Pumpkin Carving 2013

Our entire family LOVES carving pumpkins! We have done it every single year since Adam and I met. Not only have we taught our children how to do it, but we also taught our exchange students how to years ago.

We have each of the kids draw a few options on paper before they get going on the actual pumpkin. Once they have the design they like best, they draw them on the pumpkin using a black Sharpie marker (or as the kids call them "Mommy markers").

Adam and I are made to cut the top off the pumpkin and scoop out the "guts". Honestly for scooping we have found that a metal soup spoon works the best. All the innards go into a big bowl where we can later roast the seeds. (We like leaving a little of the flesh on the seeds while roasting, they turn out the best that way!)

We then give the kids the Pampered Chef kid safe knives to carve out the face shapes. These are the best for the job! We don't have to worry about the kids accidentally cutting themselves and they saw through the pumpkin with ease.

D's pumpkin

My pumpkin

L's pumpkin

2011
2010
2009

My 32nd birthday

I celebrated my birthday this year on 11-11-11! What a special thing to say. It started earlier that week with dinner out with my dad and brother, lunch out with D and my mom, and then the day of my birthday I woke to the kids excited to give me a present. They almost spilled the beans on numerous occasions, but made it through to the morning. D picked out some new slippers, L picked out some neon mix match socks, and Adam got me new running shoes and a knitting loom. I also got to help out at L's school that morning. That night, the kids went to an Uncle's house, a friends gave us money for a date night so we headed out to eat and then for drinks. Adam made me a cake this year, it was the first time he has gotten to make me one, so that was special too. I had a great birthday this year, and I hope the next year keeps getting better. The best present I did get was L lost his first tooth the very next day. He was so excited, and loved that the tooth fairy came and brought him some coins for his piggy bank. The tooth right next to it is loose too, and he can't wait to loose that one too!

Gee thanks kids!

While eating lunch today, we were watching Sesame Street.  A newer muppet named Murray was going to a kids art school. 

M:  Did you guys know that Daddy went to art school?

D:  NO WAY!!!!!!!

M:  Mommy went to art school too.

D: Oh okay mommy.

L gave no response at all to either

So much for impressing them with what I did before they were around.

Take me out.....

to the ball game!  The family and I have gone twice now this summer to our local baseball games.  It isn't anything awesome like going to Chicago and seeing the Cubs play, but much more affordable.  The stadium here has special Dollar Days on Monday home games. 
Tickets-$1
Hot Dogs-$1
Pepsi-$1
The kids under 5 are free, and that means only $2 for 2 adult bleacher seats.  We can go to the game, get 6 hot dogs, 3 bottles of pop, a big tub of popcorn, and a 26oz. beer all for $20!  You just can't beat that!  The first time we went, it was cold and rainy.  I think we stayed until the 5th inning.  The kids just loved it.  D actually cried the whole way home because we were leaving the game.  When we got home, there were 2 packages of baseball cards for the kids.  They were so excited about the cards and their tickets, they got their treasure boxes out to put them in for safe keeping.  Of course that lasted about a day until they started to fight over whose was whose.  Good old mom color coded the tops of the cards, that way we always know what cards belongs to whom.

We went again just this last Monday.  The weather was perfect to take in a ball game.  The sun was up, but not too sunny.  The weather was warm, but not scorching like it has been.  And a cool breeze was blowing in.  It was great too because some of our friends from the mom's group were able to go and sit near us.  One of the dads even caught one of the foul balls!  On our way to our seats, we even got to meet Cinderella.  Not sure why she was at the ball game, but whatever.  The kids were thrilled!  This time the weather was so nice we actually stayed until the end of the game.  And our team won!  Everyone was yelling and screaming with excitement, so we had the kids scream as loud as they could.  When else would we let them? 

It looks like we will be heading back again next month, only next time we will be hopefully bringing all of Adam's brothers with us.  That will be a blast!

The South Bend Silverhawks!

Sledding

On New Year's Eve, we took the family to a park and went sledding. It was tons of fun! The kids had a blast, and they had fun going down a slide there that was packed with snow. A few days later, we headed to a different park that had a big hill. It was the perfect spot. No roads, trees, or anything else that might cause an accident. L had tons of fun going down it all by himself. He really is getting to be a big boy now. D only wanted to go down if mommy or daddy went with her, but L is showing no fear when it comes to all those typical little boy things.

Adam was jumping over the little hill the kids were flying over.

L going down the slide

One happy little boy

and one happy little girl.

