Halloween Costumes

This year I decided to go way out of my way for the kids' Halloween costumes.  I made all three myself.  I started a couple of months early, but because of that, I procrastinated in actually finishing them in a timely manner.  Sigh.  Maybe next year I will start early AND finish early.  It's so much more stressful when it gets dragged out for months.  I was still able to finish the costumes a week or two early though.

River's costume was the most difficult.  The pattern was very poorly written, and I actually had to solicit help from a friend at one point after struggling for DAYS to interpret some instructions.  In the end we determined they were completely wrong.  We had to rewrite them so they would actually work the way I needed them to.  I finished the costume soon after.
I LOVE it.  The whole thing is made of velour.  It's so fluffy and wonderful.  He loves it too.  When he wore it to the ward party I didn't have him wear any glasses, and he was often mistaken for a turkey.  Halloween day he wore glasses we'd made from pipe cleaners.  It really did complete the costume.  Everyone knew he was an owl!  Yay!

Britta's costume is actually very appropriate.  She is always prancing around like a fairy princess.  It was fun to make her this giant skirt, though I have to say I wish I hadn't made it quite so huge.  It's going to be hard for her to wear this one just to play in.  It was my first tutu, and I didn't know exactly how it was going to go.  I know for next time I can just buy less tulle and it will still work great.
I also really like the little velour leotard I made to go with it.  Britta is just adorable in it!  The wings, while not totally homemade, may as well have been.  I spent a ton of time mending them.  They were a pair we have had for awhile and the kids had done quite a number on them.  I'm just thankful I was able to salvage.

Maddy has been telling me since last Halloween that this year she wanted to be Word Girl.  I had to make up my own costume by looking at a picture online.  It was more challenging than I hoped.  I had to adjust sizing once.  I think it turned out really cute.  She loved it.  I loved all the catch phrases she used while wearing her costume.  I had her wear her pajamas under the costume because I was afraid she would be cold.  It ended up being perfect weather, so I felt bad for making her wear extra layers.

Cameron and I only dressed up once -- for an adults only party Saturday night.  We went as pioneers and wore our clothes from the Trek.  It was fun.  I didn't feel bad about not dressing up the other nights -- especially with how much work I put into the kids' costumes.  I enjoy myself a lot just watching them run around having fun being dressed up.  (No, I am NOT a party pooper!)

Pumpkin Carving

One of the fun American Halloween traditions that couldn't be forgotten by our family this year is carving pumpkins.  Last year we went to the pumpkin patch and paid way more than we should have for our pumpkins.  This year we went to the grocery store and paid about $4 each.

We just got the kids pumpkins since Mom and/or Dad ends up carving them anyhow.  I have to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of pumpkin carving.  This year and last especially were difficult because there are SO many mosquitoes out!  I am a mosquito magnet, so I try to avoid being outside for too long in the fall.

Cameron headed up the family carving this year.  He rolled out butcher paper to begin and had the kids design their pumpkins by drawing the faces first on the paper.  It was too cute to watch them each ponder over what their pumpkin was going to look like.

Once they had their ideas drawn out, the carving began.  For little hands it is very difficult to get all that goop out from inside the pumpkin.  I'm pretty sure Cameron did most of the scooping for them.  I was safe inside the house preparing dinner.

The actual carving went pretty much as usual.  Cameron carved River and Britta's with the designs they had drawn out.  For the first time this year though, Maddy carved her own!  We have some little pumpkin carving tools that are a bit safer to use than a normal knife, so Cameron supervised while she cut out her jack-o-lantern's face.  She did a darn good job.

Once the carving was all done everyone went inside the house, and I came outside.  I grabbed a bowl and laboriously gathered each and every pumpkin seed for roasting.  I continuously had to blow mosquitoes out of my face, but I'm pretty sure I was able to accomplish the task without a single bite!  That is quite the feat!

The kids were thrilled to put their jack-o-lanterns on display on our front porch.  We light a tea light candle in each and they added quite well to the Halloween feel of the neighborhood.  I'm glad we don't have to worry about them needing to last weeks before Halloween though.  I'm always sad to see their works of art shrivel up as they get old.  These pumpkins will be thrown out (or composted) in a day or two!

Brushy Creek Ward Fall Festival

Our church ward put on a great party for the Halloween/Fall season.  I really find that I prefer parties that have food.  I mean really, YUM.  There just happened to be a ton of food at this party, too.  I had been craving chili for weeks, but hadn't gone to the trouble to make it myself.  Now I didn't have to!

