Do you enjoy giving parties, but have run out of ideas for new themes? If you’re looking for an unusual and especially fun party idea, you’ve got to take a look at the Murder Mystery dinner party! It’s truly a novel idea, suited to people of all ages.  You’ll now find many web sites offering a Murder Mystery dinner party. In fact, most sites offer a choice of mystery plots. One may appeal to teens, while another’s characters are aimed at a more sophisticated or older group.

The concept of the Murder Mystery dinner party grew out of a scriptwriter’s mind. It might best be described as a murder mystery and spontaneous play. You and your guests are the performers, and the murderer is amongst you!  The script directs you in certain occurrences, such as leading you to a closet where the murder victim is found.

Costume suggestions are usually included in the Murder Mystery dinner party package you purchase. There may also be props for the script. You are provided with clues for each guest. No two people have the same clues. Guests are invited to mingle and question and converse with one another. The objective is, of course, to solve the murder.  When another guest questions you on some point of a clue, you must tell the truth, unless you are the murderer! If your character is the murderer, then you can lie as much as you like.

The Murder Mystery dinner party packages provide all of the entertainment you’ll need. Even people who are shy tend to get caught up in the fun of it and may enjoy talking to others more than they otherwise might.  You can orchestrate the pace and location, which enhances the excitement and sense of suspense. You can serve appetizers in one room, allowing your guests to eat while gathering information and looking for physical clues in the room where, perhaps, the murder occurred.

Later on, you can have dinner at the dining table. By this time, everyone is so eager to figure out who the killer may be, you’ll have no lulls in conversation. These parties are real ice breakers, bringing out the best party moods in your guests.

You may choose to serve dessert as the finale, when all questioning must stop. At this point, everyone has to go over the information they’ve gained and make their guess as to who the murderer is. The person who first guesses correctly wins. Usually this person is awarded a prize.  So next time you’re planning a party and want something a little different, give the Murder Mystery dinner party a try.

Halloween! This is a night when the freaks and spooks can come out and go unnoticed. They blend in with the millions of tiny ghouls and goblins running a muck in their own neighborhoods, searching desperately for treats. Okay, maybe not that desperately. Nevertheless, everyone is out and about to have a jovial time. It’s all about the dressing up and frolicking in the night air. I’ve enjoyed this day immensely ever since I can remember. The masks, costumes, tricks and treats can go on for weeks to follow as far as I’m concerned. Sadly that never happens, but at least the one day is always there. Each year is a guise. And if you really want to get into the Halloween and costume spirit, you might want to check into latex masks. These are the cream of the crop.

Have you ever watched an old school horror flick? What am I talking about? Everyone has indulged themselves in “Nightmare on Elm Street,” “The Howling,” “Night of the Living Dead,” or possibly “An American Werewolf in London.” These are all classics now. And do you want to know one thing they all have in common? It’s the power of latex masks and make up. This stuff was the bomb back in the day. If you ask me, it still is. What’s really cool now is it’s available to the public. I can only imagine how many latex masks and make up products they sell prior to Halloween. If you truly want to go all out with a terrifying costume, latex is your answer.

The reason I say this is because it looks so genuine. It’s definitely not like purchasing one of those cheap Dracula masks at the drugstore, You know the kind with a rubber band on the back to hold it in place. Contemporary latex masks are the real deal. You can mold the latex to your face and make it look like part of you. Think one of the vampires on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer.” They look much more life like that the costumes you generally see sold in novelty shops and random Halloween superstores. Add some funky contact lenses to the mix and you’ll end up with one spooky get up.

It’s time you got in the loop concerning latex masks and fantastic monster costumes. Be sure to check out what’s on the market before next October 31st rolls around. Halloween is only once a year. Make it a fright night to remember.

Are you tired of the almost routine vacation you take every year? Now here is an idea that I know you will enjoy. How about a cooking vacation?  On a cooking vacation, you are not going to see the same old sights and buy the same old postcards. We are talking about a hands on adventure. You like to eat, right? Then a cooking vacation is just the thing for you.  There are three broad categories of this type of vacation. You can go to increase your cooking talents, travel to enhance your eating skills, or get on the road and learn how to drink someone else’s way.

A vacation when you learn how to cook better can really be exciting. Pick a location, either domestic or international, and you have begun your adventure. Every place has it’s own style of cooking and eating. On this vacation, you will meet some of the best chefs of the area who will introduce you to the local cuisine. Beyond that, a cooking vacation can be just that. You can learn to cook in new and different styles.

