Because I want to WIN

one of THESE...

And you should just check out this cute blog.

Pirate Party STUFF

Dear Reader (one who must live somewhere close to me...)

I threw Sam a pirate birthday party that was such fun. And I bought all of my supplies at Michaels on clearance for 80% off. I can't return the stuff. So, I'm wondering if someone out there wants it. It seems like such a shame to throw it away!

Here's the loot:
10 pirate invitations, 14 thank you cards, 14 loot bags, 1 pkg pirate confetti, 24 Pirate plates, 3 pirate award ribbons
3 dangly decorations, 1 black and white striped sheet (purchased at DI and used as decor for a game and later as a tablecloth - has a few chocolate cupcake stains right now but that will all probably wash out.)

**close-up of hanging decorations**
1 Happy Birthday banner
1 plank used for the "Walk the Plank" game
A bunch of fake gold coins we used for our "Treasure Toss" (no pic of these... sorry!)

Let me know if you want it! Not sure what the demand here is going to be... maybe no one will be interested??? First come first serve. Come get your pirate party in a bag! :)
I just feel so badly throwing away all this stuff!

More details on the most awesome pirate party EVER once I sort through all my pics.

FINALLY Four!

Sam's been waiting for what seems like forever in Samland for this day to come. And it finally did! After a month of daily paper chain removal, and talking about it, and wishing for it, we celebrated Sam's fourth birthday last week.

It began with going to the Children's Museum with some of Sam's little friends. Sam especially loves playing with Audrey.

Zack had a fun time too, mostly playing with the plastic balls in the water. Sam also "posed" with Zack for me that morning. Ahhhhh... it's so hard taking pics of these two boys! Looking at the camera and getting somewhat of a normal smile on both AT THE SAME TIME is just too much to ask.

We had cake and ice cream that night. We celebrated with Jake and two of his friends - Jared and Taylor. Sam and Zack LOVED playing with them. Jared is Zack's new favorite person.
And now, since I think you ought to look at this a little more closely, I give you my first ever successful dairy-free egg-free chocolate cake with yummy chocolate frosting. Sweet little Sam, when asked what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday, responded, "A cake that Zack can eat." Thanks to my fabulous friend Erika for giving me THIS awesome cookbook, I found a yummy recipe. And topped it all off with Gma Moorhead's chocolate frosting - made dairy free. Yum yum yum.

The true test? Jake and friends gobbled it down and couldn't tell the difference.Phfew! One of the nicest perks about discovering this cake and frosting is this: Sam's friend Piper has the same allergies that Zack has. We invited Piper to Sam's birthday party and wrote in the invitation, "Just FYI, all the food at the party - including the cupcakes - will be allergy free. Come enjoy!" I just heard from Piper's mom and dad that Piper is so excited for Sam's party. She has never been able to eat the cake or cupcakes at a friend's birthday party before. She has been showing everyone her invitation and even sleeping with it at night! So cute. And, on the other hand, ***I sure hope Zack outgrows these allergies someday!***

Flashback: My birthday

For my birthday this year, my sweet hubby planned a weekend away! His parents and sister Rach watched our boys while we had a blast downtown. We left Friday night and came back Sunday morning. It was such a fun weekend of lots of uninterrupted sleep, shopping, thai food, a movie, walking around the Gateway, watching the Angels lose, and having an otherwise wonderful time.

The following Monday, my actual birthday, I wasn't expecting much. I mean, we already celebrated, right? Well, Matt came home early from work with THESE little gems from a new cupcake place I've been dying to try - Mini's.

Sam helped me eat them of course. Thanks for a fabulous birthday weekend, schweeeethaaahhhhht! You sure know the way to my heart . Gourmet cupcakes.

AARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGG!

From our family to yours.

Ready, Set GOOOO!!!

Sam and Zack love to play this game. They stand still and Sam yells, "Ready, Set..." Then they both yell, "GOOOOOO!" and race around the circle. Zack is getting faster! Enjoy the added bonus of the aaachoooo at the end.

Halloween Happenings

I have found much that needs to be posted... and am going to rededicate myself to this blog. I promise! :)

For now, here are our Halloween Happenings so far. (To be updated after this weekend!)

Sam and I made some decorations for our house. Aren't we festive?

Then we threw in a few things I already had to complete the decor.
And, we hung up signs to help Sam learn how to tell time.

Last Saturday, we carved pumpkins. Sam LOVED it. Those cool little kits make it so that an almost 4-year-old can do it too. We did a silly one and a pirate one, by request of course. We're going to be PIRATES for Halloween.


As soon as we were done, we ran over to this cool playground until our play was cut short.

Z loves this playground because he can DO IT BY HIMSELF! What a lovely thing that is. He walks over, climbs up, and slides down this slide backwards all by himself! Then, repeat an infinite number of times until someone decides that it's time to go.

(I love this pic of Z. Such a cute chubbalicious face. Notice the wings. We really need to cut his hair!)

Sam experimented with all sorts of different ways to go down slides - upsidedown, superman style, on his back, with Zack, and holding hands!

They actually were helping to pull each other down the slide in that picture of them holding hands. Why? Because it had started raining and the slide was just wet enough to make your clothes stick to it, but not wet enough to SLIDE.

Last time down - it was REALLY RAINING and time to go!

Then, yesterday, Sam and I made 4 dozen cupcakes for the cupcake walk at our Trunk or Treat tonight.

While I was doing some of the prep work, I let the boys watch a show to get them out of the way and out of trouble. Sam loves sitting with Zack like this when they sit next to each other. Zack's never so sure...

We had fun decorating the cupcakes though. Move over So Cupcake and Mini's! Check these out. My kitchen was a MESS afterwards, but it was worth it.

These are some of my favorites: the bug-eyed bugs, the jack-o-lanterns of course, the spider, the silly monster, and everyone's favorite wizard.

Can't wait to eat them! Happy Halloween Weekend!

Dear Angels,

Dear Angels,

I would appreciate it if you would NOT give me an anxiety attack, develop ulcers, or any other such discomfort as you play the Yankees. Thanks for winning last night. You did it by the skin of your teeth. Next time, let's not end the game up by only one run with two outs, bases loaded, and a full count on the last pitch, okay? I nearly died.

Thanks,
A fan. And a littler fan known to yell "GO VLADEEEEE!!!

Cute Brothers

Just a quick post since I have to leave for JURY DUTY in a few minutes...

Look at these cute brothers. Sam set up this photo shoot for me. I was in the office and next thing I know, Sam's yelling, "MOM, YOU GOTTA TAKE A PICTURE OF THIS!" He had moved these two chairs over to the side and next to each other. He had planted Zack in one of them and he was in the other. What resulted were a few good pics. Way to go, Sam. :)

Sam really wanted to have his arm around Zack. Zack wasn't so sure.
So, he tried again after they switched chairs. Nope... still not going for it. So, he just smothered him with energetic hugs. Zack relented and thought it was funny.
I sure love these two boys!

Happy Fat

Couldn't help but post this. Maybe because I feel like I have a bit too much of this kind of "happy fat"? Especially since we always have oreos on hand for Zack to munch when the rest of us are having a treat. Having oreos on hand is a bad thing for me. VERY BAD.

But what can I say? We're happy because we eat LARD!