Baby Needs a New Pair of Shoes

I've been putting off getting the kids fitted for shoes until they were both walking the majority of the time.  As I'm sure most of you know if you've read my previous posts, Brooke is walking everywhere.  Harrison is finally starting to prefer walking over crawling, so we headed to Fred Toenges this morning to get some kicks.  

While we were waiting for our number to be called, we took advantage of the nickel horse rides.  Harrison thought it was ok.  Brooke was the happiest kid on the planet. I'm pretty sure she would have kept riding as long as I kept pumping nickels into the horse.  Unfortunately for her I only had $.15.

After talking to the sales associate about what type of shoes were the best to not prohibit walking and foot development, their feet were sized and we got to pick out some snazzy footwear, and by snazzy I mean Velcro. After viewing the options in their size, we decided on navy Stride Rites for Harry and white with pink Stride Rites for Brooke.

H was so excited about his shoes that he insisted on carrying one around with him after they were done getting fitted.  He found himself in the mirror and decided he needed to check himself out.  Meanwhile, B was headed back up to try and get back on the nickel horse.

Our sales associate had some great advice for picking out shoes for toddlers.

• Shoes should have a flexible heel and a stiff, supportive back.
• It's best not to wear hand-me-down shoes since they are molded to someone else's feet.
• Shoes should last approximately 20 weeks. Make sure to get your children's feet measured every 4-5 months.
• Don't use socks with rubber grippers on the bottom when wearing shoes.  They tend to make kids' toes curl under.

This next bit of advice is not from the sales associate, but I figure it's good to mention anyway.  It's best for foot development if kids only wear shoes when necessary.  Bare feet are ideal.

I'm sure they aren't excited about their shoes, but I am. I'll finally be able to let them get down and walk around while we're at the zoo or the park.  Glad I won't have to fight that battle anymore.  

And now my shoe obsession can be transferred from buying shoes for me to buying shoes for them. Does Von Maur have a kids clearance shoe room?

To Leash, or not to Leash, That is the Question

Brooke is now walking everywhere.  She's practically running, at least speed walking, and is determined about where she wants to go.  If she doesn't want to go where I'm leading her she will let go of my hand and run the other direction, as she made very clear while we were leaving the Y last week.  Harrison is becoming more confident in his walking everyday.  Another month and he'll be all over the place just like his sister.

Harrison can already throw a tantrum like nobody's business, and with Brooke's growing desire to have things her way, it's only a matter of time before she starts throwing tantrums too.  So do you keep them contained in the double cart, if there's even one available, or do you give them some independence and let them walk?  If you let them walk, how do you keep them close and teach them boundaries? Required hand holding? Leashes?

I know a lot of twin moms who swear by leashes and others who think they're more trouble than they're worth.  If we were going to use them, we'd use ones similar to the Gold Bug backpack harness pictured below.  So for moms out there who have used them before, what are your opinions on them? When did you start using one? Were you able to introduce the use of one successfully, and if so how?  Any input from moms who have used a leash before is greatly appreciated.

On a completely unrelated note, today is one year past H and B's due date.  Happy "adjusted birthday" Harrison and Brooke! 

Clearance Shopping

I love shopping a good sale.  I rarely buy anything unless I have a coupon code or it's on sale, especially for the kids.  I absolutely love Baby Gap, but their regular prices are a bit too much for me.  Fortunately they offer a 30% off coupon code online just about every other week, plus you get free shipping if you spend $50.  With two kids it's a miracle if I don't spend $50.  For those reasons I rarely go into the store.  

I was at the mall today, I had to pick up my ring from being redipped after forgetting about it for weeks, so I thought I'd stop in to see if there were any good clearance items. Boy am I glad I stopped in in.  I'm not sure if they just marked down a bunch of stuff or if people haven't been shopping the clearance racks as much , but there was a huge selection.  I didn't pay more that $11 for a single item!  

