What's in a Name? Halloween!

So we had termites in our laundry room.  All around fun.  Turns out they are subterranean - didn't even know that was a thing.  But the important part of this story is the exterminator's name.  DEADRICK.  And that's his first name! 

What?!  What all around gloriously perverted and wonderfully demented parents saddled their newborn with a name so perfectly fit for the end of life?  I think it might have to be incorporated in one if our tombstones. 

Image by Hartwood Roses at hartwoodroses@blogspot.com.
Spiderwebs on a tombstone in Hollywood.

My husband has a relative named Ineta Cox - seriously!  (Might have to make an obelisk out of that one)  And although Ms. Cox's name is a bummer, it isn't all that Halloweeny.  Deadrick on the other hand is downright perfect!  Anyone out there come across some Halloween appropriate names during their travels?

Find A Grave

This is a great website for those of us that tend to the prurient interest and those interested in delving into family history.  It also serves as a steadfast reminder that even death shouldn't be taken too seriously.  

I've lost hours enjoying this site and hope you do to.  http://www.findagrave.com/

Pumpkin Cheesecake

One of my favorite items to make for our annual Halloween bash - Pumpkin Cheesecake.  As far as cheesecake goes, this one is simple and tastes magnificent.  Add concentric circles of chocolate syrup or fudge and gently pull out from the center to make the spiderweb effect - kids and adults love this traditional and yummy dessert.  See recipe below!

CRUST
- 1 1/4 cups graham-cracker crumbs (I like Honey Maid the best)
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 4 tablespoons butter, melted

FILLING
- 4 packages (8 ounces each) bar cream cheese, softened
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin-pie spice
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs, room temperature 

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in center of oven.  
2.  To make the crust, in a medium bowl combine cracker crumbs, sugar and butter until moistened.  Press firmly into bottom of a 9-inch nonstick springform pan.  Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.  
3.  To make the filling, beat cream cheese and sugar on low speed in electric mixer until smooth; mix in flour. Add pumpkin puree, pie spice, vanilla and salt; mix until just smooth.  Add eggs one at a time, mixing until each is incorporated before adding the next.
4.  Place springform pan on a rimmed baking sheet.  Pour filling into pan and smooth the top.  Place in oven and reduce heat to 300 degrees.  Bake 45 minutes.  Turn oven off and allow cheesecake to stay in the oven for 2 hours without opening.  
5.  Remove from oven and cool completely.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours.  
6.  Add spiderweb effect and enjoy!!!

We Love Halloween!

Our slogan is "We Dream in Halloween" because we really do!

Growing up in small-town rural California, Halloween was about pumpkin guts fights with your best friends, home-made costumes and as much candy as you could get your hands on.  Somehow Halloween has morphed into an obsession for me, which I have dragged my husband, Ben, into.  But, truth be told, without Ben I wouldn't have an obsession.  Although my imagination conjures up images of burnt bodies rotating on spits over an open fire as appropriate holiday decor, my artistic ability lags far behind.  Ben, on the other hand, is a master artist happy to execute (quite literally when it comes to much of our Halloween adornment) my crazy ideas.  

Now, with two kids and each of us running our own company, our Halloween time is diminished.  While daydreaming about Halloween in March, I began to wonder why I couldn't buy decent tombstones.  Well, why can't I?  Why doesn't anybody sell these things?  The answer it turns out is ... wait for it ... no reason at all!  So, this Spring we have begun production of high quality tombstones for sale to the general Halloween loving public.  Some will be realistic while others will be funny, but most importantly they will all look like you could find them in a graveyard, not a pop-up Halloween shop!

While our real passion resides with our yard haunt and edibles, this blog will be dedicated to all things Halloween from our favorite home projects, best internet sites for decorating and costume ideas to anything remotely connected with Halloween.  While we build our website, keep in touch with our Blog and Facebook page.  We'll update you on our progress and let you know when our product line is available for purchase.  We're excited about our new venture and hope the Halloween community is too!

Ideas for tombstones?  Send them our way at hauntersunite@gmail.com or through our website, just click on the image above.