Imagine coming back from your cooking vacation and preparing dishes for which your friends do not even have the recipes. Moreover, you will learn not only the recipes from the books, but the secrets of the cooks and chefs at your vacation destination.  We are not only talking about learning to make spaghetti the true Italian way. Your vacation could lead you to Alaska and the freshest fish you every tasted. Or perhaps to Spain where the paella is every family’s secret.

A cooking vacation is not just for cooks, it is for eaters also. If on your last vacation the five-star hotel food was less than you wanted, try the alternative of a vacation where the food is the center point of the trip. It is certainly wonderful to take in the sights but how much better with a great meal to go with the view. That is what a cooking vacation is all about.  And if libation is more your style, combine your vacation adventure with a tour and tasting of the local wineries. Wine is universal and there is a whole world out there that you probably have not discovered. As you will find out on your cooking vacation, the best local wines are never shipped out. They are reserved for the people that grow the grapes and produce the wine.

Booking a cooking vacation is easy as a click of the mouse. Most agents give you a detailed description of what you can expect from the culinary delights you are after on your vacation. A word to those who are going on a cooking vacation, do not be shy about your questions. Chefs love to talk about their food. You might even pick up a few secrets known only to them.

Southern Living at Home is a sales and marketing company that specializes in merchandise for the home. You can find a lot of wonderful one of a kind objects and utensils for every room of your home through Southern Living. You have to order all items through a consultant, but this can be part of the fun.  One of the appealing features of Southern Living is that the program is perfect for mothers who want to stay at home with their children during the day. You can build your own schedule and work when you want to work. Your income depends on the amount of time and effort you put into the company.

Basically, your job is to host parties and encourage others to host parties as well. These get togethers revolve around the Southern Living line of products. These gatherings are a great way to make money from home and they are a great way to spend some quality time with friends and family.  My sister-in-law is a consultant for Southern Living and she loves it. She has quit her day job to pursue a career with the company and she has no regrets. She loves making her own schedule and she adores the idea of entertaining. In fact, she has come up with some wonderful themes for Southern Living parties.

The first theme involves the classic tea party. She chose Victorian decorations and she made scones and tea for the Southern Living party. The guests all wore Victorian style clothing or they simply wore lacy clothes accessorized with hats and gloves. The tea party was a real hit.  During the summer we have the annual luau for our Southern Living party. This popular beach party is fun for everyone in the family and by the time you have a few frozen daiquiris, you forget that you are at a consultant party.  Some of the other themes they are coming up with for consultant parties include golf widows’ day (you can insert just about any other sport there) in which the ladies dress in their best golf attire. Of course, the holidays always make for great Southern Living theme parties as well.

There are many themes out there and I am very curious to find out what my sister-in-law comes up with next. Even though the products offered by Southern Living are exquisite it is always fun to have a theme party to go along with the shopping.

If you are planning any sort of event outside, you might want to make sure you have some event tents ready in case of the rain or anything else that might happen. Many people have planned events outside and just hoped that it wouldn’t rain, or even snow. I was just at a wedding recently where snow, sleet and rain ruined the affair. The bride did not have any type of back up planned, even though the event was in October. There was no tent and she refused to move the ceremony. We all froze. It was a horrible scene and utterly ridiculous.

There is something beautiful about having a ceremony outside and family reunions are almost always planned to be outdoors events. There is always the unknown to deal with and event tents can help when this happens. Though tents can’t help you if it’s snowing, as it will still be freezing cold, they can help when it rains on a special day. If you don’t want to move your event indoors, at least the event tents can keep your guests dry. If you suspect that wind might be a problem, you can get tents that have sides. That way when the wind is gusting you might be able to keep things under control.

You may want to have event tents regardless of what the weather might be. Even when the sun is out all day, there can still be problems. The sun can get awfully hot and when this happens, you need a place for your guests to get out of the sun and the heat. Event tents can’t be air conditioned, but they can offer some sort of relief. If you have any guests who may be ill, or are elderly, they will most definitely need a cooler place to sit down and rest.

Event tents are available at rental shops and you can find almost any size you may need. If you can’t find one big enough, you may have to rent two. Just make sure that if you are using event tents are back up only, that you know how to put them up if you need to do so in a hurry. Spend the money to get a really good model and make sure all of the pieces are there before you take it home with you. A tent won’t help much if you can’t get it up before everyone’s day is ruined.

I can’t even remember how many morning after college parties, I would wake up to find empty beer bottles scattered throughout the house or apartment. Sometimes, there would even be a few leftover party goers who had had too much to drink and were passed out in the midst of the beer bottles. The parties always seemed like great fun until it was time to clean up the following morning. I don’t miss those days.

