The Best Frisbee Ever!

 



 

Thanks to my resourceful 1 and 4 year old, we have now found the best Frisbee ever! It's lightweight, soft, and you probably have several of them in your own home right now. Check in your kitchen...

That's right. It's a potholder. It actually works really well, and the best part is that it is soft enough to use inside. Go ahead and give it a try.

 

 

 

A Day in Pumpkinville

 



For the past few years, our family has made a little tradition of visiting Pumpkinville around Halloween time. Pumpkinville... well, it's basically a gigantic pumpkin patch with moon bounces, hay rides, face-painting, zip chord, things to ride, animals, etc. Even after spending over four hours there, we still didn't have a chance to do everything.

This year was especially fun because there were tons of new activities. Playgrounds are always a hit with my kids. And of course we had a great time petting and feeding the animals. My little girl was so brave. She walked right up to all those huge creatures!

 

One of my favorite things was the hay ride. Um... I got to sit down. But it really was fun! They drove us through the woods and we passed by dinosaurs, scary monsters, and got bounced around in the mud.

My boys seemed to be super-excited about riding the pedal carts. Unfortunately, I was too big because I totally would have been on one of those things. Moooove aside kids!

The kids were not showing any signs of being tired, but we had to go home some time. We ended the day on the ball swing and in the moon bounces. Everyone had a great time!

 

Although I complain how pricey the place is (and how it gets more expensive every year), there really is a lot to do. And I know where my money is going... indoor bathrooms. Next year there will be no more Don Jons! Worth. Every. Penny.

 



Free LEGO Building at Toys R Us

Well I don't know how I was unaware of this, since my boys love LEGOs, but apparently October is Bricktober month at Toys R Us. That means many great discounts and free LEGO building in the store! Now because I am me, we arrived at our store with only 15 minutes to spare before the activity was over. No problem. I helped the boys pick out all the pieces they needed and they got started right away building their DC Super Heroes Bot. They are really good at following those instructions. Ahem... LEGO instructions at least. :)

I believe this event is at all Toys R Us locations throughout the month. Check with your local store if you think your child would be interested.

Genghis Grill Restaurant Review

 

 

My family and I recently had an opportunity to eat at a very unique restaurant called Genghis Grill. As soon as we were seated, by two boys noticed something sitting out on our table. It turned out to be a tablet! That's right. Genghis Grill has tablets! And before long, the kids were playing games all on their own (and I could actually concentrate on the menu). The great thing was that there were games for both children and adults! Plenty of entertainment for everybody!

 

Another interesting feature on the tablets, that I have never seen before, was the ability to place and pay for orders from your table. All you do is select what you want to eat, order, and pay. Within minutes, your server brings the food to your table. Awesome!

 

The menu was fantastic. My children and in-laws ordered specific dishes right from the menu, but my husband and I decided to build our own bowl. This is where the fun began. We each got a bowl and went up to the first counter. It was full of about 10 different types of meat. The server encouraged us to select as many and as much as we wanted. If you'd rather be hands-off, the server will fill your bowl for you.

 

Once we had our meats (proteins), we moved on to the spice counter. Again, there were more than 10 different spices to choose from. They all sounded so good, it was hard to settle on just a few.

Next, we made our way to the veggie area. We piled our bowls high with all sorts of fresh vegetables. There were even a few fruits here to add for a bit of sweetness. Then we got to the sauce section. Here is where my decision-making problems began to act up. In the previous stations, I could pick as many items as I wanted. In the sauce section, I wanted to pick only one or two so I didn't wind up with a big mess of flavors in my bowl. But which to choose? Genghis Grill has made it easy for people like me. They have labels by each sauce with recommendations, such as 'for chicken and seafood' and there are even little spoons available to sample the sauces. You know...before you commit.

The final counter was the starch area where we chose our noodles. Here is where they cooked up the whole concoction and then brought it to us at our table.

 

 

Here is my children's dinner, ordered from the new menu!