The second best part of the party was that the kids got to dress up in their costumes for the first time.  All three of them LOVE their costumes this year.  It's always fun to get all suited up and run around playing in your Halloween costume.  For me though I just liked watching the kids in theirs.

After we all ate and ate until the chili was practically gone, Cameron decided he would participate in the cake eating contest.  Luckily it was just a contest to see who could eat a cupcake fastest.  He did not win.  Cam prefers to savor his foods.  He gets an A for effort though.

At the end of the party we all made our way out to the parking lot for Trunk or Treating.  The kids got a good amount of candy (that we pooled all together and had as our family candy bowl).  Cam and I observed how efficient trunk or treating is compared to trick or treating.  You can tell right away who has candy, and they're only a few feet away from the next person passing out the stuff.  Very nice.  Though, it's definitely not as traditional or fun as going house to house.

It was a lot of fun to get together with people from church to celebrate.  I like a good party - especially when I don't have to clean up, and there's free food!  I will definitely be in attendance next year as well.

Trick or Treat Bag

In addition to making all the kids' Halloween costumes myself this year, I wanted to make each of them a trick or treat bag to match.  Unfortunately, sometimes my ambition is greater than my ability (or time).

I worked on River's bag for days.  It was more intricate and time consuming than I had anticipated.  With my limited stamina these days, I was a bit concerned when the bag still wasn't finished the day before our church trunk or treat party.  I had a feeling constructing an additional two bags for the girls was going to be more than my stress level could bare.

I was able to finish River's bag the morning of the trunk or treat, but my afternoon was booked.  I decided it is a noble thing to admit my limitations.  Instead of fancy homemade bags, my girls have plastic jack-o-lantern buckets this year.  Now, mind you, I did cut out a felt circle and glued a felt lightning bolt on it then glued both to Maddy's bucket to represent Captain Huggy Face.  She was pretty happy about it, thank goodness.

Sigh.  C'est la vie.  I'm actually a bit proud of myself for not overdoing it.  Isn't River's bag neat though?  Perhaps next year I will have the time and energy to make all of the kids' bags.

International Nacho Day

October 21st is International Nacho Day.  That also happened to be date night.  To celebrate the occasion Cameron made the kids and I a HUGE (and I mean HUGE) pan full of the best nachos ever.  Seriously.  He outdid himself.  While we ate he told us the story of how nachos were first made.  If you want to know that story you'll have to google it.  I'm too busy remembering the nachos.

I love nachos.  I love FANCY nachos especially.  My dad makes a great nacho.  I have to say though, Cameron could give him a run for his money!  He even made his own special cheese sauce out of pepper jack cheese (among other things).  I think that was the best part.  Seriously YUM.  He's made these one other time since that night.  He made them without the ground beef.  I think I might have liked it better without -- not saying it wasn't fabulous with everything though!

I think everyone should eat nachos.  I can't believe there was ever a time without nachos.  Never again.  Thank you nachos.

Beautiful Pretzels

The other day I made a special delicious treat for my family and for some friends.  Chocolate dipped pretzels with sprinkles.  I am not sure I have ever done them before to be honest.  I'm not sure why!  They are so easy and so yummy!

Every time I think of dipped pretzels I think of my friend Ruth.  Actually, when I think of a lot of crafty things I think of her (crafty as in artistic, not as in devious).  I think she's the first person I saw make them.  Thankfully she also gave me some!  That's a good friend.

I bought a bottle of various sprinkles, and I used ALL of the best kinds.  I was mad that it took so many sprinkles, but glad they looked so good.  I love autumn colors.

They were delicious.  Next time though, I'm going to dip them in caramel before the chocolate.  YUM.  Seriously YUM.

Halloween Painting

It's amazing how doing a craft with my kiddos makes me feel like a better mother.  I've had these wooden Halloween cutouts since last Halloween.  We didn't have a chance to use them last year.  I was not about to let another year go by without pulling them out.  So, today I did just that!

I got the little table covered with newspaper and laid out all the paints I had.  It was fun to see all the colors.  I then went around and we picked a handful to pour of bit of onto a paper plate.  All the preparation was good for the anticipation -- for the most part.

Painting with the kids is hilarious.  I have a 3 year old, a 5 year old, and an 8 year old.  They all have very different crafting styles.  I like them all.  I enjoy each one.

