Masquerade

This post is a quickie, just for the sake of recording a special night. 

Elizabeth threw a masquerade ball at her house. I went.

 I did her hair. I didn't get pictures of the brilliant decor for the party, or of all the guests sweet masks. Instead, I took took a picture of her brushing her teeth while she was waiting for the glue on her fake eyelashes to dry.  

It was a typical, fun night, and I didn't think much of it at the time...

...but that was the night I met a certain gentleman who has since become a very important part of my life. His name is Nick. It was October 19th. 

More to come about him, and me =)

A State Affair

The biggest party in the South? The North Carolina State Fair. Elizabeth and I pulled on our cowboy boots and spent an entire day eating fried food and watching potbelly pig races. We caught two great country concerts during the evenings, as well: Billy Currington and Jake Owen (um, I love Jake Owen now. He was the most precious. He brought a little girl up on stage--she crowd surfed from her father's shoulders to get there--and danced with her during a song. Then he said, "I can't wait 'til I have a little baby just like that." His whole personality was just friendly and available to the entire crowd. I loved it.) Anyway, back to the fair:

We tried to hit all the must-do, traditional state fair things. We ate candied apples and drank pink lemonade.

E grabbed some delicious corn on the cob.

They fry anything and everything. We not only saw fried cookie dough and fried kool-aid for sale, we also heard rumor of a stand offering fried sticks of butter. Gross.

But you can't go to the NC State Fair without eating something fried! So...

...I went for deep-fried Reeses' Peanut Butter Cups.

They were alright. I didn't keel over from a stuffed artery right away, so as long as I hit the gym every day next week, I'll probably be okay. I would have preferred, though, just a nice, melty reeses. Think: Kristen, campout, s'mores with peanut butter cups instead of Hershey chocolate slabs. Okay, back to the fair:

E bought this turkey leg, but it was huge and super salty, so we each tasted a little, but could finish it. Which surprised us because we saw several small children gnawing away at these babies throughout the day. 

Of course, our favorite indulgence of the day was the classic: fresh icecream. Yum!

We also saw great exhibits, from period-dressed actors whittling tools from wood to an educational garden where you could plant and harvest fruit.

Elizabeth offering a caramel apple to the prize-winning steed.

This mama pig was unbelievably massive, and she couldn't get a respite from her squealing babies. This fascinated us for a full five minutes. 

Giant pumpkins.

Giant watermelons.

We caught two of our friends out on a friendly date, waved from across the room, snapped their picture. Whatevs.

At night they had a fantastic fireworks show. We watched it after riding two crazy roller-coaster rides. 

I love this girl. We have so much fun exploring our new home out here. Can't imagine country concerts and fried food on a stick without her!

10K Cheerleader

Elizabeth and I went to cheer our friends in the 10K earrrrly Saturday morning. We met them at a few points during their run with signs and shouts. 

Of course, after a run like that, you need to replenish your carb-intake. We helped them out with that part of the morning, as well. 

We found a little cafe that was crammed full of locals, some people were eating breakfast while standing at the counter.

Their specialty: HUGE, country-style biscuits. Fluffy as clouds, they were.

I had my first potato pancakes, served with the traditional sour cream and applesauce. YUM!

Halloween Kid

I just sent this adorable book by Rhode Montijo to my niece,

because Halloween packages are
pretty much the greatest thing. ever.

and because it features two
of my favorite things: Halloween and Cowboys.

I found my copy at a Pottery Barn and was delighted by the rip-roarin' story of the Halloween Kid saving Halloween from goodie gobblin' goblins and a whole host of other shady, Halloween stoppin' bad guys. 
"Yee-ha-Halloween!" the Halloween Kid shouts!

Plus, the author totally rocks. He not only illustrates his own books, he also absolutely, totally loves Halloween and makes all sorts of Halloween art. Including--hello--a vintage-looking Halloween Kid lunch box. I want this =)

I'm a champion of this incredible holiday, and I'm glad to find I've got some help out there.

Top three reasons to get excited about Halloween:

1. COSTUMES--No big surprise the actor girl likes dressing up, I know. But Halloween costumes are more than that, they're a special tradition. Growing up, my mom always made our costumes. As we got older, we began to take a more active part in imagining, designing, and creating the costumes of our dreams. It was, and is, incredibly satisfying to create an entire character, to bring an idea to life and then show your friends what you accomplished whilst gathering candy and visiting with the neighbors. I am so grateful my parents often dressed up with us (and still do). They let us know it was okay to be silly and have fun, that you don't have to grow out of dressing up the way you might grow out of trick-or-treating. It's such a delightful, fun thing to plan and anticipate; my sister and I will talk about costume ideas all year long. Those ready-made, cookie-cutter costumes off the rack at Walmart may be best for some, but I am happy Mom took the time and money to create unique costumes with us.
I wish I had photos of us as kids!
I'm going to put in a call
and ask her to send me some.

