Whatcha Might Not Know...Seasonal Books

This week I accomplished another Pinterest challenge thanks to MEP over at Not to Brag.  Now a lot of families have recently had a guest move into their home since Thanksgiving has come and gone...the Elf on the Shelf.  Well, bah-humbug at our house.  We do not succumb to the Elf because I do not need more to do this month!  Very cute idea, but (in my opinion) a lot of work for the parents if you do-it-up like I would.  So for now, no Elf. 

However, I did like the Pinterest idea I found about unwrapping a holiday book each day in December.  Not a brand new book, but one you already had.  And whatcha might not know is that I cannot stand to read children's books out of season.  For real.  Halloween book in January?  No way.  It was always torture for me to read a Santa book during the summer to the kids I watched while in college.  Truly pained me.  Odd, I know.

So each season I put the kids' themed books away with other decor.  Which keeps them new and exciting every time they return the next season.  And we get lots of books as gifts.  So I dug into my holiday/kids' bin and counted the books...perfect amount.  So then I spent an hour in front of the TV catching up on the final episodes of this season's The Big C (anyone watching?  what an ending!) and wrapped up about 25-30 books.  All different shapes and sizes.

Last night I introduced the basket to the girls with the "rules".  The books would only be unwrapped and read on nights of good behavior.  So last night bath time and the entire get-ready-for-bed process went pretty smoothly!  To kick it off each of them picked one book, but we'll probably switch between 1-2 books depending on their behavior and the length of the book chosen.  I LOVE that it will keep me from reading the same Princess holiday book over and over each night this month.

Below are some pictures of our own book basket and also the link to the original Pinterest post.
 

 

Source: katherinemariephotography.com via Tricia on Pinterest

Holiday Happenings - Downtown Dazzle

A couple of years ago we discovered a newer holiday attraction in Cincinnati, Macy's Downtown Dazzle.  It occurs downtown (duh) every Saturday night in December up until Christmas weekend.  It was so great we returned last year and brought friends with us.  The main attraction is the 6:30 event.  Santa rappels off of a building.  For real.  Every Saturday night.  A very tall building.  And not just him, but also a reindeer and an elf (see picture below).  He then lands atop another building that overlooks our main downtown square, talks to the kids in the audience (he's also projected on the big screen), and then kicks off a spectacular fireworks show.

A few things to know.  First, get there a few minutes early to enjoy the carolers on the square (they start around 5:30).  But this is an event you don't have to be super early to.  Mainly because every standing spot is good since you are looking up.  The ice skating rink is a ZOO on Saturday nights.  Skip it.  Same goes for the line to actually get a photo with Santa before or after the show.  But do stick around for Mrs. Claus' story immediately after the fireworks inside of Macy's.  It wasn't too crowded and the kids enjoyed the bedtime story before we headed home.

If you are planning to see the Duke Energy trains while you are down there (we did last year), take note that they moved this year out to the Museum Center.  Apparently there is a free shuttle from the Westin, but plan for more time due to the extra travel.

Anyone planning to go one Saturday? 

This Saturday looks a little crazy for us,

but we are hoping for good weather on the evening of the 10th!





Holiday Happenings - Snow White

Ok, so this isn't really a holiday-themed event.  However, Snow White is playing locally at the Ensemble Theater downtown on Vine starting this Wednesday through December.  So it's during the holiday season.  It would be a great gift!  And is perfect for all ages.

I had never been to the Ensemble Theater.  It was quaint.  A nice smaller theater, but very steep so every seat seemed good!  Our company had a private viewing over the Thanksgiving weekend.  It was fabulous.  Stella & I double-dated with another friend and her daughter.  (I pixelated her below in case her momma doesn't want her all over the internet.)  And they even got to meet Snow White afterwards!

Support your local theaters if you can...the arts are so important!

Whatcha Might Not Know...Christmas Decorating

<Whatcha Might Not Know are Wednesday posts that are just that...something quick that you may or may not know about me, my family, my neighborhood, my city, my world, etc.>
My little turkeys shown below wanted to say HAPPY THANKSGIVING to everyone.  And Stella was super excited to wear her turkey hair bow to school.  Today is the 3 & 4-year old's Thanksgiving lunch at daycare.  This year she gets to be a Native American and she is thrilled. 

Last night during prayers Stella was thankful for "...growing up to be a cowgirl and chase the turkey.  Ya know mom, so I can kill it to be dead and eat it."  Um, ok.

