Pumpkin Puppy Treats

Hurray for fall! I love the changing colors of the trees and the cool, crisp mornings. But most of all, I love baking with PUMPKIN! (And drinking pumpkin spice lattes, of course). There is just something about pumpkin flavor that makes it feel like fall. 

I came across a recipe for Pumpkin Pie Snickerdoodles on Pinterest that looked delicious, so I had to give them a try. (I forgot to take pictures). They were SOOOOO good. I will be making them again. Check out the recipe I used HERE.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it), I only had a giant can of pumpkin in my pantry and was left with extra after making the cookies. I couldn't just throw it away, of course, so I had to think of another use.

I had read somewhere that pumpkin was good for dogs, and since we recently got a puppy,

I decided to whip up some yummy treats for him too. Isn't he adorable?

I found a recipe for Pumpkin Dog Treats on THIS blog that sounded pretty easy. And I had all of the ingredients in my pantry already, which was a huge bonus. 

15 oz pumpkin puree

2 eggs

1/2 cup oats

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 Tbls peanut butter

1/2 tsp cinnamon

Mix it up, roll it out to 1/2 inch thick, cut out the "cookies," and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. 

A half hour later........ Voila!

Peanut Butter Pumpkin Puppy Treats!

I couldn't find my bone shaped cookie cutter, so we made diamonds instead. I don't think Benson (the dog) minded at all. He gobbled them up like crazy! I think he might like pumpkin flavor as much as I do. Good dog!

Bearded Beanies

Well, Pinterest hits again.....

I kept seeing bearded beanies (hats) show up on my page and I knew that I just HAD to make some for my family this year. I had a feeling that they would be funny. But I never dreamed that they would be such a hit! I managed to make them for my two nephews, my niece, my brother, and my daughter (though hers was a little different......see below).

I tried to match hair color and age of recipient so they would be as real looking as yarn beards could be.

Oh. My. Gosh. 

I still laugh when I look at the pictures!

My brother and nephew wearing their new beards.

While I was knitting and crocheting these gifts, my 4 year old daughter decided that she wanted one too. Now, Penelope is a very girly girl, so I was surprised to hear her request..... until she explained it more. It made perfect sense.

"Mom, can you make me one of those hats? But instead of a beard I want it to have pink lipgloss."   

DING, DING, DING! Great idea!!! I haven't seen any "lipgloss beanies" on Pinterest yet! I managed to tweak the beard pattern to be skin colored with lips. She was THRILLED! (Personally, I think it looks like she put too much lipstick on and went out of the lines....)

The kids with their "beards" (and my brother with his REAL beard). 

I think these were my favorite gift to give this year. I might just have to make some more..... 

(I will try to write out the instructions this week and add them here)

Turkey Crayon Holders

It's been a VERY long time since I've done a blog post. So, I'm sorry to those who have been waiting...... I have lots of ideas, and even some drafts, but I've been so busy with Halloween and working at the kids' schools that I just haven't had time to finish a post. With three kids, a business, and endless housework, there just isn't a lot of time left for other stuff. Add in the holidays and FORGET IT! 

So I told myself that this week, since the kids are out of school, I would find the time to finish a post. ANY post. Of course, just as I sat down at the computer, I realized that I really should be getting ready for the 22 people coming for dinner on Thursday, and that I still haven't done any fun Thanksgiving crafts with the kids! (BTW, I will be posting, in the near future, the recipes for my husband's Bleu Cheese Pear Vinaigrette and Red Bean Tasso Soup that we will be having for Thanksgiving dinner. YUM!)

So, back to the craft..... 

I have decide to put butcher paper and crayons on the kids' table this year so that they will have something to do during dinner. Of course, I can't just throw crayons on the table! I looked for little baskets or bowls or something, but couldn't find anything just right. Then I saw some little baby food jars that were just the right size. But really, really ugly! So, we decided to turn them into Turkeys! They are really easy, but I will give step by step instructions below. Here is one of them finished. Isn't he adorable?

My 6 year old said, while we were making them, "Mom, these are so cute! We should put this on Pinterest!" Haha! He knows me so well.

Here's what we did.

Step 1: Cut a strip of brown paper the height of your jar (we used a plain lunch bag because we were out of brown construction paper). Using hot glue, glue the strip around the jar as shown below.

 Step 2: Cut a circle shape out of brown paper for the head. Add eyes, a beak, and a waddle (the red dangly thing). Then hot glue the head to the jar.

Step 3: Glue feathers to the opposite side of the jar as the head. And voila! Cute Turkey Crayon Holders!