Countdown to Halloween Day #30- Halloween Freebies

Candy isn't the only thing that will be free tomorrow.   There are a lot of restaurants and stores giving away free stuff.


Krispy Kreme Doughnuts-  get a free doughnut when you wear your costume in store.  Offer only  Oct. 31st.

IHOP- Free Scary Pancake for kids on Halloween 7am-12pm

Panada Express- Free Kids Meal when kids wear costume in store.

Outback- Kids eat free with adult entree.

Don't forget that Sonic Drive-In has .50 corn dogs all day long on Halloween.

Chipotle has $3 Boouritos, bowls, salads, or tacos with costume, 4 pm to close.


If you have a Lego store nearby, stop in to get a free Monster Fighter key chain.

Countdown to Halloween day #27: Monster Mash

This is kind of a lazy countdown post.  It is cheesy and fabulous, and completely a Halloween must

Countdown to Halloween Day #26: Updating my Monster High Collection

Friday, I finally found  the last two Power Ghouls at Target.  I picked up Frankie as Voltageous and Toralei as Catastrphe.

My Target has been extremely slow to put these two dolls on the shelf.  I believe it is mainly because they overstocked on Spectra and Clawdeen.  Those two have been shelf warmers for months since their initial release.

This is one of my favorite sub-lines in the whole Monster High franchise.  These dolls are beautifully designed and well thought out.  It reminds me of the Wave 1 dolls that were first released.  They are a breath of fresh air to stale fashion dolls.  Sadly though, I think Monster High is getting a little stale.  I used to stalk the stores hardcore for them, but now I am just kind of ....meh.   I am tired of all the same rehashed characters. It is sad  because they have turned interesting characters into shelf warmers.   I would love to see some interesting new basic dolls.

I have updated my Monster High Collection post with my newest dolls.  It has been awhile since it has been updated.

Countdown to Halloween Day #25: Made Halloween cake pops

The other day, I posted about some Halloween items I picked up at the dollar store.   One of the items was a cake pop press.   The kids had been wanting to test it out.  It worked out perfectly  because I had bought 2 boxes store made cupcakes for their school Fall Festival.   Well, only one box survived.  As I was bringing in groceries, I dropped the second box.

The instructions say to crumble fresh cake and mix with 1/2 gtub of frosting.   I just recycled the cake and  the garish purple and green frosting that topped them.  Once I got it all mixed together, you have to chill your cake and frosting mixture.  After that was done, we made large balls of cake,( about the size of a doughnut hole) and press it into the cake press.


After a couple of test cake balls, I was surprised at how well my dollar store find worked.   It was really easy so I turned the process over to the kids.  They enjoyed the whole process.  Once the shapes are made it suggests chilling or freezing the cake.  We froze ours for about 30 minutes and that seemed to be enough.

I gave the kids some decorating icing tubes and let them decorate as they wanted.  They were thrilled and a few didn't even get decorated.

Countdown to Halloween #24: vintage halloween images

My oldest daughter has a fascination with witches.  I am not sure why.  She loves the Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz.   We have been collecting vintage images to print out.   I am not sure what we are going to make with them yet.  But they are really beautiful to look at.   These are a couple of our favorites.  

My newest Lego mini figures

I picked up 4 new Lego figures tonight.   I have been trying to find the Tiki, Gingerbread Man and Elf, but I just always seem to miss them.   Thank you Target for the fresh box on the shelf.

Finally! found a Hot Wheels Enterprise

Yesterday, while I was in Walmart I found 2 Hot Wheels Enterprise and an Arkham Asylum Batmobile.   I was shocked they were actually there!

 I don't collect Hot Wheels per se, but I do like the pop culture and retro collections.   I just never have much luck beating the Hot Wheels "enthusiasts" to the shelves.

Countdown to Halloween Day #23: Ghost in a Jar kids craft

This was a fun little craft that I made with my children this past weekend.  All you need is a jar, some lightweight fabric of gauze, spray, and a battery operated tea light.

