Sunday, October 30, 2016

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Concert!

On this MAGICAL twin night, we visited the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra to see
HARRY POTTER & THE SORCERER'S STONE!!!!!


We made sure to wear our Hogwarts robes and Ashley got us matching dresses in our house colors!
We were definitely stylish witches!  Ashley must have visited Madam Malkin's for such wonderful apparel!





































The Hilbert Circle Theatre was decked out with brooms, self-writing pens, a London phone booth and more!
There was even a merchandise area for picking up any last minute bits and bobs!


An amazing dragon stood menacingly in the hall!


We arrived early and valeted the car so that we could take in all the sights and sounds of the day!
A lot of people were dressed up, but the reactions we got from kids really made our day!


When it was time to take our seats, we found ourselves on the Second Mezzanine, Row GG!
Amazing seats right on the end of the first row!


What we really were not prepared for was that they showed the entire film!!
We have often agreed that this is the most magical movie because of its innocence, first discovery of the wizarding world, and musical score.
As the emotions of the movie swelled, so did the live music and our hearts!


Even though we have seen this film hundreds of times, it truly felt like a whole new experience!
We felt the music was sometimes so true to the movie, you forgot it was live.
Other times, it was so moving, you felt the movie had cast you as the final character; transporting you to the heart of Hogwarts!


Our favorite scenes brought tears or laughter as we sat in the historic, mirrored theatre.
The big screen and rows of strings made the experience more than magic!
We were in potions class, casting spells to make feathers fly, and learning lessons of bravery, friendship and making your own way in the world.

Although the ticket prices were a bit high (and wine was $6/glass), we agreed:
We would have paid any amount of money for this experience!!!

There is absolutely nothing like this for a true Potter fan!

After the show, we turned down Diagon Alley to go to Indianapolis' version of the Leaky Cauldron (Napolese).
We had some pizza with quail eggs and talked nonstop about how amazing the show was!

We didn't even mind the stares of muggles as we enjoyed reveling in the perfection of doing all this one day before Halloween!
Perfect timing, perfect outfits, perfect show, perfect dinner, perfect twin day!

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

*Spirits* in Irvington

On this spooky twin night, we decided to enjoy a new event at the Historic Irvington Halloween Festival!

Ashley stopped in to Pogue's Run Grocer to pick up a picnic to start our evening!


We then met at Ellenberger Park for an al fresco dinner!


The Pogue's Run deli did not disappoint!  We will definitely visit again!
Their deli was so affordable and featured world class ingredients!


Our gourmet sandwiches and themed Prophecy wine paired beautifully with the humbling beauty of the outstretched trees.


Once we finished our delicious dinner, we left the company of the changing leaves for the Bona Thompson Memorial Center!


The autumn skies painted an eerie backdrop for the stately building and its ghostly evening!


We attended the "seance" first, where three mediums made contact with spirits connected to audience members.

While this event was billed by a reputable Irvington magic shop as a seance, it was less of a traditional seance and more of a group reading.


Almost everyone in the room received a minute of the mediums' time to hear a message.
Some were meaningful, some were not, but it was an hour and a half of entertainment.

We really felt that based on the poster and sticker price, this should have been more intimate and traditional, but this being the first year for the event, it may evolve in time.


After the group reading, one-on-one readings were available with many different types of psychics, mediums, numerologists, and tarot card readers.

We each sat for a private reading and felt it was much more productive than the group reading.
Ashley met with a tarot card reader who kept pulling sword cards.
Emily met with a numerologist who said she comes across aloof to strangers when her true priority is family.


We had a great time exploring the Bona Thompson building, breathing in the crisp fall air, and trying to connect through October's thinning veil between this side and the beyond.

Spooktacular twin night!

Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Boone County Habitat for Humanity WOMEN Build!

Today we teamed up to make a difference in Lebanon!
The Boone County Habitat for Humanity had a Women's build going on, and we wanted to help!

The concept of only women building this house for another woman and her children was amazing!

Our responsibilities varied throughout the day from post hole digging, painting, installing soffit and finishing a deck! 


We didn't let ladders, power tools or cloudy skies stop us from accomplishing our goals!


 At the end of a long day of work, we had completed the soffit installation on the house, and added a deck!
Plus, made serious headway on painting the porch railing!


It was a great day of working hard for a cause!
The A.R.N. girls and their friends made the day fun and all the sweat equity worth it!

Great job ladies!
Women helping women is a great feeling!

Friday, October 14, 2016

Glamping 2016!


This year's GLAMPING trip was a huge success!
We made our way back to McCormick's Creek State Park for this year's glamp out!
We selected a much better site than last time and it was perfect for us!
This year we were a bit crunched for time, but you would never know it by all the details we were able to accomplish!

Emily picked up Ashley in Beech Grove around 2:30 PM on Friday and headed to the park.
Upon arrival, we plotted our our site and got to work putting up our tent.


One we had set up Glamp, we were ready to enjoy some dinner and wine!
Emily made smoked pork sandwiches, complete with a pretzel bun, havarti cheese and homemade pumpkin spread!
Ashley added a fresh caprese salad and some Parmesan crackers!
It was fall perfection with our themed wine!


This year's glamp set-up featured pennant banners, comfy pillows and blankets, as well as specialty lighting!


With the fire in full roar, we decorated with fresh sunflowers, lanterns and of course, PUMPKINS!


After a night of Pumpkin FudgeStripe cookie smores and plenty of twin talk, we slept the night away!
The moon was almost full and our air mattress could be described similarly!



We started the next morning with coffee, pumpkin bread and bananas after some fall themed music!


After freshening up and having our coffee, we decided to hike our favorite trail! 


 We talked endlessly about the magic of the forest and found beauty everywhere we looked.


Our 2 mile trail took us past Wolf Cave and the Twin Bridges!


We meandered along, taking our time and enjoying every step.

As we made our way through the enchanted forest, Ashley stopped to gaze in the autumn reflections.


And Emily found a mossy perch inside an ancient tree.


We worked up an appetite hiking, so we headed back to glamp for a late lunch and charcuterie!


First, we had a fall pasta salad served in mason jars.
Emily had made it using butternut squash, a mushroom medley, spinach, shredded mozzarella, and garlic Parmesan dressing!

After the pasta salad calmed our stomachs, we assembled a magnificent charcuterie display provided by Ashley!


The varied nuts, cheeses, meats and crackers were the perfect nibblers to sustain us through the evening.
We spent the night reading from Practical Magic and admiring the FULL HARVEST MOON!


In the calm quiet of the night, we may have lit some candles and gazed at stars and the full moon.
Of course the spells of fall swirled around our Witches Brew scented glampsite as we spent the night in wonderment.


Great Glamp Trip!


Thursday, October 13, 2016

IMA Funky Bones!

On this gloomy October morning, Victor reached out for Aunt Ashley to join in an adventure!


He asked her to meet him at the Indianapolis Museum of Art for some spooky fun!


All bundled up and enjoying some Starbucks banana nut bread!


Mommy and Victor snuggled up for a skeleton dance!  Dem Bones!


Aunt Ashley gave Victor all the names of the bones and pointed to his bones too!


We checked out the water and the lone crane within!
Then we took one more spooky look before heading out!


We decided to make a Target run for some pumpkin and glamping supplies and our little helper didn't disappoint!


What a great twin day with a little bit of October fun!