Easy Spooky Spider Cupcakes for Halloween

Create a scare if you dare with these spooktacularly delicious spider cupcakes!

Halloween is all about the treats. And listen, we are so here for it. Give us all the excuses for yummy desserts, cute costumes, and the chance to raid our kids’ candy collections straight through to Thanksgiving. (Dibs on the KitKats!).

What we aren’t here for is the free time to make all those Pinterest-worthy desserts and crafts. We wish we had the free time to create bats out of our kids’ sandwiches or bake a life-sized Frankenstein pizza, but sometimes life doesn’t always work out that way.

We’ve worked some of our busy mom-approved witchcraft, and created these adorable spider cupcakes. The best part, (aside from being delicious of course) they only take a few moments to create. In just a few quick and easy steps you will have all that pin-worthy Halloween cuteness, without all the pin-worthy time.

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

• 1 pkg of boxed cupcake mix (we used pumpkin for our cupcakes, but it would look cute with vanilla or chocolate as well!)
• 1 container of frosting
• Tube of decorators frosting
• cupcake liners
• 1 toothpick
• assorted spider rings
• serving tray (we used this striped one and here is a more cost effective one)

HOW TO CREATE YOUR SPOOKY SPIDER CUPCAKES

1: Bake cupcakes according to box instructions. Let cool for approximately half an hour. (Note: If you want to speed up this process you can buy pre-made cupcakes as well. No judgment.)

2: Once your cupcakes have cooled, place frosting on top spreading out generously. Don’t worry about creating any sort of pattern. You want the frosting to be as smooth and flat as possible.

3: Take your decorator’s frosting and cut the end of the tip at an angle. Place a small dot of frosting in the middle of your cupcake. Then place rings of frosting around the dot increasing in size as you go. Repeat for all cupcakes.

4: Take the toothpick, and place it at the center frosting dot. Gently trace a line outward through all the rings. It should start to look connected like a web.

5: Once you’ve connected all the rings, place a spider ring in the center of the cupcake. (Note: We placed ours in the center, but later realized it would also be adorable to place them in any part of the “web”.)

6: Place on serving tray and let everyone enjoy!

WHAT ARE SOME EASY TREATS YOU HAVE PLANNED FOR HALLOWEEN? SHARE WITH US!

Fashion Fix: Homecoming Shoes From Amazon

 It's HOCO season!!!  Such a "fun" time for moms and daughters to search for the perfect dress, shoes and accessories. You read the sarcasm in that sentence, right? It really can be fun, but it can be stressful and frustrating, too!  Trying to find the perfect dress that makes them feel confident about themselves, but that is also mom-approved isn't always the easiest. If you've gotten the dress tackled next comes shoes and jewelry. Like most teenagers, my girls are incredibly busy with school and sports, so it's hard to find time to actually go shoe shopping.  Instead, I have ordered numerous pairs of shoes for my girls to try. I found some great options on Amazon Prime, so it was easy to ship back and return what didn't work. I wanted to share a little roundup of some of our favorites.  Most of these have modest height heels so it's manageable for them to be able to wear all night (or at least through pictures and dinner) and are all very reasonably priced.  Also, all of these come in multiple colors so if there is a style you like be sure to check out all the options! 

    

1. Suede Tie Heels - $41.99

2. Platform Heels - $49.99

3.  Clear Slip-on Heels - $29.00

4. Bow Heels - $52.00

5. Silver Block Heels - $43.00

6. Nude Block Heels - $29.00

7. Rhinestone Block Heels - $39.00

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Preppy Style Inspo (Home & Gifts)

 Preppy and pink has taken over 2023 style in a big way (But really, has either ever been out of style?!). Whether we can thank the reemergence of ‘90’s fashion, or all things Barbie Movie, preppy style has taken over! 

Yeti just released the Power Pink line. Pinterest is filled with pink bedecked rooms. And teen boys everywhere are channeling their inner Zach Morris complete with preppy swimsuits turned shorts down the school halls. 

