Thursday, October 31, 2013

More Halloween Gifts...

It's like Christmas around here...
 A bouquet of Halloween flowers and a gift card to Dunkin Donuts.
#mrs.shannon #mrs.kaitlyn #mrs.erin
 Happy Halloween TY!
Never forget the hands that feed you (Darren)!
#formynutlovinghusband

Americans Are...

OVER INDULGED!
We have YET to go trick or treating yet and we already have an abundance of candy!  Most all of this will totally be regifted tonight, minus the candy that Grandnee gave to the kids from the Fresh Market.  Shhhh, don't tell my kiddies. I NEVER buy candy to give out because this is the case EVERY. SINGLE. YEAR. I just use candy we received the days leading up to Halloween night.

I may even partake in the  "switch witch"  idea. 

The Piano Guys

Why do people take selfiess? I think they always turn out so horrible.
Darren and I went on a double date with our friends Aaron and Lisa Fernandez. This date was planned almost a year in advance.  LOL!  No lie.  Aaron usually buys tickets to unique events and in return we treat them to a nice dinner out. Last night, we finally brought that date to fruition.  First, we ate at Beamer's, in downtown Roanoke.  We had never been there before, so it was a royal treat to go somewhere new. Both the atmosphere and the food was delicious.  After dinner, we headed over to the Jefferson Center to watch a performance by "The Piano Guys".  I had no idea what to expect and I had no idea who these guys were, but MAN O' DAY! It was truly the MOST phenomenal musical performance I have ever witnessed.  

A little insight into who "The Piano Guys" are,
Hailing from Utah, "The Piano Guys" became an internet sensation by way of their immensely successful series of strikingly original self-made music videos. Actually, there's only ONE piano player, Jon Schmidt, and one other instrumentalist, Steven Sharp Nelson, on cello. Yet the other three are equally significant members of the group.  The spectacular Piano Guys videos have so far netted over 186 million YouTube views and 500,000 new views per day. Check out my three favorite songs they played last night.  Once you watch one video, you won't be able to stop. I loved this so much, I want their soundtracks for Christmas!!!  It's so upbeat and peaceful!!!

One thing you will notice.... these guys LOVE to take their instruments to unique places to play.  If you check them out on youtube, you will see that ONE AMAZING PLACE they took their instruments to was to "The Great Wall of China"! Incredible.

That's What Makes You Beautiful: This was the last song they played and I was THRILLED. It reminded me of Lilah.  It's her FAVORITE song!!!! Charlie Brown Medley  Titanium

Busy Week...

It's been a busy week, for people of ALL AGES, in our home.  Between football playoffs, ballet, costume parties, Reformation celebrations, school walk-a-thon, Halloween parade, etc. etc. etc. we have NOT stopped.  Tyson's normal routine had faltered a tad, on Tuesday, and he forgot to fill out his daily reading log, like normal. On Wednesday morning, I went into his room to make his bed and I found a note on his nightstand (#firsttimeforeverything).  It read,
"Reading Log In Morning, Don't Forget!"
It honestly melted my heart, not to mention laugh pretty hard, to see how conscientious my little guy is. I feel like these are the beginning signs of showing responsibility and good work ethic.  Don't you?

Now, to show the complete opposite of having "good work ethic" as well as to show the complete opposite of WHO I NORMALLY AM, you will see from the sight of my laundry room, how busy I have been.
I am sure there are a ton of people clapping to see my failure.  Rest assured, the rest of my house is in pristine order. :)

Lilah & Jaxon's Halloween Costumes - #Halloween2013

This year was the FIRST year I allowed Lilah and Jax to choose what they wanted to be for Halloween.  Their selection was every bit was a typical 4 year old girl and boy desires to be: Rapunzel & a Ninja Turtle. As a matter of fact, 4 dancers in Lilah's ballet class, out of the 7 dancers, where Rapunzel.

Rather than rushing around tonight and trying to aggravate the kids and myself trying to take pictures, I dressed the twins up on Tuesday, and took them to our neighborhood trail, so I could snap some peaceful/priceless photos.  They were both so cooperative.  In return for their cooperation, I gave them their Halloween goodies, from Darren and I, a few days early.  I believe this will be our new tradition. My only regret... I failed to take a picture of them together.  Boo! 

