Happy Halloween from Mrs. Mummy Talk

Hafe a safe and happy Halloween 2011.

Love,

Mrs Mummy Talk & Little Z

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DIY: GraveYard Plot Cupcakes

A easy, fun DIY Halloween cupcake activity that the kids can participate in! As you can see above we got a little tired of writing RIP on all the headstones so we got imaginative and put some ghost and pumpkin faces on some of them. Hey its Halloween, you can be as creative as you want.

The Plots ( Chocolate Cupcakes)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 1/2 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk

How To:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a muffin pan with paper or with butter and a little bit of flour. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk; beat well. Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full.
3. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. 

The Dirt ( Frosting & Topping)

Your plot (cupcake) will be topped with soil (frosting & oreos). I went with a cream cheese frosting which is really easy to work with. Once its time to top each cooled cupcake with the frosting you can put your frosting into a ziplock bag and zip the corner edge off for easy frosting. This works wonders and no expensive piping bag  is needed.

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

About 20 oreos, with filling scraped out. Take your oreos sans filling and put them in a ziplock bag. Crush them up into a fine texture (its ok to have a few chunky pieces left).

Beat cream cheese with your mixer until smooth and creamy. Add in butter and vanilla. Mix this at a medium to high speed. Lastly, add in your powdered sugar a little bit at a time and voila you have homemade frosting. Frost your cooled cupcakes and generously douse each one with your crushed oreos...errrr dirt.

The Headstones

You will need a bag of Milano cookies and a black gel icing tube. Cut 1/4 end off of each Milano cookie. Use your black gel icing tube to write on each headstone. Place cookie firmly into the icing. Voila!

Place finished cupcakes on a cupcake stand or on a platter and garnish platter with remaining crushed oreos for a very earthy graveyard appearance.

I had left over chocolate cupcake batter, so I quickly whipped up a vanilla cupcake batter, dyed it orange with food coloring (yellow + red) and created a Halloween themed marbled cupcake. Those are the ones you see below mixed in with my extra GraveYard Plot cupcakes.

Eat & Enjoy.

Happy Haunts.

Little Z is 5 months!

Time sure does fly. Little Z turned 5 months on the 27th. She was not a happy camper so the best picture I got was of her little feet. These little ones are on their own schedule! I can't believe she is almost half a year old.

Yeah this pretty much sums up our attempt at a 5 month photo session in our living room.

At least she found a few second of non-crying time to check out her 5 month old sign.

Pumpkins: More Than Just a Carving

This time of the month is all about the pumpkin. Halloween pumpkins, pumpkin patches, pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin spiced lattes...well you get the point. Is their anything else that can be done with this edible orange tradition we call a pumpkin. Yes....oh yes their is.

You can do fairytale re-creations with pumpkins if scary is not your forte. Pic found here.

We have pumpkin soup in a ...well in a pumpkin. Pic found here.

This pumpkin is about to become a punch bowl or a drink holder. Pic found here.

My personal favorite, pumpkin custard inside a pumpkin! Pic found here.

I just realized all my pumpkin pictures have to do with food. Ooops. =)

OOTD Baby Style: Take a Bow

Today was laundry day which means little Z had to settle for casual comfy clothes. She was set upon holding her little Carters teddy bear as her accessory today. I should enjoy that while it lasts because one day i'm sure her accessory wish list will be much more pricey. No matter how casual comfy little Z is she will always take a bow though.

We will start from top to bottom today.

• Headband/bow is from Gymboree.
• Pink longs leeve ruffle neck onsie is from Childrens Place. Actually is from a 2 piece dress set.
• Floral pants are from Carters.
• Pink birdie socks are from Pumpkin Patch.

Here is to bows and accessories. 

The Green Mommy: Charlies Soap Powder

In my quest to be more green and because I have been dabbling in cloth diapering lately I decided I needed to try out a more eco friendly laundry detergent. A quick search on my shopping bible otherwise known as Amazon led me to Charlies Soap Powder. First thing I noticed is the rating of 4.5 stars out of 5 with 315 ratings. This is an instanst plus in my world. Next, I saw the words 'non-toxic' and 'safe for the environment'. Getting closer to the purchase button I saw that I could get 80 loads worth for only a little over 10 bucks with Subscribe and Save. Ok sold.

