Felicia's Storybook!

Here is a storybook that I made for Felicia using the Storybook maker!It's so easy!

Sticking Together!

Last week I turned 35. Not a monumental milestone, but it got me thinking non the less! I realize that sometimes life creeps up on you and you sometimes get the sense that you have no idea how you got where you are. I love sitting around to reminisce with my family. I look back fondly at watching my kids grow up and all the incredibly funny times we have had. I NEVER look back with regrets. We have not always had an easy time of things. But, we would not be who we are without those bumps in the road. I value the time I have with my family. I want my kids growing up knowing the same love and support that I had as a child. If someone in the family needs something, we are there. That is how it should be. Supporting each other through thick and thin is the way we live our lives. My family will never let me fail and I am grateful for that.

In that late night hours of my birthday, the fire alarm in town began screaming. It did not stop. I knew that it was something big. People were seen running down my street and I had to go check it out. I threw on my clothes and headed out into the night. Large billowing clouds of smoke were seen hanging over our tiny town. My son called me and said that the garage down the street was on fire. The garage is owned by a family that I have known all my life. The owners grew up with my father and they were very much like my own family. Thankfully no one was injured, but the business was a total loss. The next morning after picking Felicia up at preschool we slowly walked toward the place where we frequently dropped off our car for repairs. I wanted to show my support and offer my condolences for their loss. This was their life. As I edged my way past the barricades, I could see the family all together. As I approached them, it struck me how they were all smiling. In the face of something so devastating they were there together. With smiling faces. Not feeling sorry for themselves. They came to work that day! There was little they could do, besides sweeping up some bits of their charred business off the sidewalk, but they were there together. Moving forward.

Things like this always make me want to reevaluate my life. Am I living the way that I want to be? I think I am. Sure I have conflicts sometimes. Will we have that last baby that I have been wanting? Will I go back to work soon? Maybe I won't find a job! What would I do then? Mike and I have faced many challenges in our years together. We have always made it through them with lessons learned. I am sure that in the future there will be more, but the one thing that I know I will always have is a very loving and supportive family. We stick together and for that I am truly blessed.

Wordless Wednesday-Brandon and Madelyn

For more Wordless Wednesday check out MomDot!

Happiness Is Contagious!

This is something I have always believed, now here is proof!

Muffin Tin Monday!

We have really been missing out on Muffin Tin Monday lately, so today I surprised the kids with a Muffin Tin Breakfast! We had some eggs, toast, bananas, bacon, and juice! As always it was a huge hit:0)

Honor Our Veterans...

...where would we be without them?

Take Time To Remember and Honor...

Friday Book Project-Bubbles

It's Friday again and now time for another book themed activity. We have been spending a great deal of time outside this week, just enjoying the warm weather. One of our favorite activities outside is blowing bubbles! So here is a great book about blowing bubbles!

To go along with the book, I wanted to share our favorite bubbles recipe!
1 cup water
2 tablespoons light Karo syrup
4 tablespoons dish washing liquid

Mix all the ingredients together and enjoy!

* You don't have to use just a regular old bubble wand, just about anything that has holes in it can make bubbles. We use berry baskets, wire clothes hangers, and cans with both ends cut off(be careful if your can opener leaves a sharp edge). If your extra adventurous, make a super large batch of bubbles and fill the bottom of a kiddie pool. You can use a Hula Hoop as your "wand"! It makes gigantic bubbles! The important part is to have FUN!

If you have an activity inspired by a book, add your link to Mr. Linky! Happy Reading!

Wordless Wednesday-Survivors!

I know that this is supposed to be Wordless Wednesday, but I really wanted to mention how proud I am to be in a family with such strong women! The three women in purple are my mom, my aunt, and my grammie. They are all cancer survivors! They are amazing! In the back, in white, is my cousin Courtney! Hey Courtney, I love you! I hope you don't mind me stealing your pic;0)

For more Wordless Wednesday visit MomDot!

We Have A Winner!

