I watch a lot of TV…I mean, A LOT. A shit-ton to be honest. Definitely more than the average human. It’s to the point where most of my friends and family don’t think I sleep, that I may be a vampire. I can assure you that I’m not. I just squeeze it all in, somehow, but do manage to get some shut-eye. Also, I sometimes “drop” shows pretty easily, since I watch a lot. There’s no time for shitty shows – if they don’t truly hook me, I ditch ’em. I watch too much to spin my wheels and waste time. However, I am not a critic. I’m not looking for any deep meaning, blah, blah, blah like the critics usually critique shows for not having or the story wasn’t strong enough, yada, yada, yada. I just like to enjoy what I’m watching and be entertained. Period.

Since I watch a lot, I get asked often what my favorites are and for recommendations. So here’s my faves for May, in no particular order:

Billions – Season 4 is nearly over and I’m already missing it. This Showtime series is in one word awesome. Everyone is out to fuck over each other, every episode, with the backdrop of NYC, the stock market and the government. The cast, lead by Paul Giamatti and Damian Lewis, is excellent and I can’t wait to see the new episode every Sunday. Five stars, two thumbs up, the works. Watch it.

Killing Eve – OMG this show!! The two leading ladies, Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer, are en fuego!! Everything about it is great!! Bravo to the BBC, and to AMC for carrying it for us Muricans. Love, love, LOVE it. It’s in its second season and my only gripe is that there’s not enough episodes – only 8! I WANT MORE! It’s won awards, so, so, SO GOOD! Watch it NOW.

Barry – Bill Hader is my hero and a former contract killer who’s now a struggling actor in this show – no joke. If you’re a fan of this funny man too, you should be watching this show on HBO. Really unique and hilarious. Henry “The Fonz” Winkler is in it too and won awards for it!! That’s how good it is.

The Act – I just finished this Hulu show last week and man, I wish it wasn’t based on a true story. It’s one and done and I want more seasons. The two leading ladies, Patricia Arquette and Joey King, better get nominated for all the awards. It was so well-done. I watched the documentary too. Coo-coo crazy what happened!

Brockmire – Hank Azaria is my spirit animal and a train-wreck of a baseball announcer. The writing on this show, now in its third season, is some of the best comedy on TV. And the Twitter account is icing on the cake. Thanks to IFC for carrying it. It’s laugh-out-loud funny week after week!

Happy Couch Potatoing! Enjoy!

To Tony Stark: Thanks for the Memories

Over the weekend, while I was still wiping my tears of joy and sorrow away from seeing Avengers, I came across this great image and post.

It’s amazing where this man has come in his career. A career that was close to over, mentally and physically. I joke with my husband often that RDJ was his character in the 1987 flick “Less Than Zero.” I know I’m not the first to make that connection. It was life imitating art at its finest. He literally was on the brink of killing himself and came back from that, came back to something UNREAL. I’m sure there are other success stories like his in Hollywood that I’m forgetting or don’t even know about but his feels like the most awesome, especially given the legacy he leaves as Iron Man.

I knew the Russo brothers would rip my heart out with that movie. It was inevitable. I was prepared for a big loss but I really didn’t think it would be Tony. As the movie went on though, the possibility was there, even after Scarlett met her end. That was too easy that she would be the only sacrifice. I was told to bring Kleenex and it was needed.

I listened to the giant IMAX theater attendees as Tony took his last breath, dying with Pepper at his side, along with all his brothers and sisters. There were gasps and sniffles throughout. My mom handed me the Kleenex box. I looked over and my tough as nails Mean Girl Regina George daughter was crying too, rubbing at her eyes under her 3D glasses.

Even though we lost our hero, it made for great cinema, A+ cinema, according to the interwebs and the buckets of cash they made. I loved every minute of the three hours and didn’t have to leave my seat to pee. I did have to sacrifice my usual beer but it was worth it.

So, Mr. Starks, if that lady of yours was the one that helped you turn your life around many moons ago or some other force of nature stepped in, I thank them from the bottom of my nerd heart. It’s been awesome to see you kick-ass as Iron Man for the past 11 years. Those are mighty large shoes to fill for the next guy (or gal, ahem, Pepper maybe? ;)) who suits up. I can’t wait to see what you do next. Love you 3000.   

My first CD was Boyz II Men’s first album “Cooleyhighharmony” from 1991. My mom got it for me for Christmas later that year and if you could ruin a CD, I would have. I played it over and over again, especially the song “Motownphilly”. They became my favorite group, even above my other favorites, Paula Abdul and Janet Jackson. This was the beginning of a decade of hip hop and R&B love. It was all I really listened to.