Pros:

• Environmentally friendly
• Non-Toxic
• Biodegradable
• No fragrance which aids in preventing skin irritations
• Perfect for baby clothes and cloth diapers

Potential Cons:

• No Tide fresh smell here people however dont' worry your clothes are clean! The laundry detergent industry has done an excellent job of making us think that if our clothing doesn't smell like lavender and waterfalls its not clean.
• No softening effect on clothing. I dont' use dryer sheets so I noticed my clothes are a bit stiffer with this soap however this is a small sacrafice one must make in the laundry washing world if you are aiming to be more green.

Charlie's Soap Powder is here to stay for me and my quest to be a green mommy. Do you use any type of green soap?

Todays green picture came from here.
Charlie's Soap Powder picture came from Amazon.

Kill My Diet Now: Halloween Cupcakes

Today's Halloween themed post is all about cupcakes! I absolutely must make some sort of Halloween themed cupcakes this year. As my mouth is watering looking at these pictures I just need to decide which ones to attempt. I found the above picture on Pinterest and my brain is straining to figure out how they got that perfect pumpkin shape.

Im a huge cupcake in a jar fan. Like huge. I think the possibilities when you take a Mason jar and a cupcake are endless. I might just do a post one day all about jars of cupcakes. I love making these. These festive ones came from Glorious Treats.

I love owls. I love cupcakes. Enough said.

Im from Pinterest.

I absolutely adore this black and orange marbled cupcake. I think I may just have to go for these ones and then get creative with the frosting and toppings. Can I just say one more time how much I love cupcakes?

OOTD Baby Style: Once Upon a Dress

So as some of you may already know I have an obsession with baby clothes. So do a lot of the family and friends in my life as well. The result of this is an overstocked closet for little baby Z. Result of this? Baby outfit of the day or OOTD: baby style. Plus maybe it will give others with little girls a few moments of cuteness that they can understand and appreciate.

• Dress with matching green onsie were a set a bought at a JBF consignment event. It is by Carters.
• Black leggings are from Target, they are Circo brand. These are surprisingly soft. 
• Socks ( that dont quite match the outfit ) are Trumpette. Bought at a JBF consignment.
• Hat with matching detachable bow are from Stroller Blanket Mom which is a baby boutique on Etsy.

This floral dress used to be long on her. To get more use out of your little ones summer dresses you can easily add leggings and a shirt underneath. Also if a dress starts getting too short, adding pants, tights or leggings underneath instantly turn it into a tunic.

Hauntingly Cute Decor

Ok with Halloween right around the corner I need to do a Halloween themed blog everyday until Halloween. Holidays are way to fun too not blog about as much as possible. =) Yesterday I blogged about some super cute baby cosutumes that I have been loving and today I want to share with you all my favorite Halloween themed decor. Its such spooky fun and I so wish I had time to make each and every one of these items. You can find out how to make the above burlap Halloween wreath here.

This candy corn candle holder idea is way too easy for me to not try out!

These black paper bats would be perfect for a kids halloween party. You can read a bit more about how to construct these here. They actually used black poster board on theirs but I was thinking you could do this with black construction paper you have laying around the house as well.

Buttons and bows on a pumpkin? Ingenius. I found this picture on Better Homes & Garden. They have some adorable pumpkin decorating ideas.

If you have done any Halloweed decorating and/or crafts lately please share! Leave a link to your post below or email me your pictures so I can feature them on here.

Happy Haunting.

Mommy Review: Dr Browns Spoons

I love these Dr. Brown's Designed To Nourish Long Spatula Spoons so much I just had to share it with you all. When I first spotted them while shopping for baby spoons I thought they were the weirdest looking things ever. Not to mention that the word "gimmicky" was crossing my mind as well. Something strange possessed me to buy them instead of the traditional looking Gerber baby spoons and then me and these spoons fell in love.

• The spatula edge makes for easy peasy wiping of excess food that is always all around my daughters mouth.
• The long handle has a awesome grip and really does reach every nook and cranny of your baby food jar and/or cleans out that baby food bowl easily.
• Don't be fooled by the large looking appearance of the mouth part, it really isn't. My daughter has a smaller sized mouth and these work perfectly for her.
• BPA free...always a plus
• Comes in 4 pack and are cute. Cuteness counts.