Thank you to everyone who entered my giveaway for Fishful Thinking! I really believe that Fishful Thinking is a great resource for all parents! Teaching our children to be strong and handle what life throws at them is very important and Fishful Thinking can help do that!

So, this morning I randomly picked a winner for the $25 Target gift card! It's Vickie from Vickie's Scrapbooking and Tidbits! Congrats Vickie! Just send me your mailing info and I'll get that out to you!

Book Project Friday-Ten Little Fish

As I mentioned during last weeks book theme post, my girls were really enjoying the ocean theme. So this week we continued on with that and read the book "Ten Little Fish"! What a fun book it is:0)

To go along with our book, we made an ocean picture with "ten little fish".

1. Tear up some blue tissue paper.


2. Lightly spray a piece of white construction paper with water.


3. Stick the tissue paper pieces to the wet paper. Allow it to dry.


4. After the paper is dry, peel off the tissue paper.


5. Add some fish cut out of construction paper.


6. The fish in the book were all different colors, but Madelyn wanted all orange fish!


If you have a book inspired activity add your link to Mr. Linky! As always, Happy Reading:0)

Random Stuff

Yeah, I know I have not blogged all week! I just have not had a lot to say. So, here is a bunch of random stuff for all of you who care;0)

Mother's Day was great (of course)! We spent the day at my parent's house cooking out and enjoying the day together. I bought my Mom a tree and Big Daddy planted it for her. A few days before Earth Day, the borough workers cut down a 100 year old tree that was in front of her house. Not really sure why, but it was sad to see it go. My Mom was devastated, she said they are tree murderers. So, now she has a new tree. She is very happy:0)

My Mother's Day gift was the new hard wood flooring for my dining room! I can't wait for it to be finished:0)

Speaking of Mother's Day, I got a card in the mail from Whitney! Thanks Whitney! I. LOVE.YOU.

Madelyn and Felicia have been fighting so much this week that I think I might enter them in a cage match! No really, I kid;0)

The boys are busy being boys. I really don't see too much of them when the weather is nice. Except for meals. Those boys can EAT!

Big Daddy has an extra day off this weekend! Yay! It's probably a good thing, he is currently slumped over on the couch sound asleep. I hope I can get the newspaper out from under him without knocking him over!

Today is going to be gorgeous outside, so I plan to do very little but soak up some rays. Don't worry, after my last sunburn, I have plenty of sunblock!

What are your plans? I hope you have a fabulous day!

Hand Print Octopus

The girls enjoyed our ocean theme from last week so much that we decided to extend the fun for another week. The ocean would not be complete without an Octopus, so here is the octopus that we made.

1. Paint your child's hand without painting the thumb.


2. Print it on a piece of construction paper.


3. Do the same thing with the other hand, overlapping the palm.


4. Add some eyes and cut it out:0)

My Unimportant Tag

I've been tagged again! This time by my good friend Vickie at Vickie's Scrapbooking and Tidbits!

Here are the rules:
1. Mention the person who nominated you.
2. List six unimportant things that make you happy.
3. Tag six blogs, state the rules & notify them with a teeny comment on their blog.Here our my six!

The unimportant things that make me happy:
1. Really cute shoes!
2. Reality TV!
3. My morning coffee!
4. Blog Stalking!
5. Chocolate chip cookies!

Tag, you're it!

Spring has Sprung!

Sometimes, you just have to stop and smell the flowers!

Book Project Friday

This week we have an Ocean Theme going on at our house. We have been studying ocean creatures and talking a lot about the beach! The girls are really enjoying this, so we may do it for another week! Here are two of the projects that we made this week: hand and foot lobster and foot print fish! Here is a fun book that we have enjoyed while doing the ocean theme! It's called Commotion in the Ocean!

Today we are going to make some sand castle clay! To make this, you will need:
1 cup sand
1/2 cup cornstarch
3/4 cup liquid starch

Combine the sand and cornstarch in an old pot. Stir in liquid starch. Cook this mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly. The mixture will thicken and turn into a dough. Remove from the stove and allow to cool. Remove the clay and knead for 30 seconds. After creating your sculptures, allow them to dry until hard.

