Mickey Mouse Oreo Cupcakes.

Oreo Mickey Mouse Cupcakes

Double stuffed oreos is the way to go when you make these Mickey Mouse Oreos inspired by a pin on pinterest here.  I loved this idea and thought it would be simple enough for my two year old twins to enjoy, while not going over the top.  It was a short simple birthday with two friends (thanks Shannon) and our family.

 

Cici drew some photos for the table and I put a few napkins and Mickey ears out, but no one wore them!  After we sang happy birthday, we opened a room close to the kitchen where we stored their present - a Little People toy for their cars. 



Here are the boys with their new toy!

Remember to use double stuffed oreos!

What have you made with an oreo?!

First Piano Recital.



Nini performed Star Wars



Cici performed Bunny Hop



Nini and Cici completed and accomplished their first piano recital earlier this month.  I am so proud of them.  They were nervous, but confident, and practiced as much as they could.  I love them so much and thank my lucky stars everyday that I am their mom.  Thanks girls for trying and accomplishing something very difficult!  It's not easy getting up in front of a crowd and perform!   

Flash family photo  October 11 2011
set-up the camera, push the 10 second timer, and see what you get!

Fall at the Alley Home is crazy.  We've worked extra hard to finish some much needed repairs on our home, maintain the outside, and finish the cottage on our property.  All the while, still trying to keep caught-up with everyday life, kids, fall fun, and church.  That's really our home right now - in a nutshell!  The leaves in New England are turning to beautiful golden yellows and oranges.  It probably wasn't the best peeping season this year, but it's hard when it rains - all the time!  But, still, our road and property and area are still just beautiful.



Mr. T -no need to pick, just eat off vine!

Mr. C has worked for the past months to complete many projects, as well as few, unexpected issues, and contractors stopping-in.  Thank heavens for my handy-man!  Here's an idea of what he's been up to:   

• Re-surface our drive with ground gravel to avoid problems during mud season and winter,
• fix-up the back-section of our barn as a basketball area for Nini, including installing plywood floor.
• Unexpected problems in upstairs shower, a leak forced us to cut through our bottom bathroom to dry-out the leak form the top-bathroom.  It is now drying out and we are having a plumber and drywall people here soon.
• Trim and cut-back property trees and shrubs for winter
• Install kitchen cabinets in our kitchen and hopefully soon - paint it all a uniform color - it's very mismatched now. 
• Plus he has had a few business trips!  Crazy :)

I performed in church a couple Sundays ago a piano piece called  How lovely was the morning, it was an arrangement of one of our church hymns called Joseph Smith's first prayer.  It was nice to be in performance mode, be prepared, and not mess up!  The girl's are busy with soccer, karate, piano lessons, and Cici is still in Ballet.  We switched school's because it was too difficult with the boys and too demanding on me.  Her teacher has fewer students and less recitals.  We talked a lot about it as I didn't want her to be completely crushed about the transition.  She was up for a change and her new teacher is perfect for now and at this time in our lives.



Funny Self Portrait!



Thankfully, after a physical therapy appointment this week, they were able to tell me why I have been in so much pain.  It started a couple months back with headaches and intense pain throughout the day.  I pushed doctor's appointments off because I had other things on my mind - but finally decided it was time to see someone.  It turns out that my C6 disk in my spine is bulging and causing me to have a pinched nerve.  I am on Ibuprofen and exercises every hour.  I am hopeful that it will improve in the next couple of weeks.  This hasn't been any fun.  I also had a mini-scare when I went in for my annual female check-up.  He sent me in for an early mammogram, thankfully everything turned out to be normal.  End result, they have a good baseline now for future mammograms.  

How are you?

How are your fall colors?
Do you like to eat berries right off the vine?!

Yankee Candle and Pumpkin People.

 

For all the Red Sox Fans :)
Pumpkin Patch



For Columbus Day, I met up with my blogging buddy and her sweet family, Amanda.  I just love seeing them.  It's such a treat to have met her through blogging - who knew?!  Anyway, we met at Yankee Candle in South Deerfield, CT and spent a couple hours enjoying the smells and food and candy available at this yummy location.  For a special treat, we both found ourselves at this awesome pumpkin farm just north .  The special attraction wasn't just buying the pumpkins - but also, the pumpkin people!

 



Wizard of Oz



 

Posey, Cici, Rowan, and Everett @ a pumpkin people wedding!





Hermione and Dumbledore



Nini, me, and Cici (we're not pumpkin people!)



Have you ever seen pumpkin people?!

Home, at the Drive'in Theatre!

Who says that when the drive'in theatres close, we can't have our own at home?  We pulled the boy's play cars up in front of the TV, popped popcorn, and handed out little snacks - all for the sake of their own drive-in theatre experience.  .. 

Ms. Nini planned the entire at-home outing. She talked non-stop about it and how she was going to do it for days.  Hawk and Mr. T sat in their cars the entire Phineas and Ferb show - and loved every minute of it!

