Oh, how I love them. And I have been in heaven this October with the amount they are showing on TV!
Here is a compiltation of some not-to-miss this creepy Halloween season:
Lake Norman Haunts
Looking for a place to scare the pants off of you and yours this Halloween? Here’s the most comprehensive list you’ll find of Haunted Houses and the like for Lake Norman and surrounding areas 🙂 Happy Haunting!
Belmont:
- The Haunted Mill: 6325 Wilkinson Blvd. Huge haunted house, mini golf, pool tables and arcade.
Charlotte:
-
Nightmare on Independence 3900 East Independence Blvd.
- Scarowinds at Carowinds. From them:
- The Only Haunted Theme Park in the Carolinas! Weekends in October, Paramount’s Carowinds transforms into Scarowinds. Enter the fog-shrouded gateway to celebrate the sinister season with a night of fright that oozes with chilling thrills and mayhem!
Gastonia
- Hickory Grove Haunted Trail 4064 Mountain Veiw ST. They say:
We are one of the oldest haunted attractions in the Gaston area. What started out as a little fun in the backyard has turned into a Halloween Tradition. Settled in the backwoods of the SouthFork River makes a perfect setting, for a night of terror. Our guides will lead you and your party through an evening you won’t forget! While your waiting on Halloween, we will be waiting on you. So if you like to be spooked we are the one you don’t want to miss!
Kings Mountain
- Terror by the Tracks 202 Railroad Ave. They said “For those looking for a scary good time, “TERROR BY THE TRACKS” is a unique haunted house experience, outside of Charlotte, NC, now in it’s 5th year. Explore throughout a multi-level haunted theater where things have gone dreadfully wrong as a mad professor brings horror movies terrifyingly alive! Try to escape from the more than 40 creatures and ghouls that are hunting for helpless victims”
- Warped Forest 765 Bell Rd They say “The lost souls of the wARpED foREst lurk in the Murky Shadows where they await the bravest of you to witness their madness”
Lincolnton
Spencer’s Mountain
Crazy Cakes and Celebrations
Some people really will celebrate anything. I found these delightful cakes on Cake Wreck, a blog on that other site.
Notice the misspelling of “completing”:
Better than a bag of peas:
Admittedly, if I thought this would have worked, I’d have done it, too:
Celebrating a pregnancy or a new tattoo?:
Funny way to celebrate marriage, I guess:
Ladies who Lunch
Open Houses don’t always get the desired traffic we wish they would, especially if they aren’t a million dollar property or on waterfront. So, how does a broker get some interested parties into a home they are trying to sell? A Broker Luncheon!
We all know that most folks who come to Open Houses are just looky-loos or curiousity seekers. Very rarely do real, qualified buyers come through the door and make an offer (like we see on television). However, if you get brokers inside, who have bevvies of buyers, you have a better chance of getting that house to the people who are ready, willing and able to buy. And to do that, you need to feed them.
I find that serving homemade food (and advertising it as such) is a special treat in this fast food society. Here are a few of my favorite recipes that have always been crowd pleasers.
Spinach Dip Recipe
I’ve always made the spinach dip on the back of the Knorr’s soup box, but this one is nice, too. It has a tangier taste, and I’m more likely to have the ingredients for this at home.
2¼ hours | 10 min prep
SERVES 8
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
1 (1 ounce) envelope ranch dressing mix
1 (10 ounce) package of chopped spinach, thawed and drained wellMix all ingredients and chill.
Aioli Beef Roll-ups Recipe
My crew loves these delicious roll-ups that sound fancy, but are so very easy. Aioli is basically mayo and garlic, how hard is that? The original recipe comes from CD kitchen.2¼ hours | 10 min prep
SERVES 24
1/4 cup mayonnaise or salad dressing
2 cloves garlic, chopped
2 10-inch flour tortillas
1 cup fresh spinach
1/4 lb cooked roast beef, thinly sliced or sliced cooked turkey
6 slices cheddar cheese
1 medium tomato, thinly slicedMix mayonnaise and garlic in small bowl.
Spread mixture evenly over tortillas.
Top tortillas with layers of spinach, beef, cheese and tomato; roll up tightly.
Cut each tortilla into 12 pieces; secure with toothpicks.
Serve immediately or refrigerate until serving time.
Do-Ahead: Wrap tortilla rolls individually in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
Substitution: In place of the roast beef, you can use sliced cooked turkey.
