Halloween has been a month long event here at our house.  We got dressed in our costumes no less than a billion times and attended at least half a dozen parties as well as hosting one for all of my little guy’s friends.  I’m now raiding the boys candy stash and recovering by convincing my husband that I need to take long naps.

We’ve been reading a lot of Halloween picture books about monsters and other spooky things this month.  I reviewed Jeremy Draws a Monster, Goodnight Goon, Leonardo the Terrible Monster, Where’s My Mummy, Dear Vampa, and A Very Hairy Scary Story.  I had many more books in my pile that I thought for sure I would also review this month including Billy Bones: The Road to Nevermore,  Frankenstein Takes the Cake, There Was An Old Monster!, Gris Grimly’s Wicked Nursery Rhymes, Thirteen O’Clock, Three Little Ghosties, and Spooky ABC.  There’s always next Halloween right?  I’m also halfway through Frankenstein by Mary Shelley which I didn’t finish for my face-to-face book club and Heather’s Dueling Monster’s Read-a-long.  I’m still planning  a review of that one.

As many of you know from the past photos of my husband that he’s a bit crazy about Halloween costumes.  The past few years he’s dressed up as Edward Scissorhands, Willy Wonka, and the Joker.  He pulls them all off and looks great!  Normally he works on the costume all year but everything changed this time around when Michael Jackson died.  So yes, we succumbed to one of the most popular costumes this year and each of us dressed up as a different era in Michael Jackson’s life.

I know many of you have asked if Taylor won his office Halloween costume contest this year after winning two years in a row.  In the morning he arrived as the black Thriller Michael Jackson and then at lunch time he changed to the white Billy Jean Michael Jackson (as seen in the pics above).  It was hilarious because he came out dancing.

But did he win?  Well, he got second place.  Just take a look at the following photo and take a wild guess at who won (my husband even spent two nights helping his friend out with the winning costume – I swear I want to borrow it one day, it’s so cool).

I’d love to share some video with you of my husband dancing because he danced a ton!  We are putting one together and I’ll add it in here and tweet the link as well when it goes up.  It was really nuts.  He really pulled off the look!

And well, to make the post a bit more bookish, guess who we ran into during our Halloween activities?  Brandon Mull:

It was a fun time with the Jackson Four at our house!

What’s your favorite Michael Jackson look?  Favorite song?  So many kids didn’t know who we were!  Luckily, we brainwashed our kids.  They loved it.  And know quite a few dance moves themselves.

*ahem*  Can I just mention that my husband lost 40 lbs for this role!  He looks fantastic!  Now I need tips on how to convince him to get rid of that ponytail . . .

So I decided that it was high time that I actually read the book.  And I must admit that there was no way that I could read the book without the movies influencing me.  I was constantly comparing them to each other and taking note of how both movies adapted the book to screen.  So I feel like I have now come full circle and finally discovered the words that inspired both movies.

Do I even need to summarize?  The infamous Willy Wonka hasn’t shown his face in years and is opening his factory to five lucky children for a tour and a promise of something grand and wonderful to one of them.  Augustus Gloop, Veruca Salt, Violet Beauregarde, Mike Teavee and Charlie Bucket (how could you forget those names?) all get more than they bargained for in Wonka’s wild and crazy factory.

I found Charlie and the Chocolate Factory delightful.  Dahl is a master storyteller and the book was fun to read.  I did find that although the book was short, I found myself unable to read it straight through.  Not sure why I needed little breaks from the narration.   It’s a perfect book to read-a-loud as a family or one-on-one with younger kids.  It’s fast paced and funny.  A story for everybody of all ages to enjoy.

As soon as I finished, I had to put in the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Johnny Depp version) movie and and have it playing now.  This review is taking me forever because I keep watching the movie instead.  I’m not going to go into a movie critique  at all.  Suffice it to say that there are noticeable differences in both movies from the book which I think make both stories better.  It’s fun to see which dialogue they’ve changed and what they’ve kept especially has I have the book fresh in my mind.

And to prove just how influential this story is in our household, check out these family photos from about three years ago:

Can I just mention that I sewed that vest?  Because I don’t sew.  So I was  impressed with myself.  And for those who will ask (because they always do) – yes, that is my husband’s real  hair.

I read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl as part of Banned Books Week.  In 1988, a Colorado librarian placed the book in a locked vault because she thought that it espoused a poor philosophy of life.  I would highly recommend reading this essay entitled Charlie and the Political Correctness Factory which I found very enlightening about how Dahl changed some of his text after it was printed and the changes made in the movie.

