Happy Halloween!

Hope you had a good one!

(visit from The Great Pumpkin)

(pumpkin carving)

(mama's pirate pumpkin)

(dada's small face pumpkin)

(our little pumpkin dressed as a devil)

(creepified photo wall)

(everybody's favorite pic)

(my favorite)

(figuring this crazy holiday out)

Skeleton shelf sitter

There are a few squeal worthy projects that pop up now and again online that make me want to drop everything else and just work on them. I think I've mentioned before that I tag these projects as "must do" in Bloglines.

Well, the Mahar Drygoods sock skeleton was one of those projects. When this project was posted, by Robert as a class offered here locally plus the kit, which he sells online, and later by Martha after a guest appearance by Robert on her show, I wanted nothing else than to make this skinny limbed little guy.

I ended up buying the kit at Home Ec (which is no longer brick and mortar - so sad!), as the cardboard coffin was just to precious to pass up. True, the kit consists of literally a sock and a pencil plus adornments, but honestly, the way things go for me, I probably would have spent the $10 to buy the components individually, and would not have ended up with a cute cardboard coffin in the end.

The skeleton sat through last Halloween in pieces, but was put together during the craft room spring cleaning. He's been sitting on my desk ever since, waiting for Halloween. I felt like on of those families that leave their Christmas lights up all year, and feel so clever once the holidays roll around, and all they have to do is flip a switch.

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Favorite of the day: Very timely to see this (but not for use for Halloween)

Working on: Halloween finishing touches

Cute vintage games

at Cost Plus this year

I go through periods when I feel like I am Cost Plus a few days a week (usually around this time of year). Love this store! They just have such an awesome variety of gifty things, seasonal decor, and fun food items. I don't have any need for these vintage games, but when has that stopped me before?

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Favorite of the day: Another winner from Blonde Designs

Working on: back to Hank's party prep

Oktoberfest

A new venue this year

(You can't really see them, but I made pretzel necklaces for all of us to wear. Also conveniently cropped is BT's dorky hat)

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Favorite of the day: Love the colors and that the large helium letters actually look cool and modern in this setting.

Working on: Relaxing

His real Halloween costume

Since we're talking dress up, I might as well show you Hank's *real* Halloween costume.


(devilish grin)

As mentioned last year, I am a major chicken when it comes to dressing up little kids in true costumes. I think this post (from 6 years ago!? Where does the time go?) by crafting superstar Hillary is to blame. I would be just the type to spend hours making a totally accurate costume (most likely a Star Wars figure as well - we almost did R2D2, aka "oky doky" according to Hank, before I remembered the no costume rule) to find out that the little munchkin would have nothing to do with it. So, it is clothing turned costume here for a couple more years at least.

(his Blue Steel look)

This costume was made in honor of the wonderful teachers at Hank's day care. You see - Hank is a problem child in his class, a bully if you will. He is not hyper or anything, and will sit and listen to stories, follow instructions, and the like. But, when it comes to playing nice with friends, he is not quite connecting all the dots.

(Lil devil butt!)

We have "conversations" about biting, hitting, etc., and can agree that these things are not nice and cause owwies. This conversation usually takes place as the baby duck is biting the mama duck in the bath tub (Baby bite, he'll say, as baby duck attacks the mama duck. Baby duck gets put on a time out, just like Hank does when he bites mama, his friends, etc.) We can also agree there are other ways to tell people you are using a toy, or if you are hungry or tired (the root of most biting incidents, we've found). But, the "incident reports" keep coming. We are hoping some of the issues are resolved once he moves into the 2-year-old class, and he is no longer the biggest boy in his class.

(Next year he will probably tell us what he wants to be for Halloween -- where does the time go...?)

In the mean time, I wanted to show the teachers at day care that I feel for them, and decided on a costume that reflects Hank's true personality. It is a red sweatsuit from Walmart ($10) with felt horn, wings, and tail added (I sewed some pipe cleaners into the tail so it is positionable). The red shoes are hand-me-downs from the neighbor kid. The treat bucket was purchased from Old Navy for $3.50. Pitchfork was a dollar store find a couple of years ago.

We will also be attending a Halloween party at school next week. I am very nervous. It will be the first time I have spent any amount of time with the parents at the day care. Will they shun me as the parent of the biter? Hoping I can make amends by bringing some Greek yogurt treats topped with dried apricots, blueberries, and rolled oats, and the cutest little spoons you ever did see.