Our tweens and teens have totally hopped on board this trend, and one is very into making lists of things she loves for ideas, and came up with these two inspo boards. 

| Preppy Bedroom Details |

| Preppy Gift Ideas |

We love seeing these trends through our kids eyes (and are simultaneously impressed that we’d actually live in a room they virtually decorated). 

We can’t wait to see what trend emerges next amongst our younger Magnolias. 

And share with them how we wore it first. 😆

ARE YOUR KIDS INTO ALL THINGS PREPPY AND PINK? WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE RECYCLED TREND? 

Best Books of Summer 2023

 

Summer is almost over (insert crying face), but we'd be disappointed if we didn't at least share one of our favorite parts of summer with you - Summer Reading! Usually this is a post we share at the beginning of the season. This year we decided, instead of a preview, to give you a weeded out selection of the best of the best books we read beach and poolside this year. 

So if you have a Fall Break trip planned, or just want to be cozy with a side of sand, here are our favorites of Summer 2023. 

ROMANCE PICKS

The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren

The Other Year by Rea Frey

Famous for a Living by Melissa Ferguson

Meet Me at the Lake by Carly Fortune

The Honeymoon Crashers by Christina Lauren

The Summer Girl by Elle Kennedy

Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez

Same Time Next Summer  by Annabel Monaghan

SUSPENSE/THRILLER/MYSTERY PICKS

The Only Survivors by Meg Miranda

Drowning by TJ Newman

The Mostly True Store of Tanner & Louise by Colleen Oakley

The Followers by Bradeigh Godfrey

None of This is True by Lisa Jewell

The River We Remember by William Kent Krueger

GENERAL FICTION PICKS

The Summer of Song Birds by Kristy Woodson Harvey

Summer Stage by Meg Mitchell Moore

You Were Always Mine by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza

The Five Star Weekend by Elin Hilderbrand

FANTASY PICKS

Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros

WHAT WERE YOUR FAVORITE BOOKS THIS SUMMER? ANYTHING WE NEED TO ADD TO OUR READING LISTS?

BOOK CLUB 2023

| January | February | March |

Follow along with us on Goodreads!

HAPPY READING! 

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Celebrate 21 Years of Casabella East Cobb!

 Hi friends! It's been awhile since we've graced this little slice of Internet. With school and activities consuming most of the year, we both decided to step back and simply slow down and enjoy summer break. 

Those six weeks were glorious!

And now we're back, refreshed and ready to go! Sort of. :)

We can't think of a better way to reimmerse ourselves back into our routine than with a fun boutique tour and sale! So that's what we are going to do!

Our friends at Casabella are celebrating 21 years of being a part of the East Cobb/Atlanta community with a BIG anniversary party and sale! This Friday and Saturday (August 25 & 26th) the entire store will be on major sale with few exclusions. You'll be able to get 15% off most items, and select green tag items will be 20-50% off. 

If you are in the market for furniture - and you are local - this will be a good opportunity to get quality pieces marked down! Even dining room furniture and headboards will be marked down 20-40% off. 

Also, the sale room (eek!!) will be host to a TON of items marked 50% off. 

 A little birdie told us that a few special features will be going on to make the sale extra fun. Not to mention it's 21, and like all good 21st celebrations, there might be a drink or two. 

Here's a quick little tour of just some of our in-store favorites for seasonal Fall and home decor. With over 12,000 square feet of space, it's hard to share everything we love at Casabella. So, consider this just a small tease and clear your calendar to make your way to the Anniversary Sale to see all the goodness for yourself. 

LOVEing the jewel tones this year! Navys, emerald greens, deep purples - so pretty for Fall! 

Sweater + feather + pumpkins?! All. the. heart. eyes! 

Casabella florals are always on point. They are some of the most realistic faux florals we have ever seen! 

Any fellow Laura Park lovers? 

Casabella has a HUGE Laura Park selection of items in stock! And so many unique pieces we haven't seen at other retailers. 

And who is ready for football season??

Whether you are supporting a local high school team or your SEC favorite, or a Big 10 rival - Casabella has a ton of in stock items to make your tailgate the ultimate game day place to be. 

Including the snacks and mixers. Gotta love one stop shopping. :)

Can't wait to see you at Casabella's 21st Anniversary Sale! 

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