Halloween Party Time! Crafts and Goodies

If you couldn't already tell, I love Halloween! It's one of my favorite holidays to celebrate with the kids, from preparing their costumes to going around the neighborhood trick or treating. This year Wesley (5) is a vampire, Henry (8) is a ? and Fischer (10) is Charlie Chaplin. Though I don't want to play favorites, I have to say that Fischer's costume just looks great.

Every year we host a Halloween party for the boys and their friends from the neighborhood and school. Here are some of our favorite crafts and recipes for spooky goodies!
Crafts:

1. Glue Ghost

What you'll need:

• White school glue
• Waxed paper
• Wiggle eyes
• Felt, buttons, pom-poms, etc (all optional)

How to make it:

1. Place a piece of waxed paper on a flat surface.
2. Squeeze glue from the bottle into the shape of a ghost.
3. Place wiggle eyes into the glue.
4. If you would like to decorate your ghost, use felt, buttons, pom-poms or whatever you like to add character. We made a simple bow tie from green felt and added mini pom-poms for buttons.
5. Set aside in an out-of-reach area to dry overnight. Note: Expect for them to take all night – and possibly a few hours more – to dry completely.
6. Once dry the ghosts will look like they blend into the waxed paper. Carefully peel them paper and use them as decorations around the house.

2. Egg Carton Spider

What you'll need:

• Black paint
• Paintbrush
• Egg carton
• Scissors
• Awl or small Phillips head screwdriver
• Black pipe cleaners
• Wire cutters
• Wiggle eyes
• Glue

How to make it:

1. Cut the egg carton apart into little cups/sections.
2. Using the awl or screwdriver, make eight holes in the bottom edge of each section for the legs.
3. Paint the egg carton section black. Let dry.
4. Cut the pipe cleaners in half.
5. Push the pipe cleaner in through one side of the section and out the opposite side. Bend down the legs.
6. Repeat for each of the legs.
7. Glue on wiggle eyes.

3. Popcorn Hand - A craft that double as a great giveaway bag!

What you'll need:

• Clear plastic gloves
• Candy corn or Hot Tamales candy
• Popcorn
• Orange and black ribbon
• Plastic spider rings

How to make it:

1. Stuff a piece of candy corn in each finger of the clear plastic glove to resemble fingernails. If you wish, you can use the Hot Tamales candy instead to resemble painted fingernails.
2. Fill it with popcorn (no butter!).
3. Tie it at the wrist with orange and black ribbon.
4. Place a plastic spider ring on one of the fingers.

Easy Party Snack:

This is a simple way to turn the usual nachos into a spooky treat all the kids will love. Just make some nachos how you would normally like them, and then put down a layer of guacamole or salsa in the center, and then with a toothpick use some sour cream to make a spider web.

Have a safe and happy Halloween!

Fun Halloween Trivia and History

When you think about Ireland these days you're probably more likely to think about Leprechauns or Saint Patrick's Day before Halloween comes to mind. However, this spooky holiday comes straight from the ancient Celtic tradition to celebrate the new year on October 31st, what they considered to be the last day of summer.

Called Samhain, and pronounced Sow-en, it was believed that the souls of all those who died came back to find living bodies to possess for the next year. Yikes!

The Irish had some tricks for avoiding this creepy fate. On the night of October 31st all villagers would put out the fires in their homes, in hopes that if their house was cold and clammy even the dead would not want to enter. Then as a means of disguise, they would dress up as ghosts, demons, and other members of the dead. This way, the dead would not recognize them as humans. They would then go out and march around town committing acts of vandalism, which was supposedly intended to scare away the spirits of the dead. If you ask me though, it sounds like a perfect excuse for the rascally kids to wreck some havoc!

The custom of pranks and dressing up was introduced to America in thanks to the Irish Potato famine. As immigrants came over in the 1840s, the tradition spread to all members of American cities on the Eastern coast.

Another tradition we have the Irish to thank for is the Jack o’ lantern. This comes from another method the Celts used to scare away the dead. Candles were placed in hollowed-out turnips to frighten spirits away. In America, pumpkins proved to be easier to carve.

Here's some more trick or treat trivia:

Tootsie Rolls were the first wrapped penny candy in America.

Halloween candy sales average about 2 billion dollars annually in the United States.

