Ten things to do with all that candy...

Have you seen the size of the  trick-or-treating buckets at Target this year? The thought of that much candy makes my head hurt (and I cringe at the thought of the next trip to the dentist).

But what to do? Closely packed neighborhoods, which practically have a "no tolerance" policy for anyone who would dare give fruit or pencils to candy-seeking kiddos, now throw a sugar extravaganza on this night, with parents frantically stashing away gigantic bags of sugary goodness to make sure they're not  the ones who find egg on their house.

My kids, of course, are already buzzed at just the thought of all that sugar. Yay for me. And yay for you too. And I'm thinking, as I prepare to ration Sweet-Tarts and survive numerous sugar highs and lows for the next few days...what should I do with the rest of it? You know, all the candy the kids don't like or that I just won't feed them?

Well, here's my list, in no particular order..

1. Eat it myself. While at first an enticing idea, the thought of facing the scale over the next two months, even without inhaling excess Halloween candy, seems like a quick ticket to buying new clothes--a size up. So maybe not...

2. Take it to work, or playgroup. Yes, this option seems much more acceptable. Let someone else invest in a new, larger wardrobe. But I will have to contend with all my friends'/colleagues' misery. Hmmm....

3. Give it to the church. Yes, yes! Anything wrapped I'm sure they'll accept. Won't they? Yep, this idea's a possible keeper...

4. Save it. But then find it six months later, break a tooth on something completely stale and not delicious, and throw it in the trash. Scratch that!

5. Find a way to make crafts with it. I can see all sorts of fun ideas from Pinterest sparking a craft inspiration. Of course, the candy is still there, in full sight of the children. But I like this idea as well.

6. Hide it in my parents' suitcase. "What? There was candy when you got home? Well, I bet it was the three-year-old. That crazy kid..."

7. Throw it away. Okay, it's not like this isn't the end result of several of the aforementioned ideas. And if someone says something about starving children, I will tell them that I am sorry, but a bag of Gobstoppers will not solve world hunger. And then, because of the guilt trip, I will go online an donate to someone who can solve it. Everybody wins.

8. Give it out at a race. I've had enough people holding out plates of gummy bears--not wrapped--at races to know giving candy to tired, sweaty runners is not exactly frowned upon. Then again, I've never taken candy from a stranger...

9. Candy bomb my neighbors. Two questions. 1) Is it illegal to put wrapped candy in a mail box? 2) Do candy wrappers show fingerprints?

10. Send it to my brother. Because he's serving his country in the desert. Ding, ding, ding! Yep, that's the winner. In the interest of getting a head start on the season of giving, I'll give my extra candy (and even some of the good stuff) to someone who not only deserves a little extra thought, but will also appreciate it. (And if you'd like to give to a soldier too, check out Adopt a US Soldier.)

There, problem solved.

Don't be Martha, just be awesome -Part IV: Costume MacGyver to the rescue

So, you have an hour until trick or treating time, and all of a sudden, your "too cool for school" kiddo decides he/she needs a costume. You're not the most craftsy mom, and needles generally end up in your finger or on the floor, not to be found until you're stalking around in bare feet some dark morning. What to do?

Enter Halloween costume MacGyver (you know, the show from the 80s/90s; ugh, I hate it when I date myself!).

Anyway, super mom that you are, you want your kiddo to leave the house in more than a sheet-turned-ghost, especially since the only one you're willing to cut up has pink daisies on it. Never fear, because other options do exist.

First step? Take a look around your own house. You have some boxes? Make a robot. Toilet paper? Put a mummy on tap. Have black pants and shirt? Tape some paper bones to them and you've got a skeleton. Scarf, striped shirt, and boots? Your a pirate, matey! Argh!

But there's more, my friends. Much, much more. Take a look below, and feast your eyes on some truly unique ten-minute concepts. (Insert evil laugh here...)

Bring Paul Bunyan back to life...
Check out the lumberjack idea from Etsy.com, which is easy and cool enough for even your most peer-pressured kiddo. All you need is a beanie, flannel shirt, boots, and, um, well, maybe a plastic ax. Or you could use a toilet paper roll attached to a stick. This is about improvising, folks. As for the beard, washable marker really isn't advisable, but that's totally up to you. Then again, how about a little chocolate syrup?

