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.

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 admissions@flexschool.net or call 908-279-0787.

Advantage Care Health Centers

<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #434343; background-color: #ffffff; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Advantage Care now offers in-person and Tele-Health services to all new and current patients through their secure online platform visit: <a style="text-decoration: none;" href="https://advantagecare.doxy.me/"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #434343; background-color: #ffffff; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">https://advantagecare.doxy.me</a><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Arial; color: #434343; background-color: #ffffff; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to see how it works.&nbsp; Tele-Health Services for Children and Adults include the Following: Primary Care, Psychotherapy, Psychiatry.&nbsp; Advantage Care continues to take proper measures to keep their patients, community, and staff safe during the pandemic. Advantage Care Health Centers are Long Island&rsquo;s premier Federally Qualified Health Centers. They accept Medicaid, Medicaid Managed Care Plans, Medicare. The mission of their centers is to provide the highest quality comprehensive primary, dental, mental, and behavioral health care services.&nbsp; They offer these services to all members of the community with a commitment to those who might otherwise be excluded from the health care system, while remaining cost-effective and efficient. Advantage Care specializes in providing services to children and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Rock on Music School

Since 2016, I have been providing interactive music sessions tailored to the individual (Ages 6 - Adult). Learn to play instruments, sing and express yourself in a fun, non-judgemental environment. In-Home lessions (Currently suspended due to Covid) and LIVE VIRTUAL MUSIC sessions are available and are approved by Self-Direction Providers. See and hear more on my website RockonMusicSchool.com. "Using music to build confidence and self-esteem is my greatest achievement.