Write From Karen

Okay. Maybe not the best, but I certainly like them. I know these ideas are last minute, but maybe you’ll get some ideas for next year. Unless you’re really crafty and can whip them up in no time flat and if that’s the case? I’M JEALOUS OF YOU.

Here are some of my favorite costumes from Family Fun:

Girl Costumes

Paper Doll (*squee!*)

Our cute paper doll costume can hold its own against Halloween ghouls, ghosts, and goblins.

Materials

diagrams and templates
poster board
paint
black marker
headband
duct tape
foam core
hot glue (an adult’s job)
elastic and Velcro straps
white t-shirt and shorts (concealed by the costume)
frilly socks and Mary Janes

Instructions

Clothing and accessories: Measure your child, then on poster board, draw a shirt, skirt with bloomers, and accessories to fit. (Download our free purse and bow templates, and shirt and skirt diagrams.)

Cut out the pieces and cut several 2- by 4-inch tabs from the scraps. Paint the pieces and let them dry.

Use black marker to outline the tabs with dotted lines and to add details to the clothing and accessories. Attach the tabs to the pieces and the bow to a headband with duct tape.
Reinforcements: Strengthen the shirt by attaching a roughly 7- by 8-inch piece of foam core to its back with hot glue (an adult’s job). Cut a strip of foam core to fit the skirt waist and hot-glue it on as well.

If the bottom of the skirt seems unstable when worn, add a strip of foam core along each leg.
Straps: Have your child hold the bottom of the shirt in front of her, then cut two lengths of wide elastic that can each reach from the top of the shirt, across your child’s back, and to the bottom of the opposite side of the shirt.

For strength, staple a rectangular scrap of poster board to both ends of each strap, then tape one end of each to the top of the shirt (the foam core, not the poster board).

Horizontally attach two strips of adhesive-backed Velcro at the bottom of the shirt and the matching strips to the foam core on the free end of each strap.

Use the same method to attach a single horizontal strap at the skirt waist.

Face Book (hahahahaha!!!)

This friendly costume will have people wanting to add candy to your bag Halloween night.

Materials

12- to 15-ounce cereal box
glue stick
wrapping and white paper
marker
thin elastic
duct tape
baseball cap

Instructions

Book cover: Cut off the top and bottom flaps and one narrow side of a 12- to 15-ounce cereal box so that you’re left with three panels. Apply a glue stick all over the printed side of the cardboard, then cover it with wrapping paper that’s an inch wider than the box on all sides. Fold down the edges of the wrapping paper and glue them in place. Glue an 11- by 17-inch sheet of white paper on top.

Inside pages: Beginning at a short end, accordion-fold two sheets of 11- by 17-inch white paper. The folds should be 1 inch wide.

Glue an end flap of each of the folded sheets along a short edge of another 11- by 17-inch sheet, creating a table shape. Glue the bottom flaps of the accordioned sheets to the book cover leaving the center piece loose.

Face opening: Lay the book wrapping paper–side up and draw an oval face-opening in the center. Use a craft knife to cut through the cardboard and paper (an adult’s job).

Neck strap: Attach a length of thin elastic with duct tape under the white paper.

Hat attachment: Cut off the bill of a baseball cap. Attach the front of the cap to the book by running a strip of duct tape down the front center of the cap onto the top edge of the book above the face opening.

Continue running the tape over the edge of the book cover, straight down under the paper, through the face opening, and into the inside center of the hat.

Finishing touches: Glue the center of the white book page to the cover, then use a marker to write “face book.”

Jellyfish Costume

To get this sweet and sassy jelly ready to roll, cover a broad-brimmed hat with bubble packaging and sparkly fabric, then add some ribbon-and-rickrack tentacles.

Download a complete materials list and illustrated step-by-step directions.

Materials

Glue gun and glue sticks
Broad-brimmed straw hat (we used a child’s sombrero)
1 yard of sparkly blue fabric
1 yard of blue fleece or felt
Large-bubble bubble packaging (we started with a 15- by 1-foot length and cut it into pieces as needed)
Clear packing tape
Fabric measuring tape
20 (1-yard) lengths of curling ribbon (we used 10 yards each of blue and silver)
5 (1-yard lengths) of 1-inch-wide sheer blue ribbon
3 (1-yard lengths) ofK-inch-wide red rick rack

Instructions

The Hat Base: Apply glue all over the underside of the hat brim. Lay the brim glue-side down on the fleece or felt and press it firmly. Trim the excess fabric. Cut away the fabric from the head hole.