Now, years after those college days, I still find myself cleaning up beer bottles the next morning if my husband had the guys over the previous night. Why in the world guys cannot clean up their own messes is beyond me. How hard is it to put the empty beer bottles into the recycling bin? I constantly remind my husband that when he takes the time to line the beer bottles up on the counter, he is only inches away from the recycling bin. He just doesn’t seem to get it. Maybe he likes to watch me cleaning up the beer bottles. I purposely avoided cleaning up for an entire weekend one time just to see if he would take the time to do it himself. After two days of living amongst this mess, I caved in and cleaned. I had to resist the urge to throw those beer bottles at him.

One New Year’s Eve, a group of us were having a very in depth conversation over many empty beer bottles and I asked why in the world they would choose such an ugly dark color to make the bottles. One of our friends actually had an answer to my random question. He informed me the glass of the beer bottles are a dark color so that the light doesn’t spoil the beer inside of them. While that actually made perfect sense to me, I still think that the dark colored glass could be a better color than the standard brown. Heineken has nice dark green bottles, as does Yuengling Lager. I think that green should be the standard color for beer bottles from now on. Of course, no matter what color the beer bottles would be, it wouldn’t make it any more fun to clean up after parties.

My personal favorite is when you’re assuming that all of the scattered beer bottles are empty and you find one that just happens to still have a few sips left in it. It is always when I’m carrying those bottles at an awkward angle that I find the one that still has some liquid left in it that splashes on me. There’s just nothing like cleaning up beer bottles. No matter what color they are.

If you were born in the good old US of A, or lived here for some time, then you’ve probably had a cookout or barbeque of some kind. We tend to pride ourselves on these things. American family tradition and good home cooking resonate on our gleeful mugs at the sound of a grilled burger, hot dog or steak.

Although gas grills are becoming more and more prominent, the old school charcoal grills are still preferred by many of us. There’s just something about that grilled flavor that’s hard to let go of. Those red coals fill the mouth watering meat with an incomparable flavor that can’t be forgotten.

The options we face when buying a grill are quite different than what our parents dealt with. Gas, electric, infrared and portable just to name the basics. Personally I have used a charcoal grill since I was a child. These smoky, simplified wonders are hard to let go of. While some friends tell me gas is all the rage these days and the coal isn’t as healthy as we once thought, I still can’t abandon the taste. Anyone who has grilled on gas and charcoal can tell you that there’s a difference.

When it comes to charcoal, the flavor is phenomenal. Charcoal grills are still widely available at stores such as Sears or Lowes, or a number of websites like Americasbestbbq.com. The variety is much nicer than it used to be. A certain advantage to using a charcoal grill is the price. A simple freestanding grill can be found for 50 bucks, while many gas grills range anywhere from $200 to thousands of dollars.

As a family man myself, I make use of a simple charcoal grill a number of times throughout the summer. What better time to cook out with family and friends. Anything from hot dogs to hamburgers to brats to shish kabobs can be flamed on one of these classic cookers. The heat and smoke from the charcoal add an amazing flavor to any meat of choice. There are even hickory chips that can be added for an additional enhancement.

When shopping around for a charcoal grill that’s right for you and your family, make sure to take into consideration the size and number of people being fed. There are a variety of grills to suit the needs of an enormous family get together or simply a single man or woman just looking for a change in the mundane daily meals.

There is nothing that reminds me of fall like chocolate apples. My parents were very strict about candy. They would never let us eat it. They said that it caused tooth rot. During Halloween, I was only allowed to have three pieces of chocolate candy a day. Anymore, my parents said, and all my teeth would fall out.  Chocolate apples were the exception. We did not get to have them all the time, but nonetheless we would eat them every year. We would go to the fair where they would have caramel apples and chocolate apples. It was great. The air was crisp, there were rides and games and each kid got to have one treat. My sister would always have cotton candy, but I would not waste my treat on such trivialities. I would always get a chocolate apple. One time I got a caramel apple instead, but it just did not compare. Nothing tastes like chocolate apples taste!

We lived in that same town until I was an adult. I remember taking one of my girlfriends to get chocolate apples at the fair. She was from a bigger city. The county fair was something totally new to her. The only chocolate apples that she ever had growing up were bought from the store. They were prepackaged, cold and often stale. She had not known the joy of freshly dipped chocolate apples.

