Happy Halloween!

I am pooped out. I don't know how you all do it. It wears me out just getting these 4 into their costumes.

We have had a busy week full of Halloween activities in preschool, and on the homefront. And Halloween isn't until tomorrow! Hope everyone has a fun and safe time!

I'll be back later this week with 2 give-a-ways to gear us up for Christmas! yay!

Thanks for reading! oxoxo

WINNER- of the Hilary Weeks CD Every Step

THE WINNER of the CD is #3, Rachael who said:

Rachael said...



Oh I would love to win this. I just had my second child and being home all the time, we could use some good music to listen to! :)

Rachael- please leave a comment w/ mailing info (won't be published) or email me (see contact link above) so I can get you this beautiful CD!

Thanks for all who entered! You can purchase the CD here.
And this is the most amazing video- featuring a song from this CD! One word for this: beautiful! No matter what you believe, this video speaks to everyone of us. enjoy!

DIY Gigantic Candy Corn Decor

 Maybe you have seen this before, but I had not. So I had to make one. My friend had a ghost made this way, that lights up. So I thought candy corns would be kind of fun. I bought some cheap fleece fabric from Walmart....and cut and sewed it into a candy corn shape.

 HERE is the fun part. The inside of these is a tomato cage turned upside down, with clear lights strung on it. We already had 2 tomato cages, and the lights. Slip your candy corn (or ghost or which hat or whatever you want to make) over it and ta-dah!-You have a homemade yard decoration.

 This could easily be changed out at Christmas for something-- some cute trees or something fun.

Happy Halloween!

Thanks for reading!

Frankenstein Feet {crafting with kids}

 We did some fun crafts in preschool this year for Halloween! One was this cute Frank-en-Foot . These turned out really cute. Simply paint the bottom of the child's foot with some green and black paint, and stamp it on some paper. We used white construction paper. Add eyes, scars, etc. and you have a cute frankenstein!

Happy Halloween to all the little monsters out there!

Don't forget to enter the CD give-a-way- (next post down!)

Give-a-way: Hilary Weeks NEW CD Every Step

Hilary Weeks has a new CD coming out this week! And it is a great one! I love her messages and music so I was thrilled when Deseret Book/Shadow Mountain Records allowed me to review it.

Years ago, I was her daughter's school choir teacher. Hilary, a music professional, paid me the nicest compliments. She is very genuine, which comes across in her music as well.

This CD, Every Step, features new songs written by Hilary. This CD is available on October 25th, to purchase.  The message of these songs definitely brighten your outlook on life, and lift your spirit! What mom or woman doesn't need that?  The sound is great, as she recorded this with all star musicians in Nashville.

I think it is her best album yet! You will love it.

WANT TO WIN YOUR OWN COPY?

Leave a comment here, and let me know why you should win!

Give-a-way goes until WED. OCT. 26th at midnight, P.S.T.  

*You must contact me within 48 hours of winning or I will pick a new winner.

All opinions are 100% mine. I did not receive any compensation for this give-a-way, but I did get to sample this CD.

Thanks for reading!  Good Luck!

Treats for my Readers

Since it is Halloween, I have a few give-a-ways for you this week, mingled in with some last minute Halloween posts! Please note, that I do get various companies emailing me and wanting me to do a give-a-way. I have chosen to not do that, without first trying the company or product myself. (I'm not going to give a product or company free advertising...just sayin...that is not the point of this blog and you can find plenty of that on other blogs.)

Anyhoo...a few fun little give-a-ways coming!

Thanks for reading!

Square Pumpkins {Halloween Crafting}

To see if you won the current give-a-way- scroll down to the next post!
Seems like there are 1000 different ways you can make some kind of pumpkin craft to display these days.
I ditched these pumpkins, I made a few years ago, and replaced them with these.

We have a lot of scrap wood in our garage- mostly from projects or pieces found in dumpsters. Yes, that is right. We found lots of wood in dumpsters from new construction. My husband cut me some wood blocks. I had a few wood spools (you can buy at craft stores) and a big plastic one that no longer held thread.

 After painting these guys with some craft paint, I added some designs...and then was not so sure I was loving it... so bring on the sand paper! I left the back sides of these bad boys plain orange- so if the designs start to bug me, I can just flip them over.

 I thought they needed a little something- so I made little tassels out of the fabric scraps.

 Ta-Da! All done. Super easy and I'm sort of liking the end result. BEST PART: cost was ZERO. Yes, completely free project- using only stuff I already had on hand.

Happy Halloween!! I love Halloween!

Shrinky Dinks Monster Lab WINNERS!

Thank you to all who entered for the fun Shrinky Dinks Monster Lab Craft Kit for Kids!
The winners are: (using random.org)

BROOKE who said:
\


Fun! My kids would love this!


