A Gift For Dad

I found the inspiration for this Father's Day gift on a craft blog. I loved the labels -- so with that in mind, I took an empty four pack of Starbucks bottles and covered the carton in decorative paper. I printed, cut and adhered the labels to the front and back of the carton and then filled each bottle with a different snack -- pretzels, m&m's, caramel corn and mixed nuts.

My Niece's First Birthday Party

For my niece's first birthday, I helped my sister throw a safari-themed party. I made a cupcake stand using foam, ribbon, patterned paper and glue. I adorned the top of the stand with a wooden letter for her first initial. I also put together treat bags filled with animal crackers, animal-shaped plastic treat containers and a small copy of the Jungle Book. I decorated a plain wreath with black and purple feather boas to welcome guests at the door and used left over patterned paper to make a cute pennant banner.

Fun Find: Herb Savor

Check out the Prepara website for cool new products like the Herb Savor.

This product will prolong the life of your fresh herbs for up to 3 weeks so you can enjoy fresh, flavorful meals every time you cook.

This product - and other cool gadgets like Volcano Pops - made by Prepara can be purchased from retailers like Macys, Bed, Bath and Beyond and Amazon.

http://www.prepara.com/herb_savor.php

Fun Find: A great entertaining website

Check out The Hostess With The Mostess website for tons of ideas on throwing a truly inspirational, fun and fabulous party.

The website has great photos and ideas on throwing any kind of party, from a baby shower to a birthday to any kind of holiday party.

Each party theme comes complete with suggestions on table top, party decor, menu and drink ideas. See the full line up of party ideas here.

Recipe: Fun Party Snack Mix

Check out the Chex Mix website for new recipes that put a twist on the traditional party snack mix. I especially like their recipe for Buffalo Chex Mix (below), but they have other recipes like Pumpkin Pie Crunch or Lemon Rosemary Chex Mix here.

Buffalo Chex® Mix

Prep Time: 15 Minutes
4 cups Rice Chex® cereal
4 cups Wheat Chex® cereal
2 cups Parmesan-flavored tiny fish-shaped crackers
2 cups pretzel twists
6 tablespoons butter
2 1/2 tablespoons hot sauce
1 packet ranch dressing mix
2 teaspoons celery seed

In large microwavable bowl, mix cereals, crackers and pretzels; set aside. In small microwavable bowl, microwave butter uncovered on High about 40 seconds or until melted. Stir in hot sauce and seasonings. Pour over cereal mixture; stir until evenly coated.

Microwave uncovered on High 4 to 5 minutes, thoroughly stirring every 2 minutes. Spread on paper towels to cool. Store in airtight container.

Fun Find: Cowgirl Cookies

I found a great website called Bakerella that shares "sweet inspiration and fun baking ideas." One of the neatest gift ideas on the site is the recipe and complete how-to instructions on making these Cowgirl Cookies.

These would be great to give or to make at a girl's night in party - or they'd make a thoughtful gift for a friend who's been touched by breast cancer.

You can also change up the color of the fabric and the m&m's and make these into any holiday-themed cookie mix: Christmas Cookies, Halloween Cookies, etc. Click here for the link to the recipe and the instructions.

Fun Find: Festive Homemade Halloween Wreath

Visit the Swell Life website for fun ideas and crafty inspirations. I especially love her post detailing her 24 crafts created in 24 hours. One of the projects she created was this really cute and relatively inexpensive Halloween wreath using black boas and glass and plastic ornaments.

For full details on how to create her Frightfully Funky Wreath, click here.

Homemade Halloween Decor

Check out designer Eddie Ross' website for great step-by-step instructions on making your own cute and festive Halloween decorations like centerpieces, wreaths and napkin rings. He provides detailed instructions and pictures for these spooky and cute creations: http://www.eddieross.com/eddie_ross/2009/10/fiendish-feather-wreath.html

Fun ways to decorate your pumpkin

Ways of decorating your pumpkin are as endless as your imagination. The pictures above from Martha Stewart and the Better Homes and Gardens website show new twists on the traditional idea of pumpkin carving. Try using doilies, black marker, tacks, ribbon, glitter or other spooky accessories like plastic mice to dress up your pumpkin.

Fun Find: Make your own Halloween Candy Bouquets

The Incredible Edible Crafts website gives you step-by-step instructions to create cute candy bouquets including this Halloween bouquet.

Sign up for their e-mail newsletter and they'll send two free books with detailed instructions on making candy bouquets, fruit and vegetable arrangements and edible crafts for kids.

The website provides great pictures and ideas for making crafts and gifts. Here's the link: http://ediblecraftsonline.com/index.htm

Recipe Du Jour: P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef

My husband and I are huge fans of P.F. Changs (and Pei Wei's) Mongolian Beef. This dish, with its tender beef, mushrooms and green onions is so delicious. I finally found a recipe that is pretty darn close to the original. I've made it several times and have been really pleased with the results.

When you can make food like this at home, who needs take out. To get the recipe, click here.