Britta is 3 years old.  She will be 4 in January.  She has come a long way by way of crafting.  When they are super young it's not really a great idea to have more than a piece of paper for painting on.  Luckily she is old enough now that she can paint a piece of wood without just painting everywhere.  The thing is though, she paints very very quickly.  Her first wooden cutout was a pumpkin.  Even though she used every color on the table (there were 8), it still took her around 2 minutes to paint the entire thing and declare herself, "done!"  The second figure was a cat.  That one only managed to get paint of a single color: pink.  Of course.  I went in afterward and traced the lines for her so you could tell it was a cat.  I actually really like how it turned out.  Very "Britta" if I do say so.

River is 5 1/2.  He is now, and always has been meticulous when it comes to art.  He is very thorough.  If something is colored in, it is colored in solidly.  He loves bold colors and broad strokes.  Paining was no different.  He took quite a long time painting with each color he used.  His blue Frankenstein was awesome.  I helped him by tracing the face on once it dried.  He also painted a ghost.  It was completely white.  He put a few coats on it and now I can't even see the lines underneath in order to outline the features.  I'll have to figure out how to do that.

Madalyn, my 8 1/2 year old, just loves anything artistic.  She is a true artist at heart (in both good and not great ways).  You can see how much she enjoys creating and decorating just by watching her do it.  I hope that never changes.  She's pretty good, too.  I'm often impressed when her projects are complete.  Unfortunately, she was using a large paint brush for her first cutout, a pumpkin, and had a hard time keeping it neat.  Thankfully I noticed before she got too far into her witch cutout, and I let her use the brush I had been using.  That one turned out much nicer.

It was fun to paint along with the kids.  I toyed with a number of different ways to decorate my vampire.  I decided to go traditional.  I toyed with making his pale skin sparkle instead of his hair and suit, but the sparkle paint I had was just black.  Sigh.  The Twilight references will have to be made elsewhere.

It was a very festively Halloween-y time.  We put on some Halloween cartoons afterward as well.  I love holidays.  I love celebrating them with the small things, like crafts and foods.  The kids really enjoy it, and it makes me feel like I'm doing a good job.

Cinnamon Goodness

My mother's cinnamon roll recipe is the most delicious thing on the planet.  They are giant, and fluffy, and sinfully rich.  They also take an eternity to make.  Also, the way the recipe was written (via email from my mother about 6 years ago) you would have better luck building an atomic warhead than making the recipe successfully.

I don't fault her.  Writing down instructions for a recipe you have memorized is a tricky thing.  You know how it's supposed to go.  You know how much water to add to the yeast.  You know how thick the dough should be when you're done mixing.  Things like that can be difficult to explain if you're not standing right there watching.

I have been craving these babies for the past little while and finally remembered earlier enough in the day yesterday to give them a go.  I started in the 2 o'clock hour I believe, and they were done around 7pm.  Yeah.  Eternity.  But oh so worth it.

With her permission I'm going to try to interpret the recipe and post it here for you to enjoy.  Deep Breath.  Here goes.

This recipe makes 3 or 4 dozen LARGE cinnamon rolls.  Feel free to half the recipe if you need.

Ingredients:
Cinnamon Rolls
1 cup raisins
1 1/2 cups milk
3 squares butter (divided)
4 1/2 tsp (or 2 pkgs) yeast
1 1/3 c sugar (divided)
about 1/2 c water
1 tsp salt
4 eggs
8 cups flour (I've used bread flour and all purpose flour)
cinnamon
sugar

Icing:
1 sqaure butter (1/4 lb)
1 Tbsp vanilla
dash of salt
dash of cream of tartar (optional)
1 1/2 lb powdered sugar
milk (a few Tbsp)

Instructions:
1. Melt 2 squares (or half a pound) of butter in 1 1/2 cups of milk.  Set aside to cool.

2. Put raisins in a small sauce pan and cover with water.  Bring to a boil.  Drain raisins and set aside to cool.

3. Combine 1/3c sugar and yeast in a bowl and cover with approximately 1/2 cup of water.  Let sit to proof while milk cools (or about 10 minutes)

hint: I've been known to put the milk and butter into a bowl and stick it in the freezer to cool it off faster.

