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Muppets Love Over the Years

Posted on November 13, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Hello, I have a confession. I am a major Miss Piggy fan. Being born at the end of the 1970’s (*GULP*) and growing up in the 80’s, the Muppets were a part of my world. Check out this photo of me with my father. Look carefully to see Kermit and Piggy.

I am on a hunt to find photos of me with my two Miss Piggy dolls that I would take all over the place with me. I know where one of them is now, but not the puppet Piggy. There were also my original Muppet Fan Club buttons, along with others that I collected over the years.

My love for the queen of swine continued over the years. When we head to Disney Hollywood Studios, I always have to stop and take a photo of the powerful pick diva to bring home.

While shopping, something caught my eye in Target. Yes, they had Muppet pajamas. Normally I am not really into pink, but there was something special about these.

The pink and green with Kermie and Piggy reminded me of my childhood room colors. TechyDad told me to get them for keeping warm this winter. Now, I am waiting to head to the movies with the boys over Thanksgiving to see this:

Will you be going to see the new Muppets movie coming out on Thanksgiving?

There is just something special about the Muppets and reliving your childhood memories and laughter with your children.

Disclosure: I wrote this post because Miss Piggy told me to. Oh wait, I only wish that was true. I wrote it because I am a huge fan of the Muppets and wanted to share the trailer and some of my history with Miss Piggy from over the decades.

Categories:
Disney looking back me moments Movies photos

The Importance of Pixie Dust Moments

Posted on October 28, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

There are days when everything just seems to blur together. Life as an adult can be overwhelming at best at times. There are so many things going on with everyone in the house. Add in other drama and it can make you wonder when the ride is going to stop for you to get off. These are the moments where I feel like I am the White Rabbit, constantly late for a very important date or something else in life.

Of course, there are also the times that I remember how much we have and are lucky not to have to deal with. When I get like this, I have my family, friends, and others in my world to toss a little Pixie Dust my way.

They remind me that it is okay to vent, whine, and groan – however, I have to keep on moving and remember that there is a light at the end of the tunnel. Some days, this may be harder to remember than others, but it has to be done. Something that helps me is to look back at our magical moments from trip to Walt Disney World. Recalling the laughter, smiles, fun times, and everything else makes these not so pleasant items vanish for at least a short time to let me wish upon a star.

So my question to you this week:

What do your “Pixie Dust Moments” looks like and how do they help you to push through.

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Thanks to Kailani at An Island Life for starting this fun for Friday. Please be sure to head over to her blog to say hello and sign the linky there if you are participating.

Aloha #175

Categories:
Aloha Friday Disney family friends me moments photos vent

Tuesday Tales – Library Books For Your Kindle

Posted on October 25, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Tuesday Tales

Prior to TechyDad winning the Kindle Keyboard, I never imagined that I would enjoy reading anything that was not in a traditional book. Boy was I wrong! I do like holding a book with pages to turn, but the convenience of Kindle is huge. Kimberly allows me to carry many, many, many titles with me at the same time. I can have my books, items that the boys want to read, and TechyDad has a bunch as well. Talk about light and easy packing.

The boys and I love to head to the library to check our new books, movies, and just hang out there. I had heard that our library system participated in Kindle book loaning. Once we had the Kindle, I knew I had to try it out. So I went to the Upper Hudson Library System Digital Collection page. Here you can find eBooks, audio books, and more to take out. I had done the audio books in the past, but never really looked for anything specifically in Kindle Format. It was quick and easy. You can search by author, title, or browse by genre. Here is what you see:

I can now see that they have the Kate Jacobs book Knit Two available, but there is a waiting list. I can place a hold and they will notify me when it is available. Once notified, I have three days to download it to my device. That is where it gets really fun. When you place an item in your “Digital Book Bag” to check out, they are placed on your book shelf. From here, you will see this (note mine were checked out earlier):

See those “Get for Kindle” buttons? When you push those, it sends you to your Amazon account where it asks you to take them out from the library and sends them to your Kindle device. Yes, it is that simple. The next time you turn on your Kindle, the books download and you can start to read them soon after.

The draw back with this is that the library seems to have a small amount of book titles and the new ones have a pretty long waiting list. In addition to this, you only get to borrow them for 21 days, not the traditional 28 days. I’m not sure if you can opt to renew if there is no other hold. We will likely check into that this week since I have not finished The Geeks Shall Inherit the Earth.

Have you ever taken a library book out with your Kindle or other eReader? Would love to know your experience and what you think about it.

