Good Morning, I Stepped on a Snake

When I woke up yesterday morning I didn’t want to get out of bed because

I was tired.
It’s Monday.
It was grey and dark out, the rain was coming in.
I was cold.

But I got out of bed and was ready to face the day, after all it was the first of October.

I absolutely love the last three months of the year. It’s like celebrating all day-everyday- for three months straight. There’s Halloween, my dog’s birthday, my birthdayversary (my birthday and wedding anniversary are on the same day), Thanksgiving, Black Friday (an all day shopping adventure is a holiday in my book), all the events leading to Christmas, then of course Christmas, and New Years.

Well, I got out of bed and the tricks and treats started early, way early. My bare feet hit the floor, I took a couple of steps, and I stepped on something that wasn’t carpet. At first I thought it was either animal poop or puke, but it didn’t squish like it was (too detailed?). I looked at the floor and there it was.

I stepped on a snake. Yes, a snake. My jaw just about hit the floor and I gasped. This snake was about eight inches long and was curled up. I have no idea how the snake got into the master bedroom, let alone the house, but it found its way in. Then I called out, or better yet screamed out for my husband. He took care of the situation immediately. After scooping the snake into a jar, he did a bit of research. It was either a Copperhead snake, which is poisonous or a brown snake which isn’t. We are leaning more towards the latter however, as babies, both looked similar (we are not snake experts). Eventually, he released the snake back into the woods; giving the snake has a second chance…to trespass into our home again.

This little event must have been a sign. It was a sign for me to continue my themed layouts. Last month all my layouts were based on autumn/fall colors and this month all of my layouts will be Halloween themed.

I decided to go dark with my October calendar. It’s all black and purple. Check it out.

Supplies

Step One

When creating this layout, I wanted to go dark, but not all dark. I never actually write in my calendars (space is limited) – I only use them for reference. Because of that, I decided to block out portions of the calendar. With a circle punch, I punched out a bunch of circles with leftover scrap pieces (see this post for a card I made with my leftover scraps). Then I added some removable adhesive to the backs of each circle so they wouldn’t move off the notebook (be sure it’s removable, permanent adhesive can rip the page). Then I lined up the circles, seven horizontal rows and five vertical rows.

Step Two

Next, I grabbed my black distress ink and ink applicator tool and applied a light coat all over the layout. To add to the Halloween vibe, I applied a layer of purple distress ink right on top. Now it’s time to remove the punched out circles.

Step Three

With a black brush pen, I lettered the word October. For more on my lettering style and practice sheets, visit my link on Etsy). I added some details with a white gel pen and then I added the dates to each circle with my black drawing pen.