2. PUMPKINS--pumpkin cookies, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, pumpkin-scented candles, pumpkin-picking farms and hayrides, pumpkin-carving, seeing tiny pumpkins in the grocery store, driving past a wagon full of harvested pumpkins on the side of a country road (is the word pumpkin starting to look a little strange to you, too?). Actually, it's more than just pumpkins. It's the atmosphere of Halloween stuff. It's seeing goofy Halloween decor in the aisle at the store. It's attempting to realistically spread spider webs down the railing in your house to make your staircase look spooky. It's that Halloween card in the mail from Great Grandma "V" with $5 (this one is weird to Elizabeth--she never got Halloween cards, but we ALWAYS did. In fact, I've already mailed cards to all my siblings and my mother). It's the fact that we didn't just decorate our house--we transformed our house into a magical place. The neighbor who has a million Christmas lights blinking and flashing, an inflatable snowman in the yard and a glowing sleigh with a full set of reindeer on the roof through the month of December (you know this guy, right?)
--we are the equivolent during October.
Graves dug in the front yard,
a coffin with real bones peeking out
just inside the door,
and goulish pictures hanging on the walls.

3. GOOD, CLEAN FUN--this is the time when people host jack-o-lantern festivals, make apple cider, and tell classic spooky stories while frosting ghost-shaped sugar cookies. I have amazing memories of classic skating in costume, awkward middle school Halloween dances, hanging on to my friends while making our way through haunted houses, even being attacked by a candy-giving pirate on a Halloween cruise one year! In my family, we bust out the greatest movies at this time of year: Hocus Pocus, Lady in White, Wait Until Dark, High Spirits (randomly featuring Peter O'Toole, Liam Neeson, and Daryl Hannah). Nothing horrifying or evil, I don't dabble in that stuff--just the crazy, fun things like throwing a dinner party and making all the food
 resemble creepy ingredients from a witch's spellbook.

Harvest

I don't have many pictures of this fun day, but I want to post this awesome slide:

We went, in the rain, to a pumpkin farm. Rode a tractor, picked a pumpkin, packed a lunch, played the little kid games and ran around the hay bale maze. 

But our favorite activity was this large tube slide. 

Conference is coming!

"Our Heavenly Father did not put us on earth to fail but to succeed gloriously....[S]eek through prayer and divine inspiration to know what to do. Our obedience assures that when required, we can qualify for divine power to accomplish an inspired objective." --Elder Richard G. Scott

That quote comes from an address given during last April's General Conference. I love the truth that God wants me to succeed GLORIOUSLY--in fact, that is the very reason He gave me this life. And furthermore, He offers guidance and inspiration to know how I can be successful.

These words really speak peace to my heart. They teach me things:

1. God created me with a specific purpose. The Spirit can teach me about what I am to become as I pray, study the scriptures, and also when I fast.
2. My purpose is mine. God knows the thoughts and intents of my heart, as well as what I am capable of, what I am accountable for, what He sent me to accomplish. Through the Spirit, I can know for myself about all of those things--I don't have to trust someone else to get inspiration in my behalf, I can feel confirmation and peace in my very own heart.
3. My purpose is divine. Through the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ, I can be divinely assisted in accomplishing it. Nothing is impossible. What is needed is enough assurance and faith in your objective to persevere despite all obstacles. The powers of Heaven will assist me in any path I embark upon that the Spirit prompted me to begin and confirmed was correct.
4. The commandments allow me to know that I am eligible for all of that inspiration and divine assistance. I don't have to wonder or worry that I'm not thinking along the same lines as Heavenly Father or that my desires are misplaced; following the commandments is an easy way to ensure that I am accompanied by the Holy Ghost, that I can trust myself, and that I will feel it when I make a step in the wrong direction.

TAKE AWAY: Okay, real talk now. I've known all of those amazing, wonderful things for a long time. However, I sometimes find myself seeking advice from friends, parents, grandparents, articles on the internet, bah! Talking with people you trust can be sooo helpful when you're trying to make big decisions, but the most important person to turn to is God. He knows what the answer is for YOU, specifically tailored to where He wants you to be in life. And in order to get an answer from God, you have to trust YOU.

This is a weakness of mine at times. I don't like missing opportunities, so it is hard for me to be decisive when I come to forks in the road. I usually can sense which direction I want to go, but because I'm wishing I could do both, my friends and family can really make me see why one path is better than another. And while grateful for their help and interest, it is best to turn to prayer, and study, and fasting and ask the person who really knows. And then in my own heart, I will feel and know and have confidence in the path I choose.

Personal revelation is real. General Conference is coming up {this weekend!!} This week, I'm preparing to listen so that I will be able to truly hear. I'm trying to sacrifice a little more time devoted to thinking about eternal principals. I'm trying to pray more sincerely and be more specific about the guidance I could use right now (as opposed to those general pleas for help to just "figure out that work thing and that relationship and that bad habit I have). I know that God will answer my preparation through the words of His prophets. I know that the words we receive this weekend will contain directions and comfort meant for me. And for you, too.

p.s. I am so incredibly, absolutely excited for this weekend of General Conference. Two whole days of soaking up time with friends, listening to wonderful talks, eating delicious foods, talking about what we're learning--it is one of my favorite times of the year. Agh, I can't wait!!