More Cute & Easy Costumes.....

When our first child and only daughter was a baby, I decided she would be a pumpkin for our Fall Carnival.  

I don't think she liked being a pumpkin because all of the pictures of her in the costume are of her crying or unhappy!  But she was still my cute little pumpkin!

The next child and oldest boy was also a pumpkin. I remember wanting him to wear that first costume, but it just wouldn't work.  I had to give in and buy a new one that was bigger.  He's a lot happier, too.  He wouldn't have been if I'd persisted in the smaller size! :)

Thankfully #3 could wear #2's costume.  He started out smaller, anyway, and is perfectly content in his costume!

I don't like change so when #4 came, of course I wanted him to also be a pumpkin, but because he was a December baby, he was much, much bigger came Fall Festival time!  I reneged and made the four kiddos into Wizard of Oz characters. I shared that photo recently, so just cropped out the little lion....our youngest son.  I'm not sure he was too happy at this time, either!

I loved dressing up the kids for the annual party when they were younger.  They had so much fun! Here's the oldest boy as Raggedy Andy.  My mother-in-law had made these costumes for other grandkids years before.

And here's Raggedy Ann! So cute!

 For several years in a row, my oldest two children (even one being a girl) were chosen to play Santa in the school Christmas program, so, we already had a Santa suit ready.  I decided to have the kids dress as Christmas characters.  The reindeer costume was actually a horse I converted to a reindeer.  The horse costume was also made by my mother-in-law.  The other costumes were easy to put together quickly.  I used this picture for my Christmas card picture, too!

Here's the youngest....the little elf.  I love this picture!  So sweet! :)

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Halloween Snacks

At yesterday's 4-H meeting, the 4-H members were treated to some fun Halloween snacks by one of the moms.  She found the recipe ideas on Pinterest, and even used one of the snacks to teach the members how to make them themselves.  They really enjoyed making the treats and eating them, too!

Witch's Hats

Fingers (carrot sticks with almond sliver nails) & Dip

Getting the apples ready for the Monster Mouths.

 Demonstrating how to make the Monster Mouths.

J.W. showing his "Mouth"!  The Monster Mouths are made using apples, caramel, and torn marshmallows for teeth.

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Acorn Donut Hole Snacks

Last weekend at the ladies retreat, one of my friends made this cut acorn snacks.  They were cute and tasted good, too!  Here are the instructions, per Bridget:  Take a donut hole, dip one end into Nutella and roll it in toffee bits.  Stick a pretzel stick in the end and you have an acorn snack!  Perfect for fall!

This recipe was found by Bridget on Pinterest.  Thanks to whomever was the original creator of this recipe!  Great idea!

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Caramel Corn Mix

Do you like caramel?  Have you tried the new candy corn that is caramel flavored?  I don't like the regular candy corn, myself, but the new caramel flavored corn is YUMMY!  Not that I needed something else to like and eat.......

Isn't the mixture pretty and "fall" looking?

This weekend at the ladies' retreat, a friend brought a mixture of the caramel candy corn and peanuts.  It was delicious and enjoyed by everyone.  You could always add chocolate to the mix, too.  The fall colored M & M's would be just perfect!

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High Heeled Shoe Plaster Craft

This past weekend was a special ladies' retreat at our Bible camp.  Click HERE to see all about the inspirational and fun retreat.  The retreat theme was "W.I.L.D. - With In the Lord's Design".  High heeled shoes were added to the theme, just for fun.

Finding inexpensive shoe crafts/items wasn't very successful at first.  Eventually we thought of a few ideas that worked out perfectly.

One craft I want to share with you was made with shoe molds ordered from eBay.  It's was a 4-inch mold that had four shoes.  I had two molds to use so did eight shoes at a time.

 The molds were made by using this pottery plaster.  All you add is water.  For 100 shoes it took less than two of these big jugs of plaster (the first container was about half way full and the second has a little bit left.)

The shoes were decoupaged using decorated animal print tissue paper and glossy Modge Podge.

Bling and bows were added, as desired.

It was so much fun seeing everyone's creativity!

