halloweek: attack of the sicky monster...

maybe sunday
maybe saturday
if i'm really feeling great!
but right now i am sick sick sick
& so i am thinking that i may not be adding
more halloweek stuff...
the good thing?
halloween comes every year
so i can just pack up my pictures
& ideas & give them a little time to simmer :)

have a wonderful weekend!

:)

halloweek: boo corner

after Q's first halloween
we got the pictures back
(aka uploaded & looked at them on the computer)
& he was just so cute!
so i had to print one
& frame it
& i thought
'hey, it would be fun to put this in the halloween box
(aka rubbermaid container filled with
spiderwebs & fake pumpkins)
& get it out next year...'
so that's what i did
& it was such a great little surprise
(the elephant picture up there)
that i did it again
for his second halloween:

(ah! look at those chubby froggy cheeks!
where did they go?)

the halloween of 2006
we had a new trick-or-treater with us:

& we had a boy who was not
very interested in posing for the camera...
no problem!
just say 'candy!'

2007 miss m was so against the
adorable (adorable!) bumble bee costume
that i had to trick her into a '80's girl' costume
side pony tail
pink checkered vans
but when it came to heading out
she needed a coat
& different shoes
& a hat
& she needed her baby stroller
so she became a little mommy
(& gave me a preview of the clothing fun we would have in the future)
there was no time to do pictures
so i have one blurry,
while-we-were-out shot...
when i was looking for pictures to print
i liked another fallish one better
(below, top right)
(there's those cheeks again!)

(2007 was Q's race car driver year, (above, bottom left)

2008 & 2009
were years that i just had
to take what i could get,
grumps or not
(above, bottom right & top left)

putting them all into a multi frame
saves space
& doesn't call attention to the less than stellar
(more than realistic)
shots...
just makes them all seem festive :)

i also have one of brian, Q & i
in the pumpkin patch in 2005
that i added to the bunch

(miss m is in the picture too...about the size of a tiny pumpkin, i believe :)

i put the year on a couple of the frames
& i think i might do it to the others, too...

that way i don't have to rely on my memory :)

(blurrrrry)

full disclosure:
i did frame the first two right after halloween
but then our little sweetie addition came in 2006
& i had every intention of
framing the best shots
& then again in 2007 (great intentions!)
2008 (good intentions!)
2009 (didn't even remember)
(believe me, every year when i took the halloween box out
i would feel so bad that there were just the two pictures
& only of Q...
poor second child syndrome!)

then last week
i was getting ready to host our bible study
thinking about our decorations
(already out for 3 weeks :)
i decided
this is the year!
& i found all of the shots on the computer
& got them printed
& framed them!
thank goodness for house guests!
well over half of our decorating
is attributed to people coming over
(sadly, we don't have people over that much
so there are some pretty bare spaces)

this is one of my favorite holiday traditions...
so cute to see them grow
& the kids love it so much
(miss m wants to keep the ladybug frame in her room
even after halloween :)

check back tomorrow...
there's more boo to come!
(i have a little guest designer coming to share)

:)

halloweek: spooky chocolate mousse

when my sister & i were younger
middle school
(maybe elementary)
our favorite dessert was
'pudding in a cloud'
a little concoction designed by the kraft corporation:
a layer of cool whip
'spread onto bottom and up side of each dish with back of spoon'
(don't even think about using a knife or fork!
kraft will revoke your mac & cheese license...)
& then a spoonful of chocolate pudding in the center...
often we would make
'cloud in a pudding'
(more chocolate that way)

a few weeks ago
i tried the mousse recipe
(conveniently located on the side of the pudding box)
& decided to make it when
we hosted bible study at our house...

i wanted to do individual cups of it
& was trying to figure out
what i would put them in...
while perusing the halloween baking aisle at target
i saw my answer:


these little baking cups are so cool!
they are designed for making mini cakes
(we used star shaped ones for Q's second birthday)
but they were perfect for this...

