Getting ready for the season are these two scarecrow pumpkins that were given to me when I was young. They were given to me by my mother's best friend, Bernice. They are the very first Halloween decoration that I bring out. I can't wait to see them because they remind me of wonderful days gone by.
I have already showed you Chipmunk and thought I'd better show you Mr. Mouse. He didn't want to come off his little shelf, so this picture is a little dark, but I will try to coax him off another day. I want you to know that Audrey carved him too, and he loves being on this shelf with my little old book "Adventures of a Brownie" that I found in an antique store and my special little prints of drawings that my friend, Joan, did. She knows all about the Brownies. Do you? My book says "a Brownie is a curious creature - a fairy, and yet not one of that sort of fairies who fly about on gossamer wings, and dance in the moonlight, and so on. He never dances; and as to wings, what use would they be to him in a coal cellar? He is a sober, stay-at-home, household elf - nothing much to look at, even if you did see him, which you are not likely to do - only a little old man, about a foot high, all dressed in brown, with a brown face and hands, and a brown peaked cap, just the color of a brown mouse. And, like a mouse, he hides in corners - especially kitchen corners, and only comes out after dark when nobody is about, and so sometimes people call him Mr. Nobody."
" Mrs. Salisbury"
"Maureen"
"Rosemary"
Do you remember "Story Book Dolls"? This one is looking at you from my hallway, which is darkened this evening. I will take another picture tomorrow. I have my childhood collection. They've been packed in the basement for too long. They are happy to come up and be noticed again.
Audrey brought me a surprise today during art classes! Remember the chipmunk that I showed you a couple of days ago? Well, this is his peanut and his acorn. Aren't they beautiful? Now he is prepared for winter!
And here are my spooky oak leaf sisters! I must make dresses for them and they will be ready for the season. What do you think? Flouncy gauze?
Quilting class today reminded me of fabric collected and the yo-yos that I have put away. The difference in size. The top ones are either my mother's or my grandmother's. The bottom ones are mine.
Mine.
And here are the old treasures. How did they make them so small?
My little chipmunk, that Audrey carved, sits on a shelf by this empty fairy chair. I have always wanted to make more of these chairs, and this one needs some repair before it's time for the fairies to come in from the garden for the winter. 
When she was little, my daughter made little creatures out of little pom poms. Not having been reminded of them in a long time, I was taken by surprise when one jumped out as I was cleaning cabinets yesterday! He told me he was separated from the others, and it was so warm and dark in the back of the cabinet that he fell asleep. He said, when he heard me in there, that he knew I was looking for him. Well..."hello, little fella"! It' s fun to be reminded of days way back when.
