Monster Cereal Treats!

In 2011 we made some cereal treats to bring to a Halloween party. We used Count Chocula, Boo Berry, and Frankenberry cereals. Cereal treats use marshmallows and those cereals have little marshmallows in them, so the idea just seemed natural. They're much more festive than regular Rice Krispies treats. It's also fun cutting up the cereal boxes to make the little signs.



This has kind of become our thing now. Last year we even made Lucky Charms treats to bring to a St. Patrick's Day party. Unfortunately I neglected to get a photo.

This year we were going to a Halloween party again, and it just so happened to be the year that saw the return of classic monster cereals Frute Brute and Fruity Yummy Mummy, so we made treats out of those! I also bought a bag of pumpkin spice marshmallows, so we made a batch of pumpkin spice Rice Krispies treats. Although I normally love pumpkin spice anything, I wasn't really a fan of these for some reason. The cherry flavored Frute Brute treats and orange cream flavored Yummy Mummy treats were wonderful though. The colors of all the treats this year were pretty autumny.

LEGO Daniel is dressed up as a pirate for Halloween!

And he used his cutlass to carve that pumpkin into a Jack-O-Lantern!

Ghost Halloween mini paper lanterns.

I know I really talked up those Jack-O-Lantern Halloween mini paper lanterns last year, but as cool as they are, after having all of them up for a short time, I realized the ghost ones are clearly better. The black paper looks surprisingly great lit up, I like the little ghosts, and it's a bit difficult to get the faces on the Jack-O-Lantern ones to line up how you want them. There are ghosts on every side of the ghost ones though, so you don't have to worry at all about how they line up.

Ghost Halloween mini paper lanterns for the win!

Halloween Mood Table 2013

I wasn't sure Matt from Dinosaur Dracula was going to put together or post about a Halloween mood table this year, but I'm really glad he did. It has become an important tradition for me, even though I have only been doing it for a few years. So last night while listening to music that I consider to be seasonal and sipping apple cider, I put my Halloween mood table together as well.



Not a lot has changed. Same scarf and table I always use. There are speakers under the table again, so I can plug in my iPod anytime and blast the aforementioned music. This was probably the most exciting improvement last year, and it's still just as exciting. Trick Or Treat, Chickadee.

The werewolf figure is back weirding everyone out (or turning them on) with his tight, unbuttoned shorts.

Behind the werewolf is a half-eaten bag of Starburst candy corn. I really dislike regular candy corn, but it's such an iconic Halloween candy that I always feel like I'm missing out. This year, Starburst gave me another chance! I was afraid I still wouldn't like them, but they're not bad. But that's probably obvious from the fact that I ate half of them before October even started.

The LEGO minifigures are back, including last year's LEGO Dinosaur Dracula. But hold on, a new horrifying minifigure moved into Table Town. A glow in the dark ghost! It's such a classic figure, and it's from one of my favorite sets when I was a kid, Black Monarch's Ghost.



One obvious new addition is the adorable paper lantern. I actually got that last year late in the Halloween season and neglected to post about it. My sister bought three of them from a dollar store, kept one, and gave the other two to our cousin and me. Lantern buddies!



My sister's is the jack-o-lantern, our cousin's is the ghost, and of course mine is Frankenstein's monster.

Another new addition is two scented candles in jars that the same cousin mentioned above gave me. They're merchandise from the very Halloweeny movie The Nightmate Before Christmas, and each candle has different art on its label, which is very cool. The scents are Mountain Berry and Black Cherry.

Unlike some people he overhears in restaurants...

LEGO Daniel's very interested in the mating habits of the pink flamingo.



I know it's huge and kind of ostrich-esque, but I think that's a little bit revealing about said mating habits, isn't it?

And yes, I cheated by connecting the neck to the body using tape. Go ahead and call the LEGO police. They'll never take me alive!

Eavesdropping, Part I: Know-It-All

Droppin' eaves left and right.

I overheard part of a conversation between two people in a restaurant today. It may not be ethical, but it can be fascinating.

"I know I sound like a know-it-all... but I'm really not, because if I open up the Encyclopedia, I don't know any of that stuff. I really only know about stuff that I'm interested in. I'm not interested in the mating habits of the pink flamingo."

Happy Birthday, Lava Lamp!

The lava lamp (also known as the astro lamp) was invented 50 years ago today in 1963. Fun Fact: I have a lava lamp on my desk.

To celebrate, LEGO Daniel is hanging out with his lava lamp all day.

Fun Fact: When I was a kid, the LEGO town I had in my room had a few lava lamps in it, and I built them the exact same way, using a goblet as the base. Then years later, LEGO released a VW bus set with the same exact lava lamp in it.