Chocolate apples, must be done in the right way or there is no point. Unlike normal chocolate candies, chocolate apples cannot just sit there on the shelf. You need to start with a big, juicy, gourmet apple. Then you dip it straight into the chocolate. You give it just enough time to start to cool and then you eat it. If I wait around for even a day, it is no good. The apple starts to get mealy and mushy, and the chocolate starts to get brittle. Only freshly dipped chocolate apples will do. If you can’t get them fresh at the fair, there is no point in getting them at all.  I have had many chocolate fruits my life, but the chocolate apple is my favorite. Chocolate covered strawberries can be good and chocolate cherries can be divine, but none of them can compare. It has to be chocolate covered apples or nothing, and you have to get them in a little town like the one I grew up in.

As a parent, I’m well aware of how quickly new toys enter and subsequently exit the marketplace in any given year. Not all of the products catch on with children, and those that do usually enjoy popularity for just a short time before giving way to the next fad. Occasionally, a toy will have such an impact on both consumers and culture alike that it endures for many, many years. Barbie dolls have achieved this kind of rarefied status, as have Matchbox cars and Mr. Potato Head. I would also put Hello Kitty items on that list as well.

Hello Kitty items have been around for more over 30 years and have been a big hit with people of all ages during that time. The very first Hello Kitty item ever introduced by the Sanrio Company was a small plastic coin pouch. Since then, hundreds of different Hello Kitty items have found their way to the marketplace. Some of the most popular products include notebooks, pencils, purses, t-shirts, key chains, video games, plush figures and coffee mugs. Sanrio often offers limited edition Hello Kitty items to celebrate holidays or other special occasions. For example, a diamond encrusted platinum pin was created to celebrate the character’s 30th birthday. Only 100 of these were offered to the public, with a price tag of over $90,000.

Even though Sanrio is based in Japan, Hello Kitty items are available all over the world. You can usually find these products in any large toy store or department store. There are even Sanrio specialty shops in larger cities across the country that offer exclusive Hello Kitty items along with products featuring other popular characters from the same manufacturer. You can also find many websites that cater specifically to collectors of hard to find Hello Kitty items.

Although Hello Kitty items are generally on the cheaper end of the scale, it never hurts to get additional discounts. So if you are looking to purchase some of these products, I recommend checking Internet auction sites or shopping sites that routinely offer merchandise for less than the suggested retail price. Granted, you aren’t likely to score any rare Hello Kitty items from this method, but you will be able to save some money while building up your collection or buying toys for your children or grandchildren.

It can be tough trying to find toys and other products featuring characters that your kids will actually like. That’s why you should stick with a proven winner that has stood the ultimate test of time. Hello Kitty items have been popular with people for three decades already and show no sign of slowing down. So the next time you need to buy a small gift, consider giving Hello Kitty items. Your recipient is sure to love the cute little cat with that distinctive red bow on it’s head!

Who doesn’t like chocolate brownies? Maybe those deprived during their childhood, but if that’s the case, it’s time to get with the program. Chocolate brownies are a timeless classic with many different tasty variations, something for everyone indeed! Of course, you must love chocolate and after all, it’s good for you.  It’s considered a major food group by adolescents and women of all ages. You can’t ever go wrong bringing a plate of this delicious desert to any type of gathering. They’ll be gone in no time. Nuts, cherries, raspberries, marshmallows, caramel, peanut butter, white chocolate and mint flavoring are just some of the ingredients that can be added to a basic brownie recipe. There are also modified versions of the classic recipe including low fat brownies and recipes that use sugar substitutes like Splenda.

Let’s test your brownie knowledge and see just how much you know about America’s favorite desert. Here are some interesting facts about chocolate brownies from www.chocolatebrownies.net. Also known as a Boston brownie, it was named after it’s brown color, which was sometimes glazed with fudge or other ingredients. Chocolate brownies are known all over the world, but they are most popular in America, just like Mom’s fresh baked apple pie. And of course, the best way to serve a chocolate brownie is fresh and hot with vanilla ice cream.  Other toppings are optional, like hot fudge or fresh whipped cream. Mmmm. It’s the most common desert item on the menus of country diners as well as fine dining establishments, all with a different twist. Chocolate in any form is one of the most popular after dinner treats ever, even in very small quantities it is so satisfying! It’s the best self reward for whatever reason.  In fact you don’t need a reason, just go for it. You know you want to!

Adventurous cooks can find recipes for chocolate brownies in most any cookbook as well as online. Being one of the most popular recipes of all time, you won’t have to look hard to find a delicious recipe just waiting for you to try. If you’re not a cook, that’s okay too. There are lots of specialty sites featuring gourmet baked goods, like www.brownies.com, where brownie connoisseurs can choose from twelve flavors using fine Belgian chocolate. Shop now for scrumptious brownies that can be gift boxed and sent anywhere in the world, even to your house! Is your mouth watering yet?