(today's bribe - let mama take your picture, and then you can take mama's picture)

I'm all about bribing to make friends :)

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Favorite of the day: Nothin' new

Working on: Baby shower favors

It's raining -- it's pouring

Many moons ago, when I purchased the Keep Calm calendar printables, I also purchased a Rainy Day kit from Little Brown Pen. I love printables so much!! They are cute in their own right (in this case, just print 4 recipes for a fun-filled rainy day, including Eat: recipe for brownies, Drink: recipe for warm vanilla milk, Give: gift tags for the brownies, and Pamper: recipe for salt scrub) and slip them in the envelope you print and cut.

But, I figured it would be so much more fun to doll up this gift a little bit. I included elements to create the recipes in a small gift box.

There is some chocolate to make the brownies, a cute-as-can-be write on mug from Cost Plus for the Drink recipe, some pre-assembled labels for giving the brownies, and a small jar with salt in it for the Pamper recipe.

This is going out to a special blog friend who has been having a rough go of it lately, but is managing to keep her chin up. I *think* by the time this reaches her, it will be raining at her place as well.

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Favorite of the day: Is it too late to make these?

Working on: Writing the ultimate list of every damn "to do" I can think of that has been nagging at me.

Pirate Party Outfit

So -- the pirate party Hank is invited to is not necessarily a dress up party. I am making an assumption that having a themed party so close to Halloween will involve some costumes, or at least the kids will be wearing elements reflecting the swashbuckling heroes of the high seas. Regardless if nobody else is in costume, my little boy is not yet two, and does not realize he should be embarrassed when his mom dresses him like a dork - hehe.

His costume party outfit was made from thrift store components, including a pair of little boy's dress pants, a white button down shirt, and a blue velvet long-sleeved top.

(carrot bribe in his hand)

The pants were cut in a jagged pattern at the knee. I also made belt loops on the sides to run his play scarf through. No modifications were needed on the white shirt.

I removed the sleeves from the blue velvet top and cut it up the center. I hemmed the cut parts, adding a silver gimp braid trim as a I sewed the new hems up the sides and around the neck. I added a silver button to the vest.

Hat purchased from the dollar store and his regular stinky boy feet skully slip ons are from Payless. Total cost: $5 (clothes were on sale at the thrift store that day - score!)

Arrgh!

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Favorite of the day: So yes, I want to be a party planner, but not sure I could keep pace with the high design (and high cost) of parties highlighted on my favorite blogs. I figure even the least creative among us can do something fabulous if they are willing to plop down their credit card and buy the exact right serving platters, vintage props, organic art supplies for favors, etc. I give this designer sooo much credit. This gal deserves major kudos for putting on such a classy event that really, when you break down the elements, probably was not insanely expensive other than the specialty food items. It is rare for me to read blog posts in great detail nowadays, but I pored over every word of this one.

Working on: Invites for Hank's b-day take two

A gift for a pirate

Hank's little neighbor friend is having a birthday this month. The family hosts the best themed birthday parties for their kids based on their current interests (last year the theme was outer space - remember?) Is it a coincidence or fate that the mom wants to be a party planner as well -- hmmm...may need to discuss this opportunity with her during the party :)

This year's theme for the boy's party is pirates. Coincidentally, we cleaned out our garage recently (so liberating!) and found a couple of items that would be appropriate for a pirate themed gift - namely a wooden chest and a glass bottle with a cork in it.

The treasure chest was purchased unfinished 10 years ago. I *believe* the original intended use was for a wedding gift. We wanted to get $100 in gold coins to put in the box. What even spurred this idea, I could not tell you. Suffice it to say, BT did stain it at some point, but we didn't give it away, and it has been sitting in the garage ever since.

The other item was a heavy glass bottle used as part of this tiki party (see it washed up on the beach?) It had a note inside from Ginger (Gilligan's Island). I held onto it as part of our tiki party gear. As part of the garage clean out, I challenged myself to whittle down the storage boxes holding tiki party supplies from 4 to 3, and the bottle did not make the cut.

