Friday, October 29, 2010

my halloween costumes (yup, multiple)

This year I have 2...maybe 3 costumes. Sad right? I feel like Halloween this year has exploaded.
Tonight is my halloween party. Can't wait, although I still have SOOOO much left to do. My costume for tonight you ask?? Here's a hint:


Tomorrow is the Florida/Georgia game. This is a huge deal in Jacksonville. No like- it's bigger than Panama City Spring Break. Okay, maybe a bit of an exaggeration, but it's huge! It's an all day tailgating drinking fest and Jacksonvillers gladly welcome it. I've never participated in it before, mainly due to how crowded and out of control it gets, but this year I want to tailgate. We'll see how that ends up.....
I also get a mother-daughter afternoon date tomorrow too. It's been forever since I've had one-on-one time with my mama, so I can't wait.

Then comes Sunday.....For the youth, I'm throwing a Fall Festival themed party for youth group. I've done tons of shopping and planning for it, so suffice to say I'm excited about how it will all turn out. And my costume for this party??? Well, here's a not so subtle hint:


What are you this year?
What are your fun plans?

Stay safe this weekend! And check back for the last few Fall/October/Halloween posts.

xoxo
kel

autumn memories

I can't believe that October is almost gone. It seems like it just got here, but Halloween is around the corner, which means October will soon be heading out too. It's strange, because it doesn't even feel like Fall here in Jacksonville, with the temperature still in the 90's....

In any case, with Autumn still staying around for a bit, I've been searching for cute ways to remember the season. I gotta say, there is a TON of adorable stuff out there too. Here are just a few finds:

**********
miss Corey Marie is offering up this FREE printable mini album. Talk about adorable and awesome right? i can't wait to download mine....





and here are some ultra cute journals:

found here


found here

and some pretty embellishments:

found here


and pretty stickers!

found here


found here


found here



and some awesome seasonal stamps! perfect

found here


found here


found here


found here


found here


found here


happy memory making. :)
if you've been journaling, scrapbooking, etc your Fall memories- post a link here. I would looooove to see them!
xoxo
kel

Thursday, October 28, 2010

halloween flicks

Every year my bestie Leigh and I would invite people over to our place and watch scary movies. I'd make chili and sangria punch and we'd just veg and scare ourselves silly. This is the first time in 4 years that we won't be doing it.... it makes me a bit sad. We've watched everything from Haunted (horrible) to The Shinning to Vacancy to Psycho.
Anywho, here are some season flicks that I thought I'd share.....



awesome tv mini series. i loved it!



saw series. sad to admit it, but i've only seen the first. pretty good but a little to gorey for me.


a classic. i use to watch this when i was little and i'd freak. i'm getting it again this week. :)


a scary movie about.....?? i've never screamed so loud though.

an exorcism....these types freak me out the most. honestly i watched only some of the exorcism of emily rose and had nightmares for weeks. (based on a true story)


okay, my favorite movie as a kid. that i may or may not still own..... it's so silly, but so darn cute. some other kido movies i still like (yea i admit it): halloweentown and hocus pocus! :)




oh the vampire fad..... 30 days of night scared me (all 3 times i watched it). i liked true blood (only saw the first season), but i was too freaked to watch it alone. vampire diaries...haven't seen it but lots of my friends rave about it.

the zombie movies. they dont freak me out as much. i like when they move slow...like shaun of the dead, but when they run faster than i do like in Dawn of the Dead, which I just saw last week, um no thanks.


we watched this one last year. was it just me or did it have a hint of humor in it too?


the funny halloweeny movies.... again, like Shaun of the Dead. so good.


and the "crazy things have taken over the planet" movies. this one freaked me out. as if we are surprised by that...they all do.
So what are some that you recommend for a good scare???
xoxo
kel

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Wednesday Wishes


I've been bad about these Wednesday posts. I'm starting to wonder if I'm getting to the point where I am so stressed I'm not allowing myself to think big anymore. :( So snapping out of that..... my wishlists for this week.

1. to throw some kick butt parties; friday (for my friends) and sunday (for my youth)
i've got tons of ideas for food and fun games....but there's a big gap between planning and dreaming up and actually creating and putting together. suffice to say i've managed to stress myself out....

2. more buttons for the collection
somehow i've become quite the button collector, although i've noticed my stash getting low. boo. it makes em wanna go shopping for more now.



3. a super awesome belt



i love this type of style- the big(ish) belt with a dress. but i have yet to find a belt that suits me. so step one: find a belt, step 2: pray it fits me, step 3: pray that i use it in a way that doesnt make me look silly or prego (which so many dresses seem to be doing lately.) (and by the way...i'm not either)

(all photos found via weheartit.com)
Don't forget to check out the other lovely ladies' wishlists today. :)

lovelovelove,
kel

real haunted homes?

