Happy Halloween! and its National Caramel Apple Day!

Halloween history can be a tricky thing to talk about with your kids.  The metamorphosis of Halloween form the harvest celebrations of the past to the candy and costume fun of today can get a bit confusing.  Since today, the celebration for us is totally different from the celebration of this day from centuries ago we really do not feel it is necessary to get into all the facets of the holiday with the children.  We do not believe in ignorance so a little history can go a long way. Here are the basics of the Holiday so that Children can understand it. 

Many years ago people believed in spirits, both good and bad.  They believed that the spirits did good and bad for people.  Now, a culture of people known as the Celts lived long ago in what is now known to us as Ireland, France and England.  Harvest was a huge time for these people and the fall and when all their crops came in for the winters food supply.  The Celts held a ceremony or festival called Samhain to thank the good spirits for their help in the harvest and healthy crop production. As a part of Samhain, which is pronounced as sow-en, people wore costumes and told fortunes having a great time with wonderful food.  This does sound kind of like our harvest celebrations and carnivals of today.  

Many years later other beliefs and religions spread throughout Ireland, France and England.  November 1st was a holiday that celebrated and honored martyrs, people who died for their religious beliefs, and that day became known as All Saints Day.  The night before All Saints Day was known as All-Hallows, now called Halloween.

   

Now since November 1^st was known to be a holiday for saints and martyrs ,or good spirits as the Celts believed, it was thought that the night before October 31^st was a day for bad spirits.  Halloween then turned into a scary time for the people who believed that the evil spirits would wander the earth causing trouble and bad things to happen.  In order to ward off the evil and feel safe they carved vegetables out for lanterns. 

And now onto today, Halloween is a celebration that is to celebrate the fun and food and good times of the Samhain (summers end) festival of the old Celts with the costumes and celebratory aspects and pumpkin carving for happy safe light. 

Great site that has 40 different Halloween Vectors, Fonts, Brushes and Stamps! 
http://indeziner.com/design/40-amazing-halloween-resources/

National Caramel Apple Day:

What is a caramel apple?

Caramel apples or taffy apples are created by dipping or rolling apples-on-a-stick in hot caramel, and sometimes then rolling them in nuts or other small savories or confections, and allowing them to cool.

More elaborate apples use white chocolate over the caramel to hold a variety of candies, nuts or cookies. Tart, crisp apples such as Granny Smith are preferred to contrast with the soft, sweet caramel.

Caramel apples are usually consumed as treats at autumn festivals such as Halloween, in the wake of the annual apple harvest.

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Origin of this Holiday?

Our research did not find the information of who created this holiday or why October 31 was picked. The red candy apple came first but research says Caramel apples were invented by Dan Walker, a sales representative for Kraft Foods, in the 1950s.

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Make your own Caramel Apples!

You can make them in all shapes and sizes.

31 days of Halloween with kids! Easy Last Minute Costume Ideas - Day 30

HALLOWEEN COUNTDOWN

 

Easy Last-Minute Halloween Costume Ideas

 

31 Days of Halloween - Eyes - Day 29

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Make these adorable scary eyes.  We created our own eyes that we think you will like.  We trace the templates on the bright Halloween color foam sheets.  We then use 3000 glue to assemble them together.  We then use the non-stick wall stuff to place them all around the house and even outside on the fence.

31 Days of Halloween - Last minute crow branches - Day 28

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Quick last minute halloween decorations:

31 Days of Halloween - Halloween Movies for kids! Day 27

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Here is a great list of Halloween Movies you can rent for the kids this year. 

Some of these movies will bring back "scary" childhood memories. The great classics never get out-dated, especially holiday classics. These Halloween titles are G, PG, or NR (the movies which are not rated were all made for children) ; however, many of these movies still have scenes that may be frightening for very young children. For shows with even less fright potential, check out the list of Halloween DVDs from Preschoolers' Shows. For older kids, see the list of Halloween movies for older kids, which are slightly scarier.

We broke it down in 3 category's (Kids, School-aged and Preschoolers)

Kids Movies:

      
  















































Preschooler Movies:

 
 



































School-aged Kid Movies:
   

National Pumpkin Day with kids!

Pumpkin pie, pumpkin seads, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin roll, we all have a favorite pumpkin food. Today, National Pumpkin Day, is the perfect day to celebrate, eat or carve a pumpkin. National Pumpkin Day is celebrated on October 26th of each year. This unofficial food holiday pays tribute to the underrated pumpkin, which has many uses besides being sacrificed to Halloween. Pumpkins are a vegetable, similar to gourds and related to squash.

There are so many pumpkin crafts and ideas out there. We love to carve our pumpkins into pictures, like owls, and bake the seeds for a tasty night time snack.

Pumpkin Anatomy:
Found this perfect description of pumpkin anatomy HERE from Pumpkin Nook.  Great site to teach the kids!

