Oliver's B-Day Party

We had a pretty low key party for little Oliver. With family. It was just right. But I did want to show you how I made his Owl cake. Am I a tad bit obsessed with owls and Oliver? Perhaps. When I get every thing done in his room you will see how true that really is (eek).

Anywho, here is the cake.


To make it... this is what I came up with.

First I used my dome cake pan (that is actually for Barbie dress cakes)


And made a stack of sugar cookie circles to use....


And cupcakes. (Now the cupcakes and the cake are all from the same batch that I made from Martha Stewarts Baking Handbook (which if you've read my blog for a while you know I love!) It's called the Yellow Cake.)

I cooled them all. And made my icing (made a chocolate buttercream.)
First added two cupcakes on the top of the cake. I added a wooden skewer in each just to make sure it was steady.


Then covered the whole thing in icing - making the parts at the top a little pointy with the icing.


Let that dry a bit then smoothed out the icing more. And added the cookie eyes.


Then added some Oreo halves for the eyes, some broken Oreo halves for the eyebrows and one small orange smartie for the beak.


I decorated the rest of the cupcakes too....

A little flock of owls....


All the treats together (had to ice the rest of the cookies too!)


And here is Oliver with his cake... which he touched twice and then cried to be done :)


I'm linking this up here

And at Love Bakes Good and the 36th Avenue

Listography: List 90

List 90: Who/ What I hope to remembered as

Kind of a deep list topic today!!

1. Kind.
2. Generous
3. Friendly
4. Faithful
5. Good.
6. A Latter Day Saint who lives what she believes.
7. Loving.
8. Happily Married.

15 on the 15th (but really it was the 17th)

Can't believe it but I totally spaced on the 15th and all of a sudden it was 530pm. Regan tried to convince me I could still do it that night but nope. And I didn't want to do another sunday (seems a lot of 15th's this year are Sundays... so I went with the 17th instead!) Here they are from Monday.

















Five things about the day:
1. It was Oliver's B-Day Party.
2. I am embarrassed you can see the room that all the kids are currently sleeping in cause of the loss of the basement. But that is our life right now and it is always a disaster. 3 kids plus a craft room all in one room equals a disaster!
3. I didn't really get a whole shot of all the people who were at the party -it was all family.
4. Tomorrow I'll show you about his cake and the simple party we had for him.
5. Even though I got other pictures of my day I can't help but share ones where the kids are smiling and really happy :)

10 on Tuesday: 1 Years Old!

This little man is one.

Can you believe it??
This year has gone by so fast.

10 things about Oliver at one:

1. Only says "dadadadada" and sometimes "babababababab"
2. Is SUCH A happy baby!!! He is always smiling!
3. Loves to wrestle with Eli. (And it makes me nervous)

4. Finally is sleeping a bit better. Only up once a night lately.
5. Cries when anyone goes outside. Whether he knows them or not. He's just sad he didn't go too!
6. When it's bedtime, he is READY for bed and doesn't do well with staying up late.
7. Is VERY loved by his older siblings! They love to help out with him!

8. Has one nap a day (which I try and keep for the afternoon.)
9. Isn't a great eater and makes a huge mess every single meal cause he won't wear a bib.
10. Brings such joy into our home!!

Spiritual Sundays

From President Thomas S. Monson:

“Many years ago,” he says, “on an assignment to Tahiti, I was talking to our mission president, President Raymond Baudin, about the Tahitian people. They are known as some of the greatest seafaring people in all the world. Brother Baudin, who speaks French and Tahitian but little English, was trying to describe to me the secret of the success of the Tahitian sea captains. He said, ‘They are amazing. The weather may be terrible, the vessels may be leaky, there may be no navigational aids except their inner feelings and the stars in the heavens, but they pray and they go.’ He repeated that phrase three times. There is a lesson in that statement. We need to pray, and then we need to act. Both are important.

“The promise from the book of Proverbs gives us courage:‘Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths’ (Proverbs 3:5-6).

“As we offer unto the Lord our family prayers and our personal prayers,” President Monson says, “let us do so with faith and trust in Him. Let us remember the injunction of Paul to the Hebrews: ‘For he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him’ (Hebrews 11:6). If any of us has been slow to hearken to the counsel to pray always, there is no finer hour to begin than now.”

Foto Friday: Our Year in Photos

Month 9 Week 2: Details

Well I switched the theme this week just so I could share this little detail.



She has been waiting for this day FOREVER. And she was sooo excited to leave that little tooth for the tooth fairy!



Can you tell????

10 on Tuesday

1. I hate songs that have profanity in them on the radio. I rarely listen to the radio because I don't want my kids to hear that. And if I forgot my iPod that just means we don't get to listen to music. It makes me think of this quote by Spencer W. Kimball.