Links of interest:  Roald Dahl website.  Other Maw Books reviews: James and the Giant Peach (which I reviewed last year for Banned Books Week),  The Witches and yesterday’s post about the Mike Teavee song lyrics (where I ask which movie you liked better).
Genre:  Juvenile Fiction.  Approx ages 9-12.
Publisher:   Puffin.  June 1998.  Originally published 1964.
Paperback, 176 pages.  ISBN 0141301155
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is available from your favorite independent bookstore, Powell’s, and Amazon.

The following photo is all the ingredients for the pie.  The recipe said to make your own Nilla wafer pie crust, but hey, I’m a woman of convenience and just bought it instead!  Basically, you take one box of instant chocolate and vanilla pudding and  mix it with 1 1/2 cups of milk.  Add two cups of softened ice cream, pour into pie shell, chill and serve.

My three year old helped make the pie while his brother was taking a nap.  Between the two of us it took less than ten minutes to make.  Easy!  My little guy insisted upon doing everything by himself.  And the beauty of this recipe was that he could!

And it’s done!  The tin foil plate isn’t the prettiest but who cares!

The birthday boy really excited!

We served the pie with fresh cut strawberries with a little whip cream on top.  Seriously, so yummy!  Blowing out the candles:

I have no idea what’s up with this face.

We had a wonderful and simple birthday celebration and the yummy chocolate pudding pie made it completely stress free.  I will definitely make it again!  Thank you Ingrid Law!

Ingrid Law’s website and blog.
Maw Books Savvy book review and interview with Ingrid Law (including the recipe for the chocolate pie).
Savvy is available from your local independent bookstore, Powell’s, Barnes and Noble and Amazon.
Enjoy this post?  More recipes from your favorite authors.

A Thousand Never Evers centers around an event that takes place in a community garden that is supposed to be shared by both blacks and whites, but somebody sabotages the garden by overplanting it with butter bean seeds and successfully chocking out everything else.   In the note to the readers, Shana mentions that as part of her research for the novel she baked butter bean cookies.  As butter beans play a large role in the book, I knew right away that I had to ask her about that, which she graciously did during our author interview.

So here we are baking butter bean cookies!  Dang. I’ve got the cutest kids. Here’s my littlest ready to get in on the action. As you can see, he’s already gotten into the flour.

When my husband saw the following photo, he said ewww. Yes, those would be the butter beans which are being substituted for half of the butter in the recipe.  More protein and half the butter!  Not bad.  I wasn’t sure at what point to put in the beans but a quick email to Shana (who was so excited that she eagerly emailed later to see how they turned out) clarified that they are put in straight from the start.

Doesn’t he look so proud of himself.

This was the first time I let my youngest have at the beaters.

Shana recommends putting extra cocoa into the batter to make the cookie not only extra chocolaty but also to help the white bean that we’ll put on top “pop.”

And this is the batter ready to be placed by spoonfuls onto the cookie sheet. You would never know that there are beans in there. They blended in nicely.

And there you go! The finished product!

Halfway through the baking time I slide the cookies out and placed one butter bean on top. My husband begged me to only do this to half of the recipe. So half had beans on top and the other half were plain.

My husband, Taylor, checking it out. He much preferred the cookies without the bean on top.   Actually, I think he would have just liked normal chocolate chip cookies (I NEVER make them – my preferred cookie of choice is snickerdoodle).  And to tell you the truth, if he hadn’t seen the can of butter beans and seen me make the recipe, he wouldn’t have known that there were any beans in there at all. Visually, I don’t think he could handle it.

My oldest loved the cookies! He did however gag when he bit into the bean on top. That didn’t stop him from eating tons more, he just chose the cookies without the bean and was none the wiser about beans actually being inside the cookie!

This guy just likes cookies no matter what.

I’m so embarrassed to put an out of focus photo on my blog, but these are the happy little guys after filling up on cookies.  Very happy.

If you’d like to try something a little different, do check out Shana’s instructions for butter bean cookies. I would love to try it again but use white chocolate chip cookies, they would go nicely with the darker color.  And these would be perfect refreshments or activity for a book club.  I love how baking these cookies took me into the book in such a fun way!

Links of interest:  Butter Bean cookie recipe.  Shana Burg’s website and blog.  My book review and author interview with Shana Burg.

