Ian is in preschool now. I know I can’t believe it either.
His school is having little Halloween parties on two days. That way everyone gets to participate, since it is preschool, not everyone goes everyday. The day that he gets to attend, Wed., is my day off! That means I get to go too! Whoo Hoo!
The great thing about him going to preschool at a private school with about twenty students is that I can make treats for the kids!
Christine (I Dig Pinterest) made caramel popcorn and then poured melted Caramel Apple Taffy over it and accented with candy eyes. (For her recipe click on the picture above)
I just knew this would be the treat I wanted make for the kids at school. I thought about just putting some in little plastic bags, but realized that is a bit too simple for me.
So I designed these popcorn boxes.
I used the graphic from a couple of Halloween kits from Just So Scrappy.
The PDF file has two pages to print on cardstock or other heavy-duty paper. Each page is for two sides of the popcorn box. Simple cut each out and glue/tape them together then secure the bottom (download includes instructions).
I love playing in the water, being on a boat or just sitting outside reading a book. I love the heat.
Growing up I always said I was born in the wrong region. This area is not known for it’s nice weather.
I always get depressed when summer ends and the fall, meaning constant rain, begins. Fall also brings weakened immune systems, the flu, bronchitis, and always being cold. Have I mentioned how much I hate being cold?
Well, I will now. I hate being cold! It is the worst. OK, I know, there is really no such thing as cold, only the absence of heat. Just another reason why I love summer; HEAT!
This year is a little harder cause fall also means my baby boy turned one! And Ian started school! They are growing up right before my eyes!
Here is the kicker. I love the holidays that come with the cold weather months. And I couldn’t possible spend a Christmas in an area that doesn’t require me to wear a winter coat. Or where you don’t have to wear a layer of thermal and waterproof gear under your Halloween costume.
I know crazy right?
I haven’t always LOVED Halloween; I have always enjoyed it, but never really loved it. Well I do now!
Not just the costumes but all the decorations and fun things. It is another holiday where creative juices don’t just flow, they burst the dam with tsunami sized waves.
This is even more apparent now that we all have Pinterest. I can’t believe all the great decorating and costume ideas I have found on there.
Both last year and this year I have let Ian pick out his costumes. We do this while it is still summer, because if it has to be made, my mom doesn’t want to make it at the last-minute. I am absolutely amazed how after he makes a decision about his costume he sticks with it. For months! Let me remind you that he is three. It doesn’t matter how many times we look at costumes, once he made up his mind, it is set.
Since Sid is a year old and can’t make these kinds of choices on his own, I picked his costume. And of course it is in theme with Ian’s. They are going to be so cute!
Even as I am writing this I am looking forward to all the wonderful things we will be doing this fall and winter. And I am getting happy and excited. It doesn’t hurt that today the sun is shining through my window, even if I am freezing.
With not as much sadness as I would have thought, I am saying goodbye to summer and hello to fall. Even if it means I have to deal with constant rain, wetness and cold. Even if it means putting away the bikes, pools and lawn chairs and bring out our winter clothes and rain boots.
I don’t usually do family Halloween cards, but this year I had to.
Ian has had a pair of skeleton jammies ever since he was a baby. Let me be more clear, each year he gets a pair of skeleton jammies. He hasn’t had the same pair.
He absolutely loves them and wears them all year-long.
Baby Sid now gets his hand-me-downs, I know the plight of the second child, therefore he now has skeleton jammies too.
Ian really likes it when they both wear the skeleton jammies together. So when I got these adorable pictures of them matching, I just knew I had to make a card for Halloween.
I used a quick-page from my favorite digital scrapbook designer, Just So Scrappy, and made these cards that I ordered from Shutterfly.
When Ian was born during spring break, which is in March, I was sad he couldn’t ever have a pool party at my mom’s house. Well unless everyone has wet suits.
Then Sid was due in mid-Sept. and I thought for sure he would be early and was excited cause we could have a pool party/BBQ for his first birthday.
I was wrong and he wasn’t early, but right on time, he was born on his namesake’s birthday. So when his first birthday was approaching I decided to have his party on the first Saturday after the Labor Day holiday. In hopes that the weather would still be nice that early in Sept.
I decided on a beach theme; melding a luau, surfer and underwater theme.
As usual I spent a lot of time on Pinterest finding inspiration. I can’t believe how creative people are with food!
I got one of my hubby’s old surfboards down and sat Baby Sid on it for some pictures for his invitations.
The picture for Sid’s invitation
For the decorations I used five digital scrapbook kits from Just So Scrappy.
I of course had to make a “Happy Birthday Baby Sid” banner for the gazebo on my mom’s deck. I also made some triangle and circle bunting banners.
“Happy Birthday Sid”
Bunting
I also made an “I am 1” banner for Sid’s high chair.
Highchair bunting and The Birthday Boy
I saw these Jelly Fish made out of paper lanterns and thought they would be perfect for hanging in the gazebo.
Jelly Fish
My mom collects mugs, and has a wall of mugs in her dinning room. Yes a WALL of mugs, which holds the ones she doesn’t want used that often. Cause there are more in her kitchen. This is only a problem when I am trying to take pictures of our food table and/or cake.
This time I decided to make a back drop to hide the mugs. I made the “Surf’s Up” banner and glued it to cardboard taping the crape paper behind it along with some circles taped to ribbon and the blue “Happy Birthday” garland.
Backdrop and Cake
Let’s talk about THIS cake. Not only was it adorable, with the little fondant boy to match the invitations, but it was DELICIOUS!!! My Auntie made the cake, she does all our cakes. It was vanilla with an orange cream filling. Yes it tasted like a dreamsicle ice cream bar. And yes it was dreamlike and I probably could have eaten the whole cake. By. My. Self.
The Cake table
The Cake!
We made some fun beach themed food. My mom hand dipped the Bugles in white chocolate to make sweet/salty shark teeth. I bought the white powdered sugar doughnuts and pipped on frosting to make life preservers. Using frosting we turned Nutter Butter Cookies into flip-flops. The oyster pearls are Sixlets and Bubble Gum that I bought at the craft store in the wedding section.
Shark Teeth, Life Preservers, Flip Flop Cookies, Oyster Pearls
My nieces decorated Jello cups with Teddy Graham, Swedish Fish and Gummy Life Savers. My sister and nieces then made a beach scene on a platter for more fun edible decorations. Brown Sugar was used for all the beaches and sand.
Of course I had to have food tag tents, how else would people know what they are eating? My sister came up with some witty little names for the dishes.
Food Tags
The menu included
Puffer Fish Pizza Puffs; Three Cheese or Pepperoni
I made this sign to hang on the front of my mom’s house.
Beach Access Sign
I also made this photo collage of pictures from Baby Sid’s first year.
A year of photos collage
Baby Sid woke up from his nap right before the party and came down to see the house decorated. He was so excited! I wish I had my camera at hand, but I didn’t know his whole face would light up! He was wonderful and such a little trooper with all the excitement and people.
The weather was great so the kids got to swim and use the slip ‘n slide.
As always I couldn’t have pulled it off with out the help of my mom, sister and the rest of my family.
I Tri and Craft 