Christmas morning

Okay, so I know that I am a little late in posting this, but the internet has been funny all month because of the massive snow storms we were having. But this is what our Christmas morning looked like. After the crazy long and busy Christmas Eve (we got home at 1 am.), the kids actually slept in late. WHAT??? Of all the mornings to sleep in, it has to be Christmas! Oh well. The kids had a small tree that they decorated in their room, and Santa had left 2 little presents under that tree. L ran right past that, out the living room, past the tree, presents, stockings and easel, and headed into our room. I reminded him that he should check their tree. They ended up opening those and still running to come get us. Once we showed them the tree and presents they were super excited! We went through the stockings, opened all the gifts, and had a fun breakfast of pancakes and fruit. Then it was time to open all the toys. They just couldn't wait! We also had to get ready to head out to my dad's house for Christmas with him and my brother. It was a great Christmas break, but boy was it busy. Adam was home with us from Dec. 24- Jan. 4, and the kids did not want him to go back to work. Oh well, life goes on right?

Checking out the loot! It was filled with play-doh and accessories.

L was super excited that he got a new Thomas movie, and it came with a new train.

Santa brought the kids an easel, and both of them have been enjoying it. We have also started to teach a letter a day using the easel.

Visit with Santa

So far this year with Santa and 2 kids has gone way better than last year! Check that out here!!! We were going to take the kids to see Santa at the mall, but that place is always just so crowded and rushed. Well every year we have a tradition of going to Chicago to see the windows at Marshall Fields (oh, sorry Macy's, whatever, it will always be Marshall Fields to me!!), and then we head over to Daley plaza for a German Christmas village. So this year we thought we would take the kids to see Santa up there for a change. It was great!!! There was a decorated, interactive line for the kids to wait in. It really helped get the kids even more excited to see the big man! The workers helping with the line were great too, they would talk to the kids, and ask them questions. Then we got ushered into a room with just us and Santa. Both kids sat on his lap and told him what they wanted. (By the way, L asked for "Big trucks", and D asked for " a pretty dress".) He gave each kid a button and out we went. D was so very shy when talking to him, but at least she didn't cry. (Which, if you know D, she is anything but shy! The girl doesn't stop talking!!)

So, I am doing Christmas cards, they will be a bit late, but here is the picture. I hope everyone out there has a very Happy Holiday season, and a fantastically Happy New Year! I do have more cookies to bring you, I just don't have the pictures up loaded yet. I promise to do at least until the end of the year, and then I think it will just be a cookie of the month. I really do need to get back to what the blog was about. My family. So thanks so much for everything!

Merry Christmas from Hippie Mama Kelly, Adam, L and D!!!

May your days be filled with fun and joy!

Pumpkin Carving

Now let me start by saying that we now have 9 pumpkins in our house, not including the fun little decorative gourds. But Adam came home from work last Thursday and surprised us with 2 good size pumpkins for the kids to carve. They were soooo excited. So far this year we have painted, used Mr. Potatohead stuff, and had face stickers to decorate pumpkins, but this was the first time for carving this year. We got down to work as soon as they were out of the bag! L and D had a great time pulling the guts out. We examined all the seeds and strings. We have read a really great story about how a pumkin comes from a little white seed, and the path that it takes to grow and become a pumkin. The story is Pumpkin Shivaree by Rick Agran I highly recommend it! The kids told us what shapes they wanted for the face and we helped them cut it out. My mother-in-law had gotten us this really cool Pampered Chef kids knife so the kids can help us in the kitchen, and it worked amazingly with the pumpkins. The kids were able to cut through all by themselves with us just making starter cuts. They had a blast! I just realized that I don't have any pictures of the finished pumpkins. Well I will work on that later. For now just enjoy the process pics!

Miss D watching her brother before she starts

L really digging in

Showing off the pumpkin guts

Not to be outdone!

Asking daddy for help

We did roast out seeds after we were done, and they were super tasty. I'll see if I can find that recipe as well!

Cookie of the Week!- Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints

Something that I really think is fun about doing this cookie of the week thing is that my friends and family are finding me fun new recipes to try. This one is from my sweet mother-in-law. I have a fantastic relationship with her and really appreciate everything she does. I dropped the kids off on Tuesday for her to watch them for an hour. I had a meeting that I could not take the kids to and she always lets me do that. She had ready for me a new family cookbook that someone on Adam's dad's side put together, a child safe knife that I forgot I mentioned I was looking for, and a recipe pulled out of a Martha Stewart Magazine for me to try out. That made my day! How sweet for her to think, Kelly might like to make this for her blog. Now mind you, I doubt she has ever been to a blog and read something, but very sweet none the less. So here is the Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprint cookie recipe from Martha Stewart:


Any jam or jelly can be used. The recipe calls for raspberry jam, but I chose seedless blackberry jam. I hope these go over well, I'm bringing them to a play date this morning.