I almost bought the white and coral dress for Brooke a few months ago but I couldn't bring myself to spend that much.  The original price was $49.95 and even with 30% off, I thought it was still too much.  I bought it today for $9.97. SCORE! I spent $52 and change for everything.  With the exception of the dress and the checkered shirt, everything is size 2T so they'll get to wear it next year.

Few things make me happier than a good sale, which is probably why I have so many shoes. Thanks, Von Maur shoe room. Today is shaping up to be a pretty good day.  Happy Tuesday everyone!

Arrested Development

For those of you that don't know, Netflix released a fourth season of Arrested Development last week.  I did not watch the show while it was in the air, but after much urging from a few good friends, Rob and I decided to watch it.  

The week that Rob was home on paternity leave was spent snuggling babies and watching Arrested Development.  We were addicted after just a few episodes and wound up finishing all three seasons that week.  

When the release date for the fourth season was finally announced we began counting down the days. Unfortunately they released the new episodes Memorial Day weekend and we already had lake plans.  We decided the weekend after, yesterday, would be our viewing party. We hoped to watch all of the new season in one day, however we didn't plan for longer episodes, 37ish minutes instead of 23, and there were 16 episodes and we were expecting 13.  No complaints here, we just weren't able to finish it all in one day.  More AD for a later date, yay!!

We started the morning with Skip's Scramble and and a mimosa bar, because booze with breakfast is how Lucille would want it. Unlike Lucille, we need more than vodka and toast. 

  

Our mimosa bar also had vodka. Because, well, you have to use it or else it will go bad. 

We knocked out a few episodes while the kids napped and then they joined us for an episode or two.  They don't get to watch TV often, so they're usually transfixed when the TV is on.

We had cornballs, and corn muffins, for a snack.  We did not use a Cornballer and no one had to go to the emergency room during the making of these.  

We had Buster's Juice Box to drink with our cornballs, and let me tell you what, this stuff is dangerous.  It's pretty much a berry sangria with vodka, so it will get you messed up before you know what happened.  

Since I didn't want to be taken away from our viewing session long enough to make dinner, we just ordered pizza.  We of course had candy beans for snacking and no AD party would be complete without chocolate bananas.  

I dipped some of the bananas in chopped pistachios and some in coconut.  There's always money in the banana stand. 

I made two half size bananas for the kids. Brooke liked it but only for a couple minutes.  Harrison loved it and cried when you would try to take it away. 

He was very upset when his chocolate came off his banana.  

We made it through 10 episodes today and I can't wait to watch the last 6.  There's already talk of Netflix doing a season 5. Yes please! Hopefully it won't be for British eyes only.

Happy viewing everyone!

Cookies

This is the follow up post I promised about my baking adventures for the babies' first birthday party.  Four of the recipes I used I really liked.  Two of them I will never use again.  First let's start with the good stuff!

I have recently discovered silicone baking mats and I use them any time I bake cookies, or anything else for that matter.  I used to use parchment paper, but I find I prefer the silicone mats.  They're easy to clean, I throw mine in the dishwasher, and there's no waste.

Coconut Smoochies

These cookies are a coconut macaroon with a chocolate kiss on top.  I love the movie "Just Go With It" and decided to dub these cookies Coconut Smoochies after the coconut competition they have as the tie breaker.  I followed this recipe pretty much to the letter.  I did use less coconut than what the recipe calls for. I didn't need a full 4 cups for coating the cookies. I purchased three bags of coconut and only used two.  I think I used about 8 cups total. I also let the dough refrigerate for longer than an hour.  It it a very sticky dough and the colder it was, the easier it was to work into balls.

2 1/2 cups All purpose flour
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
2/3 cups butter, softened
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon juice from a fresh orange
10 cups sweetened flaked coconut, divided in to 6 cup and 4 cup portions
1 bag Hershey Kisses (48 pieces)


Step 1: In a medium bowl, sift flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.


Step 2: In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, vanilla and orange juice and beat till smooth.


Step 3: In 1 cup increments, mix flour in to the butter mixture. Add the 6 cups flaked coconut and beat to combine.


