Let me start off by saying I LOVE parties. I love brainstorming a theme, I love coming up with a menu, I love executing my plans and I love celebrating. Before the boys were even born I knew what I wanted the theme of their first birthday to be: Toy Story Carnival. I’m a Disney addict and I just adore Toy Story. I felt it was a perfect boy theme. One of my favorite things to do in the Summer is go to carnivals, and the fact that the boys were born in the Summer made it a no-brainer to add the carnival to it! I also had some inspiration from the Toy Story Midway Mania ride in Disney World. We had SO much fun at this party and I had an even better time planning it. It was a perfect first birthday and I couldn’t have been happier about how it turned out!

Here are the invitations! I had a vision in my head how I wanted them and my friend Kelli couldn’t have made a more perfect invite. My Mom had gotten the boys Woody and Buzz jammies for Christmas and I thought they were perfect for an invite picture!

For the centerpieces on each table I cut out the characters on card stock and hot glued them to very thin wooden dowels. I stuck the dowels into floral foam. I got the red and green containers from party city for .99 cents! I was so excited when I found them because they were perfect for what I was imagining. We had three Woody centerpieces and three Buzz ones.

I knew I wanted to have a place for people to take photos, so I decided to make a big Etch a Sketch photo prop and a blue sky with clouds background. It was a hit!

I searched Pinterest and found a blog called Purple Patch Parties that actually had a Toy Story Midway Mania party on it. She made carnival games out of cardboard boxes and I just loved the idea. I had my husband go to an appliance warehouse and pick up some large refrigerator boxes for free!! I drew out a plan for him how I wanted the boxes cut out and he did it exactly the way I wanted them!

For the first game we had “Andy’s Room” which was where the kid had to knock down cans with bean bags.

I made some boxes to look like the ones in Andy’s room from the movie, and they also doubled as something to stand the cans on!

For the next game we had “Army Men Shoot Camp”

I decorated the inside of the box with camouflage fabric and the kids shot ping pong balls off golf tees with a nerf type gun.

The third game was “Al’s Toy Barn”

I ordered a farm bean bag toss game from Oriental trading. The kids really loved this one.

Last we had “Hamm and Eggs” I had cups with numbers on the bottom and the kids tossed pretend eggs into the cups.

Kids lining up to play!

For the games each kid got tickets to use at the prize table, although I had enough prizes for each child to get one of each prize. They loved going to the prize table and being able to “buy” their prizes. To hold their loot I made little green men goodie bags for them.

For the prizes we got Toy Story bracelets, mini barrel of monkeys, disguise glasses, lip whistles, parachute army men, Toy Story bubbles, Sheriff badges, Toy Story candy, Toy Story books, and some Toy Story noise makers.

After the games it was time for dessert!

For the desserts I had a cake made for each of the boys. They were the same decor, just flipped. Adam’s cake had cow print on top and blue with stars on the bottom and Collin’s had blue with stars on the top and cow on the bottom.

I absolutely loved the addition of the light up letters in each of the boy’s initials. I think it added such an adorable “carnival” feel to the table.

What’s a carnival without popcorn!? These popcorn cupcakes were such a hit and so incredibly easy to make. I took mini marshmallows and snipped the tops into 3 and 4 and stuck them onto the tops of the cupcakes. I sprayed the top with Wilton yellow spray and they were done! I just love how they turned out.

Little green men marshmallow pops! The kids just adored these!

We also had some Sheriff badge cookies and chocolate covered pretzels.

Mommy and her boys!

Family

The birthday boys having some much deserved birthday cake!

And here are some pictures of party fun! It was a perfect day.

I cannot believe my tiny boys are one! This has been a crazy year but we made it! I wouldn’t change it for the world.

XOXO-Kelly

SO many things have changed in these past few months. The twins turned 1, Ashley turned 5, we moved, Ashley was the flower girl in my cousins wedding and she started started Kindergarten, and Adam started to walk! It’s been an absolute whirlwind but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Being a busy Mommy is what I’ve always dreamed of and each night, before I go to sleep, I thank God for giving me this life. For the boys’ birthday we had a super fun Toy Story Midway Mania party complete with carnival games, a prize table, 2 cakes (of course each boy gets their own cake!), and lots of fun. It was a great day and I can’t believe my tiny boys are a year old. For Ashley’s birthday we had an elegant Cinderella party. Ever since we went to Disney World in April and met Cinderella there has been a Cinderella obsession in the Couillou household. Ashley had a great time with her friends and we even had a bounce house and Cinderella come to visit for the party! There was face painting, party games, a Cinderella themed dessert table and of course Ashley was dressed like Cindy herself! It was wonderful. The parties were 2 weeks apart so needless to say I was one tired Momma. Next year I think we will do a combined party to make it a little easier on me and also the guests. I’m going to do separate posts on the parties complete with pictures, and tutorials.