But Donna Gephart doesn’t leave you hanging, she graciously includes the lemon square recipe at the back of the book.  I had the privilege to interview Donna back in October and I of course asked about the recipe.  She said, “I love when readers (adults and children) write to tell me they’ve made the recipe from my book.  I like anything that enhances the experience of reading.  I found the lemon squares recipe on the Internet, but tinkered with it quite a bit, especially cutting down the sugar.  It was fun experimenting in my kitchen to get the taste just right.”

So of course I had to make them!  Writing this post up while sitting next to my husband, is making him say, “Mmm . . .  I want a lemon bar!”  Seriously, my husband said these were the best lemon bars that he has ever tasted.  So there you go Donna, you did good.

My two little boys excited to help mommy in the kitchen.

My three year old thought the lemon was yummy after I squeezed it:

And this picture was just too cute to not post:

The dry ingredients for the crust:

And the crust ready to put into the oven to bake:

And wha-la! The crust after it’s been baked! The crust has lemon zest in it, which I think gave the lemon bars a yummy flavor. The part the I usually don’t like is the crust, but this one had lots of flavor in it. I love citrus tastes, so I’m tempted to put more in it next time.

(My husband just said again that he wants lemon bars – he’s getting hungry just looking at the photos!)   My little guy loves, loves, loves the beaters.  Here he is whipping up the filling:

Ready to be poured onto the crust:

And right before it’s to go into the oven:

The recipe said to bake for just six minutes but my oven took almost twice that long for the filling to set. Here they are straight out of the oven:

And putting my photography skills to good use. Don’t they look yummy!!!

I loved them, my husband really LOVED them. This guy however wouldn’t even try one.  Weird that way.

But this guy couldn’t shovel them into his mouth fast enough!  He was always reaching for the next one even though his mouth was already full. If I had let him, he would have eaten the whole pan!

If you would like to make these lemon bars, the entire recipe can be found in my interview with Donna Gephart.  I’m sure she would love to know if you end up making them.  And I’m thrilled to try out another book/character inspired recipe!  These would be the perfect treat for a mother/daughter book club, or to make as part of the activity, or simply because they are so yummy!

Links of interest:  Don’t forget to check out my book review of As If Being 12 3/4 Isn’t Bad Enough My Mother is Running for President.  And the interview and recipe again.  Also visit Donna Gephart’s website and blog.

Want more recipes from your favorite authors?  Check out my author recipes archive. My next recipe?  Shauna Burg’s, author of A Thousand Never Evers, butter bean cookies!  Yes, beans in cookies!  They were delicious!  Yes, that would be beans.  In.  Cookies.

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Books mentioned in the video:

The Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton (love how he has this one memorized!), Dora the Explorere- Choo Choo (he’s never seen the video ever, he just loves the train sounds), Noah’s Big Boat: A Lift-the-Flap Bible Book by Allia Zobel Nolan, illustrated by Steve Cox (lift the flap books are always a huge hit, this one was a gift from their grandparents – they love it), Richard Scarry’s First Little Learners Colors (who doesn’t love Richard Scarry!).

I’ve just asked my kids to bring me the books we talked about in the video. They have now emptied their entire bookshelf onto my bed!  I literally have a pile of books now surrounding me and more keep coming!

What are some of the books that you have to read over and over to  your kids?  To the point where they have them memorized?

I love it when I wake up in the morning to a transformed world.  I love it even better when I have nowhere to go.  We snuggle in and cuddle on the couch.  I like the snow best when I can just look at it but not drive in it or feel how cold it is.  Sometimes I do wonder why we don’t live somewhere with more mild temperatures.  I’m a sun girl myself.

Snow by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Lauren Stringer is a memorable book that brought back a lot of wonderful childhood memories of the wonder I felt when it snowed.  Told in poetic verse and beautiful illustrations, Snow explores the different kinds of snow.  Snow that comes softly in the night and brings you peace, snow that is fat and cheerful that makes you not want to be at school or work.  Snow that will send you back home to where everything is right and happy.  Snow that falls lightly, snow that falls heavy.  Children love snow better than anyone does and the snow loves them back.  Snow reminds us that nothing except memories last forever.  The memories of snow angels, and snowmen, a beautiful world, our white, quiet homes, warm drinks and board games.

Recommended for your own snow days.  This is our favorite snow photo from last year:

And many of you may remember our huge snowman:

Of course, we’ve been out in the snow this year:

As the jacket cover says: Soft snow.  Heavy Snow.  Light snow.  Fat snow.  Which one do you love the best?