Step 4: Refrigerate dough for 1 hour. While dough is chilling, remove wrappers from the Kisses.


Step 5: Preheat oven to 350. One at a time, scoop dough into 1.5" balls (about the size of a large walnut, roll between your palms, then roll in the bowl of remaining coconut (4 cups). Arrange on an ungreased baking sheet, at least an inch apart (cookies will spread slightly). A standard cookie sheet should accommodate a dozen cookies at a time. Bake 12-14 minutes, until the cookies puff and are very lightly browned.


Step 6: Remove from oven. Immediately press one Kiss into each cookie. Return pan to oven and bake for an additional minute.


Step 7: Remove pan from oven and cool on a rack for 10 minutes. With a thin spatula, gently move cookies on to a rack to finish cooling.

Mint Chocolate Chips

These are a cake cookie and super easy to make. I used Duncan Hines chocolate fudge cake mix. The recipe calls for Toll House Mint and Chocolate chips. The problem with that is that those are a seasonal item and only available around Christmas. The first batch I made I used Andes baking bites. They worked really well. For the second batch I went to Country Kitchen SweetArt, a local baking store, and bought mint chips and mixed them with bittersweet chocolate chips. I did like the result of the second batch better.  If you don't have a local baking/cooking store, the Andes bits still work. I also wasn't able to find mint Oreos, but the store brand was available and worked just fine.

1 chocolate cake mix (
8 Tablespoons butter, melted
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups mint Oreo cookie chunks
1/2 c. chocolate and mint chips


Step 1. Whisk together the butter, egg, cream cheese, and vanilla. 

Step 2. Add half of the cake mix and mix well. Add the other half of the cake mix and cookie chunks and mix again. Stir in the chocolate mint pieces by hand.

Step 3. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 

Step 4. Roll dough into 1 or 1 1/2 inch balls. Place on un-greased baking sheet or a Silpat. 

Step 5. Bake at 350* for 9 minutes. Cool on the baking sheet for 2-3 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Citrus Sugar Cookies

These were probably the most difficult cookie to make.  It's not a hard recipe, it's just time consuming.  It calls for the zest of 1 lemon, 1 lime and 1 orange.  The result is totally worth it, but it takes a little while.  The recipe calls for you to roll the cookies in a sugar and zest mix, press the cookies and then add more of the sugar mix. The first batch I made I followed the recipe to a T.  The cookie wound up flat and had a big glob of baked sugar on top.  The second time I didn't flatten the cookies and didn't add extra sugar.  The result was much better.

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar, divided
1 egg
2 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 orange, zested
1 lemon, zested
1 lime, zested


Step 1. In a small bowl, zest all the citrus. Remove about 2 tsp of zest and place in a separate bowl. Add 1/2 cup granulated sugar to the 2 tsp of zest. Combine with a fork and set aside.

Step 2. In a mixing bowl, add butter and remaining 1 cup sugar. Beat for 1-2 minutes. Add egg and beat until combined. Add flour, baking powder and baking soda. Beat until combined. Slowly add in zest.

Step 3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll cookies into 3/4-1inch balls. Then roll them in the sugar/zest mixture, coating generously. Place ball on cookie sheet and repeat. 

Step 4. Using a flat bottom of a cup, press the ball slightly to form a disc. Repeat for all balls. I then pressed a little extra sugar on the tops of the cookies at this point (totally optional). 

Step 5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Remove and cool on wire rack.

Oreo Cheesecake Bites

The cream cheese pudding mixture on these is to die for! I would be lying if I said it wasn't eaten with a spoon.  I had every intention of piping this with a piping tip, but it didn't happen.  I made the mixture the day before and put it in a gallon ziploc bag.  I just cut the tip of the bag and piped it straight from there with no tip. Not fancy, but they still looked good. There was plenty left over so I froze it to use the next weekend.  It froze really well and was just as good once it was unfrozen.