Bobbing for apples is thought to have originated from the roman harvest festival that honors Pamona, the goddess of fruit trees.

Signs of a werewolf are a unibrow, hair palms, tattoos, and a long middle finger.

The Ouija Board ended up outselling the game of Monopoly in its first full year at Salem. Over two million copies of the Ouija Board were shipped.

Check back tomorrow for some fun ideas for Halloween arts and craft ideas for your kids Halloween party!

Kids Health -- Kidney Stones

They say special things come in small packages, but I guess you could say this is not exactly always the case.

An article in the New York Times science section yesterday highlights the fact that more than ever before, kids are getting kidney stones, a painful experience usually limited to people in their middle age or older.

What struck me as a mother of three boys was that while doctors believe that there is some link to this trend with child obesity, a lot of the kids who get them are a perfectly normal weight. Another factor was the increase of plain old table salt in food marketed to children. But this did not really make me worried, because as my husband and I have been watching our own salt intake, we've cut back on buying salt laden snacks.

What struck me was that one of the big factors against children is that they don't drink enough water because either they don't have time for the water fountain, don't like going to the bathroom in school, or feel pressure not to go because it means getting permission to leave the classroom. Who would ever think I'd have to ask my kids about their bathroom habits in order to keep on top of their health!

Yesterday as I went to pick up my two youngest, Wesley (5 years) and Henry (8 years) from the park where they both have soccer practice, I couldn't help but think of hydration as I watched them run around the soccer field. As we walked home I asked them how often they went to the bathroom at school. "Never!" Wesley shrieked. "Really?" I asked. "Well.....sometimes" he admitted, "but hardly ever." "Why not?" "The boys room at school is not as nice as our bathroom mommy." "Yeah" agreed Henry.

"But don't you drink from the water fountain at school a lot?" I asked. They both shook their heads. All of a sudden I realized that for the most part, all my boys have to drink during the day is the dinky little juice box I pack them for lunch...which is what, a couple of sips? Looks like I need to buy some reusable juice containers so I know my boys are getting enough to drink!

A Sock Monkey Giveaway from Another Crafty Mom

My Mommy's Place is a blog that I always check back to now and then. Leslie has a good sense of humor about parenting and life in general. This week Leslie is hosting a fun giveaway that makes me nostalgic for my own childhood. Though my own sock monkey was not quite this bright and colorful, this is a classic toy that I just love. Plus she makes them herself by hand. Even if you don't win, you can always by one through her own etsy shop. Some of them she has are super cute and crafty. I personally love her striped sock monkey with star shaped eyes and her polka dot sock monkey.

So after you enter the giveaway I'm running this week, check out her fun blog and try to win this great stuffed sock monkey!

Monday Giveaway

Hope you all had a great weekend! I know I enjoyed some crisp yet warm fall weather with my three boys-- Sunday was a perfect day for sipping warm apple cider in the park.

Congratulations to CanCan for winning last week's giveaway. We hope you enjoy your personalized Thanksgiving turkey plate!

I also like Kathleen's comment about what she likes about Thanksgiving -- a simple meal to have just with family and close friends. I could not agree more.

This week's giveaway will build on the importance and desire I think we all have to spend more time with our family. What better way to get involved with your kids than starting a tradition of family game night! Not only is it fun, but it's a great way to put their little minds to work. At our house Thursday night is game night, and all three of my kids (5, 8 and 10) look forward to it.

This week we will give away a classic game set that your kids will love. The classic game set includes: 54 playing cards, Mikado sticks, 5 wooden dice, Ludo game, Checkers, Chinese Checkers, Snakes and Ladders, Nine Men's Morris, and complete game instructions.

Here's how to enter the give-away to win one of these classic game sets:

1. Leave a comment on either your favorite game as a kid, or your kids favorite game.
2. Mention how you found this site
3. Check out the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. to see what other games they feature.
4. Make sure I can contact you! Either leave an email address in your comment, or make sure that you have contact information on your blog profile.

You can receive an extra entry towards this giveaway if you link to this give-away in your blog and put that link in your comment.

The give-away is open for entries until Sunday, November 2nd, at 11:59PM. Winners will be chosen at random, and announced Monday morning. Good luck!