So anyway whatcha might not know is that over the Thanksgiving weekend we will start pulling out all of the Christmas decorations.  We get our live Christmas tree from the same local farm on the day after Thanksgiving.  I love decorating the house and also have a short-cut...I pull out photos of how I decorated in the past.  Not that everything remains in the same place.  BUT it's so much easier and quicker to follow the pictures.  Anyone else do that?
 

And for those of you looking for the Spaghetti Bread recipe...

It's posted over at Tastes From Tricia's Table today. 

Click HERE to get there.

Top 10 Humorous Ways I Keep the Weight Off

Yes, I did a good job losing my baby weight.  Yes, I've kept it off.  No, I'm not following Weight Watchers exactly anymore.  Yes, I always let myself eat whatever I want between Halloween and New Year's because the holidays are just too tempting and why focus on failure after failure as I shove chocolate after chocolate into my mouth?  No, I have no idea why I have kept off the weight.  Even though I've had 3 kids and I'm in my 30s.  What can I say?  I did my time being overweight?  Not sure that's a good answer.  Or one that won't get glares.  So here's my humorous take on how and why I keep it off:

1. Although we eat most of our meals at home and actually at the table together, meals are still never easy.  The kids' plates are made first, right?  And my kids are vacuums.  So by the time my plate is made, they want seconds.  So as soon as I sit down, I'm back up again.  And then down.  And then up again.  Over and over.  Or I'm serving seconds from my own plate in order to stay seated.  Then I can't complain about eating a cold meal, because I'm usually eating something warm, but less of it.
2. And speaking of kids' plates…the cutting.  The cutting and cutting or scissor snipping and snipping of the food into teeny. tiny. pieces. One of the top 3 things I hate about being a parent…but due to choking…total necessity.  After all of that cutting and snipping of their food, half the time my food doesn't even appeal to me anymore.
3. A kid cries out in the middle of the night.  You have only one kid? Take your time.  Three kids under the roof?  Sprint like hell to the child in need to calm them down quickly so that the said child does not wake up anyone else.  With three kids, nightly sprints are almost guaranteed.  And I'm often left with a racing heart…good cardio, right? 
4. During the day?  Naptime?  The aforementioned sprint is now combined with at least one flight of steps.  Definitely a workout.
5. These sprints also occur when the 14-month old is "missing" or the kids are just quiet.  Sprinting to the stairs to check that the gate is up.  Sprinting to the bathroom to make sure no one is playing in the toilet.  Sprinting to the girls' room to make sure 2.5-year old is not "using" the lotion or chapstick on the baby dolls again.  Etc.
6. Squats are common during the potty-training stage.  Squat down to help.  Squat down to encourage.  Squat down to look 2-year old in the eye and repeat loudly, "PEE DOWN!"  Seriously I had no idea a girl could fountain pee like that!
7. Our three kids are in swim lessons now.  At the same time.  The changing room is a SAUNA.  I swear I lose 10 pounds each week just trying to get all three changed out of their suits after lessons.
8. Anyone pushed one of those mega-carts at Target or Wal-Mart that holds 3 kids?  And then load it up with groceries?  Definitely a workout.
9. And all chores are usually completed toting at least one kid around.  Emptying the dishwasher one handed while holding a 25-35 lb. kid in the other arm definitely builds some muscles.
10. I really, really, really want that cookie, donut, brownie, etc.  However a child is standing right in front of me and there is no way I can sneak it.  This happens all too often.  This also curbs all snacking between meals.
11. An added bonus...can you just be too tired to eat?  Yep.  Somedays.

Source: rhodesbread.com via Tricia on Pinterest

Speaking of meals, we are trying something new tonight!  A neighbor pinned (on Pinterest) and then made this Braided Spaghetti Bread.  She swears it was a hit with the entire family.  I prepped everything for it last night and plan to bake it tonight.  I made a few changes.  So if it goes well, I'll have pictures and the recipe on Tastes From Tricia's Table sometime tomorrow. 

Holiday Happenings - Sharon Woods

Over the next couple of weeks I plan to post a few of our favorite things to do during the holiday season locally.  Keep in mind we are focused on things to do with our kids who are now 1, 2.5 and 4.  First up...Sharon Woods Holiday in Lights.

 

 

For those of you unaware, it's a light display (almost a mile) that you drive through and view from your car.  Now, there are a few reasons we love this: 

• Biggest perk for us = it's at the exit where we live at a park we love. 
• You don't have to get out of the car. 
• The lights are worth the drive - especially for little ones. 
• You can listen to Christmas music the whole time to really get into the holiday mood.  And since you are in your own car, you can pick your own music!
• For a large family, it's reasonably priced since you pay per car.  $12/car but there are $2 off coupons everywhere...so search for one.
• Bring along your own cups of cocoa.
• Again, you don't have to get out of the car...good for little ones!
• Santaland.

