The Twelve Days of Christmas-A Post in Pictures

getting ready to take treats to the Fire Station Christmas Eve

and was treated to a tour!

Preschool party-showing off his homemade ornament!

reindeer snacks

first big snowfall-it's going to be a white Christmas!

Christmas Morning!

Santa came!!!!!!

Food, Gas, Lodging

What would posess two people to set out on a 17 hour roadtrip with a 3 year old and a 7 month old? I tend to think that at some point in that decision making process, an alien abduction occurs. It could only be other worldly creatures uttering the words "It'll be great! A few crayons and some snacks and we're all good! Over the river and through the woods...Manton here we come!"

After surviving a couple of these trips with our sanity barely intact-we decided to break out the big guns. Three little but oh so big letters...DVD's. Once upon a time before I was a parent (and therefore, was a perfect parent) I silently judged the ones who resorted to watching programs in the car. "Don't kids watch enough TV?" I chided. It turns out that toddlers don't give a hoot what you spy with your little eye. They have zero interest in state license plates, padiddles, punch buggys, or cows. In fact, they can only be entertained for a maximum of 12 seconds before they are screaming for something else. This only leaves two frazzled parents, one trying to drive and one who may have not so proudly threatened to leave their child at a rest area.

So, This Thanksgiving vacation...we let Lightening McQueen, Woody, and Dora do the entertaining. It proved to be a mostly enjoyable albeit long drive. There were still several occasions where I had to wedge myself into the backseat to retrieve a binky or serve a snack-but I can live with that.

And a wonderful week it was. It certainly had it's high points, and it's low points...but, for certain, we left being profoundly thankful for the life we have and the love of family.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Seasons Of Change

Fall is fully upon us, and as I watch the leaves change color and fall to the ground-it makes me think of all the cycles and changes we see in our lifetimes. Don't worry...I won't get all poetic and profound in this post. =p But, change is all around us now. Ellie sprouted two teeth this month. Nathan started preschool and is suddenly such a little boy-not one shred of baby about him anymore (except when I try to rock him before bed...which he willingly complies with. I think he understands.) The hubs and I have had many a late night chat about our goals as a family-and we're hoping with the rebirth of the spring will come the change that we need. In the meantime, we'll be enjoying the upcoming holidays with our favorite little people...enjoying a trip to the Midwest for some good ol' fashioned family fun (and pie!), and prepare for the next step. Hopefully a new laptop makes it in there, too, so I don't go weeks without a blog post.


Now, Please enjoy pictures of my gorgeous children!

Baking with a 3 year old-a Lesson in Patience

Ahh...Fall. Changing leaves, crisp fresh apples, and of course-pumpkin cookies! I promised Nathan we would bake some when he woke from his nap today. Nathan is an eager little helper, so he couldn't be happier at the prospect of creating something yummy. And, what a sweet way for Mommy and Son to spend the afternoon together (awwwwww).

Pumpkin Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground allspice

1 cup butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1 cup canned pumpkin

Brown-Sugar Butter Frosting

Nathan's all set to start

Ellie the Chief Supervisor

combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and allspice. Set aside.

Beat the butter with an electric mixer on medium speed for 30 Seconds. Beat in the sugar.

Add the egg (this is Nathan's favorite part)

Pick shells out of the bowl (I added this step)

Stir pumpkin and flour mixture into egg mixture

lick the beaters, because that is your god given right

Drop the dough by rounded teaspoons about 2 inches apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake in preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned

mmm...fresh out of the oven!

Frost the cooled cookies with Brown-Sugar Butter Frosting. Oh.My.Yum.

Brown-Sugar Butter Frosting: In a medium saucepan heat 6 tablespoons butter and 1/3 cup packed brown sugar over medum heat until butter melts. Remove mixture from heat. Stir in 2 cups sifted powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Add enough hot water (2-3 teaspoons) to make a smooth, spreadable frosting. Frost cooled cookies immediately after preparing frosting.

So, I didn't include the meltdown over who would use the mixer. I didn't detail the number of times Nathan was sent to wash his hands for various reasons (I'll just let you assume-he is 3 after all), or the various breaks taken to entertain/feed/change the Divine Miss E, who has been particularly diva-licous lately. In all, we had a good time and the cookies are yum. Too bad I'll have to share them!

I Love A Parade

Someone once said to me "no one really likes parades, anyways..." Au contraire my friend-I actually love a parade. I love the merriment, the marching bands, the grown men driving tiny little vehicles, sitting on the curb and catching tootsie rolls...I love all of it.