so
here's the deal
(disclaimer:
i'm no pioneer woman
i'm just going to show what i did)

assemble ingredients:

(pretend there are mini chocolate chips &
cool whip in this picture)
(see? proof: not a cooker blogger person...
can't even think up a good name for it...
double proof!)

put chocolate chips & milk in a bowl
microwave 2 minutes
whip together until mixed


add pudding mix to bowl
& whip again


use a measuring cup
(or whatever...triple proof!)
to scoop pudding into baking cups


put into the refrigerator for a while
(at least 20 minutes)
i put all of the ghosts into a lasagna pan
so i wouldn't have to put them in & take them out
of the fridge one by one
(that could take like 45 seconds!)

when the mousse is set
spread cool whip over the top
(i used skim milk & cool whip free
so the fat & calorie count is loooow
& you know what that means?
you can eat two!)
(also not a diet blogger person)

add some mini chocolate chip eyes
& you've got some new little friends
to delight a surprise the neighbors



(note: i made these the night before we served them
& in some parts the cool whip was thin & settled a bit
& pudding showed through...
kind-of looked like ghosts who used dirty sheets
for their costume
& hey, i'm all for reality but
if you want pure white ghosties
i'd put the cool whip on no more than
a couple of hours before you serve them...
that sounded a little bit cooker bloggery)

so yummy it's scary :)

come back tomorrow for a
little halloween decorating show & tell!

boo!

:)

magazine monday: entertainment weekly, october 22-29

i love entertainment weekly
it is one of the best what's-happening-in-the-movies-&-tv
(& other media)
magazines that there is...
it's not at all trashy
& there are always great interviews & photos

i don't have a subscription
so when i have a little alone time at barnes & noble
it's always my first read
(or second after us weekly...
talk about trashy :)

this week i was at the grocery store
& i saw this issue
& i just had to get it
(that's the only problem with a weekly magazine:
if you don't grab it when you see it,
it's usually gone by the time you change your mind)

it's their reunion issue
& 'back to the future' was on the cover
(there are other covers
with other reunions on them)

oh my
i loved that movie...
we had the soundtrack
(one of the only 'mainstream' tapes we owned)
'the power of love'
(huey lewis has a cameo in the movie)
'heaven is one step away'
&
'johnny b. goode'

the whole cast is so great
(even biff)
& the delorean
& the clock tower
& the dress that lorraine wears to the dance
& 'calvin klein'
& the flux capacitor...

oh we should just go watch it right now...

but of course the real draw
to this movie is
michael j. fox...
he is just so cute
(he doesn't look much different now)
& funny
& i always wanted this jean jacket with the rolled up sleeves...

(i always loved alex p. keaton, too :)
(& doc hollywood)

........

brian & i love 'will & grace'
we have a couple of the seasons on dvd
& one or two compilations...
we just randomly put them on
when we want some guaranteed funny :)
they have the best guest stars
kevin bacon (hilariously as himself)
matt damon (singing)
madonna (dancing great, acting just okay)
minnie driver (so so funny)
michael douglas (he dances too, so funny)
j.lo (as herself & really great)
i could go on & on...
i (still) love this show!

......

'if you leave
don't leave now
please don't take my heart away'
*sigh*
'pretty in pink'
another movie i adore
(& have watched 100's of times)


there are so many reasons to love this movie
the music
the rad 80's guys
the high school angst
but
the best is:
she makes her own prom dress!
it's one of my favorite scenes ever...
diy in a major movie!
how can you not love that?

& then of course, there's ducky...
'try a little tenderness'
perfect.

let's watch that right now, too, okay?


