Making Shrunken Heads for Halloween

Oh yes. It is almost that time again! So as we plan our fun, I am reminded of years past when my Mom used to always give us a little treat bag for Halloween.

We lived in a small neighborhood, so the candy pickin's were quite slim. There was always one or two neighbors that give us the bulk of our candy haul, but many of the houses were quite dark on Hallow's Eve.

Last year we had a fun Halloween party and I did a post about what I wanted to make for the party and decor. Did you go check that link out?  ^the one up there^   It has some other good ideas for treats and tricks!

So here's how our Shrunken Heads went:

You will need:

• As many apples as you feel inspired to fiddle with (any kind will do- I went with cheap, here)
• Something to cut on/in/with (I sat on the couch watching a movie while the Hubs worked, with a bread pan in my lap. It worked fine.)
• A bowl full of water with a splash of lemon juice (it will prevent the apples from turning, and helps with the drying process)
• An oven set to low
• A little bit of creativity

Start with apples...do I really need to show a picture of an apple? Didn't think so. I went ahead and peeled them-no fancy tools needed. Just use small knives (or cheese knives like I did!) And then look at them for a bit of inspiration. After peeling- I just gouged a couple holes for eyes, cut away a nose and gave each one a different mouth. I even attempted a kitty head. Cute, huh? 

Step 1: Peel the apples. Doesn't matter what kind. I just bought the cheapest there. Bigger apples make bigger heads, and different kinds make different color heads in the end. For the first one we just used the same kind of apples.

Step 2: Soak the peeled apples in water with a little bit of lemon juice. A tablespoon or two will suffice. 

Step 3: After soaking the apples a bit-the lemon juice method helps to keep them from browning and getting mushy- carve them into faces.Tip No. 1:  Be sure to over exaggerate the features. Remember these guys are going to shrink! A LOT! 

As you can see- they don't need too much detail... and if you are wondering where the scraps are- well. It was apple, after all. I ate every last piece that I carved away. ^_^

Step 4: Turn your oven on to no higher than 175 F. Put the apples on a wire rack, and stick them in the oven. After about ten minutes turn the oven off and let the apples sit over night.

These are the wonderful things I woke up to! Aren't they awesome!?

If they haven't fully dried out, just put them back in the oven, crank it to 175 F and then shut it off. And repeat that until they are dried to your heart's content.


Then: skewer, and poke into a burlap sack filled with beans. Or find another way to display your creations! Either way, have fun and show me what you made! I'd love to see your ghoulish friends!!!

Thanks for stopping by- Find more Halloween Projects (and my original post of this one) here!

~Live in the sweet rhythm of love!

Working on an update!

There has been quite a lot going on around this little house of love...please forgive my absence, and brace yourselves for some changes! (My 10 loyal readers....^-^)

Oh, and if I were to do a give-a-way...what would be something you'd be interested in? Something handmade? Or an item I love? I'd love to know!

Here are some insta-updates, and see you all again soon!

My only large tomato...it was supposed to be purple! >.<'

We FIGured out what to do with all these!

And some homemade ice cream cones! Yum!

Now that we're almost out of the summer fray, I am ready to get back to business! Hope you had a great summer, and did lots of fun things with your loved ones!

~Living in the sweet rhythm of love...

What to do with a sickie kiddo!

Sang to the tune of that Drunken Sailor Song...What DO you do with a sickie kiddo?

You love them. And give them what they need...

Not so easy when what they think they need is completely different from what they actually need.

Our poor lil guy got sick something awful last week. I woke up early in the morning to be greeted by a present on the floor. Right in between the toes.

I know! Gross.

All he wanted to do was cuddle and watch movies-so that's what we did with most of our time together. But I made a nice container of jello and a couple recipes from an old book I found on "keeping house" from back in the day when Homemaking was an art.

This was what he wrote for me in his journal after getting better. The sickie kiddo, that would tell me to be sure I got my rest as I tucked him. 

His fever had been rough, and he was devastated about missing his champs day, but we had our own lowkey game day at home to make up for it. This is why we do what we do, right? 

This is what I do with my sickie kiddo.

What do you do with yours?

Mighty Motivation

13 weeks ago I joined a great group of ladies that are working on getting slim by summer. I've enjoyed reading all the posts and joining in on the journeys of others. They are all amazing women and I am honored to be a part of this group.

This week the assignment is: Motivation



Why do I do what I do? What keeps me going?

I love waking up to this...my back? Not so much.

Well lately all my time has been absorbed by spring activities-  we've been camping for a week in Big Bend, my hubbilicious man turned 35, we had a MAJOR water leak and had to replace the 40 year old main line, went camping at Enchanted Rock, are preparing for a garage sale and today our business moved out of the home, primarily, and into an office! Oh and weddings( and lots of them) Yeah, so where do I find time for me in all that? Well, it gets tricky. Walks with the dog have been my biggest regular exercise along with jamming to some tunes while cleaning and working in the garden. 