This is what I created from the Build Your Own Bowl option.

My little girl's meal.

 

 Do you think she liked it?!

 

No matter how full I am, I always have room for desert!

 



We had a wonderful dinner and I enjoyed all the little surprises that kept my boys (and husband) entertained. Genghis Grill has locations in 24 states. Stop by and prepare for a delicious, filling, and fun meal!

Menu items and prices might vary by location. I was compensated by the sponsor in exchange for my honest review. All opinions expressed in this post are my own.

 

 

Rockin' with Rocknoceros

 

 

Today I took my children to see a fun band called Rocknoceros. This group of three crazy characters is funny and they have really good songs too! Kids enjoy the music, but parents will appreciate the factual and historical accuracy within the lyrics. One of the songs they sang today was Lucky Lindy and I just loved the harmonies! My baby girl was rocking back and forth the whole time and even my boys, who don't like being 'silly' in public, got into it.

If you live in the Northern VA/DC area, check this summer schedule to see when Rocknoceros will be near you. Everyone else can get silly in the comforts of their own home while listening to the playlist! Warning:  Your foot will tap along. It is unavoidable.

Little Merboys!

I am a teacher at heart, so I obviously love opportunities to teach new skills to my children. I've taught my boys how to ride two-wheelers and it was my plan to teach them to swim. The problem with that is, well... I just don't get them to the pool often enough. Lots of reasons for that. :/

 

So reluctantly, I had to put my teaching urges aside and focus on being a parent. And some parents put their kids in lessons! I was free to sit and watch my children learn, which was pretty nice. Oh. I had the chance to chat with other moms during the lessons. Woo hoo! Let's hear it for adult interaction...



 

 

There were a lot of benefits to putting them in lessons. First of all, they got to see other kids practicing the same skills which made them a little more excited to try things. Plus, the instructors had some nifty equipment that even I wanted to use! The boys loved swimming through the hula hoops and going underwater to grab the sinking rings. Might I add that a good pair of goggles is a must! They had to go through three pair each in order to find one that fit their giant heads and did not leak.

Kick, kick, kick!

 

Future athletes here!

 

In case you were not aware, kids with goggles and purple lips look... awkward.

They ended each lesson with a couple jumps off the edge. Another childhood thrill! In two weeks time, my boys went from hating water on their face, to seeing who could hold their breath under water the longest. My 5-year-old can now swim short distances on his own, and my 3-year-old is getting pretty good at using his arms and legs at the same time.

Do you know what the boys said was their favorite thing about the lessons? Getting to take hot showers in the locker room.

How did your children learn to swim? What advice to you have for parents who are teaching their children to stay safe in the water?

 

 

Potty-Training Update Weeks 1 & 2

For the past two weeks, I have been very casually starting to potty-train my baby girl. I've been putting her on the seat a few times a day almost daily. She was 13 1/2 months when we started. Too young? Maybe, but one of my boys was trained by 17 months so I figured I could start now.

So far, she has really enjoyed sitting on the toilet. The real toilet, that is, with a kid-sized seat on top. (I never used a 'potty' with her or the boys. I wanted them to get used to a real toilet since that is what would be available when we were not at home). She likes to hold the handles on the little seat and grab the toilet paper holder. No success yet, but I think the turning point is going to be when I can figure out when she has to go! I try when she first wakes up, before or after nap, and before bedtime.

Maybe I can give her some water and then let her hang out with no diaper on. I have heard about those natural potty-training methods where even infants learn to use a toilet! The key is to get rid of the diaper. I suppose I just have to be prepared for puddles. There's really no rush for me to have her trained. I still enjoy having a baby around. :)  It is more for her. She really does not like messy diapers. If I can get her to the point where she could at least do the doo in the toilet, I think she'd be much more comfortable.

There should be some progress in the next two weeks. My goal... she can watch me pour out a doo-doo diaper into the toilet. Yay!

I'd love to hear some of your potty-training stories! What worked for you and what didn't?

