Apparently it's autumn. Gone are the patriotic red, white and blue themes in the shops. Gone are the end-of-aisle displays for s'mores ingredients. No more cheap punnets of raspberries.
Instead, the shops are kitted out with garlands of bright orange leaves and pumpkins, and are all about apple cider, and flavoured cafe lattes with names such as pumpkin spiced and cinnamon gingerbread. Halloween decorations are beginning to breed, and mornings out and about will see people wearing their uggs with pride.
I have no doubt that elsewhere in America, trees are actually turning orange, and the days are much cooler now... but LA is yet to receive that memo. Here - it's still green. It's still very warm during the day. Today, half of my clan went for a swim. Summer? Not gone yet, people.
Last year was my very first proper Halloween. I was a little eager, and carved out several jack o'lanterns one week before the big day. They were pretty damn fantastic looking, if I may say so, especially for a first timer. A couple of days later, the mercury hit 30ºC, and my beautiful jack o'lanterns - still kept inside, not outside - began to curl in on themselves, slowly imploding. White furry mould began to grow inside and regretfully, I threw them away and started again.
This year, I won't make the same mistake. In fact, with such a fearless, ahem, 'adventure-seeking' toddler around, I may pass on the carved pumpkins altogether. I'm pretty sure they'd only end up being moved around, sat on, licked, squashed, and whatever else Miss Pie thinks would be fun.
In the mean time, I need to sort out Halloween outfits for the girls. Martha Stewart I ain't, so they're going to be a mix of what we already have lying around, and store-bought. I love the small kiddy costumes in the shops, and I love the idea of adding to a growing dress-up box. It even makes me just a little green with envy. I'd have loved to have had an assortment of costumes when I was a kid... but I'm happy to live vicariously through the Faery and Miss Pie. That's what kids are for, right?
MJ what lovely pics. It really still does look like summer but just subtly you can see the light's changed (or is that my overactive imagination?)
ReplyDeleteI hope that by All Hallows Eve, the temp has dropped just a little. There's nothing worse than sweating up a storm inside your Chewbacca costume while your Jack O'Lantern cultivates fungus.
I just know mine would love Halloween - they're into the dress ups and they have made Jack O'Lanterns at daycare (one of which is on their door at the moment). Oh and then there's the lollies ... can't forget the lollies ...
Thank you. These were shot in the late afternoon (hence the long shadows), at a school picnic we went to. It was a new park we hadn't been to before, which is always nice to find. It was lovely - except for the hum of the nearby freeway down the hill.
ReplyDeleteDon't get me started on the 'candy' - the Faery really did just finish off her bounty a few weeks ago, from last Halloween. Not kidding! (I'm mean and limit her intake) This year, the Halloween Fairy will definitely be paying a visit. I didn't know about her last year until it was too late, but she's a comin'...
Your jack-o-lanterns were INSANE! Like you were born to it, woman! So it's a shame you won't be doing it this year - although the idea of squished and possibly, mankified pumpkin is enough to convince me it's for the best.
ReplyDeleteMel is right, the photos are gorgeous. And Miss Pie's curls? Stop it!
And even your shadow is amazonian! Love that! You're like a giant oak or something.
My shadow - in that photo - stops at mid-thigh. Should give you an idea of how long the shadows were at that point (it was just before leaving to go home for dinner).
ReplyDeleteThe freakish hot weather has come back. 30ºC yesterday, and 37ºC forecast for today. Fun times... at least our place has cooled down so the heat won't linger inside over night.