Bren and Erin

Just a few pictures from the baseball field on Saturday.  

I caught both feet off of the ground.  

On third base, ready to run home.

Erin standing at the dugout, cheering for Bren.

Carron's "killer" cookies

Another hit from Family Circle magazine (love their recipes each month).  These cookies are loaded with oats, coconut, chocolate chips, and Rice Krispies cereal.  The recipe can be found here (click the word "here").

I took a plate of these fresh out of the oven to my next door neighbor (I share everything I bake with her), and she and her husband loved them.  Sean and I ate one right when they came off of the baking sheet, and they really are fabulous.

Devilish Cocoa Sandwiches

Remember having these cream-filled cakes when you were a kid?  They have always been one of my favorite Hostess treats.  Luckily for me this months copy of Family Circle has the recipe for goodies like Twinkies, Hostess Cream-Filled Cupcakes, etc.  But best of all they have the recipe for these cream-filled cakes!  They are delicious, and since there are no preservatives (like the prepackaged version at the store) I don't feel AS guilty having one.  Super easy to make, too. (Click on the word "recipe" above for the recipe)

Devilish Cocoa Sandwiches

A cute neighbor

As we were leaving for school on Monday morning Sean heard a noise up in one of the palm trees next to our driveway.  He looked up, and there sat this cute little guy, chomping away on a nut from the top of the palm tree.  We think it is so cute how he used the fronds as a little seat to relax while he eats.  He was about 10-12 feet up on the side of one of the palms.

Almost there

The Red Sox won again on Tuesday, but it was a CLOSE game.  They were tied in the 6th inning, but they came back and won by one!  Brendan hit a great line drive, and ended up all the way on 3rd base.

But before he could get home his teammates struck out, and he didn't get to make the dash for home plate.  (This picture is him jogging back to the dugout)

Later in the night he ended up back on 3rd base again, but this time his teammate (with bases loaded) walked and brought Brendan home.  At least he got to home plate someway.  

Brendan catching the ball (on first base) before the start of another inning.

Peanut butter cup cookies

Oh, man.  If you love chocolate and peanut butter you are going to love these.  I made them while Tony and Maddox were here, and all three dozen lasted less than two days!  They are fabulous with or without the chocolate drizzle (Tony ate 3-4 of them before I even got the chocolate on them).

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

Second photo is courtesy of Taste of Home

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup creamy peanut butter

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 pkg. (13 oz.) miniature peanut butter cups

Drizzle:

1 cup (6 oz.) semisweet chocolate chips

1 tbsp creamy peanut butter

1 tsp shortening

In a large bowl cream the butter, peanut butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Combine flour and baking soda; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well.  Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or until easy to handle.

Roll into 1 1/4 inch balls.  Press a miniature peanut butter cup into each; reshape balls.  Place 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets.  Bake at 350º for 12-15 minutes or until edges are lightly browned.  Cool for 2 minutes before removing from pas to wire racks.

For drizzle, in a microwave-safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips, peanut butter and shortening; stir until smooth. Drizzle over cooled cookies.

A bike ride at Starkey Park

We went for a bike ride at Starkey Park this evening.  It's a great park just a few miles from our house, and they have wonderful bike trails (paved and unpaved).  There are also picnic shelters, a huge playground, and a campsite.  Tonight while we rode we saw a deer (she was about ten feet away from me before she ran off behind us) and probably 15 or so armadillos.  It's another benefit to riding at this park.

These pictures were taken using Sean's Canon point and shoot.  It's much easier to manage while riding a bike than my SLR.

Sunday with Tony and Maddox

Today was a very relaxing day.  This whole weekend has been, and it's been nice.  The weather is beautiful, there's a cool breeze, and the kids have spent ALL DAY outside playing.  

Brendan pulling Maddox in the wagon along the side of our house.

Maddox, Tony and Bren went for a walk to the park in our neighborhood.

Brendan and Erin on the motorized scooter.

Tony and Maddox went for a ride next.

This little boy was exhausted (he was wearing one of Erin's sweaters because it started getting a bit chilly this evening).  He sat in the back yard just watching Erin swing.  

New haircut

Check out this girl!  She got about 5 inches cut off of her hair today, and it looks so cute.  She absolutely loves it, too.  

Posing again, in our front yard.

A fun weekend

On Friday afternoon my brother, Tony, and his youngest son, Maddox, arrived for the weekend. We spent the afternoon playing in the back yard (Maddox calls our back yard the "park" because of the big swing set), and just relaxed for the evening. Maddox is getting so big, and he is absolutely adorable.

Maddox loves lizards. He carried this one around for a while before letting it go back into the bushes.

Brendan had a game early on Saturday morning (10am), and then we came back home and played outside for a few more hours. Even Anah loved playing outside with everyone, and I managed to get a few cute shots of her.

Tony drove his car into the back yard and washed it while the kiddos played on the swing set.

Tough girl!

My Anah-banana.

Dirty feet from playing outside. SO MUCH FUN!

Yes, my girl loves to pose for pictures.

A tickle attack. I was tickling her while she was laying in the grass.

Maddox loved throwing sticks into the lake.

Music

I managed to get a picture of each of my kiddos during their music lessons tonight (the glares in the pictures are because they are each in separate rooms, behind a glass door). 

Brendan during his drum lesson.

Erin during her piano lesson (even though you can't see her very well).

And Sean during his piano lesson.  

Sean is practicing "Imagine" by John Lennon for an upcoming recital, and it sounds FABULOUS!  

I love listening to all of them play their music.