. The book is incredibly well written and definitely made me angry, upset, and hopeful all at once.

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging- Louise Rennison: 3 Stars
Read if you like chick-lit, diary-style, YA
library hardback

I feel like some of the British humor got lost in translation and I probably would have loved this one more if I'd read it when I was younger. I saw that someone compared it to the 14-yr-old version of Bridget Jones and I'd have to agree with that. I'm not sure that I liked the ending though- it just seems kinda wrong. Overall it was a cute, fluffy story about make-up, friendships, and boys. 

Barbara the Slut and Other People- Lauren Holmes: 3 Stars
Read if you like short stories and don't mind cursing
library e-book

I read this in a single sitting. The stories were pretty hit or miss for me. My favorite was the first one (How Am I Supposed To Talk To You?) about a 20-something coming out to her very traditional Hispanic mother. My least favorite (My Humans) was written from a dog's POV after being adopted. Maybe I'm not really a fan of short stories though, because I felt like the endings were severely lacking (or just sucked). Actually,"sucked" is too strong- I like happy endings. Many of these were not. 

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Erin's 7.0 Book Challenge updates: 160/200 and only 3 more to go... and I'm going for it! I've already started 2 of these:

|5 points| Freebie: Some Girls Are- Courtney Summers (currently reading)
|15 points| An animal on the cover: Let's Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir by The Blogess aka Jenny Lawson (currently reading)
|20 points| Compass/cardinal direction in title: East, West- Salman Rushdie
|10 points| Starts w/ “B”: Barbara the Slut and Other People- Lauren Holmes|10 points| Yellow cover: Everything Changes- Jonathan Tropper 
|20 points| Published in 2017: We Are Never Meeting In Real Life. - Samantha Irby
|25 points| A commonly banned book in America: Angus, Thongs, and Full Frontal Snogging- Louise Rennison
|30 points| About mental illness: Everything Everything- Nicola Yoon
|30 points| Non-human main character: I Am The Messenger- Markus Zusak
|35 points| A Disney movie /book/ based on a Disney movie: Holes- Louis Sachar

What have you been reading lately?

What's New With Me/Currently

This month was a busy one! But there was a lot of great food, meeting people, and a few firsts, so it was pretty awesome! And I even remembered to take pics! 

First up was my first Dueling Pianos show and it was so, so much fun! I think my favorite part was when they were making fun of audience members lol. Or when a guy who looked like a cast member from Duck Dynasty requested Notorious B.I.G.  I can't wait to go back next month!

Attended the First Annual Bergen County Food and Wine Festival. It was... underwhelming. First of all it was held in a mall parking lot. It was a 2-day festival, and we went on "Burgers and Brews" day. But they only had like 3 beers (and sample sizes) and some sliders. Meh. 

Kept up with tradition and went to the San Gennaro Italian Festival in Little Italy. We planned it terribly though. Last year we went after work on a random like, Tuesday and it was great. We got food, walked around, and even rode the ferris wheel. This year we decided to go on a Saturday before my friend's show. IT WAS HORRIBLE. It was waaaay too hot and we could barely walk. So we randomly found a restaurant on a side street that had deep fried calzones so Blue was sold. I actually had no idea it was an iconic pizza place until right now when I was looking for the link!

My friend (in the middle) came in from Ohio to do a show with her sisters, so I finally got to hear her singing live! They mostly do covers, and they were excellent!

Celebrated a house warming/divorce party with the little lady in the middle here. We carried her present- a new TV- to the bar lol. But she cried and was so grateful and that made me happy :)

I was able to meet up with fellow blogger Alex and her husband KC for dinner and drinks when they were in town on vacation. So great to finally meet them! Blogging- bringing friends together! 

Attended my first Oktoberfest event! I was sad that there was only one couple in lederhosen lol. Those potato pancakes were delicious! (And that's Sam Adams Oktoberfest, NOT Bud Light!)

Styling: This 3/4 roll-sleeve shirt that I found on a clearance rack at Target. I've been wearing it everywhere- it's so comfortable! (Seen also above with Alexandra.)

Searching: For a new couch. I currently have 2 but they've seen better days and they're taking up too much space. I want a sectional like the one below.

Saving: Recipes! Budget Bytes is still my favorite- I have yet to try one and not have it come out great!

broccoli mac n cheese with bacon. Sounds weird, but so good!

Making: Well, nothing right now but planning to make GoT House flags as decorations for our annual Halloween party!

What's new with you?

Linking up with Anne, Dana, Kristen, and Gretch!

October Goals

A new month, and turning over a new leaf! I'm keeping it simple this month because I have a lot going on, especially on weekends. But before I get into that, let's review how I did in September.

• Continue reading for  Erin's 7.0 Book Challenge (7/1-10/31)
• upload and organize photos from my phone

• Organize music on computer

• Try 5 new recipes 3/5: Monterrey Chicken Skillet, Broccoli Mac n cheese, Creamy Tomato and Spinach Pasta

• get screen door fixed (for real this time! This has been on my list for approx a year!)

• research credit card options

• apply for a credit card

• schedule a Veterans pick-up

• Poshmark: set up mannequin, take pics, sell $100 (keeping this low so it's easier to accomplish, but more would be better!) - $60
• Participate in Jenn's Fall Film Challenge - you can see my picks here. 17/25

6/10... not too shabby! I'm giving myself a half-pass on trying new recipes and Poshmark because while I reach the intended end goal, at least I made a conscious effort. I'm most proud of myself for getting a credit card though. My credit has been crap since I was 18 (long story), so getting my score up to a point where I was able to get a credit card was a pretty big deal for me. This month is about finishing things I started, or projects that remain unfinished, and decluttering in two main areas: my kitchen and my bedroom. I've been too lax about getting rid of stuff in my closet, and have been buying too many pantry goods. I need to stop and purge! 

October Goals

• Fix screen door (for real this time! This has been on my list for approx a year!)
• Get rid of 50 Items
• Continue Erin's 7.0 Book Challenge. I know I won't finish it, as I'm not one to read 4 books in one month, but I'd like to get closer.
• Finish Jenn's Film Challenge- only 8 more to go before the Bonus Round starts on 10/15!
• Grocery Challenge (inspired by Steph): 
• Clean out fridge/freezer
• Clean out pantry
• $50 max on grocery/household purchases
• track eating

What are some of your goals this month? 

Linking up with Nicole