Pretty Christmas trees

Our tree really has no theme.  When we had our first christmas together Rob really wanted silver and blue ornaments with white lights and that is what we did.  Every year since then more and more of the blue and silver ornaments have been broken and the tree is instead becoming covered with ornaments we have given each other, or the kids.  Someday, I would love to have a beautiful christmas tree that is really gorgeous to look at.  Better Homes and Gardens (the website) has tons of ideas for me, but this one stuck out.  Totally different than anything I'd ever plan, but I like it:

Advent Calendars

I've always wanted an Advent Calendar.  When I was younger, we'd go hang out at my cousin's house and they each had an Advent Calendar where each day they got to pull up a little door to reveal a chocolate treat during the month of December.  I've wanted one ever since.  It got me thinking about what's available these days in the ways of Advent Calendars.  There's some cute stuff out there.

For Example:

This can be found on Etsy here.

Or, this one:

But, then I have to actually find 25 mini gifts to stash in it.  But, if Rob wanted to buy this for me and fill it for me, I'd take it.  Found here

And one more, but once again, someone needs to prefill this baby for me:

Found here

In the meantime, I'll just help the kids widdle away at their Christmas chains

Snow Party

It's snowing today.  I've heard anywhere from 2-6 inches so who knows what we'll end up with, but it's put me in the mood for snowy treats.

I would love it if someone came to my house and set up this display for me.  I don't want to have a party because I want to lay around in my PJs and watch movies under a cozy blanket, but I want this pretty display at my fingertips to graze from.

Details of this party are found here.

Easy Homemade Gift Bows

I think this is brilliant!  I almost always use newspaper or some other recycled good to wrap presents around my house because I think for something that is going to be ripped to shreds, traditional gift wrap is ridiculously overpriced.  And now, I will have the knowledge on how to add my own homemade bow to my weirdly wrapped packages.

See the full tutorial here.  It looks really easy!  I need to go buy a stapler.

Funny Pilgrim Napkin Rings

I don't know why I think these are so funny.

But, I do.  I have no idea who those kids are, but I know my own kids would get a kick out seeing themselves dressed up like that.  It'd be really cute way to set the Thanksgiving Day table and let everyone know where to sit!  Find the directions here.

Chicken Party!

Look what Kerry pulled together!  It was a brilliant chicken themed party!  And, like she said, a lot of these decorations could be used for any sort of Farm party.  I love the mason jars with the labels.  Very cute for a kids' Barnyard Bash!  Check it out!

Turkey Treats!

Kerry came across these on the internet someplace and we both thought they were very cute.

Go here for full directions.  The creative genius behind them claims they are easy to make.  Moon pies, candy corn, nutter butters, frosting, and tiny candies.  That's what you'll need.

Then you can gobble them up! (I'm here all week folks, shows are at 8!)

I'll take three!

Each one of my children needs this clock in their room.

That's a really small picture. 

Anyway, this clock is called the Teach Me Time clock.  That's all well and good that it tries to teach the lil'uns the time, but why I really need this clock is a completely selfish reason.

On the left, the clock glows an orange color during the night.  But, get this!  The parent can set the clock to glow green at whatever time in the morning you want.  You just teach your kids that when the clock turns green, it is okay to wake up mommy and daddy (and cross your fingers they listen).

My kids have secret meetings right before bedtime.  I haven't caught them in the act yet, but I'm convinced that they meet each night before bedtime to decide which one is going to wake up before 6am.

I'd like to grab three of these clocks and set for...say....10am.

Thanksgiving Finger Puppets

Before I get into this next post, I have decided something.  "Pretty Parties" is now going to become something else.  There are just far too many cool things out there to limit myself to parties.  This is now going to become "Tracy's Picks" or something of the sort.  Where I just let the world know about fun things I've found on the internet and where you can find them.  I'll get around to changing the name and header and all that business eventually, but until then, just pretend....

Now, onto bigger (actually smaller) and better things!  Finger puppets!

How cute are these?

My girls would love these.  Just today we were hanging out at a friends house who had some cute little finger puppets and they were a hit!  I'm not sure what sort of story I could make up with the Thanksgiving set, but it's never too early for a lesson about Pocahontas and John Smith, right?  Were they even Pilgrims? 

Doesn't matter.  These are cute.  You can order your very own set atEtsy from WeeKnit.  And, if you're not into concocting stories about the Santa Maria's passengers, check out their other little finger goodies.

I'm going to get these for Rob.  He's pretty much memorized this movie and I'm sure his finger puppet rendition would be nothing short of amazing.

Pilgrim Hat Cookies

Super cute and super easy!  Chocolate Wafer cookie, Reeses peanut butter cup, and orange frosting.  Voila!

Monster Bash

I know Halloween is over, but use this opportunity to stock up for next year (at great prices!), or stock up for a Monster Party for any time of the year!

These are all decorations bought from this year's Target Halloween line.  But, I think the colors are bright enough to be used for a fun "Monster" birthday party any time of the year!

Meatloaf Madness!

I don't like meatloaf.  To be fair, the last time I had it was in college so maybe my taste buds would appreciate it more now.  Everyone's response to this is "Yeah, but you haven't tried MY meatloaf".  It has nothing to do with the recipe, it has everything to do with the texture.

If I came across this meatloaf on the dinner table, I'm not sure if I'd be more inclined to try it, or to immediately vomit.

