When I saw the lineup for the autumn movies this year I actually complained to Hallmark. Believe it or not, they actually said they would pass on my concerns to production management. We will see. I told them that although I love a good Hallmark movie, watching wedding movies is a summer thing. I want haystacks and pumpkins. I want hot apple cider and a hayride. I want autumn leaves, not the Bahamas. Enough said. Onto the autumn Fall in Love movies for 2025.

All the Groomsmen movies (The Groomsmen First Look/The Groomsmen Second Chances/The Groomsmen Last Dance) were nice movies but not appropriate for autumn. I guess these three guys are a “thing” as they also seem to have Christmas movies out there. They must be popular with the viewing audience, but not really my interest. It was entertaining and the three guys had good chemistry. Giving these movie 3 pumpkins out of 5.

The next movie is Mystery Island: House Rules. I assume this is a series also. To be honest they should give it up. The acting was bad, the plot was weak, generally I did not like this one at all. We did not have a good start with this years line up. I give it 1 pumpkin out of 5.

The next movie, Adventures in Love & Birding was a cute movie. I liked the actors and thought the plot was good. I enjoyed the adventure of the birding contest and the conflict with the ex wife. I would give this a 4 out of 5 pumpkins.

This next movie was my favorite out of the group. I thought I would dislike it because it was about football but it was charming. Home Turf was about the school President having to share her home with the football team. Her peaceful quiet life is turned upside down. And the coach is a hottie, so that made it even more pleasant. This movie gets the coveted 5 out of 5 pumpkins.

The next movie seems to be a series also called The Jane Mysteries: Too Much to Lose starring Jodie Sweetin. This was a nice little film but to be honest, I am not that thrilled with Jodie Sweetin as an actress. But more power to her. This movie overall was not bad, just not my favorite. This movie gets a 3 pumpkin out of 5.

The next movie is clearly a Halloween movie which thrilled me. Haul out the Halloween starred Lacey Chabert and Wes Brown. They team up again in their neighborhood embracing Halloween. There were a lot of neighborhood antics and chaos but it kept true to the Halloween theme. However I am only give it a 3 pumpkin out of 4.

The final movie is Haunted Harmony Mysteries – Buried at C. To be honest, I remember nothing about this film. I grew bored quickly with the movie. So by default they get 2 pumpkins out of 5.

I usually watch my Hallmark movies off my Friendly TV subscription since it has all the Hallmark Channels. However I noticed this year that it was limited and required you to go to the Hallmark+ streaming service. I do have the Hallmark+ service but find it generally does not have the new movies on it. Perhaps they are now driving people to the streaming service now but I was confused on where the movies are located. Part of the problem with having only streaming services is finding where things are located so it may be a user issue.

Thanks for hanging with me as I rated the Hallmark movies this year. Just be glad I don’t rate the Christmas movies as there is sooooo many.

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Educating myself about random things is just so me. I am known to “squirrel” random comments to learn about them. We were always doing that at work. Someone would say something interesting and I would drop everything and Google the heck out of it. Like a dog that sees a squirrel I am off and running.

I decided to watch the National Geographic documentary about witch trials. It was a six part series that covered various areas (and time periods) in Europe and in America.

Some of the most interesting things I learned was that most of the accusations were from children. If a child fell ill they would blame female elders for inflicting them with illness. Or they would blame neighbors especially if there was petty fights or jealously. Back in those days, most people believed in fairies and believe that their children were snatched and replaced with an “odd” replacement called a Changeling. So if a child acted strange, grew ravished with hunger, or grew ill the parents would think a witch interceded for a fairy. Also when failure of crops or bad weather occurred they would blame witches versus just a bad season.

Women were more likely to be accused versus men. Many believed that women were easily influenced by the dark forces. The women accused during the Salem witch trials were mostly poor, disadvantaged women on the edges of society. If they confessed, they were jailed. If they refused they were killed. Basically a no win situation. The young girls who accused people of being witches were at the trial and when the accused entered the room they would display fits and claim that the specters of the accused were torturing them. Eventually some of the elders felt that the young girls were lying and finally deemed that spectral evidence was denounced. Slowly the trials waned down and the accused were found not guilty. More than 200 people were accused, and 19 were hanged, one was pressed to death, and others died in jail. 