(the first winner never contacted me so I had to pick another..)

AND the second winner is:

LORNAB who said:

I'd love to re-live my childhood with my kiddos and shrinky dinks! How fun! Thanks so much for the opportunity!



K- the reason this is in such large print, is because quite often, the winners never contact me. YOU  are responsible to contact me within 48 hours. Either leave a comment w/ a way for me to contact you (I won't publish it) or email me - under contact tab above!  If I don't hear from you within 48 hours, I will pick new winners!
Thanks for entering and Happy Halloween!

Crockpot {Slow Cooker} Apple Pie

don't forget to enter the current give-a-way here. It is a great one for kids.
If you have been reading my Sweets on Sunday, you know I like to experiment with things in the kitchen, especially a box of cake mix! So when I heard you could make apple pie in a slow cooker, I had to try it!
I made a few changes, including swapping out the Bisquick for Cake mix. Mine turned out more like an apple mush instead of an apple pie. But my family loved it and ate it right up! If I were to make this again, I would use the Bisquick. I also used any apples I already had- instead of tart ones, like the recipe calls for. Because I was in a hurry, (I made this late at night) I cooked it on high for about 3 hours. I would follow the recipe - and cook it on slow.  Either way, it was very tasty if you like anything apple flavored, like I do.

Crock Pot Apple Dessert 

Ingredients:

8 tart apples, peeled and sliced

1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

3/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons butter, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla, to taste

1/2 cup Bisquick

1 cup Bisquick

1/3 cup brown sugar

3 tablespoons cold butter

Directions:


Toss apples in a large bowl with cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg.
Place in lightly greased crock pot.
Combine milk, softened butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and the 1/2 cup of Bisquick.
Spoon over apples.
Combine the 1 cup Bisquick and brown sugar.
Cut the butter into the mixture until crumbly. Sprinkle this mixture over the top of the other Bisquick mixture.
Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until apples are soft.

Enjoy!

Give-a-way: Shrinky Dinks Monster Lab {creativity for kids}

  Creativity for Kids has done it again! They have created another great craft kit for kids. This one allows you to color, bake, and shrink your most creative creations ever. Everything you need is included in the kit. Two winners will receiver a Shrinky Dink Monster Lab Kit from Creativity for Kids. (Retail value: 19.99)

We had the opportunity to try this kit, and my boys could not have loved it more!

They love coloring and creating and this kit brings those two things to life.

This kit has a 3-D playscape to display everything you colored and created. My boys have spent hours using their imaginations and playing monster with this, after creating it.

Here is how it works:

First you color the shrinky dinks.

 When you have all the shrinky dinks colored, you lay them out on a cookie sheet covered in aluminum foil and put them in the oven to bake.

  If you have never done shrinky dinks before, here are a few tips: They curl while baking and that is part of the process. But if they curl up too much and touch themselves or each other, you need to separate them right away while still hot. Just pull the cookie sheet out of the oven and use a flat metal knife. Then put them back in and continue baking. We also learned that these can be reheated if they get bubbly or have a part that just doesn't seem to shrink right the first time. If you follow the directions and space them out and watch carefully, they turn out great. Sometimes they need a little more time to bake, so have patience but don't leave oven unattended. Of course when using a hot oven this part is for adults only. But the kids really get a kick out of watching these shrink through the oven door!

 After they are done and cooled, you get to add all kinds of things to them and place them in the 3-D Monster Lab. So fun! This would be a really fun activity for kids to do for a Halloween Party!

 

Shrinky Dinks Monster Lab includes

      3-D Pop-Up Playscape 6 1/8 w x 7 3/4 h x 6 d inches·         50+ pre-cut Shrinky Dinks·         Assorted Chenille Stems·         Assorted Foam Character Stands·         Clear Plastic Character Stands·         Craft Glue·         Jump Rings·         Wiggly Eyes·         Double-sided Foam Squares·         Double-sided Sticky Dots·         Brads·         Pencil Sharpener·         11 Faber-Castell Colored EcoPencils

Want to win one? LEAVE a COMMENT!

Give-a-way is open until Tuesday October 18th at midnight P.S.T.

Two winners will be selected and notified at that time.

After 48 hours, if I have not heard from you, I will pick a new winner.

Thanks and good luck!

(All opinions in this post are 100% mine. I received no compensation. I did get a Shrinky Dink Monster Lab kit of my own to try.)

DIY Dollar Store Halloween Art {using mini erasers}

 I've decided that you can pretty much make holiday art out of anything from the dollar store. It is almost dangerous; because there is so much that comes to my mind while I am in that dang store...

I love these mini erasers. I find them in the dollar section at Target. Mostly I use them for preschool activities (the kids have no idea that they are actual erasers- they are just facinated by the cute little shapes).
So why not make some "art" out of them using a little hot glue, a dollar store frame and some burlap.