Ashley started kindergarten and she just loves it. It’s only for a few hours a day (which I’m so thankful for, I was not ready for her to be gone all day!), but I think it’s good for her to get out, be with kids her own age (instead of being surrounded by 2 little brothers that just love their sister, but want to take everything from her haha) and really get into the routine of school. My little fashionista loves picking out her outfits to wear each day and sometimes gives me a hard time about it! I really thought I would have a little more time before we argued about clothes, I digress.

Ash on her first day!

It’s fall in New Jersey which is my favorite time of the year. I love the cooler weather, the street fairs, pumpkins, Football and all that good stuff. I really look forward to it each year. I feel like every weekend we have sometime so fun to do as a family and the memories we make are priceless. Since it’s cooler but still warm enough to enjoy the outdoors, we have been taking walks each evening. We point out different animals and flowers, watch the planes overhead and even make a pit stop at a park across the street. The kids love it and so do I. I know these types of things are the things I will miss desperately as my children get older so I’m trying to soak it all in as much as I can.

At the park during one of our evening walks! They LOVE the swings ❤

It feels really good to be back documenting our lives.

XOXO- Kelly

The twins turned 11 months old yesterday! 11 months! I cannot believe it. This year has flown by so incredibly fast. They are growing and changing so much day to day. I feel as if I blink, I will miss it! They are crawling everywhere, pulling to stand, starting to cruise the furniture and Collin even started to wave today! I am so blessed to have them and look at them daily and think to myself “how did I get so lucky?” Ashley is an amazing big sister and loves them so much. We had a bit of a rough start and she took a little while to get adjusted to having not one but two brothers and having to assume the role of an older sister. She is a huge help and I don’t know what I would do without her. Today, I’m going to share some of our 11 month favorites!

1. MAM Pacifiers- The boys just love these. Pacifiers are such a tricky thing. We thought the boys hated pacifiers but turns out we just weren’t giving them the ones they wanted. We figured we would give this brand a try and they loved them!

2. Fisher Price Lil’ Zoomers- Anytime the boys are crying or fussy I give them these cars and they calm right down! They love the little colored wheel in the middle and the little faces on the front. They are the perfect size for their chunky little fingers to hold and play with. I keep these in the diaper bag at all times.

3. MAM starter cup- I have exclusively breastfed the boys since birth, but we recently decided to start giving them a sippy cup. These ones are working out great and I figured since they loved the pacifiers so much I might as well give the cup a try. It has a really cute design on the front, they are easy to clean and haven’t leaked yet!

4. Burt’s Bees Diaper Ointment- I cannot say enough great things about this ointment. It works great and it has a really pleasing natural smell to it. My boys have very sensitive skin so I have to be really mindful of everything I use on them. It uses all natural ingredients and is enriched with beeswax as well as vitamin A and E. Love love love!

5. Gerber’s Organic Puffs- We loved these with Ashley and nothing has changed with the twins! They really enjoy being able to feed themselves and the puffs dissolve so fast I don’t have to worry about choking. I bring these everywhere with us.

6 Children’s Place footless pajamas- Since it’s summer now and warmer each night I put the boys in a light cotton pajama. Children’s place always has really great sales which works great for having to buy two of everything! I love the prints they have and the pi’s hold up nicely.

7.Fisher Price Brilliant Basics Xylophone- This is easily the boys’ favorite toy. As soon as I take it out they both make a mad dash to it. They are learning now that if they hit it, it makes a sound and they can’t get enough. It’s light and has rounded edges so I don’t have to worry about them getting hurt. I’m not gonna lie, I like to play with this too! 😉

8. Radio Flyer Grandstand Deluxe 3-in-1 wagon- We cannot get enough of this wagon. I know I talked about it in an earlier post but it is such a staple in our daily life I feel it is worth mentioning again. I use this wagon close to everyday. It has a canopy to shade the boys from the sun and seat belts to strap them in for safety. I put them in it while I push Ash on the swing, or go for walks, or to watch Ashley put on a hula hoop show. I love the change from the stroller and I think they do too. They would sit in this all day if I let them. It’s crafted really well and feels very safe. I can’t wait to use it for fun summer activities like fairs, fireworks and parades!