Note: At this time, the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. cannot ship give-away items internationally. They apologize for the inconvenience to all of you great people living outside of the U.S.

Education Matters: Election Season 2008

I by no means claim this to be a political site. I'm no expert about political trends, about I don't pretend that my opinions are anything more than just that--opinions.

That said, this recent presidential election season has captivated me more than any other election I can remember. It's exciting to me, because it seems like more than any other time, everyone is following this election closely. More than ever I hear people on the subway, in the elevator, on the street, everywhere, talking about who just said what or what this candidate thinks about this issue or that policy plan.

Political candidates these days always like to talk about how they are able to be bipartisan, but I think its just as important to point out this fact; whether you support John McCain or Barack Obama, it's impossible to deny that this election season has gotten Americans more excited and engaged in the democratic process that is so vital to the fabric of our country than they have been in a long time. And this is definitely a good thing for America.

So in a slight departure of my normal posting topics, here are some links concerning a policy issue dear to any parent's heart: education.
The National Association of International Education: An issue often ignored, this group looks at the importance of global education, and how America can help and benefit from educational programs all over the world. There is lots of material here in relation to the upcoming elections.

The Policy of Each Candidate on Higher Education: Hosted by the American Associate of State Colleges and Universities, this site gives lots of information on each presidential candidate. Lists links to their official statements, voting records, and news articles on their policies.

The National Center for Learning Disabilities: Lists each candidate's policies on education for kids with learning disabilities. Includes quotes, official statements, voting record, as well as links to research documents by several different think tanks and other research groups. And besides this, their main page is a great resource for parents of a child with a learning disability.

The National Education Association: Lots of articles about education in this election season. Also lets you contact your congressman or senate representative on how to vote for important upcoming bills concerning education policy. A really great site.

Education Week Magazine: Lots of campaign coverage focused on education.

Hope this is helpful, and I'd love to hear what all of you think!

Monday Give Away

Hope you all had a good weekend!

Congratulations to Lace for winning the pirate coat rack for last week's giveaway! I hope the lucky kid who recieves this enjoys it as much as we do over at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co.!

One of my favorite parts of running my business is that I get to work with fabulous people. Since my first job at a ice cream pallor I've know that if you work with good people, even stressful moments are bearable.

There are many talented artisans who make the products at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. We have Vicky Vinson, who sews our boys and girls bedding and paints all of our custom kids furniture. No matter how much sewing projects she has on her plate, she always manages to keep a calm and cheerful demeanor. She's absolutely amazing! And then we have Shannon Sunderland and Ann Anderson, two crafty women who make our personalized jewelry.

But this week for the Monday Giveaway I wan to highlight Jamie Lentzner. Though we live on opposite coasts, I consider Jamie a good friend, and one I'm very lucky to have. Not only is she a mom of an adorable boy and girl, Jamie owns her own business built around her artistic talents. With a degree in Computer Art and a background in animation, whimsical, childlike designs come naturally to Jamie. Using ceramic tile and ribbon, Jamie creates personalized name tiles and wall art in a variety of themes and colors.

Jamie has recently been expanding her reach to include personalized ceramic plates, which I'm super excited about. This week for the giveaway we'll help you prepare for Thanksgiving with a personalized turkey plate handpainted by Jamie. With this plate, even picky eaters will want to gobble up all the food they give them, just so they can see their name!

Here's how to enter the give-away to win one of these personalized turkey plates:

1. Leave a comment on your favorite Thanksgiving tradition.
2. Mention how you found this site
3. Check out the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. to see what kinds of Thanksgiving items they offer or some of the other products handpainted by Jamie.
4. Make sure I can contact you! Either leave an email address in your comment, or make sure that you have contact information on your blog profile.

You can receive an extra entry towards this giveaway if you link to this give-away in your blog and put that link in your comment.

The give-away is open for entries until Sunday, October 26th, at 11:59PM. Winners will be chosen at random, and announced Monday morning. Good luck!

Note: At this time, the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. cannot ship give-away items internationally. They apologize for the inconvenience to all of you great people living outside of the U.S.

Fabric Find of the Week

I know the season has truly shifted to cooler weather when one of my boys gets their first case of the common cold for the school year. This time it was my youngest, who is only five. He's still at that age where being sick is an uncertain time.