I'm not entirely sure why (because we are talking about a girl who is deathly afraid of all scary movies) but I love hearing about ghost stories. I've gone on tons of ghost tours in St. Augustine (one last weekend in fact) and several in Savannah, GA., and even though I get somewhat scared, I still enjoy them. Maybe it's the history buff in me, or perhaps the adrenaline rush that comes with it, or maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment....in any case, when I saw this link to all these stories about (supposed "real" haunted homes I couldn't pass up checking it out.
So for all of you that are just as curious as me.... click on the link above to see more about haunted houses such as:


Stranahan House in Ft. Lauderdale, FL (where I'm from...eek!)


Lizzie Borden House in Fall River, Mass.


La Lalaurie House in New Orleans, LA






Hull House in Chicago, IL


Franklin House in Cleveland, OH


Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC



happy haunting,
kellie

Tuesday, October 26, 2010

a productive night and one goal down

Okay, so I totally have the best mom...ever. Last week I was having a tough time and one day last week just totally got me down. So the next day, my mom brought me in a little gift....say hello to the newest sock monkey. She's tiny and pink and still not named, but she totally made my day.

and now oliver has a bud :)


This week is going a bit better. And tonight I've gotten some stuff done...for once. I always feel like I'm just running around and making plans, but rarely have the time to carry them out. So tonight I met up with the girls and roommate for sushi and bubble tea and now I am going to start working hard. I have sooooo much to do to prepare for this weekend. Oy.



oh and i also crossed a goal off of the "keri smith 100 ideas" list:
17: go to a paint store (or in my case walmart) and collect "chips" of your favorite color(s):

xoxo
kel

halloween guest post (with Cuppy from Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others)

Hello & happy fall everyone! My name is Cuppy & I'm the pink-haired cupcake/baking aficionado behind Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others.

In effort to ease my post summer strawberry blues, I usually jump full-force into fall baking with a frenzy of pumpkin flavored treats.

One of my newest & most fun treats to make is mini pumpkin whoopie pies! Kinda makes your mouth start watering just thinking about it, no?

As a budding pastry chef, I try to add new (and easy) "go to" items to my baking repertoire to make on a whim when I'm feeling like I need something sweet to nosh on OR for a really nice treat to bring when going to a get together or having friends over.

I think these cute little whoopie pies will please just about everyone!

PUMPKIN COOKIES:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature & slightly beaten
1 cup of 100% pure pumpkin (Cuppy tip - I use Libby's when I'm in a hurry but using 1 cup of cooked pumpkin adds extra "oomph" and worth it if you have the extra time to prepare a regular pumpkin)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease baking sheets.

(Cuppy tip - I tend to use parchment paper on top of my cookie sheets. It's easier & cleaner!)

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, & salt in medium bowl & set aside. Beat butter & sugar in a large mixing bowl (I use my Kitchenaid mixer) on medium speed for approx. 2 minutes or until butter & sugar are mixed well & seem "fluffy". Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add pumpkin and vanilla extract & beat until smooth (about a minute or two). Slowly mix in the dry ingredients you have set aside until combined. Once mixture is all combined together, it should look like this:
Drop heaping tablespoons onto the prepared baking sheets. You should get roughly 50-60 cookies total (depending on how big you make them).

Bake for 10-13 minutes or until the cookies feel "springy" to the touch. Cool on baking sheets for about 5-10 minutes; remove & place on wire racks to cool completely for another 20 or so.

Finished cookies should look like this:

(Cuppy tip - I tend to let the cookies cool overnight before I make the cream cheese filling & assemble them. I don't necessarily think you have to do that, it's just my own personal preference & that way you know for sure that everything is fully cooled before adding a filling that could potentially melt if added too soon.

CREAM CHEESE FILLING (which can also be used as a simple "go to" frosting for cupcakes, cakes or any other goodie you like to add cream cheese frosting to!)

** The following recipe should be enough to fill all the cookies in this recipe but I personally like to add a bit more frosting in these particular cookies so I usually double this recipe. If you want to do that too, just take everything listed below and multiply by two. **

4 ounces of cream cheese (I use Philadelphia) at room temperature.
6 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Beat the cream cheese, butter & vanilla extract in a medium mixing bowl on medium speed until it's fully blended & fluffy. Gradually add in the powdered sugar until everything is fully incorporated & again, really fluffy.

Place a heaping teaspoon (or so) of filling onto the flat side of one of the cookies & top with the flat side of a second cookie to make a sandwich. Repeat with remaining cookies & filling.

The final product should look like this:

You can store your whoopie pies in a covered container in the fridge.
Last but not least, ENJOY & share with your friends & loved ones!

I hope you have fun making these yummy whoopie pies !!!

xoxoxo Cuppy

Monday, October 25, 2010

5 loves on monday (fall edition)

A brand spanking new list of 5 things I love (fall edition)
Enjoy.

1. this adorable football ring. call me crazy, but i want it so badly!
found here
2. this orange tape
found here
3. halloween candy. i cant wait for it!



4. these pretty earrings.

found here

5. fall garlands

(diy found on my blog, here by the wonderful Liz)


made by the lovely janel


this one found here


What fall items are you loving right now???
xoxo
kel