Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

These cupcakes are soooo easy and are an adorable addition to any Thanksgiving feast!

To make these pumpkins, all you need is:

Any flavor cupcakes

Tootsie Rolls for the stems

Green Tootsie Rolls for the vines

Bright orange icing (or white icing dyed with yellow and red food coloring- mix to sight)

All you have to do is top the cupcakes with the orange icing.  Cut the tootsie rolls in half in a diagonal angle, and put one half of a tootsie roll on the center top of each cupcake.  Roll out the Green Tootsie Rolls until they are very skinny, cut them to any length you desire, and then twirl them to make a vine look.  Add them to the cupcakes so that it looks like the vine is coming out of the stem.  Viola!  You have a good looking edible patch of pumpkins!

Thanksgiving is fast approaching

Those of us who are preparing (both physically and mentally) to host a family Thanksgiving dinner this year know it is quickly approaching.  Of course its not a hard decision to come up with the basic menu since most of the norms are expected, but we all have that little twinkling in our eye to come up with something a little different or fun to impress our guests.  Well hopefully I can make your job a little easier with these cute Thanksgiving ideas.  Enjoy!

Pumpkin Deviled Eggs

So simple, just add the spice and a green olive to make it a pumpkin!

{image from Foodista}

Pumpkin Oranges and Clementines

Just take the peel off and add a celery stock and you've got a pumpkin!

{image from halfhourmeals}

Mini Caramel Apple Bites

Scoop the apple, stick it with a toothpick and dip it in the caramel.  Easy, yummy fingerfood!

{Image from EatPrayWearLove}

Hersey's Acorn Bites

Eatable decorations, who could ask for more!  Hershey's Kisses, and Nutter Butter Bites.

{Image from Learnist}

Donut Acorn Bites

Donut holes, chocolate icing, brown sprinkles and pretzel sticks

{Image source unknown}

Rice Krispie Pumpkins

Orange Rice Krispie balls, rolos and green tootsie rolls

 {Image from grinandbakeit}

Personal-Size Pumpkin Pies
I made these beauties last year and they turned out so precious!  Check out the how-to and original post here

Warm Grown-Up Apple Cider
Add some caramel vodka and cinnamon sticks to spice up your apple cider, YUM!

{Image from Cookingincollege}

Pumpkin Cake
Try putting two bunt cakes together to create a pumpkin cake!  So simple and SO cute!

{Image source unknown}

Flower Bread
This idea isn't necessarily Thanksgiving, but its not NOT Thanksgiving, so why not, right?!  

{Image source unknown}

Pumpkin Pie Bites
Self explanatory, YUM!

{Image from Bakerella}

Don't forget, even if you aren't hosting a Thanksgiving get together, you can always bring these puppies along to gain some points with the fam.  I'm sure they will be appreciated :)

Place Card Holders

Hello lovelies!  I have conjured up some ideas for some inexpensive place card holders that are perfect for your super awesome wedding coming up or your next dinner party.  Cute details like place card holders or food markers don't have to be expensive (heck they can even be free) but they add some adorable pizzaz to any party.

Pine Cones

You can either buy a bag of them find them on trees yourself, but either way they are easy to get your hands on!  If you want to spice it up a bit try using a bag of the scented pine cones! You can find some at your local hobby lobby or home goods store.

{Image and idea from Paper Playne}

Wine Corks

You can easily upcycle your own wine corks or if you don't drink I'm sure it won't be too hard to scrounge some out of your friends!  Put a little slit in them and viola!  One of the pictures is from an Etsy shop selling them with flowers on top.  It wouldn't be too hard to super glue your own flower or embellishment of your own choosing!  Get creative with it and go with the theme...

{Image and idea from Etsy}

{image source unknown}

Airplane Bottles

This could get a little pricey, but depending on how much you were wanting to spend on wedding or party favors, this could be a real treat.  Plus most people will actually take their favor home (or use it at the event- which could make for some silly dancing memories.)