It was a dark period in our history. This is what happens when accusations, hysteria and belief in supernatural events run amuck. There is so much more to this story that I could go on forever about the politics and beliefs in this time period. To this day, this part of history is explored when tourists go to Salem to learn about the trials.

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Happy Halloween Readers! While waiting for the little ghouls and goblins to ring my doorbell, I took on a murder mystery from Cryptic Killers. The case I solved was called Murder of a Millionaire.

Poor Chloe Whittler, a recent lottery winner was killed in a park in Redmond UK. (Fictional of course)

I sorted thru the police file and read the documents. Let me tell you it was not that easy.

There was quite a lot of documents to sort and compare. The only thing I could not figure out was how to get the email open from the police department. But even with not figuring out the email I was able to guess the killer.

Well sort of. I had two suspects that had a strong motive and the disposition to kill, I took a guess with the first person and was wrong. But my second person was correct.

This was challenging but not impossible to solve. I was a bit thrown off with the military time and the train stations. The pictures from the surveillance cameras were really had to decipher but life (or should I say death) is not always easy.

I would definitely do another crime mystery game next year.

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I have had this idea on my bucket list since last year. Using Halloween cookie cutters and a bag or corn tortillas I made homemade tortilla chips.

This was super easy, but I would say cutting thru the tortillas was a bit of a struggle. I found if I wiggled the cutter a bit it would cut thru the tortilla better. Frying them up just took a few minutes, then sprinkling them with salt to get that yummy taste.

It was more work than necessary but at least I tried.

I used the following shapes, pumpkin, raven, bat, cat and pumpkin.

It was a nice little Halloween appetizer. You should try it just once.

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I have always enjoyed doing a jigsaw puzzle. It tends to be a Christmas tradition for me. Sitting and watching Christmas movies while connecting pieces together. For this year I wanted to do a Halloween themed puzzle. There are so many cute ones.

My first puzzle is from Galison by the artist Michael Storrings.

I like Michael Storrings artwork. It is cute and whimsical. I have several of his puzzles. This puzzle took me 2-1/2 days and was pretty easy to do.

Some pieces were tricky but mostly I could spot where a piece belonged. The cool thing about this puzzle is it Glows in the Dark.

I am a bit particular about my jigsaw puzzles. I do not like thin pieces that twist out of shape. I also like pieces that firmly connect. So this next one I did was a bit problematic.

It is from Professor Puzzle called their library collection. Each puzzle looks like a book and is taken from literature, They have Pride and Prejudice, the Nutcracker, Romeo and Juliet, Jane Eyre to name a few. One side of the puzzle is the picture, the other side is a page from the book.

This puzzle only took an afternoon but one of the pieces got torn. It had odd shaped pieces that were flimsy. I like the concept of the literary themed puzzle but was not happy with the flimsy pieces. However it did not stop me from completing the puzzle pretty quick.

The brand of puzzle I prefer is Springbok and Buffalo and Ravensburger. I am sure there are plenty of good puzzles out there but I know these will be a good experience.

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Anyone who knows me, knows that Halloween is my jam. I like the pumpkins, the ghosts, the trick or treaters, the decorations. To me it is all fun. Part of the fun is wearing Halloween attire. What is a shirt without some bats, or a ghost or two.

I have bought a few items from Bloomchic to wear during the season. OK, the pants are for wearing at home, but the tops and sweaters are great to wear out. I usually get a few compliments on the tops and sweaters, especially from fellow Halloweenions.

The funny thing is that I noticed that the bat shirt below has all the bats upside down. I think there is one or two that are right side up. If anyone else notices I will just tell them that “Don’t you know, bats fly upside down.”

Sadly it does not get cold enough in October to wear the heavier sweaters but there is no rule that says I can’t wear them in November or December.

I also wear hair clips of spiders or other Halloween items. Of course there is always a scrunchie in my hair with a Halloween design. Let’s just say I like Halloween. The brand Piper K and Nicole Miller always have cute stuff. I definitely bought the spiders.

