Tom Smith crackers

Christmas crackers are very traditional, the Christmas table doesn’t look decorated without them.  I love the Tom Smith Christmas crackers, which are very traditional and are still being made today.  Invented in 1847, almost by accident and  inspired by the crackling of a log fire - the charming story of Smith’s invention can be read about here.   Some think the Mexican Pinata has links with the cracker, though it takes two people to share in the pulling of it.  Here’s how to make a pinata.

pinata

There is always a paper hat and a motto in each Christmas cracker, a strip that creates the bang, and a toy of some kind.  The rule of thumb is, the more expensive the cracker, the better quality the gift.  Usual gifts though are usually, paper fortune-telling fish.  This curls in your hand according to your body heat.  The type of curl relates to your fortune….

Other toys include plastic mirrors, moustaches, teeth.  The jokes contained are usually in the form of a riddle or motto.   Alternatively you can make your own crackers, it’s not that hard, plus you can choose your own hats, mottos and novelties to insert.  Of course, if you can’t be bothered and have money to burn……

Very Gold Luxury-6-Christmas-Cracker from Harrods

There are some very posh crackers being sold.  The novelties of course are more luxuriant.  For example Fortnum and Mason ‘Cardinal Chorus’ are worth £1000 whilst Harrods ‘Very Gold ‘crackers contain more expensive gifts as well as glittered gold feathers and Christmas trees.  They sell for £600 or $1000 for six!.  I am gobsmacked, (as they say around here).  My tip? be a cheapskate: stick to the toilet or kitchen roll tubes and make your own….

  ]]> http://becausenooneasked.com/2009/12/20/birthday-party-loot-bags-are-evil/ Sun, 20 Dec 2009 06:53:08 +0000 Michele http://becausenooneasked.com/2009/12/20/birthday-party-loot-bags-are-evil/

Happy Meals are evil.

Kinder Surprise eggs are evil.

Chuck E. Cheese is evil.

Ruckers is evil.

Christmas crackers are evil.

Piñatas are evil.

Why?  What do all of these have in common?

TINY CRAPPY TOYS!!!

My house is overrun with little plastic toys and wrapped candies and cheap jewelry and flimsy hair scrunchies and more plastic toys.  No more.  Enough is enough.  The house has achieved complete saturation of tiny, useless items.  We can’t absorb any more.

I am going to break with the local tradition and stop producing loot bags for birthday parties.  No more beaded bracelets and bubble containers from Dollarama.  We might do a craft which produces a quality, usable item like a shirt but I’m not sending any children home with a bag full of random stuff just because I’m supposed to.  Since when do I do what I’m supposed to do?

Piñatas!  Mission and 22ndish.

Ok, this is the last City Mitten: Detroit Edition, at least until Christmas. And I believe I have saved the best for last.

Mexican Village: not only the name of an area in downtown Detroit, but also the name of the best Mexican restaurant I know. And it is not to be confused with Mexican Town.

The last time I went home, I did not go to Mexican Village and I was very disappointed. And believe it or not, Mexican Village is one of only two restaurants I ate at when I was home for this recent long weekend. The other was a Leo’s Coney Island, for which Detroit Coney Islands will one day have a post of their own (hint: they have little to do with the Coney Island in New York and a lot to do with being The Best Thing Ever). But Mexican Village is the ish.

I went to MexVil with my padre and my big sister Emily.

The best thing about Mexican Village is their chips and salsa. The chips are warm and the salsa is like crack. It’s free and they just keep on bringing it and bringing it and we do not tell them to stop. Sometimes we even get some to go. It is aaaaaamazing. Take me there NOW.

Emily always gets a chimichanga with melted cheese on it and I always get the soft chicken tacos because they are not like any other chicken taco I’ve ever had in my life. I have no idea what my dad got – too occupied with the chips and salsa, I guess.

I don’t think there is one friend of mine back home that has not been to Mexican Village with me. It is that good. I once had a birthday party in high school that involved taking a Hummer Limo from my house to Mexican Village. No joke. I think we just drove around after that. Ha.