Rapunzel from the Movie Tangled!
Little Pascal!
Believe it or not, Lilah & I have yet to see Tangled.  I believe Lilah has seen pieces of it.  Today, we are having a relaxation date, just Lilah and I, and we are actually going to watch our FIRST movie ever, TOGETHER.  It's hard to believe, I know, but I can't sit still long enough to watch a movie!

Lilah's gifts/goodies for Halloween.
 Donatello - Jax desire to be the purple Ninja turtle.
I was THRILLED because at least it matched Lilah's costume.
Call me crazy...I'm okay with that!
Jax's rewards/gifts!

Lil' Pumpkins Made From Oranges

For Tyson’s Halloween, class snack, I felt the need to add a little fruit to the menu, so I turned tangerines and clementines into little pumpkins. 
Here’s what you need:
Oranges/Tangerines/”Cuties”
Green Licorice

It’s very simple. Peal oranges. Cut licorice. Insert licorice as the stem. It’s the quickest and cutest snack I have EVER made. 
Where in the word did I find green licorice?  The DOLLAR TREE!!!!

The benefits to this snack:
It’s HEALTHY
It’s cute.
It makes your house smell good while your making it.
It’s simple.
It’s quick.
It’s fairly cheap too!
The downfalls to this snack?  Have you ever peeled more than one or two oranges at a time?  It’s TORTURE and painful.  I mean, beyond painful.  By the 13th orange, I was screaming, out loud, in pain. If you don't believe me, ask Darren.  The acid from the orange juice was burning my nail beds.  OWIE!  I had to make two rounds of these, one for Ty’s class, the other for our church Reformation celebration. I went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to see if I could find an orange peeler for the second round. I did!!!!  And it helped a ton.  My fingers still hurt, 24 hours later. 
 Above: Tangerines
Below: "Cuties"

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

CHAMPIONS!

The Highlanders did it!!!!  They went the entire season without a loss as well as winning every "play off" game! AND NOW, they are officially playing in the Super Bowl!!!!  This game was beyond stressful and very intense.  We played the "Bulldogs".  The last two times we played them, we slaughtered them by at least 24 points, each game, but this go round, the score was 6 to 6 up until the 4th quarter. You talk about panic!!!  Both teams played an incredible game.  Our boys needed this eye opener so that they don't go into the Super Bowl thinking "We've got this!" 
PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE come out and support our boys, 

What: Super Bowl 
When: Saturday, November 2nd
Time:  4:00 pm
Where: Salem Stadium

It's FREE!!!!!  It's FUN! And we BOTH NEED & WANT your support.  

Below are the only pictures I was able to capture from the final playoff game.  It was so nerve racking and my hands were shaking so bad.  I gave up on trying and said, "I'm watching this game!"  You may be thinking, "If I've seen one football picture, I've seen them all.", but when it's your own child or someone near and dear to you, it never gets old!

FINAL SCORE 20-6. Way to go Highlanders!!!!!!!!!!!!
 Watch this... Tyson throws the ball....
 BOOOOM!  Check out the opposing coach's face!  
See the ball in the air?
 I love this tackle by Ty!
Holding back the excitement of a victorious win!  
 After game fun (Jax and John-John).
ALL GLORY TO GOD FOR THIS "PERFECT" SEASON 12-0!!!!

3rd Grade Goody Bags!

As "co-room parent", I committed to being there for Tyson's class, when needed. My first responsibility, this year, was to head up volunteers to donate condiments for their Halloween School wide party, last Friday night.  My second task, was to contact parents and ask for contributions for a goody bag, for each class member. 3rd graders are NOT allowed to have a Halloween party, so I made sure to use enticing words :) to help encourage parents to donate, making the goody bags "the party!" The turn out was so amazing!!!!

Take a sneak peak into EVERYTHING the kids are getting tomorrow, in their goody bag.
Stickers
Candy
Jumping Frogs
Poppers
Wooly Willy Halloween Face
Glow Sticks
Pencils
Halloween Pads
Yo-Yos
Erasers
Plastic Halloween Friends
Spider Rings
Hot Cocoa and Halloween Marshmallows 
Cheese Balls
Cookies
Gummies
I secured each bag with (2) gold paper clips, a Halloween printable, and I used my labeler to "write" each child's name on their bag!