Happy New Year!

I hope your holidays were wonderful! I've been enjoying mine with family, relishing just doing nothing, so I've been away longer than I intended. I look forward to getting back to creating, and blogging, in 2010. I hope you and yours have a wonderful new year! See you soon!

What does Auld Lang Syne mean anyway? Originally a Scottish poem written by Robert Burns in 1788, may be translated into English literally as "old long since", or more idiomatically, "long long ago"or "days gone by". So it's basically the equivalent to "Once Upon A Time". What is your 'Once Upon A Time' for 2009?

Cyber Monday Sale ~ My Etsy Shop

Click the Snoozin Santa to go shopping!

Don't get caught snoozin'! It's Cyber Monday and today is the day to get some really great deals in my Etsy shop PLUS Free shipping! Everything's on sale but hurry, sale ends Monday at midnight!

Saying Goodbye...

Now you might think, because I love Halloween so much, that I'd have a hard time saying goodbye to it. And I'll admit, as evidenced in the above photo, I wait until the last minute to do so but, the truth is, Halloween is just the begining! For me, the holidays begin on September 30th. That's my birthday. It's the day I can load up on cornstalks, pumpkins (far more than any one person has a right to carve), wheat straw, and colorful mums. It's the day I can beg my husband to drag down the Halloween decorations from the attic and begin the back breaking task of lugging a ridiculous amount of boxes down to the 1st story. It's the day I can ask all of this and no one can say a thing! It's also the day the holiday season, for me, goes into full swing. The house won't go a day for the next 3 months with being covered in decorations. It's the most wonderful time of year! But....before I move on, I must share with you a few last (I promise) Halloween pictures. Afterall, it is Friday the 13th!

Trick or Treating




My Lil Cat in the Hat




OK, Genie! I'm going to be wanting my 3 wishes...


1) More time in a day... 2) More time in a day... 3) More time in a day! Got that?!


The Scare on the Square - Downtown Statesboro, Georgia




The Pumpkin Man


His mom made this!


Cutest Costumes & That's one "ghost" I could never bust!




This Pumpkin's Been Up to Something!




One of my favorite parts of the night...
The Thriller Dance




Thriller Dance Video



Now! I'm fully aware that for those of you who are not Halloween Year Rounders, that this is the last time I can conceiveably get away with celebrating Halloween before you start screaming 'Where's Christmas?'. Good News....It's coming this weekend! Stay tuned!

Unfortunate Costumes for a Mugshot

Something to keep in mind as you go out for Tricks and Treats tonight....

Be good & Be Safe!

Happy Halloween!!



Michele Allen, 32, of Middletown, Ohio, was arrested after neighbors reported witnessing her chasing children, blocking traffic, and urinating on a porch. The officer who arrested the belligerent bovine said she smelled of alcohol. Allen was charged with disorderly conduct.





Adam Ballingall was dressed appropriately for his arrest for possession of drugs. (Link)






Fares Baroudi, 25, was pulled over in Tampa two days before Halloween in 2007. He was arrested and charged with driving under the influence, and later released on bond






Wearing more of a lifestyle than a costume, Samuel McGilton of West Virginia was arrested after security cameras captured the 72-year-old pleasuring himself in a public library; he claimed he was just pleasure … reading.



And my personal favorite.....

If you've followed my posts about Savannah and have a hankering for visiting, keep an eye out for this guy!



In another case of pre-Halloween lawlessness, 21-year-old Will Johnson was arrested in Savannah, Georgia, on October 30th, 2005, for running around in traffic, performing pelvic thrusts, screaming profanities at cars and otherwise causing a commotion, all while dressed up as Lion-O from Thundercats. For those unfamiliar with the classic cartoon, a Lion-O costume involves a blue leotard and an orange mane-wig. And, of course, feline face paint.