{Image from Melissa Jill Photography}

Animal Figurines
While this DIY could get time consuming if you have a lot of guests, it could be inexpensive and adorable.  Buy a box of animal kids toys and spray paint them and cut a slit in the middle.  Easy Peasy.

{Image and idea from Emmaline Bride}

Greenery
Along the same lines as pincones, these teeny branches can be taken off of your local trees at no cost to you!  It doesn't have to be pine, any sticks, tree limb or flower will do.  Make it how you want it.

{source of image: unknown}

Wooden Spools
If you're having a rustic themed wedding, these are the place holders for you!  I'm sure your grandma has a few lying around that she wouldn't mind sharing!  I think they would be super cute painted gold!

{image and idea from Etsy}

Stick It In A Fork

Literally.  Yup.  By far the most inexpensive idea I've seen and I honestly think it is just as cute as the others!

{Image from Style Me Pretty}

I'd love to hear any other cute ideas you guys have!  Feel free to share! Happy Tuesday everybody...

Smokey Mountains Majesty

{ this is a totally unrelated picture of some trees in my parents' neighborhood..  It was just too pretty not to post }

Every Tuesday my Glafenhein side of the family has a family dinner.  Absolutely love it.  Getting to be around family and eat meals with them is one of the best parts about being back in K-town!  Even better, Wil's GooGoo (grandma) and Papa Bill (granddad) get to drive in from Sevierville for dinner every other Tuesday.  It is such a blessing.

So, yesterday was like every other Tuesday night.  After hours of yummy food, good talks and a good while of lounging on the couch to work off all the food we just ate, people started trickling out.  We started to head out and I could not for the life of me find my phone.  Which is pretty weird because I hardly ever lose anything and am especially good at keeping track of what Wil looses.  So after I look around for a while the whole family starts getting into the search.  Couch cushions were lifted, pots and plates were shifted and steps were traced.  I literally did not know where else to look.  In desperation I would lift up perfectly flat plates off the counter and look under them.   After about 20 minutes of the whole house looking for my phone, someone had a thought that maybe Wil's grandparents took it with them thinking that it was theirs.  (They had left about 45 minutes earlier)  We call them up, and sure enough the accident had been made.  (On a really great side note, Wil's grandmother DOES have an I-Phone and is very tech-savvy in using it, so it was a very easy and honest mistake for her to make- no hard feelings at all)  However, it did mean that my phone was in Seviervill and I was in Knoxville.

Basically, that was a dramatic tale of why I was without my phone for the day.  And ya'll, being completely honest.  I.  Loved.  It.

Now don't get me wrong; I love my phone and am so thankful for the technology that allows me to be connected to the world in an instant and lets me keep in touch with family and friends etc.  But man oh man was it a relaxing and freeing to have no phone for a little bit.

I took a walk and talked with God- instead of my usual reading of emails or texting friends.  I read the Bible without being distracted. I organized my room a little bit.  I made breakfast and enjoyed the view while I ate.  I sang acapella to myself and got a really good laugh out of it.  I had no idea what time it was for a while.  I wasn't worried about missing a call or a text because there was nothing I could do about it.  Man oh man it was freeing.

So, as crazy as it sounds, I am so thankful that GooGoo and Papa Bill accidentally took my phone last night.  God used that time- however short it was- to just bring me back to reality for a little bit and help me breathe a little better.

And while the 2 hour drive today was not exactly ideal, the sky was crystal clear and the landscape was Majestic.  There were a couple of times that I actually said "WOW" to myself in the car and at one point I busted out "OH BEAUTIFUL FOR SPACIOUS SKIES, FOR AMBER WAVES OF GRAIN! FOR PURPLE MOUNTAINS MAJESTY, ABOVE THE FRUITED PLAINS!!"

I literally couldn't help myself.

There was a little weight lifted off my shoulders today that was replaced with a gentle embrace by my Father.  God is so sweet and knew exactly what I needed.

I am so thankful.