Boo!

I think we are officially ready for this weekend's festivities. I am not a huge fan of "celebrating" Halloween, but it's hard not to get excited about candy!!! Enter the ghost treat bags. I think they turned out really cute...

We also celebrated with more dressing up and candy at the neighborhood Halloween party this morning! Here's the black cat again...a bit more fancy than she was yesterday (I was up this morning sewing a feather boa around her neckline!). Notice today she doesn't have on her skirt, supposedly this makes her super:)

Iron Man was back in full force!

Hanging out with a new friend...

Let the Fun Begin

We kicked off this weekend of festivities with a little more baking. This time we tackled Candy Corn Sugar Cookies. I found the recipe in a Cooking with Paula Deen Magazine from a couple of years back. Quite honestly, if I make them again, I will probably just buy sugar cookie dough and go from there. But since the kids like to get their hands all nice and messy, we opted for following the recipe and making them from scratch!

Look at all that flour! Kathryn actually enjoys eating it. Is there a vitamin deficiency or something to explain that? I mean, yuck! And if you are letting your kids "taste" the ingredients, make sure not to get the sugar (or in Kathryn's case the flour) confused with the baking powder. I accidentally tasted the baking powder, and it was awful!

Kathryn thought this picture of her was "scary."

Walker doing my favorite thing...

Let's just say the cookie decorating part was even more messy than the cooking baking part, so no pictures were made during the process! But I think they turned out well!

All wrapped up for school...

I'm not going to include the recipe here, because quite honestly, it didn't have that much of a taste. They really tasted more like shortbread cookies instead of sugar cookies. Also, the icing recipe was made with meringue powder. Again, didn't just love the taste, mostly because there wasn't any. Even though some people are scared of raw eggs, I think I would use this recipe the next time. Supposedly, royal icing made with egg whites has more taste than with the meringue powder. And if it's good enough for Martha, it's good enough for me!

And here are the big boy and big girl dressed in their costumes for school today. Walker is Iron Man, and Kathryn is a ballerina kitty. It was actually cold enough today to wear a coat, so you can't see all of her costume. Of course, she came home from school telling me she no longer wanted to be a ballerina kitty. She wants to be a "super kitty" instead!

And what's up with that pose??? I guess that's how ballerina kitties who really deep down inside want to be super smile for the camera:)

Some Fall Baking

Last night the kiddos and I baked our third round of pumpkin bread this season! I'm really surprised they like it so much, especially since they didn't really warm up to the taste of pumpkin right out of the can. They just had to give it a try as we were adding it to the mix. I warned them! It's a good thing this recipe for Spiced Pumpkin Bread uses three.cups.of.sugar to sweeten it up!!!

Ingredients

3 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 large eggs

1 16 oz can solid packed pumpkin

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup coarsly chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 9x5x3 loaf pans. Beat sugar and oil in large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Sift flour, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon, baking soda, salt and baking powder in another large bowl. Stir into pumpkin mixture in two additions. Mix in walnuts if desired.

Divide batter equally between two pans. Bake until tester inserted in middle comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool 10 minutes. Using knife, cut around edge of loaves, and turn out onto rack to cool completely.

My Notes

I used a standard can of Libby's pumpkin which is only 15 oz. I also did not add walnuts. No need ruining a good thing, and I'm not so sure the kiddos would have liked it as much with the nuts. I also didn't have to cook mine as long, but all ovens are different. I set the timer for an hour and went from there. Enjoy!!!

This is what the bread looks like while it's cooling. Or at least, this is how it looks at our house...half eaten!!!

Does someone look like her Daddy or what!?!

Our Week

On Wednesday, we celebrated Daddy's birthday, Star Wars style...

A couple of vintage toys from Matt's "toy box" mixed with some dollar aisle finds from Target and we were set! Some dobosch petit fors from Pollmans rounded out the table. Wish they didn't make these delicious cakes in a tiny version. I can avoid the temptation to buy an entire cake, but it's hard to resist one of these!

On Thursday, we met some friends at the Environmental Center.

Frances did a lot of this! Have I mentioned she's a very good baby!

Oh, and Mom and I took Pop's to Gabe's Fajita House for lunchon Friday. I have a feeling dining at Gabe's will become a regular event! Afterwards, Mom went with me to pick the big kids up at school, and we headed back to Pop's office for a visit! Let's just say, Kathryn went a little post it note crazy!

River Rendezvous

This past weekend we rendezvoused with the Dillons at Nana and Papa's place on the river. The cousins were ready to see each other. Thankfully, we can meet up here (a two hour trip) and not have to drive all the way to Birmingham (a four hour trip) like Walker has been begging me to do in order to see his cousin Daniel!

Have you ever seen a chunkier little monkey???


Does this not crack you up! That's the armrest to the chair that Kathryn is wearing. I told her she looked like the mother Mary:)

The boys watching tv in their new Auburn tshirts courtesy of Nana...

Walker on the swing. He's standing up in this picture, but the big news is he learned to swing on his own while we were there. Huge accomplishment! He was so proud of himself. He told Papa he wanted to stay and swing all week!

White House Antiques

I found a local antiques shop online a couple of weeks ago, and Tula and I finally made plans today to go scout it out! We weren't disappointed! White House Antiques in Grand Bay, AL, has some fabulous finds at great prices. It's a small building on the owner's property but it is filled with all kinds of treasures.

This is what we walked away with today...