Many years later, when I got the chance to see Boyz II Men in concert, I could not wait for the day. They were performing at Desert Sky Pavilion, one of the outdoor venues in Phoenix, on June 6, 1998 (P.S. I had the look up the date before writing this…). I remember getting up in the middle of the night and going to stand in line for tickets at the venue. This was long before ticket sales on the internet were a thing – you could still go and get tickets the old fashioned away at the box office. I took a lawn chair and sat with a security guard in the dark for literally hours, before another guy showed up to stand in line too, only to find out he was there to buy tickets for another concert. I was “it” for the Boyz II Men concert. I was determined to get front row tickets and I did.

A friend of mine I’d had a couple of classes with that year (since I had just finished my sophomore year) was joining me for the concert. She was a fan too but probably not quite as much as me but I was glad to have a true fan with me regardless.

It was hot as hell as usual in June but I didn’t care. I proudly bought the black “Evolution” tour shirt and made a quick change in the bathroom to wear it. Our seats were excellent. Dead center of the stage in the front row. And this was so long ago that there really wasn’t a “pit” area at this venue then. They just allowed all the front row people the option to stand right at the stage. And we did. The concert was everything I had imagined, complete with long-stem red roses they tossed to the crowd while singing “I’ll Make Love To You”. I luckily nabbed one and managed to get it home that night in one piece. I’m fairly certain I even had some tears when they sang “It’s So Hard To Say Goodbye To Yesterday” and “End of the Road”. I was that fan. I can still picture standing there at the stage 19 years ago, swaying back and forth with my friend, clutching the rose in my sweaty hand. It was a great night.

This past weekend I got to see them again as they toured with both Paula Abdul (which was a first for me because again, small town = almost zero concerts) and New Kids on the Block (NKOTB), which was the second time I’ve seen them and that was just two years ago. It was great to see all the fans for all three of them, dressed up, singing along, reliving the 90s. Boyz II Men and Paula have both been performing for 25 years, with NKOTB a little longer at 29 years. And the arena was packed. I think there may have been a handful of nosebleed seats left but it was close to a sellout. They played all the favorites and I teared up. Every junior high and high school dance came flashing back to me. I remember the days when I used to be the DJ at my junior high dances and would finish every dance with “End of the Road” because it was fitting. Paula’s “‘Rush, Rush” was always a slow one that we never missed playing and the NKOTB’s “I’ll Be Loving You” typically made the playlist. It was a big Friday night of nostalgia. I could only think and hope that Syd will be as emotionally tied to groups and songs as I was, that in nearly 30 years, she’ll be standing with tears of joy coming down her face at a Katy Perry concert. One thing is for certain though. I’ll continue to get my 90s fix as long as they all keep touring. And maybe the next time I can find my damn “Evolution” shirt so I can wear it. My closet is not at all user-friendly. Don’t get my hubby started. 😉

When The Bodyguard debuted at the movies in November 1992, I remember my mom and I were there as soon as it showed up at our little theater in Bishop, which may have not been opening weekend. We were lucky if that happened but since there was only two screens, there was a lot of competition so we sometimes saw new movies a few weeks later. Just a product of living in a small town but we were used to it.

There was rarely a movie with Kevin Costner that we didn’t see. We were big fans. And this one was even more exciting since Whitney Houston was in it. We loved her music. Who cared if she could act or not – we knew the soundtrack would be great. And it was. We listened to it over and over again, singing along. And we enjoyed the movie, regardless of what critics thought. It was good fun. We continued to watch the movie for years to come and I still watch it if I see that it’s playing on TV.

For Christmas, I always look for a fun event to get my mom for one of her gifts – something we can do together and extend the holiday. To my surprise during my search back in December, I found that there was a touring Broadway show of The Bodyguard at this awesome theater in Hollywood, The Pantages. We’d seen Mama Mia and Dirty Dancing there, and my hubby and I had seen Book of Mormon as well. It’s the most awesome theater. Still standing after all these years with so much history.

The very-talented singer Deborah Cox was playing Whitney’s role in the show so I knew she would be able to sing. I couldn’t buy the tickets fast enough.