To complete the overall Halloween look, I also picked up my annual slippers for my tootsies. These are cute cats that will glow in the dark.

The one thing I looked at but did not buy is the Betsey Johnson Trick or Treat necklace. I talked myself out of it thinking I had more than enough Halloween jewelry. But I have thought about it a few time since, I doubt it is still there.

I am a huge fan of the fun jewelry that Betsey Johnson releases each year and I have several of her pieces.

At TJ Maxx it costs $29.99 but I see it on sale at Macy’s for $103.60. But heck they have free shipping. LOL.

I might go back and check but the store is probably filled with Christmas items by now. Halloween is a blip on the calendar. Move over ghouls, the big guy is coming. Why shop for Christmas in a month, heck let’s make it a three month event. Poor Halloween gets squeezed out every year.

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Target always has great Halloween food items. Between cocoa bombs shaped like a witch hat, sugar cookies shaped like ghosts and pizza in the shape of a pumpkin, they also have Halloween tortilla chips.

These chips are black and orange which is perfect for Halloween nachos.

Every season they have cute products from their food line Favorite Day. Check out my earlier post on the seasonal ice cream to see other goodies from Target.

So when I discovered these a few years ago I decided to make Halloween Nachos as part of my annual Halloween meal preparation.

It is a very simple recipe, but watch the chips carefully when you broil them. I almost had chips aflame.

Then you pile on your favorite goodies. I prefer sour cream, olives tomatoes and jalapeños. They are even good the following day as long as you keep the extra goodies off the chips and only add them when they are warmed up.

Below is the recipe I found on Pinterest. Such an easy quick meal for a spooky night in while watching scary movies.

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When the winds blow and the leaves swirl there comes a time in this household where I start to drink hot tea. The nip in the air while wearing warm sweaters is the perfect tea time. But not your ordinary tea time, but a spooky tea time.

Adagio Teas does a spooky selection for the tea lover in cute tins.

There are six blends from no caffeine to high caffeine using different tea blends. Grab your favorite Halloween mug or spooky cup and saucer and brew some hot tea and enjoy the cool October evenings.

I also snagged the Snarky Tea Halloween blends. This year there blends are called the Cauldron Collection

Roasted Almond
Mocha Magic
Raspberry Cherry ⁠
Phantom Pear
Boo Berries
Pumpkin Cream
Caramel App
Ginger Dragon Fruit

There are eight great flavors that I can either drink as ice tea or hot tea.

The Tea Witch likes it hot, the Pumpkin Head likes it cold. You decide.

Perhaps some sweet Caramel Apple tea with caramel sauce. Pipping hot and comforting.

Or perhaps Phantom Pear with fresh pear slices and some sparkling soda. Icy cold and refreshing.

Maybe some Boo Berries with berries in the tea for extra zing. A great cold drink to boost your energy in the afternoon.

Which ever way I make it, I am sure it will be tasty.

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I found these Maple Chips at Target and thought it would be cool to try the recipe on the back of the package. These cookies feel very autumn like.

Adding in Apple Sauce and Maple Syrup has made it extra sweet. The dough tasted great. LOL. Guilty, I ate some raw dough and live to tell about it. I kinda left the cookies a little bit undercooked as I like a softer cookie, but it was a little too soft. They fell apart very easily so if I make this next time I will cook them longer.

Homemade cookies are a comfort food. Reminds me of good times, love and family. My Mom would always make cookies during the holidays. My sister and I continued the tradition which will always be a good memory for me.

Below is the recipe if you want yo make the cookies. I am sure you can use any chips if you cannot find the maple chips.

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Every year I like to read some of the Amazon Original Stories that has a spooky theme. In case you did not know, Amazon has a collection of these themed short stories written by well known authors that are free for Prime Members. One of the many perks of being a Prime member. If you have an Audible account, it also loads the audio book into your account. So if you like to listen instead of reading, this is a great service. Although free, you are only borrowing the book and it will be returned when you select another free read. I believe the cap is 5 books you can have in your borrowing account.