Countdown to Halloween Day #22: pumpkin horror stories

Countdown to Halloween Day 21- Some Halloween $ store odds and ends

There is one particular dollar store here where I live that I just absolutely love!.  If you need it for a $1, they have it.  And, they have stuff you don't expect to find  for a $1 too.

I picked this up the other day at the dollar store.   I thought I would give the cake pop craze a try.   I have never made them but I know my kids will enjoy them.  
Worth a dollar?  Sure..  If they don't turn out, I am not out a lot.






I got these cute little sequined coin purses for my girls while I was there.    
My youngest is 2 and is obsessed with pumpkins this year.   Every time we pass a pumpkin patch or see them in the grocery store, she thinks we need to buy one.  She also has wanted to sleep with her little pumpkin.    I thought she would enjoy  this since she can carry it around and sleep with it, if need be.  

Countdown to Halloween #20- Couch to 5K zombie trainer

Since I had my miscarriage, I have had this overwhelming need to tackle and accomplish new experiences.   One thing that I have decided to do is to attempt to run a 5k.   I am not athletic in any way, shape, or form.  I have started slowly and the Cool Runnings website and  Couch to 5k app have been very helpful.

This time of year, there are always Zombie Runs and they have created an app to help you train for a zombie apocalypse.    November 2nd, we are going out for the Zombie Run Family Fun 1k.   It should be interesting and I am so excited about it.   I am not ready yet for the 5k, but I am starting small and working hard.

Countdown to Halloween #19 : Goodwill shopping for costume pieces and other finds!

We went shopping at the Goodwill for costume parts.  This year, my son has decided that he wants to be Two Face from Batman.  We originally were going to try to find clothing similar in design that we could cut apart and sew back together to get the two toned look.

The clothing selection was light at all of the stores in our area.  So we are trying something different.
The few pieces that we did find, we have decided that we would give fabric spray paint a try.    We found a white jacket that we should be able to tape off and spray one side black.   We will see how it works out.  I will post pictures of it later in the week, hopefully.


While we were there, we found some great finds!    I found 2 Ever After High Dolls.  Say what?!  I am guessing that these were sent by Target.   As you can see in the picture,  one of the boxes is jacked up.  The other box has a little damage, but it isn't terrible.

I am trying not to collect these dolls.  I really have enough with the Monster High dolls.  We already got Raven and Apple for our daughter.   Thankfully, she isn't as into these as she is the monsters. So, I may end up trading these.   They were $8 each and I said sold! considering one doll is $20.

The book selection was also particularly good this weekend.  But, I will save my book finds for another day.

More Shogun Warriors

It is funny how you get one toy and before you know it  ::poof:: you have a collection.  The Shogun Warriors are now officially a collection.

I few weeks ago, a co-worker gave me a Raydeen, which I posted about.  This past week,
I made a trade in a Facebook toy group and got these little guys. Giaking and Grendizer.   I traded off a couple of veteran stormtroopers to get these guys.
The both seem are good shape.  Giaking is missing one sticker on his chest.  They didn't come with any accessories.  Did they originally come with accessories?   I don't know, I am still learning about these.

I have these little guys currently displayed with my Transformer tribe.   Still looking for the perfect spot to display Raydeen.

Countdown to Halloween Day #18: Thanks to Pinterest, I want to make everything

Just a quick post for today.  I have a love/hate relationship with Pinterest.   I have found so many ideas for Halloween and absolutely no time to make anything.

I want this wreath for my door.

                                                                                 
  I want to make and eat these...

                                                                                            
















 I want to make these earrings....

Countdown to Halloween day# 17: more costume ideas, Couple's Edition

Are you a last minute costumer?  Here are a few more costume ideas courtesy of Pinterest.  



Guess Who?

Google Map Points

 The Colonel and a chick

Gustav Klimt- The Kiss

Countdown to Halloween #Day 16 Time for a little Thriller

It is time for some Thriller... Random dancing is encouraged...  Enjoy!

Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day

I am taking break from Countdown to Halloween.   Today is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Day.   I suffered a miscarriage last month and I am still going through the difficult process of grieving. While I am already blessed with children, it is and was an incredible loss.  My heart breaks for others who haven't had the joy of becoming a mother.    I am proud to be the mother of three beautiful children here on Earth and one beautiful angel in heaven.  Please help me celebrate an all too short life and honor the beautiful memory of my sweet baby.

Countdown to Halloween Day #14: Vintage Star Wars Halloween Costumes

For today's countdown, I thought I would share some of my vintage Star Wars costumes.   Growing up, I never had a store bought costume.  My aunt was great at sewing and she always made our costumes.   Looking at these, store bought costumes have come a long way.  But they aren't the same. These have a wonderful retro quality that has to be appreciated.

All 3 of these were Ebay purchases and have been in my collection for about 10-15 years.  I got all them very reasonably priced.  All were around $20 each.  I was checking prices on Ebay the other day and I think I got a good deal.  

All of the costumes were made by Ben Cooper, who was a Star Wars licensee from 77-83.  The costumes are pretty cheesy.  The outfits look like they were made out of vinyl table clothes paired with plastic masks that surprisingly survived all this time.  A couple of my costumes still have their original price tags ($4.99 ).  

C-3PO is the oldest in my collection.   The first Ben Cooper costumes released were Luke, Vader and C-3PO.   These costumes were a mix of vinyl and a light weight fabric.  You can see how the legs on my costumes are discolored a dark brown color.   On the bottom of the box, it also calls 3PO "Golden Robot".  I guess that was to help moms in the 70's get the right costume.  

My first Leia costume is "newer".  Often the original version of this Leia costume is found to be a tan color.  The vinyl version holds its original color   When I purchased it, it came in an Empire box.   From what  I have read about the history of the costumes, the original Leia dress was made all the way through "Return of the Jedi".    Which could explain why it came in an Empire box.  

The third costume I have is another example of a Leia costume.  It is the Hoth outfit but it came in a "Return of the Jedi" box.  But, I guess like the original Leia outfit other outfits lasted longer through the run.  It is a vinyl one piece costume with the mask.  This costume has also held up well, with no discoloration.   

There are several costumes that I would like to add to my collection.  Of course, anything R2-D2 makes the list.  But, I would also like to find an Admiral Ackbar, Wicket, and an early Vader costume.

Countdown to Halloween Day #13: The Walking Dead season premiere and Walking Dead Sketch Card

Today is an exciting day at our house!  My husband is thrilled that The Walking Dead is finally back on.  I personally am not the huge fan that he is, but I do try to watch a few episodes with him.

I had picked up some packs of "The Walking Dead  " comic cards the other day for my him.  We pulled an awesome sketch card.

So to all of you Walking Dead fans have a great evening and enjoy the new season.

Countdown to Halloween Day #12: October 12th, International Scream Day

Today, is International Scream Day.   Now the idea is that all citizens of the world are invited to go outdoors and scream their frustrations away. 

But, in honor of Halloween, why not have a moment of blood curdling loudness for 30 seconds. Make that little skin thing that hangs in the back of your throat  vibrate, and your eyes should be bulging while you let out your fear and frustrations and give the world your finest scream horror movie scream.  

Countdown to Halloween Day #11: "Useless Pumpkin Trivia for $200 .."

Since pumpkins are the poster child for this time of year.  I thought I would lay out some pumpkin flavored trivia.  Have fun and hopefully, you will be able to use one of these trivial nuggets this month.   The answers will be posted at the bottom of the page.  And  I would like to give a shout out to my local Fuddruckers Restaurant for this month's table top trivia pages for the inspiration.


Pumpkin Trivia for $200...

