Not in My House!

Just as I had come to terms with the strange Trick or Treating schedule in Illinois, I was dealt another Halloween disappointment. We had a weak turn out of Trick or Treaters. As it was becoming abundantly clear that many kids were not going to show up, I was practically begging the kids who did show to take fistfuls of candy. Even after all of my pleading, I was left with entirely too much candy. Ohhhhhhh noooooooooo.. not in MY house. I needed to get rid of it ASAP. I grabbed two gallon sized ziploc bags and filled those suckers up! I put them on the table by the front door and demanded that Mike take them to work the next day.

This is the AFTER picture, not the before

Goodbye, evil candy!

And do you know what he did?! He took ONE bag, not TWO, ONE! And do you know which bag he left behind? The one with all the chocolate!!! After eating a shameful number of Twix bars the previous week, I vowed to have ZERO junk food Monday through Friday. A bag of chocolate is NOT something I want to find on the first day of my little experiment. I surprised myself with my will-power and did not touch that chocolate. Well, except to slam it down in anger after finding that Mike had left it behind ;D My darling hubby will be taking the rest of the candy with him to work with him tomorrow!!

Happy Halloween!

I've got a basket overflowing with candy just waiting for all the little ghouls and goblins! Side note: I did not want to get a Halloween specific basket that I would use once a year for the candy, so I just pinned some festive Halloween ribbon around the edge of a regular ol' basket that I can use everyday once it's served its Halloween duties. Apparently in Illinois, the Trick or Treating starts in the early afternoon.. as in 1pm. That will take a little getting used to. In California, kids Trick or Treat starting at dusk. I think that adds to the magic of it all, but I'm sure it will still be fun.

I can appreciate all of the spooky & gory Halloween decor, but I prefer the more subdued, natural version. I like the pumpkins, leaves, & hints of a softer orange and green (versus the obnoxious neon colors). It's much more convenient since I can leave most of my decor up through Thanksgiving and it's still relevant.

Last week I thought I should have something a little more Halloween specific up to get in the spirit. I went to Hobby Lobby (aka: Heaven on Earth) and got my materials for under $3. I took my plain Halloween banner and perked it up with some pretty orange and green scrapbook paper. All I needed to complete it was my handy Elmer's Spray Adhesive and my craft knife. I sprayed the front of my letters and set them face down on the back of the scrapbook paper. I let the letters dry for at least 30 minutes before trimming around them with my craft knife. I was pretty pleased with my results! Not too shabby for $3 and roughly 45 minutes of my time (technically only 15 minutes since 30 minutes were for drying).

Before

After

With less than 2 hours before the Trick or Treaters arrive, I should go get ready. I have no costume planned, but am considering going as a Mid-Westerner. All I need is my plaid shirt, jeans, boots, and maybe pig tails for good measure. I know, I am completely stereotyping! I would be interested to see what a Mid-Westerner would look like dressed up as a Californian ;D