The show was finally this past weekend and it was awesome. It not only included all The Bodyguard soundtrack but also a number of Whitney’s other greatest hits. It was an awesome tribute to her and Deborah was so, so good! The theater was packed, as it was the second to last day for the show. It was so great to see so many people there, enjoying the music of one of the greatest singers of our time.

I will always be sad that I never got to see Whitney in concert. One of those bucket list items I wasn’t able to cross off before she passed away. But seeing Deborah sing like she was the late great singer was a close second.  And if I didn’t have so many TV shows, I’d re-watch the movie this week but it’s going to have to wait, just a bit. And, if the tour makes a stop in your city, see it, especially if you’re a fan. You won’t be disappointed.

The older I get the more I love storytelling. I feel like I’m a good storyteller and can weave a tale, especially after a few beers.

The older I get the more nostalgic I am as well. Comes with the territory, I’m sure.

This past weekend I enjoyed two events that included lots of storytelling and were also very nostalgic for me. My mom was in town for Mother’s Day so I treated us with tickets to see Rob Lowe at the Mesa Arts Center on Friday night. He was doing a one-man-show in place of writing another book. We found out when he took the stage that this was his first time trying this format, to see if people enjoyed it. I’d say a sold-out crowd was a clear sign he could go on tour.

Rob was very entertaining, telling stories of his time in Hollywood and lots about his family. The show included fun photos on a large screen to help paint the picture of his stories. It was a lot of fun. His wife was in the audience, supporting him on his maiden voyage. He laughed they’d been married for 26 years, which in Hollywood that’s more like 126 years. After hearing him talk, I am very interested in reading his two books to find out even more. Such a talent and best of all, he’s very thankful for his fans and the long career he’s had. And he’s not stopping. He’s only 53 so there’s still a long road ahead of opportunities for him. I grew up watching his movies and still love seeing them when they show up on my movie channels. And his character in Parks & Rec is still one of my favorites on TV. He mentioned when asked by someone in the audience that that character is the closest to how he is in real life BUT that it’s actually modeled after a close family friend, KENNY G! Who knew! So many fun memories of Rob – I was so glad he chose Mesa for his debut show. That has to be a first for Mesa too!

My hubby and I then saw Kevin Smith on Saturday night. I can’t even count how many times we’ve seen him. We’re big fans. He’s always at San Diego Comic Con every year too, which we did cry some nerd tears that we won’t  be seeing him this year.

He told all his usual stories. I love that he’s as big of a fanboy of the pop culture he talks about as everyone in the audience is. His Star Wars stories are always the best. He told the story of the time at Comic Con when the whole audience up and left before his panel because J.J. Abrams invited them to a Star Wars concert with the San Diego Symphony. We were part of that audience.

I remember how excited we were, as we were being escorted down the street, behind the convention center, by a group of Stormtroopers, only to then realize we would miss our annual Kevin Smith-tradition. It was one of those rock and hard place situations. We knew in our heart of hearts, even as devastated as Kevin would be to see an empty room, he would want to be with us at the Star Wars concert and would understand why we all had to go. And he did but he’s still scarred by it. So scarred that he convinced J.J. Abrams to put him in the Force Awakens movie as a Stormtrooper. I think that was a fair trade.

And talk about the ultimate fan of fans. Multiple people asked Kevin to sign things and he doesn’t skip a beat. One guy even had him sign his arm, over a Dogma tattoo, and he was going to have the signature tattooed as well. That right there is dedication. He did tell him to think long and hard before he made the pen permanent.

I’m always amazed by how many people I mention Kevin Smith to that don’t know him. And my reaction always is  “You’re missing out! You need to watch this, this and this” and a rattle off all my favorite movies.

I’m really glad he came to town this year, especially since we won’t see him in San Diego, sniff, sniff. As Rob Lowe said, he’ll keep showing up, if we keep showing up. And I will for sure continue to support both these talents for as long as they’re continuing to entertain us.

For as long as I can remember, my friends and family have called me “The Cruise Director”. Just like Julie McCoy from the Love Boat, I’m the ultimate planner, the “do-er”, the go-to person to find the best places to eat, drink and be merry with heavy emphasis on the first two. Ha!

Anyway, along with my other ramblings on here, I’m going to start sharing my latest faves and probably some old ones too. And a sprinkle of pop culture for good measure won’t hurt either.

