TRICK OR TREAT

What is a mummy's favourite type of music?
Rap music!

Why didn't Dracula have any friends?
He was a pain in the neck!

Why wasn't there any food left after the monster party?
Because everyone was a goblin!

Happy Halloween y'all!  If you recall, my place of employment has an annual pumpkin carving contest. Here were some of last year's pumpkins the various departments did. And here are some of this year's pumpkins...

elephant pumpkin

skull pumpkin

um... very scary pumpkin

r2d2 pumpkin

giraffe pumpkin

saints pumpkin

eyeball pumpkin

pumpkin going to the bathroom "makin pie"

I work with some pretty talented (and pretty sick) people, huh? :)  At home, I really wanted to do colorful painted pumpkins for our front porch.  Something like this...

I simply ran out of time and never got around to it.  I think J and I would have had a lot of fun getting our hands dirty though.  The idea is so easy.  You use painter's tape to block off the sections you don't want painted.  I took these pics from the Young House Love blog.  Click here to read their specific step by step instructions.  Guess I'll have to wait until next year to give it a go....

KIT KAT BARS

I was aimlessly wandering around the Internet yesterday and came across a recipe on The Country Cook blog for homemade Kit Kat bars. I'm not much of a Kit Kat fan so my interest level didn't immediately peak. During Halloween, as my brothers and I would excitedly walk from house to house, I always picked Reese's Peanut Butter Cups when presented with a big bowl of candy options.  Always.  Brandie, the country cook lady, said something along the lines of...  'These are not an exact replica of Kit Kat Bars but the concept is the same. Crunchy layers with a chocolate coating.  The recipes uses crackers instead of a thin wafer and it's got peanut butter instead of just all chocolate.' Peanut butter is what peaked my interest! I just had to give it a try...

Ingredients:
72 Club Crackers
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:
Line an ungreased 9x13 baking dish with a layer of club crackers.  In a large saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter.  Add graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, milk and sugar to the melted butter.  Bring to a gentle boil and boil for 5 minutes.  Make sure to stir constantly so it doesn't burn to the bottom of your pan.  Remove from heat and spread half the mixture evenly over crackers.  Do your best to spread it out evenly.  Layer with another layer of crackers.  Then spread the other half of the mixture on top.  Then, add a final layer of crackers on top of that.  In a small saucepan, combine peanut butter and chocolate chips.  Melt over medium-low heat, stirring constantly until completely melted and blended.  Spread evenly over top layer of crackers.  Cover with plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge for two hours.  You want that top chocolate layer to really cool down and firm up. Once it is completely cooled, slice into small squares.  You should be able to get about 2 1/2 dozen squares from the pan.

After having 3 squares for lunch (yikes), I can confidently give the recipe an A+!  The bars are very simple to make and the salty sweet combination is great!  Whatever J doesn't eat is being taken to Bible study Sunday evening.  I can't have this deliciousness hanging around the house.

DEDE'S WEDDING

J and I left for Memphis, Tennessee last Friday.  We spent the weekend celebrating the nuptials of my childhood friend Diana Hart Beazley (whom we lovingly call Dede).  You may remember that in June 2011 we took a trip to Memphis for Dede's sister's wedding.  That blog post here.  My family has been great friends with the Beazley gang going on 26 + years now.  A wonderful and treasured friendship.  There is nothing but laughter, smiles, and more laughter when everyone gets together.  So, lots of congratulations and well wishes to the newlyweds Dede & Jim! Thank you for making us a part of your special day!  Here are pictures from our very fun weekend in Memphis...

10/19/12 - Rehearsal Dinner - Mom & Daddy

10/19/12 - Rehearsal Dinner - Kristen, Michael, Me, & J

10/19/12 - Rehearsal Dinner - Mr. Tom & Daddy

10/20/12 - Me, J & Daddy riding the Memphis trolley.

10/20/12 - J, Me, Mom, & Daddy still on the trolley.

10/20/12 - J & Me at the Peabody Hotel to see the famous ducks.

