Top Eight Autumnal Haunts

Hello friends! Happy Halloween from thee worst blogger. The goal is to post a bit more regularly, but for those of you who have stuck around through the eight month dry spell, thank you!

I am taking today, the Saturday before Halloween, to share with you my favorite haunts of all time. If you don't mind the incessant rain we've been getting out here, I highly recommend the trip.

So, here are my Top Eight Autumnal Haunts:

1) Demon House: This is my all-time favorite haunted house. It's out in Monongahela, PA, down a bunch of winding back roads. Literally every time we go, it is raining and cold, which adds to the appeal. It has an outside area, a bonfire, and a screen that shows scary movies. If you get the Groupon, you also get a ticket for a little hot chocolate. Shelley makes fun of me for this every time, but I can't not bring that up, even if it is just Swiss Miss in a styrofoam cup. Apart from that, though, the actual haunted house (no, really, there is a legend you can read here ) is fantastic. The workers are very in-character, and it's the only haunted house that I went to this year that made me scream out loud instead of just jump and laugh. 

2) Kennywood Park Phantom Fright Nights: I love Kennywood Park. Located in West Mifflin, PA, it's a haunt I've gone to every year since high school. There are several haunted houses to go through, and most of the rides are open as well. The houses are all fun, but there's only one I remember being truly scary. Regardless, it's a nice excuse to go back through the park after the disgusting humidity of summer has dissipated.

3) Scarehouse: I have only been to this twice, but the most recent was this year. I went in undergrad and had to wait nearly two hours to get inside, so I was salty and unamused by the time I walked through the house-- especially after driving to Etna. This past time, we went in mid-September when it first opened, so all of the workers were highly engaged and it was scary as well as long. Nothing is more annoying in haunted house land than going through a house that is brief and lame.

4) Soergel's Orchard: I used to go here with my family as a kid, and the apple at the entrance always seemed enormous. Now I realize I was just very small. There is a cute country store, a winery, a greenhouse, and a little market. Hayrides take you to the pumpkin patch, and you can go apple picking. They also have trivia nights at the Arsenal Cider House. The highlight last year was being transfixed and watching apples be mushed up to become apple cider.

5) Eastern State Pentitentiary: I went here in undergrad as well, and it may be one of the best (behind Demon House) that I've done. It's apparently really haunted, so everyone was taking pictures and looking for orbs, but it was equally creepy to see some OG electric chairs and Al Capone's old cell. Philly is a pretty historic city, so it wouldn't be surprising if there were some real ghosts floating around.

6) Nightmare at the Canfield Scaregrounds: I always enjoy this one, although this year they did away with the creepy slide down the bleachers (after Shelley, Erica, and I clunked heads last year like the Three Stooges, I can see why-- I KNOW we weren't the only people who did that, but it was still fun). There are always six or seven features, including a hay ride. Some of them are scary, some are more giggle-inducing. This past year, Shelley and I followed some friends through and got to laugh at them leap away from a person in a polka-dotted bodysuit stepping away from a polka-dotted wall. Shelley and I go to this one traditionally, so even though we won't be roped into the Zombie Paintball again (seriously, don't waste your time), the rest of it was hokey and entertaining. If you live anywhere near Canfield, OH, I highly recommend it.

7) Gettysburg: This is allegedly one of the most haunted cities in America, so it belongs on this list. I went in summer, and Devil's Den definitely felt like hell-- it was so damn hot. Over the course of the few days I was there, I went on 2-3 ghost tours. The Candlelit Walking Tour was fantastic. One of the tours gave you little gear like you were on some paranormal show. I felt like I should've been filmed in night vision or something, but I did get a little action on the radar while we were walking through a cemetery. Spooky and historic.

8) Janoski's: This is another one that is less scary and more just autumnal and fun. When we were little, we would get in the car and spend a day driving out, enjoying the pumpkin patch and getting a caramel apple, and then heading over to Hozak's for their fall festival as well. Cute family farm, with a store, bakery, and winery as well.

There it is. If you're looking for something to do between now and Halloween, these are all solid options. Let me know if you go and what you think! :)

September, At Last

It's finally September, friends.

When I was little, my mum would read me this story all the time called A Bear for All Seasons. Basically, this bear and this fox are friends and they talk about the awesomeness of all of the different seasons while they try to decide which is best.

I feel like that bear.

I love the twinkling lights and sparkling snow and the bustle of Christmas, but once that dies down, winter in the 'Burgh is just...well, blah. It's grey and more rainy than anything with biting cold winds and random 65 degree days.

Spring comes and brings all of these gorgeous flowers and the long-missing sunshine, and it's great until it rains and I just want summer and sundresses and front porches and outdoor concerts.

Scarecrows on the shelf-- not too early :)

That wears out after a while too, and I find myself missing falling multicolored leaves, pumpkins, flannels, bonfires, and that hay/dirt/rain smell. I love fall. We aren't quite there yet, but as soon as it was September (the best of all months, and not just because it's my birth month), the weather seemed to know it was time to cool down. I had a hard time not busting out sweaters, and Shelley and I definitely got a little carried away with pumpkin-spice-scented pinecones and a little scarecrow girl who resembles me, right down to the overall dress.

I look forward to the possibilities that come with this autumn season. I've started my new jobs, and I have a classroom full of students to shape into better readers and writers, sure, but also just decent human beings. If they leave my room learning to connect to others and be compassionate, the literature has served its purpose-- and so have I.

Yesterday, I went out to Y-town with Shelley to see her younger sister and nephew, and we took them to a market and played around outside in the drizzle, then adventured to the park. It was so freeing to be able to run and explore (in spite of my frizzy braid) and enjoy the weather and nature together. I encourage you to get outside and just be. Winter rolls in pretty quickly in the mid-Atlantic states, so I'm taking advantage of the beautiful days as much as I can. Also, the photography options are great!

My best little pal

It was overcast or drizzling most of the day, so I left my hair curly and put my barn coat (a Kmart special from when I was 12) on over my flannel shirt and these most comfortable jeans from Dottie Couture Boutique. Dottie is my favorite store, and they also are doing something called Dottie Cares-- basically each month they donate proceeds to a different cause, which is super cool and another good reason to shop small versus at a chain.

It was a good day for Vans, even though as I was chasing Trent and Shelley over the loamy grass I wished I were barefoot. We were slaying dragons (aka Shelley) at the White House Fruit Farm and scouting out lions, sharks, and polar bears at the park. Also, while we were hiking we found a couple of different rocks. The first one I saw tucked into a tree's roots, painted blue and green like the Earth and it said "Peace," which made me smile. The second one, Shelley and Trent found. It's part of some social media campaign to brighten people's days, so we moved them somewhere else for people to find! It's definitely one of those things that sounds sort of cheesy until you experience it, believe me.

Happy Labor Day, everyone. Hopefully you're all enjoying the long weekend. I'll be trying (rather unsuccessfully) to refrain from all things apple/pumpkin/flannel as we segue into fall.