family fun

weekend wrapup

Melissa

This weekend started by me taking all the kids along as we attended a Brownie Field Trip to the Aquarium with Ellie’s troop on Friday. I’m still not sure why I thought that was a good idea. Even with my father-in-law along to help it was insane. Eight-year-old girls in general are pretty exhausting. In a group, they are a force of nature! I came home and literally fell dead asleep for over an hour.

Then that evening, we saw Gracie’s first dance recital. It was so, so wonderful – the whole show was fantastic. The tiny class before hers – I think they were Tiny Tap class or something – were too adorable for words. So darling.  Gracie did a fantastic job! Her smile was so huge and you could tell she was loving every minute of being on stage! I was in tears the whole time…

my little ballerina

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On Saturday, we went to Dorney Park for my husband’s company picnic. So much fun – it was the perfect day for it. Grace, Colin and I had to leave early, so we hit Planet Snoopy hard. Colin was thrilled – they had a truck ride AND a race car ride. I lost track of how many times we rode the race car ride. I’m still a little dizzy actually… He was super cute on this truck ride. He said, “I drivin’ and you in the back, Mama! It backwards!”

truck driver colin!

Ellie stayed with Daddy to hit all the roller coasters in the afternoon, which we headed home. Grandma and Grandpa watched Colin while I took Grace to her dance recital.

Grace had been begging me to be a Backstage Mom. She played the guilt card hard, so I signed up.
Big mistake. HUGE. My husband may or may not have gotten a text halfway through the show saying something along the lines of “Get me the heck out of here! Send wine!”
It turns out that the Backstage Mom is in charge of keeping the class entertained for the entire recital (except the 3 minutes they are dancing.)  This is a tough job. That I will never. do. again.  Every single Backstage Mom looked ready to collapse during the finale.

***

This week I’m hoping to get into the doctor again. I am still feeling awful – I’m not sure this medicine is working. I’m so so tired of being sick and feeling sick and being in pain and always being exhausted. Hoping to get better soon. Sorry if blogging is light. Or boring. There’s not much to write about when you’re sick!

 

take a hike

Melissa 9 Comments

The first day of camping, we went on a hike to see a waterfall. The kids were such troopers. Colin was in a terrible mood when we started. We were all of ten feet into the woods and he was crying that he was tired. (I was being a very sensitive mom, saying things like, “If we can still see the parking lot, you are not allowed to be tired!” but others had more sympathy and carried him until he stopped being grumpy.)


It was so, so green. And peaceful. (When Colin wasn’t whining, at least.)


So gorgeous.


There was so much to see… As soon as we got to the river, Colin decided not to be grumpy anymore and was such fun.

I love, love, love that she took the log across the river – not the bridge. This is one reason I love her so much.

When the water got a little deep or too fast moving  for Colin, he hitched a ride.


But he got braver and braver as the hike went on. (I literally had to stop him from jumping in the river at the waterfall.)

and we made it!! Gorgeous and totally worth it!


Go take a hike.

i am not a gardener

Melissa 12 Comments

**warning. this is possibly  the longest post in the history of posts about flower beds.**

On Saturday my husband announced he was going to dig a ditch.

He wasn’t kidding.

(He has a purpose here – he’s installing a French Drain that will hopefully make the water go away from our house and stop coming into our family room.) While he did that, I decided to dig up the other flower bed, since it has never grown anything in the entire 5 years we’ve lived here. Wait – that’s not true. It grows weeds quite well. So we thought that while we were digging all day, maybe mixing topsoil in to the other bed would help. You find all sorts of interesting things when you dig up your beds.

lots of rocks, bricks and even an old bottle

We also found a half-decomposed dead mouse. But I won’t show you that picture. Then my husband found this:

Full disclosure: I did not take this picture. I refused to even get close enough to use the zoom lens, despite my husband’s trying to reassure me by saying things like “It can’t jump! I think!!” Grace or Ellie took this while I was hiding at a safe distance. When he came over HOLDING IT IN HIS HAND, I ran away saying “THIS is why I don’t like gardening!!!!”

