minor punch-list items + weekend recap

(*warning! no "pretty" pictures in this post--just run of the mill iphone quickies!)

we haven't tackled any major items on our punch list, but a few small things are getting done.
for starters, we are in the process of having our exterior doors painted:
(isn't the paper towel in the dead bolt hole classy?)


i also bought some shades for my ebay chandelier. this is such a minor thing, but makes a world of difference in the output of light! it is much softer and more pleasant. i am not 100% in love with these shades...i ordered them online and when they arrived, i almost returned them, but i figured they are good enough for now.


my mini office, right off the kitchen is badly needing some storage. we bought this ikea peice but havent put it together yet:

i have been zeroing in on how i want to design this space, and i think i finally have a good idea of what i want! i will be sharing more details soon.


halloween was a blast!



my oldest daughter olivia has officially "aged-out" of halloween, so that was a little surreal. instead of trick-or-treating, she and some friends got together and hung out. so weird that i have a non-trick-or-treating child!

charlotte turned 12 the day after halloween, and so we had a "halloweenish" birthday party for her at our house.  i actually have some professional pictures of a few of the details that i will post later in the week. yay!

FIXED the weird pink streaks coming from my new spot light by replacing the bulb! i was so worried that the new bulb i bought at lowes were going to have the same coloring, but it didn't! i am so happy!

and, we woke up to snow on sunday morning! it was such a shock because the previous two days were in the high 60's. ahhh, utah...you kill me sometimes!

hope you weekend was a good one too!

my post about halloween

halloween always seems to sneak up on me. one minute, school starts, and the next...it's halloween! if you are a mom, then you know how busy this time of year can be--costumes, treats, parties...it all adds up to a lot!

here is my simple halloween door this year:

 i have had the witches brooms forever---i bought them at big lots for $4 about 10 years ago, and it is a miracle that they have lasted through our many moves. they are one of those bulky items that i *almost donate every time we move, but i love them SO much, and i always manage to talk myself into keeping them.
(yep. our exterior door has still not been painted. it's on the short list of things to get done!)


and, in the "if it ain't broke don't fix it" category, i am still using this  this easy and very affordable wreath that i made 5 years ago. i love it because it only looks better the more battered and worn it gets!
you can get the low down of how i made the wreath here.

i love halloween!
i try to make the treat we give away at least a little special.

 this year, i made some cute, simple labels to wrap around Hershey's bars.
(i bought the full size bars at costco---they come in a pack of 24)



if you like these wrappers, feel free to grab them and use them!

these would also be great to bring to a halloween party or to give away to your childs classmates!

here is a peek at some gift bags i gave away a few years ago:

seeing these always makes me happy!


you can also get these wrappers that i made two years ago for an assortment of candy bars:




oh, and take a look at the buddy the elf costume that i whipped up from some thrift store finds and a little fake fur and fabric paint!

we started with a sleeveless green mock turtleneck, a black t-shirt, and a black belt, all from the thrift store.

i cut the collar and cuffs from some fake fur (made templates from paper first) and hot glued them in place, and then embellished the green tunic with some gold fabric paint. the leggings were found on ebay.

i made the hat out of three pieces of felt. (i made a paper template and then traced it)

i never actually sew my kids halloween costumes from scratch, but i am pretty darn good at taking a dress or shirt or whatever from the thrift store and transforming it into a costume!  (it always seems like my kids want to be something that is impossible to BUY...!)
here is a look at some of my kids costumes from the past few years:


vicious gladiator + two goddesses.


medusa, a pirate + cleopatra.

medusa make-up closeup.

mummy bride + gangnam style guy. (sigh. my son changed his costume about 5 times last year. this was what he settled on. the night BEFORE halloween!)

teen wolf.


teen wolf (close-up) talking on the phone and WAAAAAAY too busy to take a picture....
(wish you could get the full effect of the creepy red contact lenses! they were expensive, but made all the difference!)

be sure to check out my HALLOWEEN pinterest board--i have all of the goodies from years past, including some scanned images that are some of the most pinned images from my blog!

PS---i have been having some HUGE issues with my pinterest account. about 5 months ago, there was some glitch that stopped the counter going up on my followers, and would not allow certain people to follow me. i kept waiting for them to resolve the issue, and they finally did! so---if you *thought you were following me, and then for some reason you weren't, that is why! try again--all is finally well!
CLICK HERE to follow me. (again.)

trick or treat at my house + 3 halloween printables

i like halloween. a lot.
i think that's because i like candy. a lot.

 one of the things that i have always loved to do is to give away treat bags to trick-or-treaters. sure, it takes more time and a bit more cash than just handing out a single piece of candy, but it is something that i really enjoy doing! two years ago i made these, but this year, i decided to hand out something a little easier to throw together...full size candy bars with my customized printable wrappers.

these wrappers are made for the full size candy bars. 

the "from" area on the back is helpful if you plan to give out the candy bars at a party or a school or church function.

i bought my candy from costco in a variety pack,  which contains hersheys bars, hershey almond bars, reeses peanut butter cups and kit kat. i got 30 bars for just about $17. i bought two packs.

each printable can be printed out, cut and then you can use tape or a glue stick to attach the back together.

click below to download:

hersheys bar candy wrapper

kit kat candy wrapper

reeses candy wrapper

happy halloween!

trick or treat

i'm still trying to figure out what to hand out for trick or treaters on saturday.

last year i made 60 of these:

what was i thinking?!

 i was completely insane.

but not as insane as i was when i sewed over 75 fabric bags for

my kids to give out on valentines day!

(you can see them here.)

anyway, i am still thinking that i might have enough time 

to pull off something cute.

 i was thinking of making a sleeve that wraps around a

candy bar...like a flat hershey's bar. 

i don't know. 

i messed around on the laptop last night while 

i was laying in bed.

here's a preliminary draft of what i am thinking of:

(i got the image from the graphics fairy)

i would love to do a reverse print...

where the skull and the

text are white and the background is black.

of course, that would drain my printer of ink 

faster than bunnicula would drain a rutabaga.

not sure if i can pull it off.

i'll keep you posted.

i'll probably wimp out and just hand out something lame.

halloween decor

a little peek at halloween at my house...

happy halloween!

all of the containers were purchased at thrift stores for between .50-$1,and then spray painted black. 

the paper mache pumpkins and skull were bought on clearance 

last year, and painted by me. 

the large metal pumpkin bucket was a gift.

the large silver urn is fom z gallerie.