Cozy Fuzzy Pumpkin Head

I've just got to share this adorable hat I whipped up for Kat last month!

What do you think? I'm pretty proud of it! I like how it has a ridgy knitted look, but it's all crochet!

I found & followed the pattern HERE at Nothing's Creative Anymore. I was able to crochet & finish it up in a couple of days! Sarah's pattern is sized for an average sized woman's noggin. Even though I made it for my little girl, I followed the pattern so she can wear it for many Fall seasons to come!

The sun was not cooperating with me, so I had to do some funky picnik editing!

Hmmm...watching the leaves fall!

Here she is, excited about the curly vine!

Ahhhh...finally a normally lit photo! 

I've gotten a zillion comments from people out and about! You can tell it's big on her, but I think it sort of adds to the cute-ness!

Snackin' It Old School

Halloweenie Treats don't get any more basic than this!

Nutter Butters + Melted White Chocolate + Mini Choco Chips

Enlist your 4 & 8 year old to dip the cookies and your  2year old to add the eyes.

Booooooo-tifully Delicious!

Couple Costume...

...that doesn't involve me dressing up like a pole dancer!

Really. ALL the costumes out there to buy for women are some sort of crazy male fantasy and cost a fortune. Even Strawberry Shortcake. Seriously. I'd never be able to look my daughter's doll in the eye again!

So what's a conservative & thrifty lady to do when she's invited to a costume party?

10 points if your answer was: Get Creative and DIY!

That's how the hubs and I ended up looking like this last year at our good friend's Halloween Party!

Can you guess what we are???

I'm a Tree Hugger and my DH is a TREE!

It's not the best photo (I tend to crop out my jiggly parts). But here's the idea...

On my Tree:

Brown Sweatpants (trunk)

Green Shirt (leaves that haven't turned color yet)

Three Fall Garlands wrapped and pinned around the hubs

= FREE!

On me:

Cargo Pants

Flowered Doc Martins (from college)

My Dad's oldest flannel shirt

1970's head scarf (borrowed from my mom)

Hair done up in tiny braids

Picket Sign saying "I make Oxygen! What's your superpower?" taped to a paper towel roll

= FREE

Mr. Bones

As I'm frantically throwing together...patiently and calmly making our Halloween Costumes this year, I was reviewing LAST year's photos. I realized I never shared Louie's Skeleton Costume and that's what I'm going to do now!

Creepy, right?!?

I may or may not have slept with one eye opened last Halloween!

The costume part was easy enough! I found the instructions HERE on Family Fun. Then I bought a black sweatsuit and I even found skeleton gloves for a dollar at Wal-Mart. I printed and cut out the template onto white contact paper and stuck it to the sweatsuit.

Louie tried it on and half the bones promptly fell off. Ugh.

So I re-printed out the templates and traced them onto white felt. Then I cut out all the bones (again) and hot glued them onto the sweatsuit. Worked like a charm! The template included a mask, but I'm more of a fan of face paint.

Start with an incredibly handsome and impatient boy. Paint his face (minus the eye sockets) white. Remind him 100 times to not lick his lips. When he licks his lips anyway, give him a sip of water to get that, "Super gross make up taste" out of his mouth.

Then I eye-balled a nose hole (socket?). Extended his mouth out and added some teeth. And a skull just isn't a skull without a major crack.

Color in that nose hole/socket. He's thrilled. Can you tell? 

I added black around his eyes (but not too close!) and a little cleft in his chin.

Taaa Daaaaah!

To finish off the look I put a black stocking cap on him to cover up those Pinky Alive Looking Ears.

Ghostie Footsies!

Booooooo...those are some Scary Steppers trying to come in our window! This is a super cute & fun & EASY way to make a Halloween decoration/keepsake. This is also a family tradition and our front door is COVERED with these Ghostly Prints...eight for Louie, four for J. and this is Kat's second Spookable.

I snagged this idea from a very good friend, Kathy. Back about a decade ago, I was helping her out in her at-home daycare. She did this project with the kids and I thought they were so cute. A couple of years later, Louie entered the scene and we've done this every year since!

You need: Black construction paper, white paint, a black marker & some (willing & ticklish) feet! That's ALL! Paint the foot bottoms and step on the paper. Let the paint dry and then draw on the face you want. Google eyes would be cute, too. Then I cut around the foot print. Taa Daa! Instant Cute Spookiness! We also laminate them so we can hang them up every year.