October 2017 – A Blog, A Magazine. It's JustsumInspiration!

5 Spooky/Thriller Movies You Must See Before Halloween Ends!

Published on October 30, 2017October 30, 2017 by Roshonda B7 Comments

picture above courtesy of mashable

So, tomorrow is Halloween and if you’re anything like me, you’re probably wondering what to do and how to celebrate it. First let me say, I’m not a big Halloween person myself – although I do love seeing the crazy, ridiculous, scary or cute costumes that people come up with; but now that I have older children, I’ll get to why I said “older” in a minute. They are always pumped about going trick-or-treating or participating in costume contest at school, well my son is that is, my daughter, ehhhh….she’s all about the treat instead of the trick, so I find myself every year, trying to figure out someplace cool for them to go….I mean, just because I’m not a major Halloween fan doesn’t mean that I want them to suffer in the process.

When they were younger, (like some months old, one or two years of age) I didn’t have to worry so much of them looking at me with sad eyes wanting to go trick or treating, Of course I would dress them up when they went to daycare so they can participate in their classes, but doing anything that night was totally out of the question, However; I do remember taking my daughter around in a stroller when she was 1yrs old from house to house getting candy (my mom’s idea). I just put a little mask on her and there we went, from house to house on Halloween getting candy. It felt a little awkward at first as I surely believed everyone thought, a young baby like that was not going to be eating the candy…but the grown woman was. (Probably why I didn’t get that much)

Yeah Right Face — **The look I received when I walked up to the door with my daughter….LOL**

Anyway, it was an okay night but I couldn’t wait to get back home – the things we do for our parents…While that was great, years ago – now that my son and daughter are much older they look forward to doing something “great” on Halloween. Let’s face it, Halloween isn’t like it used to be when I was growing up in which is why the “trunk or treats” have become ever so popular alongside organizations having a big Halloween bash within a safe environment for everyone to enjoy. I have to say I do take notice of those things and do attend but I’m a home body and also enjoy staying indoors. So if you’re not that into trunk or treats or big crowds – maybe you can have your own Halloween gathering safely inside your own home.

One year, I did this and it was awesome! – I rented a couple of scary movies, bought some pizzas, chips, cupcakes, candy bags, drinks and we celebrated Halloween at home. So, if going out and celebrating Halloween is not your thing; then maybe staying indoors will fit the bill. While I won’t be able to help with the party food, I can definitely suggest a couple of scary/thriller movies to rent that will make your Halloween night “indoors” spookier.

Listed below are my recent favorite thrillers in which you and the kids (even their friends) or you and your friends or family can watch to SPOOK the night off.

Annabelle Creation – My Rating 9

She’s back! In Annabelle: Creation, several years after the tragic death of their little girl, a doll maker and his wife welcome a nun and several girls from a shuttered orphanage into their home. They soon become the target of the doll maker’s possessed creation, Annabelle.

Wish Upon– My Rating 8

Clare Shannon, a 17-year old, is haunted by the memory of her mother’s suicide. Her father Jonathan, a former musician and compulsive hoarder who dumpster dives as a hobby, finds a Chinese music box and gives it to her as a gift. Clare deciphers one of the numerous inscriptions on the box as “Seven Wishes,” and absent-mindedly wishes for Darcie, her tormentor and school bully, to “rot,” at which point her wish comes true and the girl is admitted into the ICU. That same day, Clare’s dog Max dies in her house’s crawlspace after being eaten alive by rats. Clare realizes that the box grants wishes, but does not realize her wishes come with consequences.

Don’t Breathe – My Rating 9

Three young thieves fight for their lives after breaking into the home of a blind man who has a dark side and isn’t so helpless as he seems.

Get Out – My Rating 10

It’s time for a young African American to meet with his white girlfriend’s parents for a weekend in their secluded estate in the woods, but before long, the friendly and polite ambience will give way to a nightmare.

Lights Out – My Rating 8.5

Rebecca must unlock the terror behind her little brother’s experiences that once tested her sanity, bringing her face to face with an entity attached to their mother a dark spirit by the name of Diana.

