Pumpkin Spice Pretzel Bites

My boys love to check out the samples at Walmart whenever we go.  I usually don't ever try them, but the other day my three-year-old pulled out an orange covered pretzel from the sample container.  I was curious, so I tried one.  Boy, am I glad I did.  It was delicious!  I could tell the pretzel had been dipped in candy melt, but not just any candy melt, it had a pumpkin flavor to it.  The salty pretzel and pumpkin spice were delicious together!

  

Well, we continued our shopping, and right there on the Halloween isle I found some Wilton's Pumpkin Spice candy melts (they're limited edition, so grab them when you see them).  That was it!  The secret ingredient to the pretzels.  I got right on making some of my own.  

Pumpkin Spice Pretzel Bites

1 bag pretzels

1 pkg. Wilton's Pumpkin Spice candy melts

white chocolate chips (optional)

sprinkles (optional)

Melt candy melts in the microwave according to package directions.  Dip pretzels (gently one side at a time) into the candy melt.  Shake off excess candy melt.  Allow to dry. Melt white chocolate chips, then drizzle on top of pretzels.  Sprinkle with sprinkles before white chocolate sets.

Please note the dip gently one side at a time with the pretzels.  I thought it would be totally easy, but not so much.  I dunked my first pretzel in, but then the candy melt didn't drip through the pretzel holes.  The pretzel looked like a big glob of orange, not a pretzel.  Luckily I was making these with my sister (she always figures these type of things out), and she tried lightly dipping one side of the pretzel in the candy melt, and then the other side.  It worked much better, and you could actually see the pretzel holes.  They didn't look perfect, but once I got the white chocolate and sprinkles on they looked fantastic.  The white chocolate and sprinkles are optional, but they make the pretzel bites look a bit more dressed up.  

Don't they look cute in my little box (tutorial here)?  I tell you, these boxes are good for just about anything!  These pretzel bites would be perfect to leave on your neighbor's doorstep if you neighborhood does the, "You've Been Booed" thing.  Or you could leave them just because, no reason needed.

I think next time I'm going to try using pretzel rods or sticks. That would make the whole dipping process much, much easier!

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

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DIY Halloween Boxes

I'm switching up my schedule a bit today because I'm participating in the 31 Days of Halloween.  I have a post over with Chelsea on Friday, and it's a Halloween printable.  So,  Tuesday's printable will be on Friday.  Today you get another Halloween craft.  I hope you're not sick of them because I still have more to come.   

These DIY boxes were one of my very first tutorials here at Blissful Roots.  I did a post at Christmastime with them, and at Mother's Day.  I've even showed how I use them for craft supply storage boxes.  I learned to make them way back in fifth grade.  Who knew I'd be using them all these years later?

  I LOVE these boxes.  I love them because they're a great way to use up scrap paper, they're easy to make, you can make them fit any holiday or occasion, they can be different sizes, they can act as decor, they can be used for storage, or they make the perfect "gift wrap" for any small gift you have to give.  So, so many uses! 

You can click here for the entire tutorial on how to make these.  Like I state in the tutorial post, these boxes are totally addicting (at least I think so).  Once I get making them, I can't stop!  I really didn't even have a use for Halloween boxes this year, but the darling owl paper I found at Hobby Lobby was screaming to be made into a little Halloween box.  And once I made the owl box, I just kept going.  I already have a Halloween countdown, but I'm thinking I might need another one.  These boxes are just too cute and they would be perfect for holding a small treat and message for a countdown.  Me and my countdowns!  How many is too many?

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

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How To Make Your Own Halloween Bingo Cards W/ PicMonkey

Happy Monday to you!  I hope you all had a wonderful weekend.  We had a busy weekend getting ready for three, yes three, birthdays this week, (my twins and three-year-old) and getting my husband ready for a business trip.  He never goes on business trips, so it's been a little strange.  It's terrible timing, but at least he does fly in on our twins' birthday, so he'll be here for some of their day.  Then party again the vert next day for our three-year-old.

I'm over at Or So She Says today with the the longest Bingo tutorial ever made!  Does that make you want to hop on over?  I hope it does, actually.  I made Bingo cards for my boys' party, and instead of making them all for you (which I don't mind doing) I decided to teach you how to make your own.  That way you can customize your game boards to you liking, and you can make them for any holiday or occasion.   I had so much fun making my Bingo cards!  And PicMonkey really does all the work for you.  You just need to know how to put it all together.  Come stop by for a step-by-step guide (with screen shots of each step) on how to make your own Halloween Bingo cards. Click here for the entire post.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

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More Dollar Store Halloween Decor {@ twelveOeight}

Happy Friday to you!  My boys have been on fall break, so we've been enjoying a few lazy days of no school or schedule, and my three-year-old has loved having his brother homes all day!

