went trunk or treating with KJ, Ann, & Izzy.

brought fun memories of trick-or-treating with the kids. did the haunted school bus. started The Scooby Doo & The Gang quilt. Happy Halloween!

when you're a hammer everything looks like a nail........

good nights sleep. am I finally (yet again) at the end of the seasonal choking-on-my-own-snot crud? first day of the month, so clean sheets. vaccum. Rip meds. feel like making more Basement Barbies. another Scooby Doo Gang quilt block or 2. Hello, November.

it really IS November. I blogged on a blank draft from the other day. I. am. not. a. crazy. person. well, I probably am. but it IS November 1st. Bigfoot told me so.

I always have to rewatch any Ghost Adventures episode of somewhere they investigated that I finally made it to.....

during a whirlwind trip out west with Tracy & Chris, I added some more to the list! I am awesome, I think....

Mizpah Hotel, Tonopah, Nevada.

this episode was in 2011.

Ghost Adventures experience: Zak, Nick, and Aaron were locked down from dusk to dawn. They were renovating while they were there. THe elevator wasn't working. (door did open and shut for Aaron, though.) Hotel built over a mineshaft (most of town was). Lady in Red was a kept woman who was seeing customers on the side and got caught and murdered. A dead senator on ice in a bathtub. GA got evps, a board in the hallway repeatedly knocked down.

our experience: Tracy had rented the Lady in Red room on 5th floor on Hotels.com, but they gave us the room beneath it - we had lights blinking in weird sequences when we first got there - other YouTubers had rented The Lady in Red Room a day or 2 before Tracy. we prowled the hallways, stairwells, and rode the elevator up and down. They had cat balls, a go pro, a camera on a tripod, EMF meter. the hallways were spooky. our 4th floor hallway felt the spookiest of all. we didn't get to go in Jack Dempsey dining room or the basement, the ghost tour was full. it is truly a beautiful old building. you could look out our window (we were in the Jim Butler suite) and our window overlooked the Jim Butler motel next door. we also found a statue of he and his wife.

Jerome Grand Hotel, Jerome, Arizona.

Chris & Tracy had stayed there previously, they had lots of activity in their room. Tracy said she wouldn't stay again. We took pictures outside and walked around.

Ghost Adventures were there in 2011. it was first a hospital, 9000 recorded deaths. "spooky." "feel eyes on you." The building down the hill was part of the hospital. they investigated it, too. 2 maintenance men committed suicide on site. a guy beheaded by elevator.

Goldfield Hotel, Goldfield, Nevada.

episode shot 2013.

why is it so haunted? fire? flood? murders? suicides? the mining company? Room 109 ghost of Elizabeth, pregnant and chained to a radiator. rocks thrown. poltergeist activity. Zak got aggressive. GA did video analysis in. the. room. we. stayed. in. at. Mizpah. Hotel. standing right. where. I. slept. on. an. air. mattress. Jay sat on the bed where. Tracy. slept. we are rockstars! I am such a groupie. BOOM. mic drop.

our experience: we stopped to take pictures and peek in windows, a woman was there working on building and she. let. us. in! got to walk around first floor and bsement, she told us some stories. We stood on the stairs! she said it was original carpet. she pointed out various rooms to us. told us that the GA guys were walking around town interviewing people and that's how they got into the hotel. it is for sale. being restored.

Clown Motel, Tonopah, Nevada.

2015

the hotel was blue when they were there. no big clowns on outside of building but the sign. they interviewed a maid, not the medium maid who was our tour guide. The clowns hand moved. on camera. he was missing last 2 fingers on right hand when they were there. no gazebo by cemetery.

we wore matching IT shirts and clown masks for pictures. did the official $10 tour. our guide had worked there AND at the Mizpah. so got stories for both. she lived in the trailer court right by cemetery and sat on her porch after the kids went to bed and talked to spirits. it was cold, windy, and rainy. got to go inside several rooms. this was a bucket list item. can't believe I've been there!

Goldfield High School, Goldfield, Nevada.

they also investigated this on the Clown Motel episode, 2015. they got a demon. negative energy. a little girl murdered and buried under school???

our experience? we took pictures outside.

mom mentioned a family vacation next summer.

KJ suggested an Axsom Family Reunion. Fernwood (where we had our anniversary party last year) would be big enough. and not too far for mom to travel.

we brainstormed some group activities....KJ could bring his Nintendo Switch and 4 controls. a football to toss. some board games. make s'mores. another family ghost hunt. bring a book for Kids Bedtime Story....just hanging out and spending time with each other. no frantic rushing here and there. and Mom could retire to her room whenever she wanted.

had a fun ghost hunting weekend.

watched the original Poltergiest in a haunted movie theater....then went to The First Known Paranormal Investigation at The Kelly Theater.