Wahoo! Kick butt by being one of the most popular video game characters...
Parentmap had some great Halloween costume ideas, but this Mario one is so gosh darn easy, it makes me feel like I could punch through some brick walls! A pair of overalls, red shirt, and a slightly altered red hat and buttons is just the ticket.

Take trick or treating to a whole new (big) level...as Jelly Bellies...  
I actually had a friend dress as this idea from the Childcare Network (number eight) a few years ago at a Halloween party. All you need is a somewhat see-through plastic bag and some balloons (okay, you may have to run to the store for this one.) And if you don't have the time (or patience) to blow up a cajillion balloons, what about using those balls from the ball pit (I have, like, a million)? This costume is sure to be a hit, but just remember one thing: sitting is difficult...

Because everybody likes tea, and it's easy to make...
And if you just happen to have a box of Lipton Tea (or something of that nature) and a white sheet lying around, this tea bag idea from ClevelandWomen.com (third one down) is always an easy one. However, I'm not sure it will be a big sell for kids, although parents are sure to get it right away... and maybe find themselves thirsty...

And when you just want to bring on the awesome...
Say it with me: "Last but not least..." We've got ourselves a creative genius winner from babble.com! Put your kiddo in rain gear and attach stuffed dogs and kitties to the umbrella! Voila!  It's "raining cats and dogs." And hey, it's okay if you don't tell someone you got the idea from the Internet. I won't say anything. But this clever little ensemble might just earn you the "mom who has it going on" title for your neighborhood.

Don't be Martha, just be awesome - Part III: Decorating Martha's way, or the easier way

I love my house. I really do. It's everything I dreamed about when I was living in a box--ahem, condo--in the Baltimore area just three years ago. And in the past, I liked the decorating aspect of making a house a home.

But I had kids when I got here...and table tops had to be clear (to be filled with Fischer Price Little People), plants and pictures had to be set up high or locked away, and drapes pretty much went the way of the dodo.

But in the autumn, I can't help but get giddy when I walk down the aisles of any craft store, and even though "crafting" just isn't in my DNA, I think how nice it would be to walk into my own house and feel like fall had arrived.

Enter my quest for the month of October--how to be like Martha, without being like Martha. Taking a note from the show Design on a Dime, in which they show you that rooms don't have to be expensive to be beautiful, I will show you my version, called Design with No Time, in which I take Martha's ideas and hunt down ideas that look just as good, but are easier to create.

Let's begin:


Autumn Flowers
Okay, so you can take on Martha's gallery of fall flower arrangements, which includes the ever so lovely (and complex) Autumn Palette, (striped dahlias, Chinese lanterns, and dill flower heads), OR, you can check out the pretty and petite, much less stressed out fall flower arrangement on Our Sweet Life. Both beautiful, but one will leave you with more hair...



Our Sweet Life

Candles
The idea of candlemaking always makes me think I should don some eighteenth century dress and a bonnet. Not going to happen. But I would like to at least contemplate the idea of making my candles look awesome. Martha Stewart's piece on candle molds claims, "You can use any whimsical three-dimensional object found around the house to create a rubber candle mold." Then the site used the word "finial" and I started to drift. So I found this much simpler, maybe-not-as-dazzling-but-cool, autumn design at Ideas for Home Decorating, no bonnet necessary.

Ideas for Home Decorating

Autumn Wreath
And finally, who doesn't love to drive up to a house with a swoon-worthy harvest display on their front porch. Aside from purchasing the requisite scarecrow and pumpkins from your local craft superstore, usually a door wreath of some sort completes the effect. Martha's "Autumnal Wreath" is lovely, of course. But I'm wary of wreath-making, so I think I'll try the kid's version found at The Frugal Homemaker.



The Frugal Homemaker

I just need to find some leaves...

Don't be Martha, just be awesome - Part II: Best (and easiest) of Halloween cupcakes

As mentioned in my last post, Martha Stewart I am not. Most days I have only a few goals, which include (and are pretty much limited to) keeping my house at a manageable level of mess, cooking a healthy if not altogether tasty meal, teaching my children simple life skills (such as, tackling is not generally acceptable in most social situations), and hanging on to a shred of sanity.

Enter the holiday season.