Is this Why Parents Dread Summer?

FOR. CRAP. SAKE. What's it been... 26 days since my boys have been out of (pre)school for the summer? I am already counting the days until they start back again. I love them and enjoy their company, of course, but let me tell you. Put the two boys together and you have just created the ideal recipe for disaster. They love each other. They can't stand each other. And it goes back and forth like that ALL DAY. Then (and here's where I come in), they start banding together in effort to drive me to my grave.

I used to get comments from other people about my magical abilities with children. "You're so calm," they'd say. "Those kids respond so well to you," I'd hear. NOPE. Not any more. I yell, we fight, they scream and run around and I think to myself... gee. I'm glad our neighbors are far enough away that they don't think I'm a lunatic. But I definitely feel like a lunatic.

And it can't be blamed on boredom either. We have something to do just about every day. Bike-riding, camps, trips, park, library. I specifically planned lots of fun activities for the summer in attempt to ward off boredom. But excuse me. I still need to do dishes, clean up, play with the baby every once in a while and I should not have to deal with crap the whole time. Seriously. Ten million toys in the house and they are not satisfied with any of them... except the one in their brother's hand!

Sooo... that's it. *let's out deep breath* It has just been a rough couple days and while I know my kids are truly very good, happy children, I am just having awful visions of the what is to come over the next 2 months. Can it get worse? Don't answer that. :) Plus, it makes me sad to be a little hopeful for the school year. Not because I don't want to spend time with my crazy boys - because I do! But really it's because I think they need some time apart from each other. Darn kids. I most certainly did not aggravate my sister (or my parents) like this when I was younger! Right? ... mom? ...anyone?

Let me hear your summer horror stories! Or your tips on how to avert them. ;)

Always On the Cusp of Something Big (Keyword: Cusp)!

 

 

Ever since I stopped teaching elementary school to stay home with my children, I have had this nagging thought in the back of my head... other than being a mother, what is my purpose? What am I good at? How can I express what's left of my creativity to the world?

 

I am fairly certain that I cannot go back to teaching. At least not in the same way that I was doing before I had children. I really loved what I did, but doing my job right and up to my own expectations took a lot of time and energy. More than I would be willing to commit now that I have a family. But I have been away from the 'workplace' now for five and a half years and I miss using my skills and creativity to, shall we say, better-the-world!

 

There have been many ideas that have crossed my mind over the past few years. Maybe I could get crafty enough to make and sell things online. The problem with that... I don't have any experience doing anything that people will want. (Although I have been known to sew. By hand. As a kid, I couldn't understand how the thread worked in a sewing machine and I have rebelled against using one ever since). So until I find a niche in the hand-made world, that won't work.

 

I have considered staying in the realm of education. Off and on over the last few years, I have tutored kids locally. This hasn't worked out long-term though, because I am not good about having other people watch my children. We just don't really use babysitters other than some family now and then. Plus, the cost of finding a babysitter cuts deeply into what I would make tutoring. Darn.

 

Then there is the hope that I will come up with the next great invention. Have you ever tried to think about inventing something? It's soooo ridiculous. Sometimes I think that I have come up with something so wonderful that everyone is going to want it. Then I wait a couple days only to realize that it was the dumbest idea ever. Plus, I am too skeptical about getting anything patented. For some reason (possibly based on truth), I think that if I approach a company to get something patented, that company will steal my idea and sell it or just patent it themselves. Is that possible? Does that really happen? I'd like to know...

 

But my all-time favorite thing to daydream about is writing. Just like I knew that I would one day become a teacher and a mother, I have a voice deep down that is telling me that someday I will write something of great worth. A novel, perhaps? I might be able to start out with something a little more realistic, like a children's book. Oh, the possibilities!

 

Here's my problem. As with everything I do, I need to do it pretty-much, downright perfectly. Why? I don't really know. But it limits me. A lot. So here's to letting go of some of my preexisting standards and to lowering that bar. Everybody needs to start somewhere, and hey... I am totally willing to fail. Really! Even if I am the only one that reads my great masterpiece, I am happy with that.