Every time I go there with my dad, he mentions something about the pictures on the wall. Usually he tells one of us we’re the girl in the picture and makes up a story about the guy, but this time it was, “Is that picture new?” He even asked the girl but apparently the picture had been there the whole time, we just never noticed.

So Emily took a picture with her new friends:

After Mexican Village, we went to the Honey Bee Market, a Mexican grocery store. I had never been before and boy, did I not know what I was missing.

The first thing I saw when I walked in was the chips and salsa display, with salsa and gauc for you to try. Had I not just filled up on the most amazing salsa in the world (and yes, I’ve been to Mexico), I would have tried it but there’s no way I could have handled it.

The next thing I noticed: pinatas EVERYWHERE: sitting above produce, sitting above Mexican things I could not identify.

The reason we went to the Honey Bee to begin with is because Emily wanted some old-fashioned bottled sodas but they also had a lot of Mexican treats, one whole aisle was Mexican candies and cookies.

Mmm, soda pop. I love Mexican Village and now I love the Honey Bee!

And next week we return to our regular programing, City Mitten: New York!

This isn’t really a blog post. This is more a solicitation of ideas. See, the boy’s first birthday is fast-approaching and I’m not entirely sure how to approach the planning. We want this to be a very special day. It certainly will be with my mom and brother visiting from the East Coast. Plus, my in-laws make everything special no matter the day. So, empirically, there shouldn’t be a problem, right?

But, I just want it to be memorable. And I’m sure it will be.

A few things that I know we won’t be doing:

1. No clowns. I am frightened of clowns (and fish and birds) and the thought of having a clown in my home (besides myself) is disquieting at best. So, again, no clowns.
2. No renting of a petting zoo of any kind. First off, we don’t have the room for it. B, live animals are never a good idea for a birthday party — unless, of course, it is your dog or cat.
3. No jugglers. You could poke an eye out. Safety first.
4. No balloon animals. Unlike live farm animals, balloon animals are clean. But, they might be a little too abstract for a small child. Children should learn about Picasso in a museum, not at a first birthday party. Plus, balloons can be dangerous. Again, safety first.
5. No Barbershop Quartets. If they don’t work at adult parties, they won’t work here. Additionally, they are loud and could bust an eardrum. Safety first, once again.
6. No Piñatas. Do I really need to explain this?

I think we’ll keep it all very simple. Family, good friends, good food and just easy and as low-key as possible. Because the most important thing is that we’re all together, sharing a very special day together and that’s what matters most.

That said, I’m open to suggestions. How did you approach your child’s first birthday? What worked? What didn’t?

Again, though, no clowns. That’s non-negotiable.

This year, our Halloween party was the biggest ever. Every kid from both of the Year 1 classes at LR’s school was invited, as well as all the children on our street and a bunch of RJ’s friends. It was absolutely crazy, but we did our best to keep them busy. Activities included the Haunted Garage, a “Yucky” dip, a piñata, a broom race, a treasure hunt, making disembodied hands and the grand finale, a total, all-out assault on Dad with water balloons.

LR, as Supergirl, decided the world needed rescuing.

RJ and Mum put together a great snapping turtle costume.

Follow the link to get to the rest of the pictures and see what went on!!!

Grammy came along too. We needed all the help we could get!

We recruited a couple of the dads to carve pumpkins and watermelons brought by the kids.

A couple of the kids were amazed by our American maibox. Australian letter boxes look nothing like this.

The Yucky Dip involved a huge bowl of slimy, coloured pasta of different shapes. Prizes and bugs were hidden through it and the kids had to do their best to find a prize in the revolting mess.

Mum helps one of the kids search for a prize in the "Yucky Dip".

We do the apple bobbing every year. The kids figured out pretty quickly that grabbing the apples by the steps was the easiest way to win… This year, though, only apples without stems got prizes!

RJ volunteers to be next in the apple bobbing competition.

An apple bobbing champion is born!

In previous years, we’ve made disembodied hands for each of the kids in LR and RJ’s classes. It’s a huge amount of work, but the kids love it. This year we got smarter and had the kids make them!

Everyone had fun making ghoulish popcorn hands with Am!

You have to fill them all the way to the top with popcorn!

