Starbucks- 1/2 Price Frappuccinos!

Starting today, May 4th, through May 13th, participating Starbucks locations are offering up Frappuccino blended beverages for 50% Off during their Frappuccino Happy Hour from 3-5PM!


Ryan is taking me to Lake Seneca for the weekend for my birthday, I know where we are stopping for a snack on the way this afternoon! ;)

Mother's Day card deals!

Cardstore.com is offering up a FREE greeting card (with envelope) + FREE shipping! All you need to do is select and personalize any Mother’s Day card, and then enter the coupon code LUVMOM during the final stage of checkout (after entering your shipping info).

There is also a great in-store deal at Hallmark, just in time for Mother's Day and upcoming graduations.  Head on over to theHallmark Gold Crown site and look to the right to print a coupon valid for $5 off any $10+ purchase (good only at your Hallmark Gold Crown store)! Keep in mind that the coupon is valid through 5/13/2012 and not valid for online purchases. Limit one coupon per customer.


Thanks HipToSave!

Pittsburgh Zoo

This past Saturday Ryan, the girls and I took a day trip to the Pittsburgh Zoo. We actually bought tickets and planned a Pittsburgh weekend last fall and it rained the entire time and we didn't actually make it to the zoo. We did end up having a great time and discovering the Pittsburgh Children's Museum while rained out in October but we were looking forward to our delayed zoo visit.


We left around 8:45 and after stopping once for gas and one other quick stop, we arrived at the zoo around 11:15. 

The girls did a great job walking and taking breaks in the wagon without any toddler breakdowns! We had a great time and the girls are still talking about all of the animals they saw. 

Since the zoo is technically off season though the end of April, there was only one option for lunch and the zoo was really busy. We made it through a 20 minute line for really bad pizza and continued on with our zoo adventure. Sidenote- they didn't sell milk or juice... at a zoo! We brought drinks but not enough for the day and I was floored that they only sold soda and water. 

We spent almost 4 hours at the zoo and still made it home for dinner. It was a great trip and we plan to return in the late summer or early fall. 

Irish celebration weekend recap

Last Friday Ryan and I headed to Jim Thorpe. It's is a really eclectic town, perfect for a night away. We stayed at the Inn at Jim Thorpe and the staff and accommodations were wonderful. We walked around town and shopped in the little shops the line the streets. Next we had a fantastic dinner at Moya, best scallops I have ever had... in Jim Thorpe! It really felt like a city restaurant in this tiny little town, really surprising.


We then went to the Mauch Chunk Opera House where we enjoyed a (few) pints of Guinness and watched a great Irish Band, The Barley Boys. We had a great time and headed back to the Inn for a nightcap. 

The next morning we had breakfast at the Inn's restaurant, The Broadway Grill, and left for Scranton for the St Patrick's Day parade.

 Even though it was cold, we have a great time at the parade! 

Just a few of the pipe bands we got to enjoy.

Also a great Irish dance team

Have a Happy St Patrick's Day, from the Knowles family!

St Patrick's Day rainbow cake

I wanted to make a special treat for the upcoming holiday and found an great idea on Pinterest that I had to try. I adapted this recipe but didn't decorate it as much or make the leprechaun trap, I only had about an hour while the girls were napping ;)

Spray an angel food cake pan with non-stick cooking spay and dust with flour. Preheat the oven to 350 (follow the instructions on the box).

I used one box of white cake mix and separated the batter into seven bowls:

• 6 ounces – red
• 5 ounces – orange
• 4 ounces – yellow
• 3 ounces – green
• 2 ounces – blue
• 1 ounce – purple
• the rest of the batter, kept white

A measuring tip, 1/4 c is equal to 2 oz

Fill ziplock bags with the colored batter and be sure to get all of the air out.

Pour the remaining white cake batter in the bottom of the cake pan. Then the fun begins! Start with the red and make a small cut in the corner of the bag. Pour the red batter in, making it a wide ring of batter. Then pour the orange over that, keeping it inside the red.

Pour in each color, creating narrower and narrower rings. As you go along snip smaller corners off the bags, it will help you control the narrower shape you are trying to make. 

Bake according to the package instructions and after cooled, level off what will be the bottom of the cake and icing/decorate as desired.

Then we had to wait 4 agonizing hours until Ryan got home from work to do the big reveal and eat the cake. We brought it outside to enjoy the insanely nice weather we have been having, 75 degrees in PA is amazingly crazy on March 15 :)

Even though it's not a perfect rainbow, I'm happy with the results. It was fun and much easier to make that I thought it would be. The girls loved it too!

Have a safe and fun St Patrick's Day tomorrow, I will be posting some pictures and videos of the Scranton St. Patrick's Day Parade from last weekend, stay tuned!

Walgreens Photo: 2 FREE 8×10 Photo Prints!

Walgrees Photo is offering a free 8x10 photo print (excludes collages)! Just head over here and create your 8x10 print ($2.99 value), then use the code FREEONE during checkout. If you choose in-store pick up, it will also include free shipping. There is also another code 1PRINT that you can use for a second free print, but will need to use it in a different transaction. This promo runs though March 17!

Thanks hiptosave!


I'm off to attempt to make a St Patrick's Day rainbow cake, results tomorrow!

Free Personalized Greeting Card, Hurry! :)

You can get a free personalized greeting card from Cardstore.com today!

Choose any card from Cardstore.com, add it to your cart, go to checkout, and use coupon code CCC2029 to get it free. Just leave the credit card information blank and your order should go through just fine.

There are 29,000 free cards available.

Thanks MoneySavingMom.com!