The History of Bonaventure

Click on The Bird Girl image above for more info on this famous statue

Plantation History

On December 4, 1753, John Mullryne of Beaufort, South Carolina, requested 500 acres on the south side of Midway River, Georgia, stating that he was "desirous of becoming a planter in the Colony." The land was granted, and by 1771, John Mullryne and his son-in-law, Josiah Tattnall, owned approximately 9,920 acres in Georgia, stretching from Ebenezer in the north to Sunbury in the south. Included in their property were the 600 acres named "Bonaventure" or "Good Fortune," three miles from Savannah on St. Augustine Creek. Bonaventure became the family home.

All, however, was not Good Fortune. On January 7, 1771, the plantation house burned; it burned again in 1800.

In October, 1779, the plantation became a hospital for the French troops under Count Charles d'Estaing in their attempt to capture Savannah from British control; many of these French troops probably lie buried at Bonaventure. It was from here that the remnants of the defeated French forces departed.

It was Josiah Tattnall, Jr., who returned to Bonaventure and bought the property in 1786. He had never gotten over his love of Georgia even when his family, who were loyal to King George III, returned to England. It is even said that when the family boarded the ship that would return them to England a young Josiah Jr. jumped overboard and tried to swim ashore. He was rescued from the sea either from certain death or a successful escape. It wasn't until his university years as a student at Eton many years later that he approached his father about returning to his beloved Georgia. And while he requested his father's permission to return to Georgia and fight with the Patriots, he eventually left England without it.

Josiah Jr. met and married Harriet Fenwick, introduced island cotton from the Bahamas, was elected state senator, and in 1801 was elected governor of Georgia.

Sadly it was the second burning of the home at Bonaventure in 1800 which affected Josiah Jr and his wife, Harriet. According to legend, it occurred during a dinner party hosted by the couple when Josiah calmly announced to his dinner guests that it would be necessary for their party to be moved outside. Tables and chairs were moved onto the lawn well away from the home, the burning of which provided light for the party. Toasts were made to the family and to the home itself, champagne glasses shattered against the nearby oaks as the home burned to the ground. Today, it is said that those passing by Bonaventure at night can can still hear the faint sounds of laughter and the shattering glasses. The sounds from that final, and perhaps eternal, dinner party.

It was only two years later in 1802, that Harriet died and was buried beside four of her children in the family plot at Bonaventure; officially Harriet was the first adult to be buried in what was to become Bonaventure Cemetery. In 1803, Josiah died at Nassau; he was returned to Bonaventure to be buried with his family. The surviving children of Josiah, Jr., and Harriet Edward Fenwick, Josiah III, and Harriet Tattnall were sent to England to live with their grandparents.

In 1817, the eldest son, Edward Fenwick, returned to the plantation, which he possessed until his death in 1832. Upon his death, Bonaventure became the property of Josiah Tattnall III.

Savannah businessman, Peter Wiltberger purchased Bonaventure from Josiah Tattnall, III with the intention to develop a public cemetery on 70 acres, including the Tattnall Family burial ground which had been used for burials since 1794. The cemetery was designed around the ruins of the Tattnall mansion using the existing live oak tree lined roadways to provide access and separate the major cemetery sections.






The Oak Trees

Bonaventure has long been known for the massive live oak trees with arched limbs covered in Spanish moss overhanging her roadways. It is said that these oaks, planted by Colonel Mulryne as a wedding gift to his daughter Mary upon her marriage to Josiah Tattnall, were planted in the shapes of an M entwined with a T to celebrate the union of these two families who had been friends for many years back in Charleston. Historical documentation has proved that many of the live oak trees in Bonaventure today are nearly 250 years old.

Live Oak has a naturally spiraling wood grain that allows the tough wood to bend rather than break, making the tree the most hurricane-resistant tree in North America.

The trees have been slowly declining since the Great Sea Islands Hurricane of 1893; however, there are two and a half centuries of surveys, photographs, reports, and folklore that have documented their life story. In 2004, the live oaks of Bonaventure Cemetery were registered on the Georgia Landmark and Historic Tree Register.