The Boy – My Rating 8

An American nanny is shocked that her new English family’s boy is actually a life-sized doll. After she violates a list of strict rules, disturbing events make her believe that the doll is really alive.

Dead Silence – My Rating 8.5

A young widower returns to his hometown to search for answers to his wife’s murder, which may be linked to the ghost of a murdered ventriloquist.

*** **** ***

And that’s it, those are my top faves. I hope this post was helpful to you and provided some great choices for picking out a movie for Halloween, most of these movies can be found at your local redbox – in which makes the night even more affordable. I wish you and yours a very good Halloween and if you have a scary movie that you enjoy, let me know in the comments – I would love to watch it!!

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

Billy “The Big Bully” Wolf & The Dangers of Silence by Roshonda N. Blackmon

Published on October 27, 2017October 27, 2017 by Roshonda B10 Comments

Not one person liked Billy Wolf or the way he treated others, but they’d dare not say anything.

Excerpt from “Billy Wolf & The Kids of Heavenly Hills Elementary”

As a child growing up, there were quite a few issues that occurred in my life in which I felt like my voice either went unheard or numb to the world around me. I grew up in a household with a bully step-father whom fought my mom to no end, sometimes those fights ended in blood shed, I watched as he hit, degraded and shamed her; whether in public, in front of his or her family and most heartbreakingly, in front of me and my two sisters. Where was my voice to speak up? In this case it was helpless.

I remember being in school, third grade – the teacher would have us line up behind each other once we got out of the bathroom and had a water break. One of my male classmates in whom would purposely stand behind me every time, would touch me inappropriately, he would lean up against me really close, take his hand and dig in my derriere, making his way to touch other parts of me that I didn’t even know was supposed to be touched. This made me feel very uncomfortable and weird. Why was he doing this? Should I say something about it? Would he deny it? Would my voice matter? Where was my voice to speak up? In this case it was scared.

For a couple of years, I was sexually molested by my step-father, my mothers second husband. At first I didn’t know what was going on, he would make my sisters go outside to play when my mother would leave the house and he would come into my room and act as if we were playing a game of hide and seek, thing is – he would find me every-time and my punishment for getting found?, became a reward for him to do what he wanted to do to me. Should I tell my mother? Would she believe me? Would he deny it? Was this supposed to happen? In some sense, was I asking for it and didn’t know it? Where was my voice to speak up? In this case it was numb.

In school, I was bullied by kids – I guess you can say I was the weakest link. I had issues going on at home and issues going on at school, I had no friends but a made up imaginary friend named “Jeannine” in whom I confided and talked to quite a bit. I was always afraid to speak up because I always felt like there would be repercussions for my actions and who would protect me? At the end of the day, It was my word vs. their word. I was hopeless and felt as if they were more powerful and because of that “The Silence” went on for years and years. Until one day – I got the courage to SPEAK UP!

That is the reasoning for me writing the book “Billy Wolf & The Kids of Heavenly Hills Elementary” while the book may seem juvenile, it’s a story of how we as a society can allow one thing or one person take the most powerful thing to ever grace our body away from us and that’s OUR VOICE! Let me tell you, Bullying takes place every….single….day in our society and our lives – you don’t have to be a child to experience it as you have adult bullies as well. Why should we allow one person to have so much power over us, a power that cripples us for years.

ONE VOICE CAN MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE!

A difference that will not only empower you, but empower others around you.

Sometimes people are just waiting on someone else to make a BOLD move. I tell my son and daughter all the the time. Don’t be afraid to raise your hand in school to ask a question (they would silence themselves and not do it, afraid that they would hold up the class or that someone would get mad at them) but I told them, the same question you are asking? Is the question that someone else is afraid to ask – so by you asking it’s not only helping you….but them as well.

My hope is that this book will encourage, inspire and motivate kids as well as adults to stand up and use the most powerful tool God gave us and that’s OUR VOICE!

Illustrations were done by the amazingly talented Vineet Siddhartha a.k.a yangvineet @ fiverr.com

**Coming Soon 2018 – To Amazon and a Bookstore near You!**

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

You Scream, We Scream! – We All Want Pumpkin Ice-Cream!

