Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello everyone and Happy Thanksgiving! Today we are giving thanks for the many blessings in our life, and we wanted to take just a moment and share some of the things we are thankful for with you.

#1 A Chance to Share Our Lives through Our Blog

We are so grateful that we have a chance to share our lives with all of you. We love getting to write posts, take pictures and put together a story for you. We appreciate all the kind comments and questions you post in our comments.

#2 Friends and Family

Our blog would not be possible without the help of our friends and family. They are always so supportive of everything we do, and we know we can count on them to think of new post ideas and have fun putting together posts.

#3 Fantastic Readers

Of course our blog would be nothing without our fantastic readers. We love reading all your comments and seeing all the views for our blog. You have blessed us in so many ways, and we are so grateful for you.

We hope that you have a wonderful Thanksgiving as you remember the blessings in your life. Thank you so much for all the support you have given us on the blog.

Happy Thanksgiving!
~Melodie and Morgan

Cheerleading, Theater and Twins: An Interview with Kaitlyn

Hello everyone! It's Morgan here with my friend, Kaitlyn. Kaitlyn and I thought it would be fun to do an interview, and so here it is. I will be writing in lime green and Kaitlyn will be writing in purple.

Hi Kaitlyn! So glad to have you here.

Hi Morgan! Glad to be here.

So, for our readers who don't know much about you, how would you describe yourself?

I am a theater-loving, pom-pom waving, cartwheeling and tumbling twin.

So, you're a twin? And do you have any other siblings besides your twin?

Yes, I am. I have a twin sister named Cameron, who is older than me by about twenty minutes. We're the only children.

That's really cool. So you said you're a pom-pom waving twin, which I assume mean you do cheerleading?

You got it. I have been cheering for about seven years now, and I really enjoy it. I have always been really outgoing, so cheering in front of crowds isn't scary. Plus, who doesn't love pom-poms and bows?

I know I love a good bow. So what else do you like to do besides cheerleading?

I love to act and be on stage. I also love singing, dancing and spending time with my sister.

That sounds like a lot of fun. What plays have you been in?

Hmm... I have to think about that. I've done a lot of community theater, which is usually a lot of musicals. I've done Beauty and the Beast Jr., where I was a servant and a villager. I was an orphan in Annie, and I played Elizabeth (one of the students) in A Little Princess. I've also done The sound of Music where I played Brigitta. Cameron has done some plays with me, and we always enjoy getting to act together.

Wow, you've done a lot. What musicals do you want to do?

The Wizard of Oz sounds like a lot of fun. I'd also love to be in Wicked someday.

Wicked is pretty neat. So, what are auditions usually like for you? Are you ever nervous?

I do get pretty nervous before auditions. It's scary to know you're competing against a bunch of people for one role. I just remind myself that I've worked hard and am giving it my best. If I don't get the part, it means I wasn't what the directors were looking for to fill that role.

How do you usually prepare for auditions?

Most auditions will have you sing so many measures of a song and perform a one-minute monologue. Most auditions you aren't supposed to perform anything from that show. There are also a few songs that aren't good, such as "Maybe" from Annie or "Somewhere over the Rainbow" from the Wizard of Oz. I usually try to pick a song that shows my range and also relates to the character I'm auditioning for. Same with the monologue.

Wow, There's a lot of thought that goes into the audition process.

There is. It's pretty stressful, but I think waiting to hear results is harder. Usually I hope to get a callback, which is where you go in and read from the script with other selected actors so the directors can see how well you work with others. Then after callbacks there's the suspense of waiting to see the cast list. I can't tell you how many minutes I waited hoping to see if I got into a musical.

I'm sure it's all worth it when you find out you get in.

Exactly. It's a great reward for all the hard work that goes into the audition.

Well, thank you so much for doing an interview with me. It was lots of fun to hear about cheerleading and all the theater you've done.

Thank you for having me.

I hope you enjoyed getting to learn a little more about Kaitlyn. You can find links to her introduction post here, as well as learn about her sister, Cameron.

If you would like to see more interviews like this one, comment below with who you think we should interview next.

What did you think of this interview?

~Morgan

Happy Halloween!

Hello everyone and Happy Halloween! Hope you had a fun candy-filled night (or are planning to have one in the near future). My sisters are just about to head out the door (after everyone can find their shoes) and I am going to hang at the house and pass out candy. Our neighborhood is really big, and we have a lot of trick or treaters. I can't wait to see what everyone dresses up as.

Here are pictures of what we went as this year. I did not go, as well as Lexi and Karriss. The rest of our family and friends did, and without further ado, here they are!