Okay you mothers with homemade costumes/three-layer cheesecakes/candles/sweaters/wreaths/etc. You exhaust me. You really do. Here's your round of applause (see my hands clapping in a circle). But I have decided, in the interest of finding success, to keep my holiday homemaking simple and fun. Last week I showed you some crazy easy fall crafts; this week, I'm taking on the world of cupcakes.

So, I figured I'd save you some time and find the easiest way to make your usual Halloween suspects--no cupcake wars necessary. I know--you're welcome.

For the hairiest, scariest spider...


celebrations.com

This simplicity winner from celebrations.com gets my vote. I reviewed several spiderific creations online before settling on this as my favorite. Although some of the others were creative and cute, this is doable, and I'm a sucker for anything with sprinkles (as are my kids).

Ms. Fox's Sweets

 For the easiest, breezy ghost...

You would be surprised (at least, I was) at the complex ghost cupcake designs out there. But then I saw this at Ms. Fox's Sweets, and I thought, "Hey, all I need is a dollop of whipped topping and two somethings for eyeballs, and BAM! Spooky cupcake."

Pinterest

For the hippest monster...

A few weeks ago, I let my two young kiddos put some frosting and eyeballs on some muffins. Voila! Monster cupcakes. But I thought, in the interest of scouting out true creativity, to give you something a little more interesting for your monster inspiration. You can thank Molly Davis on Pinterest for this one.






Edible Crafts

For the crackalackin jack-o-lantern...

It's not fall without a pumpkin, and it's not Halloween without a jack-o-lantern. But how to make one without being handy with the orange frosting? Well, this idea from Edible Crafts had me chuckling--a winner for sure. You can make it more complex or simple as desired.


For the mousiest mummy...


Spoonful

And last but, you guessed it, certainly not least, a fresh and preschooler-pleasing mummy idea from Spoonful that puts the mouse in mousarific. If I can get past the frosting part, then the rest is a piece of cake.

Hah. I crack myself up.

Happy cupcaking!

Don't be Martha, just be awesome - Part I: Spookily easy fall crafts

I have to say, I don't spend too much time worrying about my shortcomings in the homemaking department. That's probably because I've never had any Martha Stewart aspirations. Basically, if my house is clean when I entertain and the food is edible, that is a "win" in my book.

Enter the fall/holiday season. Suddenly, my friends are talking about Pinterest cupcakes and harvest porch displays. Mouthwatering, homemade baked goods are showing up, uninvited, to play dates (spooky). Several moms I know are already sewing Halloween costumes.

Hmmm. This is all a bit overwhelming for a seat-of-her-pants mom/writer who gets a gold star at the end of day when she hasn't thrown any temper tantrums (or toys). But I decided, in the spirit of maybe not being the best mom ever, but perhaps being a pretty fun one, I could try my hand at a few fall crafts with my kids.

Nervously, I entered the land of Pinterest, where "Halloween crafts" scared the Martha Stewart right out of me. But I got a hold of myself and instead typed, "quick Halloween crafts."

The results of my search, and my "craft-making trial" two days later, are as follows:

1. Because Q-tips are cheap. Okay, for my two kiddos, this Q-tip skeleton was the winner! Not only was it easy to make, but it involved no paper cutting. It used five items: Q-tips, glue (I like the Elmer's sparkly stuff, as you can tell), plastic eyes, whiteout (for the mouth/head), and construction paper. This made it to the refrigerator door's "Hall of Fame." 

From "The Chirping Moms"

Mom Around Town

2. Because drawing around your hands is fun (and tickles). Nothing gets my kids giggling like drawing around their cute little hands. That's why I was thrilled with the hand-spider I found on Pinterest. My older child spruced hers up with pom pom feet and a white-out smiley face, but all you need is the following: black construction paper, something to draw with, scissors, and glue. This also made the refrigerator door.

 

From "TishAndTrey"   3. Because seriously, no one had posted a ghost sock puppet on Pinterest. Really. I really wanted to do at least one sock puppet, and I thought, "Hey, socks look a little like ghosts." Can you believe I actually could not find one on Pinterest? Well, here's to finding one's own inspiration. Yes, the sock is dingy (maybe I should do a blog post on whiter whites, huh?), and no, it did not make the refrigerator's "Hall of Fame," but it deserves an honorable mention nonetheless! There's no supply list for this beside a (relatively) clean sock.   So have fun and be creative! Kids don't need Martha, they just want to have fun with you.

Mom Around Town   Mom Around Town