Happy Halloween + Pumpkin Pie Bites

Hello everyone! I just wanted to pop in quickly to wish you all a safe and happy Halloween! Being that this is one of my favorite holidays, I decided to whip up some delicious pumpkin pie bites late last night to share with you all! I was inspired by Miss Bakerella's pumpkin pie bites, but I didn't love her ingredient list so I made up my own pumpkin filling. These are super fun and yummy and perfect for your Halloween get together!

Ingredients:

• 2 frozen pie shells
• 15 oz can pure pumpkin
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 cloves

First, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees and thaw out your frozen pie shells. When they feel soft roll them out on a floured surface with a rolling pin until flat and thin. Using a cookie cutter or biscuit cutter, cut out circles about 4 inches wide until all of the dough is gone (depending on size, it should make about 20 circles). Spray a mini muffin tin with baking Pam and insert dough circles. Don't worry about making them look perfect; the dough should scrunch up around the edges naturally.

In a large bowl, combine sugar, salt, and spices. Whisk together and then add eggs one at a time. Mix until just incorporated. Slowly add in pumpkin and stir. Spoon pumpkin mixture into your pie shells and fill about 3/4 full. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the edges are golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Immediately transfer to a wire cooling rack and then cool for about 20 minutes. Top with melted chocolate, whip cream, or enjoy them as-is!

I hope everyone has fun taking their littles out trick-or-treating tonight! Happy Halloween from my family to yours! XOXO

Trick or treat banner + Halloween cupcake toppers!

 I just wanted to pop in quickly and give you all a sneak peak of some new holiday items I made for Mama Matryoshka and The Threadery! I meant to post this yesterday, however an angry, teething toddler kept me busy most of the day. I hope you'll forgive me!

I really wanted to make some fun Halloween items this year so I focused on a color palette of orange, purple, and lime green. I think these colors just scream Halloween and I love how it turned out. First, I made this 'Trick-or-Treat' banner which is perfect to hang at a pumpkin carving party or Halloween celebration! It features Frankenstein, a witch's hat, and a jack-o-lantern! I braided 3 colored ribbons together to hang it which gives it a little pop and texture.

And of course I had to do some cupcake toppers! I did the same theme of Frankensteins, witch's hats, jack-o-lanterns, and ghosts! These look so cute on cupcakes; I am obsessed! I think Frankenstein is my favorite!

If you're in Orange County, make sure to come see me at The Threadery on October 22nd! If not, you can purchase these Halloween items in my Etsy shop here.

I have a lot more new items to share coming up! I've been crafting it up over here! XOXO

Wordless Wednesday - Halloween Edition.

Okay, I know it's November 2nd and you guys are so over Halloween posts, but I wanted to share a few pictures of Cayden's first Halloween! We actually celebrated twice... Once on Halloween and once the weekend before. My mom's neighborhood always has a 'fall festival' for the neighborhood kids. Good thing Cayden had 2 costumes!

A personal update and a peak into the future.

Wow, November already! This holiday season is flying by. I hope you guys enjoyed the giveaways, recipes, and tutorials during my Halloween event for the month of October! I had a lot of fun doing it! Now that things have calmed down a bit on the blog front I thought I'd write a personal update... lots have been going on!

Cayden is now 3 and a half months old and thriving! He's rolling over and starting to hold his own bottle! He's at such a fun age where he's 'talking' and laughing and interacting with us more and more. I love it! I think teething has started because he's constantly chewing on his hands and drooling like crazy! Yesterday he celebrated his first Halloween and I think he had a lot of fun! He was the cutest lil bear ever! (Pictures will be posted)

Mando and I are doing a lot better. In the beginning we were over-tired and over-stressed while adjusting to parenthood and fighting a lot, but now we finally feel like we know what we're doing and aren't arguing as much. I'm getting better at saving money and bargain shopping so the financial stress has subsided a little bit too. Finding time to nurture your relationship while being a new mom is hard but I make it a priority. I really do love him with all of my heart and he's a fantastic father.

I can't wait for the next few months. I'm having Thanksgiving at my house this year and cooking everything on my own for the first time! I can't wait to decorate, put the table together, and spend all day barefoot in my apron! Black Friday always means waking up at the crack of dawn and shopping and I look forward to it every year. Mando is turning 32 in December and I have to figure out something special to do for him. I'm thinking maybe a Laker game and a night in a hotel? We'll see. Christmas will be all about the babies this year and I plan on making some sweet handmade gifts for everyone else. I think it's so much for special than just spending a bunch of money on things. After the new year we have our 2 year anniversary, my birthday, and Valentine's Day! In March we're planning on moving... as you can see we are VERY busy. But don't worry, I plan to blog my way through it.