10/20/12 - Lunch at Rendezvous

10/20/12 - Rendezvous Ribs

10/20/12 - Wedding Ceremony at Grace-St.Luke's Episcopal

10/20/12 - Mr. Tom, Bride Dede, Groom Jim, and Mrs. Kappi

10/20/12 - Wedding Reception at Memphis Brooks Museum of Art

10/20/12 - Me & J in front of an art display outside the museum.

10/20/12 - Daddy & Mom in front of an art display inside the museum.

10/20/12 - Beautiful lanterns hanging from the outdoor tent at the reception.

10/20/12 - More pretty reception decor.

10/20/12 - Delecious wedding cake.  I had a piece of the strawberry AND the lemon.

10/20/12 - Groom's cake.  Jim is an alum and current employee of Delta State.

10/20/12 - Speech time for Mr. Tom and Mrs. Kappi.

10/20/12 - Dede and Jim cutting the cake.  Things got a little messy moments later...

10/20/12 - Me & J.  Last dance of the evening.

PUMPKIN BEER

**Drinking Game Alert**
Every time I write FALL, take a sip ;)
I feel like Andy Cohen right now.

I love window weather!  Having fresh air in the house and not worrying about what the heat or AC is set to.  This past weekend was just that!  It was 65 degrees and sunny on Sunday (the 7th).  J and I finally got to wear long sleeves while out and about.  It officially felt like FALL :)  And speaking of FALL, J is on FALL break right now from grad school.  No class for him the rest of the week!  To celebrate FALL and J's FALL break, I stopped by Whole Foods on Magazine Street today and picked up a handful of FALL beers.  Pumpkin beers to be exact.  Did I use FALL enough in the post?  Are you halfway through your beverage?  Not counting the first FALL, I've now used FALL 9 times.  Don't FALL down from drinking too much. 10 times. FALL FALL FALL FALL! 14 times.  I'm done now.  Promise.  Let the taste test begin...

LINEUP:

Blue Moon Harvest Pumpkin Ale

Post Road Pumpkin Ale

Samuel Adams Fat Jack

Shipyard Brewing Pumpkinhead

WINNER WINNER CHICKEN DINNER:
Shipyard Brewing Pumpkinhead

I've got to be honest and say I am totally shocked J and I liked the same beer.  Very rarely do we agree on what constitutes a good cold one.  The Whole Foods beer expert predicted Shipyard would be our favorite.  He said they can hardly keep it on the shelves it's so popular.  Hurry and get some before it's all gone!

BANANA CABANA

I don't know if you recall my O My Scallops blog entry from July, but here's another beach house rental in Gulf Shores.  This one's called the Banana Cabana!  Don't beach homes have the cutest names?!  The Banana Cabana has 6 bedrooms / 5 bathrooms (sleeps 20) and boasts over 2,000 square feet of deck space overlooking the Gulf of Mexico.  Ahhhhhh relaxation.  I'm not as in love with the decor.  It's very nice, but O My Scallops has all that turquoise.  I'm a sucker for anything teal.  Here's to wishing we were at the beach right this very second...

BABY-Q

Our good friends Avery & Lauren are expecting a baby boy this fall!  Little Luke Edward will arrive sometime around November 20th.  My friend Tiffany and I co-hosted a couples shower/BBQ for the expecting couple yesterday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  I've erased some of the pertinent information from the invite but you get the idea...

Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time, most importantly Avery & Lauren!  It was nice meeting their family members and friends I'd heard stories about but never had the pleasure of meeting before.  Tiffany was fantastic to co-host with!  I think she should quit her job and become a party planner.  The girl showed up with a carload of decorations and supplies and went straight to task.  We had typical BBQ fare... burgers, hot dogs, mac & cheese, potato salad, fruits, veggies, cookies, brownies, cake... nobody left hungry.  When November rolls around and baby Luke arrives, I'll be sure to post some pics of the little fella.

Tiffany, Lauren Lou, Me

Lauren with her Mom.

Time to eat!

Avery slaving over the grill.

The guys preferred to stay outside for most of the shower.  Imagine that ;)

Tiffany just had a baby herself... Josh, baby Noah, and Tiff.

Present time!