BYOP: Bring Your Own Pumpkin Carving Party & Contest!

I have a friend that does a pumpkin carving party every year in Chicago and it's awesome! She sends out an evite BYOP (Bring Your Own Pumpkin and carving utensils), covers her tables with trash bags, puts out snacks, a lot of liquor, a special "halloween punch" and BAM! Party! At the end of the night there is the judging, and the winner gets bragging rights for a full year! Happy Thursday! xoxo, Julie

Pics Below from the Cast of Lost's Pumpking Carving Party which looks just like my friend's party...

pics found HERE

Mardi Gras Themed Desserts!

Some ideas for Mardi Gras Themed Desserts! Lassiez le Bon Temps Rouler! xoxo, Julie

My personal fav: Truffles or Cake Balls shaped into a Mardi Gras Beads via Hungry Happenings

St Louis Cathedral out of Ginger Bread

Warm Hubig Pies topped with New Orleans Ice Cream Co. and stuck with Mardi Gras Themed Picks.
Had these are Canal Place Theaters! Yummmmm....

Blueberry Pie or cobbler dusted with gold sugar with "Laissez le Bon Temps Rouler" or "Throw Me Something Mister" cut out from crust and baked on top!

Beignets from Coffee Call

or colored Beginets via Hungry Happenings

Mini King Cakes

French Macaroons via Sucre New Orleans

King Cake Cupcakes via Mardi Gras Outlet

New Orleans Cemetary Chocolate Cake or Brownies via All You

Embelish a dessert with Fleur di Lis

Mask Cookies via Sweetopia

Mini Bread Puddings HERE

Pastry Crowns via Hungry Happenings

Happy Rosh Hashanah!

Today is Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year! I like this Jewish Holiday because it's a commemoration of the Big Bang which fashioned the universe and our planet. A great article on this is in today's Washington Post HERE. I'm observing today by going over to Whole Foods and Red Stick Spice to get stuff for a big meal tonight of celebratory foods like black eyed peas & apple cider, then watching the Rosh Hashanah Curb Your Enthusiasm episode HERE! Shana Tova! Happy Wednesday! Julie

Curb Your Enthusiasm

Spiced Apple Cider Cocktails

1 gallon fresh apple cider-10 cinnamon sticks-5 anise pods-3 teaspoons whole cloves-1 cup extra dark rum (optional) -Orange slices for garnish

Pour the cider into a large pot and simmer with the spices for 10-15 minutes. If you want, tie the spices up in cheesecloth for easy removal later - or just let people deal with cloves in their drinks. Add the rum at the end. Garnish with a slice of orange.

via The Kitchn

Menu
Here is an example of a Rosh Hashanah menu from Dino Restaurant in D.C.:

Grand Antipasti Misti della Festa
Round Challah, apples & honey
Asian pear, roasted pepper & radish salad
Chopped Chicken Liver fegatini
Sformata of local greens {ricotta, greens, parmesan, spices}
Seasonal vegetable antipasto
Chicken Matzoh Ball Soup

Entrees
Arrosto con Zucca “Kabocha”
Braised grass fed beef with Kabocha squash
Pulcino alla Cacciatore
Amish chicken with white wine & mushrooms
Pesca alla Livornese
Fish with a piquant tomato sauce
with escarole & white beans

Dessert
Buttery Apple Cake

Follow Red Stick Spice on Facebook and Twitter @RedStickSpiceCo @DinoDC

Hawaiian Luau Party!

I had the honor of helping plan and decorate my favorite kid's birthday luau this past weekend! The main attraction was the huge blow-up slide rented for four hours from Baton Rouge's Lindsey's Entertainment. They were super easy for us to secure, timely and professional! I highly recommend them! See the party below! Happy Tuesday! xoxo, Julie

Front Door

We made a birthday wreath with just a Styrofoam ring, wrapped with a pink feather boa and secured with Hawaiian Parasols! You can get 50 parasols from Hobby Lobby for $5 in the party section! I stuck the initials on at the last min with more parasols. No glue required!

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First Impression-Favors!

As guests walked in they were greeted with favors! These were small boxes filled with her favorite candy: Starbursts and Tootsie Rolls. We also made parasol wands, Gerber daisy hair clips, and sand dollar hair pins for everyone!

The Main Attraction!

Need I say more?

5 Totally Awesome Outdoor Activity Stations!

Faux Tattoos, Glitter Eye Shadow, Cupcake Decorating Station, Outdoor Flat Screen playing the Justin Beiber movie, and an area with fabric markers from Target where the kids autographed/decorated a pair of the birthday girl's jeans and a blank fabric clutch purse! Here are the markers:

Fashion

Her aunt found the cutest pink swim suit and pink hair spray for her big debut!

Other Decor

Glitter birthday trees on the cake table, red carpet leading up to the slide area, sea shells and parasols on the tables, paper lanterns, blow up alligators, beach balls all over the yard, and grass skirts and leis stapled along the walls and tables. A ton of stuff from Hobby Lobby, Party City & Oriental Trading! This is not our table but it looked almost identical to this:

Invites

Her GG made these adorable hard copy invites that went out to all of her friends!

Follow on Facebook @Lindsey's Entertainment

The Weekend Find: Non-Alcoholic Wine & Champagne

For those that abstain from alcohol, I found this in the sparking water section at Albertsons over the weekend! It's not a terrible idea idea to keep a bottle of this around for those that do not drink, or for those who've had one too many! I've tried the wine and actually like it! Happy Monday! xoxo, Julie