For Wyatt

On January 25th, a woman I know through one of my Moms of Multiples groups lost one of her twins, Wyatt, at 5 months old due to complications with his heart. As part of a larger effort to support the Gard family through fundraising, another twin mom in our group, Amy, is selling headbands and donating 20% of the proceeds to the Gard family. So, if you are in need of a headband for your little girl, please, head on over!


Click here for her ETSY shop- JAGDESIGNS27

Click here for Wyatt's caringbridge site


No code is needed. Please look around and think of the little girls in your life, we are so blessed!

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. 

XO

I know it sounds strange, but trust me

I haven't shared any recipes for quite a while so I wanted to share my very favorite, but very strange, favorite sandwich. I am a pescetarian (vegetarian that occasionally eats fish and shell fish) so this isn't your typical sandwich. What happens when a baguette, Boursin garlic-herb cheese, hard boiled eggs, balsamic vinegar and some optional veggies all get together? Let me show you :)

Egg and Garlic Cheese Baguette

Ingredients

• 1 baguette
• 4 ounces soft garlic and herb cheese (recommended: Boursin)
• 4 hard-boiled eggs, thinly sliced, recipe follows
• 4 tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 1 to 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar, for drizzling
• 1 green onion, green part only, finely chopped

Directions

Preheat the broiler on high. Make 4 sandwiches, but cutting the baguette in half lengthwise, and into 4 crosswise. Spread cheese on both sides of the bread. On 1 side of each sandwich arrange the egg slices. On the other side, spread out the tomato slices. Put on a baking sheet and broil until the edges begin to turn golden, about 1 to 2 minutes. Drizzle each sandwich with a few drops of balsamic vinegar and sprinkle with green onions. Arrange on serving plates and serve.

Recipe coutresy Melissa d'Arabian

I make slight adjustments such as not always using tomatoes or green onions, depending on what I have on hand. I also use more than a few drops of fantastic aged balsamic that I have saved just for this recipe, a nice drizzle works perfectly for me.

The texture and flavor is amazing. The acid of the balsamic cuts through the creamy Boursin and eggs and the crunch of the bread... yum!  My meat eating husband love this too, we pair it with soup and enjoy!

2 year well baby visit stats

The girls had their 2 year well baby check up yesterday with Dr. Coggins. Our very feisty girls gave the doctor a cardio and strength training workout, just to get through the examinations. We have been battling colds here since the weekend by yesterday, Caitlin was acting normal but Fiona had been very sleepy, moody and coughing a lot. To our surprise Fiona checked out perfectly fine and Caitlin ended up having an ear infection. She is on antibiotics and dong fine, Fiona also seems to be feeling better today.


The girls are continuing to grow and develop right on schedule and are also ahead cognitively and with their motor skills. They are still my petite ladies but are consistently growing on their own growth charts.


Fiona-
Ht- 33 1/4" (31st percentile)
Wt- 22lb 5oz (4th percentile)
Hear cir- 48.5cm (75th percentile)


Caitlin-
Ht- 33 1/4" (31st percentile)
Wt- 24lb 11oz (22nd percentile)
Head cir- 48.7cm (78th percentile)


Since we had sick babies, I wasn't able to attend the viewing for our beloved Coach Paterno. I was able to stop by the makeshift shrine at his statue after the girls appointment. I lit a candle and left it with our tailgating sign that was left in his honor.

Walmart: 25 free 4×6 photo prints

Sign up for a free Walmart.com photo account and you’ll receive a coupon code for 25 free 4×6 photo prints via email. Choose to pick up your prints in store and your order will be completely free!


(Thanks MoneySavingMom!)

Fun in the snow with heavy hearts

The girls had their first experience playing in the snow and sledding this weekend.  It was a very short outing and we didn't go further than 30 yards from our front door, but we had fun.

Sunday morning our sweet and beloved Coach Joe Paterno passed away. It's such a sad time here in Happy Valley. I love you JoePa and many tears have been shed over your passing. I love how State College has come together to mourn and remember this remarkable man.

Lazy Thursday

We had a rare weekday morning with Ryan this morning. He is leaving at lunch for a work trip so it was great to get some quality time together this morning.

To keep myself occupied tonight I plan to make French Onion soup and watch Project Runway with a glass of wine. Hopefully the soup is a success and I'll share the recipe tomorrow.

I love this picture of Fiona.

Stomach virus and PSU sports weekend

After having one of the best weekends in recent memory for the girls birthday, we all became victims to the nasty stomach virus that is going around. Tuesday morning it hit Fiona, Wednesday it started for Caitlin and Thursday night it was my turn. Ryan was the lucky one out of our family, he didn't get the 'full blown' version that the rest of us did. It was the first time the girls were ever sick with a stomach/intestinal illness so I guess it was a right of passage of sorts. We survived although it was another week I realized that having a child is tough but having twins is super tough. 


Luckily we all started feeling better and were all able to make it to the Penn State Icers hockey game that my parents bought tickets for our entire family as a Christmas present. We had almost a whole row right on the glass and the girls had a really good time. 

Caitlin was a natural, pounding on the glass like a true hockey fan.

We had a lazy Saturday and then Sunday Ryan and I had a nice 'date afternoon'. My parents watched the girls and Ryan and I went to lunch, I got a new cell phone (I'm now and iPhone gal) and went to the PSU basketball game. 

Happy Birthday Knowles Twins!

We had an action packed weekend here in State College. Saturday we threw the girls a "Look Whoo's Two" party at the Millbrook Marsh Nature Center on Saturday night. The girls had a great time playing with their friends and family. This is the first kids party I have planned and the party was definitely a success! 

Sunday was their actually birthday and we continued the celebrating! We still had family in town so we invited my parents over for lunch. The girls opened all of their presents from the party and needless to say, naps were put of the question after the present opening. The day ended with my beloved Steelers losing the Wildcard game in OT but that didn't really matter... what a wonderful day.