Isn't that awful?  Awfully creative!

A friend just sent me the link to this (Thanks, Amy), the recipe can be found at Not Martha.

Creepy Cider

When I first saw this, I wasn't sure what it was, but I loved it!

It's on Martha Stewart in case you want to replicate it.

Skeleton Veggie Tray

I wonder if my kids would be more apt to eating veggies if I arranged them like this:

I found this picture at Kraft Kitchens.

Halloween Cakes

If you're hosting a Halloween get together and have yet to find the perfect dessert...check out some of these "beauties".

I have no idea how they made any of them, but that last one actually makes me a tiny bit queasy.  Thanks for sending them my way, Pat!

Fun party idea if you're pregnant

If I were pregnant, which I am NOT, I would think about doing a party like the one I found on HWTM.

See those cupcakes?  Inside each one is a gumball.  They happen to be blue because this couple was expecting a boy.  So, everyone found out together what sex the baby was when they bit into their cupcakes.  A fun reason to celebrate!  You can go to the link above for the full party details.

My worst beverage nightmare

I came across this on the food network.  If someone handed me this drink I'm fairly certain I'd scream, drop the glass, and spill it all over.  Even then, I most likely wouldn't realize the spider was not real, because I would be across the room rocking in a corner thinking about happy things like a day at the spa.

Skip the liquor and serve it at a kids party.  Of course, if you're having a Halloween party with lots of kids, I think you're crazy, and I propose you leave the liquor in the recipe.

Free Halloween printables

Alright, so for some reason, I can't get the picture to work on my computer, but trust me, the printable below is cute.  It'd be great for little goodie bags for a halloween party, or maybe even iron it on to a canvas sack and make trick or treat bags for the kiddos.  But, click here, and open up the PDF document to check out these free printables from Oscar+Emma Designs.  Cute and free.  Doesn't get much better!

Wine glass name tag

I like this idea.  If I ever have a fancy enough party that my guests are all drinking wine out of real wine glasses....I will do this.  As it stands though, most of my parties involve juice boxes so I might be waiting awhile on this idea.  Cute though.  Use it as a name placecard for a nice dinner, and also to keep everyone's glasses straight after dinner.

Fall Centerpieces

Austin and I are going to decorate the house for Halloween today.  I'm already going through the box of stuff wondering what I can keep out through Thanksgiving and what definitely says "Halloween" and needs to be put away after the 31st.

This got me thinking about cute fall table decorations.  This, and the cold temperatures.  Here's a few I thought were easy enough to recreate with minimal effort.

I think those fake, but very realistic looking, pumpkins at Michaels would be great for this.

Is that an orange bell pepper in the dish?  I would have never considered that.  And, I still probably won't because I like to eat those, not display them.

Easy.  Next time I need new dishes (which will be in about 10 years), I'm getting all white.  So versatile.

Homemade Wine Bottle Labels

Relabling wine bottles to fit the decor of your party is all the rage right now.

Just kidding.  I hardly know what "all the rage" is in party planning.

But, I do think this idea is fun.  And pretty easy.  It could be used for any sort of party, but I'm thinking it would be especially great at weddings.  Use the homemade label to represent a table number at a reception.  Or, if you're feeling generous give each guest a bottle of wine to go home with and the label could be your engagement picture, wedding date, etc.

And just to show you how easy it is....I just made one.  For Halloween, not a wedding.  Unless you're getting married on Halloween.

It's 3x4.5 inches.  Just print it out, and stick it on the bottle with some double stick tape.  Or, print it out on an Avery label and forget the tape. 

I barely know how to use Photoshop, so I'm sure some of you who are fluent with the program (coughKerrycoughcough), would be able to create some really cool looking labels.

Creepy Ribs

My mom made the whole family ribs the other night.  They were tasty.  Next time I think she should serve them to us like this:

Candles for any event

I have Halloween on the brain.  And this year, my neighbor is hosting the party so I don't even get to put any of these fun ideas to use.  This idea, however, I think I could do really easily and really quickly.

I might even have the paper on hand.  And the ribbon for that matter because I'm that kind of girl.

Anyway, take a basic colored candle, wrap it with some festive scrapbook patterned paper, and then add a coordinating ribbon.  Finish it off with some sort of detail, in this case, the plastic spider, but buttons or even just the right sticker would work.  Definitely fun for Halloween, but it could also be used for any sort of party.  Patterned paper comes in so many crazy patterns and colors that you could make these candles to add a little something to any party you host.

Fun Halloween treats

Ever since Rob's birthday, you might remember my post, here, about trying to put a little more effort into the parties I throw.  That announcement was followed with Ellie's "flower" party, then Austin's "dinosaur" party, and Riley's "watermelon" party.  I had a lot of fun planning and decorating for those parties, but along the way, some of the most fun was seeing other parties that people have put together.

The internet is a wonderful time waster.

And now with Halloween right around the corner, ideas for cute treats and decorations are a'plenty! 

I just saw these on   http://simplycreativeinsanity.blogspot.com/  I didn't read any details about how they were specifically made, but aren't they cute!  I'm guessing they are fairly easy with some marshmallows, toothpicks, and colored candy melts.  Then just decorate with edible markers, or perfectly placed sprinkles.

Okay, so maybe they aren't easy. I think the pumpkins would be my best bet.