Gross!

So I am not sure if this is praiseworthy or not, but it is all I could think of when it came to Halloween goodies. They are gross, but they are two things I remember from my childhood. Kitty Litter Cake, and Boogers on a Stick. My neighbor made the Kitty litter cake once and it looked disgusting, but was delicious, and my mom has done the boogers on a stick. So if you are looking for a good "trick" of a "treat" for a party coming up, here are two ideas for you.

The Boogers on a Stick is actually quite easy. You just dip the tops of pretzel sticks into some cheese dip mixed with a little salsa. It is actually very good, but tastes delicious.

The Kitty Litter Cake is something I had to look for since I did not make it myself, but there are several recipes out there. Even some for a casserole with rice, so you could have it for a main dish. The best one I found was here. Kitty Litter Cake.

I thought I would post a picture, but it really does look disgusting so I choose not too. Maybe I will make it for the potluck this weekend.

What is your favorite gross yet delicious "Trick" of a "Treat?"

Have your treats and eat them too!

So with Halloween just around the corner, we're coming up on the first of the trifecta of holidays that are not exactly centered around, but at least largely focused on, eating delicious foods. The average person gains 7-10 pounds between Halloween and the end of the year. Do you want to be that average person? Didn't think so. Me either.

I'm not so much a big fan of candy, but I do love baked goods, more than I should. So here's something I made yesterday - a healthy version of pumpkin brownies.

I only halved the recipe because I was skeptical of the fact that it used all whole wheat flour (I usually like to do half wheat and half white so it's not too dense) and all white bean puree (I've subsitituted it for half the butter in recipes before, but again, not all of it), and I really hate wasting good ingredients on something that doesn't turn out. But, I made it just like it said, using only half the sugar it calls for too, and it was a delightful surprise of deliciousness!

I would recommend taking the time to watch her demonstration (scroll down below the recipe) of cooking beans in a pressure cooker. I didn't soak and cook dried beans for this recipe. I used canned white beans and didn't put any salt in the recipe, even though I rinsed them. I've been thinking I'd like a pressure cooker, and now I'm for sure putting that on my Christmas list!

For another fun, easy recipe (and this one, not too health-conscious, but that's OK!) I'm going to make these.

Like I said, not a big candy fan EXCEPT for candy corns - yum! Here's how to make cupcakes that look just like one!

Do you have a favorite healthy holiday favorite? Or a holiday favorite turned healthy?

Can there be Two Little Cindy Lou Who's?

"Can I be Little Cindy Lou Who?"
"I already told your sister that she could be Little Cindy Lou Who. Sorry sweetheart."
"Can I be Little Cindy Lou Who too?"

My four-year-old has been telling me for weeks what she wants to be for Halloween...a pink and black witch, no, a pink rock star princess, no, a rainbow pony...

I have finally decided on the perfect, and I mean perfect, costume for my two-year-old, and now her older sister wants to be the same thing. Can they both be the same thing?

This is the little Cindy Lou Who that is in my mind. Cute, little, blond with big blue eyes and simple yet totally adorable pink nightgown. Not only is this a totally do-able costume, but it is a perfect cartoon portrait of my two-year-old! The spittin' image...

This is the Cindy Lou Who that seems to be most popular now...too bad I just cut my four-year-old's hair. We'll see what we can do, I guess...

Any suggestions?

Do what you can!

I have done a few of my own homemade costumes for my kids. Most of them I was inspired by an idea and put my own spin on them. Here are some that I have done. And they were pretty easy too.

2008

My son was almost 3 months and my daughter was 2.

He was a bee, she was a pumpkin.

His costume consisted of

2 pieces of black felt

1 piece of yellow felt, cut into strips

4 strips black ribbon

Screen material

glitter glue or puff paint

Fabric glue

I cut the black felt into what looked like a vest piece, glued on yellow strips. Cut the screen material into wings, painted it with puff paint to make it a little sturdy, placed ribbon on the sides and over the shoulders. and I think that is all. Oh, and I sewed a cone shape out of black felt as well and hand sewed it to the back to look like a stinger. It was really easy.

While trick-or-treating, I just safety pinned the back to the sling.

Simple as that.

The lumpy pumpkin was pretty easy too.

2 shirts, one orange, one what ever color you want

one piece of black felt

stuffing

green felt or fabric

1 or 2 green pipe cleaners

Fabric Glue

I removed the sleeves from the shirts, and saved them. I made them into the hat. (I can't remember how exactly i did that, but I did)

Cut your fabric felt into the shapes for the face. (I let her decide the shapes.)

Sew the shirts together keeping the orange one on the front. Leave an opening for the stuffing. Oh, the shirts do not have to be the same size either. As long as the inner one is smaller. I used an old shirt for the inside.

