Sunday, October 31, 2010

Halloween!

Halloween is here again!

This year Annelie wanted to be an ice skater and Gracie absolutely had to be a fashion designer and design her own costume. Who am I to say no to that kind of creativity?! So off to Target we went for some shirts and tights, and off to the fabric store we went for some tulle and sequins and embellishments galore, and their shirts were turned into fancy dresses.


Very, very fancy dresses. Gracie even made herself a fashion portfolio, which includes the design for her super awesome costume.

And, with sugar and excitement, I even got them to smile for the camera!

Happy Halloween to all, and to all a good night!

xoxo,

Friday, October 29, 2010

The Day I've Been Waiting For All My Life...

... has finally arrived! I have a live-in maid!

Usually 3-year-old Annelie enjoys helping me with the vacuuming by ripping up garbage and dropping it in front of the vacuum for me to suck up, while pointing and announcing, "There's one. Don't forget to vacuum that one."

But today, my life got a little bit sweeter...

Look! My maid even cleans the [cringe] really dusty under cabinet places!

Though she does sometimes get distracted...

By sucking up her shirt.

And colorful bits of junk mail.

But she vacuumed three rooms today, and had the biggest smile the entire time!

[
lounges on couch eating bon-bons]

Hurray for live-in maids!

xoxo,

Thursday, October 28, 2010

On the Drawing Table: Moon or Bust!

My colored pencils have been pulled out of their hiding spot once again, and this time we're exploring space together! My youngest artist has been along for the space shuttle ride, giving me quite a view of cuteness while I work.

She's having a great time learning all the fancy names for colors. And as a result, has decided she'd like to change her name to Crimson Red.

I'm still working on my alphabet letters, and hope to have V, R, and E finished by next week, so stay tuned for more photos!

And before I go, here's a close up of the little astronaut and his large smile. I'm a fan of smiles.

Happy Thursday, folks!

xoxo,

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Little Pumpkin Muffins

The kids and I baked up some festive muffins over at The Mama Dramalogues.
Okay, really we baked them at home, in our kitchen...
And okay, if I'm going to be completely honest here, *I* baked
them, and the kids helped decorate them.
Well, mostly helped.... three-year-old Annelie did end up mushing most of hers...

But come on by The Mama Dramalogues and oooooh and aaaaaah over our efforts anyway!

Just click HERE! to be magically transported to our post!
xoxo,

Monday, October 25, 2010

Babee Cakes Bakery and a Logo Design

My fantabulous friend April - a fellow cupcake-lover, tattoo-lover, and music-lover - is working hard toward opening a cupcakery in San Antonio, TX, and I had the pleasure of whipping up her logo (much easier than baking cupcakes, as I'm the World's Worst Baker).

Naturally April needed a pink and turquoise tattoo-style cupcake, to go with the GORGEOUS cupcakes she makes:

(banana, walnut cake soaked in rum syrup,
topped with brown sugar buttercream
and homemade caramel sauce)

I received a package of April's cupcakes in the mail recently.

Oh yes I did.

Delicious.

Check out the Babee Cakes blog: http://www.babeecakesbakery.com/

And thumbs up her Facebook page! http://www.facebook.com/babeecakesbakery

And because this post is about April, it naturally needs to have some Roisin Murphy to listen to, since April, like me, is a huge Roisin Murphy fan. And here is the song that has been looping in my head on repeat for days:



Happy Monday, folks!

xoxo,

Friday, October 22, 2010

Friday Flashback: Say Cheese, Pumpkin!

"Say CHEESE, pumpkin!"

That's what Gracie, age two, was saying as I snapped this picture in October of 2007.

Nothing captures toddlerhood better than a cute little kiddo and her inanimate BFF, don't you think?

It's weird going though my photos for Friday Flashback fodder and discovering that just about everything involving the littlest members of the Hopkins clan has been blogged before. I guess that's what happens when you are a compulsive blogger like me.

Have a flashback of your own to share? Join in the fun at Tia's blog!

And a happy weekend to you all!

xoxo,

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

When the Bleep Hits the Fan...

If you're sitting here wondering if I've blogged over at
The Mama Dramalogues, the answer would be YES!

And I shouted that answer, because lately I feel like
I'm shouting everything, because my
kids - specifically my 3 year old - are driving me insane.

So. Come on by. You know you want to.

Click THIS to be magically transported to my post.

And happy Wednesday to you!

xoxo,

Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Little Orphan Oliver

A couple days ago, we opened the front door to the doormat surprise our cat Somersault brought home with him.

Usually cat surprises left on the doormat are of the dead bird or mouse variety, but this surprise was Somer's new BFF - an eight-week-old scrawny, half-starved ferocious wild kitten. And when Will opened the door to let Somer inside for some breakfast, the kitten followed and made himself right at home.

Now, I'm happy to be crazy cat lady but even I had reservations with this kitten. First of all, with 4 other pets and 2 pet-like children I wasn't really sure we needed another cat. Not to mention, this kitten is FEROCIOUS and FEARLESS and picks fights with any animate or inanimate object he comes across - including our two adult cats and our two adult dogs.

