Only the Good Die Young

We threw our annual Halloween bash this last weekend. As always, it was a fun opportunity to eat some food and hang out with friends. It was a packed day, so I barely got any photos before the crowds descended. Forgive me.

 The theme this year was Only the Good Die Young. People were funny and creative.

Olive from the 'gone too soon' show Pushing Daisies, and Dr. Who. Or Inspector Gadget. He answered to either.

Cleopatra and King Tut. Kristine looked FOXY with black hair (unlike me), and LG rocked that guyliner like it was going out of style. He thinks I'm kidding when I say this is a good look for him.

 Team Robsten. So sad about their breakup. Kristen is totally a Trampire.

 The Ashby's forgot to dress up. Weird.

Meghan and Mark had AWESOME costumes and makeup! I was on point all night just making sure their rotting flesh didn't fall into my candy apple dish.

Bella--post vamp transformation. She's sipping on some Type A goodness.

 Amy Winehouse and Michael Jackson. I think his skin is a little too dark to pull off Michael. Ha.

2008 Britney Spears. Lancer asked if she was Tiny Tim. She should have beaten him with her umbrella.

 Just in case you don't see the genius in Carly's costume.

 The Donner Party. Or chilly hipsters.

 Sarah Palin. Very funny.

A fallen soldier and Lady Di. 

Obama and Biden. Funny stuff. I could tell Tyler was missing his spandex get-ups of yesteryear. Is a costume really a costume if you wear it to ward Council the next day?

Sesame Street--she knit those hats!

We went as Mrs. Colonel Sanders and a plump spring chicken. Only the good die young, baby! And I was about to eat that tasty poultry.

The food was tasty--as always--and the candy apple bar a delicious hit. This year I decided to save myself some hassle and use these new Caramel Bits. They're a million times better than the wrapped candies, and they produce a smooth, creamy caramel. I know this because Lancer proclaimed "This tastes a million times better this year."

The day and evening were toasty, so we were able to spend time outside in our backyard. Normally, we have to crank up the heat lamp, but this year the weather was so mild. It was a nice, mellow night.

I also served THIS corn dip. Yeah, it's a little white trash, but there's never a scrap of it left.

I also whipped up a  batch of caramel apple cider. It's so simple, and very tasty. Word on the street is that it was a raging in success all the way out in Price, Utah. I doubled the recipe, and simply let is steep on the stove all night long.

Caramel Apple Cider

1/2 gallon apple cider
1/4 to 1/3 cup caramel syrup, depending on taste
2 sticks cinnamon
10-15 whole cloves

Add all ingredients to large stockpot. Whip with a whisk to blend the caramel sauce into the cider. Simmer.

Looking forward to one more Halloween bash to round out the fall holiday season!

It's a Mad, Mad World

My favorite show at the moment finally came back after a ling hiatus. Welcome back, gang! I missed your drunken debauchery, rampant infidelity, chauvinistic ways, killer costuming, and continuous smoking.

We decided to have a little costume party to celebrate. The theme was "dinner around the world" in honor of Betty's ill-fated dinner party by the same name.

I went as Joan Holloway.

Here we have Joan and Roger snuggling up. Their adulterous affair was quite the storyline. Don't worry, Mom. The drinks and ciggies are all fake.

I love this amazing shot from the streets of SF. Time transport straight back to the 60's!

The distinguished gents. I kind of wish men still dressed like this every day.

This is Jojo doing her best disgruntled housewife impression. May I suggest some psychotherapy?

Jenna--as Sal Romano--and Mal showing off her homemade pineapple upside down cake.

Dapper Lancer. Nice fedora, baby!

The food was delicious. We had all of the classic dishes from the time, including these delish deviled eggs.

The desserts. My Pretzel and Jello salad joined Mal's pineapple upside down cake.

Joan also dazzled the crowd with this lovely homemade trifle. It was beautiful!

The season premiere was awesome, and the rest of the episodes thus far have delivered. It's good to have such a horrible group of flawed people to share my Sunday evenings with.

Heroes VS Villains

We had our annual Halloween party last night. It was a much smaller event than usual, but you won't hear any complaints from me on that front.

I was raring and ready to go as a villain. But then Lancer came up the genius idea to be the GREAT AMERICAN HERO Sully Sullenberger.

And what kind of wife would I be if I left the greatest pilot alive to land a plane in the Hudson all by himself? Presenting...Sully, and his trusty flight attendant! Totally heroic!


We pulled it off. Extra props to us for use of flight wings and fake mustaches. The best part was when Lance threatened to grow a mustache again, and I got to remind him about the last time he grew facial hair. He grew a fu man chu in Germany, and emboldened by his new stache, decided to do karate kicks and jumps in the mirror. He ended up kicking the bureau in the room, and hurting his leg. I think Bruce Lee was in on that.

The PDR of my costume was my sensible, no nonsense nude pantyhose. I wore them to church today to bring on the giggles, but I ended up sequestered in Primary, and nobody saw them. Plus I was super hot (not in a sexy way) and they had a run. Sheer Energy got the last laugh.

We had the usual cast of characters at the party:

My lovely co-hostess. She is a tiny woman in a large costume!

Villains!! I would be lying if I said I knew who Tim was.

2 villains, and one hero. Hey--Tyler stole my patented arm pose! I object. It does look nice, though.






I LOVE Inger's costume. Her barking dalmatian stole came with a disclaimer stating that it wasn't from a real dog. You don't say.

These two! They are a one trick pony with their poses. Awesome costumes, though! I think Ashley won for best female hero, and Tyler tied with Lance for best male hero.

April came up with crazy gross things for people to eat and drink. They pulled some truly awesome faces.

This crew had to drink bright green slime. They were all thoroughly grossed out.

And on that note, I bid you goodnight. Thanks for another great party! Happy Halloween!