I'm Going to Texas (version 2.0)

I know, it’s been a while … no excuses, it is what it is. And I haven’t forgotten there are still New Mexico and Missouri posts to write … eventually.

Texas went from daytime in the 80s to 40s and 50s within 24 hours … with a touch of overnight frost thrown in for good measure … so the garden is struggling a bit …

Fortunately, the mealy blue sage and dwarf pomegranate don’t seem to mind …

I’ve got my list of beige food to make for Thanksgiving … mashed potatoes, dinner rolls, stock for gravy, creamed onions, apple and coconut cream pies … to which I will add broccoli salad for some green relief … there will be other sides to add color to the table, of course. There’s a wonderful warm comfort in anticipating the traditional foods. And since I do believe food is love, Thanksgiving will always be my most favorite holiday.

And Christmas is coming, so I’m playing with a new project in between stitching strips of cloth onto My Heart’s Compass …

Paper piecing adapted from an Ann Wood pattern

Happy days …

For those of you who don’t get trick-or-treaters, here are two photo-mosaics of the 100-or-so kiddos plus parents who came our way last night …

As it got darker, the camera did better in video mode, but I’ll spare you the actual footage. Although I did especially like the clip of one child who walked away saying, “Wait, I got two by mistake!” and turned back. “Keep it!” I said, “Your honesty earned you an extra treat!”

I do have fun creating our basket of treats, which are mini-packs of M&Ms wrapped in corny bat jokes and a maze …

topped by a ghostly watchman …

standing guard beneath the taco moon …

This year we got to see our Missouri grandkiddos modeling their costumes, captured here in a screen-shot mash-up from the video I took as the aliens “battled” …

While the Austin grands stood still for a more conventional photo-sesh, along with the “vocabulary parade” at school (a genius way to get around the Halloween costume dilemma that schools always face) …