Hallmark's Alive and Talking Pumpkin

 

There are some really interesting products being made for Halloween and I cannot believe I missed this one.  It is Hallmark's motion activated Halloween Alive and Talkin' Pumpkin'. He measures 11 inches high by 7 inches wide, features a number of different Halloween-theme faces and, when you pass him by, he'll make a comment like: 

"Is that a mask? Please tell me it's a mask!"

"Have a nice fright!"

"Hope Your Halloween is Delightful."

"Ever since the carving, I just have this empty feeling inside..."

If you have seen the animated pumpkin up close and personal, be sure to let us know what you think. Meanwhile, I'm hoping I run into one out there in the real world.

As it turns out, this fun jack-o-lantern was made in 2013 and has been discontinued. However, you can still find Hallmark's Alive and Talking Pumpkin here on eBay.

Happy Hauntings!
Boo-renda

Quick Links:

Pumpkin-Themed Halloween Gifts for You and Your Kids.

Vintage Play-Doh Count Creepy Head Dracula Set Reviewed.

Discover the When Witches Go Riding Halloween Poem.

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Disney's Halloween Trick or Treat Jack-O-Lantern by Jim Shore

Disney at Halloween?  I have never had the opportunity to be at a Disney Park during Halloween though I have visited at other times of the year.  However, I would really, really love the opportunity to see Walt Disney World or Disneyland when Disney waves a magic wand and casts a spell over the theme parks transforming them into not-so-scary destinations for one of the most important nights of the year!

Shown here is a Halloween-themed piece from Disney from 2014 that features Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck. It is from Jim Shore's Disney Traditions Collection and it is a trick or treat themed jack-o-lantern that lights up. I love that no candle is required because it contains a light that goes on and off at the flick of a switch.

Originally, I believe that you could buy this figurine by visiting Disney Parks. However, it is retired now and to find this fun Disney-themed Halloween collectible, you will have to turn to resellers like the ones here on eBay.

Boo-renda

More Reading:

Disney's Halloween Treat Reviewed.

Under Wraps: A Disney Channel Original and a Hallmark Movie

What is Summerween?

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Halloween Pumpkin Carving Kits

 

Pumpkin Carving Kits Reviewed

The fall season is certainly upon us, the leaves are turning beautiful colors and beginning to fall from the trees. 

Halloween is right around the corner. I always considered Halloween the kickoff to the Holiday season. Driving around you can see all of the fun and scary outdoor decorations in many of the yards.

After the decorations are up and it gets closer to Halloween night it's time to carve the pumpkins. We always pick a night right before Halloween and have a pumpkin carving party. I call it a party because our daughter and grandsons come over to carve our pumpkins. And if we are lucky our son and daughter-in-law will make the two-hour trip to be here with our granddaughters to join in the fun.

Our Pumpkin Carving Kit

For making pumpkin carving fun and easy I bought this kit a few years ago and the whole family loves the tools in this kit. 

Halloween Pumpkin Carving Kit Features:

• High-quality stainless steel tools
• Double-sided stainless steel detail tools
• Sharp pumpkin shovel tools with scraper
• Sturdy saws for accurate cutting

To be honest with you, I don't even know what all of these tools can do but my daughter and grandchildren sure do. This set certainly makes carving fun and easy. Well, I'm not sure that any of it is easy but it sure is fun. 

We always have a fun night carving our pumpkins and admiring everyone's hard work in the end. The pumpkins in the intro photo are last year's creations, and that is only half of them, they carved six pumpkins in total. Then, on Halloween night I line our walkway to the porch with their pumpkin creations.

For more Halloween fun my friend Olivia Morris reviews: Decorations for the Home

For Crafting decorations my friend Cynthia Sylvestermouse reviews: This easy Craft Kit

Don't forget about those delicious pumpkin seeds read my: Air Fryer Pumpkin Seed Recipes

15-Piece Pumpkin Carving Kits for Halloween, 5 Professional Stainless Steel Pumpkin Sculpting Tools, 10 Detail Sculpting Tools for Halloween Jack Pumpkin LanternsNESSTU Pumpkin Carving Kit, 28PCS Halloween Pumpkin Carving Tools Professional Pumpkin Carving Set Heavy Duty Stainless Steel Jack-O-Lanterns Pumpkin Carving KnifePumpkin Carving Kit Tools Halloween, CHRYZTAL 13PCS Professional Heavy Duty Carving Set, Stainless Steel Double-side Sculpting Tool Carving Knife for Halloween Decoration Jack-O-Lanterns

 

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Halloween Decorations for the Home ~ A Holiday Product Review

Just in case you were wondering, Halloween is coming up quickly!  In three short weeks it will be upon us full blast.  Are you ready?

If you enjoy Halloween as much as I do, you can go to great lengths to decorate your home for this frightful holiday.  Your decor can be as easy as a whole bunch of pumpkins and gourds artistically displayed, to a full out haunted house.  It is all up to you.

Decorating should be fun to do and easy to remove once the holiday is over,  in my humble opinion.  To that end, I went looking for decorations that would fit nicely into my "easy" lifestyle.  

Wouldn't you know it, good old Amazon.com has a great selection of really easy and not too expensive outdoor decorations that fit that bill perfectly.  

 Inflatable decorations are easy to put up and even easier to take down again.  In most cases all that is required is a long outdoor extension cord to plug these in.  