Speaking of blogging, I hope you guys are enjoying what I've been doing! I plan to have more craft tutorials and recipes for everyone. Hopefully Santa will bring me a new camera this year so I can take some decent pictures too (anyone want to donate a camera to a poor blogger?) If there's anything specifically you want to see leave me a comment and I'll see what I can do! Suggestions are comments are always welcomed.

I'll share pictures from Halloween soon, but for now I'll leave you with this! Last minute Halloween costumes are the best. Happy November everyone!

Domesticated Delight Halloween Event - Cayden's first trip to the pumpkin patch and pumpkin gooey butter cake recipe.

Last weekend my family and I took Cayden for his first trip to the Irvine Park pumpkin patch. I was so excited to cross off one of my 4 Simple Goals and start a new family tradition! Everything is always so much more exciting when you’re seeing it through someone else’s eyes for the first time. I know Cayden is too young to remember this trip, but I have hopes that he will be able to look at the pictures and know that he had a great time with his mommy and daddy.

The morning of dawned cloudy and rainy, but I was determined to have a great day anyway. I dressed Cayden in what I called his ‘pumpkin outfit’ and we were on our merry way. First we met up with my sister, my nephew, and my mom at her house and we all carpooled to our location. Even though it was a bit cold and sprinkly outside it was very crowded! We did everything the place had to offer (that was baby friendly of course)… went through a corn maze, saw the ‘haunted’ house, visited the zoo they had on site, and of course picked out a big fat pumpkin to take home! I also ran into @ToniRaquel and little Lucy which was a fun surprise! I was snapping pictures like crazy… I think I was driving everyone nuts who was with me but it’s MEMORIES people! My favorite part was the zoo. I didn’t even know they HAD a zoo there! It only cost us $2 to get in (both the babies were free) and we got to see all kinds of animals including the cutest 2 bears in the world. They even had a little petting zoo where you can feed baby goats and brush their hair! We had a blast.

I’m so glad we did this with Cayden. I plan to take him back year after year until he’s begging to bring a friend along or protesting that he’s too old for that kind of stuff. I think family traditions are so important in creating a happy and secure child. I want him to love the holidays just as much as me!

(Make sure you check out a yummy pumpkin cake recipe below!)

















Pumpkins!
















A family portrait
















Isn't this the cutest shot ever?!?
















Playing in the pumpkins
















Chillin' with daddy
















My nephew... he was very excited!
















Grandma and her boys (Can you tell she hates being photographed? Now you know where I get it from)
















Cayden riding the horse
















The entrance to the corn maze
















My sister and nephew feeding the goats
















Mando and the baby goat
















Every time Mando took a picture another goat came to me!
















The cutest, fuzziest bear ever!




This time of the year my mom always make this Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake… it’s a doctored cake recipe from Paula Dean (butter ya’ll!). If you aren’t familiar with doctored recipes, it’s basically just taking a boxed cake mix and adding some other ingredients to make it even better. I actually prefer this method (for cakes only) because I find that cakes made from scratch never come out as good as boxed cake mix. This method is the best of both worlds.

The pumpkin gooey butter cake is yummy and perfect for your Halloween or Thanksgiving get-togethers. I like it because it’s not your average pumpkin recipe… the gooey center is really different and I love the sweet pumpkin flavor. It’s definitely a decadent dessert so unbutton your pants and enjoy!


Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cake

Ingredients

Cake:

• 1 package yellow cake mix
• 1 egg
• 8 tbl butter

Filling:

• 1 package cream cheese, softened
• 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
• 3 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 8 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to over bake as the center should be a little gooey.

Serve with fresh whipped cream and enjoy!

Domesticated Delight Halloween Event - My DIY Halloween decorations and a tutorial.

This year I opted to decorate for Halloween with mostly DIY projects versus using store-bought things. Not only did I save a ton of money, but I had so much fun doing crafts and getting into the Halloween spirit! I do have a few store-bought items here and there, but for the most part everything was created by me, myself, and I! So come on in, leave your shoes by the door, and take a look around!