1.  The largest pumpkin pie ever made was over five feet in diameter and weighed over how many pounds?

2.  Who brought the tradition of pumpkin carving to America?

3.  How was pumpkin used for pies in early colonial times?

4.  What food family does pumpkin belong too?

5.  Native Americans used pumpkin seeds for food and what else?

6.  What is the only continent you can't grow pumpkins on?

7.  Are pumpkin flowers edible?

8.  The largest pumpkin ever grown weighed how much?

9.  What percentage of a pumpkin is water?

10.  Pumpkin was used to cure what type of injury?








Answers: 1. 350 pounds, 2. Irish, 3. as an ingredient for pie crust, 4. squash, 5. medicine, 6. Antarctica, 7. yes, 8. 1,140 , 9. 90%, 10.  snake bites

Countdown to Halloween Day #10 : In Search of the Great Pumpkin

Last Saturday, we went to a local farm to find our 10th annual Great Pumpkin.  This was a tradition that my husband and I started when we first got married.  My husband had never really been to a pumpkin patch before.

 Each year, we head out to the farm to find the biggest free standing pumpkin we can pick ourselves.

The local little farm that we like to visit was crazy busy.  But, the weather was beautiful and it was the first weekend that the pumpkin patch was open.  We always try to get there for opening weekend.  We've learned not to be pumpkin procrastinators.

We think this is the most sincere pumpkin patches in our area.  And every year,  our great pumpkin rises out of here to come to our home.





This is our pumpkin for this year.  It isn't as large as some we have gotten in years past.  But it is beautiful and looks great decorating our front porch.   If it is anything like last year, it will probably hang around until Valentine's Day.

Countdown to Halloween Day #7 : Going to the Fair UPDATE

I posted earlier in the week about taking my entry to the local county fair.   You can read more about it here.    I am happy to report that my protest American Gothic pins brought home a first place.  And, two of my students got honorable mentions, so I am really proud of them.

I am still after a best in show....maybe next year....

Countdown to Halloween Day #9 : Tips for living in a Haunted House.

I personally don't live in a haunted house, but I know someone who did.    My husband thinks I am crazy for believing it, but he has never visited the house in question.   My aunt and uncle and their 4 children lived in a haunted house.

They purchased the house and a large amount of land in the  60's.   Over a few years time they did renovations and added a major addition to the existing house.  They also  built an in ground  pool, guest house, and barn.  After all of this was complete, that is when strange things began to occur.  Over the years, my aunt always joked about living in her haunted house, but would never really talk about anything that she saw or experienced.     Her daughter is the same way, to this day she will not talk about anything she saw or experienced in that house.

My cousins are all older then I am, so when Anne got married I was rather young.  I would say around 5 or 6 years old.   I remember hearing family members whispering about her wedding gifts getting mysteriously moved around her room or they would find gifts in strange places.  And I vaguely remember them talking about seeing something in a closet.  But everything was always kept very hush, hush.   I also remember family members talking about a strange motorcycle that would drive toward the house and then disappear.

I never experienced seeing anything like that, but  I was always afraid to go to the back part of the house by myself.  The floor plan of the home was open, if you entered through the front door, you could go left into the kitchen, right to the bedrooms, or straight ahead to a large living room.   I never liked going back to the bedroom/bathroom area of the house.   Once you got back there,  you always felt that you were being watched and that something heavy was pressing on you.  There was a presence you could  and it wasn't warm and fuzzy.   That part of the house was also always colder then the other parts of the house.

who ya gonna call?

    I was checking out HGTV's website and came across tips for living in a haunted house.   Their suggestions are:  don't panic, do your research, and call the Ghostbusters. I suppose that is sound advice.   

My aunt and her family lived and thrived in a haunted house for over 30 years.    They sold the house in the 90's because  they didn't need such a large home anymore and decided to downsize.   What is funny, is that they sold the home to another family that we know.  The house again went through some remodeling and occasionally, they will mention having a strange feeling in the house. 

I would love to have the house investigated by a paranormal investigator.  I truly believe something is there.

Countdown to Halloween Day #8: More costume ideas

Here are a couple of ideas that I found on pinterest.  


                            Sea Monkey Family!   Hell Yeah!! Who doesn't love Sea Monkeys?

