a reprint from my family blog

We like to celebrate Aprils Fools Day at my house.  Here is a peek at the "chicken pot pie" I made a few years ago (2008)...

For our April Fool's dinner we had chicken pot pie and for dessert we had cupcakes.

Where is the fooling in that you ask?  The pot pie was made with vanilla pudding for gravy, dried pineapple slices for chicken, and candy for corn, peas and carrots.  

I was especially fond of the corn.  Who knew that nuking some Starbursts in the microwave could create such a good "clay" to mold little corn kernels?!?!?  The carrots were also Starbursts and the peas were nuked Airheads rolled into little balls.
The cupcakes were made from meatloaf and covered in purple mashed potato frosting.  We have had the cupcakes for previous April Fool's dinners  so the kids weren't as surprised by them (Luke was - he was obviously to young to remember the last time) but the chicken pot pie was a hit.  

hollywood party: the oscar goes to...

I know these amazing cookies from Bakerella are making the rounds on the internet but I love them so much I just had to post them here.  I have Hollywood on the brain as I try to finish up the decor for the Old Hollywood Spring Formal that I'm decorating for.  Do you think I could whip up 400 or so of these cookies for all the high schoolers attending the dance? Um, NO!

alice in wonderland party idea

I just got this in my inbox.  Thank you Disney Family.com!

Perfect little edible teacups for an Alice in Wonderland party.  Here's the how-to.  


I CAN NOT WAIT for this movie.  Tim Burton and Johnny Depp are movie magic in my book.  Friday can't come soon enough.


For my Alice in Wonderland craft ideas go here.

valentine treat - rice krispies

Yes, it's March.  


Yes, I should have posted this before Valentines so people could make them if they wanted.  


Yes, I'm lame.


But we move on.  I'm feeling so bad for neglecting this blog that I thought I'd do this quick post to let you see what I made for Valentines Day.  I can't remember where I saw these but kudos to whoever it was that created them.  They were easy to make and oh so cute.  We delivered some to friends and I also used them at our place settings for our Valentines meal.


All you need is...cones, rice krispies (dyed pink or other color of choice), melted chocolate, and a gumball. I think you can get the steps involved by looking at the picture but if you have questions about the how-to leave me a comment and I'll get back to you.

cookie exchange

The illness continues but I miss you all and just had to share these adorable cookie exchange invites that I found over at Brooklyn Limestone.

the king of all candied apples

Um, hello...these are gorgeous, haunting an I'm sure tasty.  I love these candied apples from Matt Bites.

I love candied/carmel apples for parties and now with these beauties candied apples can feel right at home at the most sophisticated Halloween soiree.  

One of the best new food ideas I've seen!

candy corn that bill cosby can sink his teeth into

I am so making this for the baby shower I'm hosting in a couple weeks - cute and simple, gotta love it.  Directions for this tasty pudding treat can be found at Life is a Banquet.

boo brownies

Too cute and would be perfect for my sons Monster Mash birthday party tomorrow.  Directions here.

seriously sick but tasty

Gross, huh?  But I love it and so will my son and his friends when I serve these slimy worm sandwiches at his birthday party next week.

I found these (& other tasty Halloween treats) over at Our Best Bite - a site I had never seen before but now I'm thrilled I found it.  Go one over and check out some of the recipes - you'll be glad you did.  Although I'm not sure much can top this appetizing worm sandwich!

crawly cakes

Here it is...adorable cakes that don't involve a ton of baking.  What is there not to love about these multi eyed arachnids?

You can find the how to for all these creepy crawlies over at Not Martha.  Can't wait to make these for Halloween this year.  

kickin' it

Y'all ready for this?  Said in my best announcer voice with loud music blaring in the background.  

Friday was the big game...my daughter Megan's kickball party (that had been planned as an end of Summer party but had to be rescheduled at the very last minute)

The two teams, The Neville Kickbottoms 

and The Spongebob Kickpants played a good game but in the end only one team could be the victor 

Congratulations Team Kickpants!

I love the signs that one of the cute moms made for both teams - thanks Shauna!  Shauna is the one that drew who knows how many dark marks on the arms of the teenagers when we were in line for Harry Potter. 