Bonaventure's Ghosts


Laughter and the shattering of glasses from the Eternal Dinner party, statues that come to life, and phantom dogs are said to be among the haunts of the Bonaventure Cemetery.

One visit to Bonaventure and it's easy to imagine that life still goes in a resting place for the dead. The snarling oaks centuries old, roses and azaleas in bloom, birds chipping and add to that many statues; angels, cherubs and those designed after the cemeteries inhabitants, all lend life to the this stretch of land that has so many stories to tell that one book could not contain them all. Nor, do I imagine, that anyone living today even knows them all. It is said that these lifelike monuments come to life; babies cry, children play, and Corinne, a beautiful young woman, smiles because she was “allured to brighter worlds, and led the way”, that is, she committed suicide.

But perhaps the most famous of these is Little Gracie. The lifelike monument of her, carved after her death at the age of six from pneumonia, was created from a portrait and also has a plaque that reads:

"Little Gracie Watson was born in 1883, the only child of her parents. Her father was manager of the Pulaski House, one of Savannah’s leading hotels, where the beautiful and charming little girl was a favorite with the guests. Two days before Easter, in April 1889, Gracie died of pneumonia at the age of six. In 1890, when the rising sculptor, John Walz, moved to Savannah, he carved from a photograph this life-sized, delicately detailed marble statue, which for almost a century has captured the interest of all passersby."

If you visit Little Gracie today, you will find various toys and little trinkets that many have left for her ghost to play with. Particularly around the holidays. But please don't be tempted to move them. As the story goes, the statue of Little Gracie is said cry tears of blood if her playthings are moved or taken. Today, the statue is gated off. People had taken to rubbing the statue for good luck and because of the belief that placing a coin in her hand and walking around the statue three times would make the coin disappear, it was eventually decided that in order to preserve the precious monument and resting place it would need to be closed in. Of course, some believe this gate wasn't erected for keeping out but, perhaps, for keeping in....


***Disclaimer***
I would be remiss if I did not remind you to keep in mind that these intriguing statues and grounds are the actual resting places of peoples' loved ones. Should you be lucky enough to visit Bonaventure you are encouraged appreciate the historical and cultural significance of the sites and the people interred there, the cemetery architecture, the scenery and the natural ecosystems which inhabit the sites. Please show respect for the dead and their remaining family members, many of whom still visit today.

And the Winners Are...

The first prize winner was chosen from my current followers. And the winner is:

Lori


The second prize was chosen from present followers, new followers and those who left a comment on the prize post. And the winner is....

Emily R.

Winners, please be sure to email me your address so I can get your prize in the mail!

A great BIG thank you to everyone who followed, visited, commented and dropped by to enjoy the 13 Days of Halloween with me! I've had a blast and hopefully you have too!

There are still two more days left! Be sure to stop by so you don't miss out on any of the fun.

Happy Halloween!

The Ghosts of Savannah Georgia

Bonaventure Cemetery in Savannah Georgia has some interesting history of it's own.
Click on the photo above for more on The Bonaventure Cemetery.

The city of Savannah is literally built on its dead. Cemeteries were built on the edge of the settlement. As the colony grew into a port city the cemeteries were absorbed and homes and businesses built on former burial sites. Some of the dead were moved, some probably weren't. And some just turn up. A mummified body was found in the walls of the Foley House some years back.

Oglethorpe's founding of the city is famous in great part because of his venture into urban planning. But, what did his plan involve? What was its basis? Historians have speculated on its origins, perhaps in freemasonry or the Biblical design of Solomon's Temple. Perhaps there is more to the city's plan than we know or imagine. By one measurement - using cubits - the original city was a square 1000 cubits on a side. The square is an important pattern in occult lore, a magical square can be used to trace a talisman to achieve a purpose or set a tone or direction for an ongoing enterprise. Could this plan have been, in effect, a magical design of such power and persistence that spirits are trapped between two planes of existence? No one knows.