To kick things off, the fam and I went to a great St. Patty’s Day event at Hangar 9 . This bar and grill is right on our corner. We laughingly call it our Chandler Cheers. We don’t go there enough for them to know our names and yell out “ROOSH” as we walk in but we do frequent it. Great (and affordable) food and quite a few rotating beer taps, which is a must for me since I’m a craft beer snob. They had an awesome celebration for the day o’ green which was kid-friendly too with games. Syd enjoyed trying to beat her dad at corn hole and I enjoyed my Irish ale and corned beef and cabbage. I’ve never been a huge fan of that traditional meal but it was really good. Green beads were flowing from the Bud Light girls. I had to smuggle Syd some. It was a great Friday night.

A couple weeks back after I got a new job (Yes! I beat the odds and got a new gig in record time after being laid off!) we went out to celebrate on a Friday night at a restaurant recommendation I found on the Living Chandler Facebook Group. (Awesome page, BTW, if you’re interested in joining). Stone and Vine Urban Italian was delish! So good! I always know it’s a good Italian place if they 1) have Italian beer…check! Peroni and Morreti and 2) have tiramisu…check! We’ll definitely be back for more foodie awesomeness.

Just this week for lunch on Taco Tuesday, I checked out an old favorite that has a new home – Guedo’s Taco Shop. They’d been a Chandler staple for years and then moved out of their longtime location due to new development in the downtown area. The owner always said they’d be back after a much-deserved break and sure enough, they popped up in a shopping center we frequent because of the drive-thru Dairy Queen. Can’t live without that. This place happens to be right up the street from my new office. So I rallied some of the troops on my team and went out for lunch. It was just as good as I remembered. Great tacos and salsa bar. Super-affordable. Can’t wait to go back with the fam!

And after you’re stuffed and happy from all this great food, relax on the couch and binge watch Marvel’s Iron Fist on Netflix. Don’t believe any of the critic crap. It’s good. It’s no Jessica Jones or Daredevil but I still really enjoyed it, especially if you’re into either the comic or martial arts or both. You’ll dig it. Lots of good badies in it too. Don’t you think a lot of the time the villains are even more fun then the white knights? This one has a lot of people you love to hate and twists that you don’t expect. Give it a go.

That’s a wrap for now. Peace, love and good food to y’all!

I watch a lot of TV and movies. Probably more than the average person but I can’t get enough. Maybe I missed my calling as a critic of some sort but I also have a hard time finding anything really bad in most that I watch. I once penned myself “The Kind Critic” in another short-lived blog of mine. I just love to be entertained and who am I to judge someone’s work and pick it apart anyway. So yeah, couldn’t have been a critic. So this is as close as I get to sharing my thoughts about what I dig from a Hollywood perspective and hope it will help you become a TV and movie junkie like yours truly.

Last night I got a couple of free passes from Entertainment Weekly (the only magazine I still subscribe to) to see a sneak peak of Big Little Lies, the new HBO show that debuts Sunday, February 19. It’s based on Liane Moriarty’s awesome book, which I proudly finished a couple weeks ago, just in time for the show! That was a feat in itself – I’ve been so bad about reading and actually finishing books for too many years to count now. My Kindle is a virtual unfinished graveyard where half-read books go to die, plus I have stacks and stacks of paperbacks that I need to read too. Maybe it has something to do with all the TV and movies I watch….nah. 🙂 Anyway, I digress.

I was super-excited to get to see the first episode early and take my bestie with me. It’s always fun to see TV shows on the big movie screen and free makes it even better. David E. Kelley, the genius behind Ally McBeal, is the producer.  If anyone can come up with a hit TV show, and having HBO backing it, it’s this man. And it was exactly as I had hoped and painted a great picture of the book. It’s got comedy, drama, romance, murder – all the elements of another hit show for HBO.

The all-star cast is great too with some of my favorites including Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman and Shailene Woodley. It’s a limited series with only seven episodes. But at least it will really be seven weeks versus what I typically do with any new Netflix series and binge watch it all over one weekend. I’ll be able to savor this show a little bit more. I can’t wait to re-watch the first episode on Sunday AND introduce my hubby to it. Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments.

Being laid off stinks. There are no pros, not really. I just have the constant stress of needing to find a job and my weeks and days feel endless. I’ve been keeping my chin up and all the usual cliches that my friends and family have tried to cheer me up with but I’ve hit the wall of sadness now.