33 Oreos, divided
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup milk
1 (3.4 oz) pkg cheesecake flavored instant pudding mix
30 mini Oreos


Step 1. In a mixing bowl, using an electric hand mixer, whip together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth. 

Step 2. Using a wire whisk, stir in cream, milk and instant pudding. Whisk mixture for about 2 - 3 minutes until very thick. 

Step 3. Freeze mixture for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place 3 large Oreos in a ziploc bag, seal bag and crush Oreos finely using a rolling pin (alternately you can do this in a food processor). 

Step 4. Stir crushed Oreos into cheesecake mixture. 

Step 5. Pipe cheesecake mixture over 30 large Oreos, then top each one with a mini Oreo. For best result serve immediately (store in refrigerator if not used immediately).

I did also make no bake cookies, the Food Network recipe, and chocolate chip cookies, the America's Test Kitchen recipe.  I will not be using either of those recipes again.  

The no bake cookies didn't set up well.  I will be sticking with the recipe I have from 7th grade Home Ec. 

I usually love America's Test Kitchen recipes.  I own 6 of their cook books and most of the recipes are winners.  This one was not.  I will be sticking with the Toll House recipe from now on. I did use their quick vanilla frosting recipe for the babies' smash cakes and it turned out really well. A certain future sister in law of mine, not naming names, was eating the extra icing from the mixing bowl.

All of the cookies were frozen after baking and taken out the night before the party.  They were all just as good the day of the party as they were the day they were made.  I just stored them in gallon freezer bags.

Happy baking!!

Below are the links to the blogs where I found the recipes.

Coconut Smoochies, Mint Chocolate Chip, Citrus Sugar, Oreo Cheesecake Bites

Memorial Day Weekend

Happy Memorial Day everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful weekend. I know we did even if the weather didn't cooperate as well as it could have.  That's Indiana though.  

Is it possible to photo bomb your own blog? If so, it's about to happen.  I take boat loads of pictures all the time. So many of the ones from this weekend are screaming to be shared. 

We of course headed to the lake for the weekend.  Layla was super sweet on the trip up and I was able to snap this photo on our drive. 

  

Unfortunately her sweetness didn't last long.  Due to her unwillingness to get along with the neighbor dogs, I have temporarily banished her from weekends at the lake. Poor Tyson has to pay the price too. We decided to crash in The Fort on Saturday night since we had to bring the dogs back anyway.

We headed back up Sunday morning and had a really great day of fun in the sun.  We had some adult beverages, went for a boat ride, played in the front yard and had a bonfire. 

During the kids' limited nap time we took advantage and enjoyed some cocktails. Kool-Aid ice cubes in vodka and sprite, the perfect festive drink for Memorial Day or the Fourth of July.  It's delicious too.

In addition to roasting traditional marshmallows we also roasted marshmallow creme dipped strawberries.  They were delicious, however I didn't think about the fact that I wouldn't be able to chew the strawberries thanks to my shiny new mouth accessories.

We woke up Monday morning to cold and rainy weather, so we stayed in our pjs.  The babies didn't sleep well overnight or for naps, so we planned an early return for after lunch.  It felt like the longest morning ever trying to keep H happy. My little man is not happy if he doesn't get enough sleep. B was super happy when she discovered the pinwheels. 

The kids were glad to be home and have free reign of the house. They are not fans of being told no.  It was great to see family and friends this weekend, but I'm glad to be home too.  I know it will get easier for the kids to stay other places, but right down it's a big pain in the butt. There's no place like home.

Thank you to all servicemen and women past, present and future.  Happy Memorial Day.

A Year in Pictures

I saw this idea on Pinterst, surprise, while I was still pregnant.  For the original they used a chalk board wall and a white chair.  I have neither of those, so a leather sofa and hand drawn months on card stock it is.  I'm pretty sure this collage will be making it to a large canvas.

I can't decide if I want to keep doing the months this way or if I should switch it up.  I've been thinking maybe now that they can support themselves well and crawl/stand on everything, it may be time to take monthly pictures in the sac.

Brooke in the Lovesac at 1.5 months old.