Halloween is so much fun! What other holiday allows you to wear ridiculous costumes, transform your home into a haunted house, pass out candy to hundreds of kids, and make scary edible art?

Want to get your kids to eat something healthy before they head out to trick or treat?  Make them MEAT LOAF MAN!

Another D’Arcy tradition. 

It’s easy to make and guaranteed to make your dinner table fun on Halloween!

Here’s the recipe:

Meat loaf Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef

1 cup bread crumbs

1 cup tomato sauce

1 Tbsp garlic salt

2 squirts ketchup

1 olive, bell pepper, or red pepper (tiny portion for facial features)

Mac ‘n Cheese Ingredients:

1 box packaged Mac ‘n Cheese (it’s the easiest and the kids’ favorite)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix the ground beef with the tomato sauce and bread crumbs.
2. Add garlic salt.
3. Grease a baking dish
4. Make a 2” ball with the mixture to form the head and place at the top of the baking dish.
5. Next, form the torso by taking the mixture and making an upside down 4” triangle.
6. Then add 2 legs by rolling the mixture to make 2” logs.
7. Now, connect the torso to the head by creating a short neck.
8. Attach the legs to the bottom of the triangle to form the hips.
9. Make the arms by rolling the mixture to make 2” logs.
10. Form the arms to go up, down, or on the hip – you choose!
11. Attach the arms at the shoulders.
12. After all of the body parts are connected, shape Meat Loaf Man so it sort of resembles a man.
13. Add eyes and a mouth by using a small piece of an olive, bell pepper, or red pepper.
14. Bake in oven at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until completely cooked.
15. Make your kids’ favorite mac and cheese.  Set aside to keep warm.
16. When meatloaf is done baking, drain grease and pat the baking dish to remove any remaining fat.
17. Pour mac and cheese around Meat Loaf Man to make him stand out.
18. Place a knife (pate knife or corn on the cob prong) in Meat Loaf Man’s heart.
19. Squirt ketchup around the knife and down the side of the chest – ewwwww!
20. Call the kids to enjoy their “healthy” meal before they head out to trick or treat!

Giving speeches has never been my thing.  The students at Merit Academy have delivered beautiful speeches and the audiences have loved to hear them speak, so I have always handed over the microphone to them. 

One time, I was asked to simply announce a dance group before a friendly audience but I couldn’t do it because my hands were trembling so hard I couldn’t read my speech!  What a disaster!

So after my hilariously exasperating experience of just getting to the hotel in Las Vegas last week, I figured my speech to a room full of agents representing international students was going to be the icing atop the worst day of my life.

Seriously, how much worse could it get? I didn’t get to freshen up, I was thirsty and starving, and I didn’t know a single soul in the conference room.  Expecting the worst, I just prepared for my slideshow and videos to not cooperate.

Then, as I looked out at the sea of guests, I noticed that half of them were nodding off or checking their phones. They were bored, hungry, and probably really jetlagged from flying in from Libya, Nigeria, India, China, Canada, Australia, and countries I had never even heard of before. I felt doomed. DOOMED! 

That’s when I remembered my good friend Steve Mandel’s book, Effective Presentation Skills. He coached my daughters Nicole and Jaclyn before they gave speeches before the House of Representatives in Washington DC and at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, respectively.  Those are some serious audiences, and I remembered a lot of what he told my daughters.

Throwing caution to the wind (and to wake up the audience), I decided to toss my notecards and just try to speak naturally about what I’m passionate about.  After all, what did I have to lose?  

What happened next blew me away.

I know my subject: Merit Academy, the school I founded in 1994 and continue to nurture into an amazing and successful school that offers one-on-one classes.  All Merit Academy students, including my own daughters, became confident leaders both in college and in their chosen careers.  To connect with the audience in front me, I just needed to address the problem I was there to talk about: helping international students become successful in high school and prepare them for success in American colleges.

So I walked up to the podium, put my notecards down and then walked straight into the audience (Internal dialogue: Nobody trip me, please!). One of the things Steve said was to not hide behind the podium or read what’s written on the slides.  Instead, I talked about how the concept of American classrooms filled with teenagers is one of the most frightening learning environments for a foreign student. The foreign student is an outsider in a foreign country, and the instinct in that situation is to hide and avoid engaging.

This is not a good way to get a solid education.  The audience perked up and actually listened, because I wasn’t just reading a slide, I was speaking about something they could relate to, and that the families they represented actually worried about.

