Halloween Pumpkin Witch Craft

My niece, Kelsie, crafted this adorable Pumpkin Witch.

Clearly, Kelsie gets her talent from her aunt DeeAnn. :)

Goblin Goodies (from my 2011 archive)

2 cups salted peanuts

1 cup Chocolate Teddy Grahams

1 cup Candy Corn

1/2 cup Goldfish Crackers

1/2 cup raisins

Mix and store in airtight container. Makes 5 cups.

Don't be afraid to change the ingredients of this recipe up a bit. Here are the products that I chose to use...

My family doesn't care for peanuts, so I picked up chocolate covered almonds from Costco. You could also use plain or chocolate covered pretzels, miniature Oreos, autumn colored M&M's, Almond Joy or Mounds candy bits, etc. I even wanted to add green and purple gum drops, but my husband wasn't going for it. The point is, be creative!

After I mixed the ingredients in a large bowl, I divided it into cellophane bags. Then I printed these cute tags that I found at Anders Ruff Custom Designs . 

Happy Halloween!

Cody has entered the wonderful world of wizardry.

"Expelliarmus!"

Candy Filled Paper Cones for Halloween

I have a great amount of paper in my scrapbook collection, so when I was browsing through my Clever Gifting board on Pinterest and I came across this paper craft I had pinned from PaperVine, I decided it would be a great way to use some of the cute double-sided Halloween paper I've accumulated. Following Lowri McNabb's tutorial, this is what I ended up with...

They look like sour cream containers...only cuter!

These little cone-like treats would be cute placed in a Halloween bowl for trick-or-treaters or displayed in an apothecary jar. I'm even considering making them with Christmas paper and adding numbers for a December advent. Oh, the possibilities! What ideas can you come up with? 

Sugar Cookie and Glaze Recipes

There are two times a year that I must make sugar cookies, Valentine's Day and Halloween. I have several sugar cookie recipes in my collection, but this is by far my favorite because of one little ingredient. 

Sugar Cookies

3 cups flour 
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg (This is the secret to great tasting cookies!)
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 cup shortening
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup milk

Combine dry ingredients. Cut in shortening, Beat eggs, sugar and milk together. Add to first ingredients. Refrigerate for at least one hour. Roll out on floured surface. Cut with cookie cutter. Bake @ 350 degrees for approximately 8 minutes. (Adjust time according to how thick or thin you prefer your cookies and if you like them crispy or soft.)


Sugar Cookie Glaze

1 stick butter
1/2 cup plus 3 Tablespoons milk
1/4 cup light corn syrup
32 oz. package powdered sugar

Melt butter in large bowl in microwave. Add remaining ingredients. Mix with a whisk until smooth. Dip cookies in glaze. Let set for one hour.

*Glaze will frost a double batch of sugar cookies.

Everything You Need to Know About Trading Halloween Candy

This is great!

Another Reason to Wear Orange in October

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A Mother Goose Halloween

My daughter and her friends dressed up as 'The Three Little Kittens who lost their mittens' for a Halloween dance last night. This morning, when I asked her how everything went, she said, "Fine, but not many people understood the mittens part. I guess kids these days don't know nursery rhymes."

There is truth in Katelyn's statement. Working with children over the years, I have noticed the same thing. Parents aren't taking time to teach their children nursery rhymes. I guess Mother Goose is not as popular as she once was. Personally, I feel it is important for children to learn nursery rhymes and here is why...

1) Rhyming is a literacy concept that Kindergarten children are tested on.

2) When children hear nursery rhymes, they hear the sounds vowels and consonants make and learn how to put these sounds together to make words.

3) They also practice voice inflection, as well as the rhythm of language.

4) In nursery rhymes, children hear new words that they would not hear in everyday conversing.

 5) Nursery rhymes usually tell a story with a beginning, a middle and an end, showing children that events happen in sequence. So, for those of you who may not be familiar with 'The Three Little Kittens', you may want to click here and become acquainted with some early children's literature.

Witches' Brew

Remember my post about Dr. Jeans Banana Dance? Well, here is the song that gets stuck in my head at this time of year...