Spooky sign purchased at Michaels (7 dollars)

First we have my paper mâché pumpkins! This project was actually the monthly craft in my Crafty Mommies club. The original craft is posted here however I adapted a lot of it to simplify and use what I already had. (Tutorial below!)
















Next up are my glittering skulls! These are probably my favorite decorations because they’re SPARKLY! (Yes, I realize I’m 5 years old…) I bought 3 paper mâché skulls from Michaels for 3 dollars each and painted them orange, purple, and black. While the paint was still wet (very important!) I shook loose glitter (I like Martha Stewart brand because, obviously) in corresponding colors all over it. It’s best to do this in sections so the paint is still wet and the glitter sticks.
































View of my dining room































On the wall to the right you will see my handmade Halloween banner! I was looking for something to put on that blank wall without having to buy a bunch of stuff when I stumbled upon this free printable. I simply printed each letter and framed it on a piece of construction paper in a contrasting color. Then I matted the framed letter onto another contrasting color. After that I punched holes in both sides of each letter and used a bunch of different Halloween colored ribbon to string them together. Then I added some Halloween themed die cuts (my local scrapbook store has die cut machines that I can use) and hung it up! So easy and you can use it year after year!












































This is the only wall that has store bought items on it. The bats were sold in a pack (Martha Stewart brand of course) at Michaels (I believe they were 7 dollars) and I bought the witch at Target for 20 dollars.































Up next is my skull head centerpiece. I used the same paper mâché skull from Michaels and Mando painted it (he likes to help me with crafts sometimes… shhh!) white with black eyes and missing teeth. Then I just filled this glass bowl with glittery purple craft sand and plopped the skull inside. Simple way to add a spooky element to any room!

Other than that I just put tealights everywhere to give the place a spooky glow along with some pumpkins from the pumpkin patch! I decorated my whole apartment for around 50 dollars! Not bad for a mama on a budget!

Want to learn how to make paper mâché pumpkins for your own haunted house??

You will need:

• Balloons (I used 3 orange ones)
• White Elmers glue (I used 2 bottles)
• A paintbrush
• Orange and yellow tissue paper (try to find the thinnest paper possible!)
• A craft knife
• Scissors
• Flameless candles (can be purchased at Michaels)
  

First blow up your balloons to the size you want your pumpkins to be. I did 3 pumpkins: large, medium, and small, but you can do whatever you want.

Then cut your tissue paper strips (both orange and yellow) about 1 inch wide. They need to be long enough to go from the top of your balloon to the base. You’ ll need to cut several strips, enough to do 4 layers of strips for each pumpkin. (It goes faster if you fold the tissue paper and then cut instead of doing it individually)

Pour a good amount of glue onto a paper plate or in a cup. Then dilute with water. I did 2 parts glue to every 1 part water. Mix well.

Set your blown-up balloon on top of a wide mouth jar or cup. This will help hold the pumpkin when gluing the strips on.

Dab glue on the tip of your strip of orange tissue paper and attach it to your balloon starting at the TOP of the balloon. Then completely cover the rest of the strip with glue using the paintbrush and working your way down smoothing it out as you go. I used A LOT of glue so don’t be afraid to completely saturate your strip.

Continue this process all the way around the balloon until the entire thing is covered in strips.
Repeat until you have 2 layers of orange and then cover it with 2 layers of yellow. (You do not need to wait for each layer to dry before starting the next one.) You will think the yellow looks weird, but it doesn’t once your balloon dries. Trust me on this one.

Once all 4 layers are applied to each balloon let them dry over night. I tied a string to the knot of the balloon and hung it upside down to dry properly.

When your balloons are fully dry you can cut the knot off your balloon letting the air escape. This might cause your pumpkin to deflate a little bit, but you can blow air into it to pump it back up.
Using small manicure scissors, cut a circle at the base of your pumpkin until it can sit without rolling on a flat surface.

Using a pencil, draw or trace your jack-o-lantern face lightly onto your pumpkin. Use pictures on the internet or in magazines for inspiration! Then ‘carve’ the face using a craft or exacto knife. You can use small scissors to help you out in this step.

Once your face is carved you can either leave it alone or you can glue either yellow or black tissue paper behind the face to ‘ hide’ the inside of the pumpkin. I did yellow, but I think it would look better in black. I suggest cutting small parts of tissue paper to cover the eyes, nose, and mouth versus using one large piece. It will be a lot easier.

Then get a flameless flickering tea light, turn it on, and cover with your pumpkin. Turn the lights off and enjoy your new jack-o-lanterns!