Today, I'm back with Tanya at twelveOeight.  I have yet another dollar store Halloween craft to share.  Last month I shared my Halloween ornaments made from dollar store cookies.  Come stop by twelveOeight to see what dollar store item I used for this project.  Can you guess what it is?

Click here to see my entire post.  I have the supplies you'll need, the instructions, and you can download the '31' image I used on the project.

And in case you missed them, here are the dollar store cookie ornaments I did last month for Tanya.  Click here to see more.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

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Halloween Songs for Kids

 October was one of my favorite months for teaching.  I loved using Halloween songs and poems in my classroom.  I was lucky enough to have a piano in my classroom, so we did a lot of singing.  Singing is a great way to teach reading.  I would put the words to our songs and poems on charts around the room, and even my lowest readers could read every word to our songs and poems.

There are so many great poems and songs for kids this time of year.  I have a list a mile long, but if I had to recommend one CD, it would be this one.

iTunes

There are 17 songs in all.  We listen to these a lot during the month of October.  I know I'm probably crazy, but I don't mind them either.  If they start driving you crazy, give your kids some headphones to use.

Some of our favorite songs are: 

5 Little Pumpkins 

 I'm A Mean Old Witch

Jack-O-Lantern

 There's A Spider On The Floor

The Witch Is On Her Broomstick  

I think music is the perfect way to add to the holiday atmosphere in your home.  If you have little ones around, this CD is the perfect way to do that.

Does your family have any Halloween music favorites?  Let me know if you do.  I'm always looking to add to my collection.

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

P.S.  I just clicked on the songs from the iTunes link in my post and the songs don't match the titles.  You can click to hear the songs, but the song you hear won't match the title.   Not sure why.  If you listen to the songs you'll be able to figure out the correct title by the words.  Sorry about the inconvenience.

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Ghost Sugar Cookies

It wouldn't be Halloween at our house without these edible friendly visitors.  I'm quickly beginning to realize that everything I love about Halloween comes from my childhood.  My mom used to make these ghost sugar cookies for our town carnival every year.  They were always a hit, and they still are today at my house.

You can use your favorite sugar cookie recipe for these guys, or buy the ready-to-go sugar cookie dough from the store.  My favorite sugar cookie recipe comes from Kneaders (a cafe & bakery here in Utah).  I posted their recipe back in February for my Valentine cookies.  You can click here for that recipe, if you'd like.  I LOVE the Kneaders recipe because the cookies have the most amazing flavor!  You add honey, nutmeg, and lemon extract to the dough.  So, so yummy!

I've learned (like toilet paper rolls) that not all ghost cookie cutters are made equally.  Maybe I'm just picky, but don't you think some of the ghost cookie cutters out there are a bit odd?  I think the problem for me is that I keep envisioning the exact cookie cutter my mom used all those years ago, and I haven't found one close to it yet.  

Well, this past weekend when we were visiting my parents, my mom hunted countless stores to find the one I've used here.  It's not exactly like the one I remember, but closer than anything else I've found.  My mom found it at Walmart.  It's a Wilton cutter.  It is pretty big, but I really like the larger size.

We always use the mini chocolate chips for the eyes.  I did try some regular size chips, but they didn't look as cute as the minis, so I stuck with them.  I also used semi sweet chips.  I like the darker color of the chocolate for the eyes.  They look more black than brown.  You can add a mouth or anything else you'd like to add personality.  Just the eyes work for me.  

So, there you have my favorite Halloween treat.  Pretty simple, but the memories I have of these ghosts make them so endearing to me. 

 What are your favorite Halloween treats?

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

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It's Halloween {Printable}

One of the many things on my on-going to-do list is to devote an entire day to typing up every Halloween poem/song I want as a printable.  It really would take an entire day.  My list is quite lengthy!   

Click to Print

I don't have an entire day to do that right now, but I had to get this poem done.  My mom taught me this poem when I was young.  I've had it memorized for years.  I'm not exactly sure where it came from.  I have a vague recollection of it in an old book.  I tried to Google the words, but came up with nothing as far as the source goes.  Anyway, it's a favorite, so I had to share.  I hope you enjoy it as well.  And if any of you out there have information on the source, please let me know.  

Thanks so much for stopping by!  I hope you found a little something worth your time.

Linking up to these parties & Savvy Southern Style.