FREEBIE FRIDAY: Last Minute Halloween Treats {FREEBIE}

I decided at the last minute that I wanted to make some treats to hand out to Gabrielle and Alaina's classmates on Monday.  I didn't want to do candy - I know they'll be getting plenty of that! - and since we're still in our rental apartment, I didn't have any of my baking stuff.  I needed something simple but still scarily fun, so I went with Witches Hat cookies I so over on Explore Dream Discover.

All you need are fudge stripe cookies (I used the supermarket brand), Hershey's kisses (if you're a Kiss connoisseur, you probably noticed I went with the caramel ones - yes, I'm sassy like that!) and orange frosting (I bought mine in the baking aisle).

Then you just flip the fudge striped cookie upside down, add some icing to the bottom of the kiss:

And press it over the hole in the cookie and you have a Witch's Hat!

It doesn't get much simpler than that!  Then I wrapped them in clear cellophane, tied them with a ribbon and added a little tag that reads "THANKS FOR BEING A WICKED GOOD FRIEND!"

So what do these cookies have to do with FREEBIE FRIDAY?  Good question!  I figured there are probably other mamas out there making last minute treats for their kid's classes this weekend, so I'm offering the labels I designed as a free download!  

Printable Halloween Treat or Favor Labels

You can write your child's name in or import the file into Photoshop or upload it to Picnik.com and add it there.  They're formatted for a 2-inch punch, or you can cut them out too.  If you have any issues downloading them above, you can go HERE.

Hope you enjoy them and for more fab freebies, check out my Haunted Halloween and Freebies and Printables Boards on Pinterest!

ANYTHING GOES THURSDAY: Chalkboard Pumpkin How To

I know, I know, I've been completely MIA lately and I am sooooo sorry!  We're finally moving into our new house next week and the last minute details have been taking up all of my time.  But with Halloween just a few days away, I wanted to share a quick and easy DIY project that your kids will love - chalkboard pumpkins!

Gabrielle and Alaina had a blast picking out pumpkins at the pumpkin patch:

And they loved decorating them.  Until..... they were decorated.  Then they wanted to decorate another one but the last thing I wanted to do was buy an endless supply of pumpkins.  And then I remembered seeing chalkboard pumpkins on Pinterest (where else?) and I decided to give it a go.

The process was super simple.  I bought a can of Krylon Chalkboard Spray Paint for $4 (you could also use the kind you brush on):

Then I taped off the stems of two pumpkins (you could spray paint them, too, if you want), laid them on some plastic:

And got to spraying.  After two coats, they looked like this:

I let them dry overnight and surprised the girls with them the next day after school.  They were so excited!

And can't get enough of re-decorating their pumpkins over and over again.

I posted about this project on Facebook last week and one of our readers, Heather, made a great point - be sure to use stick chalk, not chalk pens, or else you'll get "ghosting" and the images won't completely erase.  As you may be able to tell from the pictures above, we used sidewalk chalk on ours since it's what we had on hand.

Hope you liked this little Halloween how-to and I'd love to hear how you decorated your pumpkin this year!  Did you carve it?  Paint it?  Glam it up with glitter?  And for more Halloween crafts and ideas, be sure to check out my Haunted Halloween board on Pinterest!

Linking up here:

Getting Spooky With It - Day 5!

Today is one of my favorite posts in the Spooktacular Countdown at Nickelodeon's Parents Connect!  I'm sharing some frighteningly fun foods from Hungry Happenings, Better Homes & Garden, Not Martha, Martha Stewart and more.  And here are a few more freaky food ideas you're going to flip for.  Brooklyn Limestone gives a cold cut platter a creepy spin:

These sand-witches from Lisa Storms are a less-scary great way to serve up some Halloween fun.

And last but not least - it doesn't get easier than this Boo-ghetti from Jeanne Bennedict.

Find more crazy ways to cook up some creepiness over on Parents Connect, and while you're there, be sure to answer their daily question to be entered to win a $100 gift card to Halloween Express.

Getting Spooky With It - Day 4!

Today is Creepy Cookie Day on the Spooktacular Countdown at Nickelodeon's Parents Connect, and I'm sharing terrific tricks for making some tasty treats from The Sweet Adventures of Sugarbelle, Better Homes & Garden, How Does She?, Martha Stewart and more!

And here's one more you won't want to miss.  Ashleigh from Bee In Our Bonnet shared this fabulous idea for a Jack-o-Lantern in a Jar on The Girls from Eighteen25.

