Halloween magazines

They started showing up in grocery stores and magazine aisles a month ago. I was very impressed with Martha Stewart's Halloween magazine last year, and I've been anxiously awaiting it to come out again this year. Well, yesterday my wish came true! It isn't the cheapest magazine ($9.99), but if you love Halloween like I do, it's definitely worth the money. There were some really great decorating ideas that I had never thought of or seen before. One example was instructions for how to make spider egg sacs using a foam egg, a white nylon stocking, and plastic spiders. It truly looked like a big egg sac about to burst with tons of baby spiders...creepy! There were also instructions on making your porch look like it's been taken over by giant spiders, with webbing covering everything except a tiny slit for an entrance. There are tons of great recipes, too, of course, as well as costumes for kids and adults. It's a pretty thick magazine, and I had a lot of fun looking through it and getting new ideas.

In the check-out aisle, I also grabbed a little Betty Crocker booklet called Fall Baking. I couldn't resist buying something with grinning jack-o-lantern cake pops on the cover. The booklet is loaded with delicious-sounding recipes that I am already dying to try. Some that really caught my eye are the Trick-or-Treat Cheesecake, Gingerbread Cupcakes, and tons of different flavored cobblers. I am really looking forward to making (and enjoying!) these little goodies.

My favorite time of year is finally almost here. Halloween and Fall are showing up everywhere, and the weather should soon be cooling off with Autumn's arrival. The leaves will soon be turning their gorgeous colors of orange, red and yellow, and pumpkins will be popping up on porches and walkways. I already have a Fall and Halloween banner hanging in my yard to welcome the season! Very soon, that smell that I love so much--raging fire pits and wood stoves--will fill the air. I am already filled with excitement!