The annual treasure hunt is always a big hit, but it’s getting harder and harder to find enough hiding places for the number of kids that show up. For the older kids this year, we hid marbles around the yard, with different prizes available for one or more marbles. The younger kids, searching our neighbour’s yard, had to find tiny pumpkin baskets containing small toys and sometimes a piece of candy.

Mum gives everyone instructions on the treasure hunt. This year they had to find marbles hidden around the front yard. It wasn't easy.

One of LR's class mates hunts for precious, precious marbles.

LR found two! Home field advantage, perhaps? She donated one to someone who wasn't as fortunate.

The younger kids had their search across the road. They had to find little plastic pumpkins and cauldrons.

This year we asked all the kids to bring a broom with them for a broom race. We ran two races and the kids did really well. We may have to rethink this one, having 15 kids running at you with long sticks is not very safe.

RJ gets his broom tuned up for the Broom Race.

Kids rush to prepare for the Broom Race.

Two serious contenders for the prize... provided no one brings kryptonite along.

RUN RUN RUN RUN!

The piñata survived through quite a few attacks before finally relinquishing its hidden treasure.

The piñata was especially popular.

T prepares to deal a mighty blow to poor old Jack.

Can I be next please?!!

SMASH! The lollies have been liberated!

To wrap things up, we had a water bombing event. The kids line up along the side of the road, heavily loaded with water balloons. A very brave, and soon to be thoroughly drenched, Dad makes several sprints past them as they hurl their watery grenades at him.

30 kids. 200 water balloons. 1 victim... at least Dad had his goggles. Dad gets the kids riled up with some serious trash-talk.

Splash! Direct hit!

Totally soaked, except for the bits under the goggles, there were still more balloons to come, as well as a bucket of water.

Finally, after almost everyone has left, we get to go trick or treating. Not everyone on the street has candy, but those who do love to see us and check out the costumes.

Trick or Treat! LR checks out the new neighbours to see if they've got treats... and maybe if they'd like to come trick or treating with us.

This... is... the... BEST THING EVER!!! FREE CANDY AND LOLLIES!!!!

Let's head home and see what we've got.

25-year-old Party Supply company is closing its retail warehouse and we have the best deal around on pinatas!  All pinatas are 50% off! These are super nice pinatas…not the cheap looking ones you see in Wal Mart and the grocery stores!  Bright colors and well constructed…these are first quality pinatas that are being liquidated.   Our inventory has NOT been marked up and then discounted to half price!!! We carry more than just pinatas too.  We are fully stocked with every kind of party supplies you can imagine.  Our entire inventory is 50% OFF.  Shop now…and save before the holidays not after! Christmas party supplies, New Years Eve decorations, every theme party you can think of!  Balloons, Luau, baby showers, wedding, anniversary, western/cowboys, fiesta, graduation, Valentines Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Mardi Gras, 1st Birthday, Sweet 16, general birthday patterns, Camouflage, Sports, Patriotic, Over the Hill…you should see the deals!  Come shop in the warehouse and take advantage of the selection now before it’s all gone!  50% off everything in the entire warehouse.  Tons of solid color plates, cups, napkins, plastic cutlery, table covers and skirts.  This great company has a website if you want to preview our inventory!  Go to www.partyandpaperwarehouse.com.  Open to the public M-F from 8 – 10 a.m. or you can call to set an appointment to come and shop!  214-558-0764 Sign reads “Warehouse Party” and it is located at 3421 W. Kingsley Rd. # 101 Garland, TX 75041  (just off I-635 at the Kingsley Rd./Jupiter Rd. intersection.

Los alebrijes son seres fantásticos, imaginarios mezclas de animales extrañas y atrayentes de colores vivos, texturas y figuras extrañas. Pueden estar hechos de papel maché o de cartón y también de madera, son una artesanía que algunos dicen tiene sus antecedentes en las culturas prehispánicas y otros dicen que son más actuales, de 1970 cuando un cartonero del mercado de la Merced  Pedro Linares estuvo muy enfermo y en su delirio imaginó todo tipo de animales que después hizo realidad en su taller de piñatas u cartón. La palabra alebrije también es de su invención e incluso esta patentada por su familia.  Lo cierto es que estos hermosos y coloridos animales iluminan y le dan color a cualquier habitación. Los que desfilaron por Paseo de la Reforma son de los más extravagantes y creativos que he visto y la verdad es que iluminan y alegran el lugar.

