Archives for October 2013

So, if you’ve been over on the Facebook page lately, you’ve probably heard me whine about how I’m ready to move past Halloween for this year.  It was fun, but I’m ready for something other than witches, ghosts and goblins.  And, I’m out of Halloween blog posts…  No wonder I don’t usually commit an entire month to one theme.  I’m too A.D.D. for that, I get bored.  And with mere days left, why would I want to make something only to put it in storage?!

So, the boys and I made cookies… ’cause, well, I can put those away and not have to worry about them in the garage… just around my thighs.  And what’s a few extra pounds, swimsuit season is MONTHS away!  We opted for our go-to Chocolate Chip Cookies (just omit the pumpkin) and a bit of neon food coloring for a little fun.  We also put butterscotch chips in the orange ones, as well as chocolate chips.  We’ll be lucky if these last til November 1st.

In case you’re still feeling Halloween, but don’t want the commitment of a project to store, how about some of these cookies?  There are tons of fancy bakery cookies on pinterest, but I wanted ones that anyone could make.  Not just those of you that are culinary-inclined.  So, here they are… Halloween cookies anyone can make.

Okay, by now I’m sure you’ve noticed a bit of a reoccurring theme with my Halloween posts this year… yeah?  If not, I’ll give you a hint: Witches.  Okay, not really a hint.  Sorry.  Well, I’m almost ready to reveal the whole table display, but first I have to add the finishing touches.

This is a simple little project, but finishes off my display quite nicely.  Take a look:

Materials:
– Pillow batting (I just bought a cheap set of 2 pillows for $5 at Wal-Mart and unstuffed half of one of the pillows)
– Glow Sticks (Dollar Tree)
– Plastic Cauldron (On clearance at Wa-Mart last November)

Directions:
– Stuff the pillow batting into the cauldron and fluff until it looks “steam-like”.  I didn’t, but you could try hair spray or fabric stiffener to make the batting “rise” out of the cauldron a bit more.
– Break the glow sticks and position inside the batting.  Close to the outside of the batting but not so close you can see the actual shape of the glow sticks.  Play with it.  It will partly depend on the thickness of your batting.  My glow stick ended up having a crack in it and the glowy liquid spilled on the batting.  It turned out pretty cool as you could spread the glow around and not worry about the glow stick showing; but if you’ve got kids around, it might be safer to keep the glow sticks intact.

That’s it!  Super easy and it looks great.  The photo doesn’t do it justice.  Guess that’s what I get for trying to take a dark photo at mid-day…

Hey everyone!  Sorry I missed the party last week!  We took a little long weekend trip down to Monterey, CA and I intended to get the party set up before I left… but it didn’t happen.  So, apologies, but I hope your weekend was as fun as ours!

We got to go with my parents and sisters and the boys loved it!  We took them to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, which we’d been wanting to do since Mr Napping and I went while I was pregnant with Little J.  There was just the right mix of exhibit and hands-on that even though neither boy napped, they still had fun and a good day overall.  We went down to Fisherman’s Wharf and found a little restaurant to get dinner from.  We took it back to the hotel and gorged on some of the best clam chowder I have ever eaten.  Oh my goodness.  We were so sore, but it was totally worth it!  We spent Saturday morning at the Butterfly Sanctuary in Pacific Grove and at the beach.  We stopped at IKEA on our way back through Sacramento for dinner.  Unfortunately, I came home sick and Little J has shared with me.

Did you miss any of these super fun ideas?

Big J is at the point where he prefers a night light in his room.  We have one in the bathroom and one in the hallway on the way from his room to the bathroom.  Just in case there are any middle of the night trips.  When we have a nursing baby, we have a night light in our room.  Just enough light for momma to see, but not enough light to wake Daddy or baby.  Our babies have both weaned themselves of nursing before they give up all their night feedings, so we have a night light in the kitchen as well to prepare bottles.  Basically, you turn the lights off and our house lights up like a Christmas tree.  Night lights aren’t exactly pretty decorations, but who says they can’t be fun?!  With this DIY Halloween Night Light Baby Food Jar Upcycle you can make your night light whatever you want.  Change this up to fit any holiday or go with a simple monogram.  Etching the glass is another fun option I’m looking forward to experimenting with…

– Night light base – I bought a four pack (did you hear how many night lights we have?) at Wal-Mart.  It was just a cheap set of the lights that turn on when it’s dark.  I got the set of four lights for around $10-15.  I couldn’t find the exact set on Wal-Mart’s site, but here are some similar ones on Amazon.  You just need a light base with decent wall clearance (an inch or two).

– Baby food jar or other jar (use plastic if you’re worried about it breaking)
– Drill with spade bit
– Paint and/or vinyl

Directions:
– Wash and dry the jar.  Remove glue and labels.
– Take the shield off the night light so you just have the base.  This photo is of the actual night light I used.  That clear plastic just slides off the front.

– Measure the LED stand – mine was 3/4″.  Use the drill and spade bit to drill a hole in the lid of the jar to fit around the LED stand.  Or have your awesome husband do it, because you may or may not have totally created a mess when you tried it.

– Paint the jar or use your vinyl to decorate.  I painted the inside of the jar with watered down acrylic paint.  You’ll have to play with the water to paint ratio in order to get it thin enough to let enough light through.  Different colors needed different amounts of water.  Darker paint = more water.  Another idea would be mod podge colored with food coloring.  Google a tutorial for that, but be aware it creates a pretty opaque finish.  I painted the insides of the jar and vinyl-ed on the outside.  I also used Washi tape on one for a super quick and easy “fancy-it-up” job.

–  Screw the lid back on and place the LED stand in the hole in the lid.  Plug in your night light and wait for dark (or high-tail it to a dark room and try it out in broad daylight, you rebel!).

You can use the same lid (provided you use the same kind of jar) and make lots of different night light covers.  Just switch them out whenever the mood strikes.  It’s also nice because you can adjust how much light comes though with what you decorate your jar with.  Darker paint will give a more muted light, while light paint will still shine bright.