Fill in the area around the crown with balls of bubble packaging, then top with sheets of the packaging, securing it with packing tape as you work.
The Covering and Tentacles: Measure the hat from one edge of the brim, up over the crown, and down to the far edge. Cut a circle from the sparkly fabric with a diameter equal to the over-the-crown measurement plus 6 inches. Cut the remaining fabric into 6 strips measuring 1 1/2 inches wide by 1 yard long.

Glue one end of each fabric strip, ribbon, and piece of rickrack to the brim’s underside, evenly spaced and about 1 inch in from the edge. If desired, leave a gap of 8 inches at the hat’s front center for your child’s face.

Temporarily bundle the ribbons’ free ends into the headhole. Center the hat’s crown on the fabric circle. Pull the fabric up over the edge of the brim, gluing it to make even gathers. Have your child wear blue clothes and try on the cap. If it’s too wobbly, glue felt or fleece strips to the inner hatband until it fits securely. Trim the tentacles as needed.

You can find many more girl costume ideas here.

Boy Costumes

Alien Encounter

An alien costume ranked so high, you might say it was out of this world. According to Ryan, age nine, “It should have curvy black eyes and wear a robe.” Fitting the bill is this trick costume, inspired by finalist Kim Harvey and her son, Andrew, in FamilyFun.com’s annual on-line contest.

Materials

Balloon inflated to about 12 to 15 inches
Large bowl
Papier-mâché glue (See Tips section for recipe)
Newspaper, in 1 1/2- by 6-inch strips
Ruler; Scissors; Utility knife; Safety pins
Masking tape; Craft glue
Cardboard tube with a 2-inch diameter, at least 14 inches long
Tights
Green acrylic paint and paintbrush
Double-sided carpet tape
Black paper
3-4 yards of black polyester fabric
15- by 24-inch piece of cardboard (corrugation should run the long way)
3 1/4 yards of ribbon, 1 inch wide, in a color that matches pajamas
Velcro Sticky-Back strips
Black long-sleeved turtleneck
2 green rubber gloves
Fiberfill
Black skirt with elastic waist
Pajamas and slippers

There are a lot of instructions, which you can find here, along with helpful diagrams.

Monkey Business

Combine two traditional costumes to make one outfit that’s totally bananas.

Materials

templates
wire hanger
brown faux fur
brown duct tape
hot glue (an adult’s job)
headband
tan felt
rectangular box
scrap cardboard
poster board
ribbon
craft foam
office clothes and tie
face paint for details

Instructions

Tail: Untwist and straighten a wire hanger. Snip off a 3-foot length and fold in the tips so that they don’t stick out (all adult jobs).

Place a 3-foot by 6-inch piece of short-pile brown faux fur face down and lay the hanger along one long edge. Secure it with duct tape. Roll the fur around the wire and secure it with hot glue (an adult’s job).

Bend and tuck 4 inches of the tail into the waist of the costume pants, and secure it with duct tape. Bend the tail to give it shape. (We cut our tail from a 2/3-yard piece of fur and used the rest for the ears and hair tuft.)

Ears and hair tuft: From faux fur, cut two ears and a rectangular tuft with one jagged edge. (Download free templates.)

Hot-glue the tuft, pile-side up, to the center of a headband (an adult’s job). With the pile sides facing backward, pinch the ears as shown to give them dimension, and hot-glue them to the side of the headband.

Glue a piece of tan felt to the center of each ear.

Briefcase and tie: Cut a long narrow side panel from a small, rectangular box. Snip two handles from scrap cardboard and cover them with brown duct tape. Tape the handles to the box as shown, then cover the box with tape. Write “This monkey means business” on poster board and attach it with ribbon to one of the briefcase handles.

For the tie, cut out a banana shape from craft foam using our template and tape it to a real tie.

Bedbug

Create a cute bedbug costume so your child can creep and crawl around the neighborhood looking for treats.

Materials

template
pipe cleaner
craft foam
duct tape
poster board and ribbon
robe and pillowcase
headband

Instructions

Antennae: Wrap a pipe cleaner around a headband so that the two ends stick up at an angle.
Bedtime attire: A robe works best as a base for the legs and a pillowcase can be used as a candy collector.
Legs and sign: Use our free template to draw insect legs on craft foam. Cut out the forms and place duct tape on the ends closest to the body. Tape the legs behind the robe’s collar.

For the sign, write a message on poster board and hang it around your child’s neck with ribbon.

You can find many more boy costumes here.

Thinking of having a Halloween party for your monsters?

Maybe Family Fun can help.

Goblin Feet

Your children can probably imagine what actual goblin feet would taste like. (Dirty socks stuffed with cheese? Moldy tapioca pudding?) Luckily, these cookies are infinitely more tasty.

Ingredients

Half package (7 ounces) green meltable candy wafers
peanut butter cookies, such as Nutter Butter brand
cashew halves

Instructions

Follow the instructions on the candy wafer package to melt the wafers in a wide bowl. For each goblin foot, hold the edge of a cookie and dip it in the melted candy.
Place the cookie on a sheet of waxed paper and use a spoon to smooth the candy over the spot your fingers covered.
Place three cashew halves on the cookie for claws. (The candy may need to cool a minute or two for it to be stiff enough to hold the nuts in place.) Let the cookies set at room temperature.

Forked Eyeballs

These scary-good Halloween treats, prepared and eaten on the same fork, begin with a doughnut hole dunked in white chocolate.

Ingredients

2 (11-ounce) bags white chocolate chips
12 doughnut holes
Semisweet chocolate chips
Tube of red decorator frosting
2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Instructions

To coat a dozen doughnut holes, melt the white chocolate chips with the oil over low heat (and keep the chocolate warm while you work). With a fork, spear each doughnut hole and submerge it in the melted chocolate to coat it, then gently tap off any excess.
Stick a semisweet chocolate chip with its point cut off onto each doughnut hole, cut end first. Place the forks (handle side down) in a mug and allow the chocolate coating to harden.
Use a tube of red decorator frosting to add squiggly veins radiating out from the pupils.

Funny Bones

Bleached white bones never tasted so delicious. This recipe originally appeared in Ghoulish Goodies, by Sharon Bowers.

Ingredients

half package (7 ounces) white meltable candy wafers
36 pretzel sticks and thin rods of various lengths
72 mini marshmallows (about 1 cup)

Instructions

Follow the instructions on the candy wafers package to melt the candy in a wide bowl. For each bone, press marshmallows onto both ends of a pretzel stick or rod, with the marshmallows’ flat sides parallel to the pretzel.
Dip each pretzel into the melted candy to coat it. Lift it out with a fork, letting the excess drip back into the bowl. Place the bone onto a sheet of waxed paper to set at room temperature.

Gingerbread Skeletons

What’s the hot costume this year for gingerbread people? Skeletons, of course!

Ingredients

Gingerbread cookie dough
White frosting

Instructions

To make a batch, punch out shapes from cookie dough using cat and gingerbread-man cookie cutters, then bake. When the cookies are cool, pipe on frosting bones.

Cheese-Finger Food

Partying in costume calls for easy-eating fare, and these cheesy monster digits fit the bill.

Ingredients

Mozzarella string cheese
Green bell pepper
Cream cheese

Instructions

Wearing plastic gloves or sandwich bags over your hands to keep the cheese as smudge-free as possible, use a paring knife (parents only) to cut each string in half and then carve a shallow area for a fingernail just below the rounded end of each half.
Mark the joint right below the nail as well as the knuckle joint by carving out tiny horizontal wedges of cheese, as pictured.
For the fingernails, slice a green bell pepper into 3/8-inch-wide strips. Set the strips skin side down on your work surface and trim the pulp so that it’s about half as thick. Then cut the strips into ragged-topped nail shapes and stick them in place at the ends of the fingers with dabs of cream cheese.

Want more? Your wish is my command.

*Disclaimer: Family Fun did not compensate me for this post. I just think they’re cool. Now pass a cheese finger, won’t you?

I wish I had branded this quote into my brain when the boys were growing up because I did WAY too much nagging/yelling/berating and not NEARLY enough listening.

Shh. Hear that? It’s your child talking to you.

Can you hear him/her?

(BTW, I didn’t draw that Hitler mustache on Dude. He came in from playing and looked like this. I thought it was so funny that I had to take a picture. I don’t Hitler is funny, I thought him coming with a dirt mustache that looked like Hitler was funny. Just setting the facts straight because you KNOW there are those few people out there that will make nothing into something).

This song plays about a zillion times on the radio every day.

Jazz also told me that they play this song in between classes, too. (Apparently, the school plays songs while the kids are walking to their next classes – which COOL BEANS).

It’s “Move Like Jagger” by Maroon 5.