 

 

Is there something that you just know you are destined to do? I'd love to hear about it! 



Looks Disgusting, Tastes Delicious: Spaghetti and Cream Cheese Sandwich

 

Why is it that food becomes drastically less appealing as a left over? ...Especially to children! Last night's dinner became today's lunch and I knew I would be hearing complaints. My solution- make it a sandwich!

 

Here's the logic:  Cream cheese tastes great on toast (a.k.a. bun). Cheese is a common topping for spaghetti. Eating with one's hands is more fun than using a fork. And it was a success! The hot spaghetti warmed the cream cheese and made a thick, rich sauce. The toasted bun had just the right amount of crunch and held the messy meal together. 

 

So, yeah. It looks really bad, but we have a new way to eat our spaghetti! What have you created that tasted a lot better than it looked?

Front Page: Angry Mom Breaks Son's Toy

Seemingly out of nowhere, my boys began fighting today over where they were going to sit on the couch. Screaming, hitting, and even banging each other with toys... this was a full-out brawl. In my effort to break up the fight, all while trying to feed the baby her milk, I wound up grabbing a truck out of one of their hands. Next thing I know, the wheel has popped right off. Then I get super angry because I do NOT like toys being broken. And I was the one who (unintentionally, I think) broke it. And they were still fighting. Grrrr.

Once everyone finally calmed down, I started feeling guilty. I mean, I was trying to save a kid from getting clobbered with a huge truck, but maybe pulling it away wasn't the best idea. Not to mention that we had just got the truck at the first yard sale my children have ever been to.

A little later during naptime (which was obviously needed), I attempted to super-glue the wheel on. Yeahhhh, I don't think it's going to stay on. So maybe this is a lesson learned for my son. Don't hit your brother with toys... or your lunatic mother will snap it in half.

 

P.S. I'm till wondering if I should replace the dang truck or not. What would you do?

 

 

UPDATE:  Some good news, the glue held the wheel on...for today at least!

New Blogging Ritual: A Picture a Day

I have seen it done many different ways. Some with captions, some without; some daily, others weekly. And now...I have finally decided to join in the fun by sharing a daily photo of my life with you! There will be cute and fuzzy ones, silly ones, and ones that will make you thankful that you are not me (tantrum pics, anyone).

There won't be any captions...just a quick little glimpse of my world. You can search within the blog for "picture a day" to view 'em all. Hope you stop by often!

Why I am Such a Crappy Blogger

Although I really enjoy blogging (and it certainly takes up all my free time), I've come to the conclusion that I pretty-much suck at it. Here's why...

1. I don't have much quality time for writing. The only time I have to think and write is when my kids are asleep. But that is also my ONLY quiet time, so I usually want to sleep then too, or get on Facebook, or eat something.

2. I tend to procrastinate. Well, it's not so much 'procrastination' as it is 'multi-tasking'. If I happen to start writing about something, I often times will take a super-quick break to sleep, get on Facebook, or eat something. Hmmm. I'm noticing a slight trend here.

3. I just don't have a ton of extraordinary things to say. Wait. I do. As a matter of fact, when I am in the middle of a shower or just as I am about to fall asleep for the night, I have some really great ideas. I'm talking award-winning, make you laugh, make you cry kind of ideas. I even go as far as to organize the whole thing in my head, nearly word for word. Somehow though, and I have no idea why, by the time I get the chance to write down my masterpiece, it sounds like crap and I assume nobody will enjoy reading it. I don't even want to read it. So it gets deleted.

I read a lot of blogs where it seems like every post is just like my life. Why didn't I think about writing all that stuff? My kids do those things too. And hey...I could totally write 5,000 words about some cookies I baked! ... If I baked.

So thanks for sticking around 'till the end of this post (which was, by the way, composed in the shower)! And make sure to keep coming back because one day...you just might stumble upon my masterpiece. :)

What is your favorite blog to read and why do you like it?

