Halloween Afternoon Wedding Tea

Well, I have never in my life put together a little tea party as quickly as I did this morning. My friend F phoned to ask if she could drop by with her daughter and new son-in-law. F's daughter lives in Ohio and is down here visiting. My husband and I met her a few years ago when she was here visiting her mother. We hadn't met her husband before, being that they just got married this past Spring up in Ohio. After I told F to come on over, I called A and told her that F would be here with the newlyweds, and I'd let her and her husband know when they got here.

F had met her future son-in-law when he and her daughter got engaged, but she couldn't get up north for the wedding ceremony. So.... I thought why not have a little wedding cake right here, with some bridal decorations tossed in amongst the Halloween decorations. F's daughter and son-in-law (S and B) were going to come here for our Halloween party last night but had to cancel because S wasn't feeling well. (Combination of jet-lag and running-around-visiting/shopping/sightseeing-lag.)

Into my stash of decorations I went... and found some paper honeycomb wedding bells-- the Hallmark kind that folds flat but expands into its shape when you open it up. I had some white ones and purple ones, saved from 1995 when my sister flew down here to get married. My husband and I arranged a wedding party for them and I saved all the decorations that my sister didn't take home with her. I swear, I save everything that I think I'll use again.

So up went the bells, hanging from the dining room archway and the chandelier over the dining table. And purple, no less! Perfect color to go with all the orange and black Halloween decorations.
I had bought a pretty frame for the newlyweds, and that was all wrapped up to give them last night, so that went on the dining table with one of the honeycomb-bells.

Ah... we need a cake. Being that I sent everyone home with Halloween goodies last night, my cake plate was empty. Into my pantry closet.... and there was a Duncan Hines angel food cake mix. I was going to make that yesterday for the party, but didn't have the time yesterday afternoon. So... down came the mixer, the pan, and I pre-heated the oven and got that cake going. As it baked, I looked all over for some sort of topper for the middle of the cake.

One of the purple bells would work, but I needed a bride and groom. Into my stash of cut-outs from my Victorian magazines... and I found a cutout picture of a bride and groom wedding cake-topper. Too perfect. And the cut-out was shaped like a heart... I attached it to the top of the bell with a toothpick.

Those cut-outs.... Before I bring old magazines to the Senior Center, I page through them looking for glossy pictures that I can use to decorate party bags and favors. I cut them out with a pinking-shears to give them a nice edge, and save them all in a box. I can't tell you how many times those cut-outs have come in handy for something or other. It's a great box for kids, too. When our little friend C spends the day here, she goes through that cut-out box looking for pictures that interest her and she makes beautiful collages out of them. A sheet of art paper and a glue-stick and she's busy for an hour or more just being creative and having fun.

Anyway... by the time the cake was baked and cooled, the coffee pot was set to perk and I had the dining room looking like it was ready for a wedding celebration. F was surprised, and so were S and B-- and so was I, that everything just got together so quickly. And, for once, my angel food cake didn't stick to the pan and it came out looking great. A little dish of crushed pineapple for anyone who wanted to add more sweetness to the cake. A & D came down (from three streets away) for the little party, and we were all set to go.

So that was this afternoon's fun... an impromptu wedding tea that turned out just fine. And this morning, our neighbor V "booed" us for Halloween. Except she didn't leave her gift and run away from the door-- she waited there till we answered the bell this time. Very un-boo-like, but she wanted to see our reaction to the little black kitty she gave us. Tiny stuffed kitty-- when you squeeze its belly, it meows... about four times. Then it screeches so loudly that it could wake the dead. No bigger than a Beanie-Baby--- how did they make it that loud?

My husband and I oohed and aahed over it. Cute little kitty, but we won't be squeezing its tummy to make it meow and screech. A few years ago when V booed us, she left candy and another howling gift on our front porch. That gift was a small stuffed trash can with the tail of a striped cat sticking out of it. When you pulled the string on the side of the can, the cat would howl. That thing howled so loudly that our own three cats were searching all over the house for the cat they could hear but couldn't see. And the worst part of that kitty in the can? It would howl half an hour after you set it down. Just when you thought the howling had quit, it would start up on its own again, louder than the first time.

That kitty in its trash can went into my Halloween storage box and then I put it into some boy's trick-or-treat bag last year. He was thrilled when I showed him how it worked, but I'm sure his parents couldn't stand it. I'll bet that same kitty-in-the-can will be going into some other kid's trick-or-treat bag tonight.

It was gorgeous, sunny and hot all day today. Just when it started to get dark, we had a rainshower. Lasted about five minutes and when it quit, we had our first group of trick-or-treaters. Would you believe that no one in that first group wanted one of the black plastic hats with the green hair? Not one kid even wanted a pair of the Groucho glasses.

Kids in the second group took one of the hats, one of the red-glitter devil wigs, and about three pairs of the Groucho glasses. (Finally-- kids with a sense of humor!) I don't want to save the hats and glasses for next year. After all, if the men in our Charades group didn't want to wear them this year, they won't be wanting them next year either. Hopefully, by the time the Halloween curfew rolls around at 8:30 tonight, there won't be any Groucho glasses or green-hair hats left in this house.

It's drizzling out there as I type now. I hope this doesn't spoil the trick-or-treating for the kids. Note to the Great Pumpkin: no more rain tonight! We've still got half a dozen Groucho glasses left!