Do It Yourself Fall Wreath

This wreath has been my fall wreath for my front door for a number of years now.  It was very easy and economical to make and has stood up really well.  I simply took a grapevine wreath which is available at most craft stores and added a little bit of beautiful orange, brown, and golden-colored fall foliage to the bottom right corner of it.  Grapevine wreaths are fun to work with in part due to the fact that the possibilities are endless when it comes to creating different designs. 

 

Boo! at the Zoo and Howl-O-Ween at the Phoenix Zoo

Boo! at the Zoo takes place on October 19th and 20th between the hours of 9:00 and 4:00 and Howl-O-Ween takes place on October 25th and October 26th between the hours of 6:30 and 10:30 p.m.  

Boo! at the Zoo takes place during the day and is most definitely for the kiddos.  Howl-O-Ween activities are categorized into one of three categories according to how "scary" they are.  The year I went they were offering a horse-driven carriage ride around the remote areas of the zoo to which the public isn't usually allowed access.  That ride actually had the potential to be really creepy if not for one of the zoo workers/volunteers keeping up a steady stream of chatter and yelling which kind of ruined it.  I get that she was trying to stir up some excitement, but it would have been much better without it.  But I love going to the zoo so it was still enjoyable.  I just wouldn't expect to be at all scared despite any given activity being categorized as a Scare Level 3 activity.  That was a number of years ago though so things might have changed a bit.  For more information on either event, see the Phoenix Zoo website.

Boo! at the Zoo and Howl-O-Ween Event Details

Home Decor Inspiration from Packaging

One never knows where they are going to get inspiration from, and in this particular case I got it from the packaging of "Pinecones and Birch" wax cubes from Better Homes and Gardens/Scentsationals.  I first found wax cubes for melting in a little shop in Sedona a long time ago when I was there after moving to Arizona.  I think I was first in that shop something like ten years ago.  Since then, I've come across wax melts in small shops and places such as craft fairs in some of the small towns in Arizona.  For as long as I can remember, if I'm home and not sleeping there is probably a candle burning.  I began melting wax tarts more frequently when Better Homes and Gardens/Scentsationals began selling them and they were readily available.  Anyway, I picked up the Pinecones and Birch scent and thought the picture on the front of the packaging was really nice so I recreated it from items I already had on hand.  The only thing missing is the lit garland.  It's a nice display and looks particularly nice when the candles are lit at night.

This is a birch wood candle holder surrounded by pine cones similar to the one in the picture.

I added a candle holder made of cactus wood to the display.

Pioneer Living Village Museum

Pioneer Living History Museum

I visited the Pioneer Living Village Museum awhile back, and the day I was there was a slow one in terms of visitors, so I enjoyed a nice, leisurely walk around the place.  It was interesting as, although some of the buildings are historically accurate reproductions, some of the them are original.  The village is from the 1800s and is located in North Phoenix.  At the time I was there, volunteers could "adopt" any given building and, in addition to maintaining the building itself, would educate visitors on activities such as the construction of wagon wheels and mining.  I thought I had taken more photos of the buildings, particularly the original ones, but I can't seem to find them.  There is more information on the buildings on the museum's website.

Mercantile (reconstructed)  This serves as a gift shop for the museum. 

  

This is the original 1878 boyhood home of Senator Henry Fountain Ashurst. Henry Ashurst was Arizona's first senator. He gained national fame as the "Silver-tongued Orator of Congress." (Source - The Pioneer Living Village Museum website.)

This photo makes me laugh every time.

Not looking too happy about having his photo taken.

       

Happy as a pig in mud!

Inside the Community Church (reconstructed)

 

Mining carts on the rails by the Miner's Cabin.

Miner's Cabin (reconstructed)

Entrance to the Miner's Cabin.

This area represents an 1890's Phoenix dressmaking shop. By this time, ready-made clothing was widely available. The patrons of this stop would most likely have been upper class women who could afford custom made clothing.  (Source - The Pioneer Living Village Museum website.)

This is one of the original buildings out at the Pioneer Living Village Museum.  This house was built in the early 1890's on an 80-acre homestead in Phoenix which was acquired by John Marion Sears. (Source - The Pioneer Living Village Museum website.)

I believe this is either the Meritt House or the Northern Home.  Both homes at the museum are the original buildings and more information on both can be found on the Pioneer Living Village Museum website.

This is inside the Carpenter's Shop (reconstructed). 

This shop is modeled after an 1880 Prescott shop. Carpenters were in demand for the construction of counters, display cases, and furniture repair as well as new buildings. Often a carpenter was also a cabinet maker, in which case he made furniture – bedsteads, wash stands, tables, chairs, etc. The tools exhibited in the Carpenter Shop are not from the original shop but have been donated by people from all over the country. Carpenter shops were usually surrounded by large lumber yards.  (Source - Pioneer Living Village website.)

This is an old wood-burning stove in the Carpenter's Shop.

On the left is Tumbleweed Tillie's Photography, in the middle is an undertaker and embalmer's office, and I'm not sure what the building on the right is.  

The Gallows

 

Hello Autumn

And goodbye triple-digits!  Along with the cooler temperatures is the arrival of the holiday season - Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.  This is, without a doubt, my favorite time of year. 

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)

National Novel Writing Month (NaNoWriMo)

Someone told me about this project last year, but it was too late for me to attempt it as I learned about it toward the beginning of November and it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to catch up.  I got busy with other things and forgot about it until a couple of weeks ago.   

The basic idea is to attempt to write 50,000 words, which basically amounts to a novel, during the month of November.  Although a person may have a good idea for a novel, it’s sometimes difficult to actually get it down on paper.  The purpose of this project is to do just that.  Once you sign up on the website, you’ll have access to the forums where you can get to know other members, as well as get help on your novel from them.  You can also pick a Home Region which I did.  I haven’t looked into that too much yet, but it looks like “write-ins” are sometimes organized which I think would be a lot of fun.  This website looks like a very supportive place for writers of all levels of experience.  You can even get pep talks sent to your e-mail from people who have had some success with writing.  

On November 1, they will unlock the word-count area of your author area so that you can see your word count continue to climb.  From what I’ve read, when you upload your work, it’s scrambled so that you don’t have to worry about your work being plagiarized or your ideas being stolen.  You can share as much or as little about your work as you’d like on the forums.  I haven’t completely looked around the website yet, but it looks like it could be a positive experience. 

I think the most difficult thing will be quieting my inner editor, so to say.  It will be tough not to go back and edit and they talk about this in their “Tips to Get from 0-50K.”  The point of the November project is to get your ideas down on paper.  “Ugly prose” and “poorly written passages” are to be cleaned up later.  November is for embracing imperfection.

I think what I’m going to do during the month of October is get a plot drafted and work on some character development.  I already have a rough idea for a story but it definitely needs to be fleshed out a little bit more.  I think that’s allowed, but you really aren’t supposed to actually begin writing until November 1.  Of course, work and other responsibilities come first, but I really hope I can get a story fleshed out enough to at least attempt this in November.  I’ll make the decision whether to participate toward the end of October.

Good luck to anybody out there who is participating in this!