Thanks Nini!

A Turquoise Hawk and twins.



Nini and Hawk checking out his turquoise hands.



Once upon a time a little boy named Hawk couldn't quite reach high on the counters of his home.  He would try and try but he never quite got his fingers on what his eyes could see.  Day after day he would stand high on his tippy toes hoping to reach the toys, trinkets, and grown-up things. 

One fall day, to his surprise, his tippy toes were just enough to allow him to reach something small and colorful on mom's kitchen counter.  She was busy frosting cupcakes and didn't see his little fingers reach to the counter.  He was curious about this little container filled with wonderful turquoise goo.  Mom didn't catch him until he had ingested it and smeared all that dye all over his hands and mouth.   He was very upset that this cool container wasn't a toy!

Hawk and his Turquoise tongue.

Now Hawk's mommy (me!) watches a little more closely at those cute piggy tippy toes!

As a mother of twins, I still try to take the time to cook and do these extra things when the boys are up.  They are pretty good about running around me and I try to involve them a little.  It's a short time-span, so I try to these things quickly.  Whether it's letting them distroy the cupboard below me or showing them what I am doing.  It's not easy managing this though!  Many times I try, but it just gets too stressful.  I cut corners with store-bought cake mixes or cooking several meals at a time -during naptime. 

Any mischief at your house?

Do you cook with small children?

Or when they are sleeping?!



The comings and goings of Nini.

Nini at skateboard camp.

I can just picture this photo being put into Nini's biography when she's a famous sport superstar!  Look at the feisty, sweet girl among all those boys (and one other girl)!  Her dad found this free, sponsored skateboard camp in a neighboring city.  It was a 45 minute drive every morning for four days and worth every mile.  The next week, she took on a neighboring town's basketball camp and came out loving every moment.  This year she had three friends among her crowd.  It is so neat to see my twins finding their own place in this world.

I love this girl!

Just Sayin :)

First Haircuts.



Hawk saying his peace about the whole thing!

 There is a little barbershop right in the middle of our small town which Craig goes to every couple of weeks. This time, however, it was the boy's turn to get a haircut - there first haircut!  I haven't snipped even a little off their cute red hair, so it was little painful for me.  I knew it was time though.  They were good boys about the whole thing.  To make sure they knew just what they were getting into, we let daddy go first.



Mr. T waiting patiently



good bye to Hawk's curl.















They did not like the sheet being placed over them.  They were anxious for the event to be over, but all-in-all were good little boys.  Once they walked out of the barbershop, they were over it.  They look like cute little men now!

Hawk and Mr. T ready to leave.

Do you have a local barber?

Do you cut your children's hair?

Do you loathe cutting those curls - even on your little men?!

We saved Hawks.

Missed Moments.

My father, Nini, Cici, and Mr. C

 There are a few missed moments that I really must blog about.  The first is Father's Day.  For the first time, perhaps since we moved from Portland in 1996, my father was at our home for Father's Day.  We had fun getting presents and cake for both of the Daddy's in our lives!









 The next missed moment was our 4th of July BBQ with friends and blogging buddy Amanda L.  It was fantastic getting to know Mr. Amanda L. and seeing her kids again. I know my girls were ecstatic that they came. 



Shannon, Kirsten, and Amanda L. -such cute moms!



All the kids getting wet and having fun!



I loved having so many kids running around the house.  Everyone seemed to have someone to play with, which made it easier for the adults to sit and chat. When Posey, Amanda's daughter changed into her bathing suit, Cici and her realized that they had almost matching swimsuits.  Quite the excitement!
 

Michael (Shannon's other half) and Terry (Amanda's other half) lighting the sparklers



 We were supposed to get a permit from our town to do any major fireworks - and didn't.  We did a few sparklers and a few other low-key fireworks.  Craig is hoping for something bigger next year!

Of course, Amanda and I waited until it was dark to take our self-portrait for blogland.  So it's inside, with a flash!  Loved Amanda's bag and necklace - so chic!  My family were all dressed in Boston Red Sox attire - in honor of Mr. C's excitement over living in an area with a major baseball team.  He's becoming quite the fanatic!



lights at the baseball game



The last missed moment revolves around more baseball!  Our area has a local baseball team that we have been lucky to help out by going to some of their games.  Craig has taken the girls on a date once and now Craig and I took the girls and one of their friends to a game a couple of weeks ago.  We are truly enjoying being a part of a community.  Rather than all that moving!





The girl's watching the game with a friend.



Thanks so much for catching-up with my missed moments! 

If you miss a moment, do you post it later or never?

Do you like baseball?

Do you have a local team?

How is your summer?

A Blueberry 4th!



Mr. C and Mr. T await the finished blueberry ice cream on the 4th!