 I had to make three... because I thought they would look cute displayed together in a group of three. I just don't have a space to hang them up together, so I have them on my shelves in the great room.

Total cost for this project: less than $2 each- and that is because I bought dollar store frames. So who says you can't make art out of anything? And who says you have to spend a lot of money on Halloween decor? Nope. Not doing that this year.

 Hope I have time to finish my next idea... if it gets done I'll show you soon...- you can display this one in your yard if you want...

Happy Halloween!

Halloween I SPY Search-n-Find Tub

 For preschool, I do some sort of sensory or I spy activity for each of the holidays for one of my centers. I did this one with my kids first. Halloween is so fun and there are so many things you can use!
Here is what I put in mine:
Instead of rice, I used corn and black beans for the base material (you know, sort of goes with fall...)
Then we added small items we found at the dollar store:
plastic spiders
rubber skeletons
mini Halloween erasers (ghosts, pumpkins, cats, etc)
fuzzy balls in Halloween colors
We use tweezers or tongs or even a wooden clothespin to pick up what we find. This is good practice for those small motor skills.

 I also had this mini pumpkin ice cube tray which we used to sort what we found. You could sort by color, size, etc.

To store these, I dump the contents into a ziplock baggie after the holiday is over. That way it is ready for next year. While we are using it, I put it in a 9 by 13 plastic pan or bin with a lid. That way it does not get dumped out on accident. This is a fun activity for ages 3-6- obviously with the younger kids make sure you are supervising as none of this is edible!

I have a super fun edible one I'll show you later!

Happy Halloween!

Cardboard Tube Halloween Creature Crafts

I love Halloween. But I decided I don't like any of my current decorations. I also don't want to spend any money on Holiday Decor. This one was FREE!! Thanks to the cardboard TP tubes. This is a fun kid's craft or one you can do easily  using a paint brush.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Cut the tubes to the desired length.

PAINT them your base color. I used craft acrylic paints.

ADD details....I painted on faces, and added googley eyes, and used pieces of the tubes for the pumpkin stem, and the frankenstein nose and side pieces.

The mummy was made by modge podging a ripped up tissue on top of the paint. I also left little pieces of the TP on it before painting.

Anyhoo...my kids are going to make the Frank. (Ignore the hot glue on him...it just pretend it is like monster boogers...ha ha.)

If only I had better paintbrush skills....and mad hot glue gun skills. I don't know which one sucks worse- probably my glue gun skills...oh well...

Happy Halloween to all the monsters and moms out there!

Toy Story Birthday Ideas

Time is getting away from me! I did this b'day party back in August. oops... Keep in mind that I had a month old baby-- and I'm not one of those "kill myself over it and never sleep" people. In fact, I don't do fondant when it comes to the cake. I use the stuff from the store and in a jar.

Here are some of the things we did for a four-year old b'day party. I had the links...and since I have put this off for so long, I have to re-find them. oops. I will add to this post and update the links as I find them. If you have a question or need something right away- please feel free to email me or leave a comment and I'll get it for you.

Cute printable invite I found online...or you can buy a package from Target! (yep, that is what I did...)

As the children arrived, I had a Toy Story coloring table set up for them. Google Toy Story Coloring pages and you will find more than you want to count...

I already had a few Mr.Potato Sets, but I bought an extra, and we had two sets. Since these kids were 4, we raced the timer, to see how quickly they could put the guy together. They loved this!

This was a recycled game- as in we used this for an army party a year ago! Why not use it for Toy Story-- there are army guys.

The two above games consist of: get cardboard. Draw something on it. Make a hole or way to toss something into the picture.  Turn it into a game. That's it.

We had so many Toy Story character toys so we played "I Spy a Toy Story Guy". I hid them around the room and the kids found them.

The link is somewhere...but there are these cute printables - just like the ones Andy draws in the movie- and they made cute decorations without any work for me!

I did not even have to waste all my printer ink of these guys! The toppers are a pack of stickers from Walmart, that I stuck on card stock, and cut out. That is it and the kids loved them- only problem was that they were not all the same, so they had requests for certain characters.

This was also a hit! We bought dump trucks at the dollar store, and served Oreo Chocolate cupcakes. I had the kids dump it on their plate to eat, and then they got to take the truck home. Loved it!

I might be the only one still using cellophane baggies and curly ribbon for favors, but I like to see what is in the thing. I had leftover Lego candy from the Lego B'day the month before- since it went with the toy theme-I was able to use up the rest.

Centerpiece is called "Toy Story Toys from our house cleaned off and displayed..." I just forgot to get my wooden blocks and spell out Happy Birthday. The banner is an old one and the tablecloth I already had...

All-in-all it was a fun memorable party!

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