So I try to do my best to comfort him as much as I can, just as my mom did when I was little. Our house is now stocked with cans of chicken noddle soup, saltine crackers, and bottles of gingerale. And as I sat with him as he watched a favorite movie in his soft and snugly pajamas, I got to making our tissue boxes a little more bright and happy with fabric covers.

This tissue box fabric cover craft is so easy! There are a few steps, but all are simple to do and understand. I found a great website that gives the step by step instructions along with photographs, which you can visit here. And it hardly takes any fabric--for a large box, a half yard, and if you're doing a small box like the one pictured above, a fat quarter of fabric is all you need.

For this kind of project, I think the more cheerful the fabric print, the better! I know when I'm having to reach for the tissue box all day, I'm never in the best of spirits. So this week the fabrics highlighted at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. aim to be upbeat. Of course, we have so many fun fabrics to choose from, so this caveat didn't narrow it down much. In the end, I went for our adorable on the fence fabric for all your little cowboys, pink polka dots fabric, and kimono girls fabric that I know you and your darling girls are sure to love. Happy sewing!

Monday Give Away

Okay, so it's more like a Tuesday giveaway this week-- hope you all enjoyed the holiday weekend!

Wow, I'm just so overwhelmed by the enthusiastic response for last weeks giveaway! I apologize for the lack of recent updates on this site, last week was super busy. I promise more regular updates this week.

And now, the winner...

Congratulations to Torinem for winning the deluxe art set! I hope your little girls enjoy many hours of creative fun instead of cabin fever this winter.

Columbus Day always gets me thinking about what it must have been like to be on a boat all those years ago, in the middle of the vast Atlantic Ocean without a clear idea when land might appear. It's hard to imagine. Of course when nautical historical voyages come up in cconversation at the dinner table, my boys are always more interested in talking about pirates than they are with history. Though they cannot agree on much, all three of my boys can love the book Treasure Island, as well as the Muppet movie adaptation of the novel. And so pirates are the inspiration for this week's giveaway.

This week The Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. is giving away a pirate coat rack. This wooden coat rack comes in sky blue, with a fun pirate ship at the top. Sturdily constructed, each 49" rack has four pegs that hold hats, jackets, and eye patches and assorted armaments. Your child is sure to look forward to hanging their coat on this special coat rack after a long day of treasure hunting! Makes a great addition for your hallway or to the decor of your child's bedroom.

Here's how to enter the give-away to win one of these pirate coat racks:

1. Leave a comment on your favorite fantasy book as a kid, or your kid's favorite book.
2. Mention how you found this site
3. Check out the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. to see what kinds of fun girls decor and fantastical boys decor that they feature.
4. Make sure I can contact you! Either leave an email address in your comment, or make sure that you have contact information on your blog profile.

You can receive an extra entry towards this giveaway if you link to this give-away in your blog and put that link in your comment.

The give-away is open for entries until Sunday, October 19th, at 11:59PM. Winners will be chosen at random, and announced Monday morning. Good luck!

Note: At this time, the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. cannot ship give-away items internationally. They apologize for the inconvenience to all of you great people living outside of the U.S.

Monday Give-Away

Hope you all had a good weekend!

Congratulations to Jessica and Baba for winning the hippity hoppity toy this week! We hope that the lucky boy or girl they give it to has plenty of fun-filled hours ahead of them.

This past weekend I had fun with my boys outside in the park, but there was a crisp chill in the air that reminded me that winter is coming soon. As much as I want to savor the fall, it was hard to push images of hot chocolate and snowmen out of my head.

While these images of winter were swirling in my head, I was also thinking about an early New Year's resolution; less TV for the boys. My children have always been restricted on how much TV they watch, but I've decided to up the ante a bit. I want most days to be no-TV days. I want my kids to be involved in creative projects and physical activities. Since last week we gave away something for play, this week I wanted to help give at least one child something that will keep their mind active throughout the cold winter months ahead. I've always made a point of offering a wide range of arts and crafts as well as activity kits, and it was hard to pick just one product for this week's give away.

