Beauty and the Beast Breakfast

By far my favorite Disney princess has always been Belle. With "her nose stuck in a book" and her ability to see true beauty within, what's not to love? So when I first saw they were rereleasing the movie in 3D, I knew taking the girls was a must. With Chirstmas over and our elf-on-the-shelf back in the North Pole, I was missing some of that morning magic so I decided to suprise the girls with a special breakfast to announce our movie trip. You should have seen the looks of pure astonishment and giddiness when they came downstairs on an ordinary Friday morning to see the dining room table all adorned for a special breakfast.

Our Lumiere-esque sign read, "It is with deepest pride and greatest pleasure that we welcome you this morning as your Mommy proudly presents your Breakfast."

For breakfast, the girls dined on vanilla yogurt with strawberries cut in the shape of enchanted roses...

...and cranberry-orange mini-muffins in rose paper cups.

I decorated the table with an enchanted rose and mirror and piles of vintage books.

Mrs. Potts, Chip and Lumiere also joined the festivities.

The girls also recieved new Belle t-shirts to wear to the movies and a little goodie box with a Belle pez dispenser and candy inside.

The buffet was set up for our after-movie treat: a new Belle nightgown for each girl and special snack, a Beauty and the Beast cake.

Each girl had her own Belle on the cake (when you're a twin- it's all about the fairness.)

The movie itself was as magical as I had remembered it. The 3D effects were stunning and the girls were mesmerized the entire time. My favorite part of the day however, was as when we were tucking them in and I heard, "Mommy, this was the best day ever!" 

Catch me partying here  !

Year in Review

Hello friends,
Its hard to believe it has been months since I posted last.  All has been fine in our little corner of the world.  Now with winter finally upon us,  things slow down a bit and I am excited to share some of the things we've been up to.  I love how a new year brings out that reflective spirit in me. So here is our little year in review- some old and some new.

First, Mr. Cabin built   the cottage exercise room - my bright, happy place amongst the basement chaos.

Next, was the cabin's wood shed. Yes, it is there in the background of the picture. Its not so pretty right now. It still needs paint and a front eve. Who am I kidding? I am not sure if it will ever be pretty- after all it is a tool shed. But its functional and the bottom line is - it got those tools out of the living room! Most importantly however, fingers crossed, with the tool shed built I am one step closer to getting the outdoor shower of my dreams!

My favorite project at the cabin was this impromptu one- a small dock out over the pond- built from left over wood from the shed. We spent a good many hours swimming and fishing off that little dock this year.

Gotta love unplanned strokes of genius.

Back at the cottage, I started a tea party garden for the girls this summer. The basic structure was about as far as I got, but I am looking forward to finishing it this coming spring.

Now unto all the projects I have yet to post about. Installing red cabinets in the cabin's kitchenette! I am thrilled with the way they came out.

And finally the project that is mostly responsible for keeping me away and preoccupied for the past few months- the girls' woodland fairy birthday party. There will be lots to post about that special event!

Hope all is well in your little corner of the world too. Hope your own reflective spirit finds you looking lovingly on this past year with pride in your accomplishments and into the future with anticipation and hope.
Happy New Year friends!

After Irene

I am so very grateful that we survived Hurricane Irene with practically no damage. All around us, neighbors, family and friends, lost power and had flooding. We were very fortunate. Some friends lost everything and will have to rebuild their houses completely.

As we celebrate the end of summer this weekend, there is so much more to be grateful for...

Hoping you will fully enjoy your Labor Day Weekend too,