4. Combine yeast mixture with cooled milk mixture, salt, and eggs.

5.  Mix liquid mixture into in 4 cups of flour along with the remaining 1c of sugar ( I use my Bosch.  I recommend a stand mixer of some sort, but if you have to mix by hand just be sure you have a BIG bowl and a long handled spoon or mixer).

6.  Mix in remaining 4 cups flour.  The dough should be firm but sticky.  If it's too sticky add a bit more flour.  If it's too firm, add a bit of water until it's the right texture.  Mix in raisins.

7.  Cover your bowl, place in a warm place, and let raise until nearly doubled (1 1/2 to 2 hours).

8. Divide dough in half and place half on floured or oiled board or counter and kneed a little.  Roll into a rectangle about 1/2 inch thick.

9.  Spread half a stick (4 Tbsp) softened butter onto rolled out dough (covering entire thing).

10. sprinkle a layer of each cinnamon and sugar onto dough -- be generous this is what makes the cinnamon rolls tasty!

11. Roll the dough up lengthwise (so your roll is the longest), and pinch the edge to the dough.

12.  Use dental floss to cut into slices (get a long piece of floss, slide it under the dough holding each end of the floss, cross the ends over one another and pinch the slices off).

13 Place slices onto greased cookie sheets.

14. Repeat with other half of dough.

15.  Place cookie sheets in a warm place and cover.  Let raise for 2 to 3 hours or until nearly doubled.

16.  Bake at 350F for 10 to 12 minutes or until barely browned.  Let stand 5 minutes before icing (be sure to frost while cinnamon rolls are still warm, but not hot).

Making Icing:

• Add softened square of butter, vanilla, dash of salt, and dash of cream of tartar (optional).  
• Gradually beat in powdered sugar.  Add milk until desired consistency is reached (it should be a frosting consistency as the warm cinnamon rolls will melt the icing a bit).

These babies are awesome.  We enjoyed them as a family while playing Uno for Family Game Night.  AH-MAY-ZING.  I'm warning you though, they are super rich.  You will have plenty to share!  Also be sure you have enough ice cold milk to go with your cinnamon goodness.

Cupcake-a-Doodle-Do!

The event we took the kids to for a fun Saturday activity was called Cupcake-a-Doodle-Do.  I didn't even make up that name.  It was held at Central Market in Austin.  It was a free (though donations accepted) activity put on by Theater Action Project. 

We were originally going to take the kids to Six Flags for the day.  However, instead of the fun family friendly Halloween decorations we were hoping for, after a bit of research we are pretty sure it's more of a "scare the crap out of everyone" type of deal.  Since I have no desire to be scared myself, and have even less desire to try to comfort my three young children through something like that, we decided to find an alternative.  Enter Cupcakes.

I have to admit I was SO TIRED all day long.  We'd stayed up late the night before, and I was grumpy.  I was having a hard time with patience and optimism.  However, I am a HUGE believer in family time.  I wasn't about to let Cameron take the kids to this fun event without me.  Even though it was crowded and a bit uncomfortable for me as a result, I'm really we took the kids together.

There were quite a few fun activities for the kids.  We started out by letting them watch a puppet show type thing about Santa and a dragon.  Ironically the man presenting from the Theatre Action Project looked a lot like Santa himself.  He was great, and the kids were glued for the time they sat watching.

River's favorite thing was the giant parachute.  He spent quite a bit of time running around underneath while the girls' did crafts.  He's been all about the physical activities lately.  There was quite a bit of wind, but that just seemed to add to the fun with the parachute.  I finally coaxed him away after probably half an hour.

The girls each did a couple of crafts.  My favorite thing they made was a paper bag puppet.  There were lots of cute things for them to decorate with.  Both were very proud of their creations.  They also made some "cupcakes" with cupcake wrappers and puff balls with glitter.  They were cute, too.

The kids also spent a little bit of time playing on a little playground there.  It was pretty fun looking.  There were a TON of kids.  It was still fun for them though.  I was glad they were given the chance to run around a play for a bit.

There was a cupcake sampling/judging portion, but we found it difficult to get the cupcakes.  Ultimately we got 2 normal sized cupcakes and 2 mini cupcakes to share among the 5 of us.  It might not have been so bad if we'd gotten all 4 at once, but they were spread over about a 10 minute period.  Next time, I'm bringing my own cupcakes (only half joking).

Ultimately the event was a bit crowded for my taste.  I'm glad we went, but it wasn't my favorite thing.  I prefer a bit less chaos, and a lot more cupcakes.