Shaz by the Sea

If only I had a nickle for every time people asked me that question... It's hilarious because to me (and Jim), they look and act completely different. Don't get me wrong, I have confused them - but it is typically when I am calling them from the back or if they have a hat or hood on. For the most part, I know who is who, from their physique to their cries, their personalities and their adorable little voices. Last year around this time, I blogged about spending time with them individually . I loved re-reading that post. I have to be honest, I haven't been doing great at spending individual time with them, but I will refocus and make it a goal of mine. I think they are getting to an age where they really need it. Well, in honor of their last day of daycare today (ah!!), I am writing this emotional post for my two big boys, Conor and Caden. They started daycare on June 2, 2015. We had just moved home to MA from DC. We moved in with my parents in their 3BR cape cod sty

It's my last week alone with Cal. So what better way to spend it than staying at home, enjoying his company, and baking some delicious sweets together?  He just LOVES camera flashes. ;) There are few things that my Dad can't get enough of -- I would say Conor/Caden/Cal, scratch tickets, and Vegas. But there is ONE more thing that my Dad is obsessed with, and that is his Aunt Frances' amazing marble squares. We went over to visit sometime last year with Conor and Caden, and she was nice enough to give me a copy of the recipe. Now it's probably something about the 1 cup of shortening that's the dead giveaway - but these are to die for. And they're relatively simple to make. Dry Ingredients: 2 Cups + 4 Tbsps Flour 1 Tsp Salt 1 Tsp Baking Soda Wet Ingredients: 1 Cup Shortening/1.2 Sticks Butter (I did not use all that is pictured below) 3/4 Cup Brown Sugar 3/4 Cup Sugar 2 Eggs 1/2 Tsp Water 1 Tsp Vanilla 12oz Package Chocolate Chips Preheat yo

Apple picking, apple pies, lobster dinner, cannolis from the North End, and fall weather.... John and Erin, our very good friends we met while living in LA, came to visit Boston this weekend. It was SO much fun. Even though we now have three kids, it was still a blast - and we loved every minute of hanging with them. They landed Friday morning at 5AM and my Dad picked them up (on his birthday of all days!). We hung out at the house, they met the boys, and we waited for traffic to let up a little. Once traffic died down, we ventured into Boston. We showed them the North End, Faneuil Hall, Govt Center, Beacon Hill, and Chrissy and Lindsey's rood deck. Conor and Caden were at daycare, so we just walked around with Cal! Then we went over to the North End for lunch. We ended up at Fiores which was awesome. We all had great dishes and split a bottle of wine. Then we made the necessary trip to Modern Pastry for cannolis! YUM!!! On Saturday, we decided to go apple picking