This year’s collection is called THE SHIVERS.

Synopsis: Ruined by scandal, Dennis Lange is hoping for a comeback. Selling the story of a cursed tree could make his future—if it doesn’t kill him—in this monstrous short story from New York Times bestselling author Joe Hill.

Dennis awakens something evil when he removes a decades-old jackknife from the trunk of a gnarled old sycamore. Once pinned in place—now thoughtlessly freed—the tree returns to its roots. An act of vigilante justice took place under its boughs long ago. But its taste for blood has only grown stronger…

My Opinion: I enjoyed this book, the way this man destroyed his life and was consumed by the tree was intriguing. I wasn’t sure if the tree was really moving or if the man was losing it. You will have to read it to get the answer.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: A helping hand, a fateful cost. In this ominous short story from New York Times bestselling author Owen King, the cost of living keeps rising—and it collects payment from the soul.

Sensing his mother’s failing health, a struggling teenager pours out his worries in a letter and drops it through the mail slot of an abandoned show house. He’s surprised when a response arrives, promising good fortune for the price of just one name: someone he hates. He’d give anything for his mother. But the true cost may be more than he’s willing to pay.

My Opinion: The Slot was not exactly I thought it would be. Oh that Slot. It has a dark side.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

Synopsis: Don’t lose your head over office politics…The horrors of the modern workplace meet actual horror in a fiendishly entertaining short story from New York Times bestselling author Stephen Graham Jones.

When the lights go out and the slideshow begins, middle manager Jennifer has a disturbing vision: a headless colleague right across the boardroom table. Is it a trick of the light, or a vision of the future? She tries to brush it off and salvage the afternoon—but when her ex unexpectedly drops off her son at the office after school, suddenly her whole world takes an alarming turn.

My Opinion: I have to admit I was a bit lost in this book. Not sure what really happened but it was a bit intense and a bit grotesque.

My Rating: 2 out of 5

Synopsis: Residents have an unspoken pact with the island’s unnatural inhabitants: ignore them, live happily. But in New York Times bestselling author Grady Hendrix’s thrilling short story, one boy can’t look away—and pays the price.

Jeckle Island offers Rachel’s children the chance to spend summers roaming wild and free, as long as they follow the rules. But when her son comes face to face with a terror they dare not speak of, she must prepare for their perfect world to change. Forever.

My Opinion: I am a fan of Grady Hendrix and enjoy his writing. This had a bit of suspense and a bit of shock. Everyone was so traumatized in this book and so was I.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

Synopsis: In the gloom of her hotel, a mother readies to rejoin her past. Feverish nightmares meet the chilling light of day in this haunting short story from USA Today bestselling author Catriona Ward.

Room 17 was the last stop on her husband and son’s journey. Eight years after their deaths, Stella books the same room, hoping to commune with their memories. But as she tries to sleep, disturbing and urgent visions blur the lines between reality and the supernatural, and the other side sends a terrifying message.

My Opinion: To be honest I cannot remember what happens at the end of this book. Maybe the ghosts wiped it from my memory. LOL

My Rating: 2 out of 5

I also read another short story that was a freebie from the Amazon First Reads selection. First Reads is a free book each month for Amazon Prime members. Sometimes you can get 2 books or a free short story.

Synopsis: Erin tends bar at the last dive left in gentrified Red Hook, Brooklyn, where old-timers spin tales of the bar’s legacy and the waterfront’s crime-ridden past. Her boss, Jimmy, a real estate magnate responsible for much of the neighborhood’s shiny transformation, also has a story to share. Back when he was a struggling beat cop, two neglected boys introduced him to an ancient creature that made Jimmy’s dreams come true. Nightmares too. Erin doesn’t believe a word. The bar is her life. But this bar at the end of the world is also home to a deadly stowaway. And it’s looking for a new host.

My Opinion: This was a good read and I was not sure what was causing the events until almost the end of the book. It was suspenseful and the story kept me reading.

My Rating: 4 out of 5

I highly recommend that everyone check out these stories. There are many collections to choose with different genres. Something for everyone.

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