Tiny Dancers

I really could not decide which of these to put on, so I put them all on. We couldn't get Mia off of the dance floor. Jackson exhausted himself and was falling asleep on the floor of the reception hall towards the end of the night. The flower girls and the boy dancing with Mia are all siblings and are nieces and nephews of Todd's. Angela (dancing with Jackson) as seen in the video was picking Jackson up and showing him some moves. It was totally hilarious. The last video is of Mia "dancing" with Grant. I realize Grant is just standing there, but their arms are moving, right? I still laugh when watching these. Hope you enjoy them.

"W" is for Wednesday

"W" is for weight watchers recipe for delicious chocolate muffins (see recipe below)--only 3 points!

"W" is for water heater. We had to purchase a new one this week when our old one burst.

"W" is for water. We had this in our basement laundry room and bar area (again oh, yes) when we returned from Cincinnati Sunday morning due to above bursting issue.

"W" is for why. Why don't we just make our basement into an indoor pool? I think it would actually be pretty sweet.

This post brought to you by the letter "W." Think I watch too much Sesame Street?? Nah!

Chocolate Muffins

(courtesy of WW community recipe swap)

1 box devil's food cake mix

1-15oz can of 100% pure pumpkin

Mix together until all cake mix is incorporated (this takes some time and seems really thick-trust me though). Divide mixture evenly into 12 muffins (spray w/nonstick spray or use muffin liners). Bake at 350 for 30 minutes. 3 points per muffin.

I have made these many times. You can really use any kind of cake mix, but I enjoy the rich fudge taste of these muffins. I don't even feel that bad letting my kids eat them for breakfast occasionally. Enjoy!

Wedding Pics

Mamaw and Liam
Aunt Kelly and Uncle Charley entertaining Grant

Great Grandpa Steuer and Liam


Papaw serenading Mia

Mia and Grant dancing

Jackson with one of the flower girls

Mia being persuaded to dance

Our little princess

Although I didn't get a picture of the bride and groom (not sure how I managed this), Molly and Todd's wedding was beautiful and the kids enjoyed being showered with lots of attention. Jackson and Mia danced the night away. They are definitely like their mom and dad who also love to dance! Dancing videos coming later this week.

Vacation Woes

The intent of our first "vacation" was to stay 3 nights in Cincinnati with the main event being Matt's cousin Molly's wedding on Saturday. I definitely think we overestimated our children at their current ages. We made through the first day with a visit to Newport, Kentucky to the Newport Aquarium and then a trip to Jungle Jim's International Market (a huge grocery store in Cincinnati). Fast forward to the first evening in the hotel...none of the kids would sleep after nearly 2 hours of trying. The twins were constantly crying due to being overtired (I never realized how much they cry when I don't care how loud they are at home, but in a public hotel with neighbors listening it's an entirely different story.) We finally gave up around 10pm Thursday and drove the entire way back to Indianapolis. We had the hotel for 3 nights however, so Matt and Jackson went back the second day for the wedding rehearsal. Mia, the twins, and I all came back Saturday morning before the wedding. Tomorrow's post will be pics from the wedding. We survived, but I do not think we will be staying in a hotel again for like 10 years...ok maybe not 10 years, but close to it.

Glowing Bathtub

The kids love playing with these "light sticks" which are really snap glow bracelets that we get a Michael's for $1. Matt had the idea the other day to put them in the tub and the kids had a blast in their glowing tub. Reminds me of my parents pool at night back in the day. It had this fiber optic ring around the outside which would change colors and leave the pool glowing. I'm sure the kids will ask for this again!

This is what happens...

...when you leave children unattended. Love the lipstick guys!

Zoo Boo

My mother in law and I took the kids to the Indianapolis Zoo Boo today. I think they had a great time. They had some really cute activities for the kids (bouncy house, meet the animals show, pumpkin bowling, trick or treating, etc.). Jackson had a really cool encounter with the walrus thanks to the trainer being at the exhibit at the same time. I think they looked adorable in their outfits even though Jackson wouldn't wear his "pirate hair" except for the picture and the twins kept pulling on their hoods all day. Mia though LOVED being Dorothy and talked about how cute she was with her bows and red shoes (yes I think we tell her too often!) Fun day-thanks Memaw for making it possible!

Two Little Monkeys

Liam is in Blue, Grant in Red

Our "little monkeys" may not be walking very well, but they are sure crawling, climbing, and getting into trouble. Grant can make it onto the couch with no problem and has been climbing on top of the toy laundry machine and the coffee table. You can see Liam being a little daredevil on the walking toy and crawling in between the glass and bottom of the basement table. I think their Halloween costumes will fit them perfectly (watch for tomorrow's post!) Now when it comes to getting down...that's a whole other story:).

Stress Reliever

Stress of the economy, the upcoming election, life in general got you down? Aside from heavy praying, I recommend "Mouse Trap." We played this (ok so we really just set the trap many times) the other day and it brought me back to a day when I didn't have to stress about the future of my children and the world they will be living in. Definitely needed. Oh and also coloring pictures of Zoe and Elmo seems to help.

Bike Racing on the Deck

Mia's heels

My mom (Nana) gave Mia these shoes along with some coordinating items as a gift for Jackson's birthday. She LOVES these shoes and calls them her "heels." She is in a very picky phase with her clothes and pretty much has to wear a dress daily so that she can wear her "heels." She even has some girly nightgowns that require "heel" wearing as well. Too funny. Note the dress also-this is one of her favorites and whenever it is clean she insists on wearing this one. My little fancy girl!

Mini Musicians

This picture cracks me up! Jackson and Mia entertained themselves for quite a while playing "violins" with bubble wands. I love Mia's serious face. They were humming some tune while doing this and I did get a video, but unfortunately the twins were crying in the background. I love watching their creativity and imagination at work.

Ok-so I just watched the video again and it is too cute not to share (at least I think it is cute!)

Things that made my week

1. Finding $20 in a pair of jeans I was about to donate to charity.
2. Jackson telling me he didn't want to "burn" while he was watching me do my excerise video-you know "burn those calories, feel the burn." Hilarious!
3. Forcing myself to "feel the burn" consistently for 2 weeks now.
4. Loss of 8 pounds-yes!
5. Cooler weather, all of my kids in jeans, pumpkins and apples everywhere.
6. Finding adorable costumes for halloween for the kids.
7. Planning a very mini vacation, but a vacation with the family later this month.
8. Taking all 4 children out of the house by myself with no meltdowns (mine or the kids!)

Those were the highlights of mine! Hope you all enjoyed yours!

Assigned Seating

So we have this big sectional couch in our living room and yet whenever a movie is watched, Jackson and Mia squish onto this little section of it. Cute? I think so.

Babies in a Basket

The many faces of Amelia

Almost

Grant and Liam are almost walking. Liam is in the red stripes. Please excuse the dirty onesies, full diapers, commentary in the background, and the fact that you have to watch these with your head turned to one side:). If you'll notice, however the kitchen is somewhat clean. Hey, you can't have it all!