So I guess this is the Halloween version....

I'm not a huge fan of the holiday, truth be told. I enjoy watching the kids and stuff, but I'm not one of these adults that gets REALLY into it. I'm not hating on it, I just don't really like the idea of being scared on purpose, or all these zombies, and clowns. What's with the clowns? With knives and bats? Don't these idiots have better things to be doing? I have enough problems in the middle of the night, being absolutely CONVINCED there is a murderer in the house. And I am tortured by the things that go bump in the night, thinking someone is coming for me and my whole family. All this while Tommy is in a near coma. This happens on a weekly to bi-weekly basis. This is why we cannot have a gun in the house. On one particular occasion, I had Tommy go check things out downstairs, and when he took too long (I swear he was gone like 2 full minutes, and I was calling for him with NO answer), I was convinced HE was killed, and I dialed 911, but then quickly hung up, remembering that I am a psycho, and it was probably nothing. This turned into a huge fiasco, as it was the middle of the night, in the dead of winter, but because I dialed 9-1-1, hit send, and then hung up, the police had to come out, and come into the house. And check on everyone upstairs. Including Patrick, who had woken up from the noise, went to go take a piss, and sees me, and a cop in the hallway. Mother-of-the-year. "Don't worry honey, everything is fine, this nice cop and his snow-filled-boots are just checking out the place, go back to bed". And Tommy, once he had returned from his reconnaissance mission, which apparently included stopping for a SNACK, (all while I'm upstairs thinking he's being maimed), threw his hands up in the air, and retreated to bed, once I told him I dialed 911 because he was taking too long, and I thought he was dead. Tommy was especially delighted when the cop shined his flashlight into our bedroom to check for signs of life. Tommy gave the thumbs up and the officer was on his way. Also, I definitely didn't have a bra on through this whole thing. So, this is enough of the scaring for me. But I don't want to be a killjoy, so I'll put my own neuroses aside (momentarily) and do this as festively as possible. 

What's to drink....

While I do not support clowns with knives, zombies, home intruders, and other scary stuff on Halloween, I do stand firmly with the idea of drinking on Halloween. This seems fitting for the occasion, and when I read the bottle says "mysterious and hauntingly seductive", I had a good laugh because it sounds more like a romance novel than a bottle of wine, but the giggle sold me, and I'm glad it did. Cheers!

Phantom - Cali Red by Bogle Vineyards

What's to eat AND Working on my things that relax me at the same time....

This is going to be a 2-for-1 kinda thing. I saw this recipe online and thought, "hey, I can do that". I don't bake much or make desserts. The baking thing makes me nervous because it's so specific or scientific, and if you miss one ingredient the whole thing is shot. This is too much pressure for me, as evidenced below. Anyway, upon making these cute little things I found that I really enjoyed painting the graham crackers with chocolate. It was very relaxing. "Oh", I thought to myself, "this is kinda soothing, yes, I like painting with the chocolate". Then I realized I have actually lost my mind. But, the kids loved them, and I'm OK fooling them into thinking I'm one of those crafty-baking-type Moms. My Mom, who bakes the hell out of stuff, is not so easily fooled. When she saw them, the convo went like this.

Mams: "What's the stick made out of, can you eat it?"
Me: (Thinking what in the hell, she's lost her mind, too) "It's wood, Ma, like a popsicle stick." 
Mams: (Looking doubtful or maybe disappointed) "Oh, a lot of people use pretzels and stuff for the stick, so you can eat that, too."

Apparently, I'm not fooling my Mom with this witchery of mine. She's less impressed than my kids, turning her nose up at my wood stick. I told her she could technically eat the stick, but it probably wouldn't taste very good. Anyway, here's my version, I opted for Halloween sprinkles instead of painting a monster face. I don't want to get ahead of myself.
So the moral of the story is, painting with chocolate is relaxing, so is laughing, which I did at myself, when I looked back at this recipe, and realized I forgot the coconut oil. Both times I made it. 

Ghetto version of Halloween S'mores Pops. Real version below.

http://www.delish.com/cooking/recipe-ideas/recipes/a49584/hocus-pocus-inspired-smores-pops-recipe/

Wishing you ALL of the Good Stuff.

XO

Tara 

P.S. Happy almost wedding day to my BIL, Timmy, and his soon-to-be-wife, Tiff. May your life together be filled with happiness, health, laughter, and a shit load of patience.