And Annelie's arm.

But then he curls up next to our cats and dogs as if he's been a member of the family since birth, and for some reason, they don't mind... and he purrs his little brains out, and Somer licks his head and Hannah yips for him to play with her, and seriously, how can I possibly take him to the pound when he's so little and happy here? Plus, our local pound terminates, and we're not really the kind of people who want to wrap up a kitten and hand him over to his possible death.

So off to the vet he went for a de-worming, ear mite removal and some shots...

And now the Hopkins family has a new member - Little Orphan Ollie!

Awwwww... isn't he just so darned CUTE?!?!

xoxo,

Saturday, October 16, 2010

LOLhannah






U wahnt puppeh Hannah nit swetur fer u, too?

xoxo,

Friday, October 15, 2010

Friday Flashback: Scotland

It's impossible to believe that eight years have passed since I went to Scotland with my friend Cherissa, especially as I remember the two weeks we traveled as if it was yesterday. But in mid 2002 I loaned Cherissa my copy of the book Outlander by Diana Gabaldon, which takes place in the Scottish highlands during the Jacobite Rebellion in the 1740's and Cherissa loved it as much as me (VERY much, in case you were wondering). And when she was done reading, she called me up and said, "Let's go to Scotland and see all the places that were in the book!"

Now, I'm not what you'd call a brave person. The idea of getting a passport, hopping on a plane and traveling to and around a foreign country scared the pants off me... but I said YES! anyway, because seriously, how could I not?

So we saved our moolah for a few months, then off we went. For nearly two weeks, we marched up high streets, trekked through castles, ate fish and chips, stepped in dog poop - oh wait... that was just me - and had an AWESOME time!

We started out in Edinburgh - prettiest city I had ever seen in my life!

I was googly over all the unicorns everywhere

While emailing in an internet cafe in Edinburgh, the alarms sounded and a loud voice announced for all of us to evacuate immediately because the building was on fire. I'm not sure why that was a highlight for me, but it was an experience that I obviously felt needed documentation.

Cherissa at Edinburgh Castle

The best thing about staying in hostels was definitely meeting other travelers... we wouldn't have seen the Old Packhorse Bridge - built in Carrbridge in the early 1700's - if it weren't for the recommendation of a bunk mate traveling from New Zealand.

Inverness!

Inverness Castle!

True Fact: This lovely building is Burger King.

In Outlander (the book), the main character goes back in time by touching the standing stones near Inverness. There she meets a sexy Scottish highlander hunk.

Cherissa and I tried to shove ourselves through the stones, but alas, no time travel or sexy highlander hunks for us.

But we did meet a highland cow!

It's a coo! A wee heilan' coo!
(that's how the Scots say 'highland cow')

Cawdor Castle
(think MacBeth!)

Culloden Moor - where the battle of Culloden was fought in 1746

And the wax figures in the museum brought it all to life before our very eyes!
(only they didn't move, so I had to shut my eyes to imagine it)
(which I didn't actually do, because imagining the battle of Culloden would have been awful)
(But if you want to imagine it, you should read Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series)
(You won't be disappointed - the series is fantastic)

We went to a tartan mill. Very informative.

And sailed across Loch Ness in hopes of seeing Nessie the monster. Unfortunately, Nessie was photo shy that day, but we did end up seeing Urquhart Castle, which was neat-o.

I feel right at home in castles.

The Cia-aig Waterfall
Legend has it that a witch plagued the cattle of the nearby Campbell clan and was drowned in the water under the fall, known as the Witch's Cauldron. Creepy folklore is fantastic!


Glencoe

Doune Castle
(which you might recognize if you are a Monty Python fan)

Beautiful views from atop all the castles!

(Also, just a note: if you ever travel to Scotland with Cherissa and visit Doune Castle, watch out, because Cherissa is notorious for snapping pictures of smiling people (for example: me) in small dark rooms, and then shutting said smiling people inside said small dark rooms whilst eyes are adjusting to the flash. You have been warned.)

Loch Lomond hostel. A hunted mansion, by the way. Which was awesome especially as Cherissa started talking in her sleep (and by talking I mean having an entire conversation about Madonna and tea parties and how we supposedly had a tea party with Madonna that day) and we were the only two people in a HUGE empty room.

And did I mention the mansion was haunted? I thought Cherissa was possessed.

Cherissa at Stirling Castle

Our hostel in Stirling - a renovated kirk which came complete with a graveyard where the most recent gravestone was over 300 years old.

St. Andrews Cathedral

And, of course, I couldn't leave Scotland without buying a box of naughty Scottish toffees

Ha!

After two weeks of non-stop travel, I was knackered. But I loved our time in the UK so much that a year later I signed myself up for the study abroad program in Bath, England. Never would have done my adventuring if it weren't for that book by Diana Gabaldon and that phone call from Cherissa! (thanks, Cherissa!)

Have a flashback of your own to share with the world? Head on over to Tia's blog and join in the flashback fun.

Happy weekend, folks!

xoxo,

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