Here is everyone is their costumes. From Left to Right

Ella as a Jedi; Emily as a Wind-Up Doll; Hazel as a Cowgirl; Audrey as Bumblebee; Summer as Poison Ivy; Briana as a Civil War girl; Riley as a Woodsmaiden; Ariel as a Hula Dancer/Hawaiian; Morgan as a Hippie; Elizabeth as Cinderell; Samantha as a Minion; Kaitlyn as Minnie Mouse; Sierra as The Scarecrow; Gracie as an Ozian; Cameron as Dorothy; Ariana and Anna as Munchkins and Charlotta as a Dog Walker

Morgan thought it would be cool to experiment with different angles. It took a chair and a few times, but I love how this picture turned out.

Bumblebee and Poison Ivy

(DC Supergirls)

All of the girls from Oz.

Disney Characters

Themed Characters

My Favorite Costumes

Riley and Briana

Experimenting with lighting. I love how you can see Ella's shadow on the wall behind her.

Our Sweet Little Munchkins

Minnie Mouse spinning Cinderella

Look out Minnie! There's a Jedi behind you!

The Battle Continues between Poison Ivy and Bumblebee

Selfie

Oz meets Minions

So, the following pictures are little scenes we put together as mash-ups between different characters. I won't tell you the stories, so pick your favorite and comment on what the story is for that picture.

Scene #1

Scene #2

Scene #4

Scene #5

Scene #6

We hope you enjoyed getting to see pictures of all the girls in their amazing costumes. It's so much fun to see the unique costumes on the streets. Happy Halloween!

What were you for Halloween? And be sure to comment if you have a story for one of the scenes.

~Melodie

Black and White Photo Shoot by Sierra

Hi everyone! It's Sierra. Melodie and Morgan said I needed to do a post with some of my photography for the blog. I was so excited when they said I needed to post, cause I've always wanted to blog.

I have been experimenting with black and white photography recently. I have always enjoyed the simplicity of black and white pictures, and I always wanted to try doing some of my own. Here are the results of my experimenting. I used my puppy, Brownie, to do some, because she is so little and stays still for me if I bribe her with treats. I also used some of the objects around my room. Hope you enjoy.

 

Here's Brownie. Who can resist those cute puppy eyes?

Brownie with a blanket I got for her. What a sweetheart.

My feet with these rocks I got from somewhere. It took a little creativity to get this shot.

My hat. I wear this one whenever I am out taking photos in the sun. It is very stylish, and I love it.

Another picture of Brownie.

My stuffies. They are all animals from The Secret Life of Pets. I love that movie.

My little turtle I got on vacation one time.

Can you spot the elephant? I promise there is one in the photo.

So, that's all the pictures I took. I had a lot of fun taking this pictures. Hope you enjoyed them. Comment below i what your favorite picture was, and if you saw the elephant.

~Sierra

Blog Update

Hi everyone! In case you didn't notice, we added a new page to our blog. We have been working on this page for awhile trying to decide on the layout, and we are super excited to have it on the blog now.

The "Our Friends and Family" page is there to help you figure out who is who on the blog. We put a headshot of everyone along with their first and last name, grouping families together from oldest to youngest. We also put nicknames in quotes so you won't get confused when we call somebody by their nickname.

We hope this helps you figure out who is who on the blog, so you will always know which of our friends we are talking about.

~Melodie and Morgan

New Friend Times Two

Hello everyone! It's Morgan with a quick post. Some new friends just moved in across the street, and we wanted to introduce them.

Meet Cameron and Kaitlyn Johnson. They are twin sisters who moved to Tennessee from Georgia. They are so excited to have a post about them on the blog, so I am gong to let them introduce themselves.

Hi! I'm Cameron Leah Johnson, and I just moved in. I love jazz/modern, soccer, fashion and theater. I have been captain of my soccer team, and I am excited to join a soccer team here in my new home.

I'm Kaitlyn Lise Johnson, the younger twin. I love cheerleading, tumbling and musical theater, especially with my sister. I have done a lot of shows, and I can't wait to get involved in a new company.

Cameron and Kaitlyn are really nice. I think we are going to be really good friends, and I can't wait for our other friends to meet them.

What do you think of Cameron and Kaitlyn?

~Morgan

Throwback Thursday: "Over the Rainbow Photoshoot" Paper Blog Post

Hi there! It's Morgan with a Throwback Thursday post. If you are confused about the title, you should probably read our last post. Today's post was made by Melodie after she created an amazing costume. Without further ado, here is the "Over the Rainbow Photoshoot" post...