Published on October 26, 2017 by Roshonda B2 Comments

photo above courtesy of vegkitchen

If you’re like me and I believe maybe 80% of you are, I absolutely love sweets especially CHOCOLATE! I mean, don’t get me wrong I’ve gotten a lot better but I always have to have something sweet after dinner, a cookie – brownie – honey bun or even a piece of candy was all I needed to top of the evening meal, dinner is not dinner unless there’s dessert right after or if you’re like some people, dessert comes first!

As stated, I’ve gotten a lot better with my “sweet” choices as now I try to opt for more “healthier” options and that’s been going well, but I do have cheat days and that’s when I let my hair down to have a piece of cake or some chocolate, and while cheat days are on Sundays, I’ve found myself craving for sweets during the week, me and my body have been having some serious talks, as it wants to move back to “old habits” lane. A place in which I totally let myself go and eat whatever my heart desires, but that place comes at a hefty price, especially when my health is involved. So, when that taste of wanting something not so good for me rears its ugly head, I have found other alternatives that help keep those cravings at bay and one of those things is pumpkin ice cream.

Because I’m a big fan of sweetsville, ice cream is another one of my all-time favorite treats but just because I can’t have the real thing when I want, doesn’t mean I can’t “healtherize” (if there’s such a word) an old favorite. Let me tell you, I honestly didn’t know how this was going to turn out, I mean as I’ve told you before – I’m no Rachel Ray nor Martha Stewart for that matter so I’m not that great at making things from scratch, which is why I settle for recipes that only require 4-5 ingredients as this girl can get pretty messy, literally….if the recipe calls for more than that. Hey, I know my limits….

But needless to say, this ice cream turned out better than I expected and yes, they do have pumpkin ice cream in the stores but do you really know what’s in them? I mean most of them contain a lot of ingredients that I myself can’t even pronounce however; this recipe was very simple and only required very few ingredients all of which you can easily recognize, spell and pronounce and I don’t know about you, but I like to know what’s in my food.

So, if you have a craving for ice-cream and want something that’s going to be not only healthy but lactose free and taste good? Then this recipe is for you.

The Ingredients you’ll need are here:

Pumpkin Ice Cream3 — ***6 Ingredients & You’re headed to Yummyville!***

Here are the Recipe Details:

1 can pumpkin puree

1 large banana

3/4 cup coconut milk

2 tablespoons maple syrup, raw honey or a few drops of stevia

1/2 teaspoon vanilla, optional

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon – or more if you’d like.

Optional Note: I added, 1 tsp of coconut sugar – I love my ice-cream to be sweet.

Directions are as Follows:

Fill an ice cube tray evenly with the pumpkin puree and cover tightly with plastic wrap.
Place banana in a Ziploc bag and place the banana and the ice cube tray in the freezer overnight.
Remove the cubes and banana from the freezer and let sit for 5 minutes.
Remove from ice tray and plastic bag and place everything in high power blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
Enjoy right away or place in freezer for a couple of hours to create a harder ice cream.

Now, for my Before and After Pics ~

Pumpkin Ice Cream — **Everything all blended together Nicely. So Creamy!**

Pumpkin Ice Cream2 — ***After sitting in the freezer for over 8 hours – Here it Is!***

Now you can eat it as is but if you like to live on the wild side, then you can push the envelope a little, just as I did.

Pumpkin Ice Cream4 — ***Let me introduce you to – Pumpkin Banana Split!!!***

Pumpkin Ice Cream5 — ***Another picture, just in case you were drooling over the first one…lol.***

Okay, so I have to say – I didn’t necessarily follow the directions above as I just blended everything together and put it in a bowl to let it refrigerate – had a picture of it but it didn’t turn out very well. However; I will say – I fixed this the night before and left it in the freezer for over 8 hours. It was extremely hard when I got it out, too hard to put a scoop through so I had to let it sit in some hot water (the bowl that is) until it thawed a little. But afterwards it was sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo (okay, so you get it), it was extremely good….no joke and to top off the night – It was kid approved!!, as my son and daughter loved it and they can be picky eaters.