Santaland is also open nightly at the Sharon Center.  There are different activities depending upon the night...so be sure to check the schedule.  You may see the Talking Christmas Tree, an Elf Show or Dickens Carolers.  Pictures with Santa are available every night. 

BUT, a few things to know if you go.  It can get extremely crowded later in the evenings and on the weekend.  People wait in the car line for way too long (locals - avoid 42S on weekend evenings).  And Santaland on the weekend...so crowded I don't find it enjoyable.  We usually try to go on a weeknight right when it opens since our kids are still little and waiting is AGONY to them.

The park recently started having a Holiday in Lights 5K on a Saturday evening right before the season opened, but I've never been able to do it.  The last mile of the 5K you run through the light display.  Sounds way cool, so I'll have to check it out again next year - it was this past weekend.

Holiday in Lights official website?  Click HERE.

More details on Santaland?  Click HERE.

Anyone else enjoy this holiday happening?

Friday's Random Thoughts

 

This is all going to be very random and all over the place!

1. First, the local GOTR 5K is tomorrow morning!  I cannot wait to see all of the girls complete the 5K.  It's such an amazing thing to view.  I always get teary-eyed.
2. One of my favorite blogs Not to Brag had taken a break and is BACK!  If you haven't stumbled upon her yet, check it out.  She's good people.  I have not actually met her in person, but I do know her sister and she's also one of my favorite people who I never see nearly enough. 
3. And Not to Brag led me to It's a Small World After All.  And she's local!  Another blog I'm enjoying.
4. I saw this article posted on Facebook.  It's about pizza counting as a vegetable in school lunches because of the small amount of tomato paste.  I have a lot of thoughts on this, but don't really want to get angry this close to the weekend.
5. Christmas is fast approaching.  Be sure to celebrate Thanksgiving first.  You know, that holiday next week?
6. But in the spirit of both, be thankful for what you have and find a way to give to others this holiday season.  Give your time, give money, give gifts, give prayer...whatever you can.  If you are looking for an Angel Tree opportunity, read up on JCPenney's Angel Tree that Surviving Motherhood posted HERE. 
7. Andy's work has its own Angel Tree and it just puts things into perspective when the one we picked only wants gym shoes and a Great Clips gift card.  Breaks my heart.
8. I took a nap yesterday.  For the first time in about 4 years.  It was amazing.  (Okay, so I've napped a couple of other times in the last 4 years, but it's always been while I'm also puking my guts out in between sleeping...so this was totally different.)
9. Locals, very soon I'll be posting about my favorite things to see and do for the holidays here locally.  What are yours?
10. We are not traveling for Thanksgiving because Charlotte is actually in a wedding that weekend.  I'm really nervous about this because it's our babysitter getting married.  And it's Charlotte...who knows how she will decide to act.  She cannot screw this relationship up.  We really need this babysitter so that we are not always depending on my mom!  HA!  Wish us luck.  Good thoughts are going to need to start now.

Have a great weekend!



Embrace the Camera - Dad's 60th

Over the summer my dad turned 60. 

So the question was...where do we go?

See, he's a total kid at heart.

For his 50th?

We went to Disney.

Me, Andy & him.

Pre-kids.

So I expected a return trip with the grandkids.

But all he wanted was to go the mountains in the fall.

I guess living in Florida will do that to ya.

Logistically it was so much easier for us!

So we accomplished that this past weekend.

And I made sure there was still cake...even though it was months later.

Whatcha Might Not Know...Social Planner

<Whatcha Might Not Know are Wednesday posts that are just that...something quick that you may or may not know about me, my family, my neighborhood, my city, my world, etc.>  

So what many of you already know very well (because you are a victim to my ways), some of you might not know.  I cannot live without enjoy social gatherings.  To the extent that I'm always planning them.  Constantly.  And my dear patient husband puts up with this.  Constantly.

 

As if our lives weren't chaos enough, I purposely add things to our calendar.  And I'm often almost always the creator of these events.  It doesn't matter if it's a double date, girls night out or an entire family gathering...I have no bias to the event type.  I just need social interaction with others that don't live under my roof (and work does not count) and if I don't get enough of it, I start planning something. 

