Halloween 2016

Halloween fell on a Monday this year. BOO! Get it, boo? Okay, okay, enough of my corny jokes. We've lucked out the last couple of years, as it fell on the weekend. Mondays are always the toughest day of the week for me, Holiday or not. I sucked it up and did my best to make it as festive as possible for the boys.


I added a "pumpkin" clementine to both No. 2 and No. 3's lunches. I didn't put one in No. 1's lunch as he's in middle school now, and I wasn't sure if he'd think it was too babyish. All I did was draw directly onto the clementine with a black permanent marker.

Aren't they cute?


For their after school snack, I made ghost brownies. Click HERE for the recipe I found on Pinterest. I baked the brownies the night before, so that they'd be completely cooled when I was ready to decorate them.

The boys thought they were so cool!


And then came the fun part, dressing up to trick-or-treat! I had a chimp, SpongeBob SquarePants, and a ghastly ghoul. Don't tell my boys, but No. 2's costume definitely won me over. Totally went with his personality!

No. 1 went trick-or-treating with his friends. Guess that's what they do when they turn thirteen. Sigh. I wasn't too fond of the idea at first, but he had a great time. I'm slowly beginning to let go. No. 2 and No. 3 went with my hubby, while I stayed back and handed out candy. My brother-in-law, nieces, and nephew joined in on the fun as well.

They came back with enough candy to last for months! Of course, I did the mandatory bag check. Yep, I check every single piece of candy. I throw out any pieces that look suspect, and always pull out the Milky Way Midnights for myself. Shhh. They are my weakness! Our elementary takes up a candy collection for active military troops, so I will definitely be sending some of ours in. I love that they do that. Such a great cause!

Happy Halloween, y'all!

A Letter to My First Born on His Thirteenth Birthday

Son,


You are amazing. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise.


From the moment your papi and I found out you existed, we couldn't wait to meet you. Who would you look like? What color would your eyes be? How tall would you grow? The only thing we knew for sure was that you'd be amazing. And that we'd never let anyone tell you otherwise.


As you grew in my belly, we began to learn a little more about you. We knew that you'd have a head full of hair as seen on the sonogram. We knew that you had your days and nights mixed up, I could tell by how busy you'd be as the days turned into night. We knew that you'd be a bit stubborn as you tried to come a whole five weeks early. We also knew that you'd be amazing. And that we'd never let anyone tell you otherwise.



When you were born, you were perfect. A whopping 7lbs 13oz and 20 inches long with gorgeous thick brown hair and twinkling light gray eyes. And a cry that could be heard from across the room. You were all that I dreamed of and more. I had no idea what I was doing when I brought you home, but somehow I managed. I had to. You were going to be amazing. And I was never going to let anyone tell you otherwise.


We knew you were smart from day one. You learned to hold your bottle, crawl, walk, and talk in what seemed like the blink of an eye. One day we were pushing you around in your black and yellow stroller and before we knew it, you were running wherever it was you wanted to go. You got into anything and everything you could find. You would shoot your mini basketball, or "ba-ball" as you called it, into your little brother's swing. You knew each and every word to The Wiggles songs. You even ate one of my lipsticks while I napped once. You were a curious little one. We knew you were going to be amazing. And we would never let anyone tell you otherwise.


Kindergarten came before we knew it. You were a bit shy on your first day. We saw you off dressed in blue jeans and a black shirt with a white tie drawn on it, Transformers backpack and matching lunchbox in hand. I couldn't wait to pick you up. By the time we did, you had already made several friends. I knew you would. You are amazing. And I'd never let anyone tell you otherwise.


The elementary years were some of your best years yet. You exceled in every single subject. So much so that you were reading at a higher grade level very early on. You were a patrol, a bulldog buddy, a member of your school's morning news crew, an honor roll award recipient, a perfect attendance award recipient, as well as the recipient of the presidential physical fitness award. It was evident to not only your parents, but to your teachers as well that you were amazing. And we would never let anyone tell you otherwise.


Then there were sports. Many, many years of them. Soccer came first, followed by basketball, and then tackle football. You exceled in them all. We have videos upon videos of your goals, three-pointers, and touchdowns. Your trophy case in your room is completely full. So full that you are in need of a new one. You see, you are amazing. And we will never let anyone tell you otherwise.


And then came middle school.  And cellphones, hair products, face wash, Instagram, texting, school dances, and girls. The year that you, my son, turn thirteen. You are growing into a handsome, intelligent, and respectful young man right before our eyes. You are currently playing quarterback for your football team, you even made the eighth grade basketball team as a seventh grader, all while managing to keep a B or higher in all of your classes including two honors courses.


So what I am trying to say is this. When the road ahead gets rough and things may not always go the way you planned; when you feel like your best is not good enough; when you are struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel; never forget. YOU ARE AMAZING. Don't you ever let anyone tell you otherwise!


Love,


Mom

Football Cake & Cupcakes

No. 1's birthday always falls during football season (usually on a practice night). Well, this year it falls on a game day, so what better way to celebrate than with his teammates and a football cake AND cupcakes!

Here's what you'll need for the cupcakes:

• Boxed cake mix
• White frosting
• Burgundy icing color
• Gold decorating gel
• Gold cupcake liners

I began by baking the cupcakes according to the instructions on the box. While they cooled, I worked on my frosting. I won't even lie, burgundy is a tough color to achieve! I feel like I had to use a ton of icing color, and they still didn't turn out as burgundy as I would have liked. Oh well. Once they were completely cooled, I iced and then added each player's jersey number to them.

