Pumpkin Carving

I love taking my kids to a harvest their own pumpkin during the fall at a farm. My favorites have orchards and bakeries. I love apple cider donuts. At the end of a friendly visit to most Pumpkin Patches you can spend $50 and come away with 5 pumpkins and a few guords. There has to be an easier way to do this and a cheaper way.

Today while I was at the local grocery store I was reading their prices for pumpkins. The sizes are what I would buy at the farms, yet the prices are so much less. If you don't need to spend the day at a pumpkin patch I would recommend checking out your local grocery store. They really are not that bad. Then maybe if you still want to visit the farm, go and enjoy but skip the overpriced pumpkins. Someone else is going to buy them, don't worry.

This article isn't really about crafting, but that is for my next article. On-line resources for pumpkin carving kits.

Recycle Toilet Paper Roll Scrapbook

Upcycle mini album
Originally uploaded by ThreadfulArt

I love that this adorable scrapbook is made out of toilet paper rolls. I just can't believe how great it turned out. I would love to make one of this and it is on my to do list for this winter. Not sure what to use it for yet.

Milk Jug Ghosts

10/07/07 - Decorating
Originally uploaded by Wicked Stepmom

If you are looking for cheap ghosts to fill up your graveyard, then you should consider these milk jub ghosts. What fun your kids would have decorating these fun faces. Fill them with christmas lights and stick them in your yard around your tombstones.

Halloween School Party Planning

We have just started to look at ideas for a Kindergarten Halloween Party. There are two of us who are working together to come up with a great party for our kid's class, but we want to keep the budget as cheap as possible. We only have so much to spend and so far we only have 4 volunteers to donate items and help for the parties. I have learned in past years you can make a great party for less than 20 dollars, but you have to be very creative.

We are looking at crafts that are made out of recycled or cheap materials. The kids honestly do not care what we make. Most parents do not care, but it should be memorable in some way. One idea I have found is Alien Masks. To make them a little easier for the kids we can make masks in general. We can use items we all have laying around the house to decorate. We can even use egg cartons to make the tips of the antennas.

Another idea I like is have the kids make their own treats. My friend thought it would be cute to have the kids create their own scary monster cupcakes. Or we can have the kids decorate a bag to look like a pumpkin, fill it with popcorn, and twist the top to look like a pumpkin stem.

No matter what we decide to do for the kids, they will love it. I hope I have inspired someone to save a little money and enjoy a fun filled afternoon with their child's class.

The graveyard

The graveyard
Originally uploaded by jeanlaredo

I love these tombstones with cute little sayings. My favorite is, "See I told you I was sick." I am going to try and make these for out home, but with leftover wood.

Frankenstein Cupcake Single

Frankenstein Cupcake Single
Originally uploaded by alachia

Alien Craft

Alien Craft
Originally uploaded by amanky

I think you could make this craft out of eg cartons. The styrofoam cartons would be fun because you could stick your pipecleaners into them without glue. They also come in many different colors, which could be a lot of fun for kids. They could decorate an entire army of them any way they would like.