We should have had a bow-making session.  This bow on this cute shoe was adorable!

I really like this two-toned animal print shoe!

And this one..... :)

And this one..... :)

And these..... The Modge Podge is still wet on these, but dries clear and glossy..if you get the Gloss type.  Some of the ladies put a magnet on the back to put on their refrigerator.

The great thing about this inexpensive craft is that it can be adapted to ANY mold and ANY occasion!  

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Chocolate Chip, Oreo, Brownie, Fudge Bars

There are lots and lots and lots of recipes like this on the internet and Pinterest.  From what I could see, one of my favorite blogs (that's not on my blog list.....but will be after I write this post), www.kevinandamanda.com, is the original creator of this absolutely, wonderfully, delicious dessert.  Here is the link to their original recipe so you can see pictures. I iced mine with the hot fudge, but forgot to take a picture of the final product.  Just use your imagination.....like Barney the dinosaur would say! :)

I tweaked this recipe a little bit - just to make it quicker and easier.  I think homemade anything is always better, but confess that sometimes I just go with the box/package mixes/tubes.  And actually, some people prefer the already-made taste to homemade.  Example:  My husband and kids prefer boxed brownies to homemade.  Yes, they're odd that way!! (ha ha!)

So, here is the recipe.  Not a low calorie dessert.  Skip counting the points.  You'll break the calculator :).  Just eat it and enjoy.  Do an extra lap or a few more (okay a LOT more) steps on the treadmill.  You'll be okay.

Oh, and I took it to a potluck meal yesterday.  My husband said it was great, but really rich.  I got an "amazing" from a teen and it was gone before I could get a little taste.  Gone doesn't always mean "good", but I'm taking another one to the "after the football game" student meal and I'm thinking it will be gone, too :).

Chocolate Chip, Oreo, Brownie, Fudge Bars

1 package chocolate chip cookie dough (regular size - not large size) (homemade cookie dough can be used, if desired)
1 package Double-Stuf Oreo Cookies (you'll have some to eat/spare)
1 family-sized package brownie mix (oil, eggs, and water as per directions)
1 jar hot fudge sauce (The homemade hot fudge sauce recipe on our blog is great!  Search for it on the home page.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line 9 x 13 inch pan with waxed paper (I didn't do this step, but it would have made it easier to cut and remove.) Allow cookie dough to get a little softened then press it into a 9 x 13 inch pan.  Layer Oreos across bottom - not touching.  Mix brownies up according to package directions.  Pour over Oreos.  Bake for 45-55 minutes (mine took 45 minutes and usually my oven is slow).  Pour hot fudge sauce over brownie layer.  Serve with ice cream, if desired.
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Costumes for Kids

There's nothing more fun to a child than dressing up in a costume.  My favorite thing when my kids were little was having them coordinate in a certain theme.  Because of the "digital" age of photographs now, I'm trying to slowly get my print photos into digital form.  I started with these pictures because they bring back great memories from the kids' younger days and because I thought some of you might like some costume ideas.

This first costume set is Toy Story.  This was the year before our youngest was born.  The Woody and Buzz costumes were bought, but Jesse's was made using a white shirt that I painted to match her shirt, then jeans with Holstein cow print chaps...most likely made by my mother in law, since I don't sew anything more than a button on :).  The belt was mine from childhood and the hat purchased.

This "Wizard of Oz" costume set is my absolute favorite of my kids dress-up years!  The little one was the lion, in a purchased costume.  Dorothy's dress was borrowed from a friend and I made the tin man and scarecrow costumes.  I remember that the tin man took a lot of time.  Dryer vent tubing made the arms and a funnel is the head.  The box body is painted silver and decorated with aluminum foil and maybe silver cupcake liners.  Google search for more directions.  The scarecrow was made using a sweatshirt and sweatpants, with scrap fabric cuffs that had raffia hot-glued to the edges.  The color was made from scrap fabric, as was the hat.  Hot glue was the tool of choice for this costume!  It only needed to hold up for a few hours.

It's fun going through old pictures and thinking about special memories with the kids.  And just maybe it helps you come up with some creative idea for your family!

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