Happy Halloween?

Halloween has always been one of my favorite holidays, ever. You can get away with being who or whatever you want to be for an entire day, and chances are good no one is going to judge you for that. It was always a relief, for me, someone who has spent a good deal of time dancing to my own music. That hallowed one day.
Not to mention the free candy. Who doesn't enjoy free candy? We never had many sweets in the house growing up, and candy was strictly rationed to 1 piece, to only be consumed after a nutritiously balanced supper. Then teeth thoroughly scrubbed.

Halloween should be filled with happy memories, assuming of course Halloween is celebrated in your house. If you don't celebrate, then it should just be happy family memories of the day, not specifically Halloween memories. But, that is not the point of this.

A North Dakota woman has publicly announced that she will be handing out 'fat letters' to the children she decides are overweight, in lieu of candy.
'Fat letters', seem to be a new trend, where-in a letter is handed to the child to return to the parents, stating the child is over weight based on a growth chart(or a crazy lady's opinion). Don't even get me started on Dr.'s and their growth charts- they are absolute malarkey! But that is another day.

Let's back up for a bit.....chances are good if the child if fat, that parents probably are aware of it. Chances are even better the parents are fat, too. Sometimes not, in a fluke of genetics, etc. but, that is another day, too.

The point being, what kind of crazy lady is this? What on earth has possessed her to do this? If she doesn't want to hand out candy to fat kids, why is she handing out candy to other kids? Clearly she missed the class on compassion and the sharing food fairly rule - if you don't have enough to share with everyone, then don't share with anyone!

Fine, be disappointed! But, consider another way to help your community besides shaming, embarrassing and ruining this for the kids- you know those people that this holiday is for.

Do I think communities need to do a better job of making nutritious, locally produced, whole(some) foods available & affordably so- yep
Do I think communities need to do a better job of making sure they are safe places so kids can run around outside until the streetlights come on-yep
Do I think parents, no matter how perpetually exhausted, need to encourage their kids to be active, to the best of everyone's abilities- yep

Do I think this letter or any of the others are going to solve any problems, or shed light on our nations obesity problems- not at all

Shaming fat kids even more will accomplish absolutely nothing, besides making some already sad & embarrassed kids sadder & more embarrassed.

Sewing Shenanigans: Of Sewing machines & shotguns

Like most of my good ideas(at the time), this one can be blamed on boys. If ever there was a boy crazy girl, it was me.

    For my 21st birthday, I wanted a gun. Yep, a real live, shooting, bang-bang gun. If there was a boy that caught my eye, chances are good he had guns, lots of guns. My dearly departed Gege, rest her soul, taught us girls early on, that to catch a boy it was imperative to share an interest. Preferably one that he can share his knowledge about to aid you (a helpless female). So, I needed a gun. PRONTO!
I had said boy escort me on a very romantic outing to the local Wal*Mart gun counter, where we discussed in length the pro's and con's of all the choices, in very close proximity to each other, of course. Nothing was actually purchased that day, my birthday was coming up, providing the opportunity for all my admirer's the chance to shower me with firearms. And I was not let down! Oh, the stories that will follow that little squirrel gun for all it's days ;)

Alas, no matter how I begged and pleaded my parents for a gun- it was not meant to be. Growing up there were 3 rules pounded into our heads to be strictly followed once launched out into he world:
1.Don't be a Policeman
2. Don't ride a motorcycle
3.Don't watch the Simpsons

One can only assume that gun slinging must be loosely related to rule #1 in some way.


 I ended up with a Sears Sewing machine, complete with button hole attachment.

My sewing shenanigans up to this point included home-ec adventures; decoupaging a wicker basket in the 6th grade and sewing a tote in 7th grade.
When I was 5, Mom decided she was going to get a sewing machine and sew all our clothes. Dad ended up sewing some bow ties to wear to work. There was no immediate family history of sewing, or sewing ability.


How Dad decided this was a good idea, was beyond me, but, like most things, The sewing machine has turned out to be a pretty good one.

I have never adjusted the seam length, and never tried more then a straight stitch, owing to the fact that the dog ate the owners manual pretty quickly. But, it is handy to mend things quickly, if not necessarily in a neat manner (crazy driver!), and fun to put together quick, little fun projects.
 It's still a good bet I won't be getting a PBS special anytime soon.

In the beginning

In the beginning- Goodness, setting up a blog is like an all day thing! 
  First, all the titles and address you have been thinking about for months are all taken, and your 18th choice is actually copyrighted. Man, talk about being late to a party.

Originally, this was going to be called 'A good idea', but Martha must have that one. It was primarily going to be a response & opinion blog, with every post ending with the judgement of if it was/is a good idea (at the time!) Hindsight is 20/20, no?
My G, who you will meet later once had a shirt that said, 'it seemed like a good idea at the time'. He would wear it as soon as it came out of the wash, and then for days. Until I peeled it off.
So, the 23rd choice would like to welcome you to the Bedazzled Pineapple!
I have always been drawn to sparkly things, and have a tendency to cover anything I can in glitter- less so the older I get,and I might even grow out of it one day (hope not!).
I also, really love pineapples:
1. a Pineapple tree is in the center of my family crest 
2.it's really yummy 
and I'm sure the list could go on and on....... but those are the high points!

And now, some pineapple history (let's learn)

The Significance of the Pineapple

For centuries the pineapple has symbolized hospitality and a welcoming spirit. Originating in Brazil, the pineapple was first cultivated by natives in

the Caribbean Islands. Christopher Columbus first brought this exotic delicacy back to Europe in 1493 after his second voyage to America.

In colonial America the pineapple was quite rare and expensive, and hosts who provided pineapples to their guests were indeed treating them to a special honor.

 One popular legend contends that sailing captains placed a pineapple at their door or signpost to indicate their arrival home from a long voyage and that friends were welcome to visit. 

Highly prized as a centerpiece for feasts and celebrations, the pineapple signified generosity

and friendship among the early Americans.

Today the pineapple remains an enduring universal symbol of welcome. 

Thanks Dad, for putting that together! 

There you have it, sequins are awesome & pineapple is yummy = let's mash them together and have some fun!