Locks of Love Again

It's been two years since Teen2 cut her hair for Locks of Love, and here she is doing it again, but this time, it's a lot shorter. I just love it and can hardly wait to see her elf ears peeking out. Well done, Teen2!

And a Murder Mystery Too

Remember when I showed you this and said it was the start of something big? I'm glad to say it's almost finished. We have been invited to a murder mystery party this month and the Lord of the Manor supposed to be... No, wait, I'll let you guess.

I got the shirt, vest, jacket, and pants at a thrift store and I made the tie and added some lace to the cuffs of the jacket and pinned together some odd ribbons to hang from his pocket.

Then I checked the Halloween store for the hat and they had it alright, but wanted $35.00 for it. Too expensive for me, so I shopped online and found it for $25.00! I added two hatpins, and a real peacock feather and, Voila, his Mad Hatter costume is complete!

Isn't it a lovely hat? I had nightmares of myself trying to make one. I'm sure glad I found it. It has plenty of hair so I can snip off a bit for the wild red eyebrows too.

Now I just need to get busy on my costume. I'm supposed to be...No, wait, I'll let you guess...

later...

Harry Potter Halloween Party

Hello, hello? Is anyone there? I'm sure you all thought I'd dried up and blown away, but no, I'm still here slogging through life one day at a time. It's been a wild and busy year with one crisis after another; health issues and surgeries for family members, business woes and the stress they bring, money going out and out and out, and just today $600 for a new motor for the washing machine! Don't get me wrong, there have been some good times too, but I for one will be glad to wave Bye bye to 2010. 2011 has GOT to be better, right?



This time of year I always start thinking of Halloween and planning a party. We are doing a Harry Potter theme this year. I've printed the invitations to look like Harry's acceptance letter and I've started setting up the rooms. The living room will be Professor Trelawny's classroom; Divination.


To create a smaller door, I built stone walls between two of the openings from the entry hall. Well, they aren't really stone walls....

they are brown paper that I colored to look like stone walls and taped into position. Then I hung tablecloths in the opening and pulled them back with some old tassels and made some glittery letters to say D I V I N A T I O N.

Then I moved the sofa out and substituted three small tables with red tablecloths and arranged comfy chairs around them.

At each table is a crystal ball. Ok, it's not really a crystal ball, but a glass globe from some old light fixture. I found them at thrift stores. I spent less than $2.00 for all three of them. I set them in some gadgets I found at the thrift store and around the house. I think maybe I'll spritz a little white paint in them to cloud them up a bit, but they look pretty good, don't they?

I think Professor Trelawny made them read Tarot cards too, so I scattered some of them around on this table too. I wonder what the King of Swords means?

At this table the students are studying tea leaves. Remember when Trelawny sees the Grim in Harry's cup? That's not the Grim in there now, is it? Gosh, I hope no one gets the Grim at our party.

Now I'm off to watch Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I've been watching a lot of Harry Potter movies lately for inspiration and we can HARDLY WAIT until November when the next movie comes out. Are you a Harry Potter fan? Which character would you be if you came to our party?

The Start of Something Big

It's that time again people. Yes, that magical time of the year when I start thinking of Halloween. And costumes. And parties.

I hit the thrift stores Saturday and I've already started sewing too. Here is the start of LOM's costume. It shouldn't be too hard to guess who he is going to be. We bought the pants, shirt, vest, and jacket and with embellishments they will be fine. I'm making the tie, hat, and hatpins. I'll keep you posted on the other costumes as they come together.

SacAnime and Pyramid Head

I survived SacAnime yesterday, but it was a loooong day. Everyone looked like they were having a great time and the new Radisson location is so much nicer than the old Scottish Rites location. I did feel a little sorry for the regular guests though. So much noise, confusion, singing, dancing, cosplaying - some of them looked a little confused.

Here's what my sweet baby wore. Isn't she cute? It's called Pyramid Head and it's from the Silent Hill video game. Disgusting, really, but she got a lot of attention.
I hope you all have a nice peaceful Labor Day Weekend.

Greek Party

I've made this post into a Tablescape Thursday over at Between Naps on the Porch.