And so, this week the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. is excited to give away a product that will inspire creativity for any child. Our deluxe art set is a great way to spend a rainy afternoon, some free house after school, or a snow day. This sturdy wooden case contains 32 fine tip markers, 28 colored pencils, 24 oil pastels, 20 crayons, 2 drawing pencils, ruler, eraser, pencil sharpener, fold-out drawing board and 2 easel clips. The box has two drawers to keep supplies and opens up to reveal a fold-up easel.

How to win this deluxe art set:

1. Leave a comment on your favorite way to spend a rainy day.
2. Mention how you found this site
3. Check out the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. to see what kinds of indoor activities and crafts we offer.
4. Make sure I can contact you! Either leave an email address in your comment, or make sure that you have contact information on your blog profile.

You can receive an extra entry towards this giveaway if you link to this give-away in your blog and put that link in your comment.

The give-away is open for entries until Sunday, October 12th, at 11:59PM. Winners will be chosen at random, and announced Monday morning. Good luck!

Note: At this time, the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. cannot ship give-away items internationally. They apologize for the inconvenience to all of you great people living outside of the U.S.

Fabric Find of the Week

Baby showers have always been one of my favorite events to attend. The happy expectant mom and grandparents, the gathering of friends and family around what is perhaps the happiest and most exciting moment in a woman's life.

Some things might change over time; presidents will come and go, the economy will go up and down, and world events will always be in flux. Which is perhaps why I love baby showers so much! They remind me of all that stays the same no matter what happens. People will always start new families, and the values of community, friendship, and the networks the are formed through motherhood will always remain strong.

Over at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. we are committed to carrying lots of super cute items that will make any baby boy or girl break out into an adorable smile. But we also know that sometimes, especially when its a best friend or daughter, that you want to give a present with an extra personalized touch. What better than to make a soft stuffed animal that will be loved down to the last thread?

The first step is picking out fabric. I personally think that bright colorful printed fabric is the best for making a stuffed animal for a baby. At the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. we have lots of fun fabrics for girls and boys. This week's fabric find is our Sagebrush Sweethearts fabric. Order it within the next week over the phone, and mention that this blog and you'll get a 10% discount on your order.

Now you need to find a fabric pattern. This site has tons to free patterns, and if you can't find what you need there you should be able to find it here.

Have a good weekend!

Mom of the Week

I’m excited to announce we will highlight an extraordinary mom each week. While the staff at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. feels that all moms are amazing, this column will spotlight mothers who have done something especially noteworthy. If any of you know of a mom we should contact, let us know! This week we were lucky enough to have Lesley Pyle take some time out from being a mom, a business owner, and recovering from Hurricane Ike, to answer our questions.

And so, without further adieu…

A lot is written about the need to make sure women and men receive equal pay for the same job. Less is reported on an issue that many moms across the country face; exclusion from the world of paid labor. Which of course does not mean that moms don’t work hard, but I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that.

Most jobs make it difficult for women to enjoy being a stay at home moms as well as members of the paid work force. It comes as no surprise that it would take a home based working mom to come to the rescue.

In May 2007 Lesley Pyle founded HireMyMom.com, a company dedicated to providing women with access to alternate and flexible career paths. Lesley had already launched the Association of Home-Based Working Moms (HBWM) two years previous, which Lesley says was set up to “help parents share information, network, and support one another.” Lesley felt “so blessed” to be able to “be with my family and earn an income” that she knew the next step was to empower all women to be able to choose to do the same.

Lesley knows moms face a lot of challenges these days, but she is overall that new technology will help. She points out that the internet and cell phones make it possible for moms to be more connected to the office without leaving the demands of home. We all know that motherhood does not work well with set schedules or long commutes; Lesley’s company allows stay at home moms to find employers who understand the demands and value of raising a family.

So how does Lesley’s company work?

Employers send job offerings to Hire My Mom, Lesley and her staff review it, and if approved they post it in a directory that is visible to members only. They receive announcements for jobs in all type of fields, and from companies of all sizes. Members also get a daily email listing all the new jobs posted to the directory for the day. Membership is just $99 a year or $29.95 per quarter. So if you’ve ever thought about working from home, check out Lesley’s site!

If you haven’t caught on yet, Lesley is an ambitious woman. She’s already gotten requests to help start HBWM in other countries, and while she has not started on any of these projects yet, who knows what the future might hold! We at the Warm Biscuit Bedding Co. wish her and her business the best of luck.