These inflatables can be cute or really scary.  Pumpkins and ghosts are good fun choices, but those witches and goblins, werewolves and skeletons are pretty popular too.  

 GOOSH 5.2FT Long Halloween Inflatables Ghost Outdoor Decoration Blow Up Yard Cute Ghosts Reading Book with Built-in LEDs for Indoor Party Garden Lawn Holiday DecorCheck Price

Just around the corner from us, one home has several of these blow up decorations that are lit up for the evenings.  They are lovely, easy to place and easy to remove too! That's important because we all know that right after Halloween we will shift to Thanksgiving and Christmas decor instead! So that easy removal is a bonus for sure. 

Everyone has been waiting for a great reason to celebrate and I can't think of a holiday that is more fun than Halloween.  I love watching the little ones who are just so cute in their costumes and really don't understand the whole concept of knocking on doors and getting candy.  Their eyes tell the story and the awe which they are in is contagious.  Of all the holidays in the year, I think this one is the one that makes me feel young again.  After all I can get myself dressed up too and I will!  No one will know who is hiding under that disguise!

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Happy Thanksgiving from Review This Reviews

 

Happy Thanksgiving

Today is Thanksgiving Day in the USA.  From the Staff of Review This Reviews we wish you a very Happy and Thankful Day.

Thanksgiving Day History

On this Thanksgiving Day, I thought I would share a few history facts for your enjoyment.  If you'd like you could use these to share or quiz family and friends as you gather for the holiday.  They could make great conversation starters too.   My reference for this information is history.com.  

• It is commonly thought that 1621 was the year of the first Thanksgiving in America.  During the fall of this year the Colonists and the Wampanoag Indians shared a feast to celebrate the harvest.
• The first Thanksgiving was not just one day but was a three-day festival.
• The most likely menu for this feast was deer, Indian corn, fowl, barley and nuts, lobster and mussels.
• This first feast did not become an annual tradition for centuries later.
• In 1789 George Washington declared a national holiday for Thanksgiving and it was celebrated that year on Thursday, November 26th.  But still it did not become an annual holiday nationwide.
• In 1827 Sarah Josephia Hale (she is an author best known for the writing the nursery rhyme "Mary Had a Little Lamb") started a 30-year campaign to make Thanksgiving an annual holiday.  She even published recipe cards for Turkey, Stuffing, and Pumpkin Pie.

• Finally in 1863 during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a National Day of Thanksgiving to be held each year in November.
• 
  

Thanksgiving Traditions Today

Menu

Today the most common Thanksgiving menus include:

• Turkey
• Dressing
• Mashed Potatoes
• Cranberry Sauce
• Pumpkin Pie

After these staples that are common to most American households each family adds their own touch to the Thanksgiving feast.  In our family we add green bean casserole, hot rolls, and a sweet potato dish with a sweet topping.

Parades

Another tradition in America is the Thanksgiving Parade.  For those that don't go to a parade they may watch the big Thanksgiving Day parade from New York City on television.

Volunteering

Volunteerism is big on Thanksgiving too.  Communities collect food for the needy and serve hot meals for those less fortunate.

Pardoning a Turkey

In 1989 President Bush came up with a new quirky tradition of pardoning a turkey.  This tradition has carried on with each President since that time.  This is a fun tradition that is seen on the "news" each year.  The turkey will then be able to live out its life on a farm.

Fall Harvest

As you and your family celebrate the holiday may you take time out to remember to be thankful.

Happy Thanksgiving 

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Purrfect Pumpkin Hand Soap Reviewed

Foaming Hand Soap Smells Like Pumpkin Pie

Pumpkin Pie image courtesy of Pixabay.com

Let's review a hand soap that smells like pumpkin pie today. We have reached that time of year where it seems that just about everything turns into a pumpkin. Or is it more that the pumpkin turns into all sorts of things? We find pumpkin flavored coffee, milkshakes, cookies and an assortment of all kinds of products. I wonder if they got the idea from Cinderella where the pumpkin turns into a coach? 

Truth be told, the flavors or scents that become available are more a pumpkin spice rather than just pumpkin. They taste or smell like a pumpkin pie rather than the autumn jewel that is in the squash family.

I have found a hand soap that is fun to use as fall approaches and Halloween isn't too far around the corner. Just push the pump and the wonderful aroma of pumpkin pie wafts into the air with a fun foam to wash your hands. My grandkids love the foam and I find that they are more eager to wash their hands with it. The soap, itself, gently cleans and since it has aloe and vitamin e in the mix, your hands feel ever so soft after you are finished. 

 Bath & Body Works Hand Soap, Cleansing Gel, 8 Fl Oz (Sweet Cinnamon Pumkin)Check Price

Another fun thing about this seasonal hand soap is the packaging. Black cats and pumpkins decorate the container giving it a fun Halloween appeal. It can be a functional decoration to have in the kitchen or bathroom. The cats even appear to glitter a little, making it purrfectly fun for kids and adults!

I also like that I can get it in a convenient two-pack! Each container holds just short of 9 oz so they last a while. Typically, if I put them out in early October, they last through Halloween and a little behind. Of course, my mileage varies depending on how often the grandchildren visit and how many times they volunteer to wash their hands!

So, if you are looking for a fun decoration for fall, have a penchant for the aroma of pumpkin, cinnamon and vanilla (pumpkin pie) and want a great hand soap; I suggest you try this fun soap.

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