Our Grand Opening Hallowe'en Bash!

I nearly forgot to share our Grand Opening photos!  We wanted to thank all the fellow bed and breakfast owners and FEBBA members and assorted folks and professionals who helped us and made us feel so welcome and so hosted a Hallowe'en Grand Opening party on October 28th so everyone could see our B&B, meet and socialize.  

Willow wanted to be our official greeter but... we decided that wasn't such a good idea.  She stayed in the back room.

It was a pleasure to bring out all my Hallowe'en plates and platters and whip up all the food for our party, and I must say we created quite a fine spread with lots of variety including gluten free coconut-pecan cookies, veggies and breads with 3 kinds of dip, devilled eggs, and lots of sweet treats!  

Yummmmm....

Decorating was also a lot of fun!  Our sun room served as a second area where folks could nibble and chat... if they didn't mind the bony company!

Thank you to everyone who came and made our party such a success!  Cheers!  And if you wanted to come but couldn't, let's arrange a date:  there's always coffee and treats!  

Before and after

Before and After

I switched the image on our business card a little while ago and I just thought to share the two photos.  Although both were taken in the sunshine with a clear blue sky, the "after" photo is a definite improvement, much more welcoming.  Of course, removing the poor, tilting, half-dead cedar was a huge help (also increasing visibility from the street) but I think it's the sunlight on the brick that makes the second photo so much more appealing.  

356 days 'til Hallowe'en

Yesterday we put away the last of the Hallowe'en tombstones... it's over.  I also closed down the Online Hallowe'en Artists' Studio Trick or Treat, it's over for another year too.  I did, however, take some photos before and during take-down and here's a few worth sharing.  

Here's a scary Willow emerging from our haunted dining room into our spooky hallway!  I used to put up the fence and silhouettes at the Library but now they have a great spot at home.  See the arms coming up out of the grate and the giant spider on the left?

When I was taking down the spiders that were on the balcony I laid them out on the floor to keep them from getting tangled up.  I then put away the ladder down the hall and walked back... to notice this rather creepy scene!!!  Geesh, I'd be running in the other direction!  Willow, on the other hand, decided to stay out on the balcony where it was safe.  

Day of the Dead treats -- never too late!

I'm a little late, but here are a few Day of the Dead treat recipes:  the donuts were easy but need the dipping sauce as they are a bit dry.  As I've never had Mexican donuts, I don't know what they're supposed to be like, but they were yummy!  I made a butter/cream cheese icing to dip them into, less messy for our party.

These recipes are from 70 Classic Mexican Recipes by Elisabeth Ortiz.  If you like them, check out her book!

Our first Hallowe'en in Elora

Hope you had a Happy Hallowe'en! 

We had 39 trick-r-treaters on a wet, cool evening and enjoyed our first Hallowe'en in our new home!  Everyone was in such good spirits, the costumes were creative and fun and the wee ones were so cute!  And then... it snowed!  But just a little.

On November 1st, we invited our dead loved ones to enjoy their favorite treats and visit with us.  Hopefully they found the new home and enjoyed the dry warmth of the sun room.  We sure did, as I'm used to setting up our Day of the Dead altar outside, in the snowy cold air.  

I think the pumpkins turned out really nice this year too.  

And out on the street?  There were lots of decorations scattered about.  I think I'm going to enjoy the upcoming holidays and, you know, that thing in December, much more this year because we had a great Hallowe'en.  Here's to Elora!  

Monsters Marching in Elora

On Saturday, October 25th, at 6:30 monsters took over the streets of Elora!  And we were there and got some great shots!  Enjoy!

The Cadaver Cafe, yum!

A local dance troop, the Fergus Elora Academy of Dance, made "Thriller" come... alive!?

 And this fellow was very dedicated to his job, still giving out candies with quite a headache.

Bees!  How cute is this??








A goat also made an appearance.  Yes, a goat!

As in years past, donations were collected for the Centre Wellington Food Bank... in style, of course!

There was a huge crowd, on a gorgeous night.  

Puppets Elora made a fine appearance, including a pink flying pig! 

There were a lot of canine participants, all incredibly well behaved and cute!

Our favorite:  this amazing "puppet" style costume that reminded us very much of the Day of the Dead!  Cheers to the creator!!!  And there's still the streets of Elora to enjoy, spooktacularly decorated:

Thank you, Mother Nature!

An October weekend of incredible weather is a real gift, so thank you Mother Nature for giving us this opportunity to finally visit the Elora Gorge Conservation Area and the Elora Quarry!  Wow!

So this is the Elora Gorge:  well-maintained, easy to walk trails along the racing gorge, sprinkled with autumn leaves... 

Incredibly beautiful cedar root formations...

Isn't this molten root bizarre!?

And there's something definitely feminine about this root.

The Quarry also had fantastic sights:

If we didn't live here we certainly would enjoy visiting!  These sights are only a 10 minute drive from our B&B.

 And Willow was tuckered out!  Do you like her Nightmare Before Christmas collar?