 

Family Friendly Neighborhood Halloween Party...check.  Upcoming Christmas Cookie Exchange...check.  Girls Night Out this Saturday...check. 

 

Girls Night Out for Twilight Breaking Dawn and dinner?  Um, oh yes I did.  For the first time in my life, I pre-ordered a movie ticket.  To me it's less about the movie (ok, I really do want to see it) and more about 8-10 women getting together afterwards for dinner. 

 

And you?  Social butterfly?  Or would you rather stay comfy cozy in a cocoon?  What's your preference?

 

 

The Ship Has Sailed Back

 

At our house November 1st is not only the end of the Halloween decorations. 

It's also the return of the fall seasonal toys. 

For Stella's first and second Christmas she had plenty of gifts from others. 

So we decided that one item from us would be this cool Little People Thanksgiving set. 

Made extra cool by the fact that I only allow it to be out during the month of November.

And it has gotten quite a bit of play time so far this year...since it's "new" ya know...

And on another note...

I've updated the Chicken Chili and Potato Soup recipes on the recipe blog.

And added a new one for Roasted Butternut Squash.

So click on over...unless you also spit out squash like the rest of my family (Andy included).



Fall Decor - Acorns and Spiders

Earlier in October I happened upon Thrifty Decor Chick's They're Baaaack! post and loved what she did to her staircase.  So I pinned it!  And then I headed to Meijer to get some wooden acorns (50% off!) and then to Michael's to see what Martha Stewart items were left.  No mice cut-outs, but spiders.  And have I told you that Stella is obsessed with spiders?  Loves them.  So I used Thrifty Decor Chick's inspiration to add a few new items to our decor this fall.  I love Pinterest and love blogs and love the internet in general for sharing ideas and being creative.

Source: thriftydecorchick.blogspot.com via Tricia on Pinterest

One night after bedtime I adhered the 10 spiders around the first floor.  The girls loved finding them the next morning and giggled everytime they noticed them thereafter.  (My mom thought they were a bit creepy...and they were!)

Um, if you need fake candles, hit the Dollar Store or Big Lots.  MUCH cheaper than a Target, Meijer, Michael's.  MUCH cheaper.  You get like 10 for the price of 2 elsewhere. 

Pictures, not great.  Lighting just not working with me.

I think I'm going to swap out the gourds and acorns for shiny ornaments and jingle bells once Thanksgiving comes and goes.

Pinterest inspiration complete!  YAY!

The Good Life - A Reminder "from" Ali

I'm sitting at my computer crying my eyes out tonight.  Out of heartbreak.  For a woman and her family.  A woman I don't even know.  Ali.  Her story has been all over Facebook lately, particularly here locally.  Ali died last week.  From cancer.  She was only 31.  And had a loving husband and a 1-year old precious daughter.  Although I didn't know her, I've been affected by her and her sister's blog.  Particularly tonight due to a post that included Ali's husband's letter to her that he read at the funeral.  Go ahead.  Check it out.  But be prepared to cry your eyes out.  Click HERE to get to it. 

The comments are just as emotional.  Comments from family, comments from strangers.  People are hugging their spouses tighter today, kissing kids longer, bringing people flowers.  All because of Ali.  1200 people stood in line to say goodbye to her.  Standing room only at her pink-infested funeral.  And now she's still bouncing off of people all around the internet.  An angel sending a reminder to us all...Life is Good.  Hug your loved ones.  Be happy.

One of the favorite songs in our house right now is One Republic's Good Life.  And pieces of the lyrics just scream out to me..."this has gotta be the good life", "the hope is we have so much to feel good about", and "what is there to complain about?".

Today has been a rough day in my small world for various reasons.  But sitting down and reading about Ali's funeral in her sister's latest post put things into perspective...I have nothing to complain about.  Just look at those pictures again at the top of this blog post.  I've got the good life.  For sure.

The Questions Never End...At Any Stage

Image Source

They begin at the very beginning and are around for every stage of life.

The questions that can be oh. so. annoying.

And how old are you?

What do you want to be when you grow up?

Where are you going to college?

Do you have a boyfriend?

What is your major?

Do you have a boyfriend?

When will you graduate?

When are you getting married?

When are you having a baby?

When is your due date?

Why did you pick that name?

When are you having another baby?

Whose mom are you?

Are you having another baby?

Why aren't you having another baby?

Oh, you are so-and-so's mom?

"Mommy, why…blah, blah, blah this?"

"Mommy, why…blah, blah, blah that?"

Honey, what's for dinner?

 What questions did I forget???