Aside from that daily pity party I throw for me, myself and I, I have grown accustomed to my daily dose of Dawson. That’s right – Pop TV plays not one, not two, BUT THREE episodes daily of Dawson’s Creek. So while I’m combing career sites, looking for my next big break, I leave Dawson and crew on the TV to keep me company. Then, if that’s not enough, 90210 reruns come on right after, for another three, count ’em three, episodes! Pop TV really does know how to appeal to us nearly-40 crowd. So every day I hum along to that annoying Paula Cole theme song, which then turned into another equally annoying theme song in later seasons. And then, I do the Jason Priestley fist bump during the opening credits of 90210. It’s all super-nostalgic and the older I get, the more crazy nostalgic I have become.

Dawson originally was on TV during college and a bit after. I remember getting my hubby hooked on its silliness. We still laugh how not-realistic their dialog is, for kids in high school and then college. It’s part of the fun though to laugh along at their clever dialog. You’d think Shonda Rhimes studied every episode since her shows now have similar scripting but the difference is that the ages of her peeps can really be saying the lines they utter, regardless of how not-true-to-life they are. Still funny and highly-entertaining.

90210 was junior high and high school for me. I used to run to my rotary, yes, rotary, phone to call my best friend during the commercials. There was no “pausing” as DVRs allow so we could talk as long as we wanted – we had to be strategic and talk quickly, get the high points out, and then run back to the TV to watch the next sequence. We’d then have a longer call after the show, breaking it down scene by scene and giggling all the way. Man, those were the days. Homework seemed like a drag at the time but it beats looking for a job, let me tell you. Nevertheless, I do hope my days of watching Dawson’s Creek and 90210 mini-marathons are almost over. As much as I love reliving those episodes, I do also have them all on DVD. It’s time for the job gods to shine down on me. Sorry, Pop TV. I know you appreciated my ratings but Mama needs a new pair of shoes.

I have a really hard time deciding what my favorite TV show is since I watch so many great ones. People ask me all the time and I can never give them a straight answer.  I end up trying to rattle off all the shows I watch, which is a long, long list and then they look at me like I really am a TV junkie. Because, let’s face it, I am. I do know though without a doubt that The Walking Dead is on my top five list.

I’ve never been a huge horror fan. I used to be braver when I was younger and hit all the haunted houses during Halloween and watched most horror flicks. The older I’ve gotten, the more skittish of horror happenings I’ve become. So a show like this you wouldn’t think would be a favorite. It’s so much more than a show about zombies though. Don’t get me wrong, the zombies are awesome – they are beyond believable. But it’s the personal stories and the struggle of this group of people fighting to survive in this new world that keeps me coming back for more.

Sunday night’s Season 7 premiere was probably the best episode the show has ever aired. That’s just my humble opinion. It also could have been the adrenaline rush of waiting since April to see who of all the beloved characters faced their bitter demise with the help of Negan and Lucille. And then to find out that it wasn’t just one but two main characters was brutal. I cried like I lost a couple of loved ones in a surprise car accident or plane crash. My husband and daughter kept laughing at how emotional I was. But I’ve lived with these characters for a long time and it was terrible to see them meet their end in such a gory, gory way.

Through all the tears though, I appreciated the craziness that is Negan. He is quite possibly the most evil villain, ever, to appear on TV. Zero remorse. And Jeffrey Dean Morgan is portraying the character exactly as everyone had hoped.

I don’t read the comic books but my husband does. He’s been telling me about this heinous character for years and that he would eventually show up. When we’d heard he would finally be on the show, we were giddy with excitement. Or at least I was – my husband doesn’t get giddy. He was still looking forward to seeing him finally appear and the chaos he would ensue.

As I sat bawling my eyes out and then watched The Talking Dead right after the episode to reminisce with the cast of the show, I thought back to the first season and my very first encounter with the show.

It was July 2010 and my husband and I were at our third Comic Con in San Diego. The conference progressively has gotten more and more crazy crowded as the years have gone on, making it virtually impossible to see much more than one room’s programs a day, especially if you want to get into the big hall, Hall H. You just sit, stay and watch the whole day’s schedule because if you leave, someone else is dying to take your seat.

In 2010, we could still jump rooms and see lots of different panels, both TV and movies. We were big Lost fans and one of the characters, Jin, played by Daniel Dae Kim, was in a new re-boot of Hawaii 5-O. We were excited to see it. Both my husband and I had seen the original series when we were kids so it was very nostalgic it was coming back. And to have one of our favorite Lost actors in it was a big plus. We camped out in the small room to see the panel and after hearing the actors and seeing the clips they brought with them to tease the upcoming new show, we were satisfied and ready to move on to our next destination that day. A bunch of people were staying in the room though and others were pushing their way in to find any possible empty seats. I went to get up and the guy next to me said, “Are you really leaving?” I told him yes and that we were on our way to the movie room, Hall H, for whatever the rest of the day had on the schedule. I don’t remember. I just know it was something we wanted to see. He shook his head and said there was a great new zombie show panel coming up based on a popular comic book.