This fourth of July was full of blueberries, friends, and fun!  Here is Mr. T awaiting the finished-home made blueberry ice cream that Mr. C likes to make frequently during the summer.  Mr. T, of course, had his hands in the ice cream container the moment we weren't looking - oops!  We couldn't of planned the blueberry ice cream any better, as one of our guests surprised everyone with two homemade blueberry pies!  I have lots of photos from our fun day with fellow blogging buddy Amanda L. and friends - but, this is all I have time for today! 

How was your fourth?!

Beach Babes and Baby Bums: Summer Beach Vacation 2011

With our cute beach babes and baby bums, we headed to the New England Beaches for a much anticipated summer vacation.  I don't know about the rest of you - but we love to plan our big vacation right after school's end.  It helps us jump into summer more quickly and lets everyone relax from the hard work of school, sports, and work. 

 There were many sights and sounds that I had missed being couped up all winter.  I love the coziness of winter, but I, personally, can only handle so much.  How about you?  The sound of the ocean, kids splashing in the water, the brightness of the sun - just heaven.  At the Zoo and Amusement Park at York Beach, Maine - this bird had it made.  I love the folkie painting and thinking hard about where I can incorporate this style into my home. 

The girls are slowly getting the idea that they can be friends, not just sisters.  It is a joy for this twin mom to see them be so independent of each other, but so completely excited to be with each other.  The start of our trip yielded this kind of togetherness as the above photo...the end of the trip - let's just say, they needed some space!

 Transporting four kids and two adults in and out oft he beaches was a challenged.  Craig found this grocery cart in our barn when he was cleaning it out and almost threw it away.  I was certain that we could find some reason to keep it.  As you can see we did use it, not only for transporting our blankets, umbrellas, and beach stuff - but for Mr. T too!  Oh, and Hawkie was certain he was being helpful by pushing the cart for Mr. C!

Both boys found it great excitement to help us push the stroller.  This was a common sight!  When at other trips they would scream while in the stroller, they now, our relaxing when we push them.  They look around and are getting the great idea that it is fun to not have to walk all the time.  Thankfully!

Cici and Nini loved the water.  While Cici was busy boogie boarding, Nini was attempting to boogie surf?  She was certain that she could take a normal boogie board and surf on it.  It didn't quite work out as what was in her creative mind.  She also started perfecting skim surfing.  It's where you throw a skim board in the water and jump on it and surf...there is much more to how to do it, but this is as far as she got! 

The boys were amazing.  They loved every minute of their beach experience; digging, running on the wet sand, chasing the seagulls, and forgetting that the ocean does have water and it's cold.  Hawkie had this sweet look on his face every time the surf came in and his feet got wet.  It wasn't quite sure about it, but loved to run, and run, and run - on the beach. 

When we weren't on the beach we hit Old Orchard Park's rides.  This is the boy's first, but themselves, amusement ride.  Mr. T loved it and Hawkie wasn't up for it the second time around.  I put him on the ride, he stood up and said "off".  OK!  I got him off and we just waved to Mr. T as he went around in circles on the cute little trucks.

Except for the absence of mom, this photo captures everything that we enjoyed about our summer vacation.  It was such a great time, fantastic weather, being together, and all that summer sand.  Now, on to enjoy the rest of our summer!

How are you finding your summer!?

8 and 18 years...

Getting ready to be blessed. 2003

 8 years ago today we walked through the Salt Lake City Temple and were sealed to our beautiful eight month old russian daughters,Cici and Nini.  And...



Reception, Vancouver WA 1993



...18 years ago, Mr. C and I were married in the Portland, OR Temple...

Who knew we would have to wait 10 years to realize our dream of having children...



Mr. T and Hawk an hour old.

...and 7 years later, I would be giving birth in Montreal to Mr. T and Hawk and that our family would grow by two more!

Happy 8 and 18 year anniversary to my amazing family :)

The Magic of a Sprinkler.

Despite, now, having seen only rain for the past two days.  Our first day of summer was beautiful.  Not only was it the girl's last day of school and my mom's birthday (which we were able to celebrate with her for the first time in years); but, it was warm and perfect for the sprinkler.  Lil' Hawk loved it!  I love that he is so entranced with it.  After looking at the photos, it felt like his reactions were the essence of what we might have felt the first time you or I went through the sprinkler!  The girl's were just as excited - if not more - as they had already had years of sprinkler practice!

Do you remember the first time you ran through the sprinklers?

L-O-V-E spells Daddy :)

L

O

V

E

**********

SPELLS

WE

Daddy!

 This was a my father's day gift to Mr. C!  A photo-gram to put in his office.  He's been asking for an updated photo and this Father's Day - he got one!  The letters were made out of black felt and glued (for a quick and speedy photo) onto inexpensive white shirts.  That was the easy part!  It was getting everyone together and in the photo, that inevitably was the hardest part.  This was a lot of fun and something I hope to repeat for our Christmas card!   



Out-take - one of many!