Late Bloomer Boomer and See You Again Sooner: Reconciliation Celebration

A high school reunion is a prime premise for a novel.  All those pasts, however charmed or checkered, resurfacing to settle a score.  Yep, reunions drum up unease and drama.  Which is why I've never gone to one of mine.  That said, I do enjoy strolls down other people's memory lanes, and by people I mean  characters.  And so it was with anticipation that I RSVP'd yes to the reunion of a bunch of baby boomers in small-town Ohio in Elizabeth Berg's The Last Time I Saw You.  

With insight, tenderness, and humor, Berg introduces us to five members of the class of 1960-something: the Beauty, the B-lister, the Brain, the Quarterback, and the Outcast.  Each has lived a full and, in some cases, surprising life since high school.  Yet none are immune to the minefield that means going back -- or the obstinate optimism that pushes them forward.     

Poignant to the point of near melancholy, The Last Time I Saw You is bittersweet and human, tapping into our wish for second chances -- even if they don't end up looking the way we thought they would. 

Halloween Hues and Boo-tiful Coos: Scary Secondary to None

Wreath: Amazon

Skirt (a dress!): Zulily

Necklaces: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Amazon

Tee: Fifth Sun, Kohl's

Bag: Marshalls; Ring: PinkBopp, Etsy

Jumbo Jack-o-Lantern Necklace

Top: Nine West, Kohl's; Skirt: So, Kohl's; Bag: Cat & Jack, Target 

Where it's Bat Necklace

Remember when Halloween was all about black and orange?  I'm so glad that purple and green (and sometimes pink) have since been invited to the costume party.  Because a secondary color palette packs more roar for fierce fits and dark décor.  And I made the most of that with these outfits.  I've had the candy-colored clothes and accessories for many moons except for (interestingly) the celestial tee, Where it's Bat Necklace, and pumpkin purse.      

Clothes may make the witchy woman, but spooky season's stale without a festive read.  My pick?  This creepy cute collection of cozies:          

Capitalizing on the murder mystery cult classic that is the cupcake, the aptly named Halloween Cupcake Murder introduced me to a new coven of cozy queens.  In Carlene O'Connor's eponymous and Galway-based Halloween Cupcake Murder, a cupcake holds the key to the killer of a curiosity shopkeeper.  And also, bizarrely, a cult.  Yet this was far from the most curious tale in the trio.  Because Liz Ireland's Mrs. Claus and the Candy Corn Caper seeks to find not only who offed an elfin baker in Santaland, but who's peddling contraband candy corn in this most Christmassy of locales.  Still, it may be the third confection, Carol J. Perry's A Triple Layer Halloween Murder, that takes the cake.  In this Salem-set story, the sleuth investigates the disappearance of a bakery baron via her visions -- and collaborations with her cat.  

All three novellas are made for curling up in front of the fireplace to forget life's crazy.  Even if I read them in no such place, but between and during diaper changes and feedings.  Nevertheless, I enjoyed my escapes to these crime-riddled fantasy lands and may have even found some new go-to authors.       

But my biggest Halloween headline isn't about baubles or even books.  It's about, of course, our first Halloween with Charlotte.  Here are our family costumes, which we wore to my parents' Halloween party:

Yep, we're 3 Musketeers and the Three Musketeers, starring none other than Char Bar.  As with all our Halloween costumes, the husband came up with the idea.  Although it was my (somewhat desperate) idea to go with these dubious dresses.  You may notice that I edited the husband's to look like it was sort of part of his tee.  Ah, technology, the hallowed hobgoblin of social networking.

And with that I wish you the happiest of Halloweens -- the kind with no tricks and all treats. 🎃🍫👻🍬💀🍭👺🧁

Galaxy Graveyard: Good Bones

Top: Allegra K, Amazon; Tights: Michaels

Creepy Crescent Necklace

Smithville

Top belt: Amazon; Bottom belt: Wild Fable, Target

Smithville

Barrettes: Leopard: Burlington Coat Factory; Rhinestones: INC, Macy's

Skeleton: Target

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Tabletop décor: Michaels

Here they are, my poet blouse and moon belts, the perfect storm of celestial style and '90s nostalgia.  Also, my newly made Creepy Crescent Necklace.  It's a look that I like to think of as ninety percent The Nanny and ten percent The Craft.  You know, if The Craft was a cartoon.

That said, no Halloween scene is complete without skeletons.  Some of the ones you see here are mine, some are at Smithville.  We took Char Bar there for the first time this past weekend.  The husband half-carried, half-held her in one of those harnesses because he was afraid that the stroller would roll over too many rocks and disturb her.  At first, her eyes were glued to the decorations and people.  Then she fell asleep.  Still, it was an A+ autumn outing.  