http://musicayvino.com/index.php?q=node/481

http://www.tupatrocinio.com/patrocinio.cfm/proyecto/80526080092452694950576556704567.html

Today I went to one of my favorite Mexican Supermarkets Delray Farms (yea sounds very Mexican right). Well it very much is, it has a Mexican bakery (panaderia), butcher shop (carniceria), deli, clothing store, money transfer service, etc.  I snapped some pics of the typical decor that is characteristic of most large Mexican stores. Take a peek below, click to enlarge.

Bordered Colorful Murals!!

weird mustached hot and cold two-toned man

Cow tongues at the butcher shop

Cow Feet at the butcher shop

ABUELITA brand hot chocolate!!! On Sale too!

Mexican candles with assorted Saints.

Salsas at the deli…is there a ghost in the reflection?

Piñatas!

Lion? Pinata

Mounds of Jalapeños

Entire row of dried chiles (peppers)

That’s all I managed to snap, people started looking at me weird. Plus my obnoxious phone makes a loud shutter noise everytime I take a picture so it was obvious what I was doing.

Editors note: The updated camera on my new phone is sooo much better!

When I last updated about my first pinata, it was still a balloon wrapped in gunky newspaper. I’m happy to report that it finished drying rather nicely, even though it was still sort of wrinkly and bumpy. That’s okay, it looked something like an ugly gourd.

And here it is, painted, stuffed with candy, confetti and streamers, ready to be knocked senseless.

As for the other games, since it was so cold, we didn’t bother with ducks in a tub or bobbing for apples. The kids can catch cold just fine on the hayride. They don’t need our help!

I set up the beanbag toss and Pin The Tail On The Cat and waited quite a while before anyone even noticed them. It’s kind of disheartening, seeing all that work do nothing but sit there.

After a while, this little boy toddles up to me and asks, “What are these?”

“Games.”

“When can we play ‘em?”

“Anytime you’re ready!”

“Really? HEY EVERYBODY IT’S GAME TIME!”

The beanbag toss, which I made candy corn-shaped beanbags for, ended up being used so much, the board actually broke. I may have to invest in something stronger than foam core next time.

The one that really surprised me?

Pin The Tail On The Cat.

I had no idea that the kids would go so nuts for that game. They enjoyed spinning each other, then laughing at where the tails usually ended up. They also swapped blindfolds/masks a LOT. The most popular ones out of those six I made? The Frankenstein monster and the pirate! They just liked running around with them on their heads. It was too funny to watch!

Pinning tails…

The kids wearing my blindfold/masks…

I love that “I haven’t slept in a week!” look that the fake eyes give them. XD

Then there was the pinata. EVERYONE got excited about the pinata. I explained the rules and gave a warning about the pinata-whacking stick: “Everyone stand far back because you don’t want to get hit, okay? Also, make SURE you hold onto that stick TIGHT. If you don’t, it’s gonna fly out of your hands and right into my windshield and then I’ll be pretty mad.”

They understood perfectly.

My sister’s friend was given the task of raising and lowering the pinata, while I blindfolded them and spun them around before giving them the stick.

I had a line of about eight kids. The second one (who happens to be one of my bitty baby cousins) took three swings and on that third swing, he made contact!

Pinata guts everywhere!

I forgot that kid plays ball. He was swinging like a major leaguer!

At first, every one of those kids gasped and gaped in horror at the sight before them. That lasted all of two seconds before they all shrieked “CANDY!” and started diving for the goodies. It was hilarious to watch. They loved it! Another one of my little bitty cousins was even picking up the pretty streamer paper inside and giving handfuls of it to her dad to keep.

I passed out “Monster Eggs” (thanks, Target) and “boo sticks” (Tootsie Pops done up like ghosts) and watched as my batch of haunted cupcakes disappeared like a phantasm near a Ghostbuster. Even the candy eyeballs were toast.

Sis and Devin

We closed the evening with not one, but two hayrides because we had so many people there. Lots of hot dog charring and marshmallow roasting, plus chili and cookies and other goodies made everyone happy. I was very tired by night’s end, but overall pleased with how it went.