I purchased mine at Buy Buy Baby but I see that Amazon as well ast Babies R Us carries them.

I give these 5 out 5 mommy stars. Have you tried these?

Tid Bits

No car ride is complete for Baby Z without her toy panda from Disneys Baby Einstein. I dont know if it is the black and white colors or that she simply loves her panda. And as for me, I am loving her little animal print fleece one piece complete with ears on the hood from Carters. It really hasn't been cold enough here yet for any cute winter clothes so on the one cold day we had I jumped at the chance to dress her in it.

Yesterday was my husbands birthday and I ordered this sweet confection from a local bakery. It was the best cake we had ever eaten. It was three layers of vanilla cake with a fresh raspberry filling, topped with a sweet cream layer and then covered in almond flavored green fondant. The bottom of the cake was lightly decorated with almond shavings. Pure heaven.

Here is to more cake and winter weather.

SpookTacular Baby Costumes

Ok, so they may not be spooky but they are pretty darn cute. I have been saving picures I have found of baby cosume ideas for Halloween. Thought I would share the cuteness. Enjoy.

Have a cute costume pic? Email it to me so I can share it on here. =)


First picture from Pinterest.
Second picture from here.
Third picture from here.
Fourth picture from here.

Momspiration: Make time for YOU...

Us moms focus so much of our attention and time on our families, jobs, and projects that sometimes we can forget to take some time for ourselves. Don't get me wrong...their is nothing wrong with spending the majority of your time and focus on your family but it is vitally important that we also take some time for ourself!

• Get a pedicure complete with a leg massage. You will feel so fresh and rejuvenated.
• Roots showing? Unwanted grays peeking through? Mommy go get your hair done! 
• A new outfit works wonders for confidence. Don't worry about your current size just slip into something new and gasp....trendy.

Remember, even little things can make a big difference. If you aren't up for laying down the green for a fancy outfit or pricey pedicure their are alternatives. Commission your friend, sister, aunt, somebody to color your hair for you. Go buy a pretty new nail color and commission someone else to paint your nails ( if you are like me and cannot paint your own). 

• Read a book.
• Browse fashion magazines.
• Scrapbook.
• Rent a movie.
• Laugh.

Pick something and do it just for you. Taking that time for yourself is important. Remember life is short. Live it up.

First picture is from Pinterest.

Second picture is from here.

Baby on a Budget: Quick Shopping Tips

Babies are adorable. The price of having a baby? Not so adorable. Worth it? Most definitly! Of course, if their are ways to save while shopping for little one....why not? Here are a few tips that have helped me save while shopping for necessary baby items.

• Sign up for rewards programs at baby stores. They do help. Babies R Us sends me $5.00 every month. Combine that with a formula coupon and you can get your babys milk fix on the cheap.
• Speaking of formula, head on over to Enfamil or Similac to sign up for coupons and samples. Trust me their samples are very generous and they love bombarding you with coupons. Other brands such as Gerber offer coupons as well.
• Same goes for your Huggies and Pampers! Head over to their websites to check out their savings programs.
• Consider dicounted baby shopping sites such as Zulily or Totsy where you can find clothing, feeding supplies and baby furniture on major discount.
• If you see an outfit you like at a baby store...give it a week or two...it will most likely go on sale and you will have saved yourself paying full price.
• Old fashioned couponing, yes you can scour Sundays ads if that is your thing.
• Fan of Carters baby clothing? Only buy these from an actual Carters store as their clothing is almost never full priced. They also have a awesome rewards program that will save you money on top of the already discounted prices.
• Check out Naturally Thrifty Mom she always has baby giveaways, discount codes and tips on where the current sales are.
• Check out Amazon Mom.
• Sign up for BabyCheapskate newsletter. Its literally savings delivered to your inbox every morning.

How do you save when it comes to baby shopping/couponing? Share your tips and advice!

Happy Friday!

Mommy Makeover Tip: H20

We mommies use water on a daily basis for many things. Washing our littles ones, brushing our teeth, watering gardens, making bottles, washing bottles...so many things we do with water.