I was fired up by the opportunity to talk about my solution to the learning problem (you can’t hide when you’re the only student in the class!), and this gave ME energy AND gave the jetlagged audience something to listen to.  They were wide awake, they were alive and they were smiling.  Even my competitors from other schools were nodding and agreeing with me. I looked at everyone and I kept their attention throughout my entire ad-libbed presentation. 

I nailed it! Yes, the one who used to shake like a leaf and couldn’t even read her own speech. Thank you Steve Mandel for your words of wisdom. 

This experience has humbled and transformed me.

You know when you really plan something out – because it’s important that it be perfect – but then everything you meticulously planned goes totally wrong? That’s what happened to me last week when I planned a trip to Las Vegas to give a presentation at a conference. 

I’ve written books on time management and organization. Heck, I’ve created packing lists for almost every conceivable situation (except maybe ice fishing in Alaska) AND I’ve coached people on how to minimize stress by planning ahead.

So I have no idea how things could have gone so wrong despite all of my experience and efforts to AVOID mishaps. Murphy’s Law was just out to get me, I think. 

Here’s what went wrong between the time before I even left to before I got to the room where I was supposed to give my presentation:

• I packed my bags 4 days in advance so I wouldn’t forget anything. I then needed something I’d already packed, and while retrieving it, I broke a display case for brochures.
  Internal Dialogue:  Not a huge deal, but not a good start.
  Stress level: 1 out 10.
• I had to drive myself to the airport, because my husband told me THE MORNING OF MY FLIGHT that he couldn’t take me because he had a doctor’s appointment that morning.
  Internal Dialogue: More annoying than anything else.
  Stress Level: 2 out of 10.
• At the airport, I parked in the hourly parking lot instead of the long-term parking lot.  
  Internal Dialogue: Ok, starting to get worried now.
  Stress Level: 3 out of 10
• The shuttle bus from the airport to my hotel crashed into a bus.  
  Internal Dialogue: OMG EVERYTHING IS GOING WRONG NOW
  Stress Level: 7 out of 10
• I couldn’t get off of the shuttle bus for 2 hours because of REGULATIONS, and I couldn’t just hop out and grab a cab because the accident caused gridlock. I was also trapped on the bus with a “comedian”.  Could have been worse, though – could have been a clown.
  Internal Dialogue: Maybe I can climb out the window and steal my own luggage…
  Stress Level: 8 out of 10
• When I got to the hotel 30 minutes before the start of the event, I was told that I’d been booked into 2 rooms, and they couldn’t give me a key to one of them until they’d figured out what to do with the other one. It took them 10 minutes to figure this out, and I now had no time for a shower or even a quick refresh in the room.
  Internal Dialogue: SERIOUSLY? Are you kidding me right now? Am I on Candid Camera? Is Alan Funt even still alive? If so, he won’t be for long.
  Stress Level: 9 out of 10
• The event was at a hotel that had 37 different elevators that all go to different places, but only one that went where I needed to go: THE TOP.  I got lost, of course.
  Internal Dialogue: I am running in heels, and will need to give my presentation on crutches and WHY don’t all of the elevators go to the top floor?
  Stress Level: 11 out of 10

I FINALLY made it to where I was supposed to be, just barely on time. As I walked up to the podium, however, I wasn’t nervous or stressed.  I was simply grateful to be there at all! 

Stay tuned for my next post about my actual presentation…

I’ve been making this Rice Krispie Treat Witch for over 25 years.  It’s a D’Arcy tradition. Now you can make it too!  Here are the instructions. 

Rice Krispie Treat Witch’s Head

Ingredients for one batch (2 batches for witch’s head and 1 batch for witch’s fingers):
3 Tbps Margarine
40 large (not jumbo) Marshmallows
8 cups Rice Krispies
1 box Black licorice
1 roll of Red Fruit Rollup
3 Sour balls or round candies for the eyes and warts
1 box wooden toothpicks
1 12-oz jar or can
12″ foil
1 12″-Witch’s hat

Instructions:
1.  Cover the jar or can with foil.
2.  Place it in the center of a display tray.
3.  Heat the margarine over low heat in a large 4 quart stewing pan
4.  When the margarine is sizzling, add 40 marshmallows.
5.  Stir mixture over medium heat until  marshmallows are completely melted with no lumps.
6.  Add 2 cups of Rice Krispies and stir into the marshmallow mixture. 
7.  Continue to add 2 cups until all 8 cups are added to the marshmallow mixture.
8.  Turn the heat off but leave the pan on the stove to keep the mixture warm.
9.  With wet hands, grab about 1 cup of the mixture and press around the foil covered can/jar.
10.  Keep pressing the mixture around the can/jar until it’s completely covered with Rice Krispie Treats.
11.  Shape the top of the head with about 1 1/2″ of Rice Krispie Treats to make the top of the head round.
12.  Then add Rice Krispie Treats to form the face and neck. Be careful to press with lots of pressure to hold the Rice Krispie Treats in place. 
13.  Add more thickness around the cheek bones.
14.  Then add a 1/2 a cup of the Rice Krispie Treats to form the chin.
15.  Do the same for the nose. Keep pressing hard to ensure that it will stay together at room temperature.
16.  Put the witch’s hat on the Rice Krispie Treat witch to make sure it fits.  Adjust your witch’s head accordingly.
17.  With your thumbs, create the indentation for the eye sockets.
18.  Give the face character by pulling in the cheek bones and forming the neck.
19.  When you like the shape of your witch’s head, add the eye balls.  Round hard candy works well. You can also cut licorice to create interesting shapes.
20.  Cut red lips out of red fruit rollups or red licorice.
21.  Place a black wart on the nose or chin by using a hard candy or licorice.
22.  Use the melted marshmallows to “glue” the eyes, mouth and wart in  place.
23.  Attach the witch’s hair (licorice) with wooden toothpicks.  Cut the toothpicks in half and secure the licorice around the top of the witch’s head. Make sure that the toothpicks are on top of the head so the witch’s hat fits over them. You can split the licorice in half (lengthwise) to make the hair thinner and to get more coverage.
24.  Make additional batches of Rice Krispie Treats as needed to complete the witches head and to make witch’s fingers.
25.  To make witch’s fingers, roll the Rice Krispie Treats into 1″ tubes and press them so they look mangled. (You can also make Rice Krispie Treat balls or squares)
26.  Cut red nails out of red fruit rollups, and press hard onto the Rice Krispie Treat fingers to they stay in place.
27.  Cover your witch’s head and fingers with clear wrap and place in the refrigerator until it will be displayed.
28.  It’s best eaten at room temperature, so bring it out of the refrigerator about 30 minutes before serving.

Have fun and enjoy!

I am one of those people who shudders at Christmas decoration displays and change stations as soon as I hear holiday music before Thanksgiving.

Just one holiday at a time, please! So I know it is counterintuitive that I am recommending that you take your holiday family portrait now. Yup, put it on your calendar or you’ll lose the window of opportunity to send out a great photo this year.

If your family is anything like mine, you’ve got kids living away from home with jam-packed schedules. I find it easiest to send a group email suggesting a few dates when everyone can gather for that — okay, I’ll admit it — dreaded photo shoot.  Try to pick a date and time that might coincide with another reason to gather — like a birthday party or shopping date.

Then, make sure your camera batteries are fully charged and you have a memory card with plenty of space.  Think about where you want this photo taken.  If it’s outdoors, consider the time of day to make sure shadows won’t ruin your pictures.  For indoor shots, set up your backdrop ahead of time.  Consider bringing out your holiday decorations just for the photoshoot.  And don’t forget your tripod, or ask a friend to shoot the photos for you.  Selfies won’t really cut it here.

Don’t have time to set up a photoshoot? Then get a professional photo taken at a local photography studio, and let them handle the backdrops and lighting. Make sure to discuss the cost of the shoot and the costs for the photos before you set up your dates.

After you select the photo, order your holiday cards before Thanksgiving so you can send your cards out before 2016. You can also send e-cards to family and friends who have email addresses. Either way, update your mailing and email lists now before the holidays to avoid 11th-hour crises – nobody needs to have a nervous breakdown during the holidays!

I fondly remember sailing the Californian, a tall ship, for 3 days on an Explorers’ Expedition with the Merit Academy 7th graders.

We worked the decks like they did back when the explorers sailed the seas, and the students took shifts manning the sails.  We slept in bunks with the crew and ate in the galley just like they did in the 1400’s. 

Our history teacher, Barbara Eastburn, says “I felt like Columbus and his sailors – far away from the comfort of land (the sight of land anyway) in search of new territory.  I understand history in a way I never would have without this experience.  I don’t know how exactly to explain it, but I felt more like a teacher on that trip than any other – even though I was not actually lecturing.  It was the preparing for and sharing of the experience with the students.”  

When the captain hollered, “All hands on deck!” at 6:00 am while we were fast asleep, the kids jumped out of their bunks and climbed up to work the sails.  I sat up and brushed my hair and then started to apply some makeup (didn’t want to scare away my fellow mates!) when I heard the captain ask where I was.  When I shouted up to him that I would be up on deck in a few minutes, after I “got ready,” he demanded that I drop what I was doing and get up there NOW.

I learned more about the explorers of history on that trip than I did by reading textbooks and watching movies. 

So glad to have had the opportunity to take sail with the Meritans!  Even if I had to swab the deck.

On October 8, 2015 , when Governor Brown signed the first dyslexia law in 25 years, parents of dyslexic kids sobbed with relief and elation.  Yes you read that right, we sobbed.  We know that AB 1369 will begin to help millions of kids and their parents in California from having the heartache, fear, despair, and anxiety that we experienced when our dyslexic kiddos were in public school. 

There is only one difference between my dyslexic kid and a kid that is not, and that is his brain.  Now that brain scans are possible, scientists know the dyslexic brain not only looks different than the non-dyslexic brain but IS different.  The dyslexic brain is not wired to process language easily and learns differently than the “regular” brain. I quoted “regular” because dyslexic kids in schools all across this country are made to believe that something is wrong with them, that they are less than, because their brain learns differently.

Nothing could be farther from the truth. 

Dyslexia is not an intellectual disability.   A persons’ intelligence is not lowered by his dyslexia.  When a 1st or 2nd grade student with dyslexia struggles to read or write when the rest of his class is not, he quickly realizes that there is something very different about him and easily jumps to the conclusion that he is stupid. In public school, if a child is identified early and gets services because of his dyslexia (this is a whole other blog post for another day) he gets pulled from his classmates a few times a day to go to a little special room, with a handful of other kids and a teacher, adding more evidence to the folder of “I must be stupid, since I need to go to a special room with a special teacher”. 

The irony of it all is the special teacher in the special room has no idea how to teach dyslexic kids effectively.  Resource teachers, or general education teachers for that matter, are not trained on how to recognize or teach to a dyslexic student.  It is widely known that 1 in 5 people in this country are dyslexic.  20% of the population and 80% of those kids are currently receiving special education services.

We sobbed at the passing of AB1369 for other people’s kids.  For years we watched our smart, beautiful children not getting what they needed at school and instead being emotionally harmed.  When you truly believe that you are stupid or something is wrong with you, make no mistake, you are harmed in a way that affects your soul and the trajectory of your life.    

AB 1369 does not fix everything in public school but it is such an encouraging start. 

Technically, this law does two things:

• It adds phonological processing deficit to the eligibility criteria for Specific Learning Disability under special education and
• It requires the State Superintendent to develop program guidelines for dyslexia to help teachers & parents identify and assess pupils with dyslexia.  It specifically clarifies that “educational services” means an evidence-based, multisensory, direct, explicit, structured, and sequential approach to instructing pupils who have dyslexia.

Now educators can say “dyslexia”, learn how to identify it and implement appropriate instruction!  (insert sobbing here).

It has been known for over 15 years from evidence-based research, that dyslexic students learn when they receive this kind of instruction. What is more exciting is that kids that do not have dyslexia but who may struggle in school also benefit from this type of instruction.  Actually ALL kids can learn from this type of teaching.  This law may actually begin the process of tackling this state’s high illiteracy rates

We sobbed with happiness at the idea that millions of moms and dads will eventually not have to worry about their kids, like we did.

Charlene Mercadante is a mom of two boys. Her 20 year-old son is dyslexic. She volunteers for Decoding Dyslexia CA in San Mateo County and The Charles Armstrong School in Belmont, CA. Her passion to help other parents like herself was ignited when she & her husband anguished over how to help their son in early elementary school.  Follow her on Twitter @CharleneMerc

Decoding Dyslexia CA made AB 1369 happen and is a grassroots movement of CA families concerned with the limited access to educational interventions for dyslexia and other language-based learning disabilities within our public schools.  They aim to raise awareness, empower families to support their children and inform policy makers on best practices to identify, remediate and support students with dyslexia in CA public schools.  www.DecodingDyslexiaCA.org

Here’s something kind of incredible: a student at the Utrecht Art Academy in the Netherlands has designed a font that makes it easier for dyslexic students to read.

By making the individual letters more unique — in other words, not using the “b” and flipping it upside down to make a “q,” or rotating it to make a “d” and then flipping it to make a “p.”  Since people with dyslexia have trouble with shapes that are similar, they are less likely to confuse the b’s, d’s, p’s and q’s of this new font, which increases both the time it takes to read AND the speed of comprehension. The “weight” of the font is also different from top to bottom, which also helps. It’s really quite brilliant.

Independent studies at the University of Twente and Amsterdam found that 75% of the students surveyed made fewer reading errors while reading text with the Dyslexie font.  Check it out here: http://www.dyslexiefont.com 

Please let me know if this font helps you or anyone with dyslexia.  

[Source]

We all use social media to stay in touch with friends and family but did you know that it can affect college admissions or job recruitment?

Is there is anything on your social media pages that you wouldn’t want your future mother-in-law or employer to see?  If there is, then take it down NOW.  Even that funny photo of you chugging down beer in that cute red plastic cup — delete it, and all of them, now.

That photo of you kissing your boyfriend? Yup, delete. Your trip to Vegas — by the way, what happens in Vegas, and anywhere online, never stays in Vegas… As a matter of fact, consider it blackmail fodder in the future!

Let’s face it; there is NO PRIVACY.  If you haven’t already, Google your name to see what comes up. Seriously, you’ll be surprised by what you’ll find!

So whether you’re a high school student working on getting into a top college, or you’re a college graduate seeking a great job, you need to create an online presence that will appeal to the admissions or interview committees.  ASSUME THAT THEY WILL SEE IT.  I’m shocked by what people continue to post on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.  Not because of WHAT is posted, but because of who will see these little gems in the future.  That hilarious drunken photo from college is a pebble thrown in the pond of your life, and it creates a ripple that can affect your future.

Successful applicants do more than just clean up their social media presence. They actually build their brand for everyone to see. By creating websites, YouTube videos and Kickstarter campaigns, their names show up “above the fold” in search engines. Using your name in your titles will also ensure that you pop up before other people with the same or similar names.

Of course, you do need to do something to bring attention to yourself, and I always encourage students to do projects. Pick something that you are interested in and passionate about. Then create a website and/or a YouTube video to promote this project. This will bring the right type of attention to you — the kind of attention that gets you that acceptance letter into a top college or that job or promotion you’re seeking.

By creating your social “brand,” you’re setting yourself up for success.

When guests notice that I label my pantry, utensil drawers, and even my laundry room, I kind of get an odd look – like I must be wound a little too tight or like I’m simply ridiculous.  My husband thinks I’m over the top (like crazy). But hey, I’ve been super organized forever, and I’m not offended by their comments.  They’re just jealous!

I find that people tend to trust and respect signs and anything in print.  What’s interesting to me is that they actually consider it the law of the land.  A few years ago, I put a sign in the bathroom asking guests to please put down the toilet seat when done.  Not only did everyone routinely abide by the sign, but when they followed someone in the bathroom who didn’t put down the seat, they actually corrected the problem or mentioned it to the culprit!  Yes!  It worked!

I’ve purchased every conceivable type of label maker on the market, and I get excited at every opportunity to label something.  My daughter Nicole also loves to label everything and her labels are often hand printed pieces of artwork!  The acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree.

So when my friend Martin Eastburn offered to teach me how to use his father’s antique engraving machine last weekend, I was over the moon. I couldn’t believe he would let me use his family heirloom! Like a little kid, I kept asking him when I could use his engraver.

During the final hours of my stay, I watched Martin set up the engraving machine to make my luggage tags (doesn’t everyone need personalized, engraved luggage tags)? I flashed back on Gutenberg setting type for his printing press back in the 1400’s.  I collected each letter and number stencil that I needed and carefully placed it in the machine. We selected the bit and practiced on a scrap piece of plastic. 

When I finally engraved my name and phone number on my tags, I felt a sense of accomplishment.  It wasn’t a computerized machine, so I really engraved it myself – just like Gutenberg did back in the day.  Of course, now I NEED an engraver! 

Guess what’s on my Christmas list this year?