Gotta love Kindergarten!

Maybe I Want to be Booed

The idea behind Halloween Boo-ing is simple. You make up a plate or basket of treats, sneak to your neighbor's house, knock on the door and run away, leaving the treats on their doorstep. It's acceptable doorbell ditching, really. Once you've been Booed, you display a sign on your door or window so neighbors can tell who has already received treats and who hasn't.

The game is simple and easy for everyone in the neighborhood to play, but our family hasn't been Booed in years. In fact, one year we started the game by Boo-ing a couple of different families, but it never got back to us. The people in our neighborhood tend to skip those of us that don't have small children. I am sure they assume that older people don't want to be bothered and maybe that is the case with some, but not all. Believe it or not, people in their 40's are capable of running and hiding in bushes. :)

Anyway...If you would like to start this game in your neighborhood, here are three different
websites that have free printable Boo signs and instructions:

Party NV

The TomKat Studio

Anders Ruff

Halloween Potion Bottles

Other than increasing mental ability, overcoming fatigue, alleviating stomach aches, quenching thirst and being incredibly  pleasant to the palate, Coca-Cola has yet another benefit. It's called My Coke Rewards.


What does My Coke Rewards have to do with Halloween? Allow me to explain.


Underneath the bottle caps or inside the cardboard cartons of Coca-Cola products is a code that can be entered for points on My Coke Rewards. The points accumulated may be spent in a variety of ways and I chose to spend a few of mine on a subscription to Country Living Magazine.

The October issue of Country Living Magazine has some great ideas for Halloween decor.

This is the photograph that inspired me to make decorative bottles of my own...

I asked my son Chase to bring over some empty liquor bottles from his collection...

then I spray painted a few of them...

and printed Halloween graphics onto sticky labels that I picked up at OfficeMax.

Lastly, I adhered them to the bottles, creating these little works of art...

Goblin Goodies

2 cups salted peanuts
1 cup Chocolate Teddy Grahams
1 cup Candy Corn
1/2 cup Goldfish Crackers
1/2 cup raisins

Mix and store in airtight container. Makes 5 cups.

Don't be afraid to change the ingredients of this recipe up a bit. Here are the products that I chose to use...

My family doesn't care for peanuts, so I picked up chocolate covered almonds from Costco. You could also use plain or chocolate covered pretzels, miniature Oreos, autumn colored M&M's, Almond Joy or Mounds candy bits, etc. I even wanted to add green and purple gum drops, but my husband wasn't going for it. The point is, be creative!

After I mixed the ingredients in a large bowl, I divided it into cellophane bags. Then I printed these cute tags that I found at Anders Ruff Custom Designs.

I used orange colored ribbon to tie the tags onto the bags...

...and now I have a half-way healthy Halloween treat to give friends, neighbors and co-workers.

Wicked Witch Halloween Decor

If you love decorating your home for Halloween and want to see a clever idea, click on this link... Just Drink a Coke.: The Wicked Witch of the Midwest! You will be glad you did. :)

Smell My Feet

Look what I found at Big Lots yesterday.

I asked my husband to cut the ground stake off and add chains, so I can hang her in place of my 'Welcome' sign when October rolls around.

Isn't she cute?!

Krazy Kollege Kids

"Look at me! Look at me!

Look at me NOW!

It is fun to have fun

But you have to know how."

--Dr. Seuss

Halloween 2010

I guess Santa & his Slutty Little Elf have been postponed until 2011.

Slutty Little Elf

My daughter told me her boyfriend wants to dress up like Santa Claus for Halloween. I said to her, "What are you going to be if Bo's going as Santa?" She replied, "his slutty little elf." When I asked her "Why do you have to be a slutty little elf?" her answer was "It just wouldn't be as much fun Mom!"

Where did I go wrong?

Halloween Countdown Craft

I found this Halloween Countdown at Alayna's Creations. It's cute and looks simple to make. Check it out!

http://alaynascreations.blogspot.com/2010/09/stashbusting-away.html

Halloween Ideas

The Idea Room: Halloween Ideas

The above link has fun craft and food ideas for children (of all ages).
Check it out!