Oh, No! Serious Competition!

UPDATE: The Pumpkin Contest Winner has been announced. The Cinderella Pumpkin was 1st place winner. My daughter placed 5th. Everybody did a great job!

Pumpkin contest update: Just look at what they've done to my daughter! She has some serious competition. Check out these cool pumpkins/jack-o-lanterns! These are just amazing!

This is the front

This is the back

She's not feeling very confident, but she did have a good time making it. I think hers is very pretty and very creative. I'll let you know who wins the contest. I still haven't carved my jack-o-lantern!

My daughter's creation

It's Jack-o-lantern Time

My daughter entered a "non-carved jack-o-lantern" contest.  She did something a little different (above). I think it turned out very well. I hope she wins!

If you are like me, you haven't carved yours yet. We have this week and a another weekend. I love doing it, but for some reason I always dread it.

I have lots of apples from the recent apple festival we visited. If  you like to make applesauce in your microwave, check out the process on my other other blog HERE
 

Freebee Friday

Get a free copy of "22 Halloween Recipes" ebook and make fun foods for Halloween! Download FREE eBOOK here

Halloween Wallpaper for your computer.

Get lots of free halloween stuff ALL ABOUT HALLOWEEN Here

Get free classic audio books and learn a language audio book HERE

Jack-o-lantern Cheese Sandwiches and Caramel Apples

Jack-o-lantern Face Cheese Sandwiches

As something fun to do, I made these sandwiches for the children's lunch. I cut the bread with a round bread/pastry cutter I got years ago from Pampered Chef. I put the mayonnaise on the piece of bread that I didn't cut the face out on.

On the other piece of bread, I used a sharp knife and carefully free-handed the jack-o-lantern face. I then placed a slice of round cut American cheese in the middle. I used a piece of the bread crust at the top for the pumpkin stalk. I popped them in the microwave for 12 seconds to lightly the melt the cheese. I didn't do a very good job, but the kids were "amazed" and pleased.

For dessert, we put caramels in a bowl and melted them in the microwave and dipped/drizzed over the apples. We then set them on wax paper to cool.

Vintage Halloween Postcard

Spooky Treat Bags and Cupcakes

This was so easy and fun. You need some markers, construction paper, a couple of paper lunch bags, a glue stick or some Elmer's glue, safety scissors, and some stickers. We used glow-in-the dark stickers which was a lot of fun for the kids.

Just cut out some creepy eyes from the construction paper and glue them to the bag. Then write names on the bags with the markers and stick or glue the stickers onto the bags.

When we were done, I heard a knock on the refrigerator in the kitchen. You guessed it. It was my little ones saying "trick or treat; give me something good to eat". How could I resist. They love to trick or treat in Grandma's kitchen.

My daughter made cupcakes with them. It's just such a wonderful time of year to do fun stuff and make things with children. She got the Halloween cupcake liners and a few accessory items, a box of cake mix, a can of icing and some orange food coloring (which you can now buy). For years, we just had to make our own and it wasn't easy to get that orange color. Her finished product was very festive.

Football Food

I think I'm gonna need something stronger than popcorn and coke! I may have to go for some apple cider and cheese puffs.

Cheese Puffs!

¾ Cup Flour

¼ tsp Salt

¾ Cup Water

6 TBS Unsalted Butter Cut into 6 pieces

3 eggs

1 cup sharp cheddar

Preheat Oven to 450. In medium saucepan melt butter, add water. In a separate bowl, mix flour and salt. When butter and water start bowling, add flour mixture all at once. Cook dough until it smells nutty. Remove from heat and place in mixer. Turn on medium speed; add one egg at a time. Add cheese. Use spoon to drop dough on cookie sheet lines with buttered parchment or use a silpat. Bake for 12-18 min until puffed up and golden brown.

recipe from Rachel Vander Martin

Freebee Friday

Do a Halloween monster mashup of your family. It's fun! The kids will love it. Make yours HERE

I think I posted this free software previously, but I had not actually used it yet. I was having a problem with the 2 programs I had previously been using (getting a clicking noise in the audio) so I gave this a try. I LOVE IT! and it's FREE!

# Freemake Video Converter can import the majority of video, audio, and image formats, and outputs to AVI, MP4, WMV, 3GP, DVD, MP3.
# The program also prepares videos supported by various multimedia devices such as iPod, iPhone, iPad, Xbox, Blackberry, Android mobile devices, and others.
# The converter has DVD burning option. You can get it HERE


The video I was trying to convert and burn was a youtube capture. I have the movie on VHS but I wanted to put it on a DVD for my granddaughter. It's The Adventures of Ronald McDonald - "Scared Silly". Now she has it... again.

You can get it too:
Part 1 HERE

Part 2 HERE

Part 3 HERE

Part 4 HERE

Visit the Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald site HERE

Tour the Haunted Inn Game is a free online game that's cute but will drive you crazy! Good luck.
Here

Check out the halloween hot wings recipe Here

I really like Vintage or Victorian Halloween cards. Here's a couple. 

Halloween Party Ideas

 I hope these items are helpful in your party planning. I forgot where I got these labels, so I'll share them here. It was a great site. If you search for "printable Halloween labels", you might find it.

Free printable poison labels. Click to right where you can download them all in a zip file
HERE


Printable tarot cards
HERE

Printable Barbie Tarot Cards
HERE

I wouldn't use Tarot cards, personally but some people like to have them around for party decor. They are definitely interesting. The History of Tarot Cards and How To Use them -- Plus a very attractive printable set can be found HERE

Create your own tarot cards
HERE

If your are planning to serve "blood punch" at your Halloween party, you may find these labels useful
here

Print free Halloween Party invitations
HERE

- Halloween punch. To prepare an unforgettable party beverage, prepare a light-colored cocktail, and with Halloween-shaped Jell-O forms make some "ice cubes" with different monster shapes. Such as a hand form with a frozen red juice in it.