Whatever Savannah's mystical connections, there is one thing that is certain. A lot of people seem to believe they have had paranormal experiences in the city. There are hundreds of ghost stories. And strange occurrences connected to the paranormal still occur. Just recently a local woman who had organized "Psychic Fairs" was brutally murdered and dismembered, allegedly by her father. That should be enough to set another spirit adrift or at least fuel tales until well into the next century.

The above is an excerpt taken from:
http://www.hauntingstour.com/savsup.htm
Compiled from published reports and other reliable sources by Jess C. Henderson

Join me on Friday for the story of Bonaventure, how it was once the site of a grand plantation, how it became a cemetery and how, some say, you can still hear the sounds of the final dinner party held at the plantation...the Eternal Dinner party.

Last Day to Enter to Win

Tomorrow is the last day to enter to win my 100 Followers Celebration Prize Giveaway!
Winners will be chosen Wednesday at midnight. You MUST click HERE to enter!

Winners will be annoucned on Thursday!

Halloween At The Mouse's House '09

I think it's entirely possible that Disney IS the most magical place on Earth! And I can assure you, it's also a place where dreams come true!


Last year my lil knight in shining armor actually pulled the sword from the stone. Did you have any idea it could actually come out? All it takes is one special little boy, some magic pixie dust and an observant Imagineer! Of course, my lil knight knows it was all about him....and, really, isn't that the point?






This year we enjoyed another special treat. Just as the night began we were approached by a quartet who sang us a story about The Headless Horseman. You'll notice quite an astonished little vampire in the left hand corner of this video.

(Be sure to pause the playlist at the bottom of my blog to fully enjoy the video)

If you haven't been to a Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party before it may be a little late to do so this year but I encourage you to begin making plans to do so for next year...NOW! The party starts in September and is held on select dates until Halloween night. And as you can imagine the Halloween night party sells out quickly. The party starts at 7 pm and runs until midnight. All of the rides are opporational, there are virtually no lines because the amount of tickets sold is limited and you get to head down various trick-or-treat trails around the park to load up on some wonderful goodies! Even mom and dad get a bag to collect candy. So if you're like me and you miss being allowed to trick-or-treat without getting a sideways glance, (you know, the one that means 'aren't you too old for this?') then this is the party for you. It's fun for the whole family: Mom, Dad and Boils & Ghouls! Oh! And don't forget to put on your favorite costume. Dressing up is optional but I saw more than a few "grown-up" Peter Pans & Cinderellas!

Here are some more fun pics for you to enjoy until you make your own trip to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party:



Some singing ghouls and a happy little vampire



Of course as great as Disney is, it isn't the only attraction in Orlando worth taking in. This time we didn't have a chance to enjoy Universal Studios or it's Islands of Adventure but there's still fun to be had there.
In the evening we took a stroll down Universal's City Walk.







We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Jimmy Buffet's Margarittaville complete with a Cheeseburger in Paradise, Heinz 57 and French Fried Potatoes! But the highlight of the evening was the show - The Blue Man Group. Another fun for the whole family event. If you have a chance to see them, you enjoy music, comedy and quiet blue men who say more without talking in an hour in 45 minutes than most of us say in a lifetime, it's a don't miss! And yes, take the kids!
My six year old thinks it was the coolest thing since PB & J!

Halloween Trivia Game

Halloween Trivia Game


Are you ready to test your knowledge about All Hallows Eve? Print out this Halloween trivia game and see just how much your party guests really know about this spooky holiday and other creepy things.

Answers can be found at http://www.halloweenhowl.com/halloween-trivia-game.shtml at the bottom of the page.