Absolutely no bones about it.

Kiss and Spell: This Magic Omen

It's been more than a week since my last post (mom life, am I right?).  So it's high time I caved and gave up the ghost.  Or maybe I should say sorceress.  Because I just read Erin Sterling's The Kiss Curse.  

In this sequel to The Ex Hex, we return to Graves Glen, Georgia, to shadow, not Viv, but her equally charmed and charming cousin Gwyn.  With a personality as fiery as her pink-streaked hair, Gwyn runs a Halloween-themed shop called Something Wicked -- and Graves Glen -- with a cauldron of confidence.  But when her college crush, fellow witch Wells Penhallow, moves back to town, her brew is set askew.  The imperious Wells opens a competing shop, stoking Gwyn's (already considerable) ire.  So when the two share a kiss so killer it must be cursed, all hellfire breaks loose.  Yet the spellbinding snog is small pumpkins compared to the discovery that someone has stolen Gwyn's powers.  With Vivi away on her honeymoon, Gwyn has no choice but to join forces with Wells.  So they work to find out who has it out for Gwyn, all while trying not to bewitch each other.

I loved getting lost in this fey fairy tale.  Light but slightly edgy (it is about the occult), The Kiss Curse is full of Halloween fun, conjuring up both tricks and treats.

Boots and Saddles, er Sandals: Putting My Best Western Foot Forward

Bag: Mellow World, Kohl's

Necklace: Some store in The Bahamas

Top: IZ Byer, Kohl's

Skirt: Wild Fable, Target

Flip flops: Katy Perry Collection, Nordstrom Rack

Tee: Wrangler, Kohl's

Hat: On 34th, Macy's

Cowboy boots, Wild Fable, Target; Skirt: So, Kohl's

Hair clip and sunglasses: Wild Fable, Target

Top: Xhilaration, Target 

Despite my many gripes about fall, I can't deny that it has its perks.  And one of the best is being able to wear boots one day and sandals the next.  So it was with the rah rah spirit of a rodeo clown (and Ted Mosby) that I donned my red cowboy boots to entertain visitors (okay, my mom), my saguaro sandals to take Charlotte to the park, and the boots again to get my COVID shot.  

That said, I'm already planning my flu shot fit.  Maybe I'll go with spurs to shout out western wear once again -- as well as sharp objects.

Are You Ready for Some Cupcakes?

Always!  And not just the pretty pastries themselves, but Jenn McKinlay's cupcake-themed cozies.  Which means that I was more than game to read one of her latest, Fondant Fumble.  Although I don't follow football, I was hooked the moment the nefarious owner of the Arizona Scorpions (not a real team) turns up dead in his own QB Keogh's cupcake shop.  The owner didn't want Keogh selling cupcakes -- apparently it isn't a good look -- and that doesn't look good for Keogh.  Naturally, cupcake MVP Mel sets out to clear Keogh's name -- as well as prevent his punting partner from eating all the profits.  But then the killer kicks things up a notch.  With the goalposts constantly moving, the cupcake crew needs a Hail Mary more than ever in this, their flour of need.     

Fondant Fumble is a sweet treat touchdown.  Partly because the plot is clever, partly because it shows that football players are people too.

And sometimes people just want to bake cupcakes. 🏈🧁

Falling for Fuchsia: A Hint of Halloween

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Macy's

Flip flops: Katy Perry Collection, Nordstrom Rack

Top: Nine West, Kohl's

Bow: Marshalls; Necklace and sunglasses: Simply Vera, Kohl's

Bag: Skinnydip London, Macy's

Shoes: Jessica Simpson Collection, DSW

Hair clips: Wild Fable, Target

Dress: Nine West, Kohl's

Caboodle: Kohl's; Spider necklace: SHEIN

Bag: Betsey Johnson

Bow: Carole, JCPenney; Spider clips: Marshalls

Sunglasses: Betsey Johnson, Zulily

Shoes: Chinese Laundry, Zulily; Socks: Mix No. 6, DSW

Top: Nine West, Kohl's; Skirt: Tinseltown, Kohl's

I decided to put up my Halloween decorations on October 1, just like last year, which was the first time I put up decorations at all.  It gave me a sense of being on top of things, as well as giving us a chance to enjoy it all month long.  So when Charlotte, infatuated with the neon jack-o-lanterns, rolled toward them, I thought, this is what it's all about, coaxing infant development with DayGlo ghouls.  

That said, it's also all about fuchsia.  I had fun featuring this shade, mixing in some arachnids.  Sure, these fits are a little subtle.  But they're just the beginning of my Halloween adventure.

Because whether web-wrapped or rhinestone-encrusted, spiders are the gateway to spooky.