 

Like Father, Like Son: A Little Too Spooky.

A week ago today, my 5-year-old boy was being a 5-year-old boy and wound up breaking his clavicle bone. I have been warned that this is only the first of many injuries and broken bones that I can expect with two active boys. So now, seven days later, I can take a deep breath and relax a bit because he is beginning to heal and get back to his normal crazy ways.

The strange thing about this whole situation is that my husband also had a clavicle injury. I know that the clavicle is a common bone to injure, but it gets even stranger. In the past, both my husband and my son have somehow slashed their eyebrow and have had to get stitches. Back when they had the eyebrow injuries, I thought 'Oh. That's coincidental.' Now that they have both messed up their clavicle, I am starting to get worried. I made a mental list of all the other big injuries that my husband has had...since childhood. The tally was somewhere around - too many!

So thanks to superstition, my children are not going to be allowed to play hockey, ride a skateboard, climb a ladder, bend over in dark closets (don't ask), or do anything else that requires a trip to the emergency room! Well, at least they will have their worry-wart of a mother nagging them to be careful while they do all those things. Either way.

Has your child ever had a broken bone? How long was it before he or she was back in action?

 

 

 

Kids, 911 is Not for Fun... :)

The other night, my husband noticed a police car pull into our driveway. I immediately thought that the officer was going door-to-door collecting donations, which happens a couple times a year in my neighborhood. When we opened the door, we were greeted with, "Hi. We received a 911 call from your home." Whoops.

I looked at my kids and asked if either of them had called 911. My three-year-old looked up at me and, with a strange and bashful smile, nodded. Great. I told the officer that we had been discussing what to do in an emergency a couple weeks ago and that we had practiced dialing 911. He said it was not a problem and left, but I was stuck with how to handle the situation with my boys. I didn't want to get upset at my little guy, but I couldn't act like it was no big deal.

I asked him if there was an emergency, was anyone hurt, was a stranger trying to break into our house? No, no, and no. Okay, then. We do not need to call 911. I think that seeing a real police officer show up at the door might have shocked him a bit too. He let out a deep breath when the officer left and said, "he didn't even take me to jail." Lucky you, sunshine!

For the time being, we have put the phone up on a high shelf. I can't chance another mishap occurring again any time soon. But I am a little proud, though. After reading stories about two or three-year-old children calling for help all on their own and actually saving the life of a parent, I had always wondered if my kids would be able to do that. Now I know that if I happen to need assistance, hopefully, my boys will come to the rescue!

And P.S.
No, my kids are hardly ever out of eyesight! They are just too mischievous and buck-wild. My husband actually saw our son messing with the phone, only for a second, but evidently, the damage had already been done. The WORST part... the receiver was never hung up properly, so the 911 attendant could hear everything up until the officer was gone! I wonder what we said... : /

The Real Beauty of Sharing

A strange thing occurred today when my two sons were playing together. My three-year-old came to me with a monster truck in his hand, and asked "Mom, whose truck is this?" Now I understand this does not sound very profound, but in my house it most definitely is.

My kids have a bajillion toys that we have been collecting since they've been born. Although they have so many toys (especially cars and trucks), they have acquired their mother's skill and/or curse for being able to remember not only whose toy it is, but also who gave it to them! They have even made statements such as "I got this train set from Santa when I was three" or "You know Lisa gave you that car at your 'fire truck' birthday." They remember everything, which is why it struck me as odd when they didn't know who this specific monster truck belonged to.

After telling my three-year-old that it was, in fact, his truck, he went back to playing with his brother. I got to thinking that maybe, just maybe, they are beginning to share and use each other's toys so often now, that they are not keeping track of ownership as much.