To make the pumpkin split, I cut up half a banana, some strawberries, threw in some walnuts, semi-sweet chocolate chips, whip cream and a cherry on top. Out of all the recipes, this one tops the list as my favorite, I will definitely be fixing this again – even after fall! As a matter of fact, I’m going to eat some more after boot camp today….it’ll be my guilty pleasure for putting my body through combat..lol.

If you would like to make this recipe – you can find it at Renewing All Things (4 Ingredient Fast Pumpkin Ice-Cream). Well this is the last recipe for the month, I do hope that you enjoyed every post and hopefully it gave you new ideas as to what to do with a can of pumpkin. As you can see, it not only has many benefits to your body but even better ones for your taste buds! as well.

This is the LAST CALL! Have You Entered The Giveaway??

To kick off the pumpkin festivities I thought I would do a giveaway – I love to receive things and I know you might too. I’m giving away a $25.00 gift card, here’s what you have to do and how to enter:

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

Post a picture of you with one of the 5 recipes featured this month with the caption: “Pumpkins Up! @justsuminspiration2u is doing a giveaway! Enter for a chance to win at justsuminspiration.com.”

That’s It! That’s all you have to do – Remember, you have to make one of the recipes, follow me on Instagram, post your picture of you and the recipe of choice and include the italicized statement with your post. Good Luck!!

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

If you missed the other recipe posts, you can view them here:

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

There’s a Pumpkin in my Oatmeal!

Let’s Fall In Love, with Pumpkin Soup!!

I’ll have Pumpkin Mac & Cheese Please!, How about You?

Burger King’s New PSA About Bullying Will Leave You Speechless & Applauding

Published on October 25, 2017October 25, 2017 by Roshonda BLeave a comment

“Did you order a Bullied? or Un-Bullied Burger”, That’s the question Burger King is asking in the most powerful PSA ever to grace television. Since October is National Bullying Prevention month, the burger giant jumped on board with NoBully.org to help spread awareness about a topic that has been and still is troubling to our society today, especially children and teens.

Burger King’s campaign “Bullying Junior” is a PSA in which a group of kids (actors) are bullying a kid inside the restaurant. While that action is taking place in front of customers, there’s a different type of action taking place in the kitchen, where a burger is being bullied as well by an employee (also an actor) and served to customers. The goal of the PSA was to see which incident would get the most attention. The bullied kid or the bullied burger, in which Burger King stated below..

If you’re thinking, the bullied kid would get more attention – Well, think again. In the video shown below, the fast food chain showed more people responding and getting angry over the bullied burger as opposed to the bullied kid – According to Fox News, a staggering or whopping I should say 95% of customers complained of having a bullied burger, while 12% stood up for the bullied kid. I have to say, my mouth literally dropped when I saw those numbers but then again, we live in a society where “Minding your own business” or “It’s not my kid nor my problem” is at an all time high. As a society we are constantly consumed of news and/or video’s displaying children whom are being bullied or have taken their own lives because they can’t deal with the pain, hurt and shamefulness that bullying brings on. Who do they tell? – Who can they trust? – Where can they go for help?, unfortunately are all questions that sometimes never get resolved or answered in time.

According to statistics 30% of students worldwide are bullied each year.

I have to say while I was very appalled by the reactions of these “real life” people whom didn’t take a stand, I’m even more saddened by the many children whom live this commercial every…single…day. In the video below prior to the PSA experiment, you’ll meet several students all of whom discuss their own personal experiences with bullying at one point or another in their lives.

View the video below and while you’re at it, visit Pacer’s National Bullying Prevention Center website here to find out how you can show your support, add your name to the “Together Against Bullying” pledge, Sign up for the newsletter or attend an upcoming “Bullying Awareness” event within your community!

I applaud Burger King for standing UP! to an issue that apparently according to their experiment didn’t get much of an applause.

While we’re on the subject of Bullying – Stay Tuned as I have a surprise to share with you on this upcoming Friday 10/27/17.

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!

Yes, I’ll Have Pumpkin Mac & Cheese Please! – How About You?