Pumpkin Cooking:
This website has step by step with pictures on how to cook and puree your pmpkins:
http://www.pickyourown.org/pumpkincooking.php

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds:
Thais website also has step by step instructions on how to roast your own pumpkins seeds!
http://www.pumpkinpatchesandmore.org/pumpkinseeds.php

For more great pumpkin ideas and recipes visit the Pumpkin Nook HERE

So celebrate National pumpkin day, be creative and enjoy this favorite Fall squash.

Our Halloween Fun Food Day with the kids!

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Today we had our annual Fun and Facts Halloween Party! 
Today we had a great Halloween dinner with the kids. We are in our countdown to Halloween. We created a lot of crafts that we have blogged about previously on our blog and we created a fantastic gory meal that we could all have fun with. We all wore medical outfits that we found at a discount store and really had a good time creating lots of scary Halloween foods.


This was a fabulously fun time and we all enjoyed creating and eating everything.

Matthew: "I think today’s dinner was really fun and gross, IT WAS SO COOL!!!!!!!"


Lauren: “I loved it, it was fun, and the ribs were my favorite and the smoke in the punch"

Stay tuned for ALL the details and the pictures!

31 Days of Halloween - Halloween Breakfast ideas with kids! Day 25

HALLOWEEN COUNTDOWN

Halloween Breakfast ideas with kids!

Spooky Pumpkin Pancakes with Black Cinnamon Syrup

2 eggs

1-1/4 cups buttermilk (*I used powdered)

4 TBSP melted butter

4 TBSP canned pumpkin

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1-1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp allspice

- Preheat a skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with no stick spray.

- Combine eggs, buttermilk, butter, pumpkin, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.
- Use an electric mixer to blend ingredients.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and blend with mixer until smooth.
- Pour or scoop the batter onto hot skillet, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake.
- When the batter stops bubbling and edges begin to harden, flip the pancakes. They should be golden brown. This will take from 1 to 2 minutes.
- Flip the pancakes and cook other side for the same amount of time, until golden brown.

Serve warm with syrup or get creative with the Black Cinnamon Syrup, recipe below.

Makes approximately 16 pancakes.

Black Cinnamon Syrup 

(recipe from the clever Not Martha)

• 1/2 cup granulated white sugar
• 1/2 brown sugar
• 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 cup water
• black food coloring gel

In a saucepan combine sugars, flour and cinnamon. Add vanilla and water. Bring to a boil, stirring continuously. As it heats squirt in a little of the black food coloring and mix in, add more until it's as dark as can be (it doesn't take much). Allow to boil for a few moments until the mixture has noticeably thickened. Remove from heat and allow to cool enough to put into a plastic squeeze bottle. Syrup can be made ahead and refrigerated.  Warm syrup before serving by placing the squeeze bottle in a bowl of warm water(not boiling). Let each person decorate their own pancake!

Bagels with Pumpkin Cream Cheese

recipe from TidyMom

8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 c canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp vanilla
4 TBSP brown sugar

Beat all ingredients together until smooth. Refrigerate.

http://blog.streaminggourmet.com/tag/halloween/

http://www.funny-potato.com/blog/2009/10

PUMPKIN FRENCH TOAST W/ CRUNCHY CINNAMON CRUST
www.RecipeGirl.com

2 large eggs
1/4 cup canned pure pumpkin puree
1/4 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 Tbs granulated sugar
4 cups Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal, crushed
Eight 3/4-inch thick slices of day-old French bread

1. In a low-lying, flat bowl, whisk together eggs, pumpkin, cream, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar.

2. In another low-lying flat bowl, place crushed cereal.
3. Heat skillet to medium-heat, brush with butter. Quickly dip bread on both sides into the egg mixture, then cover both sides of the bread with the crushed cereal. Place in hot skillet, reduce heat to low and cover with lid. Heat 2-3 minutes on each side, until lightly browned. Repeat with remaining bread.
4. Serve immediately with maple syrup.

Servings: 4

Yield: 2 slices per person

Cooking Tips:
*This recipe really is best with French bread that is a day or two old- if it’s too soft, it will absorb too much of the liquid and turn out soggy.
**Do a quick dip into the liquid. You don’t want to soak the bread in it.
***You may leave off the crumbled cereal if you don’t wish to add crunch. (It’s good though!)

31 Days of Halloween with kids! Cake Pops - Day 24

HALLOWEEN COUNTDOWN

Halloween Cake Pops!
These Cake Pops are the cutest thing!  These are all from Bakerella.  We are making eyeball cake pops for our Halloween Fun Food Day with the kids.

http://www.bakerella.com/trick-or-treats/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Make a Difference Day

We were misinformed on the actual date of "Make a Difference Day".  It was actually yesterday.  To read more, visit this website:
http://www.usaweekend.com/section/MDDAY

Here is a great website for next year that you can enter your zip code and find events in your community so you can then "Make a Difference"

http://daytabank.handsonnetwork.org/