What's the big deal? Well I'll start by saying that I am not the kind of mother who forces her kids to share. Of course I encourage sharing and playing together, but I am very practical about it. If you don't want to share with your brother, then don't be upset if he doesn't want to share with you. For the most part they will happily hand over their toy, but there is always that new or special toy that is just off limits. Fine with me. So today, I realized that I might actually be doing something right by allowing the boys to have ownership and make decisions about their own things. It seems they understand that they don't have to let anyone else use their toys, so there's no (age-appropriate) fear of not getting those toys back. Plus, they are learning to make choices that benefit others and they feel the joy of giving all at the same time!

So back to why I had to stop and analyze this...oh yeah. Because today I caught my kids just being kids. Playing together with no arguments or fights over toys, and simply enjoying their time as brothers. And that's enough to make any mom write a dang blog post! ;)

Saturday Mornings at Lowes

Twice a month, Lowes offers a FREE Build and Grow workshop for kids. I have been taking my boys to these workshops for about a year and a half and they really enjoy each project! 

 

Everything you need to build the project comes in a prepackaged kit, and Lowes provides child-size hammers for your kids to use all on their own.





 

Usually, an adult needs to help read (or interpret) the instructions, but the kids can help locate the pieces, do the hammering, add the decorations, etc. These Build and Grow workshops do not use paint as part of the activity, so you don't need to worry about your children staining their clothes! The projects are themed and are usually based on current movies. Each kit contains full color stickers, cardboard cutouts, and/or other materials for attaching to the project.

 

My boys love coming home to play with their new 'toys'. I love how they get to create something with real tools (and how the projects actually hold up during rough play).





 

Don't forget to pick up your FREE Build and Grow apron so that you can iron on all the patches you will be receiving at each workshop! *Note- You do have to preregister for each workshop. Sessions fill up quickly!*

 

 

Have your children ever been to a Build and Grow workshop? What do you think of the projects?



Tip: Inexpensive Alternative to New Books

I love using books as rewards for my children. I have been to the dollar section at Target and Walmart on several occasions, but even dollar books aren't all that cheap!

Although I am usually very particular about the condition of our books, I am getting used to the idea of second-hand books. On my most recent visit to our local library, I stopped by their book sale area. I was able to find several books for only a quarter each, and I could have even filled a paper grocery bag full of books for only $2 (if I had more time to browse, of course).

Check with your local library to see if they have a book sale area. Many libraries even have a 2-3 day sale event during the year when they sell hundreds of books to raise money for programs they offer. Just as a little warning...these books typically show some wear and tear, and you will definitely want to wipe down the covers when you get home.

 

Have you ever taken advantage of a library book sale? Where do you go for inexpensive books?

Someone Should Pay Me: Haircuts at Home!

One thing I take pride in is being able to cut my children's, husband's, and my own hair. While I only cut my own hair maybe once a year (a difficult and back-breaking task), I seem to be giving haircuts to the boys every couple months. I started out several years ago with my husband. Those haircuts took forever! I would clip all over the place and, in the end, it would still look too long. I was scared to cut too close. I eventually purchased an electric razor and that changed everything. I can now dish out a great cut in 20 minutes.

When my first son was born, I knew I was going to be the one to give him his first hair cut. At 12 months, I carefully began clipping. It turned out pretty good. Later, when my second son was 14 months, I gave him his first haircut. It is not easy trying to chop little wispy locks off of a squirming baby!

Bangs Galore

Mullet Baby

             

 They are now 5 and 3, and I feel completely confident in my skills and also proud that I am the only stylist they've ever been to. I think it is finally getting to the point where nobody fears the scissors anymore and they can sit still a bit longer. During this most recent cut, I involved the boys more by having them clip on all the different razor attachments and turn the razor on for me. That seemed to occupy them. And it never hurts to tell them that they can have an ice cream sandwich if they let me do what I need to do.

One of the strangest things I've noticed is how different their heads are! One boy has a smaller, round head and the other's head is more square and bumpy. Their hairlines are totally different too. I know I am probably not perfect at cutting yet, but I get better every time. Now can I get an ice cream sandwich, please?!

Who cuts your children's hair? Would you ever let your spouse cut your hair? (Nope!)