Bob Ross, Master of Happy Trees

                                                              Sheldon and Amy

Countdown to Halloween Day #7- Going to the fair

I thought I would throw this into the countdown because going to the county fair can be kind of scary.  I think the local fair here compares to a Saturday night at Walmart.  Yeah, it can be that bad.

Again this year, the fair is sponsoring a bowling buddies contest.  It is a contest were you get a used  bowling pin and decorate it.   Last year was the inaugural event and I am still little angry that Admiral Ackbar didn't even get an honorable mention.   
Squidy awesomeness got beat out by a craptastical farmer.  The picture below, I lifted off the fair website.  You see that farmer with  the white ribbon.  THAT THING got 3rd place!

  Anyway... I am over it.. not really...  I still feel like I was robbed.  

Craptastical Farmer

This year, I decided that I would be more ambitious.  I also decided that if they wanted farmers and homespun fiesta then that is what they would get.  I  recreated "American Gothic" by Grant Wood.   Nothing says homespun, corn fed, Amurica then that.






American Gothic is probably one of my favorite paintings.  I appreciate the symbolism contained within the painting and the history behind it.  I wanted to challenge myself since portraiture is not one of my strong suits.    Perhaps it wasn't my best idea.  I am very critical of the finished product.  I think Ackbar by far is better.  Still, I am standing behind my work.  I also have to admit to the fact that I did procrastinate hard core this year.  So, that doesn't help matters .





I think that they are better then last year's third place winner.   I would like to see them get a "best in show" but honestly I would be happy just to have them place.    They got dropped off Sunday and the fair opens today.   Wednesday, I planning to go and I will be able to update everyone how they place.

Star Wars Reads Day

I thought I would share a quick post about Star Wars Reads Day.   Saturday was the 2nd Star Wars Reads Day.   The event was started to encourage children and adults to discover the joy of reading through Star Wars books.  The event had a great turn out!  A group of us lent our support to a local event.   Being in costume most of the day, I didn't get to take many pictures.   I am thankful for the few pictures that I do have.  

It's a Frap!   Ackabar (aka- me)  after a day of trooping needed a frap.

Countdown to Halloween Day #6: Harry Potter Inspired treats for Halloween

 I said this with my Monster book tutorial and I will say it again, Harry Potter is huge at our house.  I love it because the treats that the wizarding world enjoy are truly magical!   So here are a few treats that we are making to share with family and friends this month.

I found this tutorial on Pinterest that teaches you how to make Sorting Hat caramels.  It is a video tutorial so it's nice to watch and work at the same time.  I was very pleased with my first attempt at making them.

The picture here is one of mine.  I think they are adorableas cupcake decoration or even just by themselves.   Here is a list of ingredients needed to make Sorting Hat Caramels.

-1 bag of Brach's Milk Maid Caramels.   Each hat uses 2 caramels.

-tooth pick or small skewer

-rolling pin

-wax paper





My other favorite treat to make is Chocolate  Frogs.

Equipment:
Microwave
Wooden spatula
1-2 Plastic Frog Molds   ( I purchased a frog candy mold from Amazon.com.  The mold I purchased makes 8 frogs at a time.)
Microwave safe mixing bowl

Ingredients:
One 12 oz. package of semi-sweet chocolate chips or a 12 oz. package of white chocolate chips
rice krispie cereal

We melted the chocolate in the microwave.  Check and stirring every 15-30 seconds until smooth and melted.




I used cooking spray to coat the molds.   Then we spooned melted chocolate into the molds.    I gently tapped the molding tray on the counter to remove any air  bubbles.

After the molds were filled.  We placed them in the refrigerator to cool.  Once they were completely cooled, we popped them out of the mold.


We made another batch using the white chocolate chips and some fruity pebbles cereal for some extra color.  We played around with the texture on these.  We tried crushing the cereal and sprinkled it in the molds.  Then we did more, where we crushed the cereal and add it to the melted chocolate. 



The final result was a plate of chocolate frogs that any wizard would be happy to snack on.

Hope you enjoy these fun Halloween treats.