However, a lot of times we neglect to drink up this crystal clear liquid we sometimes refer to as H2O. Well mommies here is to drinking more water, not only in the name of health but in the name of beauty as well. Drinking lots of ice cold refreshing water not only quenches thirst but it aids in mommy makeovers...I promise.

Beauty benefits of drinking more H2O.

• Clear and radiant complextion
• Detoxifying
• Glossier hair
• Brighter eyes
• Increased energy
• Improved circulation which leads to glowing skin

So mommies...its time to drink up. This easy tip will aid us in looking beautiful which makes us feel better inside and out. Keep chilled water bottles in your purse, at your desk and take one wherever you go. At home? Keep a pretty glass pitcher in your refrigerator.

Make it pretty, add lemon slices or frozen berries. Drink from a pretty glass. Buy a water bottle that you think is adorable. Drink H2O!

All the pretty pictures are from Pinterest!

Fall Baby Photo Session : The Ideas

I have been scouring Pinterest for my fall photography ideas for my little girl. I decided a few weeks ago that I want to take seasonal and/or holiday photographs. I of course turned to Pinterest for inspiration and as a foundation for my ideas. Once I get my photos done I will post them for you guys to see. It will be fun to see how I took an idea off of Pinterest and tweaked it a bit to become unique. I love the above picture but my little one is too young to stand. I might think of a way to incorporate some ballons regardless.

I absolutely have to include this in my photography session! Its so adorable! I want to find a red barn as my background for this picture along with a orange/brown themed hairbow.

No, I am not expecting but I love this photo. Its so original and cute. I want to do something similar however just my daughter would be in the photo with a chalkboard. I want the backdrop to be similar to this picture but with fall colored trees. This will be a bit hard for me here in California, would look amazing for someone living on the east coast.

I'm really loving the idea of picture with a monogramed prop. I want my entire fall photo session to be outdoored themed though so I was thinking of having my little one in a basked in a field. I would decorate around the basket with pumpkins and a large size wooden letter Z.

Props I need:

• Large size pumpkin.
• Smaller decorative pumpkins/squash in various colors.
• Small chalkboard/1 piece of chalk.
• Large sized wooden letter.
• Medium to large size wicker basket.
• 12 orange ballons ( I'm still wanting to incorporate a ballon themed photo)
• Bubbles ( Not sure what I want to do with these yet but the picture below is an inspiration).

                                 

 

 Let me know what you guys think!

What I am liking NOW: Skip Hop

Lately I have been loving the whimiscal cuteness of Skip Hop baby products. I dont know what it is about their owl themed baby items but they have me hooked. I am thinking of purchasing this adorable owl playtime toy simply because it is so cute and different. The Skip Hop website states that this toy ( which also comes in a lamb, bear, dog and monkey ) features 10 different developmental activies to keep your little one entertained. Score.

I am also eyeing this owl themed playmat. Too bad I hadn't seen this when I was preganant. Just look at all that owl cuteness.

I am currently in the market for a bath spout cover as well. I was going to get their infamous Moby the whale bath spout but now Ducky here is looking pretty tempting as well. Hmmmm....

Im loving these adorable farmhouse stackable blocks they have too. Im telling you guys this company is my current baby products obsession and I don't even own anything from them yet.

Have you guys tried out anything from Skip Hop? You can check out their website here. All the above pictures are taken from their website.

Here is to cuteness.

Todays Steal: Robeez Shoes

I have been eyeing Robeez shoes since before my little one was born. They just look so comfertable and practical. Given, I have never owned a pair they just seem to be the perfect combination of cuteness and soft soles. I have never been able to lay down the almost 40 dollars it takes to own a pair of these cuties though. I just can justify spending so much on a baby shoe, knowing that my little one grows like a weed. I have checked every consignment event I have been to and each pair I have found was so worn down, dowdy and way overpriced for its current condition. But today I found Robeez on sale on Babysteals.com. Yippee! A nice new shiny pair for $15.99. I bought the ones pictured above ( and that picture is from the Babysteals.com website).
Yay for Robeez, BabySteals and finding good deals.