Pumpkins, Wallpaper and Things Boy Moms Say

I've missed writing posts about our family- I try to make sure at least one in five posts

are actually documenting our life, but I'm thinkin' I haven't done too well at that lately.

I've also missed just writing at random. I use to occasionally just sit down in edit mode

and spill my thoughts out into a blog post and that was it. Been too long :)

We went to this coolest pumpkin patch ever recently. The boys very favorite part was probably this straw pumpkin pyramid. The actual pumpkin choosing? Ya, they really couldn't have cared less- lets just grab some and get to the train already, Mom :)

Gotta laugh at this picture....

You know you're a boy mom if the phrase

"Don't touch your wee wee!"

has ever come out of your mouth...

Candy Apple Dip Bar Halloween Celebration

I am a member of the Collective Bias®  Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias and their client.

I sure love all the fun surrounding Halloween! This holiday is specifically awesome for kids, eh? Halloween celebrations are everywhere, including our own homes, in one form or another! Our kids could wear their costumes to functions about ten times even before the night of October 31, right? Sure seems like it to me! I love creating fun little celebrations for my boys at home, too, though- I know we'd all most often prefer to just make our own party instead of head out to be part of a crowd somewhere in town.

I went to Walmart and bought Hawaiian Punch, 7UP and M&Ms in this 55-piece Mars Variety pack. I used these ingredients to create a cute apple dip bar and punch floats for our Halloween celebration- I really was happy with how it all turned out! Couldn't have been easier to pull together and I was happy to know my boys were being given something at least a little healthier in the mix of the candy ;)

The very first thing I did to get our part started was to scoop vanilla ice cream into this skull ice cube tray I bought at the dollar store earlier this fall. I pressed the vanilla down inside each mold and then stuck it in the freezer to harden up. These will come back into the mix of our party prep in just a bit ;)

Simple Upcycled, No-Sew Kids Quiver

  

I recently shared this post over at The Ribbon Retreat Blog and wanted to share it with you here too!

The first things you think of when you think of the Fall season? Around our house, Fall doesn't just mean falling leaves and colder temps. It means caramel apple making. And Halloween. And, oh ya, hunting season! Being surrounded by country boys, that really should've been my first thought ;)

You've heard me talk before about how I really enjoy shooting archery with the boys. I'm excited for the years to come when our whole family is old enough that we can get into some leagues and such.

Shabby Flower Headband and Giveaway

Recently, I was sent a fat quarter of fabric and a few segments of ribbon as part of a new monthly Fat Quarter Challenge. Jesse's site is brand new and I wanted to be part of helping spread the word. I always really enjoy exchanges and swaps and such, so I thought this would be fun too.

With my pieces, I decided to make a shabby flower headband. I'd recently seen a flower that I really liked and wanted to try and replicate. I love that this is flat- for some reason I just feel kinda weird when my hair stuff sticks off my head too far. I know, I'm goofy. :)

DIY Skylanders Slam Bam Costume

Now that I've shared Ryder's Tree Rex costume, I have to share Cooper's Skylanders Slam Bam DIY too! I LOVE how this one turned out and he loves it even more :) He said earlier he wanted to be a yeti. Then that he wanted to pick a Skylander. Naturally, he landed on Slam Bam- probably his very favorite Skylanders character. This guy is a four-armed armor-clad yeti- sweet! ;) We own the series one figurine, but liked the look of this series two version better for the sake of a costume, so this picture below is what I've been working from to create Cooper's costume...

  

DIY Skylanders Tree Rex Costume

  

Anyone could've probably guessed that when I asked my little guys

what they wanted to be for Halloween this year,

they chose Skylanders!

They went the rounds trying to think of which character they wanted a costume of most, with some strong guidance from me- I'm no miracle worker! Ryder was thinking Tree Rex and I figured that was one I could manage. I figured people would likely recognize this one more too- Tree Rex is kinda the "logo" guy for Skylanders Giants. We did find this version available for sale on-line:

... and totally laughed! Really? This just doesn't look right- even a terrible DIY would be better! I knew I could upcycle and create something that would be at least more successful than that. :)

I think Ryder looks kinda pained in these pictures- be it from the sun, or being distracted, or whatever. But he really did say over and over, "I love this costume, Mom!" while we were taking pictures. Getting him all dressed up early also helped me to see what I need to improve for Halloween night!