It's filled with face-shaped cookie parts:

That can be used to make jack-o-lanterns.

So fun, right?

Check out the rest of the cookie goodness over on Parents Connect, and while you're there, be sure to answer their daily question to be entered to win a $100 gift card to Halloween Express.

Getting Spooky With It - Day 3!

It's Day 3 of the Spooktacular Countdown at Nickelodeon's Parents Connect, and you won't want to miss today's post because I've got a round up of 11 frightfully fun free Halloween printables from Anders Ruff, eighteen25, Living Locurto, The Crafting Chicks, Centsational Girl and more!  And here's one more goodie I know you'll love - printable Halloween paper dolls from Gwenny Penny over on The Idea Room.

Check out the rest of the treats over on Parents Connect, and while you're there, be sure to answer their daily question to be entered to win a $100 gift card to Halloween Express.

TEN THINGS TUESDAY: Halloween Edition

Here's my round up of a few of my favorite ideas for Halloween.

Food for the Kiddos I'm Loving:  This spooky spider sandwich from Cute Food For Kids.

Hair 'Do I'm Loving:  Seeing this cuteness from Babes in Hairland made me so glad I have girls.  Now if I can just get the two of them to sit still long enough to do it.

Craft Project I'm Loving:  Who else but Martha Stewart would think of making skeleton stamps from potatoes?  She's even got a template so making yours will be a snap!

Free Printable I'm Loving:   Design.wash.rinse.repeat designed these frightfully fun food labels.  Use them if you dare!

Scary Snack I'm Loving:  What could be more fun than these Frank's Nuts-n-Bolts?

Sweet 'N Salty Tricky Treat I'm Loving:  Cookies & Cups has my mouth watering with this Candy Corn Bugle Snack Mix.  And yes - those candy corn in the picture are actually chocolate covered Bugles.  Y-U-M!

Cute Candy Corn Project I'm Loving:  Speaking of the tasty treat, how adorable is this outfit from Positively Splendid?  And it's so easy to DIY!  

Boo-tiful Beverage I'm Loving:  Who says Halloween is just for the kiddies?  This haunting Hallow-Rita from Lime Tree Cove is my kind of treat!

Crazy Cute Costume I'm Loving:  This little lobster is so cute, I could eat him up!

Halloween Decoration I'm Loving:  The Holiday Snobs came up with a witch-tastic way to welcome trick-or-treaters!  And it's so easy to do.

I would love to hear about the things you're loving right now!  Share the app, movie, book, craft idea, TV show, whatever that's got you giddy in the comments and your picks might be included in next week's TEN ON TUESDAY feature.  And for more of my Halloween picks, check out my Haunted Halloween board on Pinterest and my Spooktacular Countdown at Parents Connect!

Please note that this list is made up of things I actually use, read, watch, try, etc. and truly enjoy.  These opinions are my own and I was not compensated in any way to share them here.

Getting Spooky WIth It: Day 2!

It's Day 2 of the Spooktacular Countdown at Nickelodeon's Parents Connect, and today I'm sharing some inspiration for creepy cool cupcakes.  Wouldn't you just love to sink your teeth into these from The Icing On the Cake?

Head on over for eight more scary sweet ideas, and while you're there, be sure to answer their daily question to be entered to win a $100 gift card to Halloween Express.  See you there!

Getting Spooky With It - Day 1!

October is here and I'm spending the month over at Nickelodeon's Parents Connect sharing some frighteningly fun ideas for Halloween in their Spooktacular Countdown!  Head on over to check out today's post on DIY Family Costumes, and be sure to answer their daily question to be entered to win a $100 gift card to Halloween Express.  See you there!

FREEBIE FRIDAY: A Haunting Halloween Hand Out

With the nice fall weather here in Rhode Island, I'm in a Halloween state of mind so today I'm sharing a frighteningly fun way to hand out candy.

The Fickle Pickle designed Monster Eyeballs you can print onto sticker paper and affix to Rollos or miniature Reese's Peanut Butter cups, as well as a cute label to go with them.  This is the perfect idea for trick-or-treaters or your children's classmates.  I know my little monsters will love them!

Hope you enjoyed today's pick and for more fab freebies, check out my Freebies and Printables Board on Pinterest!

PARTY PEEKS WEDNESDAY: Vintage Halloween Fun!