Published on October 24, 2017October 24, 2017 by Roshonda B6 Comments

Photo above courtesy of Yellow Bliss Road

Macaroni and Cheese has always been one of my favorite southern comfort foods, I am a big fan of cheese and when you mix that with some pasta, let’s just say….it’s a match made in heaven. While I can’t have mac and cheese on a regular like I would like due to me having to keep a close watch on the carbs, I was very happy when I found this recipe in which incorporated pumpkin in the recipe and with all of pumpkins great benefits, this recipe was proving to not only be good for the body but decrease sugar levels as well.

So I was very excited to be able to fix this recipe but mostly I couldn’t wait to taste it – I mean, I have to be real with you – it’s not every day that you hear about people putting pumpkin in the ooey, gooey mac and cheese so I was a little skeptical at first, I’m a person that falls in love with food based on the taste, not the look – so I knew if the taste wasn’t great then this recipe was going to go down in smokes as there was no plan B!

But to my surprise, this recipe was not only easy (my favorite word) but exceeded my taste expectations as well. If you need a quick, wholesome and nutritious meal to fix or dinner tonight or any night this week, then grab your pens and paper and follow me below as I share the ingredients and cooking instructions to this cheesy surprise!

The Ingredients you’ll need are here:

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese — **8 Ingredients are all you need!!**

And the Recipe goes a little something like this:

1 package (16 oz) elbow macaroni

1/4 cup butter (unsalted)

1/4 cup Gold Medal™ all-purpose flour

2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix)

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz)

Directions are as Follows:

Heat oven to 350°F. Cook and drain macaroni as directed on package, using minimum cook time.
Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, melt butter over low heat. Stir in flour; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly with whisk. Remove from heat; stir in milk. Heat to simmering; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly, until thickened. Stir in salt, pepper, nutmeg, mustard and pumpkin. Add 1 3/4 cups of the cheese. Cook, stirring occasionally, until cheese is melted.
Add macaroni to cheese sauce and stir until coated. Pour into greased 3-quart casserole. Top with remaining 1/4 cup cheese.
Bake uncovered 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Optional: If you choose to use bread crumbs, as I did. You’ll melt a tablespoon of unsalted butter in a small pan until all melted then you’ll add in a 1/2 cup of bread crumbs and stir them around in the butter until they are coated, like below..

Now, for my Before and After Pics ~

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese1 — **Step #2 – All ingredients mixed in**

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese2 — **Everything is mixed & Looking Good!**

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese4 — **Step #3 Macaroni added, making this look even more delicious!**

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese5 — **Before: Moved to Oiled pan with Breadcrumbs**

Pumpkin Mac-Cheese6 — **After: Baked for 20min, Umm, So Good!**

Now, Let’s Dress this Yummy Goodness Up!!

I completed this Cheesy dish with a side of Spinach salad and a piece of boneless, skinless baked chicken thigh and topped it off with a glass of Key Lime Sparkling water and VIOLA! dinner is served!!! This dish was so good, you could taste the pumpkin a little, it was cheesy and surely a better alternative than using powdered cheese, I really loved how healthy this dish was, It was truly a very good “guilty” pleasure.

As you can see, a little pumpkin can go a long way…I would suggest adding it in a couple of your meals for an extra added boost of nutrition. This recipe was provided by Betty Croker and if you want to make it for yourself or your family, just go here

Now I have to say, my son and daughter didn’t care for this so well, so if you have children, it may be a less non-desired taste for them but there are many ways you can boost this recipe up, by simply adding more cheese and maybe some bacon as your topping. You also don’t have to use a whole can or cup of pumpkin – you can reduce that to a smaller portion of a 1/2 cup or less. I hope you enjoy this nice twist to a very common southern classic. You might even want to plate up some tonight!

Thursday is the last recipe for the month – I’ll be ending the great pumpkin series with a little dessert, so stay tuned!

Did you hear about the giveaway??

Follow @justsuminspiration2u on Instagram

The Winner will be announced November 3, 2017 at 1:00pm on the Justsuminspiration blog, Facebook and Instagram pages. Winners will be selected randomly from the list of entries submitted.

Roshonda N. Blackmon – Creator of JustsumInspiration, Author, Speaker & Encourager

Let’s Live Well, Laugh Loud, Love Hard & Inspire Often!