1. The word Hallow means:


a) saint
b) holiday
c) haunted


2. The wer in werewolf means:


a) once
b) spirit
c) man


3. What is the purpose of a ghoul?


a) to rob graves
b) to poison food
c) to kidnap children


4. Bonfire originally came from the word for:


a) good (in French)
b) forbidden (in Old English)
c) bone (in Anglo-Saxon)


5. What was Dracula's real name:


a) Vlad Tepes
b) Dom Delouise
c) Bela Lugosi


6. The word wicca means:


a) wise woman
b) healer
c) witch


7. What does Samhain really mean?


a) the end of summer
b) All Saints Day
c) somebody's name


8. Every year, Charle Brown waits with his friend Linus for who to appear?


a) Pigpen
b) the Grinch
c) the Great Pumpkin


9. Pumpkins grow on a:


a) bush
b) vine
c) tree


10. Halloween is celebrated on the eve of what Christian holiday?


a) Guy Fawkes Day
b) All Saints Day
c) All Souls Day


11. What phobia means you have an intense fear of Halloween?


a) Samhainophobia
b) Hallowohobia
c) Necrophobia


12. The name Dracula means:


a) bad blood
b) son of the devil
c) demon


Halloween Trivia Game courtesy of www.HalloweenHowl.com

Funny Tombstones

On the grave of Ezekial Aikle in East Dalhousie Cemetery, NovaScotia:
Here lies

Ezekial Aikle
Age 102
The Good Die Young.


In a London, England cemetery:
Ann Mann
Here lies Ann Mann,
Who lived an old maid
But died an old Mann.
Dec. 8, 1767


In a Ribbesford, England, cemetery:

Anna Wallace
The children of Israel wanted bread
And the Lord sent them manna,
Old clerk Wallace wanted a wife,
And the Devil sent him Anna.


Playing with names in a Ruidoso, New Mexico, cemetery:
Here lies
Johnny Yeast
Pardon me
For not rising.


Memory of an accident in a Uniontown, Pennsylvania cemetery:

Here lies the body
of Jonathan Blake
Stepped on the gas
Instead of the brake.


In a Silver City, Nevada, cemetery:

Here lays Butch,
We planted him raw.
He was quick on the trigger,
But slow on the draw.


A widow wrote this epitaph in a Vermont cemetery:

Sacred to the memory of my husband John Barnes who died January 3, 1803. His comely young widow, aged 23, has many qualifications of a good wife, and yearns to be comforted.


A lawyer's epitaph in England:

Sir John Strange
Here lies an honest lawyer,
And that is Strange.


Someone determined to be anonymous in Stowe, Vermont:

I was somebody.
Who, is no business of yours.


Lester Moore was a Wells, Fargo Co. station agent for Naco, Arizona in the cowboy days of the 1880's. He's buried in the Boot Hill Cemetery in Tombstone, Arizona:

Here lies Lester Moore
Four slugs from a .44
No Les No More.


John Penny's epitaph in the Wimborne, England, cemetery:

Reader if cash thou art
In want of any
Dig 4 feet deep
And thou wilt find a Penny.


On Margaret Daniels grave at Hollywood Cemetery Richmond, Virginia:

She always said her feet were killing her
but nobody believed her.



In a cemetery in Hartscombe, England:

On the 22nd of June
- Jonathan Fiddle -
Went out of tune.


Anna Hopewell's grave in Enosburg Falls, Vermont has an epitaph that sounds like something from a Three Stooges movie:

Here lies the body of our Anna
Done to death by a banana
It wasn't the fruit that laid her low
But the skin of the thing that made her go.


More fun with names with Owen Moore in Battersea, London, England:

Gone away
Owin' more
Than he could pay.


Someone in Winslow, Maine didn't like Mr. Wood:

In Memory of Beza Wood
Departed this life
Nov. 2, 1837
Aged 45 yrs.
Here lies one Wood
Enclosed in wood
One Wood
Within another.
The outer wood
Is very good:
We cannot praise
The other.


On a grave from the 1880's in Nantucket, Massachusetts:

Under the sod and under the trees
Lies the body of Jonathan Pease.
He is not here, there's only the pod:
Pease shelled out and went to God.


