Halloween Crafting

Halloween is by far my two son's favorite holiday. I'm not sure why, but they say they like it even more than Christmas. I know they like the candy, but they also really like all of the Autumn themes that come along with this holiday in particular.

This year we spent most of the month of October making holiday crafts. Both boys are getting more and more into arts & crafts, and this couldn't make this 'crafty' Mom any happier.

Here is one of the hand print bats that we made. We got this craft from my church group and the boys did enjoy making them at home. I like the fact that I have a record of the size of their hands during this season and I hung them up in my kitchen to enjoy for a while.



Last year I bought several holiday themed 'foamy craft kits' right after the holiday on clearance. These next two crafts come from a kit that the boys really enjoyed personalizing. Curtis made this spooky sign for our front door, practicing his spelling skills with foam letters.



Clark choose to make this magnet for our refrigerator, decorated with really sparkly glitter.



At a holiday themed story-time, sponsored by the library at a local park, we were given this little paper craft. Clark had fun folding the papers and I helped him slide them onto the base. I was very pleased with how sweet and minimal this one turned out.



And of course I wouldn't be Taradactyl if I didn't have some kind of baked good to share for the holiday. When we were up north visiting family last week Clark was given this little plastic spider by a friend of my Mom's who decorates cakes for a living. I immediately got the idea to try this spiderweb cake that I had seen in magazines. I was pretty happy with the results and the guys were all very happy to help eat it.



And now as my tired little boys sleep off the excitement of Halloween, I have this one evening to relax before I can begin to plan for the joy of the next celebration, my baby boy's 3rd birthday!!!

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Wishing everyone a great Halloween weekend!

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

Baking Weather

That's right, it's finally baking weather in the Tropics. I love to bake and also love to eat baked goods, so I am welcoming this recent cooler (high in the 80's instead of 100's) weather. It's a good thing that I exercise regularly and have a fast metabolism or I'm sure I'd be 200 lbs or more.



I've been making apple pies lately. Only half of my family will eat apple pie regularly, so anytime I'm invited anywhere I've been bringing an apple pie with me. This is how I get to eat some pie without having to eat all of the pie. I do also have an ulterior motive since most people are usually very happy to see me coming with a pie in my hands.




After making my own yogurt I ended up with more yogurt than my family could handle. I searched online and found this yummy looking recipe for Maple Yogurt Pound Cake. Lucky for me I already had all of the ingredients so it was a go. Boy was this tasty! It definitely would be a good choice for a brunch or breakfast potluck dish. While it is very 'desserty', I think the maple syrup flavor lends itself to consumption before noon if you ask me. This is one of those baked goods that actually tastes better on the second day, so I recommend that you make it late one evening and wake up to a wonderful breakfast treat.

Now, I am going to go hit the kitchen once more. I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing on a nice fall Sunday afternoon than baking up a delicious treat while watching the game. Go Eagles!

{this moment}

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.