To protect all the

people that visit the graveyard each season, we created these stanchions. They are made of a 2x4 base in the shape of a cross overlapping with a 2x2 square in the middle that the 2x2 pole fits into. This makes them easy to take apart for storage.

We put the resin skulls from my brothers skull cast (they are more heavy duty than the foam) which makes them harder to remove and less likely to run away.

They go up along the front of the house and we put bright orange safety tape between them..

yes, I hear you gasp! bright orange tape....with all that lovely gray and black and white.....yes, i have to do it. Because they need to see it.

The stanchions keep the cars from parking in front of the house and make a (mostly) safe walk way for visitors.

Every so often, a skull goes missing.....but the scariest thing is that in past years I have had stanchions that have been destroyed (I mean completely broken up into bits) by someone that ran over them, likely backing up to turn around. That means that if they were not there, they possibly could have hit a person (child).

So they will always have bright orange tape running for stanchion to stanchion.....but they do look cool all lined up in front of my car, reflecting off the hood...

I really need to wash my car!! :)