So anyway…. a typical flower bed at our house looked like this:

Since we got rid of all of the dead and soon-to-bed plants, I had to go get more. So I went to our secret place. Out in Amish country, there is a tiny nursery that friends told us about. Basically you drive down a road, turn right just after a locksmith and drive down a winding road lined with Amish Farms, past the Amish School with little kids playing hopscotch at recess – we had an actual chicken cross the road in front of us (talk about free range!) – and into a random driveway. Spring Grove Nursery is actually in the backyard of a little house. And its amazing. The entire trunk of my van was filled with flowers and shrubs and it was like $60.

Well after hours and hours and several Advils, we have this:

Now, I JUST planted this. That's why they are all still alive.

And check out our little container garden:
For their summer project, the kids are growing tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, yellow tomatoes and red peppers. We’re so green 🙂

So if you’re actually still reading, share – what are your tips for keeping your plants alive?

 

the flea and the professor at the arden theater

Melissa

This weekend, we attended opening night of the newest childrens’ play at The Arden Theater, The Flea and the Professor based on the story by Hans Christian Anderson. We had no idea what the play was about, but we were still excited. It turns out it centers around a circus!

A young professor loses everything in the world but the flea who lives in his vest. And that turns out to be plenty. He and the flea become the best of friends, start a circus act, and set off to tour the world. Together our heroes must overcome shipwrecks, cannibals, and tickling. Adapted from the last story by the author of The Little Mermaid, The Ugly Duckling, and The Emperor’s New Clothes, this new musical odyssey celebrates the excitement of the unknown.

The opening night party was amazing, with yummy kid-friendly food from Catering by Design, tasty ice cream from Franklin Fountain and fun activities! The girls went on a scavenger hunt and found themselves making hot air balloons, getting their faces painted and even ending up inside a bubble!

Ellie popping the bubble that surrounded her!

The show was fantastic. Positively magical. It never ceases to amaze me how something like a hot air balloon or a flea circus or a pirate ship can be portrayed on the stage. The girls were entranced, laughing and cheering and having a wonderful time. They both loved it! Grace’s favorite character was the princess with the pink hair (I’m sure you find this shocking), while Ellie loved the Flea! The music was so catchy: the next day all of us were singing the songs – even my husband! It has a great mix of humor for kids and adults and just the right amount of silliness! I would probably recommend this for ages 5 and up, although a mature 4 year-old would probably be fine. After, Grace was thrilled to meet The Professor. She told him, “I’m glad you found a family.” It was so sweet!

gracie and the professor

On the drive to the theater, my kids were asking a zillion questions, as usual. And Grace said, “You know what? I don’t even care what the play is about! I just love going to see plays!” And that is why we take our kids to the theater – especially children’s theater. We’re teaching them to love this art form, to appreciate theater and become a life-long patron of the arts.  That’s why I am so thankful for  programs like the Arden – and for programs like Arden for All that brings theater to children who might not otherwise get the opportunity. If you can, try to take your kids to the theater. For under $100, a family of four can see a show at the Arden. And the memories will last so much longer than you can even imagine.

p.s.
This winter, the Arden is presenting Charlotte’s Web!!!!! Who wants to go with us!?!?

disclosure: we received tickets to this show from the arden theatre. i was not compensated for this post. as always, all opinions are my own.

 

tangled: our new favorite movie *giveaway*

Melissa 213 Comments

**giveaway is now closed! congrats to our winner, jen!**

We love Tangled. LOVE it.

We saw it in the theater and the whole family loved it. It was cute, funny, exciting – and of course has a happy ending! My son loves Maximus, the horse. (I loved the strong female lead – Rapunzel was brave and sweet!)  I was crying along with my 8-year-old at the sweet ending. And one of the highlights of Gracie’s life was meeting Rapunzel at Disney a few months ago!

