Late October Fun
We recently returned from a cruise to Canada and the New England Coast. The leaves were nice, but this gorgeous tree that is right outside our front door has them all beat! We were blessed with a beautiful fall and lots of color this year!
We are all ready for Halloween here at Our New Vista. This ghost was made many years ago by my dear Aunt Mamie. She did not start doing ceramics until she was in her 90's....and had so much fun with it. Many members of our family were gifted with these and each year we love posting the return of "Aunt Mamie's Ghost" !!!
Our neighbors were traveling to Spain and Portugal the same time we were cruising on our trip, so we got together for brunch to share our travels. The charges are embossed with fall leaves - hard to see in this photo - and I found them browsing this week in Ross...on clearance for 3.99....so I could not resist. The fall placemats were found at a "Cash and Cary" sale in our community on Dollar Bag Day. Anything you can fit in a big, brown paper bag on the last day of the sale is just a dollar for the entire bag. These placemats still had the price tags on them! The dining room furniture is "vintage"...of just plain old. We purchased this set in 1979...and it has been the setting for so many good times with family and friends over the years. In 1991 we built a home and went with new "Queen Anne" style furniture in the living room - and kept saying we were going to get a more up to date dining room. Well...this table has two leaves, I have 8 chairs, and we used it so much and never found a set that we liked enough to purchase. As we moved through the years I switched out the pulls on the china cabinet and server, changed out the covers on the seats...and after this last move to our downsized apartment had the well worn parquet top refinished. All the pieces fit perfectly in our apartment...and it has come back into style, so we are enjoying it now every day as our only dining table.
Simple centerpiece of a candle in some candy corn...the mirror is from Dollar Tree, and the ghost is one I made in 1977. The napkin rings are also from Dollar Tree. The water glasses were a wedding gift in 1977 - and have our initials engraved on them. Sadly, over the years of using them and putting them in the dishwasher, they have a haze that I cannot seem to get rid off of them. Once they are filled with water or a drink you don't notice it, but I wish I could somehow get rid of the haze. Any ideas ? I don't want to get rid or them...love that we have been using them for almost 46 years - and of the set of eight only one has broken.
The menu included a broccoli and cheddar quiche, coleslaw with apples, pears, dried cranberries, and topped with toasted ( a little too toasted ) almonds, pumpkin muffins, and bacon. We served an apple cider/rose blended drink that we picked up at a local winery and it was lovely with the meal.
You can see the nice wood grain on our table in this photo...I love it. I purchased some honey butter and used my mini cookie scoop to make butter balls.
This is the buffet piece from the dining set. It has been many things over the years...when we first got it I used it as a room divider between the kitchen and dining room since it has a beautiful oak finish on the back side. Over the years it has been a nice piece in a bay window in one dining room, and now serves as a nice table behind our sofa and a great dessert place.
I made M&M brownies that I also topped with ghost/pumpkin Halloween sprinkles. Been making these for years...easy peasy and oh so good. You can find the recipe here -
We had a great time enjoying the meal and sharing our travels. I made sure I had goodie bags with some muffins and brownies ready for our guests to take home and enjoy the treats on Halloween.
Do you entertain for Halloween ? Are you a brunch person ? I think it is SO easy to entertain at a brunch...and people are so busy that sometimes a daytime get together works best. Please leave a message below and let me know how you celebrate. Thanks so much for stopping by Our New Vista - and have a
Happy Halloween !!!
Ann, I love the pretty colors of the leaves on that tree. I like your decorations and the ceramic ghost your aunt made. It looks like a nice brunch and I love the food you served. I hope you have a happy Halloween.
ReplyDeleteHi Ann, always interesting reading & appreciate the sharing of great recipes. The tree was very interesting, although you didn't mention temps, we check your's daily-doing a comparison to Florida while we wait out our time on the waitlist (15 when we signed up in Feb). Seems soooo cold there by comparison! Thanks again for sharing--Happy Holidays!
ReplyDeleteHey Jules...it has not been too cold here. 60s during the day...sometimes pushing 70. Not too cold at night yet too...but those days are coming !!!
DeleteThat tree is stunning. I've been so impressed with our local foliage this year. Your brunch looked delicious and fun. I love how you talked about all of your furniture and entertaining pieces. Those glasses are such a special memento. I'm not sure about cleaning the haze off of them. Maybe vinegar? I love a good brunch!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Heather...I will try that. I tried one of those Magic Erasers and that did not work. Some people have told me once this happens you can't undo it. Still going to use them....love them too much to get rid of them!
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