Because I dig a little background information on things like this:

The song’s lyrics refer to a male protagonist’s ability to impress a female with his dance moves, which he compares to those of The Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger. For Levine and his bandmates, the song and video are all about exposing a new generation to the rock legend.

You can watch the video here.

It’s catchy. It makes you tap your foot and think about spontenously break dancing in the middle of the street. (Okay, it just makes ME feel that way). But it’s cool and hip and I dig it.

Music is such a big part of our household. I’d like to share my latest music cravings with you every Friday – let’s start this weekend off with a little song and dance, shall we?

I ran across another interesting meme that I thought I’d play around with …

I definitely think we need more encouraging words, don’t you?

So first, yes, this is an actual board that I have on my fridge. But no, I didn’t write it because if I wrote it, you wouldn’t be able to read it. Seriously. My handwriting is AWFUL.

And yes. That’s a picture of Jazz when he was a baby. (He’s 16 now).

Anyway. I like this saying because it reminds me to appreciate the here and now. Since both boys are getting older (one graduated from high school this past May, and my youngest is a Junior this year), I’m so focused on their futures that I forget they are people NOW. And that I really don’t have that much time left with either of them. Even though I need to think about their future, I also need to think about who they are now, as well.

Are you appreciating the time you have with your children right now? How?

Hey ya’ll – Family Fun just emailed me some more creative cake ideas and I thought I’d pass on my favorites to you. (Family Fun didn’t email me specifically, it was a mass email – I didn’t want you to think I was someone special or anything. HA!)

Boom Box Cake

This rockin’ cake makes the perfect accompaniment to any party.

Ingredients
2 baked loaf cakes
3 cups yellow frosting
2 large mint patties (speakers)
Fruit leather (tape and CD players)
Assorted candies, such as Pez, Spree, sour rings, Good & Plenty, and Jujubes (various knobs, controls, and handles)
2 long, thin candles (antennae)
shoestring licorice (trim)

Instructions
For the boom box shape, cut off one of the long edges from one loaf cake at a slight angle. Use frosting to stick the 2 pieces to the second cake, as shown. Ice the entire cake with yellow frosting.

For the speakers, use a toothpick to score a criss-cross pattern on the 2 large mint patties.

Cut 2 squares of fruit leather for the tape and CD players and use a variety of small candies for the control buttons. Next, add 2 long, thin candles for antennae and outline the cake with shoestring licorice.

Artist’s Palette Cake

The budding artists at your child’s party can paint their cake and eat it too. Make sure to have extra “brushes” on hand for party guests.

Ingredients
1 baked 9-inch round cake
2 cups white frosting
Gel icing, assorted colors
Fruit leather
1 licorice twist

Instructions
Trim the edges of the cake as shown and cover it with white frosting. Using a 1 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out a thumbhole in the palette and frost the insides.

Next, use the cutter to lightly mark the circles in the frosting, then fill with gel icing “paints.”
To make the brush, wrap the fruit leather around the base of the licorice twist and fringe the ends.

Pool Party Cake

Make this cake and we guarantee your guests won’t hesitate to plunge right in.

Ingredients
1/2 gallon quality ice cream (any flavor)
1 1/3 8.5-oz. pkgs. fudge sticks (chocolate or peanut butter)
2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Blue food coloring
Gummy rings
Gobstoppers
Paper umbrellas
Plastic figures
Licorice
Decorators’ frosting

Instructions
Begin by making the ice-cream base of the pool cake. Let the ice cream soften at room temperature for 15 to 20 minutes, then ask your kids to help you spoon it into an 8-inch round springform pan, souffle dish, or plastic container. Pack the ice cream into the mold and smooth out the top. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4 hours or overnight.

After the ice cream has frozen solid, unmold it by dipping the container quickly into a pan of hot water; if necessary, you can also loosen the edges of the ice cream with a knife. Invert the mold onto a large plate and carefully lift off the pan to reveal the ice-cream cake.

Your kids can then carefully place the fudge sticks (we alternated plain and chocolate-peanut butter) along the sides of the ice-cream pool cake, the cookies will resemble the panels of an aboveground pool. Return the cake to the freezer while you prepare the whipped cream.

To make the blue whipped cream waves, pour the cold heavy cream into a bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until the cream begins to thicken and soft peaks form. Add the sugar and vanilla extract and beat until stiff. Mix in several drops of blue food coloring. Frost the top of the frozen cake with the blue whipped cream, then return it to the freezer for 15 to 30 minutes or until set.