If you have a book inspired activity that you would like to share, please add your link to Mr. Linky! As always, Happy Reading:0)

It's Giveaway Time! Are You a Fishful Thinker?

Well, as many of you already know, I am an ambassador for Fishful Thinking! When I find something that I really believe in, I want to share it with everybody! Fishful Thinking is a program that gives parents the tools they need to raise a more optimistic child ready to face life's challenges. There are many activities to do with your children to help the achieve their goals. Here are a few:

Optimism Activities!


All of these activities can really help get the communication going between you and your child! They also have a feature called Storybook Maker! You can make a personalized Storybook about your own child and be entered to win a $10,000 scholarship! How fabulous is that?



Now that I have told you a little bit about Fishful Thinking, I'd like you to check it out! After you do, come back here and tell me what you have learned. Just for doing that, You will be entered to win a:

$25 Target Gift Card

The giveaway will run from now until Friday May 15 at 11:59 pm. I will choose a winner sometime on Saturday May 16!

As an ambassador for Fishful Thinking through RepNation I could receive incentives for my participation.

Foot Print Fish

We have been diving deep into the ocean this week and today we made some pretty tropical with! What better way to make them than our feet!

1. Paint the bottom of your child's foot with two different colors of paint! I love this giggles that this causes:0)


2. Press the foot on a piece of construction paper.


3.Add some details and your fish will be swimming!

Hand and Foot Lobster

This week we are exploring the underwater world. I love the beach and all that comes with it so this is fun for me. Our first under sea creature that we made is the lobster!

1. Paint your child's foot and print it on a piece of construction paper.


2. Above the heal end of the foot, print your child's hands. Fingers together, thumb apart to make a claw.


3. Using a marker, connect the claws to the body.


4. Add details and you have a very silly lobster.

She Is Never Getting Married

We were having one of those days. You know the kind, "Stop touching me! No you stop touching me!" Lots of whining, lots of teasing! So of course, it was no surprise to me when I went upstairs to tuck Mady in for her nap to hear Felicia crying yet again. A sobbing cry in which she could not speak! She was really upset! I was sure that Aaron had done something really horrible to her. I was mad! Finally after many tries, she finally was able to tell me what horrible thing had happened.

Me-"Honey, calm down and tell me what happened. I can't help you if I don't know what's wrong! Did somebody hurt you?"

Felicia{shaking head}-"waaaaaaaaaaa!"

Me-"Then tell me what's wrong! Is Aaron teasing you?"

Felicia-"Yeeeeeeeesssssss! He said someday I am going to get married!"

Me{giggling}-"Well.....you don't have to get married if you don't want too."

Long pause............

Felicia-"Can I just have a baby?"

I think I may be in trouble!

What Do You Treasure?

As many of you already know, I am an ambassador for Fishful Thinking! The activities highlighted on the Fishful Thinking site are fun for the kids and are designed to teach them optimism and other ways to cope with life's every day challenges. What kid would not benefit from that?

Today, we took advantage of a rainy day to do one of the many great activities that Fishful Thinking has to offer. We made a Treasure Box! The full instructions can be found here. The idea of the Treasure Box activity is to teach optimism and emotional awareness. It's a great way to get your kids talking about what they are feeling! So, if you have chance to make a Treasure Box with your child, come back and let me know how it went! It was a positive experience for us! I am sure you will enjoy it:0)



I am an ambassador for Fishful Thinking through RepNation and could earn incentives for my participation.

May!

I do so love the month of May.

Twenty years ago this month, Big Daddy and I became a couple! During the past twenty years, we have shared almost 17 years of marriage, 5 of the most gorgeous and perfect children on Earth, and countless good times! May is good!

Thirty five years ago this month, May 20, I was born! May is good!

This month is also the month to celebrate motherhood, the best job in the world! It's also the month of my Mom's birthday! My mom is truly the best there is! May is good!