HALLOWEEN PARTY IDEAS

Pumpkin Noise Maker Party Favor

Good old-fashioned jack-o'-lanterns rule at this Halloween bash for kids of all ages. Inexpensive store-bought materials and basic how-to projects make it quick and easy to put together this fun-filled party.

KID'S HALLOWEEN SANDWICHES

Open Face Halloween Sandwiches

This is a great idea for a kid's party or sandwich meals. These are open-face bologna-and-cheese sandwiches.  Use small cookie cutters to create the cheese faces.  A basil leaf and bread-crust stem complete the pumpkin package.  This is sure to put a smile on your child's face, especially if they can help make the cheese faces sandwiches. 

FALL CENTERPIECE

Fall Table Centerpiece

Lilies, Chrysanthemums, and Pokeweed Berries

Festive and fresh, this arrangement is the perfect fall display. Hollow out a pumpkin and place an appropriately sized vase inside. Fill with lilies, chrysanthemums, and pokeweed berries. Surround with leaves from your yard and fall fruits to add a seasonal touch.

BAT AND CAT PUMPKINS

Bat and Cat Pumpkin Patterns

Black Cat and Bat Painted Pumpkins

No carving = no mess. Add cardstock features to your painted-black pumpkins for a purr-fect way to celebrate the season. Follow the link for the patterns you need to make a 3-D cat and bat this Halloween.

CARVING PUMPKINS

Leafy Pumpkins

Glowing Vines

Step 1: Cut out top of pumpkin and scrape the inside clean.

Step 2: Using a real vine or a vine pattern, transfer design to pumpkin. (To create your own pattern, use varying sizes of your favorite leaf shape, and then draw a vine between the leaves.)

Step 3: Carve leaf shapes by cutting completely through the pumpkin or by scraping a shallow relief. You can combine the two methods, as shown here on the smallest pumpkin.

Step 4: With a scraping tool, carve vine stem about 1/4 inch deep, being careful not to break through the pumpkin flesh.

HALLOWEEN GHOST HOW-TO

GHOST TUTORIAL

FAITH IN YOURSELF

One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn't  pay to get discouraged.  Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.

~Lucille Ball

APPLE ANNIE'S SIDEWALL SALE

My best friend, Judy, and I went to Apple Annie's Sidewalk Sale today.  Naturally, we both came away with lots of goodies!  Their store is decorated for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas - lots of creative and beautiful wares.

STREP THROAT

Two of my three youngest grandkids have strep throat.  What a way to start the weekend!

YOUR GUIDE FOR FORMAL DINING

Your Guide for Formal Dining

By Jonathan Able

If you are invited to a fancy dinner party, wedding, or some other formal occasion and you are unsure of which silverware or goblet to use, here is a map of a traditional place setting for formal dinners.

A.) Napkin
B.) Dinner plate
C.) Salad plate
D.) Bread plate
E.) Water glass
F.) Red wineglass
G.) White wineglass
H.) Fish fork
I.) Dinner fork
J.) Salad fork
K.) Dinner knife
L.) Fish knife
M.) Soup spoon
N.) Dessert spoon and fork

TIP FOR BAKING WITH NUTS

Baking with Nuts Tip

If your cake recipe calls for nuts, heat them first in the oven, then dust with flour before adding to the cake batter to keep them from settling to the bottom of the pan.

MOTHER NATURE'S FREE MULCH

Mulch from Leaves and Pine Needles

To a gardener, December's fallen leaves and pine needles are just like manna. Each leaf and needle contains a larder of organic matter--absolutely the best material for loosening clay or improving the water- and nutrient-holding capacity of sand. Organic matter feeds legions of plants, earthworms, and micro-organisms. 

Rake your leaves and pine needles into long, shallow rows about 6 inches deep. Then set your lawnmower on its highest setting and run over the pile, making enough passes to completely chop it up.  The first time you run over the leaves, you'll invariably miss some which won't be chopped. So rake them all into a pile again, and run over them once more. You'll be amazed at how small that big pile of leaves becomes.

Carefully gather that finely shredded material--it's garden gold. Take it to your flowerbed, shrub border, or vegetable garden, and spread a 2-inch-thick layer over the soil surface and around any existing plants. The shredded leaves make excellent, attractive mulch--they stay in place and don't wash or blow away. Even more important, as the leaves slowly decompose, they add vital organic matter to the soil, improving its ability to support abundant life. Do this every fall, and before long, you'll have the richest soil on the block. And you won't have paid a dime.

At our new house we don't have to rake leaves yet, but hopefully in years to come this will be the way I mulch my flowers and shrubs.

KARMA

Sometimes it just

takes us a 

while to understand.

SAUSAGE AND BACON GRAVY

My husband makes a great sausage gravy.  I found this recipe from Paula Deen.  I can't wait to see which one the family thinks is better!

Sausage and Bacon Gravy

Ingredients

1 lb ground sausage
4   slices thick-cut bacon
1/2   onion, diced
2   garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 cup half-and-half
2 tablespoon butter
12   freshly baked biscuits (use your favorite recipe or you can use store-bought

Directions

In a large skillet, combine sausage, bacon, onion, and garlic. Cook over medium heat, until sausage is browned and crumbles. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually stir in half-and-half. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened. Stir in butter.

Recipe Courtesy of Paula Deen

PINTEREST

Oh my, my daughter introduced me to Pinterest!  What an addictive site!  If you haven't discovered it yet, you need to check it out.