Glue or sew on the face.

Cut green triangles out of the green fabric and sew or glue them around the collar of the shirt.

Stuff with the stuffing and sew the opening shut.

Figure out how to make a hat out of the selves if desired

Add pipe cleaner to the top for a little curly top.

Wah la, a lumpy pumpkin! Halloween 2009

He was a Caterpillar, She was a Butterfly.

I bought her wings, but made her hat.

I made his costume.

Yeah, this costume was all of maybe a dollar. He needed PJ's and I had socks. I think all I bought was the hat. (Not Pictured)

One sleeper
Lots of pairs of socks
stuffing (I had left over from the previous year)
Ribbon (If I did this again I would use thick ribbon. All I had was the skinny stuff.)
Cheep one dollar bennie hat from Walmart
two pipe cleaners
two pom-poms


For the hat poke pipe cleaners through the top of the hat. Hot glue them so they stay. Hot glue the pom pom on top of the pipe cleaner. Instant antennae hat.


For the body
Stuff socks with stuffing.
Had sew the socks up the side of the sleeper
put boy in
stuff with stuffing
zip
tie up with ribbon to look a little rolley
Instant Caterpillar.
Easy Peasy!

Seriously all it take is some imagination and for me practicality. With the Caterpillar I took off the socks and my son still wore them and unstuffed the PJ's and he could still wear those as well. And the other day my kids were wearing there hats. Cheep, easy, and practical. You can do it!

Secret Weapon for Costumes

Jenni mentioned her little hero "Under Wonder." Well, for completely different reasons, my secret weapon hero when making costumes is a little thing called Wonder Under (made by Pellon), otherwise known as Steam-a-Seam, otherwise known as Heat n' Bond. I'm sure there are other names for this awesome heat-activated material that turns shapes and letters into custom stickers!

.

Two years ago, I made a NASCAR Halloween costume for my boy, and I wouldn't have been able to do it without this stuff.

It was more difficult than I thought it would be to find a pattern to make a zip-up jumpsuit. But then again, it's not 1976, so what kid wears these anymore? Enter Ebay. I found this vintage pattern, and View C looked like it would be perfect.

It's funny to see how older patterns are written. Good thing I've put in a zipper before, because the complete explanation of this step in the pattern just said "put in the zipper."

Anyway, I got some black stretch cotton and added some red piping around the sleeves and down the sides. I printed out a bunch of logos (LEGO, Matchbox, McDonalds, Hotwheels and Tonka), traced them onto Wonder Under, and ironed them on to the jumpsuit.

I learned two things: 1) small shapes have a little difficulty staying on, and 2) it's possible to iron too much. After repeatedly ironing them on (just to make sure they were good and stuck on), the adhesive kind of dissolved or something and the shapes didn't really stick at all. I went back and zig-zagged around the edges with invisible monofilament thread.

I made the kids' trick-or-treat bags out of dish towels and a Frankenstein and a Jack-o-lantern stuck on with, you guessed it, Wonder Under.

This year's costumes don't lend themselves so well to using Wonder Under:

a little of this:

and one of these, as soon as I find time to make it (too cheap to pay 10 bucks at the party store!):

So, if you haven't made anything using this stuff, whatever you call it, try it...it's easy, fun, and the possiblities are only limited by your imagination!

My Costume History: A Comedy of Errors

I am horrible at costumes. Really. Dreadful. It's always been that way.

Like the time in elementary school when I decided to dress up as a juke-box: I wore a big cardboard box that I'd decorated with markers by hand. By the end of the day, I had resigned myself to telling everyone that why, yes, I am a robot! Also, me and my box got stuck - literally - in the scariest part of the haunted house. Definitely a costume fail.

Or then there was the time, also in elementary school, I decided to be a painter. So I wore these overalls that were made with a splattery-patterned fabric and tucked a paintbrush in the pocket. Everyone thought I was a clown - which I totally don't blame them for, I mean, who dresses up as a painter? (Though, on second thought, who in their right mind dresses up as a clown? Now, those guys are scary!) The worst part, though, was when I tried to wear those overalls to school post-holiday. Everyone was like, "Hey, isn't that your Halloween costume?"

Oh, oh! Or that one time in junior high when I thought a simple sheet-ghost couldn't fail. Except the part about forgetting the rule about no covered faces at school. So I cut a big face-hole in the sheet, and got more-than-once mistaken for a nun.

I think my best shot ever was in college, I made myself into American McGee's Alice. It was probably my best costume execution, but the obscure game reference made it a little hard for most people to understand.