Greetings from Greece! Okay, maybe not Greece, but our own back yard where we recently had a Greek dinner party for our Gormande Club.

We took our dining room table out to the patio, rigged a white awning above it, and set the table with white, blue and gold.

The runner is simply a piece of sheer fabric that reminded me of the Mediterranean. We used old blue glasses that we inherited from LOM's grandparents which matched the runner perfectly. I made those collars with the Greek key design to go around candle holders and a vase that I already had.

As the sun was lowering into the West we poured the Ouzo and started with mezede (snacks);

kalamata olives,

dolmades,

and saganaki (fried kefalotyri cheese). We also had pita bread and a sort of rolled version of spanakopita.

Then we progressed to horiatiki,

avgolemono, and the main course souvlaki and potatoes. which I failed to photograph. because it was getting dark. yeah, that's it, it was too dark. couldn't be the ouzo, could it?

And for dessert we had home-made baklava by Teen1. Oh, my, it was good.

Eventually it got dark enough to light the candles and we ate our dessert in their soft glow. In proper Greek style, we made dinner last for several hours and enjoyed our Escape To Greece immensely.

If you want to taste REAL Greek food, Stockton is having a Greek Festival on September 10-12 at the Greek Orthodox Church. Check it our here. I wonder if they will serve Ouzo?

A Tale of Two Cats

Sophie: fat, docile, fixed, female.
Ever watchful of birds and squirrels.
The consummate DREAMER.


Nike: thin, scrappy, scarred, tom.
Ever watchful of humans and free meals.
The prudent REALIST.


And so it would seem we now have TWO cats here Amongst The Oaks.

Conservatory of Flowers

After Teen1's doctor appointment Friday we popped over to Golden Gate Park and visited the Conservatory of Flowers. It had been years since I'd been there and Teen1 had never been there. It was even more interesting than I remembered. Not only is it a gorgeous Victorian structure, but it is full of fascinating plants - and you know how I love gardens.

It is divided into zones; Lowland Tropics, Highland Tropics, Aquatic Plants, Potted Plants and Special Exhibits. These orchids were in the Highland Tropic area.

Despite its high humidity, I enjoyed the Aquatic Plant area the most. There were several hanging baskets of these fantastical Asian pitcher plants in various sizes and colors.

And these beautiful water lilies.

In the Lowland Tropic zone there were ferns, coffee plants, vanilla plants, and banana plants. The oldest resident of the conservatory, a 100 year old philodendron also lives there. It reaches way up into the steel support beams high above everyone's head.

Another huge plant is the Amazon Water Lily. The leaves of these "water platters" sometimes grow 6' across! Their flower starts out white, but turns pink the second day.

If you love plants and flowers and are looking for a nice day out, perhaps you should consider the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. It's a fascinating place. For more information click here: Conservatory of Flowers

Culinary Institute of America

We had a little celebration of sorts last night. It was Teen1's celebration of "back to normal" after her surgery. And where would we go to celebrate? Greystones, of course!

Their seasonal menu was full of fresh summery items last night.

Here are the first courses.

Here are the main courses.

And here's the lovely little lady.

And her old old parents.

Back to the lovely food. We always start with the "Temptations" which are served on tiny plates stacked on a wrought iron rack in the middle of the table. Here is the watermelon soup topped with radish threads. It was cool, sweet, and delicate; very nice.

Here we have mozzarella, tiny tomatoes, basil broth and pine nuts.

This is deep fried Halibut squares with tomato salsa. LOM really raved over this.

Pate on crostini. For a pate lover like me this was heavenly.

And finally Gorgonzola stuffed salami.

And now I must apologize for losing the salad photos. I remember taking them, but they are gone from the camera. Sorry.

Here is the Pan Seared Halibut with tomatillo salsa and squash and potatoes. I had a bite and it was delicious.

And this is the spice rubbed young chicken with basil broth, squash, and cherry tomatoes.

And I had Monterey Bay sardines with mixed greens, Yukon gold potatoes, and salsa verde. But the best part was the glass of Benessere Rosato that was served with it. The wine's fruitiness perfectly complimented the saltiness of the fish. What a great match.

And for dessert we shared the lava cake. Always perfect. A perfect way to cap off a perfect dinner.