Hiester Family Antics: Sweet Sixteen

The Hiester Family in a nutshell - a big one, like a coconut or something

We are a family of a whole bunch of random people, thrown together in one small house, who all happen to look alike. Each member of our family was hand-picked by God... that's the only explanation for the saga that is our family. Here's the story from the beginning... My husband, Todd, was married before me. His wife's name was Carrie, and together they had 3 kids: Tyler, Kurstin & Elissa. Todd's parents were divorced and his mother remarried. Her new husband, Don, had 2 small children: Ally & Wesley. Their natural mother was killed in a car accident when they were 8 & 11. One year later, they lost their dad and Todd and Carrie took them into their home. 6 months after Ally & Wesley were added to the household, Carrie died of cancer at age 26. Her own children were 3, 6 & 9 and Ally & Wesley were 10 & 13. And Todd was alone with them. Think Lord of the Flies. So when I fell in love with Todd, I got these 5 kids as a bonus. We married about a year and a half into our relationship, with the kids as our wedding party. We made it all official with an adoption lawyer and lots of money, ensuring that we are LEGALLY their parents. They even had to take oaths saying they would perform the duties of sons and daughters, which I think means I have someone to change my diapers when the time comes! After 2 years of marriage we added Robben Carey to the mix. And now we've welcomed Livi Claire...the seventh, and final, Hiester kid (unless, of course, God has other plans). Todd and I are 37 and 35, respectively, and our kids range in age from 1 to 21. It's great because we're cool and always the youngest in a crowd of high school parents.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Sweet Sixteen

This past Saturday we had Ally's birthday party: Her Sweet Sixteen. Hence the "sweet" theme :) Anyone who's ever been to one of my parties knows they must have a theme...

Check out these super cute cupcakes. I made about 70 of them...each with the utmost attention to detail :)

...And my candies...

...Strawberries 3 ways: whole with whipped cream; sliced and sugared; and chocolate-dipped...

...The favors: styrofoam cupcakes filled with candy... even the flowers are sweetpeas...

...Grandma Alice made the cake :) It was an oversized cupcake (as you can see) which is why I made mass quantities of cupcakes for all to enjoy (that cake would not feed 50!)