Halloween Ginger Bread House!

Under the category of Fabulous Find....


The Wilton Pre Baked Halloween Gingerbread House Kit!!!!



Foolproof fun for your kids. Here's how it comes:



You mix the frosting and it's ready to go!



The Finished Product!



The proud Artistes!



And of course Mommy added her own special touch on the back!



Halloween Decorations For Your Mantle. Its Halloween Around Here?

Well it's still 90 degrees but that doesn't stop me from getting in the Halloween spirit!

I have my mantle all done up as usual:








Love my purple spidey hanging in my Joanne's Fabrics spider web fabric I used to swag the mantle.





The pumpkins, flowers and garland are also from Joannes that were spray painted black and silver by an old girlfriend. The gift that keeps on giving!





Love purple and black for Halloween!

You can find these and more on my Pinterest! Follow me there! Would love to see your decorations too!

The Hungry Girl's Tricks For Avoiding Halloween Treats!

I am totally obsessed with the Hungry Girl. Lisa Lillien is so funny and real I just love to watch her. Have you seen her show?



I met Lisa and asked her to give me some tips for not blowing Halloween by eating every last bit of candy I have!! She knows How To Avoid Temptation With Those Halloween Treats. Lisa’s new cookbook HUNGRY GIRL TO THE MAX! The Ultimate Guilt-Free Cookbook (St. Martin's Griffin- October 16, 2012)  is a must-have for all of us who crave delicious food without the high-calorie price tag -- this is truly the Hungry Girl bible which just hit store shelves and is now the number one selling cookbook on Amazon and it's by far the LARGEST and BEST HG cookbook ever. There are 650 recipes (not a typo -- 650!!!). You'll find all the classics, along with HUNDREDS of brand-new recipes!  The book is available on Amazon and at their book site.

Here are some tips from Lisa!

Hungry Girl’s Tricks For Tempting Halloween Treats:

1. Don't buy your favorite candy to hand out to trick-or-treaters. Choose something you can more easily resist. If you have a weakness for chocolate, go with gummy candies. Can't stay away from chewy items? Choose something crunchy!

2. Out of sight, out of mind. Once the holiday passes, don't keep the candy sitting out. If you do, you're likely to grab a piece here and there whether or not you're truly craving sweets. If you're still tempted by the lure of an in-house candy stash, take them somewhere other people can enjoy 'em.

3. Keep count. If there were ever a day to keep a food journal, Halloween is that day! It's easy to keep going back for just one more fun-sized candy bar, but those calories add up fast. Don't lose sight of how much you're actually consuming.

4. Don't drastically cut calories earlier in the day, in attempt to counteract any excessive candy eating later on. That'll just set you up for a candy binge. Eat filling meals, and stay hydrated.

.

Halloween Party Menu Ideas From My Pinterest Boards!

Every year we host a Halloween Trick Or Treating party for our friends. Our neighborhood is so cute on Halloween, a lot of friends want to come here!

Working on our menu, I have to feed adults and kids quick so we can get out there and trick or treat!

I think this guy will be perfect way to get the kids to eat their veggies:






And these Hot Dog Mummies of course!





They can also sip on this Ghostly punch!


And for the adults, I might do some of these if I'm feeling fancy...






Or I might do personalized seven layer dip (cause who doesn't want one of those?)



 And then these: (spinach and feta yum!)


Either way I am carving this guy!!!







It's Not The Critic That Counts

I live by this quote. I strive to be all in embodies. My Father shared it with me long ago.



"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. 
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."
 
"Citizenship in a Republic,"
Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

The first time I read it i thought, yes. All the people who have something negative to say about your art, your dreams, your goals, they don't count. They are not out there trying. They don't get the credit. 

Later in life I read it and thought, yes. Of course people can criticize and give opinions when you fail, but these are the same people who will take credit when you succeed.

Now when I read it I think, YES. I would rather fail, while daring greatly, then never try at all.

What about you?

Halloween Costumes! Are they all this slutty?

With two family Halloween parties and two others for the kids we have finalized our costume ideas.

For our Family Costume:

Bee Keeper, Queen Bee and bees!

Husband and I will be looking something like this:

And the kids like this:








Now you may think my bee costume is a little revealing. I can assure you that's not the case. Because here were the other "Queen Bee" costumes I found:









Uh huh. All I'm saying is that in these, you would have seen my "stinger". Buzz Buzz.

As Seen On TV Toy Reviews!

Yes, I am the sucker who buys things my kids are begging me for. I do make them wait for birthdays to get these things (usually). Sometimes, however, I must order these out of sheer curiosity to see if they work! My reviews below may surprise you!!!

Stompeez

Landon begged for these for months. Finally I put it on his birthday list. His friend Owen said he would order them for him. Ridiculous I thought. Then when they arrived I loved them!!! We ordered the Monster ones.

They are hilarious and have lasted through the torture Landon gives them.
Thumbs up for Stompeez!

Glow Crazy Doodle Dome

Again Landon saw this and had to have it. Friends bought it for him and we were so surprised how well it worked!


He spends hours writing on the walls. Is it as elaborate and as exciting as the commercial? NO. But he does like it!

Thumbs up for Doodle Dome!


Dream Lites:

Coco was the culprit this time. Up at 4:30 am she begged for the unicorn Dream Lite she saw on TV. 



I ordered it for her on Amazon and waited to see what arrived! The unicorn was cute and the lights on it;s back change colors and make stars on the ceiling. It works perfectly. Landon of course had to have one too so now we have the penguin as well.

Two thumbs up for Dream Lites!

In conclusion:

1) Stuff you buy on TV apparently can work.
2) Don't feel guilty buying it if the kids are begging at 4:30am.
3) I need to stop watching TV, and so do my kids!!!


Halloween- I've become one of those people!

You know the ones, who go crazy on holidays with their blow up decorations and tacky lights...

I ordered this:






And I am the hit of the neighborhood!!! See below!

What kind of goofy stuff are you doing this Halloween?


  • Animated - Ghost Popping Up and Down from Pumpkin!
  • Self Inflates in Moment & Lights Up, Inflated Size: 42" length x 42" width x 71" height
  • Deflates Back Down for Easy Storage
  • Everthing Included: Inflator Fan, Ground Stakes and Tethers
  • Great for Indoor and Outdoor; Easy Set Up