Bat Houses

When we were kids in middle school we liked to sit under the street light at night and just hang out. It seemed cool and the bat that flew above our heads, to catch moths drawn by the light, made it seem even cooler.

I say bat because, I always thought of it as one solitary creature rather than a slew of bats taking turns. The street light is long gone and now it's not so easy to spot our flying mammal friend(s) but I'm hoping some are still around. While I as a tween I appreciated our local bat(s), I did not realize what an important member(s) of our community he (they) were.

Eventually, I would like to put a bat house in our yard to let them know they are welcome. While the photos of bat house attached to the sides of buildings (pictured above) are cool, I think I might want to chose a free standing version and put a little more space between us.

Here are some links to interesting articles:

Build a Bat House

All Bat Houses Are Not Created Equally

Top photo: Bat House Project form This Old House.
Bottom photo: Buy a bat house prefab from Gardener's Supply Company.

Tailgating

Hanging out in a parking lot should not be fun, but add food, kids, a football, old college buddies, family and of course a college football game and you're there.

We had a great outing two Saturday's ago and even though our team didn't win, it was a wonderful day. Every weekend should be as great.

Ondine

I love that there are always cheap DVDs available now at the super market and big box stores. I picked up Ondine for less than half the price of a movie ticket and was able to enjoy this little gem quietly at home. Home was the perfect setting to view this modern fairytale.

Some films are just not suited to big theater viewing with a crowd. For me, it really takes an in-your-face blockbuster style film to overcome the presence of so many people rustling, snacking, making asides, etc. Ondine is not that type of film. I was not really surprised to find the film discounted already, but was a little saddened after watching the film that it had not found a significant audience.

The film is beautifully shot and acted and the story is sweet and gritty at the same time. The film quietly deals with how lives that are broken can be mended, even if somewhat imperfectly. It allows that redemption is possible in a modern world where "Once upon a time" and "Happily ever after" are faced with skepticism even by children.

It brought to mind the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, which I also loved because it was not afraid to have a "happy" ending. Both works allow for the characters to have a positive resolution in an imperfect world. It's not exactly the "happily ever after" of traditional fairytales but the acknowledgement that people can find what they need and the real happiness that accompanies that amongst the difficulties of life.

My Little Love Bug

She was actually a little lady bug and loved every minute in her costume. We had a wonderful, if too short Halloween weekend. We never got around to making the cupcakes but did manage to finally carve our pumpkin and do some real trick or treating in the dark. It's amazing how any fear of the dark disappeared when the treats started dropping in our plastic pumpkin.

I was amazed at how well she did. I think she studies up on things while I'm at work. To see her ring the bell and step back ready to say trick or treat, you'd think she were a real pro with several years experience under her belt. I was also pleased to see how polite she was, picking just one piece of candy and saying "thank you." I was really the proud mama lady bug.

End of the Weekend Inspiration

I love quiet Sundays at home and wish they could be twice as long. It's time to make sure that everything is set for the beginning of the work week and I can already feel its pull. As Sunday night winds down this print titled "Homestead" from Beauchamping sums up where my head and heart are tonight.

An Old Friend Stops By

The deer have been moving in closer to the house as Fall really sets in. There is one female who always stops by and peers in through the back doors to see if she can beg an apple. She is the boldest of all the deer who make the woods behind our house home. Today she came by and scored a few apples before a special visitor stopped by.

This old male has shown up in the Fall for the past three years and hangs around through the winter months. He was injured last winter and I thought for sure he was not going to make it. So I was especially happy to see him today and treated him to apples and carrots before he decided to retreat back into the woods. I'm hoping this is just the first of many visits this year.

Spooky Sweets

These two Halloween cakes from "i am baker" make me wish I was more talented in the baking department. I can only imagine the patience required to pull off the Bat Cake.

I'm planning on making some cupcakes next weekend so that we can have a little Halloween celebration while we carve our pumpkin. I'm going to cheat and use box mix, but found some really cool cupcake liners and bought orange and black icing so we can get a little creative. I figure it's better to compromise and end up with cupcakes than be over ambitious and end up just short on time. Cupcakes from scratch is just going to have to wait for less hectic days.

Pumpkin Carving Kit

I splurged on a pumpkin carving kit, if you can call $6.99 a major outlay of cash . It's more of a splurge in the sense that carving a pumpkin can certainly be done with a decent kitchen knife a spoon. My "use what's at hand" motto of recent was overridden by the notion that the kit would make our pumpkin carving seem more like an event. Also some of the templates provided convinced me that I might be able to pull off something really spectacular. I'm thinking if it goes even half way decently, I'll end up with something more impressive than my usual three triangles and a mouth. We'll see. A beautiful pumpkin sits in the kitchen waiting to be transformed. pictures to follow.



This neat little "Pumpkin Hollow" idea is from the Disney Family Fun site which is packed with lots of great projects and inspiration for Halloween.

Roadside Attraction

I've been meaning to take pictures of this abandoned dinner for over a year now and finally accopmlished it last weekend. I was determined to capture some images of this dilapidated beauty before it is bought and renovated or towed away and replaced by something new. My biggest fear is that it will just be demolished one day. No one would demolish one of these gems or would they?

I hope not, but just in case we finally stopped after grabbing our last Polar Cub ice cream of the season and I took a couple of pictures. The light was really strong and maybe not the best for photos but I ended up with a few shots that I like.

Apple Picking and Hopefully Apple Pie

We went to the apple orchards early this fall hoping to beat the crowds and also to make sure we didn't miss out this year. It's so easy to think you'll get to something and then suddenly run out of weekends. The one disadvantage, it was hot when we went out and lugging a basket of apples is no fun in hot weather. There are two disadvantage come to think of it. The second is that apples are generally sweeter after a good cold spell and ours are definitely on the tart side.

All the more reason to get to another item on our "Fall To Do List" which is to make an apple pie. Nothing like a lot of sugar and a buttery crust to dress up some less than sweet apples. Now I just need to decide whether to do a thin slice or chunky apple pie.