2. Last week we made a fort in the living room and Oliver thought it was AWESOME. (Eli liked it too!


3. The wind around here has seriously been insane! And fires again? Crazy!

4. Trying to make lemonade out of lemons, I took the opportunity to paint the kids rooms downstairs while they have no carpet (or doors or moulding) in them. Colors?? Mostly grey with some orange :) I'll show you when they get all put together!!

5. Oliver will be a year this Saturday... that is INSANE.

6. I've taken a few family pictures of people lately. And all of them are such cute families! Like this one I love! (The family AND the picture)


7. I guess it's been a week of school now hey?? Yep it's great. The only downside has been for poor Eli. He doesn't understand why there is no one around to play with. He doesn't believe me and keeps going to knock on doors and ask for the other kids of the neighborhood. It's kinda funny and kinda sad. Good thing he starts preschool today!!

8. As soon as the kids are back downstairs I HAVE To make Oliver cry it out at night. I can't take getting up with more than one kid plus being pregnant.. oh vey!

9. Oliver really really needs to learn to go down stairs! As soon as the basement is done we are going to put some serious stair time in and get this done!

10. I just noticed the date. The 11th. I remember I was going into work at the Lethbridge Herald when the planes hit the towers in New York. It was insane and busy around the paper - even in a small place like Lethbridge. I can't image what it was like at a big newspaper!

In the Kitchen: Reese Mini Cookies

One of my very favorite treats are Reese Peanut Butter Cups. And then I found Reese Minis. And I love them even more!!


And the last bag I was enjoying made me think how great they'd be in cookies. So I got to work and came up with these little gems.


Reese Mini Cookies
1/2 cup softened margarine
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups all purpose flour
1 bag of Reese Minis

1. Dump out all your Reese Minis and chop them in half. Spread them out onto a plate or pan and pop them into the freezer for 15-20 minutes.


2. Meanwhile, Cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each. Add in salt, soda and flour and mix well.

3. Add in your frozen chopped Reese Minis and mix but not too much as it'll chop them all up and you don't want to do that :)


4. With an ice cream scoop, scoop out the cookies onto a pan prepared with parchment paper. The slip the pans into the freezer for about 10 minutes. Bake in a preheated oven for 12 minutes. Enjoy!!




(When you see this little logo in the future, that means it's a recipe I came up with myself.)

Spiritual Sundays

Foto Friday: Our Year in Photos

Month 9 Week 1: Back to School

Well my kids were not really into the whole let's take a picture the morning of... and I would have done it at home before but it was raining... sooooo here they are.... ever so impatiently waiting for me to HURRY up!


Lucy in her classroom.


Alden was not having any of me taking one of him in his room.... I knew that'd day would come....

So after school I cornered them on the deck to take a couple more "good ones"... and instead I got these....

What's with the mouth???


Again with the mouth.... and Alden wasn't supposed to be standing in the way...


This is soooo one that will be enjoyed later in life...


Eli's first day of preschool is next Tuesday.... and I'm not holding my breath for a better one from him. He still won't let me do his 4th birthday ones from JUNE!

Did you capture your kids on the first day??

Listography

List 87: Things I love about my son:


Alden:
1. His creativity
2. How comfortable he is with himself.
3. His handsome blue eyes and blonde hair
4. How he helps take care of Oliver.
5. How whenever I am wearing my housecoat he loves to snuggle with me in it.
6. His tender heart.
7. To hear his testimony about the gospel growing.
8. His random knowledge about things (just like his dad)
9. His love of math.
10. His goofy antics.


Eli
1. His sense of Humor!!!
2. His voice. I wish you could all hear it!
3. His handsome blue eyes and blonde hair
4. How me makes up words... like motorbikle... or bazanga.... etc
5. How much energy the child has!
6. How he can NOT put his underwear on the right way... EVER.
7. His ability to get people to do what he wants and they never even notice.... (well I have a love-hate relationship with THAT one!)
8. His fake laugh that he thinks is hilarious.
9. His curiosity about life.
10. His absolute silliness.


Oliver
1. His laugh.
2. How he looks at me with SUCH love and adoration.
3. His handsome blue eyes and blonde hair
4. How he does a slow motion double blink now when he notices he is the center of attention.
5. His sweet little hands.
6. How he laughs SO hard when I growl at him.
7. How his face lights up when he sees me.
8. His tickley spots on his legs.
9. How much his face lights up when he sees his siblings.
10. How hard he laughs when on the trampoline.

List 88: Things to do this Fall:
1. Can some food. (Check).
2. Go on a sans kids trip.
3. Enjoy a fire.
4. Buy a cute sweater? :)
5. Get the kids rooms decorated.
6. Get ready for another baby.