Zaye's birthday party

My nephew Zaye turned 11 on April 20th, and Tony (my brother) had a birthday party for him yesterday. Tony lives just east of Orlando, about two hours from us, on five acres of land. It's beautiful out there, and it was the perfect place for the kids to run around and play for the day. We took Brendan's friend, Brandon, with us since Zaye likes him a lot, too.

When we arrived Maddox was taking a nap.  Love how he had his blanket over his head.

Zaye on the "redneck slip and slide" (as Tony called it).

Tony and Sean.

This old playground favorite was a hit with the kids, even though it was so small.

My silly brother.  It was so tight it was pulling his eyes up!

Zaye's 11 candles.

The birthday boy.

I love watching Tony playing with my kiddos.  He was tickling Sean, despite the fact that Sean is WAY bigger than he is.

An old helicopter body (prop from Universal Studios) that Tony's roommate, Kevin, has on the property.  It was perfect for the boys since they played for hours with their pellet guns on the property.

Brendan on the hunt for one of the other boys, pellet gun in hand.

Momma, Daddy and baby sand hill crane.  They live on the property, and their nest is in the lake right outside of the house.

Donny is Hannah's oldest son (Tony's friend).

Look at my handsome boy with his new haircut!

Zaye with his birthday gift from Tony.

Tony and Hannah being silly.  Or not.

No, it's not a random picture of the ground.  This is an ant colony that Tony feeds every day.  

"Fred" sits in one of the old abandoned vehicles on the property.  "Fred" as in "I Am Legend" Fred.

Tony in the pen with the turkey and the baby duck.

These two live together in the pen.  The baby duck thinks that the female turkey is his/her mom, and after losing her two babies to raccoons, the turkey treats the duck like her baby.

A daily dose of turkey eggs.  Tony and Kevin get at least one from her every day, and they eat them (there is no male turkey to fertilize them, so they wouldn't hatch anyway).

The gang on the trampoline just before sunset.

Reaction to noise

Erin has never liked loud noises.  

Last weekend when we were at the Rays game and Zobrist hit the grand slam (that ultimately won the game) the stadium went crazy, and it was LOUD.  It doesn't even sound very loud on the video, but it was.  This video of Erin's reaction just cracks me up.  I love that she plugs her ears a second time when she thinks that they are going to get loud again.

It's crazy around here

It's been a while since I posted, but with finals this week I just haven't had much "extra" computer time.  I've spent every spare second reviewing material for the exams, but after this week I will have a few weeks off before summer term starts.  As always I'm looking forward to the quick break in the chaos.

Everyone is doing well.  As you can see we are still finding time to have fun.  This past weekend we went to watch the Rays play against the White Sox, and we had a great time.  We all love going to the games.  Erin was sporting her Longoria t-shirt (our favorite player), and she had a whistle to blow each time they scored (everyone else uses cowbells).  These pictures were taken with my phone.

I'll be back with more updates after the week is over, and I can breath.

Easter

Erin woke up with a huge smile on her face when she saw her big pink basket on her night stand. She promptly went to Sean, Bren and Zaye (my nephew) to make sure that they got something (they did), and to show everyone what she got. Then Sean and I put the finishing touches on the two cakes that we made for Easter lunch/dinner, and made two pans of baked macaroni and cheese.

There are beautiful ducks/birds that have a bright red beak. They do a full dive under the water to catch fish, and it's really cool to watch them.

My beautiful girl in her Easter dress.

After the egg hunt in the back yard. She was showing me her loot!

Later in the afternoon I had to meet Stacie (my ex-sister in law) in Ocala to take Zaye back to her. While we were there I got to see Ivee and Kaid, too. The last time we saw Kaid he was just a baby. Ivee and Erin are only two months apart in age. Of course I had to take a few pictures o them!

(l-r) Kaid, Zaye, Stacie and Ivee

Our Easter cake

We tried something new this year, and it turned out really cute.  Sean and I did this together, and it only took a few minutes to assemble everything.  We made a homemade cake and icing instead of using a box cake mix (blah!), but we followed the rest of the directions from this site.  

Easter Bunny Cake

Last weekend (with Tony, Zaye and Maddox)

Tony was here again last weekend, and this time he had both of his boys with him (Zaye and Maddox).  Zaye actually stayed here, and has been with us all week or Spring Break.  These are just a few pictures from the weekend while Tony and Maddox were here.

(l-r) Maddox, Erin, Bren and Zaye on our street (our house is on the corner on the left)

Zaye being silly

Brendan getting tickled (at the park in our neighborhood) by Uncle Tony

Maddox and his daddy

Bren and Zaye wrestling

Uncle Tony and Bren on Bren's "trick" bike (an old bike of Erin's that he painted and put pegs on)

Zaye on my bike

My baby brother

Tony and Maddox walking back to our house from the park

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.