Bats!

Well, it’s officially raining pumpkin in my inbox. You guys are amazing! I asked for pumpkin and I got pumpkin. Seriously? My thighs are growing with each email I open. I’ll probably have pick my top three and go from there. But who knows, we have a month and a half till Thanksgiving! Yummy. Many thanks for sharing your recipes!

And speaking of rain….or the sky….or things that are spooky and fall-like….here’s what my kids woke up to this morning….
Hundreds of little bats, making their way into our kitchen,
checking out our pumpkin,
and making us all smile (if bats can really do that).
We’re simply batty over here!
Too much? Okay.

So, I don’t usually decorate for Halloween, as in the creepy coffins and skeletons kind of way. But on the Good Report last week (a really cool photography and family life blog that I love) I saw that Leslie felt the same way and so she made these. Perfect! And she got the idea from Country Living. And since I loved them so much, I’m sharing the steps with you!

It’s very easy to do:

* First download the Country Living template HERE. And while you’re at it, check out their other Halloween templates too.

* Use black cardstock or construction paper. I found this packet of all-black cardstock (50 sheets) at Walmart for $4. SCORE.
* Print the bat image and cut it out. If your printer is out of ink, like mine is, simply hold a piece of paper up to your computer screen and softly trace it. I made two sizes and decided I like the smaller bat better. I got 3 small bats per sheet and 2 of the larger bats (and I cut out about 100 bats total)
* Fold the paper in half and lay the bats on top, lined-up with the fold
* Cut out your bats! Don’t bother with tracing. That takes way too long. Just hold the pattern on there as you cut. Doesn’t need to be exact.
When you’re done you have these cool little guys!
And if you spend a couple hours at the park cutting while the kids play, then you have more to hang on the outside of your house.
Now if I had a really cool outdoor exterior like some of those homes on Country Living, my bats would be superstars. But they’re still pretty fun, leading up to our door. I need another hour at the park to cut out more, so they fly all the way up to the door.
When you’re done cutting, hang them up by applying a small piece of scotch tape or double-stick tape on the back. If you’re hanging them outside, use duct tape.

NOTE: our outdoor bats are starting to sag a bit today (I put them up last night) and I’m not sure if it’s the Texas humidity or they just don’t last long in general (outside). Laminated paper would be perfect but sheesh. Who wants to do that much work?

The inside bats, however, are still going strong and look great.
Arrange them in any fashion you like. Bats usually fly in a stream, following each other.
And if you’ve ever been to Austin, you know that we’re known for our Bats!!

A year ago before we moved here, Casey and I were downtown hanging out on a dock by the river and just happened to glance up to this amazing site:
Every night around dusk, millions of bats emerge from under the Congress Bridge (where they’ve been chirping and hiding all day. Gross) and they fly off to find food. They follow each other in a stream like this for an hour! It’s truly an amazing site; I’ve never seen anything like it.
What I’d like to know is, which bat is the first one to yell out “go time!” I’m sure the hundreds of spectators waiting for them to fly out would like to know so we can plan our evening a little better.
Who knew bats could look so pretty?
Especially at night, by candlelight.
Enjoy your bat sightings!
Check out all of our Halloween house decor HERE, use these 5 tutorials: