Halloween Apothecary

My new blog friend turned me on to this great Halloween apothecary. I downloaded the labels here and printed them on card stock. I scoured the D.I. (which wasn't easy as they are remodeling and everything was on wheeled carts on the sidewalk outside) and Goodwill (I'm always disappointed that they don''t offer better prices. They have better quality stuff, but not much better than shopping at TJ Maxx or the like) for the jars. After mod podging the labels to the jars, the real fun began with rifling through my cupboards to see what I could fill each jar with.

If you look closely you'll see:
Toadstool Essence = Craisins
Mummy Mold = Oreo crumbs
Werewolf Howls = Cotton balls
Tincture of Skull = Salt (both kosher and table)
Corpse Dust = Butterscotch pudding powder (the instant variety because I accidentally bought it instead of the cook and serve for sticky buns)
Deadly Nightshade = Dried Cloves
Poison = Water with red food coloring
Eye of Newt = Wrapped caramel filled chocolates (which I steal one from every now and then)

A fun little project and my kids enjoyed seeing what was going in the next jar. Now if only I could finish my "BOO" blocks and skeleton board (pics pending). Oh, and get out those fall decorations that were supposed to be up before the baby was born. Guess it's time to put up all the rest of the Halloween decor anyway.

Frankenstein Knocked Me Up

(I hope that doesn't reflect too negatively on my character.)

Along with two of my cousin's wives (two different cousins not one cousin's two wives), we have been reading Mary Shelley's Frankenstein in time for Halloween. In the spirit of all things tradition, we decided to dress the parts this year. No one recognized us at our ward Trunk-or-Treat until our kids came running up to us.

That's the sign of a good costume.

The Year of the Pokemon

Because of my disappointing afternoon (see previous post), I was really not looking forward to taking the kids Trick-or-Treating. But I ended up having a good time. It brought back some of the tradition that I knew should be there. The kids were excited about their costumes. I make their costumes every year that I can. Something about tradition for me. The pictures are from our Trunk-or-Treat the previous Friday night (which was everything a Halloween party should be and then some).

For those not yet introduced to the way of the Pokemon, I've included pics of the original characters so you can see who they are supposed to be.

a. is a Pokemon named Butterfree. I know it's not the most authentic, but she had her wings and that was all that mattered to her. Oh and she got to wear her purple snow boots.

M. was Ash, a Pokemon Trainer and owner of the Pokemon Pikachu who you can see in the green backpack. I was honestly surprised at how many kids actually recognized the character he was portraying. (I hope that says something for my costume making abilities.)

A. is an Pokemon named Riolu. He actually evolves into Lucario who is his favorite. But he says he chose this one because he's not as scary. (Lucario reminds me of a mean wolf, so I can see where he is coming from.) Because not every parent gets the opportunity to learn as much about Pokemon as I have, no one really knew who A. was supposed to be. One of my friends asked him if he was a bat-dog. Sure, whatever. It beats trying to explain it. He knew who he was and that's what mattered.