1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling
1 egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup raspberry jam

1. Preheat oven to 350. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Beat peanut butter and butter with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add sugars, and beat until pale and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, and beat until incorporated. Reduce speed to low. Add dry ingredients, and mix until combined.

2. Scoop level tablespoons of dough and form into balls. Roll each ball in granulated sugar, and transfer to parchment lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.

3. Bake until cookies are puffy, about 10 min. Remove from oven, and make indentation in centers by pressing with the handle end of a wooden spoon. Return to oven, and bake until edges are golden, 6-7 min. more. Transfer sheets to wire racks and let cool completely.

4. Heat jam in a small saucepan, stirring, until loosened, about 30 seconds. (We used the microwave) Spoon about 1/2 tsp into each indentation. Cookies can be stored in a single layer for up to 1 week.

I think he is slowly going insane

Honey, I know that you are reading this, but I think you may be insane this week. It started out with the idea to ride almost 5 miles on our bikes with all of the camping gear to a friend's house from his parents house. We are dropping the kids off with the grandparents so we can camp with friends and he has this great idea that he and I will bike nearly 5 miles carrying 2 sleeping bags, a tent, a blanket, and clothes. WHAT!

The next thing was yesterday he had promised the kids they could sleep in a play tent if they were good all day. And they were until dinner time. The refusal to eat cause an angry mom and dad, and crying L and D. Needless to say they went to bed in their own beds. At about 11pm dad felt bad and set the tent up in the kids room. Their room is so small, and the tent so big, that you can't really walk around this thing. So he goes and wakes them up so they can sleep in it. L got right in and fell back asleep, D just wanted to stay in her bed. But at 6 am they were up and playing and laughing. This then resulted in angry dad. My thought, which I kept to myself, was well what did you think was going to happen. The tent then came down and everyone finally got out of bed around 7:15 this morning.

I love you dear, but sometimes I wonder about you. Hopefully this weekend your sanity will come back when we are camping in the fresh air!

Mother's Day

Hope all you mommies out there had a great Mother's day. Mine was spread out over a few days really. It started with the Sunday before, D and I headed out for tea and cookies at the local coffeehouse. It was a tradition that I started last year, that I have special one on one time with each kid for mother's day. We rarely get that special time, so when would be better. D doesn't like chamomile tea! Oh well, then we went for a walk and headed to the library. The Saturday before mother's day, L and I headed to the chocolate cafe for ice tea and ice cream. He picked out superman ice cream in a cone and I had bubble gum. Yummy!! After ice cream we headed over to the big indoor play ground that they have there. On our way out of the candy shop part, L was admiring the lemon heads in a giant glass jar. The lady working there gave him one, and he loved it! Then she gave him a sucker to top it off. This kid was sooooo sugared up! On our way out he ran over to the monkey statue (see pics below).

My mother's day present was a video of Adam singing and playing guitar to one of my favorite songs. It's called "The way I am" by Ingrid Michealson. He did a great job, especially since he only picked up the guitar 3 weeks ago! On the actually day, the kids and I went outside to blow bubbles for awhile. After naps, we headed out to my mom's house for a cook out. It was a very busy weekend, but tons of fun.

That is until the kids didn't go to bed until 3 am Sunday night. But that's another story!

L and the monkey statue. He said he was holding him up!

Fist bump!

On the swing on the porch blowing bubbles.

messy bubbles!

A rundown on our week

It all started on Friday night. We had a grilled cheese party for my mom's group and one of the little boys started having a really hard time breathing. I kept the younger one while the mom took the other to the ER. It turns out that he had asthma and the beginning of pneumonia. Thank goodness they caught it in time. I was up until 12:30 working on a giant crossword puzzle for the hubby for his birthday. I had all his friends and family send in clues and answers for it. It rocked! I'll have to take a picture of the big one hanging up on the wall. Then at 2:30 am I woke up after hearing a crash. The cat had knocked the fish bowl off the top of the hutch and it shattered. There was water, glass, and rocks everywhere. So Adam and I worked quickly to clean it all up. RIP Dorothy #5 and 6!