But this year - THIS year, I tell you, is going to be awesome. Why? Because my kids are much better at coming up with ideas than I am. Looking through last year's Martha Stewart Halloween magazine, we saw this costume idea for an adult:

Here's the source

And the kids thought it would be funny if their dad dressed up as a beekeeper, and then they could be little bees! Cute, huh? Now the only problem is execution - am I up for it, or am I accidentally going to make them look like a guy in a straight-jacket and a couple of tigers? And then there's the issue of me: I haven't made myself a proper costume in a long time - see examples above for a simple explanation of why. I'm thinking queen bee, but whether it comes across or I just look like an ex-con with a tiara, well that's just all part of the Halloween surprise around here!

Costumes fit for Heros

Costumes can be fun.  They can also be super annoying.  Every year I force myself to wander up and down the dreaded costume aisles of Target and Walmart just hoping I'll find an original, not plastic looking costume for me or my kids and every year I leave with nothing.  The idea of making a costume seems time consuming and stressful but my hopes of having something original wins out...at least it did the year I did this:

Our little man was only 2 and my first thought was, "he can be anything I want him to be...he won't even know or care."  That wasn't going to be the case for very long.  I didn't sew much then and I was taking on the challenge of potty training at the time.  The more I thought about it the more I wanted it to have something to do with that time in his life and it needed to be simple.  We took on our roles and with a trip to the thrift store and some minimal sewing I transformed our little family into:

Under Wonder

(Master of Potty Training)

Complete with a cape the had CW on the back, and a headband made out of an old belt that said "Under Wonder" across the top.

Being the supportive and encouraging (full of bribery) mom that I was I became...

Positive Reinforcement Girl

(Under Wonders Side Kick and Encourager Extraordinaire)

What you don't see is my homemade clear plastic utility belt full of things like balloons, candy, stickers, bouncy balls, and rubber sticky frogs. All the kids we were with the night of this Halloween were instantly attracted to me...or to my belt.  I too had a cape that had PR on the back and some cut up socks for gloves.  Plus I got to crimp my hair and were neon blue pants.  When else do you get to do that!

and finally our villain was played by his Daddy...

Diaper Doom

 (Potty Trainings Worst Nightmare!)

 Mark's costume was fun.  He wore a lab coat and some awesome plasticy silver elastic pants, a black cape that had DD on the back and to make the costume complete a homemade diaper mask.  He was a trooper.  I don't think I would have ever worn that.  See why I love this guy?

So if you are annoyed with the whole costume world like me then it's time to get a little bit creative?  Take a deep breath, dream up something crazy and then go scavenge away in your own home.  All you really need is a few good capes and diaper mask and you could be just about anything!

We sure looked silly that year but I'm glad I did it when I could. The years that followed have been fun but nothing as memorable as the year Under Wonder and I we conquered Diaper Doom!!!

 

* This year I need some good ideas for a 5 year old boy pirate costume.  I have the basics but I want to snazzy it up a bit.  Thoughts?  Suggestions?  Links?

Harvest Time!

I love this time of year. The air is crisp and the smell is delicious. There is just something about fall in the air. I love harvest time and all that comes with it. I love Halloween, but I love the Harvest aspect of the season more. The fact that you can leave the harvest decorations up till Thanksgiving makes it even better. As I have been browsing the Internet looking for ideas, I was having trouble. I know, all the ideas in the world, but either too much to look, an unpleasant format, just not my style, or just too much to look at. Needless to say, I ended up with Martha Stewart as all of my inspiration for this post. And really, I was surprised at how easy some of her ideas looked. I am only saying some, because in the typical Martha fashion, most are way over my head in crafting abilities, but I really liked looking at them. Here is her Fall Harvest Decorations picture gallery. Some look a little to crazy for me, and I did not read the directions on any of them yet, but if they are complicated, I am sure there is an easy way to do it. We are not all Martha Stewart after all. I consider myself more of a Macgyver when it comes to crafting. I like to figure out ways to do things when I have no clue what materials they are called for, substituting materials for ones I know of, and using what I have. Although sometimes that takes way longer then it should. Anyways, enough of my traditional blog ramblings, here are some pictures. Fill your outdoor planter boxes with small gourds, husks and fall things.

I think I can do that. Gourd Garland, that looks doable too, and super cute. Hmm, I have a drill, and maybe some rope, now just to find some small gourds.

A corn husk wreath. Super pretty and classic, but it looks a little difficult. I am not sure I could find an easy way to do that, but I love the look. A pine cone lamp finial, that looks easy. I know where to find pine cones too. What a simple way to decorate. If only I had more lamps. (I just learned thanks to Martha that the top of a lamp is a Finial, see, you learn something new everyday!)

This could be one of my favorites, fall garland made with Indian corn. So pretty. I may just have to try this one. I think I will have to read the directions though.