Here’s my friend Glenda…

Sis and Devin again…

And me, being Mad as a Hatter… *koff*

I think I need to make another hat in a different color. I’m supposed to be a Mad Hatter, but I look like I also qualify as a leprechaun, a clown or a resident of Emerald City. “Ease on down, ease on down the road…” Well, I still like how it turned out. Technically, it’s still incomplete since I had no time to sew on buttons or get the crinoline made. That should happen this week so I can wear it again Halloween.

Anyway, nice party, everyone was happy and now I can rest easy. *phew*

En nuestro viaje a la ciudad de México gracias a nuestro club vacacional, fue de gran aprendizaje y conocimos muchas cosas de su historia.

 En el recorrido por el ex convento de Acolman muy cerca de la zona arqueológica de Teotihuacán, nos platicaron que en este sitio fue donde nació la tradición de las posadas, fiesta que se celebra en todo el país.  Esto empezó por Fray  Diego de Soria a quien el Papa Sixto V le dio permiso para hacer las misas de aguinaldo que se festejaban del 16 al 24 de diciembre, todo esto lo hizo con el propósito de que la festividad que también los indígenas tenían en honor de Huitzilopochtlies.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huitzilopochtli, fuera sustituida por esta  celebración religiosa.

 En este sitio, fue el primer lugar que las misas eran cantadas en la Nueva España. De ahí se fueron derivando lo que ahora se conocen como posadas y lo más importante de esta tradición es romper la piñatawww.dfinitivo.com/…/las-pinatas-una-tradición-mexicana/ que en algunos sitios se siguen haciendo de barro en forma de estrella con siete picos que representan los siete pecados, se llenan de fruta y dulces y se le pega con un palo hasta romperla y así es el triunfo del bien contra el mal.

This will end up being a series of posts, documenting the creation of my very first pinata. It’s for our party (this weekend, yikes!), so it qualifies as Halloween.

On Sunday, I began with a balloon and Celluclay’s Papier Mache Mix. Just add warm water, mix and you’re ready to go!

Uh.

Straight out of the package, this stuff has all the charm of dryer lint. When wet, it’s like soppy dryer lint and poop. Yuck. It’s really difficult to work with, especially while you’re trying to hold a wayward balloon and coat it in the stuff. When taking handfuls of the stuff out to mix up, I ended up inadvertently inhaling some of it since it’s rather powdery. (It ended up making me very ill, too. I’d advise anyone to use a facemask if they work with this stuff.) I’m sure the cellulose mix is useful as an actual clay, so I’ll try to use the rest of the package at some point. I have another package that I think I’ll return, though. I’m not terribly plussed with it.

The first balloon I coated ended up exploding as I tried to move it to another area to dry.

Try try again, right?

Wrong. The second balloon I tried did the same thing and I didn’t even get it covered halfway!

I finally got a third one to work. Sort of.

That picture was taken just last night (Monday) and sadly, the mixture was STILL wet underneath!

I awoke this morning (Tuesday) to find that the balloon didn’t make it.

Well, so much for that.

Luckily, last night is when I also began work on another pinata in a more traditional style–Normal, old fashioned papier mache! Here is the recipe I used for the paste:

PAPIER MACHE PASTE RECIPE

2 cups boiling water
2 cups cold water
1/2 cup plain flour
3 tbsp. sugar

Mix cold water with plain flour. Toss that mixture into the boiling water and mix thoroughly. Bring it all back up to a boil. Remove it from heat and put into a nice big plastic bowl. Add the sugar and stir. The mixture thickens as it cools.

I cut newspaper into 1″ strips, slid them through the paste, then began laying them onto the balloon, which I had strung from the ceiling. Nice part about the paste recipe is that it’s non-toxic, so no worries if the cats decided to stick a paw in it.

Results as of last night:

The balloon will be moved to a warmer, sunnier spot today and hopefully by tonight, I can add another layer of paper so the pinata doesn’t collapse on itself before I even get to paint it. I’m hoping to get a cute pumpkin out of this. Keep your fingers crossed!

