Halloween Costumes for the Family

As much as I like the silliness of Halloween, I have never really enjoyed the process of choosing a costume. For some reason, the thought of coming up with something fun, unique and not trashy is enough to make me want to stay home snuggled up on the couch in pajamas on the big night.

I seriously cannot recall any of the costumes that I wore growing up, or if I dressed up at all! One time in college, I was invited to a Halloween party and was literally the only person not wearing a costume. Thank goodness it was dark in the house and people were, ahem, distracted enough not to notice. :-) When Stefan and I started dating in 2001, we developed our standard couples costume that we would wear year after year. It was simple, cheap, and actually had a bit of truth attached to it (I’ll save that story for another time, if you don’t already know it). :-)

You might be a redneck if... you meet your wife at a family reunion...

Fast forward a few years. Now that we have kids, Halloween dress-up feels like a requirement, practically a rite of passage in parenthood. And you know, for some reason, I’m finally starting to enjoy the process! I can’t say that I’ve gotten it right every time,

Sebastian wasn't too excited about his little pumpkin costume that first Halloween.

but each year seems to get easier and easier.  

Halloween 2011 with the family on Pearl Street

I think it’s important that our kids see us parents getting in on the excitement of the holidays, so I am actually entertaining the thought of putting together a costume ensemble for the entire family this year. Yikes!

Oh, but where to begin? In true Sheryl fashion, I created a spreadsheet to organize the different categories of group costumes. I’ll spare you those gory details and just give you the fun pictures that served as my inspiration. Be sure to click on each image to enlarge the collage!

Pop Culture. These costumes always impress me the most. As long as you somewhat pay attention to the news, you can pretty easily (and cheaply!) craft a unique costume from this category.

Honey Boo Boo; Olympic Athletes; Tanning Mom

Media. I’m pretty sure that most of our kids watch some form of media throughout the day, and no doubt many of them have favorite movie or tv characters. 

Sesame Street; Phineas & Ferb; Angry Birds

Music. Kids + dancing = guaranteed awesome good time. And if they like to dance, why not let them totally rock out?

Rock on!

Food. We all need to eat, so why not dress up as our favorite treats?

Popcorn; S'mores; BLT Family; M&M's

People and Animals. Preschoolers love learning about the different people who make our world go ‘round, so why not dress up as one?

Burglars; Honeybees; Farmers; ZOMBIES!

 Kids’ Choice. Have you reached the point where your oldest absolutely must dress up in a particular costume? If so, let him/her take the lead and work everyone else’s costume around that.

Let your LEGO or Astronaut fanatics take the lead here.

Superhero. This isn’t just for boys! Really, who doesn’t love wearing tights, a cape and a mask while “flying” around to save the world from evil?

A mishmash of superheroes or streamline things with The Incredibles.

One particular challenge with all of these costumes, especially when planning for the entire family, is figuring out how to keep the cost down. We can shop for costumes at second-hand stores or on Craigslist, swap with friends, or make our own from scratch. My number one goal is to keep it simple so that we’ll have more time to enjoy the fun of it all!

So, what’s the final decision, you ask? With the added challenge of a baby in my belly this Halloween, the choice became obvious after our most recent MOPS meeting. Here's a sneak peak. :-)

Or should I go with SpiderGIRL?? :-)

Thank you, Kacey, for the inspiration!

So, what will you and your family dress up as this year? Please share in the comments!

Delicious Pumpkin Brownies!

If you are anything like me, I'm a huge sucker for anything pumpkin.  The day starbucks breaks out the pumpkin spice lattes is up there with Christmas.  This is my fav pumpkin recipe, so yummy!

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 tsp cloves
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 sticks butter, slightly melted (i always feel guilty at this part, but if you make them once a year, calories don't count)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 cup packed pumpkin puree (this is 1 cup, NOT the whole can)
• 1 egg
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups white morsels
• 2/3 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  Mix flour, cloves, cinnamon and baking soda in a small bowl.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars.  Beat in pumpkin, egg and vanilla.  Gradually beat in flour mixture.  Mix in white morsels and walnuts.  Bake in greased 9x13 pan for 30-35 min.  Enjoy the deliciousness!  Stephanie

MOPS Meeting Reminder - 10/23/2012

Hey Girls!  Looking forward to another MOPS meeting!  This week:

TOPIC:  "Jumping in the Deep End".  Overcoming Fear and Anxiety

FOOD:  Debbie's Table - Burrito Bar

Hope to see you guys Tuesday!

Playdate at the Pumpkin Patch - 10/16/12

Hey Mamas!  We are going to the Cottonwood Farms Pumpkin Patch just east of Boulder.  We'll meet there at 10:00 am.  Its free and they have animals, a corn maze, hay bale maze, and (of course) pumpkins!  Bring a snack, money if you want to buy a pumpkin, and a camera (lots of great photo ops).  Check out there website here.  The address is 1535 N 75th St. Boulder, CO 80303.  Hope to see you there!

We're Goin' On a Leaf Hunt

I grew up in Southern California where there really isn't seasons.  Okay, there are some changes, in about late December, some of the deciduous (SAT word, oh ya!) trees do change colors, but nothing like Colorado or really any other cooler climate place.  My first REAL season change in Colorado was fall.  I had never experienced a real fall, where leaves actually change in October and the weather cools down instead of warming up which is the usual trend in the Orange County area (granted in Colorado that can be the trend, too).  Who would have thought?  Cool weather and beautiful orange, yellow and red leaves were not just in books.  :) I love fall!

Walking in this new wonderland is one of my favorite things to do with my kids.  We take along a bucket and collect all of these wonderful leaves until our bucket is full.

Then we go home and make some fun leaf crafts with our bounty of colorful leaves. My personal favorite is a handprint tree.  

First gather a 12x18 piece of white or light blue construction paper, some brown paint, regular white glue, a paint brush and your leaves. 

Paint your child's hand and about half of his or her forearm with the brown paint.  This is a great sensory activity and is fun interesting to see if he or she is ticklish or if it has a calming affect. 

Press your child's hand and forearm gently down on the construction paper, making sure his or her finger's are spread apart. 

Now you have a tree trunk.  Take the white glue and the leaves you collected and let your child glue on the leaves to the paper. 

This is a great activity for 2+, but you can still go on a leaf hunt with children younger than that.  After collecting the leaves, dump them into a tub (even a small plastic shoebox will work) and let them crinkle and crunch!  Oh what fun!

Enjoy!

-Allie

Bunco Night is October 6th!

Don't forget MOPs and POPs Bunco night! Happening on the third floor of the church this Saturday at 7pm, Bunco night is a great event to bring your husband to for a date night out. Or, if your husband can't make it, come by yourself! You will be paired up with another mom. Bunco is a dice game that's easy to learn and even if you've never played before you will quickly be an expert. There will be an ice cream bar and tons of great prizes!