Now that almost everyone has gotten their kiddos back to school, what's next on the horizon?  Halloween, of course!

I've got scores of Halloween amazingness to show you over the next month but I had to kick things off with this scary chic party from Maureen and Adria at Anders Ruff that was featured on Hostess With the Mostess today.

So fab, right?

The theme was vintage and the details are so creative and totally stunning.  Tell me your little on won't go batty for these drinks!

I love the mummy-mallows and Boo-meringues!

And the rest of the sweet treats, like the owl and pumpkin cookies from Firefly Confections, were just as festive.  I can't wait for the tutorial on how to make the chocolate skeleton keys.

Maureen and Adria had quite a few more treats - and a few tricks - up their sleeve when they planned this bash and you can read more about them over on Hostess With the Mostess.

And if you want to throw your own Vintage Halloween Party, the printable package from Anders Ruff is on sale for just $12.

If you've got a Halloween bash you want to share, send us some pictures and you just might see it in next week's PARTY PEEKS!

Images: Becca Bond Photography for Anders Ruff Custom Design

Boo! Big Thanks to You {GIVEAWAY}

With Halloween here, it means that GET YOUR GHOUL ON! MONTH is officially over and I wanted to say thanks for all of the wonderful comments and feedback you've shared throughout October.  It really means a lot to know that the ideas and projects you see here actually inspire you.

On that note, I have to give a shout out to two AFOMFT readers, and my lovely friends, Kyla and Tamlyn who threw a Boo! Bash using some inspiration they got here with results that were beyond spooktacular.   Just look at this spread!

The food looked frighteningly fabulous.

And the details were creepy and cute!

It's no surprise that all of the little ghouls and goblins had so much fun!

Thanks to Kyla and Tamlyn for sharing their scary soiree, and if you've thrown a party or done a project inspired by something you've seen on AFOMFT, we want to see!  E-mail us pictures and details at afomft@gmail.com.

Since this post was all about saying thanks, what better way to show my gratitude than with a giveaway?  And fittingly, it's for a set of 16 Thank You Cards from Pear Tree Greetings.  They have wonderful notes to express your appreciation for any occasion.  I want to get these for Gabrielle and Alaina to send out after the holidays.

This design is great for the entire family.

And these are perfect just for me!

To enter to win 16 Thank You Notes of your choice from Pear Tree Greetings, post a comment here telling me what you're most looking forward to this holiday season (this is mandatory).  For additional entries:

• Visit Pear Tree Greetings and post a comment telling me which Thank You Notes you'll choose if you win.
• Subscribe to AFOMFT or let us know you are a subscriber
• "Like" AFOMFT on Facebook 
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• Ask your friends to "like" AFOMFT on Facebook by sending them this link - http://tinyurl.com/AFOMFTFBFAN - and post a comment here with the names of each one who does.  You'll earn one entry per new friend who "likes" our page and names will be cross-checked.  
• Follow Pear Tree Greetings & AFOMFT on Twitter (@PearTreeGrtngs & @AFOMFT or click the birdie icon on the sidebar) and tweet this post by clicking the graphic above or this giveaway:  #Win 16 gorgeous Thank You Notes from @PearTreeGrtngs from @AFOMFT - http://tinyurl.com/AFOMFT
• Click here to vote for AFOMFT on Top Baby Blogs and post a comment here that you did - .  You can vote once per day per computer so if you vote every day or on different computers, be sure to post one comment for each one.
• Grab our button and put it on your blog or website and post a link here showing us.
• Blog or post on Facebook about this giveaway with a link to this post (worth 2 entries so please post two comments) and make sure your comments include a link to your status or blog post.

Please leave a separate comment for each entry (two if you've blogged about the giveaway) and make sure to include a link to your tweet, blog post, etc. All entries must be posted on AFOMFT as a direct comment to this post.  Comments on Facebook will not count as entries.  This giveaway is open to residents of the U.S. and Canada and ends November 5th at 11:59 pm EST. The winner will be selected by random.org and announced on AFOMFT on November 6th. If the winners don't contact AFOMFT within 48 hours, a new drawing will be held so be sure to check back to see if you've won!

Please note that I am now a Pearista, which means I have partnered with Pear Tree Greetings to offer great giveaways and discounts to my readers.  I do not receive any monetary compensation from them but they will occasionally send me free product to try out.  Whether I choose to post about their company or not is totally up to me and my opinion of their products is solely based on my experience using them. 

Images: Pear Tree Greetings