UPDATE [10/21/09] The pinata-in-progress seems to be drying, but was not dry enough for me to put another layer onto it last night. Maybe tonight…? I’ve noticed that as the paper has dried so far, the balloon seems a little…sad. It’s either losing air or was stretched out so from the weight of all that stuff on it that now it’s looking a little squished and flabby. The shape of the pinata is holding up, but again, I’d like another layer on there so the thing doesn’t collapse on itself when I try to paint it or fill it with candy.

Today’s Featured Cause:
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We’re having a little Halloween party and budget concerns being what they are, we’re opting for old fashioned stuff for the kids to do this year. I think it’ll keep them occupied.

A couple of the projects I’m working on include “Pin The Tail On The Cat” and a pinata. While I haven’t made the pinata yet, I’ve at least got a sufficient amount of neat blindfolds done for both that and the cat game.

And honestly, why be boring?

More if you just *click*…

These are just simple masks I found for super cheap at a drug store up the road. The embellishments are purely mine, though. They were made up on the fly as I went through my craft stash.

This one wasn’t originally intended to turn out so Mardi Gras,

Behind those little curly bits is a pumpkin stem. When the mask is being worn, the curly bits fall down and look like vines.

My sister’s comment on this one: “Oh hey, I didn’t know you were making a George mask!” (It was the eyebrows. XD)

I made a Harlequin because I wanted to. So there you go.

“Gather ’round, everyone! …Not you, Fire!”

Nothing’s complete without a pirate. YARRR.

All the embellishments are made from craft foam, beads, buttons and odd findings. It was fun to sort of make it up as I went. Everything you see there was a creative surprise.

Since these were intended to be blindfolds, I had to block out the eye holes. I printed up some “eyes” I found online, then cut them out and glued them to the backside. I resisted the urge to make them look crosseyed. Over the back of the glued-on “eyes”, I put a little extra foam so the masks aren’t uncomfortable for whoever’s wearing them.

While the pinata itself still needs to be made, I at least have the game board done for the cat game.

I need to make the tails. I have some old crummy craft store quality black fur I can use for that.

Also in progress? A beanbag game and a cupcake walk. I’m half considering koostering up a low-budget version of Bozo’s Ping Pong Ball Game, too.

As soon as I have that pinata made, you know I’ll post pics of it.

Now I’m off to make beanbags!

Now that we’ve been in our house for about two months, we figured it was time for a housewarming party. It was all very prim and proper, until Sam brought out the piñatas …

Where can I find the print version of Free Times?

I'm in there somewhere, if you want to click.

Normally, when a reader sends me a question like this I send it directly to the FAQ section, where I either answer it honestly, answer it dishonestly or don’t answer it at all, depending on my mood and whether or not I’ve recently received a freelancer’s check.

This particular question, however, has come in with such baffling frequency that I finally decided I need to address it right here on the homepage, effectively ending the discussion. Since its inception, after all, the FAQ page has consistently averaged the least daily traffic of any page on this site — less, even, than the dreadfully embarrassing collection of bathroom limericks I recently threw in the Dumpster.

So then and again, and without further delay, the question, definitively answered…

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it six-and-a-half times: You can pick up a copy of Free Times at most Columbia area restaurants and bars, or from the large purplish vending machines you see scattered around downtown. Copies appear magically every Wednesday morning and disappear quickly, especially during grilling season and when the local animal shelter needs to reline its litter boxes.

If the current economic situation has made dining out an unaffordable luxury, however – or if social anxiety precludes straying too far from the house in search of a large purplish box – you can also find copies in a range of other locations, many of them so close to home you won’t even need to change out of your dressing gown. For a partial rundown of such locations, click here.

Wherever you finally do decide to pick up your copy, though, make sure you get there before the building manager at Limbo Tower shows up and takes them all back to the building’s boiler room downtown. I can’t prove this, but from what I’ve heard, the super over there soaks the disassembled pages in a solution of all-purpose flour and mop water then uses the resulting paper mâché to patch flood-damaged walls, and otherwise to repair the elevators.

Hoy se llevó a cabo la celebración del día del niño en las Escuelas Abiertas de la Colonia Las Ilusiones Zona 18.