I think this is the first year I forgot to post a pic of dad on Facebook on the anniversary of his no longer being with us.

maybe it was last year? but I was out west visiting Tracy last week and then I realized that it had come and gone. which means I've moved on, I guess. because no matter how bad it hurts, life goes on. it just does. I still miss him and think of him. he was my dad. best one I ever had. and although he wasn't perfect, I think he was a good man. a real pull himself up by the bootstraps do whatever it takes to take care of your family kind of man. and I married a man like that.

today my battle vs. snot continues. a cozy day of sitting in my chair wrapped in a homemade blankie binge watching and doodling. life is good.

finally bought 3 Dollar Tree dollhouses and glued them together, painted them chalkboard black, and used the $1 ghost lights I got some Halloween past to make an adorable doll house. made a spot for it in The Office.

meant to visit the girls after school, but took a long ass chair nap then had a long phone chat with Katie. so rescheduled for tomorrow night. froze the leftover roast and juice for future beef and noodles. look at me go.

"I think I'm always going to be a paranormal girl at heart. I'm always going to be intrigued by it." Jennifer Armentrout

returned home from a week visiting Chris & Tracy. I flew out and back. feeling quite the world traveler. got my first A boarding spot today.....60. the very last A spot.

rode in back of plane, window seats every flight. only had to fight with my seatbelt the first flight. my first SkyTram ride today. navigated escalators. bathrooms at every airport.

we . got. to. go. inside. Goldfield Hotel! a tour at The Clown Motel. Wanda was a memorable guide. she is also a medium and told us stories about The Mizpah, where she used to work. Tonopah Cemetery. a stay at the haunted Mizpah Hotel. Chris is quite the investigator. we did have some activity. went to several ghost towns. Jack Rabbit Trading Post. Jerome. Rhyolite. Goldfield. met some wild donkeys up close and personal. ate black pizza at Sliced. I dozed off a bit on each plane ride, and also riding in Chris & Tracy's back seat. an exhausting, memorable, unforgettable trip!

had a wonderful day with family.

Katie & Brayden, Koren & family.

got to see Izzy and KJ and Zerelda the other day.

today was the day Kevin has worked to prevent for so long.

but he's a strong practical man. he always adapts and does what has to be done.

and today was also Grandparents Day at Ridgeway and I was Zerelda's very honored guest.

Henrietta Woodstone moved to The Creepy Corner. and the flea market finds.

mom's furnace got installed today!

today is Koren's birthday.

I can still see her crashing her Big Wheel into the concrete tunnel on the playground...standing on the top of the slide singing Paint With All The Colors Of The Wind...being crowned Prom Queen. it all went so fast. I am so very proud of her. always.

no one ever told me I was pretty when I was a little girl. All little girls should be told they're pretty, even if they're not. - Marilyn Monroe

I was brought up differently than the average American child because the average child is brought up expecting to be happy. - Marilyn Monroe.

For a long time I was scared I'd find out I was like my mother. - Marilyn Monroe

Life itself is the most wonderful fairy tale. -Hans Christian Anderson

last flea market of the season.

Kevin tried out his new shooting bench and got in some target practice. sunset Polaris ride. Kevin untangled my pumpkin buckets. (again.)

Kevin chiropractor appt. checked in with mom.

had a Jennifer sighting at Uprooted Kitchen. love that girl! Hy-Vee. and. the. blessed. a/c. is. fixed.

dentist appointment. I'll get my broken tooth pulled, let it heal, put in a post, let it heal, and eventually get a new crown. can't save it.

at least it doesn't hurt. so there's that. it's the tooth I had the last root canal on. x-ray showed infection had cleared up. yay.

Christmas is at Tractor Supply. got piggy and chicken wrapping paper, 2 boxes of cards, and a singing Highland Cow. AND a tiny cowgirl Barbie for the Creepy Christmas Village. Kevin picked up his new gun and got a shooting table.

Ann suggested lights for my pumpkins in tree. ordered individual solar lanterns, they arrived today, put them in buckets, and DAMN. that girl was right. I am obsessed.

played with Iz some today. lovely autumn weather. Kevin took a half day and mowed at farm.

first day of the month. Rip Rx. changed sheets. car serviced.

went shopping at Hobby Lobby. 1/2 price Xmas. so got tiny wreaths, stocking hats, candy canes, presents, and xmas lights to jazz up my Creepy Christmas Town. giggled myself silly. Kevin made chili for supper. wonderfully cool today.