November is upon us and in many parts of the United States, temperatures are finally starting to drop a bit. Last night, it was in the 40s here in New Orleans, which led to a lot of trick-or-treaters staying indoors. We still had about forty kids come by and yes, despite being healthy, we don’t see a major problem with Halloween. It is one night.
I know, it’s been a while since we did week in pics! It’s been super busy: Fit got a new job and is committed to also doing a lot of work on her novel and Hungry has grand plans for similar yet different pursuits. We’ve had fun with Halloween and a little escape to Idyllwild in between.
Been hitting up plenty of workouts
I’ve known what my Halloween costume was going to be for almost a year. As soon as I saw Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I knew I wanted to be Rey. She was such a cool figure in the Star Wars universe, a different female role than in any previous Star Wars film–she inspired me! Beside that, I had a lot of people tell me that they were really reminded of me when they saw Rey in the new Star Wars. I knew I had to do it!
When does a costume become a cosplay? Perhaps when you create a costume based on a “real” character and put real effort into simulating that character. Then you really play that character (see what I did there). I’m not quite sure. But I do know for a fact that I have never put this much effort into a costume before! I’ve never really wanted to be a certain character very badly, but I was so drawn to Rey!
Got to hang with some friends
Beginning to look a lot like Fall…
PUMPKIN SEEDS. Yup. I know that you’re probably chock full of unhealthy Halloween treats like candy, pumpkin-flavored sugar bombs, and things that are weighing you down. So in between your sugar comas, try making this healthy Halloween snack: toasted pumpkin seeds. Plus, it’s incredibly easy. Takes almost no effort and the time is just in the baking of the seeds. Pumpkin seeds have a good amount of protein per ounce!
With Halloween coming up tomorrow, you want to make sure you and others around you are well-fed! Whether you are trick or treating, partying, giving out candy, or just enjoying yourself, a good meal is essential. That’s why Hungry and I have come up with the ultimate Halloween Soup. It’s really not as spooky as it sounds–well it is terrifyingly good, I suppose. Aaaand it doesn’t photograph well nor is it pretty at all, but remember LOOKS don’t matter when it comes to deliciousness. It’s a very simple recipe, but yields terrific results. It’s perfect for the autumn weather–will bring you warm, happy feelings as you slurp it down.
That’s one fine pumpkin
Enjoy this Halloween with friends, family, and beyond. Remember to be safe, don’t drink and drive, and don’t let your little ones out without a full belly! No one likes hangry children (yes I said hangry)…or adults for that matter. So fill yourself with goodness and have a very Happy Halloween. And as always… stay hungry and fit!
This conversation is sponsored by Silk. The opinions and text are all ours.
We live in an apartment complex where kids wouldn’t exactly walk up to. There’s plenty of college kids living here and some other sketchy folk, so we decided to not give out here. We decided that we (Chris, cousins, & co.) would go to my aunt’s house in a very much-more family-friendly area. It’s also big, spacious and lovely. The perfect spot for some Halloween fun.
As soon as I was out of work, I raced home with a huge list of things to bring on my mind. First, I made some of my guacamole (which I ended up having to make a second batch because people [CHRIS] ate all of it before the main dish was out). Then, I put the pumpkins in the car, the Halloween cookies, the laundry (yes we brought our laundry over), CANDY, red wine, and apple cider. Was that it? Oh yes, and the kittens! It was the first time they’ve been over to my aunt’s house since they’ve finally gotten their Rabies shots (yay!). So I shoved both of them in the cat carrier and headed over to my aunt’s house.
Once there, I found Megan (my cousin) already preparing her wild-caught fish tacos. It was a big project, but she used top-notch ingredients, even made her own aioli chipotle sauce. She battered them in panko breadcrumbs, turned out absolutely fabulous. Fred, her boyfriend, and his brother made a top notch cole-slaw that would go on top. And then my guacamole on top of that. It was amazing. Seriously. Better than any taco place can give out. Just LOOK at it.
Main show of the feast, everyone put a little something in and it turned out to be excellent
We had a lovely appetizer of bread and baked brie with a chipotle cranberry sauce (might have been pomegranate, never get it right). Again, delicious.
We put on Monsters Inc. (the most Halloween-y movie we could find) and enjoyed our dinner immensely. As soon as we were done, Chris immediately wanted to put the cookies in the oven. They’re his favorite kind of cookies. Basic sugar cookies with Halloween deco on them.
And they didn’t last too long….
By the time these were done with, we really couldn’t move. All on the couch, kitties laying peacefully across us (why didn’t I get pics of that?!), blissfully enjoying our full bellies.
And of course, the mess in the kitchen was as usual (and as should be!) after any well-prepared feast. And Ben (my other cousin) cleaned everything up, thanks Ben!
Overall, it was a great Halloween, full of food, friends, and family (what else matters, really?). The only bummer was that we only got three batches of trick or treaters. We would get so excited when the doorbell rings I think we kind of scared them off. Anyways, it was a great time.
Nymeria didn’t like her outfit as much as we did.
Happy Halloween!
Yikes, what a long title. Anyways, I’m here to bring you something that could be possibly even more amazing than carving a pumpkin…its seeds. As some of my friends may know (cough LENA), I absolutely love pumpkin seeds. In fact, I love them so much I can eat a whole container of them (sorry, Esther). The flavor of it, the grittiness, the amount of protein in the middle. There’s no downside (at least for me, but Chris doesn’t like how long it can stay in his mouth).
Indeed, it’s a great protein source. Did you know that one ounce of pumpkin seeds can give you 9.35 grams of protein? Not bad! Well said, Watto. And it is so easy it’s not even funny. We carved our pumpkins with paring knives (that was the hard part) and then I gutted them. I have memories of my dad letting my brother and I draw faces on our pumpkins, he would cut it, then let me do all the dirty work of grabbing its seeds and goo. And I loved it. So of course, I was the one to do it this time. But I was not going to throw them out, oh no! I collected all the seeds from the two pumpkins and prepared them. All in all, it took about an hour. However, 40 minutes of that was cooking time. The rest is easy.
What You Need:
First, set the oven to 350 degrees.
Next, get all the guts of your pumpkin(s) and place them in a strainer. This will take the most work. Have a light flow of water running over the strainer as you pick the seeds from the gunk and place the gunk in the sink.
Once you have all the seeds by themselves, place them into a small mixing bowl.
Place the melted butter into the bowl with the seeds (I used about 3/4 of a tablespoon) and mix around.
Then, shake plenty of salt into the bowl and mix again.
Spread out all the pumpkin seeds as flat as you can on a baking sheet. Then place in the oven from 20-40 minutes (depending on your oven and how many seeds you have) or until golden brown.
And that’s it! Serve and enjoy. I won’t be able to stop munching.
(Nymeria loved eating all the bits of pumpkin dropped on the floor)
So I know that Halloween is still a few weeks away, but it’s one of those holidays that is worth thinking about, if not celebrating, for more than one day and one night. Or half of one night depending how protective parents are of their children, or just how they dictate the celebration of Halloween.
So, in our ideal weekend fashion, we drove our 20 miles ( I’m sorry Earth 🙁 ) to the better AMC theatre in the area. We saw the 9:40 showing of Hotel Transylvania and the 11:45 showing of Frankenweenie. Here are some quick reviews: But first, let me tell you that we guiltily spent more money, almost, on snacks in between movies, than on our tickets. Nearly 20 dollars for some very greasy waffle fries, a small bag of Reeses Pieces, and a small bag of popcorn. It made us feel bad, mentally and physically. Lesson learned? Doubt it.
