J. Paul Getty Museum, FREE HOMESCHOOL Day 10/28

I'm bringing my kids to this event, hope to meet as many of my L.A. area readers there as possible.  We go here often and they have a wonderful variety of art and things to do there.  This is definitely a world-class museum and they will have a full day of homeschooling activities at NO CHARGE -- a great opportunity to teach our home schooled children about the arts.

Homeschool day at the J. Paul Getty Museum is Wednesday, October 28, from 10-3.

Go to the link below for more information and print out a FREE parking pass.
FREE PARKING PASS

HALLOWEEN DIY Crafts Foods for Kids

Halloween

Fun Crafts, Treats to Make for Halloween

Lots of creative projects will be posted and I look forward to hearing your comments after you try them. To Left and Below: Homemade costumes for my young kids (Bumblebee w/ our beloved Boxer and The Teletubbies) that I made w/ purchased Simplicity Patterns  & my own Janome New Home Memorycraft Sewing Machine.

Keep checking back here as this list of original ideas grows for making Halloween fun for everyone: kids, adults, and families.  

Keep scrolling down for links to directions for 20+ Halloween DIY crafts, food, and other fun stuff to make with kids.  I have pooled together a list of the most creative (and inexpensive) ideas from a variety of sources on the Internet for EASY things to make for your kids or with them.

Enjoy some time baking and decorating cookies throughout fall for Halloween and Thanksgiving. I made these cookies (see picture below) with my own children using the basic Sugar Cookie recipe out of my antique 1950s Betty Crocker cookbook that my mom made for me when I was a little girl. I found a similar to old-fashioned sugar cookie recipe you can try here. Then, we decorated them with Martha Stewart's Royal Icing Recipe which uses meringue power (dry egg whites) that harden like the fancy giant decorated cookies I've seen selling for upwards of $18 each.

Equipment used to make these cookies include my solid maple wood rolling pin that I've had since before I was married.  The pumpkins are made with a large tin vintage cutter from my own collection, while the maple and oak leaves and acorns were cut from the Wilton 9-piece Leaves & Acorns Cookie Cutter Set I bought at a specialty cake decorating store in Los Angeles years ago for $5.99 (pictured at right). I also use a variety of decorating tools like pastry bags, an assortment of tips, and color gels made by Chefmaster and Wilton, as well as sprinkles and confetti by DecACake and CakeMate.

Other Fun Ideas to Make With Kids, Parents, Grandparents, and Great Grandparents:

California Raisins Spooky Spider HEALTHY Snack
Directions

Make a Working Robot with a REAL Pumpkin
Directions

Pumpkin Cupcakes/Cake from Kraft
Directions

Witches Bloody Finger Cookies
Directions

EASY, Kid Costumes from Old Adult Clothes
Directions

Monster Brownies & Other Scary Treats
Directions

Mouth Clever "Recycled" Kid Scarecrow Costume Using Thrift Store Clothing
Directions

Eco-Friendly Pumpkin Seed Necklace
Directions

Salt Dough Ghost Family
Directions

Martha Stewart's Marshmallow Ghost Cake
Directions

Severed Cheese "Fingers"
Directions

Pumpkin Painting (instead of carving - great for little kids)
Directions

Pretend Halloween Lantern Made w/ Milk Carton
Directions

Cute Kids' Pumpkin Shape Fabric Trick or Treat Bag
Directions

Martha Stewart's Glitter Skulls and Bones
Directions

Glittered Pumpkin Centerpiece by Martha Stewart
Directions

Add your own Halloween Craft, Sewing or Food Project by leaving a comment below w/ link to the directions. All posts must be G-rated and Family-friendly so please leave appropriate ideas only, otherwise they will be deleted. Hope everyone has the happiest Halloween ever!

Also, don't forget to BOOKMARK this page, as there are many more unique (and cheap) ideas to be posted here between now and October 31st!

4,000 Pumpkins GIVEAWAY - THIS SUNDAY, Oct. 11th

Free Event & Pumpkin GIVEAWAY in Farmers Market in Los Angeles, California

THIS SUNDAY - DON'T MISS IT!

Celebrate Fall with free pumpkins, live music, a petting zoo, animal races, and MORE!

The Great Pumpkin Giveaway is back by popular demand! Mark your calendars for Sunday, October 11 from 12-2pm and join the Radio Disney Road Crew on the Plaza for arts and crafts, music, games and 4,000 lbs. of FREE pumpkins!

LOCATION:
Third Street and Fairfax Avenue (next to CBS Studios and The Grove) in Los Angeles