Oh, I know. Glamorous life, isn't it? 

Our View of the sunset in the basin of Big Bend. Delightful.

My motivation is to be healthy, and to love myself more. Since graduation I no longer walk the hills on a daily basis and I am no longer am a server or bartender those hours on my feet each week melting the calories and fat off my bod.

So to trigger a bit of that motivation, I agreed to let the hubs have his office away from home (for part of the week-I like doing my writing with him here some of the time) and along with the office comes a gym membership! So in addition to having my living room back, and having space to do yoga and my Jillian Fitness Ultimatum I get a gym to get my sweat on!

I'm excited to do this last push of getting in a routine of working out and see a change before summer gets here.

What is your motivation? Is it love? health? your kids? Happiness?
I'd love to hear it!

Thanks for visiting my lil bloggie thingy!

A blessing for the wedding couple!

busy little bees are we

I said 2013 was going to be a great year. Phew-didn't realize in saying that we would be so busy!

This is not a complaint, I am so thankful for this year so far! We've started juicing (which has been giving me much more energy), we have a dog and a cat, are Den Leaders for the fourth year running, I'm gardening (I just put in another bed, and it's ready for baby plants!), and writing, helping the darling husband with the business, and are about to spend a week in Big Bend!

Life is good. So while I make some homemade instant oatmeal, kolaches and bread for our camping trip. I will try and do a few blog posts, and take pictures.

Here is a quick photo dump of the past week:

We have been experiencing strong winds...and between this limb and
another hanging precariously from our power line, we got lucky!

We went antiquing and celebrated my parent's 39th year of marriage!
I found this little gem I wish I could have.

Jon found this for a few good reads, and it has me writing more. ^_^

My Mom found this gem, and it is now in a place of honor!
It reminds me of her. <3 

Well, that's a bit of what's been going on here. Hope you've been having as much fun as we have!

Whoa-where'd I go!?

Oh my. I can't believe the directions this month has been taking me! Between getting ready for a week long cub scout campout (oh yeah, we're crazy) our juicy journey, and spring being here (gardening time!) I have neglected this bloggie thingie a bit.

So how about a bit of an update before I get to business? 

We finished our juice, and are feeling good! We've decided to do our own version of the reboot, and have been working in healthy recipes while juicing. We've loved the juicing so much so that we are going to try and make it a part of our everyday routine. 

It was hard to think that this jar would make us feel full, but it was bizarre. We weren't hungry....I sure missed my coffee, but I learned that the coffee was actually making it hard for our bodies to absorb nutrients we were eating.

The green juice was one of our favorites for the morning. It energized us, and really kept us going till our lunch juice.

As seen by the in-progress photo here...I began to enjoy the juices in a different way. As I would wash all the veggies and fruits to juice it was as if I could feel my body absorbing the smells better and the colors became more vivid. I would toss in a beet, and giggle in excitement as the aroma filled my nose. The joy came when I was finished juicing and cleaning the machine, and could take that first sip of juicy goodness.

The combinations are endless and experimenting with flavors can be fun-especially if you can tolerate a few not so tasty blends. Oh yeah, I had those too. The ones that Jon would say, in his ever so encouraging way; "just chug it babe, you gotta drink it"

If you are thinking of juicing I would highly recommend it. If you need to lose a bit of belly, then a proper cleanse can really help. My next post I'll let in on just how much I lost in the 5 day cleanse!

Juicy Journey: Day 3 Update

It is day three of our Juicy Journey, and I am feeling a lot better than yesterday. Still don't have that wonderful splurge of purported energy to happen any day now...but I'm ready for it!

Yesterday was rough. Silly me thought it would be wise to do a little workout in the morning. It was yoga, and it made me woozy! The afternoon was the hardest part of the day-a headache like nobody's business, and a few food cravings. Nothing too bad, but I did start to wonder how long we could actually go.

The most surprising part-I haven't been hungry. Bizarre, I know! We drink hot water with lemon in the morning, while I get the fruits and veggies ready to go. Take the pup on a walk, and then juice. A couple large glasses of water and some coconut water to get us to lunch...and then a juice at lunch. Followed by more water and coconut water. Then we make a dinner juice, I make food for our Shi guy and after even more water we have tea before bed with lemon and ginger. Other than missing crunching into food, and popcorn for family movie night, and the feel of a grilled burrito...I don't feel like I'm missing out too much.

I do know this: We are super excited to plan our meals for when we get off this cleanse! Once I get that energy back-it'll be time to finish up my Menu Board!

This was our first juice! Just look at that greenage! 

I'd love some recipes if you've done a juice or know of anybody who has!