Tuesday Teaser from The Family Dinner

by Carol11 Comments
When we used my mother's family silverware, I always thought of the seven years during World War II that those forks and spoons spent deep in a hole in the backyard, hidden from harm. And I imagined the first dinner after the war, when it was dug up, polished, and set at a peaceful table. Take a walk through your home, collect the knick-knacks that hold stories about your travels or celebrations, and gather them on your table for an evening of storytelling. (pg. 32, The Family Dinner by Lauri David and Kirstin Uhrenholdt) This is so much more than a cookbook. It does have recipes, but it also has great suggestions, quotes and traditions. I'm hoping to have a review and giveaway up later this week. Teaser Tuesdays is hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Play along. The rules are easy and I only cheated a little. Grab your current read,...
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The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving

by Carol6 Comments
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving Happy Halloween! Tomorrow I'll have some pictures to share, but needless to say, Amber got quite a haul of candy this evening. And I handed out candy to batches of ghouls and ghosts and witches. This year, for October, I finally got around to reading The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving. It's one of those classics that I know the basic plot of, but had never actually read. It's the story of a schoolmaster, Ichabod Crane, who is courting one of the local lasses, a pretty girl who is a bit of a flirt. His rival, Brom Bones, is one of those rough, mischievous young men who, whenever there's trouble in the area, all the neighbors and smile and say it must have been Brom Bones and his friends. I love the descriptions of the area and the locals. It really sets the stage for the story. They are given to all kinds of marvelous...
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Game Night – Halloween Edition

by Carol9 Comments
Okay, so with Halloween tomorrow, I was thinking about some of the perfect boardgames to play that kind of go along with the holiday. The first one that popped into my head was Betrayal at House on the Hill. I talked a little about it last year, but Avalon Hill has re-issued it, with a refreshed haunt book and some new items. New spooky nights await you and your friends! The creak of footsteps on the stairs, the smell of something foul and dead, the feel of something crawling down your back – this and more can be found in the exciting refresh of the Avalon Hill favorite Betrayal at House on the Hill. Arkham Horror has horror right in the title. Investigating the odd happenings in town and fighting otherwordly monsters - perfect for Halloween. I talked some about it last fall, too. It is the roaring 20‘s, and while there’s electricity in the air, unnatural storms are...
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The Warlock’s Halloween Revenge

by Carol1 Comment
It's a Halloween-themed Word Lib. Here's my finished story. The Warlock's Halloween Revenge This Halloween, Bob the witch - well, actually, he was a warlock, a scarlet warlock - wanted a very angry costume. He was tired of the other witches (or warlocks) flying at him. In the past he'd been an asinine werewolf, an ebony vampire, the main character from his favorite movie Practical Magic, even a woody fairy. But did anyone ever say, "Glassy costume, Bob!" to him? No, they didn't. They all just extinguished at him, and one time they made him wear a house on his back all night. But this year, it was going to be different. This year he'd have his lightly deserved revenge on all 43 of the other witches (and warlocks) in his coven. Because he had a spell to create the ultimate costume. He'd found it in the lake, under a pedestal. The local tribe of the...
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The Juniper Tree by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm

by Carol6 Comments
"The Juniper Tree" by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm This is another one of the Grimms' tales that I hadn't heard before and it's really no wonder, part of it is downright gruesome. The illustration above is by Louis Rhead from Grimm's Fairy Tales, Stories and Tales of Elves, Goblins, and Fairies (New York: Harper and Brothers, 1917). The story opens with a rich, childless couple who love each other dearly. One winter, while the woman is pairing apples underneath the juniper tree in their courtyard, she cuts herself. When she sees the blood on the snow she wishes for a child "as red as blood and as white as snow," and immediately she feels happy and knows that she will have a child. Months pass and eventually she has a baby boy and then she dies. Father eventually remarries and, surprise surprise, the new wife turns into an evil stepmother who sees the boy as the only obstacle between her daughter and the...
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