Next, let your kids turn the cake into a bustling pool with gummy ring inner tubes, Gobstopper beach balls, paper umbrellas, and plastic swimmers. Add a licorice ladder with licorice rungs (use decorators’ frosting to glue it together).

Now it’s time to take the plunge into the pool cake. For best results, serve it immediately and do not let it stand at room temperature for long. Store leftovers in the freezer. Feeds 10 to 12 hungry swimmers.

You can find more tips for this recipe here.

Under the Sea Cake

This whimsical underwater scene can be decorated in one swish of a mermaid’s tail.

Ingredients
1 baked 13″ x 9″ x 2″ cake
2 to 3 cups blue icing
Green apple Sour Belts
Blue and/or green fruit leather
Candy rocks
Candy seashells
Gummy sea creatures, such as fish, sharks, and octopuses
Mini Swedish fish
Sour tropical fish

Instructions
Bake your favorite cake (13″ x 9″ x 2″). Frost the cake with the icing.

To create plants, roll or twist various lengths of sour belts and fruit leather before placing them on the cake.
Place candy rocks and seashells along the bottom.

Finish off your underwater scene by arranging schools of gummy fish, sharks, and other deep-sea dwellers.

Just Ducky Tub Cake

Touch the tops of the rubber duckies’ heads, they’ll bob in the jiggly Jell-O Jiggler water.

Ingredients
2 3-ounce boxes of Berry Blue Jell-O gelatin
2 9- by 13-inch cakes
2 16-ounce tubs of white frosting
Licorice pipe
2 large marshmallows and 8 mini marshmallows
Decorators’ gel
1 or 2 small rubber ducks

Instructions
Prepare both boxes of gelatin according to the Jiggler recipe on the packages. Pour the mixture into an 8-inch square pan and chill it. Halfway through the chilling time (about 45 to 50 minutes), whisk the gelatin vigorously to create ripples and bubbles, then let it finish chilling.

Stack the cakes, spreading a thin coating of icing between them. Trim the corners to create more of a rounded tub shape. Next, carve out a 1 1/2-inch-deep basin, using a knife to first outline it and a spoon to scoop out the cake. Leave a 2-inch-wide border around the sides and end of the tub and a slightly wider border where the faucets will go.

Frost the tub, including the walls but not the floor of the basin. Now, for a faucet, turn the licorice pipe upside down and insert the thin portion of the stem into the wall of the basin, as shown.

For each faucet knob, use kitchen scissors to snip 4 V-shaped notches in the top of a regular-size marshmallow, then gently press a mini marshmallow into each notch, as shown. The freshly cut marshmallow surface will be sticky enough to keep the pieces in place. Place the knobs atop the cake and use decorators’ gel to label them H and C and outline the bases.

Spoon the Jiggler water into the basin and set the duck or ducks afloat.

School Bus Cake [This recipe also comes with a video - click link to watch]
(This would be a fun back-to-school party cake!)

You’ll have no trouble getting your kids on board when it comes to decorating and devouring this back-to-school dessert.

Ingredients
2 loaf cakes (pound cake or banana bread works well)
2 cups white frosting
Yellow food coloring
White chocolate chips
4 mini chocolate-covered doughnuts
Round cookie wafers
Black decorating gel
Small red gumdrops
Red Hots

Instructions
Trim the top and sides of one cake to straighten them, if needed. Spread a bit of frosting onto the center of a serving plate and set the trimmed cake upside down on top of it (to keep the cake from sliding).

Trim the sides and top of the second cake to straighten them. Then slice off a 1 1/2-inch-thick piece from one end and use the remaining portion for the top of the bus, frosting the bottom and setting it atop the first cake.

Spread a thin layer of white frosting over the whole cake to seal in any crumbs and let it set for about 15 minutes.

Spread more white frosting on the sides of the top layer (the windows of the bus). Reserve about a teaspoon of white frosting, then tint the rest yellow and use it to frost the rest of the cake.

For tires, use dabs of frosting to attach white chocolate chip hubcaps (tips down) to the centers of the mini doughnuts and then to stick the tires onto the bus.

Transform cookie wafers into people using white frosting and black gel to create eyes. Trim some red gumdrops for smiles, then press the cookie faces onto the cake.

Finally, add details such as black gel lettering, Red Hots for caution lights, and white chocolate chip headlights.

You can find many more cake ideas here.