So of course the day the Tangled Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack came out we bought it! (And can we give a collective “THANK YOU” to Disney for the Blu-Ray/DVD Combo pack!? I don’t know about you, but I have children who do not understand the concept of “The blu-ray disc doesn’t play in the car!”) We’ve watched it at least three times and have loaned it out to two friends already.

And Gracie’s current favorite toy? This adorable Disney Toddler Rapunzel. She’s barely put it down since she got it. Its been to a party, a picnic, the dentist and school. Just since Saturday.

Toddler Rapunzel

WIN IT!
One lucky Girlymama reader will win a Tangled Blu-ray/DVD Combo Pack AND a Disney Toddler Rapunzel!!

Mandatory Entry: Leave a comment telling me if you’ve seen Tangled yet!
Extra Entry #1: Leave a SEPARATE comment telling me you subscribed to Girlymama’s feed by email or in a reader.
Extra Entry #2: Leave another comment telling me you became a Girlymama Facebook fan or that you Girlymama on Twitter!
Extra Entry #3: Leave another comment telling me you’re a fan of Tollytots on Facebook!!
Extra Entry #4: Leave another comment telling me in what way you promoted this contest (i.e., posting about it on your blog or Facebook, or  Tweeting about it.

Contest ends Wednesday, May 11th at noon. Entries such as “Enter me” or “I want to win” will NOT be counted. Winners will be selected by Random.org, announced back here on this post, and notified via email with further instructions. If I don’t hear from the winner in 48 hours, I will be choosing a new winner.

disclosure: i received a tangled dvd/blu-ray combo pack and a toddler doll to facilitate this post. i was not compensated for this post and, as always, all opinions are my own.

GOAL!

Melissa 4 Comments

Saturday morning started bright and early with an 8:00 soccer game. As in 8:00 AM. (Why, Mr. Soccer Director? WHY?!?) Then, after coming home and taking a nap, the family threw on just some of our ridiculous amount of Philadelphia Union gear and headed down to PPL Park for the game!

We had tons of fun, enjoying Dollar Dog Night and cheering the Union to victory! (For the record, my husband told the kids he would buy them as many hot dogs as they wanted. Ellie immediately claimed she was going to eat 15 hot dogs. Actual hot dog consumption: 1. She's all talk.) 

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And how about this for our Christmas card picture? Think people will know what team we cheer for?
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Our kids all fell asleep singing "DOOP." If you're not a Union fan, you may not know Doop – the song we sing when the Union score a goal. It has extremely complicated lyrics that only true fans know. But I'll break the rules and share them with you. Ready? Write this down!
"DOOP DOOP DOOP da da DOOP DOOP DOOP da DOOP DOOP DOOP da da DOOP DOOP DOOP." (repeat the entire car ride home.)
Now you'll blend right in at the game! Or Colin can teach you his favorite Union song…

hijinks to come

Melissa 1 Comment

Looking at our summer schedule is giving me a headache already. We're almost solidly booked… for the entire summer! ACK!

We have camps, VBS, vacations, sports, lessons, camping… How does this happen? Its still April!!

***

We're trying a new strategy with Gracie and getting her to stop sucking her thumb. We've been ending every day in tears lately, so we're trying positive reinforcement. If she goes all day without us having to remind her not to suck her thumb, she gets a sticker. When she has 7 stickers, she gets to go to Barnes & Noble to pick out a book.
She is SO excited about this – it worked yesterday and today (so far) and she's already picked out her book she wants! We're still using her thumb guard and that spicy nail polish stuff to help her, but no tears so far!

***

Speaking of projects, tomorrow Colin will be wearing underpants. We've been sort-of potty training for awhile, but tomorrow we're saying "Bye Bye, Diapers" and – most likely – "Hello, Wine With Lunch!" for Mommy.
LORD, GIVE ME STRENGTH!!
Man, I hate potty training. It should be fun for you all, at least, while you watch me slowly lose my mind trying to convince a three-year-old to do something he DOES NOT WANT TO DO. AT ALL.