Hello readers! I am sure you are all wondering why I chose to call this post “Over the Rainbow” Photoshoot. As the name implies, my good friend Samantha did a Wizard of Oz themed photoshoot in my new…

Dorothy dress! I love this dress, and Sam was sweet enough to model it for me. The dress is a blue and white plaid material that my granny gave me on my recent visit. The white material was left over from a school project. The buttons and lace are also from my grandmother. The socks are Briana’s, which we believe are from American Girl. The shoes are Springfield Red Sparkly Flats (I don’t know if they actually have a name, so I made one), also from Briana. The personality is all Samantha.

I took a ton of photos, nearly sixty or so. I will share the best ones, along with a caption. The photoshoot is meant to copy parts of the movie that I could recreate with my camera. I hope you enjoy!

This is a before-the-photoshoot photo, so you can just see the dress. Cute!

Dorothy and Toto (Samantha and Lauren, my dog)

“Somewhere over the rainbow”

“Toto, you came back”

Running away

Over the Rainbow

“Toto, I don’t think we’re in Kansas anymore”

Red shoes?

Perfect fit!

“We’re off to see the Wizard! The Wonderful Wizard of Oz!”

Photoshoot on the Yellow Brick Road

Up above to the whole outfit

Another stunning view of the dress

Our Dorothy

I hope you enjoyed the Over the Rainbow photoshoot. I had a lot of fun making the outfit and taking the photos. Sam said this was probably the best photoshoot she had ever participated in alone, and she loves the outfit.

This post was very fun to look at again. If you would like to see older posts again, comment below and we will try to do more Throwback Thursday posts.

Would you like to see Throwback Thursday posts, and what did you think of the photoshoot?

~Morgan

How We Started Blogging

Hello everyone! It’s Morgan with a post about how we started blogging. The blog has been up for over a year now, and we thought we would love to talk about how we started blogging. Melodie and I are going to alternate talking, so I will be writing in blue, and Melodie will be in purple.

So our blog officially started on July 27, 2015, but we were planning the blog long before that happens. Our story starts in October of 2013. Lexi and I had known about a friend of ours’ blog for a while, but had never looked it up. So, one boring October afternoon, we Googled the blog. The blog is called The Salty Breeze, and it was started by our friends the Edwards. The blog is still up if you would like to check it out, but our friends haven’t posted in a long time. We were amazed by how they blogged and took photos of what they were doing, and we wanted to join the blog community.

We talked and pleaded with our parents for a blog, but they didn’t feel comfortable letting us start one. So, we had to find an alternative solution. Thus, paper-blogging was born. Paper-blogging is writing a blog post on the computer, and putting in pictures. It was Lexi’s idea and I loved it. We did it for years.

So, I should probably explain something. You may have noticed that I don’t look like Melodie and Lexi, and Ella and Ariana look a lot more like me. I am adopted, as are Ella and Ariana. We were all adopted around the same time, and we are now part of the Hayes family. I don’t come into the story until later, so I will let Melodie keep telling the story.

So, we kept paper-blogging. We also started to send them to a few friends, including the Edward girls, and all of our friends loved it. We used to post on an old PC, but then we had to switch to our very own computer. We kept posting about things that were happening in our lives, such as the arrival of new friends, and even family.

Ok, here’s where I come in. I was adopted in April, and Melodie and Lexi asked if they could paper-blog about me. By this time, Elizabeth and Anna had been adopted by the Raynes, our cousins; Hazel had moved in and also adopted Ariel, and Sam had moved into town. After I was adopted, the search was on for my half-sisters. That’s right; Ella and Ariana are only half-related to me. We have the same mother, but not father. After we adopted them in July, our family was complete.

So, we officially started the blog on July 27, 2015. We had talked with our parents for a long time, and they finally allowed us to start one. We were so excited! We welcomed people to our blog in the first post, then introduced all of our friends and family. Since then, we’ve posted about all sorts of things that have happened in our lives. Some of the highlights have been new friends, dancing and short stories with a few friends.

So here are the statistics. We have published 19 posts, which seems small but is quite huge for us considering our very busy schedules. We have four followers, and have had over 1500 view total from 10 countries. We are so grateful for everyone who takes the time to read our blog. You all mean so much to us, and we love getting to share our lives with you. Thank you for all the support over the past few years.

~Melodie, Morgan and all of the TN Girls

Ella and Ariana                Melodie, Morgan and Lexi

              Riley                                     Cheerleading

                       Riley and Charlotte's Trip to Pigeon Forge

        Dance Class                                    Summer and Audrey

                                               Emily and Sierra