What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Book Posts, and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.

Categories:
books me moments photos Tuesday Tales

Disney Anniversary Dreaming Again

Posted on October 24, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

It has been almost two months since we had to cancel out 10th Anniversary trip to Walt Disney World. TechyDad and I had planned a five night stay in Orlando without the kids. When we finally decided to splurge and go to a location for our ten year anniversary, Disney just seemed natural to us. A magical honeymoon and subsequent trips back with the kids made it a quick and easy choice. We were going to bring the kids to stay with Bubbe and Grandpa while we went to Disney alone. Then, as I wrote after the case Mother Nature had other plans.

Looking back at the trip that never was makes me sad. I see people Tweet and talk about restaurants that we had advanced dining reservations for. What was harder at the time, I saw pictures from people at the parks Labor Day weekend and the Magic Kingdom was decked out in fall decorations. Each time I saw a picture, a piece of my heart crumbled more and more. Of course, as time moved past the trip, I was ok. I knew that we made the right choice. We were responsible adults. Then, as school started, there was no time to dwell on what could and should have been. I was focused on getting the boys back into the swing of things. We had to adjust to nursery school five days a week and life in third grade.

Now, it is almost November and my heart is heavy again. I long for a time to get away with TechyDad.

We are trying to see if we can figure out a time that will work for us to get away. It will probably have to wait until the kids are done with school because their crazy schedules really do complicate things. Nothing is really set in stone yet, but I think about it often. I wonder when we may finally get a chance if we will be able to get reservation to California Grill in time for the fireworks. Will we be lucky enough to snag a time to eat at other places that were on our agenda? I suppose only time will tell. Until then, I know that we were safe during the storm, and that we will one day have a magical adventure to our favorite destination again.

P.S. I am not the only one that wrote about our trip that never was. TechyDad also did a Travelogue of the Trip That Irene Canceled – Part 1 and Part 2.

Categories:
Disney dreams looking back me moments photos TechyDad weather

Favorite Child Syndrome

Posted on October 19, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Let me begin by saying that this post is inspired by Rene Syler, head GEM or Good Enough Mother. I was lucky enough to meet Rene in March at Disney. In May, I had lunch with her and then saw her earlier this month at SheStreams. The woman tells it like it is and is not afraid to admit that she is not perfect. The reality is that Rene has helped countless other parents, including myself, to accept that being good enough is perfectly acceptable. Rene also reminds us to take care of ourselves so we can be the best we can for our children.

Monday night, Rene mentioned that she was going to be on a segment of Tuesday’s Anderson. The topic of the show Are Parents Playing Favorites? Rene also let all of her GEM fans know about it Tuesday morning. I set the DVR, but happened to be able to catch it and sat there with my mouth on the ground. Here is the show preview from Anderson’s website.

Leading up to the segment with Rene were two parents telling the world that they admit they have a favorite child. Then, we saw video of one mother discussing it with her six children. WHAT?! No really, I could not make this up. Next, Rene came onto the panel:

The one mother stated that she didn’t think that this was going to cause any issues for her children. In the back of my mind, I could see the future therapy bills racking up. As you can see in the clip above, Rene did NOT agree. She kept bringing up the point that we birth our kids and our role should not be to have favorites. The other mother on the panel stated that she had a favorite parent and kids often do. Once again, Rene noted that it is one thing for a child to say this about a parent, but completely different for an adult to say to their child. Amen Rene!

The odd part of this show is the timing. Driving home from school the other day, my eight year old son asked me a question. He wanted to know if I had a favorite child. I told him no I did not. Of course, then I wanted to know why he was asking this. He said he was just wondering and had asked TechyDad the same thing the day before. I told NHL that both of them were my favorite boys. I love both of them with all of my heart, and that even when they may not make the right choices, or do something that makes me upset, it does not mean that they are not a favorite or that I love them less.

I have to say that my parents did an amazing job. My brother and I often joke that one or the other is the favorite child, but neither of us is really serious. I think they knew the importance of this for our growth into the people that we would become. Thank you Mom and Dad!

TechyDad and I always tell the boys that they are our favorite 8 and 4 year olds. The reality is that at any given moment my attention may be with one child over the other, but it is not because of favoritism. Parenting is a balancing act and each day we try to make it work. I am a parent and spread myself to the kiddo that needs it at that moment. Is it perfect? Nope, but that’s the beauty of parenting. We learn from our mistakes and our kids become better humans because of it.

So, what do you think about this subject? Should parents have a favorite child?