Fun Find: Spider Web Dip

A great Halloween-inspired idea for dressing up a traditional layered dip is to use sour cream and a plastic spider and voila you've got a spiderweb dip. This recipe comes from the Octoberlicious website - a site dedicated to providing Halloween tips and recipes.

.Ingredients.
3 large plum tomatoes, sliced
1 1/2 cups thick and chunky salsa
1 cup (4 oz) shredded Mexican cheese blend

.Bean Layer.
16 oz each) lowfat refried black or pinto beans
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
2 Tbsp lime juice
1 Tbsp hot Mexican chili powder
1 tsp minced garlic

.Guacamole Layer.
4 ripe Hass avocados
3 Tbsp lime juice
2 Tbsp minced red onion
2 large jalapeño chiles, seeded and minced
1 tsp salt

.Decoration.
1 cup reduced-fat sour cream
a clean plastic toy spider

.Serve With.
blue, red and yellow corn tortilla chips


.Instructions.
1. Bean Layer: Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl until well blended. Scrape the mixture onto a 12- to 14-in. round serving plate and smooth into a 10-in. circle with a spatula. Arrange tomato slices around edge of bean layer to make a border.

2. Drain salsa in a strainer to get rid of excess juice. Spread over bean mixture, leaving some of the bean layer showing around the edge. Sprinkle cheese over salsa, leaving some of the salsa layer showing.

3. Guacamole: Halve avocados; remove seeds and spoon flesh into a medium bowl. Add lime juice, onion, jalapeños and salt, and mash until fairly smooth. Spoon over cheese layer and spread into an even layer.

4. Place sour cream in a ziptop bag; seal bag and snip a small tip off one corner. Pipe a spiderweb design over guacamole and onto the plate. Decorate with toy spider. Serve with tortilla chips.


.Tips.
* Plan Ahead: You can make 4 hours ahead, cover and refrigerate.

Fun Find: Halloween Cheese Ball

Dress up your Halloween party buffet table with this creative - and yummy sounding - pumpkin-shaped Caramalized Garlic Cheese Spread from the Land O' Lakes website.

The recipe for this appetizer can be found here.

Fun Find: Creative Halloween Favors

I made these party favors last year for my friends and their children. They turned out really cute and were equally great giving as gifts as they were on my table as decorative centerpieces.

The directions for making these broomstick favors can be found here.

Recipe Du Jour: The Perfect Brisket

My boss passed along this recipe with really rave reviews. I haven't gotten a chance to try it yet, but based on her feedback, it sounds like a real winner.

The Perfect Brisket

serves 10

Ingredients:

5lb boneless beef brisket, pre-trimmed

1-2 cups strong coffee

Sauce:

2 cups ketchup

10 oz Coca-Cola

1/4 cup worcestershire sauce

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon liquid smoke

2 tablespoons mustard

2 teaspoons knorr swiss aromat seasoning

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 200

2. Place brisket in baking dish, fat side up

3. Pour coffee over brisket, seal or cover and bake for 24 hours

4. Remove from oven, scrape off fat and throw away. Throw away all liquids and fat from pan. Mix sauce and pour over top of brisket and bake for one more hour.

5. Let cool and enjoy!

Fun Find: 10 Happy Halloween Cocktails

Spice up your next Halloween party with one of these creative cocktails from Fine Living's website. There are 10 cocktails featured, each with a list of ingredients along with the haunted history behind where each cocktail was conceived. The hardest part about these drinks is deciding which one to serve at your next party.

For all the recipes, including the bloody brain shooter above, click here.

Fun Find

I love products that do double duty. I have such limited space in my purse that when I find compact and multi-functional beauty products like this, I just can't resist. This is Michael Kors new lip scent duo, available at Sephora. On one end is a rollerball with tuberose perfume; the other end is a neutral lip gloss.

The product is highly rated by reviewers on Sephora's site. To view more details or order, click here.

Fun Find: Halloween Music Playlist

It seems like the months are just passing me by; I can't believe Halloween is little more than a month away. Since it is my favorite holiday, I thought I'd start posting Halloween-inspired fun finds. This one comes courtesy of the All You website. They've compiled a list of fun tunes to play at your next Halloween bash. To see the full list of songs including Thriller, The Monster Mash and more, click here

Fun Find

Fall is around the corner and with that the cooler weather will start rolling in soon. You can still enjoy a beautiful flower and herb garden - indoors, with these cute soda can and rain boot gardens. The rain boot comes with soil and seeds and is available in four colors and varieties: mint, strawberry, basil or camomile.

http://fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=3766&cat=314&page=1#

Just pop the top on the flower cans, add water and in a short while you’ll have a pretty bouquet of either Dahlias, Geraniums, Impatiens or Pansies.

http://fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=3768&cat=314&page=1

Fun Find

I came across this adorable hoodie to store your ipod. The iPod hoodie comes ith a fuzzy fleece lining to keep your ipod snug and cozy. The hoodie comes in 2 size options. http://fredflare.com/customer/product.php?productid=5083&cat=103