Cookies, a Bonfire & Boo at the Zoo

The Haztwins just keep having super busy weekends this fall.  Last weekend was no exception! 

It started out with the kids going to Aunt Judy's to bake and decorate Halloween cookies and play for a few hours.  Jim and I were able to run a few errands and have a nice breakfast at a diner while Summer & Cole their own fun.



Cole with his cousins, Noah (6) & Hannah (3)

 Saturday night we went on a family hayride that my step-brother's girlfriend set-up.  The hayride took us back to a private area towards the back of Springdale Farms with 3 bonfires and some picnic tables.  We spent 2 hours eating and enjoying the very warm fires.  The kids were so excited to make hotdogs & marshmallows over the bonfires.  Summer & Cole had a blast playing with their cousins Noah & Hannah.  Afterwards we got a nice shot of my dad & Lenora with all the grandkids.

Summer (3), Hannah (3), Grandma, Grandpa, Cole (3) & Noah (6)

On Sunday, we got up and got out nice and early to head to Boo at the Zoo with Uncle Chris.  We have never gone to this before, but the kids had so much fun!  I'm sure a big part of this had to do with the fact that they got to wear their Halloween costumes. 



Cole got a ton of extra attention for his zookeeper costume as they trick-or-treated throughout the zoo.  One of the zoo workers even made sure to tell me that she knew where he'd be working one day and that they start accepting volunteers at age 14!  The highlight of our day happened at the tiger exhibit.  Cole had brought his stuffed tiger with him and as he stood up against the glass the real live giant tiger walked up to the glass 2 separate times and smacked his paw up against the glass right at Cole!  Cole & I decided that the tiger thought Cole's toy was a baby tiger and was trying to get it.  Cole decided to change his favorite animal from the Puma to the Tiger.  We will see what he says on our next visit! 

A wedding and a birthday party

This past weekend was a 3 day weekend for me & Jim!  Woohoo!!! Dare I say that every weekend should be that long at the very least. 

Friday afternoon Jim and I headed to the wedding of my cousin's cousin (so practically family), Eric & his beautiful bride Sarah!  It was a small but fabulous affair at a historical park and museum in Delaware.  It was so much fun to get together with our family and dance the night away.

Saturday morning we headed to our friend's house for their daughter Bella's Abby Cadabby 2nd Birthday Party.  The kids LOVE Abby Cadabby so they were super excited.  Summie had received Abby Cadabby wings from a previous goodie bag, so we paired them with a pink dress with a ruffled tulle skirt.  Quite the princess!  She was oh so delighted when guess who arrived??? ... you guessed it!  Abby Cadabby herself!  She was instantly in love!



Summie showing Abby her wings



The kids had such a magical time at the party.  They got to play with their cousins and the other kids there.  Summie got a fairy crown and wand (hand made by my crafty friend and mother of the birthday princess!)  They played playdoh with their Daddy, which was really cute for me to watch.

Playdoh with Daddy!

We all had such a great time together and I got to see my friend Aurie for the second time in a little over a month and got to see my big sister for the second time in the same weekend!  Now onto this weekend's fun!  Hopefully I'll update sooner :) 

We fell into FALL...

Well here it is fall already... where does the time go? 

September finished up with a business trip which led right into a pre-planned vacation with just me & my hubby in the fabulous VEGAS!  Unfortunately that meant I was away from my pumpkins for 8 long nights!  It was very nice to get away and be by myself for a few days though.... I didn't turn the TV on once during this time!  Then Jimmy arrived and we got to have some much needed couple time.  We also had the added bonus of spending time with my Las Vegas family.  It was great to visit with my Aunt Kathleen, Uncle Kevin and my cousins, Kevin & Cheryl.  I even got to meet my cousin Cheryl's 7 month old GORGEOUS baby girl, Kylie!  This was defintiely the highlight of my vacation since we are so far away and do not get to see each other very often. 