There was some fine athleticism displayed ...

amazing form - Megan has never looked so athletic

speed

a sense of fashion even in the heat of competition

a fierce competitive attitude

the thrill of victory

the agony of defeat - "What?  I'm totally safe."

It turned out to be a great evening and we're glad so many kids could join in on the fun.  But the night didn't end with the game - there were celebrations to be had.

Any good game ends with a parent tunnel

Before leaving the field The Spongebob Kickpants picked up their winners trophy...

You weren't aware that there was a Kickball Championship Trophy were you?  Amazing what a $4 lamp from Goodwill, styrofoam and paint will make, huh?  Since no one person could take the trophy home because I'm holding on to that baby for next years rematch, I put together individual awards for each person on the winning team that they picked up once back at our house where the festivities continued.

They each received a mini trophy with a giant gumball kickball on top as well as a medal.  The "kickballs" were a hit and it was hilarious watching the kids try to chew them.

After all the competition on the field the kids were hungry.  There were lots of tacos and burritos consumed

and lots of this...

I'm not sure what it is but the teenagers have a love affair with this slightly thick, processed, yellow goodness.

Whenever we serve it (which is nearly every time we have teenagers over)  They surround the stuff, each trying to get their fair share and you can bet they will be back for seconds, thirds and fourths.

Here's to making this a yearly event - cheese and all!

after dinner mint

Cute, huh?  What a fun little way to dress up an after dinner mint.  I love little details like this. Found on Etsy.

stick a fork in it

I am loving these edible eyeballs made out of doughnut holes, from Family Fun - a perfect Halloween party food.  Directions here.

i scream for ice cream

This make your own sundae bar from Eat Drink Chic is killing me with happiness.  Is it beyond adorable or what?

Every detail is perfect.  

I want to have this party and I want to do it right now.  I feel a bit like a kid throwing myself on the store floor while shopping with mom screaming, "I want that mommy!" and not just screaming it once but over and over.  I WANT TO HAVE THIS PARTY!
Look at this ice cream container - are you in love with it too?

Not only has Amy put up pictures for us all to take ideas from but she has also written up a how-to on this party AND included free downloads for her labels.  Amy, you are my hero!

This is moving to the top of my list as a must throw party.

spooky strawberries

How about sharing these sweet little spooks with your guests on Halloween.

anything from the trolley, my dears

Since I couldn't pull off a big Harry Potter party like I have before I kept it simple and brought the party to the movie line.  

The first few of us got in line at 4 pm and secured the 4th spot in line with the first three spots being small groups of people.  This allowed us to get great seats once inside the theater.  

We spread blankets and chairs out as we waited for the rest of our party to arrive.  By 9 pm all 31 of us (plus a couple friends that came to hang out in line but not go to the movie) were there. Once we were all assembled we ate take out from The Three Broomsticks

A friend of mine spent hours drawing the Dark Mark on most of the teenagers that were with us

We played games - speed Scrabble, Harry Potter Uno, Harry Potter Scene It and more.

It seems that perhaps we need some help with spelling or access to a few more letters

In addition to our Three Broomsticks dinner we ate candy, candy and more candy (have I mentioned yet that the lack of sleep and abundance of candy have made me feel like vomiting?)

Here are the trolley offerings...

The bottom of the basket was filled with muggle candy - an assortment of chocolate bars but they had to stay hidden because muggle packaging just doesn't mix with wizard packaging.

Butterscotch Disks

Cinnamon Disks - I had to throw a little Twilight shout out it into this packaging

Chocolate Covered Macadamia Nuts.  A good friend had just brought these back for me from Hawaii hence the name.

Candy Dots
There was a lot more candy - some that I did packaging for and some that I left as is.  I wish I had more pictures but in our rush to get out the door to get in line I only managed a few pictures.

As for the movie - we loved it!  As always the Harry Potter movies are a visual feast - the set design, costumes, everything are amazing.  The story line was off from the books a bit but I loved it anyway.  I liked the humor in this film.  In my opinion it is a must see.