La actividad comenzó como siempre a las 9:00 am, todos los talleristas preparandose para lo que sería un desfile por la colonia. El desfile comenzó a las 11:00 y culminó alrededor de las 12:30.

Todas las especialidades dadas en la escuela, fueron expuestas a los vecinos. Luego de el desfile no tenía que faltar el refrigerio, prosiguiendo con las clases.

A las 15:15 comenzó la quiebra de piñatas, en la cual hubo mucha afluencia de personas. Lo más curioso del caso, es que las piñatas fueron echas con cajas de cartón, lo que dificultaba la desintegración de éstas; hasta cuando las tuvieron que bajar los talleristas y romperlas para que salieran los dulces.

La verdad estuvo muy alegre, aunque algunos se golpearon un poco al acaparar dulces, andaban felices por llevar a casa un poco de caramelos (o caries, jeje).

Ojalá que actividades como éstas se dén más adelante en la escuela.

As any Texan will attest, this state is crazy for football, and last month Austin was buzzing with excitement for the big UT v. Texas Tech football game.  To celebrate in true Texas fashion, I helped one of my favorite clients throw a raucous “football fiesta” in a cool downtown space.  Photographed by the amazing Tyler Schmitt, here’s a little eye-candy from the festivities…

We ordered custom Longhorn & Tech pinatas to greet guests as they entered the eclectic space.  Low couches full of throw pillows, burlap ‘poufs’ & ottomans, & tons of succulents & cacti kept the look chic, casual, & inviting.

Who doesn’t love a cupcake?  Our team-spirited ones (by the team at Madcakes) served as the centerpiece of a dessert buffet, as well as take-home favors.  To-go boxes were stacked all around for guests to help themselves.

I loved the way these frosted glass hurricanes popped against the turquoise staircase.  The delicate pattern mimicked the white papel picado (Mexican tissue paper flags) that we strung around the party space.

Mexican-style street corn, dusted with cotija cheese & chili, was so delicious, people didn’t mind getting a little messy.

The Modern Mexican menu included a gourmet taco bar (al pastor, rotisserie citrus chicken, grilled skirt steak + charred onions) with a rainbow of salsa; arugula salad with mango + jicama; & watermelon with cotija cheese + cilantro.

The night ended on a boisterous note as waiters passed trays of tequila shots with chasers of sweet, tomato sangrita.  Olé!

I cannot believe it has been a while since I last Blogged on here. Well I will tell you about some new pages I created to help you with your Halloween Party Planning. To start I made a great blog post all about Personalized Halloween Party Invitations including one of my favorites that gets put inside a cardboard coffin box. So when it comes to getting out your Halloween Party Invites you will find some really great ideas and some that are very creative as well.

Ghost Pinata

Next I wrote a Squidoo Lens all about Halloween Pinatas and there you will find every pinata available for this fun holiday. When writing this I was absolutely amazed at how many choices there are available. My personal favorite Halloween Pinata would have to be the Ghost – it is just adorable as it looks like it is flying.

Spider Ring Toss Game

To go along with that I did a Squidoo Lens on the Best Halloween Party Games available. A Halloween Party would not be complete without some fun spooky games for the kids ya know.  I have also included one of my favorite games which is the Touch and Feel Boxes with Step by Step Instructions and ideas for some gross things the kids can touch. You will also find many party games you may never even knew existed – I sure did not before writing this so it is a great resource.

Demon Window Poster

Do you think I would forget scary Halloween Decorations? No way – I love decorating for Halloween and some of my favorites  are Halloween Window Decorations. On this Squidoo lens you will find some of the scariest and cool decorations for your windows. Everything from Bloody Window Clings to Clings for your car Windows. You will see a great variety of  decorations there that may just keep your neighbors from wanting to peak in your windows again.

Fang Monster Cupcake

Then I moved to Hubpages and created a Hub on Halloween Cupcakes. On my Hubpage you will find lots of great ideas to make your Halloween Cupcakes looking sweet and spooky. You can also watch a video showing you how easy it is to make Ghost Cupcakes. I have added lots of photos of some fun creations like Spider Cupcakes, Monster Cupcakes, Eyeball Cupcakes, Bat Cupcakes, Witch Cupcakes, Mummy Cupcakes and more. Oh and one of the newest – How about Brain Cupcakes – ewww – Just the way you want them – so come check it out.