Jim & I at dinner on our last night in Vegas

The weekend after we returned from Vegas we were all scheduled to go pumpkin picking withkin my twins club.  Unfortunately Cole was too sick to attend, so he stayed home with Jim and Summie & I headed out to the pumpkin patch for a one on one date.  She and I had so much fun.  Of course, we wished our boys could have been there, but the kids really seem to revel in the one on one time when they do get it. 

Summie picked a pumpkin for her and a pumpkin for Cole.  

Tuesday I took my sick kiddos to the doctors and half thought I was panicing and taking them too soon, but Cole was just not acting himself.  One sinus infection (Summer) and a walking pneumonia (Cole) later, we left the doctor's office and heading to the pharmacy with 4 prescriptions in hand!  Oh how I'm hoping that this winter is better then last, but it's not off to such a good start so far!  Luckily we are on the mend for now (fingers crossed!). 

This weekend, we decided to spend some quiet time together at the beach.  We headed down Saturday morning to Sea Isle City where Jim's Aunt Sis has a house.  We decided to check out the Seafood Fest that was happening in the next town over.  It was AWESOME!  They had an entire tent of food (mostly seafood of course).  We settled on a vendor that was selling grilled lobster tail... delicious and I got some of my favorite... Lobster Bisque! It was a fabulously de-stressing weekend.  The kids loved playing with their special toys at the beach house, playing at the playground, feeding the birds on the beach.  And did I mention that the weather was gorgeous!  Some of my family was coincidentally staying 1 street over so we met up on the beach and spent some time relaxing together.  Sometime life is just too busy and the beach is so calming to me more recently.

Fun with Daddy on the playground

another family had a Cole and we posed with their shells :)

The princess of the beach!

We blinked... and they turned 3!

So it has been one crazy busy month and some how writing about it as gotten away from me!  Summer (my daughter) has been telling me all summer (the season) long (hehe) that she is 2 now and will be 3 on her birthday! I just can't believe they are really 3 already!

The month started out with the 3rd birthday of the haztwins!  The kids have been counting down to their birthday all summer long.  We have a lot of July & August birthdays in our family, and by the end they could recite the exact order of everyone's birthday that was before theirs.  And then the day of the party was upon us.  We have had EXTREME amounts of rain here in the past 2 months and luckily the day of the party was not one of them.  We had perfect weather for the half inside/half outside party.  The kids had a blast with the bounce house that I'm so glad that we invested in earlier this summer.  We were so lucky to have so many great family & friends join us for the celebration! 

I let the kids pick their theme from a few choices.  Summer picked Tinkerbell and Cole first picked Cars and then changed to Toy Story!  Aunt Chele made t-shirts for the big day.  Summie's had Tinkerbell on the front and said "Tinkerlou" on the back (a play off her nickname "Summie Lou" short for Summer Louise) and Cole's had Buzz Lightyear on the front and said "Cole Lightyear" on the back. 

What a great day we all had!  I have to take the time to say again as I have from when I was pregnant with the twins (although probably not had the opportunity on here since I didn't start my blog that long ago).  I am constantly overwhelmed by the generosity of our friends and family.  I quite often get teary when I see the piles of gifts bestowed on our children and the help with the food, setup and cleanup.  I hope you all know how truly blessed I feel to have you all in my life!  Kate & Liz who came the night before to help me clean up, which worked out especially well since Summer decided that she needed Mommy to hold her all night!  My Mother-in-Law who watched the kids the hours before the party so that Jim and I could get the last minute stuff done.  Aunt Patti who came early to help and cooked the pulled pork.  Aunt Judy, Mom H, and Aunt Sis for bringing food.  Juli for making all of the beautiful cupcakes and spinach dip.  It was truly a team effort and I want everyone to know how much I appreciate it.  I love that all of our friends and family were able to spend a beautiful day with us and make lots of precious memories!  I wish we could see each other more often! 

Summie Lou in the bounce house

Cole in the bounce house

Singing Happy Birthday!