It's a book shelf taken from an old library in the Gulfport, Mississippi, area. Possibly from a library affected by Katrina. It was a good enough story for me. For $25, I wasn't going to leave it behind. Story or no story. I think it will be perfect in Kathryn's room for storing books and all of her "babies" (aka stuffed animals).

We also visited The Cottage Shoppe where a $75 wing back chair was calling my name. It was covered in a decent enough fabric, but it would have been perfect for a slip cover a la these.

And we perhaps saved the best for last. FINALLY! Yummy Mexican food! I haven't had any of the really good stuff since leaving B'ham!

Gabe's Fajita House came highly recommended from the owner of White House Antiques. And it did not disappoint! I mean anywhere that offers the incredible, edible cheese bowl has to be good!


Yes, that is cheese holding been dip, and it was delicious! Frances was even hoping for a bite! We had the chicken quesadillas and the chicken fajita too, and don't forget their Hershey's Chocolate Chip Brownie to wash it all down:) It was even free tea Wednesday. Now, who can beat that!

If you are in the lower west Alabama area, plan a day of shopping and eating in Grand Bay. It won't disappoint!

The Pumpkin Patch

Yesterday, Walker and Kathryn along with their classmates visited the local pumpkin patch. Here they all are with their pumpkins...

Thankfully, I have one child who will pose for the camera!

The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown...

I drove my two, Frances, and another little girl from their class to the pumpkin patch. Problem was, I went to the.wrong.pumpkin.patch! By the time I realized it, we were a good bit behind the kids who actually made it to the right place at the right time. The little girl that rode with us, upon learning my mistake, informed me that I needed GPS! Which I actually have, it just doesn't help when you're using the wrong address:)

Saturday Fun

Pops bought the kiddos tickets to see Elmo Live this past weekend. They had been counting down the days, and the show did not disappoint. Although I think my children, especially Kathryn, kept me and Tula in stitches more than the Seseme Street characters! Here's Kathryn showing us (and everyone else) some of her "moves."

All of the kids jumped up when Abby made her way off the stage!

Mine were no exception!

Grover was always my favorite! Looks like the kiddos love him too!

Kathryn later informed me that she poked Grover's eye! And Walker added that he poked his nose! Those kids!!!

A Few Tricks and Treats

I'm a big fan of the treat bag for Halloween. Mostly because I'm a push over for kiddos in costumes and would probably give out all the candy to the first 10 kids! I mean how much is enough??? Three pieces, ten pieces??? A treat bag solves all of those problems.

My "go to" treat bag for the last few years has been the spider bag featured below (you can find out how to make them here)...

Better Homes and Gardens

But this year, I would like to add something new to the mix! Here is what I'm thinking...these cute ghost bags! I've had this page torn out for a while, and since my scanner was not cooperating, you'll have to settle for an iphone pic. Clear vellum bags, googly eyes, and black ribbon and your set! Actually, they used black licorice strings!

Better Homes and Gardens

Another option, might be these cute bags! Although, brown paper bags can be quite large. Don't think I need to hand out that much candy! But I still like them, and they look easy to make. Read about them here. What can I say. Martha always has something fun to make!

Martha Stewart

I've also had this little recipe on my mind lately...Southern Living's Caramel Pecan Pumpkin Bread Pudding. It's fabulous for dessert, but it's even great for breakfast! You'll have to give it a try!

Ingredients
BREAD PUDDINGS:
4 large eggs
2 (15-oz.) cans pumpkin
1 1/2 cups milk
1 cup half-and-half
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 (12-oz.) French bread loaf, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 10 cups)
CARAMEL-PECAN SAUCE:
1 cup pecans, chopped
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preparation
1. Prepare Bread Puddings: Whisk together eggs and next 8 ingredients in a large bowl until well blended. Add bread pieces, stirring to thoroughly coat. Cover with plastic wrap, and chill 8 to 24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 350°. Spoon bread mixture into 11 (6-oz.) lightly greased ramekins. (Ramekins will be completely full, and mixture will mound slightly.) Place on an aluminum foil-lined jelly-roll pan.
3. Bake at 350° for 50 minutes, shielding with foil after 30 minutes.
4. During last 15 minutes of baking, prepare Caramel-Pecan Sauce: Heat pecans in a medium skillet over medium-low heat, stirring often, 3 to 5 minutes or until lightly toasted and fragrant.
5. Cook brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, 3 to 4 minutes or until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla and pecans.
6. Remove bread puddings from oven; drizzle with Caramel-Pecan Sauce. Bake 5 minutes or until sauce is thoroughly heated and begins to bubble.

TRY THIS TWIST
One-Dish Caramel-Pecan-Pumpkin Bread Pudding: Prepare recipe as directed in Step 1. Spoon chilled bread mixture into a lightly greased 13- x 9-inch baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake, covered, at 350° for 35 minutes. Uncover and bake 15 minutes. Proceed with recipe as directed in Steps 4 through 6.

Big Girl Bed

Sweet Frances has been sleeping in our bedroom in a pack 'n play since birth. I just couldn't stand the thought of having her all the way upstairs. Part of it was sheer laziness on my part, not wanting to climb the stairs at night to feed her. But the other part was not wanting to "give up" my sweet baby. And that's coming from someone who likes to have her bedroom all to herself. No kids allowed!

Well, last night we made the "big" move. She has had a couple of good nights of sleeping through the night until 5 or 6 a.m., so I decided it was time!

I think she was pleased with the move!

Frances has something it took Walker and Kathryn four whole years to get...a room of her own!