The last few weeks of summer have been a parade of activity. Ellie took her first airplane ride on a girls trip to Michigan to visit (and in most cases-meet for the first time) family. It was a fantastic week catching up, exploring Northern Michigan, trying new things, eating too many cookies, and just relaxing with family. It was a bittersweet departure, we wanted very much to extend our stay-but missed our boys terribly. They claim they missed us, too, but I know they had a bachelorific week filled with late nights, questionable hygiene, and McDonald's takeout!



My bro and I-we always have a good time together...particularly if the kegerator is involved!

The original Miss Ele with our own little Miss Ellie

Immediately upon our return we headed up to Fitzwilliam, NH for a day of camping fun with our fantastic neighbors Drew & Crystal. Nathan had a blast playing with their grand kids Dylan and Felicity, "driving" Drew's boat, and we enjoyed a delish picnic buffet. These campers don't mess around...there was some freakin' good food here!

And what would a Labor Day Monday be without a hometown parade? Growing up, the weekend always culminated in Manton's Harvest Festival parade...always standing in our spot next to the mini-mart-we delighted in the music, floats, Lutke trucks, Dynomite the clown, grown men driving little vehicles (you may have noticed-this is my favorite!) and of course the shower of candy. Though my own children have yet to experience this longstanding tradition-I'd be derelict in my duties as a Mother if I didn't find a parade for them today. Marlboro, MA provided just exactly what I was looking for. Nathan thoroughly enjoyed every minute, Ellie slept peacefully through the whole thing, and we came home with a sugar high and a gigantic Diego balloon.

taking candy inventory

I DO love a parade!

Now go to bed, it's a school night after all!

Beach Day FAIL

It sounded simple enough. It was a beautiful summer day, one of very few we've had during this short season, a beach day seemed like a no brainer. So, we packed up 4 kids and the insane amount of stuff they require, and headed up to New Hampshire's wildly popular and delightfully cheesy Hampton Beach. What could go wrong?

I don't know...was it the 12.5 mile back up that turned a "little over an hour" drive into at least 3? (note to self, do not suck down a Dunkin' Donuts ice coffee in the car without knowing precisely when your next bathroom break is going to be.)

was it the very poor decision to drag strollers down onto the sand?

Or was it not considering the rising tide before snagging that "perfect" spot on the beach? We got washed out not once. Not twice. But at least four or five times. Two mommies scrambling to move all our stuff out of waters way while one child runs full boar into the ocean, one infant on a hip, one wailing about the injustice of it all, and one...wait...where is that one? Oh, she's decided to play with the family next door.

It wasn't long before-frazzled and fried-we packed up our soggy possesions, rounded up the children, and schleped our way back up the beach (did I mention what a bad idea it was to drag strollers onto the sand?) to make our way back to our coveted $20 parking spot.

Okay, so it wasn't ALL bad. The kids had fun. Nathan surprisingly was a huge fan of the ocean and wanted to spend all his time in there. This came as quite a shock to me, as you might remember it was only a year ago that the mere mention of going near the ocean would send the poor child into panic mode. He's come a long way since then.here is the little beach bum enjoying the water

Nathan and his best girls

Ellie enjoying her first beach day

We're making memories, kids. Making memories. Now, excuse me...Mommy needs a drink...

aaaaaaand we're back

Since the birth of our wonderful daughter, it's been non stop here! My once (mostly) lovingly tended to blog entirely focusing on the boy has been sorely neglected. It only made sense to create a whole new place to share our lives as a family of 4. Life with two kids has a whole lot of ups, some downs, a lot of noise, and a ridiculous amount of toys and stuff!

Nathan just turned 3 in July and is proving to be hilarious, intelligent, energetic, and tall! (seriously, who would have thought?) He's also potty trained which totally rocks our world. One more poopy pull up was surely going to send us over the edge into parenting insanity.

here is Nathan enjoying some summertime fun

Elizabeth (affectionately known as Ellie, Ellie Belle, Miss Ellie, The Divine Miss E, Sweet Pea, Chica, and Princess) is 4 months old, fantastically chubby, and a cooing drooling ball of love. She is really a laid back little girl (no choice there, big brother is a force to be reckoned with!) who sleeps great for which we are eternally greatful.

The kidlets in a rare moment of cooperating for the camera

and with that....Miss Ellie needs a paci replaced and Nathan is on his 4th viewing of Blues Clues (hey, it's a rainy day, don't judge...).