The grave of Ellen Shannon in Girard, Pennsylvania:

Who was fatally burned
March 21, 1870
by the explosion of a lamp
filled with R.E. Danforth's
Non-Explosive Burning Fluid"


Harry Edsel Smith of Albany, New York:

Born 1903--Died 1942
Looked up the elevator shaft to see if
the car was on the way down. It was.


In a Thurmont, Maryland, cemetery:

Here lies an Atheist
All dressed up
And no place to go.

Ghost Photos

The National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, England



This photograph was taken in 1966 by Rev. Ralph Hardy, a retired clergyman. Taken in the Queen's House section of the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England he only intended to take a photograph of the elegant spiral staircase, known as the 'Tulip Staircase' but when the photograph was developed a shrouded figure was revealed to be climbing the stairs, seeming to hold the railing with both hands. Expert opinion, including some from Kodak, is that the original negative has not been tampered with. It is also said that the unexplained figure has been seen on other occasions in the vicinity of the staircase, along with unexplained footsteps.



R.A.F. Airmen



This bizarre photo of R.A.F. Airmen was taken in 1919 by Sir Victor Goddard. A strange figure can be seen behind one of the airmen and has been identified by the airmen as that of fellow airman Freddy Jackson, an air mechanic who had been killed two days earlier in an accident involving an airplane propeller.



The Brown Lady at Raynham Hall, England



This photo was taken in 1936 by photographers Captain Provand and Indre Shira while shooting for Country Life magazine. Taken at Raynham Hall in England it seems to show what looks like a lady walking down the stairs. Although the photograph has been scrutinised by experts it has never been proved as a fake. It is believed by some to be the ghost of Lady Dorothy Walpole who once lived at the Hall. Officially she died of smallpox but it is also rumoured that she was murdered by her husband after learning of an affair.

Festive Pumpkin Dip

This is a wonderful, hearty dip! And when you're done making it for your party that night, you can save the left over pumpkin puree to make pumpkin pancakes the next morning!

12 oz Cream Cheese
3/4 cup cooked or canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix
1/8 garlic powder
1/3 cup chopped dried beef
1/3 cup chopped green pepper
1/3 cup chopped sweet red pepper
1 can (2-1/4 oz) sliced ripe olives, drained
1 round loaf (1 pound) Italian or pumpernickel bread (I use Kings Hawaiian)
Fresh vegtables, crackers or corn chips

In a mixing blow, beat cream cheese, pumpkin, taco seasoning and garlic powder until smooth. Stir in beef, peppers and olives. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Just before serving, cut top off bread; scoop out the bread from inside, leaving a 1/2 in. shell (save the bread from inside for another use). Fill the shell with creams cheese mixture. Serve with vegetables, crackers or corn chips. Yield: 3 cups.

100 Followers Celebration Giveaway

Whether you know it or not, your following my blog or leaving me comments means a whole lot! When I first starting this blogging thing I had no idea what to expect. I certainly couldn't have imagined anyone wanting to read what I had to say much less coming back for more. But I've been pleasantly surprised!

To celebrate, I'm hosting a prize giveaway. Here are the details:

1) If you are already a follower, you are automatically entered to win. I will be giving away two prizes. The first is a surprise and will be drawn from among my current followers. The second is pictured above and will be drawn from among current followers, new followers, commenter's and those who help to advertise my giveaway.

2) For additional chances to win: Follow My Blog, Leave A Comment (on this post only, be sure I have a way to contact you) and finally, help promote my giveaway on your own blog, website, twitter, etc. Feel free to snag the little Giveaway Button in the top right hand corner of my blog - be sure to link it to THIS post as it will not stay on top of my blog during the 13 Days of Halloween Event. That's it!

Winners will be chosen on Wednesday, October 28th at midnight.

Good Luck & Happy Haunting!