So that is what I have been up to for Halloween Party Ideas so far – when I write more I will add them on here. Halloween is so much fun and so are all the parties that go along with it!!!

I always find the best way to unwind from hosting a Ben 10-themed party for 14 screaming kids is to take a trip to the local monster mall. Yes: on a Saturday. 

To help you out a little here: imagine my mind is a little like a snowdome where my thoughts gently float around in the liquid. Now, the Ben 10 party was just a little like shaking that snowdome to fuck. And the monster mall? Like taking an AK-47 to said snowdome, blasting its contents into a million trillion pieces and embedding many of them in a nearby wall upon which some teenage punk seems to have tagged their name but upon closer inspection turns out to be a picture of their penis. 

Just sayin’. 

Look, of course I’m being a touch melodramatic. The party was just a normal kids party: you know, kids running around high on sugar and food colouring, screaming and whacking each other with sticks. And the mall was just the usual Saturday arvo consumer bitch-fight. But chuck in a visit from the silent red ninja, a headcold and the promise of a migraine and you’re starting to get the picture. And it’s of someone’s penis on the wall, apparently. 

Still, I feel suitably removed from the whole experience now to share some highlights of the Ben 10 party with you all. 

THE CAKE 

This cake was a labour of love upon which I worked late into the night before the party. When I proudly showed my husband my masterpiece, his informed opinion was that it should be “more green” and “perhaps have a bit of white somewhere”.

At which point I grew exceedingly irate and shouted at him “What is WRONG with you? Don’t you know the difference between a Ben 10 Alien Force Omnitrix cake and a Ben 10 Original Series Omnitrix cake?? Have you never discussed the finer points of differentiation between the two with our firstborn child? I mean, have you even met our son??”

Sheesh.

Luckily I was able to jump onto Twitter and show off about my creation. And there, I felt the love that I was due. Of course, while I was busy showing off and feeling the love, I heard the tell-tale jingle-jangle of bells and stormed into the kitchen just in time to see the cat jump up on the table and get *this close* to licking the cake. What was that old saying again? Was it “pride comes before a cat with an rectum-coated tongue”?

THE PIÑATA

For those of you who have read “The NDM Guide to Making Piñatas” and are curious about where this Jetray lay on the NDM Piñata Spectrum (upon which all piñatas should measured, if only it actually existed), let’s just say Jetray ended up being the love-child of the Impenetrable Shark and The Bad, Bad Butterfly.

You see, I had somewhat overestimated the whacking power of the average seven-year-old boy and had built the piñata to withstand a direct nuclear blast. But somewhere in the painstaking paper-mâché process, something had gone terribly terribly wrong. When the pinata was finally cracked open (thanks to some king hits from my husband), there were cries all around of “Ewwwww! These lollies are all soggy!”. Oops, I did it again. 

THE OMNITRIX BREAD

Nothing to say here except the the age-old question of how to serve fairy bread to a bunch of seven year old boys bearing makeshift weapons has finally been answered. 

THE AFTERMATH

What you see here are Mr Justice’s brand new presents, all ripped out of their wrappings, tossed around the room and firmly ground underfoot with a few handfuls of party food thrown in for good measure. In the cleanup process, I found a grand total of three frankfurters hidden in very surprising places. Which literally put a twist on the adult party game “Hide The Sausage”. 

But when I asked Mr Justice which was his favourite part of the party, it wasn’t the cake. It wasn’t the piñata. It wasn’t even the lame-arse game where I got them to squirt warm water at a plastic alien frozen in an icecube (true story).

It was “hanging out in the bedroom playing with the presents”. 

This, more than anything, sent me a very clear message and that message was this: Next year, don’t be the über-mum party planner, NDM! Just cheerfully usher the guests straight into the bedroom… chuck in a packet of chips, a bottle of lemonade and a bucket to pee in…  And then lock the door for two hours.

Now that’s a party plan that I feel that even I, utterly destroyed as I feel right at this moment, am willing and able to get behind.