hallowe'en

[Heldi]

 I tend to get all excited around this time of year as I love Halloween. Pumpkins,dressing up and everything. And it just happens to be my birthday too. Heehee!

So this year I decided I'd organise my birthday myself this year. Well point people in the right direction anyway. The celebrations start on Sat 29th. I've just got OH to ring up and book tickets for the family halloween party at Alnwick Garden.  I wanted to tell you all about it and incase there is anybody near Alnwick who fancies it. I'm so excited!

Tickets are £15 a head,under 2's are free.  6-9pm.
Here's some of what it says in the bumph.  "Bring your lanterns to The Treehouse to meet out ghoulish storyteller who will take you for a scary walk through the Woodland Walk before returning to a fun filled party in the Halloween marquee. Fun and games.Fancy dress competiton for the kids."

Oh no my son has grown out of his black knight outfit..homemade ofcourse. Need my thinking cap on.

There's lots of workshops for the kids during the week before Halloween and they would like you to bring your carved lanterns to decorate the Treehouse. Wow I bet it will look fab! 

The menu for the family party goes like this.

Braised Beef and Batwing Dumplings
Devil chicken with rice and rats tails
Zombie cooked Stinging Nettle and Satan's Squash Lasagne with
Mozzarella and Hell fire blushed tomatoes
Beelzebub burgers with lashings of Blood Red Sauce
Goblins Toes in Yorkshire Pudding with Ghoulish Gravy
Poltergeist Potatoes Baked in a Hell Fired Oven
Blood Red Coleslaw
Battered Mush
Selection of Squidgy Puddings

Can't wait to read that out to my son!  I'm really looking forward to it.  ;D

There is an adult party actually on the 31st,it sounds great and it is a meal in the Treehouse. The Treehouse is wonderful inside,very dark,atmospheric, with bits of trees growing through it.
My dilema is I can't think how to do the trick or treat thing with the kids and then go out for a meal. There's an adult fancy dress competition on that night. It would be a great night for a few friends together but it's £30 a head so I couldn't afford to take everyone and I wouldn't expect people to pay to come out for my birthday.  I'm still thinking this one through!  :-\

[Heldi]

[undercarriage plan]

Well, have a wonderful time, Heidi! Like you, love halloween too, end up doing kids party, but only for few hours. Sounds excellent fun, too far away for me, unfortunately, but have a drink or 3 for me, like the sound of the goblin toes!!  Lottie ;D

[dibberxxx]

sounds like you will be having a wonderful time , just wished i lived closer

[Mrs Ava]

Wow!  What a cool event, and happy birthday to you for then toooooo!

The sprogglets and I will be in Devon with the family for half term and Rosemoor have a halloween day with pumpkin carving workshops for the kids....may well take kidneys to that.

[Heldi]

I'm really looking forward to seeing the lanterns around the Treehouse. It'll look great I'll bet. I'll get some photos hopefully.

I'm the only one who ever carves the pumpkins in our house! I get very into it. My brother used to help but he is banned for carving out rude words!

[kentishchloe]

That sounds fantastic heldi - i'm taking my OH & little boy to the pumpkin weekend at Yalding on 29th so will hopefully pick up a few carving tips.

i've also been invited to a fancy dress party on the friday, i'm thinking of going as .... Gardening Witch.... geddit? witch/which? I know, terrible innit????  ;D ??? :P ::) ;D

[beejay]

Sounds like a fantastic birthday/halloween Heldi. Talking about carving pumpkins always reminds me of my childhood in the wilds of Cumbria - we used to carve turnips ??? Just a tad more tricky methinks.

[kentishchloe]

Beejay - i'd completely forgotten, my mum hails from lancashire & when i were a nipper she always used to carve a swede or two for halloween. sounds ridiculous now but i guess pumpkins weren't as readily available 20 years ago.

[beejay]

Yep & swede, even worse. Never heard of a pumpkin. They are an American invention for halloween aren't they?

[Heldi]

Kentishchloe ...gardening witch...groan !!!  :) :)

Yep it was turnips for me aswell...or swedes ...we used to call the big ones turnips and the little ones swedes...but now it's changed round. 

I've done trick or treat since I was a kid though.

[beejay]

Funny you should say that Heldi 'cos after posting about carving turnips I thought, hang on they were swedes but I could swear they were turnips up there then. Glad you've confirmed I'm maybe not completely barmy.

[Heldi]

Beejay I still call the big ones turnips out of bloody mindedness!  I mean that childrens story is the Giant Turnip not the Giant Swede!  :D  :D

I still try to carve atleast one turnip every year,with memories of sitting in the outhouse with my brother, seeing who could get theirs done first and get it lit up. They are hard work for a kid aren't they...see what we had to go through!! I used to spend so much time eating the contents that my brother always got his done first. I had more artistic flare though! Look I've started arguing about it even now.  ;D

[beejay]

.......and it's tatties & neeps.........

[GREENWIZARD]

have a fab time H ;D

were a nipper she always used to carve a swede

~ my mammy always carved me a turnip lantern(ah i can smell it now)~i had never even seen a pumpkin back then

[Heldi]

Thanks Greenwiz! 

I'm going up into the loft today to see if I can salvage any of my son's black knight outfit. He stood on the cape last year ,ripped it and threw a wobbley! He's grown alot so the tabard bit might not fit. It'll be off to the second hand shops for some materials if it doesn't.  I also need to see if his old wizard outfit will fit my daughter now.  I made that out of second hand shop finds.It'll be great if she can get more wear out of it otherwise I'll be looking for something to make for her.  Eeek! I'm terrible at sewing!

[Mimi]

Was turnips for us too GW... oooooooo can smell it now. :P   We also didnt know it as Halloween.... was Duck Apple night for us.  Mum used to fill up bowls of water and bob the apples on (just one of the fun things us kids used to get up to)  ;D

[kentishchloe]

I suspect we may even have had the odd carved mangle wurzel when we lived in Essex - or am i imagining that - can any east anglians confirm/deny???  EJ?

[Mrs Ava]

aaahhhh, I am an import Kentishchloe, hailing from Surrey, via Sowf London and North Devon.  However, as a nipper, my skin&blister and I always had swedes to carve.  Gaves ya muscles that did!  Real dedication!!

[spacehopper]

Sounds like a good night Heldi, hope you have fun.

I'm originally from Scotland, and we always used to have turnip (swede) lanterns. They were a pain to carve, but I don't remember ever seeing a pumpkin when I was little. My folks grow turnips on the farm for cattle and sheep feed so there were plenty about!

[Heldi]

I've got three pumpkins to carve but need to get a couple of turnips... got to put in some hard labour for old times sake!.  Last year I found a little bit of a cheat...I got a little set of plastic face parts which you press into the turnip...think Mr Potato Head. It looked great but no tealight so I still had to do some carving.

Hmmmm I wonder if my brother can be trusted with some carving this year?  He's only 40 !