Saturday, Adam went with a friend for a 10 mile run. They are training for a half marathon in a few weeks. While they were gone, the kids and I had to run to the store to buy more Easter eggs since the cat destroyed them with fish water. Let me tell you, it's not easy to find cheap eggs the day before Easter! Got home and made everyone yummy lunch. Off to nap time, I was the only one not sleeping. I got the eggs ready, baskets ready, and our bags for the day ready while they all took a nap. Get in the car and head out for our trip. We had a friend having a birthday party, but it turned into a birthday party for 3 of the guys. It was a blast! All the friends were there, with all the kids, and tons of yummy food. I made a rainbow cake that I will blog about later. It turned out super cool!

On the way home at 1am our time, the car dies on the toll road about an hour away from home. Luckily it was not too far from our friends house, and they were just leaving the party we were at. They have a 3rd car and had offered to let us borrow it when we were having trouble in the past. They came and got me, took me to their house, where they gassed up their CRV, we called the tow truck, and I headed out to get Adam and the kids. I was really freaking out the whole time. I was scared, it was cold out, and luckily the kids slept through the entire thing. Our friends helped us out too by paying for the towing. We called and found out that you only have 2 hours before they will impound your car on the toll road. NICE! We were able to tow it to their house too. At that time we didn't know what was wrong with it yet. Adam got the kids, still strapped in the car seats, into the new car without waking them up. We gathered everything that we needed that night, and just then, the tow truck got there. Once we had a plan, everything moved very smoothly. We were off back home! I was exhausted so when we got to the rest stop, Adam took over driving. We got to the corner right by our house and the gas station there is packed. Now this is very strange since it 4 am! There were 50 cars in the gas station and on the roads around it. There were also cops everywhere. Still not sure what happened since it hasn't been in any papers or on any news.

Sunday, the bunny was tired! We hid eggs and had the baskets all ready. The kids loved it. The kicker was that we left our camera at the friends house that had the party, so no pictures! Urgh!!! We got everyone ready and headed off to Adam's parents house. We had a wonderful lunch with all his brothers and his sister. We had an egg hunt there too. The only problem was that the kids didn't get a nap that day, and after being super tired from the crazy night before, they were zonked in the car coming home. That meant that when we got home at 7pm (normal bed time), they were wide awake. So another late night. In the mean time, Adam has come down with an awful cold. But the plus side is that we think it was the timing belt on the car that came off.

Monday, try to figure out what to do with the car. We don't have any money to fix it, no credit cards, and pay day is the 15th. Adam took the day off from work to get better and figure out what to do. We took money out of our bank and started a new account with the bank we have wanted to switch to because we hear that we can get a line of credit. So we wait to hear back. 5:30pm we hear that no we didn't get it. Okay, now what! Our great friends Brian and Emily call and tell us that they can loan us the money, and we can pay it back whenever we can. How awesome is that!

Tuesday, after naps (Adam took the day off again), we head into Valpo to check the car out. We get there and empty it out because who knows how long we aren't going to have it. Call the garage, and set up to have another tow truck come and get it. We wait for them, and follow them to the garage. They will take a look at it and let us know tomorrow. We head over to Brian's house and meet him for dinner so he can give us the money. We stop at my dad's house since we were right there. And another late night.

Wednesday, I head over to my mom's house with the kids, and Adam goes back to work. All is going great except that I haven't heard back from the garage. Now I'm worried. It turns out it was the timing belt, and they changed the water pump all for less then the other garage was going to do it for. Great! Get home and Adam tells me that the landlord tells him that they are coming tomorrow with a real estate agent to take pictures of the house. You see, they are going to sell it! So now I have to clean the house like a mad person! Because I already feel like I can't get anything done for almost a week, now I have to do it in a night! Thanks!

Thursday, thankfully everything is getting better! The car is fixed and we will be picking it up on Saturday. I think they came and took pictures (don't know because they never told me a time and I was gone for 2 hours this morning), and the house is clean!

The moral of the story is that we have amazing friends that will help us out with anything!

Indoor fun!

We went to a play date at my friend Sarah's house this morning. She had a large bowl of play-doh and play-doh paraphernalia sitting on her kitchen table. Some of the kids saw this and climbed up to the table to explore. Right there were my kids. They have gotten to play with the stuff in the past but it always ends with them eating it. But today was different! They loved it and had a blast. So it was time to pull out the stuff I bought. I had gotten this really great organic brand from our health food store, which unfortunately went out of business, on sale. It's called Over the Rain Dough and I love it! We took it out right after naps and I think it went well. I got out some of my easier to use cookie cutters and plastic knives. They worked fantastic!

D playing with a gingerbread man we made.

L working what looks like a pile of poop

My shapes. I had a blast!

Over the Rain Dough, this was mint, peach, and cinnamon scent

What fun!

Hurray, a project that wasn't a huge mess!