And finally, we’re back and officially launching this year’s 60 Days of Halloween! Took us long enough, right?

Anyhow, let’s get down to it! Last night, we made our yearly pilgrimage to Volant, Pennsylvania for the annual Witches Night Out! True to its name, there were lots of witches on site, including me!

Now I had initially planned to open this year’s blog festivities with a craft or some other how-to. I always think it’s cooler to try to start the year with something that people can follow along with at home if they want to (not that I think most people actually do the crafts or recipes I post, but hey). But as you can clearly see, this bunch of witchy pictures won out instead. Since it’s already October, I figure it’s better to launch something on this website for 2017, or else it will be Halloween, and I’ll still just be sitting behind my computer, shrugging and saying things like “Meh.” Somebody hit this blogger with a magic wand and give her some Samhain energy, STAT!

So a blog pictorial it is! And this event is a particularly fun one for pictures. Witches Night Out is among my favorite outings each autumn, mostly because there are witches, and celebrating witches is fun. Even giant, weird witches lurking from buildings!

Volant events are always surprisingly eclectic affairs. During our three-hour stay in town, we went from hanging out at the Knockin’ Noggin Cidery and Winery to noshing on Amish donuts to strolling past tarot card readers and psychics. Booze, sweets, and the occult, together just like they should always be!

Another exciting part of this year’s event was the unexpected appearance of the most devilish of little beasts: goats! I met a Baby Black Phillip, or as I liked to call him, “Black Phillip in Training.” He chewed on my finger, which means I’m officially infected with Black Phillip wisdom and must now live deliciously. (And yes, fine, this picture indicates that the goat was probably brown, not black, but sometimes, a witch has to improvise with her familiars.)

Once the festivities got going, all the witches came together to do some serious magical damage. *insert evil cackling* Okay, not really. They just came together for a parade down Main Street. And just like last year, I once again walked in the Witch Parade! Along with meeting the aforementioned goats, it was definitely a highlight of my day. Because it’s the little things in life, like taking a jaunt through town in your big, pointy black hat while carrying your broomstick.

If you look closely at the above picture, I’m actually in there, doing my best parade waltz*. I didn’t realize I was in the image at all when Bill first showed me the pictures, so maybe you’ll be better at playing “Where’s Gwendolyn?” than Gwendolyn is. (*Also, spoiler: there was no parade waltz; I just walked normally. Sorry to disappoint.)

Now obviously, it’s easier to spot me in the picture below, mostly because I’m mugging ridiculously for the camera. But then again, when am I not? I guess in the above image, since I didn’t even know I was there. That sounds like the start of an existential horror story. “The Gwendolyn Who Wasn’t There.” (Please forgive the particularly bad jokes today; I was up past four in the morning, until a friend online finally instructed me—in her sweetest but probably most exasperated way—to get off the internet and go to bed. Thanks, Brookelynne! Sometimes, a witch needs tough love!)

And finally, one more picture of me as a bedecked conjurer, this time among sunflowers and gourds! I’m especially (and almost oddly) pallid in this image, but at least I look happy. And how I could I not be happy, given all the witches and generally fun and festive shenanigans in Volant?

So there we have it, the first official post from this year’s 60 Days of Halloween! And it’s only a month late! Head on back here tomorrow for more Halloween hijinks!