I do have a crafting dilemma though, and I am soliciting your help. I bought some Halloween fabric intending on making some buntings, and I am not sure I want to do that anymore. I have yet to find any ideas I like on what to do. Jen's table runner looked great, but I am not sure my fabric will work. Any ideas on what to do? Just curious. Hey, and if I like your idea, I will make it and post a picture with your name. You will get full creative credit for it. It could almost be like you made it. Seriously, send me some ideas!

Thanks!

Pumpkin-y Goodness

(one of the volleyball-size pumpkins in our garden - there's one for each of us plus an extra little "runt")

One of my favorite ways to decorate for Autumn and Halloween is with pumpkins. One of my most-loved colors, besides granny-smith-apple green, is pumpkin-orange. I love to decorate with it, wear it, cook with it. It's cheerful, warm and comforting.

For a couple of years, every time I've gone through my fabric stash looking for something, I've passed over a group of Autumn-themed fat quarters and thought how I need to find something to do with them. Well, I finally did, and I used Amy's tutorial for her quilt-as-you-sew table runner.

I had all the material except for the backing. I bought 1/2 yard of fabric (Keepsake Calico quilting cottons are 40% off right now at Joann's!) and made the width of the fabric be the length of the runner. After sewing it all together, I trimmed it to about 43" long x 16" wide. Also, I used my walking foot to keep all the layers feeding through the machine evenly. I was feeling bold using black thread for the quilting, but I do really like seeing the random black pinstripes. This was so fun, quick and easy that I know I'll be making more in the future.

Last year I made these little cutie pumpkins and knocked each one out in about 20 minutes. There's only a bit of hand sewing, and the rest is stuffing and hot gluing. Check back next week for a tutorial...I need a second pair of hands to take photos, and my 4-year-old's attempts are a little blurry. :-)

Finally, baking with pumpkin is a favorite of mine. For a good way to use up pumpkin puree and apples, I highly recommend this recipe. I made it the other day, and we ate it warm with a dollop of whipped cream.

What are your favorite ways with pumpkins?

In Search of a More Meaningful Halloween

I used to have this thing where I would refuse to celebrate any holiday unless I knew its origins and meaning. And then, if it was meaningful to me, I'd try and celebrate in a way that was a little truer and deeper than the popular norm. I was a real snob about it for a while, too. But I'm glad for it, because it still helps me to see beyond the commercialism of most of our holidays and catch a glimpse of the "holy days" they are meant to be.

Enter Halloween. Halloween has always had a certain special place in my heart. I'm connected to it in ways that I'm not to other holidays. And so on my years-ago quest to find true meaning in the holidays we celebrate, this one was top on my list.

While I'm not an anthropologist or a historian, I am fascinated by rituals all over the world to honor a people's dead. Some that I've read about happen in the springtime, but most take place at the end of summer - anywhere between the end of August to the end of October. From Samhain in the Celtic tradition, to Dias de los Muertos in Mexico, to Chuseok in Korea, and of course the Catholic All Saint's Day, people all over the world give thanks for the harvest and honor their ancestors at this time of year. Which I think is so beautiful. What could be more holy?

And so I like to think about that at this time of year, and add a little ...

(Butterflies, to celebrate the monarch butterflies' annual migration south at this time of year; some cultures in South America believe that their ancestors are reincarnated as the butterflies. Sweet, huh?)

to all of the ...

Happy "Summer's End" to you, however you celebrate!

I Love! Love! Love this time of year!

 It's finally October and Fall has graced us with bright colored leaves and crisp cool air.  Just Saturday I was telling some friends that it just has not hit me yet...you know...the mood.  The feelings you can't seem to resist when it comes to baking all things pumpkin and stocking up on as much cinnamon and hot chocolate the stores have to offer.  Yesterday as I was listening to conference I finally got the bug and now it's all I can think of. 

This morning I spent some time online again searching and rediscovering some fun Halloween and fall decor ideas.  Here are a few I am going to incorporate into my last year's home and into my "feels like fall" lifestyle now.

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I am in love with white pumpkins...all of mine are going to be white I think.  Maybe with black stars and words like this painted on them.

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There is a tutorial for this when you click on image.  Wouldn't this be pretty hanging above a Thanskgiving dinner?

 Can't find the source but isn't this pie beautiful and fairly easy to duplicate?

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As soon as I get a mantle or maybe something like this in an my entry way with a pretty white chest at the end of my hallway...hmmm.  I love the wreath and the big silver mirror.  I'm in to silver right now.  Can't seem to get my hands on anything but I'm digging it.

Super excited to try this recipe only with more good vanilla instead of rum of course.

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Have I mentioned that I like...no love doilies?

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Ya...cool huh?

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I could go on for forever but I won't.  Send me links to what you find.  I love this stuff.  I eat it up!  I mean look at that baby broom place card...who wouldn't love that as a take home memory?

Enjoy this season.  Go make the most of it.