As Halloween inches nearer and nearer, I find myself dreaming of all sorts of Sweet Treats to make for the kids. Since this is my first year being able to go All Out for Halloween in many years, I’d love to make this special night something my kids will remember for a long, long time. Fortunately for me, there are a TON of super-cute and easy to recreate (two of my absolute MUSTS for any craft and/or recipe) ideas all over the web. Here are a few of my faves: (Clockwise from L-R: chocolately witch hats, pretzel spider cupcakes, Bakerella’s trix spiderweb cupcakes, monster madness cupcakes, scrumptious Halloween smores

Update: The witch hat link no longer works, but this is such a simple project you don’t need a link. It’s a Fudge Striped Cookie turned upside down and a hershey kiss. Use some orange icing to glue the two together and loop around the edges and end with a bow. My 3 & 4 year olds did this on their own and loved it. I’ll see if I can dig up any photos.

I get the feeling, the tons of Halloween candy we collect will be the least of our sugar-laden worries. Nonetheless, I’m planning a fantastic Happy Haunting party. Sure wish all of you could stop by …

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Wishing you a fantastic Fourth of July filled with family and friends, tasty barbecues, refreshing lemonades and one of these delicious treats.

American Flag Tart

Summer Shortcake

Berry Pound Cake

Red, White and Blueberries

Star Spangled Shortcake

Red, White and Blue Parfaits

Berry Cupcakes

God Bless All Things American {and Martha Stewart}

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Now here’s a giveaway all parents/bloggers should get excited about. Wholesale Furniture Brokers have decided to giveaway $500 in Kids furniture to one lucky blogger. Even better, If there are more than 100 entries, they’ll giveaway 2 prizes!!

Here’s the official rules of the WFB Easter Blog contest:

Celebrate Easter with your kids by winning new furniture for them. We want you to let us know what kids furniture you want to reward your kids with and why on your own blog post. Be creative and let us know why you and your kids deserve it. If you convince us that you deserve the kids furniture the most out of all the contestants, you’ll win a $500 gift certificate towards FREE kids furniture. On Tuesday, April 14, 2009, we will review all of the blog entries for this contest and choose the winner. The winner will be the contestant with the most creative and authentic blog post that inspires others to post comments, bookmarks, and write their own blog posts about it.

We will give away a second $500 gift certificate towards FREE kids furniture if we have more than 100 contestants!

How to Enter:
Write a blog post that includes the following:
1. In 100 – 200 words, explain which kids furniture item you would like to win your kids for Easter. Convince us why you deserve to win. (Item must be chosen from Wholesale Furniture Brokers.)
2. Include a link to the furniture you’d like to win. (Don’t worry, if you win, you can change your mind.)
3. Link to one of our kids furniture categories. (See contest rules for details)
4. You’re authorized to use any image from WFB in your post.
5. Publish your post.
6. Notify us by email at KidsFurnitureContest@GoWFB.com.

The deadline for entries is Monday, April 13, 2009.

Stumped on how to go about entering? Well, here’s my take on it:

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Three Reasons my kids deserve to win:

1. My children have no furniture ~ Yep, I said it NONE. If you’ve followed the site you’ll probably remember we recently moved all the way from Germany to Texas. Making a continental move like that, really forces you to choose which items you’ll be taking with you to your new home. Since my kids were transitioning from cribs to real beds and everything we had was a mish-mash of hand-me- downs, we decided to leave it all behind. Now that we’re in the States, the kids could really use some new furniture. In fact, right now they’re sleeping on mattresses on the floor with little piles of clothing stacked all around them. C’mon WFB, help us out, and FAST (why? See #2).

2. There will soon be three of them ~ My third child is due at the end of April. A three year old, a two year old, and pretty soon a newborn with no furniture. I know, I’m a bit ashamed myself. Still, that’s a lot of furniture to acquire at a time when splurging on things like children’s furniture just isn’t in the cards. Again, WFB – we could really use your help

3. We’ve already made great plans for it ~ Don’t believe me? Check out this adorable toddler’s room thrown together on a super tight budget.

Inspiration Piece – Sunday Funnies Dresser

Toddler Spring Garden Party Room

Note: The colors of the actual items are much brighter than they appear in these images

Lavender Gingham Panels from Target ~ $6 (Darn, these SOLD OUT)
LED accent lamps from Target ~ $11
Ikea Lack Bookshelf ~ $129
Garden Party Sheet Set from Target ~ $20 SOLD OUT
Flower Wall Peg set from Target ~ $11
Ikea Lack Table ~ $13
Scandi Bean Bag from Target ~ $30

If I win, I’ll probably grab a box spring from Craigslist and then attempt a DIY picket fence headboard.

For a cheap way to finish off the look, I’ll use tons of these around the room

The paper flowers are from Oriental Trading Co, 12 for $5.99 – I found nylon flowers similar to these at Hobby Lobby in all sorts of bright colors really cheap

That’s a complete girls room fully decorated for just $230, that’s a price tag I can live with

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