It's on

the weekend that is. Yesterday I mentioned that this week is a little special. Yesterday's rundown of our trip into the underworld was just the kickoff, this weekend is chock full of Halloweeny goodness; starting with Mrs B's 31 Days of Halloween and ending Sunday Night with the Reclaiming Tradition's Samhain Spiral Dance.

Mrs B has been putting on one excellent month long celebration with giveaways galore, fun crafts, guest bloggers and a Haunted Blog tour and tomorrow I get to participate further than just entering to win the fabulous giveaways; I'm offering the prize for one of her giveaways in tomorrows celebration and I'm very excited.

Ending my weekend will be the Samhain Spiral Dance. My first experience with Wicca and witchcraft was during this public ceremony and it opened my eyes in more ways than one. Although the one I attend is not as big as the one shown in the link; It was a deeply moving experience for me and one I look forward to participating in again.

Since the arrival of the Peanut, finding the time and energy to put into my spiritual practice has been a challenge. I'll have to admit that in most cases I've lost the thread completely. It's not hard to believe, growing up spiritual matters were not at the forefront of daily life and when you're getting used to another person, one who needs your attention almost 100% of the time it's easy to let that part slip in favour of getting more sleep, cuddling the baby, toddler and now preschooler, this year is the first since her arrival that I've felt the call of the moon, the earth supporting me and the fire within me. These things have been there all the time; but I'm finding that the world around me is poking me in the ribs in different ways so that I'll start to pay attention again.

So this weekend will be a busy and full one for me, the Weekly Artist feature usually scheduled on Fridays will be set up a little differently for the next while to focus on holiday shopping but will return again soon. Make sure to drop in on Mrs B's blog tomorrow, I'll be dropping by to post a link too before I get on with all the prep for and fun of the weekend.

Journey into the underworld

Normally Thursdays are set aside for Thousand Word Posts here, but this week is a little special. Take last night for instance.

The Peanut and I got up from our nap yesterday and immediately started packing up and bundling up to get out the door. We met the third member of our family group at the sky train station and headed of for a quick trip into the mysteries of the underworld via the Stanley Park Ghost Train.

It's a family tradition for us, and a fun way to get into the Halloween spirit. This year's theme had more of a story line than the last few we've been to and a lot more live performers too.

Zombies. Voodoo gods. Wild Women of the Woods. Three-headed dogs.
Mexican witches' brew. All these and more are in store for those who
dare to climb aboard this year's Stanley Park Hallowe'en Ghost Train.

Just ask Georgie—if you get a chance! Georgie is on the run, dodging
and ducking an international group of ghouls and ghosties that
inhabit the underworld. Will the mischievous child outrun the Wild
Woman of the Woods, outwit the voodoo god Obatal, outsmart the
Goddess of Death Kali? And can Georgie stay one step ahead of
the man with the child-sized sack, Gentleman Jack?

Since 1999, the Ghost Train has become an annual tradition for thousands of families craving thrills and excitement. Reinventing itself each year with new themes, sets, costumes and many more surprises conjured up by the creative team at Mortal Coil Performance Society , the Ghost Train is a uniquely wonderful and fun experience every trick-or-treat season.

taken from the Ghost Train website

I did take my camera, and I did take some pictures, but not of the ride itself. I like to step out from behind the camera every now and then and to experience an event as a participant as opposed to being an observer, plus any pictures I would have taken would have been flash lit and taken away from the dark spooky atmosphere that the ghost train is all about. To properly photograph the ride would involve being off the train with my tripod and the participation of the players; which would be cool, but not going to happen any time soon. So I captured some of the non-train activities and decor.

The gateway into the underworld

In addition to the Ghost Train, Mortal Coil the company that puts on this event, and the park sets up some fantastic props and other activities to set the mood and keep the impatient (read: 3 year old) busy until it's time to catch their train. There is face painting, Hole in the Head Wooden photo props and this year a shadow puppet workshop. We made a bird puppet and had fun making shadows on the screen and watching the skeletons, snakes, ghosts and dragons shadows other people were making come to life on the screen.

We arrived early enough to take a leisurely stroll through the Haunted Farm Yard for more spooky fun. There were ghastly beach scenes, and creepy figures peeking out at those brave enough to venture past the gate, and of course, scariest of all; in the darkest part of the barn, were

BUNNIES!!!

This portion of the evening is not for the faint of heart.

The peanut took a shine to one of the Llamas, the sheep and the pony.