Feeling the Halloween Vibes

Happy October!

This has to be my favorite month of the years for so many
reasons. I love sweater weather and seeing big, fat orange pumpkins always makes
me smile. I enjoy layering my home in warmth with cozy throws and fragrant
candles.

Last year was the first time we set out a lawn decoration
for Halloween. Typically our road gets very little trick-or-treat traffic, so
we haven’t gone all-out for the holiday. That changed last year. I know, one
four-foot inflatable is not going all-out. But, considering we have never done
that, it was monumental. The reason for the change was that our next-door
neighbors have a son, and last year he was three years old and started to
understand Halloween. His parents planned to take him trick or treating on Main
Street, where the candy collection is pretty sweet among the historic homes.
But, you know what caused the cancellation of the annual tradition (I won’t say
the word), so his parents had to look elsewhere – the road on which they lived.

Since they wanted their son to experience his first real
Halloween, they sent letters to everyone on our road. They asked if we would
participate in trick or treating.

Of course, we all said yes! It was so much fun. The little
guy went up and down our street, stopping at each house with his parents and
grandparents to get some candy, show off their costumes, and chat. There are
some older kids on our road, and they also went trick or treating, and so did
some of the adults – no costumes, but they helped themselves to candy. Luckily
among our closest neighbors, we all had different candy.

Now it’s a few weeks before Halloween, and for the first
time in forever, I’m thinking more about the holiday. It’s probably because my
husband and I decided to purchase two more inflatable decorations for the front
yard last month, along with a graveyard tombstone and a skeleton head with
arms.

I thought I’d share some fun Halloween links with you to
help get you in the Halloween spirit or if you’re all in on the holiday, just
get you more excited about it.

Check out this website all about Halloween. Over at Spooky Little Halloween you’ll find recipes, to crafts to a playlist for a pumpkin spice season. How fun! 

Need inspiration in the kitchen? Well, the Food Network has
you covered with 50 recipes ideas.

Looking for some autumn with a touch of Halloween decorating
inspo? I love this Instagram account, @Penelopepumpkinspice.

How about a short Halloween read? Well, WHAT NOT TO WEAR TOA GRAVEYARD is available. I wrote this novella as a part of the Resale Boutique
mystery series but it can be read as a standalone.

 After trading her Manhattan digs for her upstate hometown,
fashionista Kelly Quinn has big plans for her grandmother’s consignment
shop. But this All Hallow’s Eve someone is already dressed to kill . . .
 
A socialite’s missing dog has made front page news in Lucky
Cove—complete with a hefty reward. But between renovating the
consignment shop, planning her costume for a 1970s themed Halloween
party, and scouting a location for a fashion shoot, Kelly doesn’t have
time to search. Yet a visit to the local colonial-era cemetery—ideal for
the moody atmosphere she’s after—soon turns up the precious pooch.
Kelly’s looking forward to collecting the check—until she makes a
gruesome discovery in an abandoned farmhouse: The dog’s owner, stabbed
through the heart.
 
Kelly can’t help wondering why Constance
Lane was traipsing around the farmhouse in stilettos. But as Kelly gets
decked out in a vintage disco caftan, that isn’t the only fashion
misstatement spooking her. Hidden in the dead woman’s past is a secret
that could be the motive for the murder. And as the Halloween party gets
started, even a menacing clown and a threatening bearded lady can’t
keep Kelly from trick or treating for the truth—even if it means her
last dance . . . 

How do you celebrate Halloween? Love to hear what the holiday and season is like at your home.

Have a Ghoultastic Halloween!

Debra Sennefelder is the
author of the Food Blogger Mystery series and the Resale Boutique Mystery series.
She lives and writes in Connecticut. When she’s not writing, she enjoys baking,
exercising and taking long walks with her Shih-Tzu, Connie. You can keep in touch
with Debra through her website, on Facebook and Instagram.