.........

when we were first married
we lived way out in the country
& brian was a volunteer for the fire district...
one night he went out on an emergency call
& i decided to watch this new show...
the minute he came home
did i ask him how the call was?
if everyone was okay?
no.
i told him every bit about the show
'there's this girl
& she's a secret agent
& she's so cute
& so cool
& her name is sydney!'

we watched 'alias' from that day
until it started getting too complicated
(season 4 or so)
(oh & i think we might have had a baby by then, too :)
it was such a perfect show to watch as a couple, too!
action & great clothes & a cute girl who kicked butt
& funny & bad guys & good guys...

did anyone not fall in love with jennifer garner?
we sure did :)


.................

have i ever mentioned how much i like those gilmore girls?
oh.
i have?
:)

here's cute little interview where they talk about
rumors of a gg movie...
i won't spoil it for you...

& one more part in the magazine
unrelated to reunions...

after the beautiful flash back of kurt & his dad
on 'glee' a few weeks ago
they showed their favorite adult characters seen as kids.
the kurt actor was really amazing...
even through my tears i could see that :)

& the little girl kate in 'lost' was so cute, too
& perfectly freckled...
(& dexter
which i don't watch
but i am tempted...
maybe next summer,
i'm all filled up with shows right now)

i loved this issue so much
i read it straight through,
smiling all the way....

:)

ps the issue also has reunions for:
'lord of the rings'
'married with children'
'the west wing'
'roots'
'northern exposure'
'scream'
& 'the muppet show'
(which needs it's own post)

just in case you are big coo-coo fans of any of those :)

bonus magazine monday: real simple, november 2010

oh my goodness
i love this...
so so much...

:)

magazine monday: christmas ideas, 2010

this is one of the bazillion

special editions that
better homes & gardens
does during the year...

often they are kind-of
hit & miss for ideas
but this one is bursting with sweet stuff...

a lot of them use ordinary craft items to
make super cute things...

popsicle sticks:

felt...

repurposed sweaters...
(the stockings)

a screen door...
(sooooo cute)

shoes as goodie bags
& old fashioned cross stitch...

buttons, yarn & more felt...
(obviously inspired by the incomparable princess lasertron :)

pipe cleaners...

& a little more felt...


& my favorite:
clay...

sculpey is on sale at jo-ann's this week
i'm going to stock up so we can
have a snowman making party in november...
i just love these wee sweeties :)

time to get started on holiday projects...
it's the most wonderful time of the year
:)

curlie girlie...

so
i was waiting to tell you about my new job
(new within the last 6 months)
i just wanted to be sure that it was going to stick
(& hopefully i haven't jinxed it now...)

this new fun job is that
i get to write blog entries for different companies...
it's very fun :)
the company i write for the most is
ouidad, which makes hair products for curly haired girls & guys
(hello! perfect for me :)

my latest assignment was to do an entry
about a celebrity who has curly hair
(my choice!)

do you need three guesses?
how about a hint?
or just a picture of who it actually is...

so the focus was on 'glee'
& the main curls on the show come from mr. shue, of course...

the title of the post is
"Don't Stop Believing" in Ouidad's Power To Make Curly Hair Beautiful'
the whole thing is on their blog now
& i'm pretty excited about it!

my other entries have been fun to do, too
(scarlet johansson in iron man 2 & taylor swift, among others)
but this one was the closest to my heart
so i wanted to share <3

ps first picture is a lamp!
love it.
perfect for a salon :)

pps & if you're in the market for curly hair products
check out ouidad!
(i don't get a commission if you do order
just the satisfaction of knowing that i helped you find
something for your curls :)

magazine monday: small, autumn 2010

cool & cute...

small is an awesome online magazine

their photo shoots are so fun

they highlight different artists

(loooove the 'heart hair' on the right!)


& do lots of interviews

they have really adorable ads

(laura siebert photography)

(mama k's aromatic play clay)

their also do really cool shoots
(& not always super kiddie)

they put together great collections

& fun 'kid on the street' spreads

& the neat thing?
it's free!
sign up here for
a big dose of small style

(i just made that up...
i'm always available for tag line consultation :)

:)