“Zombies?” I questioned.

“Yes, it’s great! You should stay!” I thanked him for the information and we left anyway.

We got home after the long weekend and I started seeing commercials about a month later for this new show on AMC called The Walking Dead. I figured it had to be the show the guy was talking about. But on AMC? It couldn’t be any good – it wasn’t HBO or Showtime. Although the network did birth both Breaking Bad and Mad Men so it was worth a shot. But zombies? Really? I was intrigued enough though to watch and I’ve never regretted my decision since the show premiered on Halloween night 2010. I do regret that I didn’t stick around that day for their first ever Comic Con panel. And to think I was there for Hawaii 5-O which turned out to suck. Sorry if you’re reading this and you’re a fan but it just wasn’t great. I had to cut it from my TV list after a few episodes. The Walking Dead however has kept my attention for seven seasons and I can hardly wait for every Sunday to roll around.

Here’s to Glenn and Abraham! Thank you for being such great actors – so great in fact that I felt like you were part of my life and that I was attending your funerals. You will be missed but revenge is a dish best served cold. Rick and family are coming for you, Negan, no matter how long it takes.

I have a confession to make. I’ve been a lazy ass once again and have not kept my promise to myself and others. It’s been many, many moons since I’ve posted on my blog. But, I was recently inspired to get back into the swing of things and write again. Thanks to my girl Nikki for the motivation!

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, it’s time to get down to the business at hand – Halloween! It’s the most glorious holiday.  Yes, I said it – even better than Thanksgiving or Christmas. Don’t get me wrong – I love turkey dinner and presents but Halloween is a night to be someone you’re not. To be creative and eat lots of candy. And pumpkins! Everything pumpkin. It’s really the kick off of the fall season with so many awesome events and great sweet treats. And the decorations! For a shopaholic like me, it’s the perfect time to stock up on even more spooky treasures. And I Halloween-ize everything that’s standing. Our yard and house are the best on the street, to the point where people take photos with our yard decorations. That’s just how fun it is.

I’m basically the Griswold of Halloween. (My hubby is really the true Griswold since Christmas is his obsession.) It started at an early age and almost 39 years later it’s only amplified with time. I learned from the best, my mom. She has always been the ultimate holiday-decorator and costume-maker. That’s where I fall down. Since leaving home for college back in 1996, I haven’t really made a costume since. I became a store-bought kind of gal. For years my mom would spend all her waking hours making my costumes. The one that she would likely say was the toughest and where she wanted to throw in the towel was the year I wanted to be Tweety Bird. I think I was in preschool and I never missed a chance to watch The Looney Tunes. So she got to work on creating my fluffy yellow costume, complete with aqua blue eyes. It was head to toe awesome but I do recall at some point in the process, when she was giving her sewing machine the finger, that she asked my dad to just take me somewhere, away from the house, as she held back Niagara Falls-level tears. The costume came out great and you would have never known it gave her so much trouble.

Another year I was a much simpler bunch of purple grapes. A purple leotard, purple tights, purple make-up and purple balloons made for a much easier costume.  And I even won for my grade that year at the costume contest. I won most year’s BTW – that’s how excellent my costumes where and it was all because of my mom’s handy-work.

Another memorable costume was 8th grade’s choice – the Statue of Liberty. I have always been a huge fan of Lady Liberty. We dyed a bed sheet light green, made a crown and a tablet, got some sandals, and painted my hair and face green. I was sort of Hulk/Jolly Green Giant green for a few days afterwards. That color really sticks, especially back in the early 90s.

I was also a mouse in a wedge of cheese one year. The wedge of cheese (complete with holes in it) was  made out of cardboard and spray-painted yellow. The mouse was easy – ears and a tail, along with a nose and whiskers.

Our neighbors always loved to see what we’d come up with each year, as I went door-to-door, trick or treating. Lots of great memories made.

In the last few years, I’ve continued to dress up but gotten lazier and lazier about my costume choices. I’m definitely more focused on making sure Syd has something good now. I haven’t even figured out what this year’s get-up will be. But I will – I always do and won’t just wear a Halloween-themed shirt. That’s for my hubby. 🙂