Caramels 2009 style

I love trying new things...crafts, decorating ideas, recipes, but sometimes it's all about traditions. My grandma always made these caramels. For the last 12 Halloween's I have. The only thing about them that changes is in the way we give them out. This year I made drawstring treat bags to stuff them in.

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I put my-most-prized-recipe here on my blog last fall. It makes a 9x13 pan full of caramels.

This cute little enamelware pot is filled with caramels for the ladies who work in the office at my kids school...I can't forget them.

Baby Deedee

This past weekend my sister-in-law and 2 of her kids came for a visit again. This time our goal was to make Deedee 13, a Halloween costume...she wanted to be a baby. She is going to wear a t-shirt underneath this but 5 yards of white fabric later it turned out PERFECT!!! She looks so cute.

Kids, kids, kids

My weeks are flying by!! Most of last week was spent subbing in Kindergarten and every day of this was too. There is just something about Kindergarten...I LOVE being in there. And after two weeks of the same kids you really fall in love with them. But now I am pooped...a classroom of active kids ALL day and then coming home with my own two and Steve still deployed...phew!

The other 3 teachers I worked side by side with were so kind and helpful. Last night I baked the yummiest Iced-Pumpkin-Cookies to share as a thank you with these ladies. Ben and Madi also LOVED these. After school I told them I was making pumpkin cookies, but they were so confused because they don't have pumpkin faces, but they woofed them down anyways.

Southern Belle Farm

This past weekend we had a house full of visitors. My mother-in-law, sister-in-law and kids, Steve's cousin Matt and my mother-in-laws sister...Steve's Aunt Ramona all came to visit us. It was a party at our house! On Saturday we went to the great Southern Belle Farm for some fall fun. It was cloudy and 50 degrees....we froze! But this week it is back to sunny skies and 70's thank goodness.

We saw pig races.

The kids playing games at the water pumps.

Ben's favorite...the corn maze. There were 3 different ones. Hard ones...I got lost.

Tunnels to crawl through.

Ben shot corn cobs.

Madi played and made corn angels in the corn pit.

And out of the whole pumpkin patch my kids found and liked a green one?

What are you wearing?

I have been substitute teaching a lot lately! It's fun and when I grow up I think I want to be a teacher. The other day I wore my new homemade broach on a brown shirt. When I walked out of my room dressed and ready to go my kids looked at me and said mom what's that? I asked them what. They said that thing on your shirt. So I told them my new broach and they cracked up asking again it's a what? Anyways you just cut circles, sew an X in the middle and attach a button...I liked it.

Crow and pumpkin pillow

This holiday season issue of Create & Decorate is stuffed with some fun creative ideas. Last Friday night we had some friends

over for a pizza and craft party. As I was cutting out the pieces for my pillow Ben sat at the table with us and drew his own version of the crow and pumpkin pillow.

Here is my finished project. I like this felt/wool stuff.

Pumpkins everywhere

I am not sure why or what my mother did to make love Halloween and this time of year so much but I sure do love it! This is my favorite Holiday and season to decorate for.

See the pretty table runner under my silver tree in the living room...yep I made it out of leftover scraps from a project last fall. I just love that turquoise mixed in with those colors.

My 4ft. black tree is one of my favorites. Even though Steve is deployed to Iraq the kids and I are still trying our best to enjoy this fun time of year and for me decorating makes it LOTS of fun.

Today was my first...

MAMMOGRAM! Today's appointment has been on my calendar for 3 agonizing months. When I walked in the lady said forget everything you have heard about mammograms...she knew it was my first. She was right! It was a little uncomfortable but nothing to whine about at all! My Dr. said by the age of 35 you need to get a baseline mammogram done. If all is well with this first one then you can go on with you business until age 40.

Mr. Bones

Target had the girls t-shirts on sale for $2.98 so I bought a bunch to play with! Madi has a pair of vintage looking jeans that I think this little homemade t-shirt may look cute with. Another jackpot sale I found was at Michael's...all the pirate birthday stuff was 80% off or more. A bag of 36 skull suckers was only 59 cents and we turned them into a pile of Mr. Bones for Halloween treats for Ben's class and Fall Festival.

Happy October!

I am so excited that October is here. We can finally say Steve should be home next month...of course it will be the very end of November but it's still next month. Today the kids started the month off with Halloween spirit. Madi picked out the fabric for this white pumpkin t-shirt and she even ironed it on with heat and bond with my help. Ben wore a glow in the dark spider shirt from Target so no picture...but tonight is our school skate night, so he will look cool when the lights go out and they skate.