It has been a wonderful year!!! I have found myself grateful for the friendships that I have formed because of the awesome community that exists online and for my friends and family who have supported me this year.  I would like to wish you all very happy holidays and a merry Christmas from my family to yours!

May this season bring you and your family many blessings.

Merry Christmas!

See, the Christmas Mouse knows the frustration of parents with children underfoot on Christmas Eve.  They are really excited at the thought of what Christmas morning will bring, but as far as Christmas Eve goes, children need something to keep them occupied.  The Christmas Mouse also knows how important reading is (and watching movies as a family).  So he’s come up with the perfect solution.  When he knows the children aren’t watching he puts his plan into action.  The children soon notice that he’s going missing and they happily set out to find him.  He can always be found sitting atop a large wrapped package that he’s sneaked into the house.

Inside that package is a wonderful surprise.  Books!  Movies!  Games!  Something to add to the family library and a book that suits each family members interests.  Now the family is happy and content on Christmas Eve as they snuggle into the couch with a good book.

Do you have a mouse in your house?  Hmm . . . maybe you should!

Sigh . . .  what a difference a year makes.  They’ve gotten so much bigger since last Christmas.  Seriously, this is one of my most favorite and memorable Christmas traditions that I grew up with and I have continued in my own home.  My parents instilled a love of reading in me through this tradition.  They knew that books would be tossed aside if given to us on Christmas day, so they decided to gift them on Christmas Eve.  How it became to be that the mouse delivered the package, I’m not sure.  But when I got married, I found the exact same mouse I grew up with on Ebay.  Two years ago, the mouse even delivered the news to my in-laws that I was expecting our second child.  He’s very much loved in our family (the mouse – but we do love the baby too!).  I love, love this literary Christmas tradition.

Would you like the Christmas Mouse to visit your home this year?  If so, just share with me any ideas that you may have for other Christmas traditions involving books.  Not necessarily gifting them, but anything!  The Christmas Mouse will virtually visit your home in the form of a $10 Amazon gift certificate.  I’ll announce the winner this Wednesday the 17th.  Short and sweet!

Today is the 15th day of the Blog Advent tour, also posting today are Somewhere in Between and Wendy from Caribou’s Mom.  And make sure to check out all the other stops on the tour, there are some great posts about Christmas traditions from around the world.

It all started when I was reading Katherine Center’s book The Bright Side of Disaster and her main character was eating a Mexican tomato lime soup, and I really, really wanted to try it. So I was delighted that Katherine was willing to share it.  And it was to die for delicious! So that’s how this whole thing got started. Since then, I’ve asked all authors to share a recipe. I’ve since made Shannon Hale’s zucchini soup (post still coming on that one) and am anxious to try the others I’ve accumulated.

If you like chocolate, cream, and don’t have an aversion to a few extra calories (personally, I don’t) than I have the yummiest cookie for you! Cynthia Lord’s Whoopie Pies! Cynthia is the Newbery Honor author of Rules, a wonderful book of a young girl has she comes to terms with her little brother’s autism. Of her whoopie pies Cynthia says, “My mom makes great whoopie pies. When I was growing up, it was always a special treat when she made them. They are a New England specialty–a bit like a moon pie in other parts of the US, but different, too.”

Here’s my progress photos:

There you have it!  The yummy final result!

And let’s not forget these two little guys!  That’s why making cookies is so much fun in the first place!

Those are two happy kids.

Salivating?  Find the entire recipe here.

And still even better, I found a perfect reason to whip these up. While browsing through blogs I realized that Stephanie, on the Cybils picture book panel and organizer of the Children’s Literature Book Club was right here in Salt Lake City.  So I did something that I’ve never done before. I emailed a perfect stranger and asked if I could become a member of their book club.   I was really nervous.  But man!  What a wonderful book club!  I couldn’t have felt more welcome.  The hostess was amazing.   I mean amazing.  She knew how to entertain! We discussed three Young Adult books: Little Brother by Cory Doctrow, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart, and Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City by Kirsten Miller.   I don’t have reviews up on them yet, but the discussion was fun.  For December we are reading all Christmas picture books.  How fun is that?  Before I walked out the door to go, I asked my husband, “Am I crazy?   I’m going to a book club and I don’t know anybody?”  He replied, “Making new friends who have the same interests as you? That doesn’t sound crazy to me.”   I love him.

So anyways, I’m now attending a new book club in addition to my neighborhood book club and the Rich Women Sisterhood Book Club that I moderate via a tele-conference call.  Three book clubs?  Yes, I’m crazy.  But at least I’ll have some yummy whoopie pies to keep me company!