Halloween Recovery

When I posted yesterday that I'd heard there would be lots of kids and I needed more candy, I was so naive.
On my way to the commissary, I stopped by the PX to get more candy. Lucky for me, it was on sale (slightly) and I grabbed several very large bags to fill my bowl.
Trick-or-Treating here on an Army post is, like other things the Army does, very regulated. Hours are from 6:00 to 8:00 PM and the MPs (Military Police) are in full force keeping our neighborhoods safe.
At 6:00 I had my station out front. Jack-O-Lanterns were lit, porch light on, chair outside for me to sit in as I greeted every goblin and gave them a treat. My neighbor warned me to give out only one piece to every child. I'm glad she did!
I have NEVER seen so many kids in my life. They were in herds.

 Parents were dressed up, dogs were in costume and I swear I had a blast. I would have to time my trips back to the kitchen for more candy very carefully. A break in the crowd found me rushing back inside, ripping large bags of candy open with my teeth and dumping into the bowl. Four refills and less than an hour later, I realized, I'm not going to make it. No way is my candy going to last until 8:00.

At 7:12 PM I threw in the towel.  I found a break, ran back inside and turned off my light. I felt awful about it! 

I realized as I'm sitting outside that these kids don't live in my neighborhood.  These are the children of young Soldiers who live in neighborhoods where parents are out with their own children and not handing out candy so much. My neighborhood is more senior and parents aren't out with kids anymore. Every house is lit up. Every resident is outside with a large bowl of candy. The decorations were amazing and it was a true party atmosphere.

It made me feel good to know I could give something to these young Soldiers' families when they give so much to us every day.

I'm so blessed to live where I do and to call America's heroes my neighbors.

This was the fall out. These bags don't include the first three or four when I was calm and threw the trash out.

Halloween!!

I’m going to post some photos of my Halloween prep so you all don’t think I’ve been completely worthless!  Just because I’m not blogging doesn’t mean I’m not doing anything. 

I’ve actually been very busy with other things. Nick’s change of command is coming up quickly and I realized the other day I’m two weeks out and haven’t finalized plans for the reception that follows the ceremony. So, I’ve been working with the caterer, my friend who is decorating and another friend who is making the cake. I’ve also been talking to the wonderful Soldiers that are helping with the ceremony to get the business side of everything done.  Where is my husband during this process, you may ask…. well he’s still TDY.  How convenient.  He just keeps emailing me events to put on my calendar. Looks like brigade command is going to require a lot more social events than we had before. It’s ok, I like social!

Yesterday, I decided to brave the drizzle outside and carve our pumpkins. My plan was that a certain teenage boy would help me, but since he had put off about three days of homework until Sunday afternoon, that was not an option. So, I set up my pumpkin carving station.

Since there was a very chilly drizzle falling, I opted for under the canopy in the backyard.

 

See the wet ground?  It looks like that a lot lately.

Everything is here. Pattern, cutting instruments, objects of scooping pumpkin guts, my glasses (so I can see what I’m cutting!)  What you can’t see is my iPod station in the chair. Ironically, Kenny Chesney was singing about the sun, the sand and a drink with no bottom. Appropriate, don’t you think?

Finished product number one. They just don’t look so good in this light.

Pumpkin number two. See the container of seeds?  Those are for roasting!

Much better in this light!!  Creeeepy!

And again, much better when it’s glowing in the darkness!

 

Here is a daylight shot of my outdoor decorations.

And one of the front door area. If there hadn’t been that glare on the storm door, you’d see there is a fall wreath up there. If I was a better photographer, I would have figured out a way to eliminate the glare.

Tonight I will gear up for trick-or-treaters.  I love seeing the little ones all dressed up. I hear there will be lots in this neighborhood. I have a feeling I should hit the commissary today and get more candy.

Happy Halloween, everyone!!!

What a Weekend!

For the first time in a long time, I was ready for the weekend to be over. It was a busy one!
We arranged to have a neighborhood potluck at the community center here and as usual, I tried to be an overachiever.
I made three dishes and was upset with myself because I didn't get the popcorn balls done to take.
I made Beer Cheese Soup, which is delicious by the way. I absolutely love this soup! It's perfect for watching a football game, getting together for Halloween, or any other time you want a yummy, warm cup of soup.
I also made cute little mummies which were basically pigs in blankets. I cut canned cresent rolls into strips and wrapped the hot dogs so they looked like mummies. Let me tell you something. It's tedious work and I am not volunteering to do that again soon. I didn't get a photo of mine, but here is one from the web site that I found the recipe on.

Aren't they precious?

The potluck was on Saturday night and on Sunday we were doing a mad dash to get Alex's schoolwork he was behind on finished up. He missed four days of school when he attended an out of town field trip last week so it was a bit stressful. On top of schoolwork, he wanted his new girlfriend to come over and watch a movie yesterday evening. So, off we go to get this done. He completed (with a LOT of help from us) two English papers, and a paper for Biology that had to have a project to go with it. All finished up and still had time to have the girlfriend over for a movie and pizza.

On top of creating a three dimensional white blood cell, making pizzas for kids, we carved two pumpkins and I roasted the seeds.

Needless to say, I was exhausted by bedtime last night. I'm hoping this week things will slow down a bit, but I can already see that it's going to be busy. I really need to get started on holiday planning and shopping. We have a total of 5 kids that will be in and out of here for the Christmas holidays all at different times. I'm not sure how we're going to have "Christmas" with all of them, but I bet we will figure it out! It will be here before I know it!!

I will leave you with a photo of my pup in her Halloween Costume and the recipe for Beer Cheese Soup. Happy Monday everyone!

Halloweenie

Beer Cheese Soup (recipe from a newspaper clipping waayyyy back)

Ingredients
½ cup butter
½ cup flour
1 ½ cups cream
4 cups chicken broth
1 (16-oz.) jar Cheese Whiz
1 can beer
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
Chives (optional)

Directions
Melt butter and flour in heavy pan. Cook over low heat for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add cream and broth, mix well until smooth and thick. Add cheese and mix until smooth and melted. Add beer, Worcestershire sauce, and sprinkle in some chives if desired. Then place in slow cooker on low for four to six hours, stirring occasionally