A Highly Hallowed Evening

We had our biggest turnout yet by striking fear into the accelerated beating hearts of no less than 60 young souls. Take a little tour of their journey up the driveway:

The graveyard:

When lacking in coffins, simply improvise:

Seriously, this guy still scares the hell out of me and this year we added to his creepy factor by putting a strobe on him:

The bubble-fogger had its trial run this year and was a unanimous success. Blowing the fog into bubbles only to let loose once the bubbles pop.....whoever came up with this idea is a freakin' genius:

We can't have anyone getting lost, now can we:

The final approach:

This lovely fellow kindly lights the way (you should see the giant wolf spider that has set up shop in this guy's sleeve *shutter*):

Another new addition this year, more giant spiders, but this one's animatronic:

Every Halloween calls for at least one witch brooding over her brew:

A brief flash into my future:

Some of the best stuff was inside this year. Who knew a balloon and cheese cloth could be so creepy?:

This reaper is actually a smoker, but he took a dive a few days ago and the top of his head crumbled into pieces. I have some rebuilding still to do, but when you put cone incense inside him the smoke comes out of the hollow face, it's super cool:

I came up with a great way to use those permanent pumpkins - lampshade!:


HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Good night sweet Doppelganger, until next year.....

Catching up on a thing or two

I've recently decided to try my hand at face-painting and my very willing nephew never shies away from being my guinea pig. He was headed to a BYU game and I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for a little practice.

He was thrilled that the teeth stretched into long fangs whenever he was going to scream at the game. It's the little things in life, isn't it?


Next on the catch-up itinerary is just a few of my choice favorites from shooting my cousin's vow renewal ceremony two weekends ago.

The quintessential image of mother fastening daughter into wedding dress:

The lovely bride:

Four generations apart:

I'm quite sure that none of the ladies pictured here would like this image at all, but I love it because I know these women so well. Three generations of fiery red-heads. This photograph tells MANY stories:

The lovely couple:

I simply could NOT get a good shot in this corner and gave up, but had to include the best of the lot anyway for the sake of showing off the kilts (a staple at any of our family weddings):

A nice moment:

A coy moment when a pregnant woman (my sister-in-law) would love to snatch that glass of champagne that her husband (my brother) just poured:

This shot reminded me of a paparazzi frenzy over a budding new Hollywood couple:

I love my brother so much.

There is so much about this picture that I love; every element of it:

If you know my grandparents AT ALL, this photograph will make you laugh out loud:

Cute as buttons, but hell on wheels:

Just something about this one, I really like it. There's something so "them" about it:

I have the most beautiful sisters, here is one of them:

Ok, if you're going to pose, which is hammy anyway, go all out:

I took a TON of casual conversation shots. These are just three of my favorites from the night:

It's the cute ones you have to watch out for:

I swear, this girl was born a teenager:

Sometimes, the best father/son images are the ones you don't expect at all:

No wedding would be complete without family regaling one another with hidden talents:

Oh, Sweet Holy Maria!!!

Twilight HD Exclusive Trailer


Catherine Hardwicke is the newest addition to my goddess list!

Ok, this is a deranged observation, but then again, I do have a one-track mind. At the 1:15 mark when they're in the tree together it TOTALLY looks like Bella is grabbing Edward's um, you know...

All Hallows' Eve

There are few things I have found in this wonderful life that give me such great joy as the shrieks of terror uttered from the mouths of very small children. The only thing that makes that sound even sweeter is when the fright is delivered by my own hand (*insert vaudevillian-villain laugh here).

A large portion of my infatuation with Autumn stems from the fact that it heralds the coming of my favorite of all holidays, Halloween. I can't recall exactly when I realized that it was indeed my favorite, but the six (count 'em, six!) 31-gallon-a-piece Rubbermaid tubs it takes to store my collection of horror-inducing props and contraband have made it a clear staple of my adult life that I annually look forward to with emphatic zeal.

My serene delight with Fall as described in my last entry is quickly and undeniably overshadowed for several weeks by the sudden reappearance of my own personal and maniacal little doppelganger. No really, this is what it actually looks like:



I know! What's the deal, right?! Just trailin' behind me like it owns the place for the whole month, giddy as a schoolgirl! It faithfully retreats though come the first of every November to wait patiently for its next opportunity for brilliant re-emergence. Stay tuned to see what trouble it gets up to this year...