I found some great inspiration for pirate dress up ideas - namely this set, and items from this etsy seller. I set out to make a few items to include in the treasure chest, including

an eye patch made from felt and elastic, and a bag for "booty" (i.e. chocolate coins)

(I *love* the spy glass sold here, but could not justify the cost. So, this is just a cheapy version bought two for $1)

the materials to make a message in a bottle using the infamous glass bottle

(the cork for the bottle and a fancy pen are in the plastic baggie)

A play scarf to use as a head scarf, a kerchief, a dashing belt, or anything else the little pirate can think up (the piece of red fabric was pilfered from Hank's fabric basket. He has a red play scarf of his own)

A parrot to sit on his shoulder (it's a pin)

and a treasure map

made using a piece of muslin and fabric pens. The map design, admittedly, was from the Family Fun site, which I re-rendered in my own special non-artistic way.

I tried overall to stay away from cheap disposable wares for this gift (minus the spy glass), as pirate accessories can easily be found at the dollar store. All told, this gift only cost $2 (in current dollars) for the chocolate coins and the spy glass!

Now we just need to come up with a pirate outfit for our scallywag :)

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Favorite of the day: Swedishness (via Modern Kiddo)

Working on: Hank's b-day

Front door decor

Ever since we moved into the new house, I have been a little meh about holiday decorations. Our new place is very minimalist (in theory - not to say it isn't a cluttered mess most days), and we don't have a lot of shelf spaces, etc. to display decorations.

The front door, however, is always a likely candidate for a bit of holiday cheer. This year we have a few pumpkins with drawn faces (the pumpkin "ghost" was made by stacking two small gourds connected with wooden skewers. Judging by his yellowish hue, not sure he'll make it all the way until Halloween).

I also wrapped a Styrofoam wreath with yarn and added a glittered web I bought for this party years ago. I think I am going to use this wreath for Thanksgiving and Christmas as well (minus the spider, naturally).

Here are a couple of pics from our trip to the pumpkin patch. It is a city patch, but us local folks are inclined to think it is the best around in terms of activities and the general layout. We could have just put Hank on the choo choo for the whole evening. That was his favorite part.

(choo choo ride #1)

(choo choo ride #2)

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Favorite of the day: Now I am considering making these treats as well -- mmm...

Working on: A present for a pirate

Photo wall

Ok - Last Reception post, and back to our regularly scheduled program - which should, God willing, include some Halloween fun. Here are a few of my favorite pics from the photo wall.

(Looks like a 1960s yearbook pic)

As stated, the photo wall was entirely made by BT. He mounted a piece of plywood "chalkboard style" to give it steady legs to prevent it from being pushed over (no reports of anybody tripping over the legs, which was a concern as well).

(The best shots were when all the frames were filled. Check out that Dr. Pepper endorsement on the left!)

After painting the whole shebang, he cut out holes for the three large frames. He was worried he would accidentally cut the holes too big, but of course they were just right.

(The bride and groom)

Then, he added the wallpaper. Just for the record, Lowe's has an amazing section for wallpaper and wallpaper application supplies. Home Depot (at least our two local stores) seem to not be aware that wallpaper is back in vogue, and did not have any equipment. The wallpaper we used was vintage, and therefore a little brittle. BT worked so hard to make sure everything lined up, but with the ripping that was taking place at the ends, he had to just accept things the way they turned out. I am sure not one other person noticed the little imperfections that he could see.

(Some people were so creative!)

Next, we added framed wedding photographs from both sides of the family, including grandparents, parents, and siblings. We hot glued them on to avoid messing with screwing them in place and to allow for last minute additions. We were missing one picture, which bothered ME the whole night, but I have begrudgingly come to terms with how my husband's family operates.

(Sometimes you just want to strangle them!)

We also had a basket of props behind the photo booth.

I was glad that they were not over-used, and we ended up with just the right amount of goofy prop pictures.

(BT's sister and her fun loving family)

If we did this again, we would probably include a backdrop. It would have been nice to have better lighting or a better flash, but that was not in the budget. We will be setting up a creepified version of the photo wall in our front yard on Halloween for folks to take their own pictures, then will be listing it on Craigslist. I can see so many uses for this (wedding, reunion, company picnic) so I am inclined to think that if I put the right key words, it will most likely sell.

(us!)

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Recent favorite: I want to start making Hank more "fun food." So far we just have "dinosaur trees" (broccoli) and cookie cutter cut sandwiches.

Working on: Hank's b-day.