XOXO- Kelly

A few weekends ago, one of our best friends invited us to go for a day trip to the boardwalk. Now, let me just say, I LOVE the boardwalk. Ever since I was a little girl it has been one of my most favorite past times of summer. I love the games, the food, the rides, the atmosphere, everything! Having kids and being able to take them is the absolute best. Seeing everything through their eyes and getting to experience it all again with them is incredible.
I had never been to Keansburg, NJ before but my good friend Maria has been going her whole life. Bill had done some work around there and said he thought it would be a fun thing to do with the kids. We had such a great time! It was really family oriented and not too crowded at all which was super nice when having to push around a huge double stroller. They had a ton of rides that were small enough for Ashley to go on and she had a blast. The ride controllers were really nice and since the kids had wristbands they allowed them to go on the rides as many times in a row as they wanted!
Bill LOVES to play boardwalk games and Ashley was so excited that her Daddy won her a frog from the Frog Bog game and quickly named her Lily. She loves it so much and hasn’t put it down since she got it.

I decided every Tuesday I’m going to do a post about the twins; products I love for them, funny/cute things they do and say, outings we go on, things like that! If nothing else, it will be fun for me to look back on because everyday they are getting bigger and older and I already find myself looking back at newborn pictures of them and missing them as tiny babies! SO, here we go for our first TWIN TUESDAY!

Something that has been a huge lifesaver for us is the Delta 36×36 Play Yard.

For my shower, I put a regular pack and play on the registry. Once we got it, I quickly realized it wasn’t going to work for us. Both babies didn’t fit in it, and it was much too small for them to play in. We returned the pack and play and just by chance we saw this one. I was so excited, it was so big and looked like it would have just enough room. Sure enough, it worked out perfectly. We brought it with us to Disney World and both of the boys had plenty of room to sleep, the mattress was padded enough, and they were able to play together. I can’t say enough great things about this play yard and would recommend any twin Momma to invest in it!

I’M BACK! It’s been a LONG couple years. Things got away from me, life got in the way and I stopped blogging. I’m making a conscious effort to start again. So, since I last posted a ton has happened. Ashley is now almost five!!! Five!!! Can you believe it? I certainly cannot. She is still such a spunky, happy little girl and brings so much joy to our lives. She loves princesses, dolls, dressing up and of course FROZEN! She will be starting kindergarten in the fall, which we are both not ready for. I’m going to miss my little partner in crime! Thank God we have the whole summer to prepare! In July 2014 we added two new members to our family, our twin boys, Adam and Collin! They are the best little boys anyone could ever ask for. They are a little over 10 months now and they amaze me every single day with how much they are learning, how quick they are growing, and what different little personalities they have. It’s absolutely fascinating to witness and I thank God for giving me the opportunity to be their mommy. Having them has absolutely been a roller coaster. So many times I have heard moms of twins say “the first six months are an absolute blur”. I never really understood what that meant, but let me tell you, that statement is spot on. From the moment they were born we hit the ground running. They were born at 37 weeks and both needed some NICU time. Collin needed a little extra help so he stayed in a little longer. I had to leave the hospital with Adam while Collin stayed an extra two days. Walking out of the hospital without him was quite possibly one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, BUT, when we finally had both boys home the elation I felt was indescribable. Ashley was in preschool and with them being slightly premature, they started getting sick. In September (at 7 weeks) I had Collin in the hospital for a cold, he was fine and the hospital staff probably thought I was insane, but my philosophy was better safe than sorry.  December rolled around and I was so excited for the boys’ first Christmas. We did so many fun Christmas activities; went on the Polar Express, visited Santa, went through the Ice Caverns (an adorable walk through attraction with decorated windows), went to a Frozen Ice Palace in a local mall. It was great and gearing up to be a great holiday. Unfortunately all my plans were dashed when on Christmas Eve Collin spiked a 102º temperature. Adam followed suit and they both ended up going to the hospital on Christmas day and were admitted for pneumonia. We spent the next week there and finally came home New Years Day. It was one of the most trying times in my life. Needless to say, it’s been insane, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.  I stopped working when I had them because going to work while having two tiny babies, breastfeeding them, having a four year old to take care of and sleep at some point in between all that proved to be much too difficult. I do miss my job, but being a stay-at-home mom is by far the best job I’ve ever had and I really, really love it. We are finally getting into a routine (only took me 10 months LOL) but things are honestly getting easier and I feel much more accomplished during my days. I find that getting out, even for something simple like to the food store for milk, really helps me feel like I got at least SOMETHING accomplished. So here we are, just enjoying summer, enjoying the boys being a little older so they can participate in some fun summer activities, and enjoying life. I can’t wait to continue documenting our lives and my thoughts so down the road I can look back on it all. I hope you join me for the ride!