A few minutes before your party starts, get frozen juice out of the form and place it into punch bowl. You will have a scary moving hand in the bowl and it will also make your cocktail cooler.

- Spider web cupcakes – These cakes will certainly be a favorite on your Halloween menu. You will need to prepare a large amount of cupcakes; chocolate, apple flavor or pumpkin are some of the common options. Then crown them with a white or cream cheese topping. As a final touch, decorate the top of every cupcake with spider web design made out of black food coloring. The best way is to create few concentric rings using the black icing, then drag a toothpick through the topping going from the midpoint of your web. Drag the toothpick this way not more then four or five times to crate a lifelike spider web. It is also a good idea to used Halloween paper cupcake liners.


Brittle Meringue Bones

3 large egg whites
1/4 tsp. cream of tartar
1/8 tsp. salt
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Preheat oven to 200F. Line cookie sheet with brown paper bag or parchment. In a medium sized bowl at high speed, beat egg whites, cream of tartar and salt till fluffy. Gradually beat in sugar. Add vanilla. Place in pastry bag fitted with a medium plain piping tip. Pipe 3" bone shapes onto parchment or brown paper bag. Bake 1 hour until set. Turn off oven, dry in oven 1 hour. Be sure to store in airtight containers or they will become soggy. Makes 4 to 5 dozen small finger-sized bones.

Get more cool party recipes like this one HERE

Witches! (Updated 10/12/10)

The Witches Caldron

Eye of newt, and toe of frog,
Wool of bat, and tongue of dog

Adder's fork, and blind-worm's sting,
Lizard's leg, and owlet's wing

For a charm of powerful trouble,
Like a hell-broth boil and babble

Double, double, toil and trouble,
Fire burn, and caldron bubble

William Shakespeare

The Tragedy of Macbeth
Act 1, Scene 4

Find Macbeth here

Legends tell of witches gathering twice a year when the seasons changed, on April 30 - the eve of May Day and the other was on the eve of October 31 - All Hallow's Eve.

The witches would gather on these nights, arriving on broomsticks, to celebrate a party hosted by the devil. Superstitions told of witches casting spells on unsuspecting people, transform themselves into different forms and causing other magical mischief.

It was said that to meet a witch you had to put your clothes on wrong side out and you had to walk backwards on Halloween night. Then at midnight you would see a witch.

I found a pretty cool collection of witches HERE

This is the cutest little witch I've ever seen.


My grandchildren love Witch Hazel's laugh in the beginning of Disney's "Trick or Treat" cartoon. You can see it on YouTube if it hasn't been removed. HERE

I love old horror movies like the Wolfman, Frankenstein and Dracula because I know they are not real! I do not watch demon possession movies at all! The bible doesn't teach of pretend creatures such as Dracula (except to cast down high imaginations) but it does teach us about demons.  Some people think Halloween is just a part of the fall season that adds a little spice and festivity. Others believe Halloween to be spiritually harmful. I personally don't believe in ghosts and goblins. I believe the bible and that when you die; it's over..."then the judgement". I do not believe you get to wander the earth after death. For another perspective on Halloween and the possible spiritual repercussions read "Exposing Satanism" HERE"

Do you believe that there are witches that fly on a broom stick and cast spells? I don't. Not for one second!

UPDATE: Okay, so apparently, I'm wrong. Take a look at this television news story from Mexico. (Maybe it has something to do with the Mexican police using voodoo).

Freebee Friday

Here is some of my favorite fall wallpaper.

Autumn Cemetary

Eternal Autumn

Fall River

Big, Old Happy Jack

Get a Vegetarian Starter Kit

HERE

Get a Free Pocket Constitution HERE

Download the Book "Green It For Dummies"

HERE

Planning a Halloween Party? Maybe you can you can use these bottle labels.

Fall/Winter Vegetable Garden

Get ready to cook up a "mess o collard greens". You've got to plant 'em and grow 'em first! It's time! This cabbage-family vegetable was brought to the United States by African slaves and is considered to mostly southern cuisine. Collards grow as large oval leaves on long stalks.

The stalk is tough so strip off the leaves and boil for hour or two in salted water. Add a teaspoon of sugar just to rid them of bitterness and throw in some salt pork or bacon for seasoning. Serve 'em with black-eyed peas and cornbread, especially on New Year's Day! It's another southern tradition. 

There's more!!!! 

Plant onions, carrots, turnips, radishes and Irish potatoes in your fall garden. Since these vegetables grow underground, cold won't bother them, so you can plant them relatively late. You can also plant greens such as lettuce, spinach, collards and kale (yuk...don't plant kale unless you know you like it). Your greens will not grow as fast or as thick in the winter as they will in the spring, but if you harvest them lightly and keep them covered during frost, they should survive to form part of your spring crop as well.

You should plant most of these vegetables sometime between July and October, although you can plant some, such as onions, as late as December. 

Make some easy peanut butter cookies for dessert. Get the recipe HERE

Freebee Friday

Walmart has free samples of Garnier Fructis anti-dandruff shampoo that claims to control dandruff flakes for 48 hours. (Click on the “give it to me” link in the upper right corner of page to get to the sign up page. (U.S. offer only) Request Free Sample

If you like jigsaw puzzles, you'll love these historic places puzzles. Free Puzzles

Another great free birthday club isToys R Us Birthdays
 

Rejection Hotline

Do you ever want to tell someone that you don't want to give them your phone number but just can't seem to say the words? Don't. Just give them the rejection line number. They may not get you when they call but they'll get a good laugh! Humor Hotlines