I'm just gonna show pics of each part of the costume and how it was made. I've really tried not to get carried away with detail pics here- none of this costume was difficult and the pieces are not expensive or even new.

Thinking Thankfully with #myfavoritebloggers

  

Time again to join #myfavoritebloggers to bring you a fun collection of themed ideas!
This month we chose the theme "Thankful."

I'm sure enjoying this time of year already- I've been neck deep in costume making, am working on several Thanksgiving type of projects too, and already looking forward to Christmas- I love the magicness of the holidays! No doubt this collection will get you thinking along the lines of Thanksgiving already too! (At least it's not getting passed up for Christmas entirely, right?!)

Any Day is Good for a Gift: Printable Tags

It's really not so easy to move, ya know? Packing and hauling boxes and furniture is really no big deal compared to the work of getting comfortable with your neighbors and making acquaintances around you. In the two years we've lived in our current home, we've done okay at that I guess. We were just starting to feel like we knew people when we went places and such.

And then recently, our Stake was re-aligned. In other words, the people we went to Church with changed almost entirely. Our neighborhood was taken out of the Ward we went to. Our lives revolve around Church in a lot of ways, so it was kind of a big bite to digest. Suddenly that level of comfort was back to square one in a way. The more I thought about the change, the more I thought of specific people that I knew I would really miss interacting with each week.

Simple Days in the Life

Our everyday lives are relatively simple it seems like.

I feel like I have plenty to be doing all the time, but I don't feel like there's a lot to report

about our life lately either somehow...

Went out to Mom and Dad's for Conference weekend- that place rejuvenates me.

It's so beautiful right now with the colors changing.

Good fun at Cooper's Elementary Fall Fair recently. I loved this homemade swing ride that was in one of the rooms- stuff like this makes my heart grateful for rural life :) Stephen and I were running the goldfish toss room, so we gave the boys each just enough tickets to go to one game at a time, made them stay together, and they ventured around on their own and kept coming back in-between. They loved the independence! I went around with them a bit toward the end when we were out of fish :) Cooper asked the face paint ladies if they could "make it look like his head just burst into flames!"

The boys and I are frothing at the bit for Skylanders Swap Force to finally come out this weekend! We went to Toys R' Us to try out the demo they have and Ryder could've played at it for hours.This game really will be cool we think :) I know, I know... I'm a nerd. Have been spending lots of time making the boys' Skylanders Halloween costumes lately too- can't wait to share more about them!

When I'm not helping to fashion cardboard box rockets, that is :) 

#boysrule

Super Fast and Easy Puffy Pumpkins

Oh my goodness, I just love how fun these little guys turned out!

Aren't these puffy pumpkins cute, cute, cute?!

And, that's right- you can honestly make two of them in five minutes! No exaggeration. I had a small window of time to make all six of these while I was waiting to go pick up Cooper from school and couldn't believe how fast it was! Love when a project honestly turns out really good and doesn't take too much time. This would be an amazing project for a youth group or craft time with kids involved :)

Pretty Pair Halloween Garlands

Today I'm excited to be starting a new little series with my blogging friend Emily from The Benson Street! She is a fellow Idaho Falls area creative blogger and is SO, SO, SO talented! I was thrilled when she asked me to participate with her in a monthly series- I really think you''ll love and be able to use what we came up with together! (We really are a rather pretty pair, eh?) ;)

Each month, we'll get together and spend no more then $10 on the materials to create a project. We'll each create something with what we find in less than an hour and then share them with you! Ten dollars and just one hour- that kind of project is right up my alley! And I really hope it'll be something you feel like you can pull off too- because you can!

Wood Creations of Idaho Falls 'BOO' and Giveaway!

I received a wood kit from Wood Creations of Idaho Falls in exchange for this post.

All opinions are 100% mine (and I LOVE this store!)

So, there you have it... I love Wood Creations! They opened an Idaho Falls store this past summer just off the corner of Lincoln and Hitt Road, not far from Majestic Auto Body. And every time I drove by, I wanted to stop in. It wasn't until the last couple of months that I finally got in and I was smitten immediately! What an awesome place! I love all the amazing creativity inside Wood Creations and am so excited such a fun store is now right here in Idaho Falls! I'm so excited to get to work with them to bring good deals and giveaways to YOU! No matter what your style of decor, Wood Creations has something that you will love in your home! I could wander around the cute store and just gawk- just look at a few of their fun Halloween kits: