Let FabuLyss fall festivities begin!

We are officially in Oktoberfest, and what a boo-tiful month it will be. I love summer, but I love fall even more! There’s nothing better than wearing jeans, a new sweater, and walking through Central Park as the leaves start to change colors.

How do you celebrate fall? Have you gone apple- or pumpkin-picking? I will be taking my boys to the family-owned and operated apple orchard, Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard, located in North Salem, in Westchester County. Harvest Moon hosts a Fall Festival every weekend until Halloween with live music, pumpkins, bounce houses, hayrides, face painting, DeLysscious freshly made apple cider doughnuts, and wine tasting for the parents!

Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard [130 Hardscrabble Rd. in North Salem, NY, (914) 485–1210, www.harvestmoonfarmandorchard.com].

Of course, Halloween is right around the corner. Did you pick out your FabuLyssly creative costume yet?

Looking for something FabuLyss to do on Halloween? The DivaMoms Annual Spooktacular will be taking place at Dylan’s Candy Bar on Friday, Oct. 30 from 10 am to noon. Cupcake decorating, monster mash dancing, costume contest, candy fun, games, and much more. Perfect for babies ages 6 month to 3 years of age.

Dylan’s Candy Bar [1011 Third Ave. between E. 60th and E. 61st streets in Lenox Hill, (646) 735–0078].

If you’re in the mood for a fun treat this Halloween, check out MarthaStewart.com for “great-tasting, ghoulish-looking cupcakes that are a wickedly easy treat for a party!” (www.marthastewart.com/316456/wicked-witch-cupcakes).

Lyss Stern is the founder of DivaLysscious Moms (www.divamoms.com).

Martha Stewart wicked witch cupcakes

INGREDIENTS:

24 brown mini M&Ms plus more for filling (optional)

Hershey’s Chocolate Cupcakes

Dirty Green Simple Buttercream (See below)

12 chocolate sugar cones

1 pound black licorice laces, cut into 1/4-inch, 1/2-inch and 2-inch lengths

12 candy corns

DIRECTIONS: Using a melon baller, scoop out the center of each cupcake, and fill with mini M&Ms, if desired.

Cover the tops of each cupcake with a generous mound (about 1/3 cup) of buttercream. Insert one candy corn into each cupcake to form a nose. Using brown mini M&Ms, insert two into each cupcake to form eyes. Place two short lengths of licorice above the eyes to form eyebrows for the witch. Place the shorter licorice lengths above the eyebrows to form bangs. Place an inverted cone on top of bangs, pressing gently into buttercream to adhere. Place the longer licorice lengths under the cone hat to form the hair.

Dirty Green Simple Buttercream

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 pounds (6 sticks) butter, softened

1 pound confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 tsp salt

Red and green food coloring

DIRECTIONS: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, combine the butter, sugar, vanilla and salt. Begin beating on low speed, increasing to high for 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally. Using food coloring, tint the icing dirty green.

Windward School

A coed, independent day school exclusively for students with dyslexia and language-based learning disabilities, The Windward School enrolls students in grades one through nine. 98% of Windward students move on to mainstream schools after completing The Windward School's academic program. The Windward School is nationally recognized for its development of instructional programs designed specifically to help students achieve language proficiency. The School&rsquo;s academic curriculum is research-based and multisensory in nature and is designed to give students the skills they need to succeed in school and return with confidence to mainstream educational settings.

Camp Lee Mar

A private 7 week residential summer program offering a unique curriculum incorporating a strong Academic and Speech program with traditional camp activities. Our campers flourish at Lee Mar due to the structured environment we provide which allows our campers to feel comfortable and secure. Careful study is made of parent input, school (IEPs), camper interview, etc., so that the interests and needs of each child can best be determined for suitable grouping prior to the camper arriving. At Lee Mar the children find comfort and friendship with children of similar age and functioning level. From this foundation we encourage our campers to embrace and learn new skills and have new experiences which they can build upon on their return home. We also focus on building friendships which last throughout the year, as well as learning how to cope with the dynamics of group situations. Development of the whole child is our goal. We work hard at improving the daily living, social, and life skills of our campers, while giving them the happiest summer of their lives!

FlexSchool

Our mission is to provide an engaging&nbsp;learning experience in a supportive environment where students are free to explore their&nbsp;passions, embrace their challenges and find a community of teachers and friends who&nbsp;understand and accept them as they are. Academics: To meet the unique needs of gifted and 2e learners &ndash; students who may have co-occurring&nbsp;learning challenges along with their gifts &ndash; we provide a gifted-level curriculum with built-in&nbsp;scaffolding, developed by credentialed experts in both gifted education and special education,&nbsp;as well as subject-area experts. Small, discussion-based classes ensure our students can&nbsp;engage in stimulating conversation with intellectual peers while receiving individualized attention&nbsp;and support. Talent Development and Experiential Learning: Central to our program is our strengths-based, interest-based approach to learning. All&nbsp;FlexSchool students pursue personal passion projects and choose from a diverse menu of&nbsp;enrichment activities and electives designed to support exploration and talent development. Our&nbsp;signature FlexFriday experiential learning program provides essential connections between&nbsp;classroom learning and the real world. Executive Functioning and Learning Support: All FlexSchool students have access to an extensive range of accommodations, including&nbsp;breaks as needed, daily executive functioning support, flexible seating, extended time, assistive&nbsp;technology and more. Learning Specialist support is available on every FlexSchool campus. Social-Emotional Learning and School Counseling: Our caring team of certified school counselors, under the guidance of a consulting psychologist,&nbsp;provide robust social-emotional learning and social pragmatics programming. Students are&nbsp;welcome to visit the school counselor at any time &ndash; no appointment necessary. FlexSchool&nbsp;counselors also maintain a collaborative relationship with parents and outside providers. Rolling admissions: We understand that student needs don&rsquo;t always neatly align with the academic calendar, so&nbsp;FlexSchool admits students on a rolling basis. To learn more, join FlexSchool founder Jacqui&nbsp;Byrne live via Zoom for a Virtual Open House. To receive a call from our admissions team,&nbsp;inquire online, email us at [email protected] or call 908-279-0787.