Cramerton Pool
OK, if you are a reader, you’ll know that I highly recommend Kool Park in Hickory for all of your swimming needs. However, at $12 a head (for adults) it can be a costly day.
Looking for a cheap pool for the kids to enjoy? You need to head for Cramerton.
Stats: $3 to get in.
Snacks are available. You may bring a picnic and cooler, as picnic tables are also available.
4 lifeguards on staff, one diving board and LOTS of deep water for your teens.
They also do pool parties for around $150
Letterboxing
It’s summer, and I’m always on the lookout for *cheap* activites to keep the kidlets from zoning out on video games all summer. A friend of mine introduced me to Letter Boxing. Here’s how Atlas Quest defines it:
Letterboxing is an intriguing pastime combining artistic ability with “treasure-hunts” in parks, forests, and cities around the world. Participants seek out hidden letterboxes by cracking codes and following clues. The prize: a miniature piece of art known as a rubber stamp—usually a unique, hand-carved creation.
Letterboxers stamp their discoveries in a personal journal, then use their own rubber stamp, called a signature stamp, by stamping it into the logbook found with the letterbox, perhaps writing a note about the weather or their adventures in finding the letterbox.
In our backpack, which stays with us at all times, I have all 3 of our logbooks (notebooks)…one for each member of your crew. I carry our family stamp that identifies our group, a stamp pad and a pen for writing notes. I get the clues off of Atlas Quest and off we go to hunt!!
Some tips: Be stealthy. Don’t let others see you seeking/hiding, because there is a risk they will go behind you and throw away the box. When rehiding your box for the next finder, make sure you hide it better than you found it.
Seems simple right? I started it for the kids, but I’m the one who always asks to go now. I love the treasure hunt, and I love getting out in the fresh air. Do it with your family today!
Cool Park!
We went to Cool Park today in Hickory and had such a blast! We have usually made the first visit here by now, but we took that trip to Disney right after school let out, so we delayed our first visit to almost July…unheard of in the Zick house!
To get here, take StarTown Road all the way to Spings Rd. in Hickory. Take a right on Springs and a left on Kool Park Rd. Take a right at the first red light (by the church) and you’ll see the sign for Cool Park on the right. You can thank me later.
Some stats: It costs $12 for adults, $8 for kids, bring a picnic as there are plenty of picnic tables. No glass bottles, no alcohol. The lifeguards are quite lax and you can do pretty much what you want.
Cool Park is open daily from 10-6 pm. During the week you can go at 3pm and get in for 1/2 price. 3 hours of swimming is usually plenty for us. Going at this time also ensures that all of the daycare kids are gone by that time.
Fast Facts about Lincolnton
1. The county was formed in 1779.
2. It was named for Benjamin Lincoln, a general in the American Revolutionary War.
3. Early settlers were of German and Scotch-Irish descent.
4. The county is 308 square miles.
5. Our top manufacturer is RSI Home Products.
6. Rock Springs Campground was the earliest camp meeting organization in North Carolina.
Bunker Hill Covered Bridge
Looking for History? Look no further than, well, Catawba County!
We took a trip down looking for a letterbox, but found out that this little bridge has some big history attached to it. It is one of only two original covered bridges remaining in North Carolina. It was built in 1895 by Andy Ramsour to cross Lyle’s Creek.
From the Catawba County Historical Society:
The Bunker Hill Covered Bridge has significant associations not only with the Civil War, through Haupt, but also with the American Revolution. Of the Island Ford Road, on which the bridge rests, Dr. J. E. Hodges, President of the Catawba County Historical Association in the 1950s, writes in 1959 that following the Battle of Cowpens in 1781, General Morgan detached 531 British prisoners under guard of Colonel William Washington’s dragoons and Colonel Charles McDowell over the Island Ford Road. The men crossed Lyle’s Creek at the Bunker Hill Ford on their way to the Island Ford of the Catawba River, where they were received by the Commissary of Prisoners and conveyed to the interior of Virginia.
Stats:
Open: Thursday – Saturday 8:30 to 4:30 PM
Sundays 1:00 to 5:00 PM
(Closed January & February)
For inquiries, please call: 828.465.0383
Faerie House
Inspired by my friend Angela, and her blog on her domesticity, I am inspired to give you this idea to re-do your old dollhouses sitting in the attic. Cute as it is, we have no dollhouse from which to start, but that doesn’t mean I can’t pass on the directions for you. I’d love to get a picture if you undertake this project, by the way!
barenakedchefsaidso.com 