On to the cake. Here's what you'll need:

• Boxed cake mix
• Chocolate frosting
• White decorating icing
• Football shaped cake pan

I again followed the instructions on the box, changing nothing except for the type of pan I used. I purchased a football shaped cake pan from Michaels. Don't forget to use a coupon! Oh yeah, the pan also called for a longer baking time than the box did. When the cake was completely cooled, I took a serrated knife and sliced off a tiny bit of the middle so that when I flipped it, it would be leveled. Before removing it from the pan, I took a butter knife and went around the sides to loosen it up a bit. After that, I flipped it over, gave it a bit of a pat, and out it came!


I began decorating the cake by icing it with a very thin layer of the chocolate frosting first, also known as a crumb coat. When the crumb coat was applied, I stuck the cake in the fridge to let it set. Once it was set (no longer sticky to the touch), I added the final, thicker layer of chocolate frosting. I then took the white decorating icing (which already had a piping tip attached-I love that!), and drew on the laces. That's it! It was my first attempt at a football cake, and I must say, I really like the way it came out!

It's also my turn to bring snacks to the game. For halftime fruit, I sliced several navel oranges (click HERE to see how I do it) and placed them in snack sized baggies. For post-game snacks and drinks, they will have Gatorades to help wash down the cupcakes. I also grabbed some goldfish crackers for the little siblings.


I can't wait to share them with the team tomorrow. Go Admirals!






*** Update: We won! Victory never tasted so SWEET!!!

*** Here's my most recent take on football cupcakes! I used blue liners and orange sprinkles to match our new team colors as well as chocolate icing for the "footballs" and white cookie icing for the "laces". Easy peasy and the team loved them! #WINNING

*** Click HERE for my basketball cupcakes and HERE for my soccer cupcakes! ***







Team Mama Idea: DIY Team Spirit Pom Pom Gloves

I am ALWAYS looking for new, fun ways to show my team spirit. I'm sure you already knew that though. I am also ALWAYS on Pinterest. I came across a pin for spirit gloves awhile back, and finally got around to making them.

All you need is a pair of gloves, yarn (in your team colors), a fork, scissors, a needle and some thread. Click HERE to view the original post. It includes easy to follow photos as well as step by step instructions.


A bunch of us football mamas (and a sweet little football sister!) worked together while our boys practiced. Half of us made pom poms and the other half sewed them to the gloves. Teamwork makes the dream work!

They are absolutely perfect for those crisp, chilly Fall games.

We've got spirit, yes we do. We've got spirit how about you?!

Easy Football Brownies

Yep. I'm that mama that doesn't need a special occasion to surprise the team with goodies. Today's reason...simply because it was Thursday! I wanted to venture away from the usual donuts and cupcakes, so I went with brownies. And not just any brownies, FOOTBALL BROWNIES!


Were they hard to make you ask? Nope. I don't do hard. At least not during the work/school week. I started by baking my favorite boxed brownies. I suggest using a dark chocolate version as opposed to milk chocolate for that true football brown color. Once they cooled, I cut them into squares. If you really wanted to go all out, you could cut them into footballs using a football shaped cookie cutter. Again, it was a weeknight, so I went for quick and easy.


For the laces, I used white decorating cookie icing. The great thing about cookie icing, is that it sets, making them stackable. It even came with a decorating tip attached! I drew a straight white line across the middle, and four smaller lines across that one.


And voila, (easy-peasy) football brownies!

They were a HUGE hit with the team. Super cute. And super yummy!






Sports Mama Tip: Not a baker? No worries! Store bought brownies work just the same!

Here's another fun, easy idea. 

Football rice krispie treats!!! One of my sweet (all the pun intended!) neighbors made them for us. So cute and yummy!

*** Click HERE for my basketball brownies! ***

Football Season: A Look Through My Camera Lens

During football season, I am known as the registrar, coach's wife, team mom, and resident photographer. I average about 150-200 shots a game. While I would much rather be sitting amongst my favorite mamas and ringing my cowbell, you can usually find me pacing up and down the sidelines, following each play with my camera in hand. I may occasionally miss a live play, but my lens captures them all. Here are some of my favorite shots thus far:

They say a photograph is the pause button of life. If being behind the camera for every play is what it takes to capture these moments, there is not a place I'd rather be.

Team Mama Idea: Birthday Party on the Football Field

What do you do when your hubby aka Coach Hubby has practice on his birthday? You bring the party to the field, that's what!


I surprised him with red velvet cupcakes (his favorite!), balloons, and a gift. I didn't bring them out until a few minutes before practice ended, so he had no clue. Before handing the cupcakes out, his entire team sang Happy Birthday to him... right on the field!

He loved it! Of course, you could do the same for players.


What better way to celebrate than with their teammates. After all, football is family!






10/9/17 Update: This year Coach Hubby's birthday fell on a game day! So once again, I was sure to bring the party to the field. This time we celebrated with cake pops... and a 40-13 victory!

Victory is sweet! Literally.


GO SPARTANS!!!

Team Mama Idea: Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Sadly, one in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. It is the second leading cause of cancer death among women. On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and 1 woman will die of breast cancer every 13 minutes.


Two of my very close family members are survivors, my Nana and my Aunt Tia. This is a cause that is very near and dear to my heart. So, I am always sure that our team shows their support all October long. Here are some of the ways that we do it:


Every single player on our team has a pink ribbon on the back of their helmet.

They also wear pink socks. There are a ton to choose from online. My favorite place to order them from is Amazon. So many choices, all in one place. Just be sure to order about a month in advance, as they sell out... quick.

All football players love eye black, right? We were stoked to find some in pink at our local sporting goods store.

You know we just couldn't pass up the chance to sport some as well. HA!

Finally, I ordered these blingy "tattoos" for us mamas to wear. How cute are we, I mean they?!

What does your team do to raise awareness? I'm always looking for new ideas!