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For the love of Legos

Posted on November 14, 2009 10:46 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL & JSL,

The two of you are constantly playing with your Lego blocks the last few weeks. We had one big container of the Quatro and Duplo blocks together in the living room. Of course, the problem was creative differences between the two of you. NHL, you want to build things and leave them to be admired for extended periods of time. JSL, would rather keep taking down creations and building new items. This has become an issue since NHL created his bench of Legos that prominently sits in the living room.

This morning as you were fighting over Legos and your creative differences, I asked Daddy to head to the basement. Little did you know that we have had a treasure chest just waiting for you. Thanks to Aunt S and Uncle M, we had their giant box of Legos waiting for just the right time. (Thanks again to Aunt S and Uncle M)

I wish I had gotten a photo of your faces when you saw the monster box . I think it is safe to say that you were both very happy. Almost an hour later you are still sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor with Daddy exploring all that there is within that fabulous box of Legos.

No doubt there will still be creative differences, but now there are so many more options to be had. I can not wait to see the things that you both build with your imaginations.

Love,

Mommy

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Categories:
brothers Dear Kid Saturday fun jsl nhl photos play time weekend

100 Books and counting

Posted on November 7, 2009 4:32 pm by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL,

On Monday, you went back to school and handed in your monthly home reading log. Going into October, you already had finished 82 books. Thanks to your love of reading, your books from October put you well over the 100 book mark. This is something that each first grader is supposed to do by June. You finished this goal in two months, along with your summer reading program titles. Way to go big kid!

Today, we went to the library again and took out more books. I love that you have such a variety of books on your list. Of course, having a reading teacher mother does not hurt. We have been experimenting with different genres and multiple authors. I love how you ask to read before going to bed each night. It is amazing to listen to a story being read to me by my own child.

I look forward to reading even more books and seeing how many you can finish by the end of June before going to 2nd grade. Keep up the great work!

Love,

Mommy

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Categories:
books Dear Kid Saturday milestone nhl photos school

Yoplait Kids yogurt – Giveaway

Posted on November 5, 2009 10:00 pm by TheAngelForever

Both of my boys have become picky eaters. Still, one of the items that they both enjoy is yogurt. We love this because yogurt is a great source of protein and calcium. When I took the little guy for his two year well visit in May, our doctor cautioned me about a lot of yogurts having too much sugar in them. Thanks to that, we started to pay much more attention to labels.

A few months after this, I was asked by My Blog Spark and Yoplait to have my kids try Yoplait Kids which has 25% less sugar than the average leading kids’ yogurts. I immediately said yes because both of the boys had seen these in the store and begged me to try them. Hello, they have Dora, Blues Clues, Diego and the Backyardigans on them!

I was sent a coupon to select one of the Yoplait Kids products to try along with the same prize package that is being given away (see below). One day, when everyone was healthy we all went to the grocery store together. I asked NHL, my six year old, to go with me to select one of the Yoplait Kids items to try. First, we agreed to do the drinkable ones. We figured that, if they went to school with him, this was much less messy and easy to manage. Next, it was time to figure out a flavor. This is important stuff to a six year old. The options were:

Strawberry (Dora)
Banana (Backyardigans)
Mixed-Berry (Diego)
Strawberry Banana (Blues Clues)

NHL selected his based on flavor, not character, which surprised me some. His pick was:

On Halloween, we opened up the package for both of the boys to try. JSL had not been eating much recently (thanks to a febrile seizure two days earlier). He was not thrilled with the prospect of yogurt….until his little eyes saw Blues Clues. NHL, was ready to go the minute he heard yogurt and knew it was the ones we had bought earlier. He quickly finished his yogurt and asked for another.

Meanwhile, the little guy was thrilled to have a straw to help in his plan of attack for the Blues Clues yogurt. When we tried to remove him from the kitchen to drink it, he refused. He stayed put and wanted to drink it there.

Although JSL likes yogurt, he will often start eating/drinking one and then stop. So much food is wasted this way. I am happy to report that this did not happen with the Yoplait Kids yogurt. This yogurt was the perfect portion for a little guy and easy for his smaller hands to handle. Here is a closer view. We had to help him some because he was getting tired before nap time.

The verdict: The boys really like the yogurt. They both drink it up and never leave anything that ends up being tossed. NHL has taken it in his lunch box to school several times. Just this morning, he asked for another one to go – definitely a plus with him since he does not like much that is easy to transport to school. We will definitely continue to have the Yoplait Kids yogurt in our yogurt buying repertoire.

Giveaway:

Two lucky winners will each receive their own "Yoplait Less Sugar, More Fun" prize pack. The prize includes a coupon for a Yoplait Kids yogurt of your choice, a travel cooler, a fun spoon that changes colors in warm water, a reusable place mat with games to keep the kids happy while snacking, and a fuzzy tangle for some after-snack fun. Please note: This coupon offer for a free six pack of Yoplait kids yogurt is not valid in some states including Idaho, Lousiana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota and Tennessee.

Rules for Giveaway:

MAIN RULE – Answer the following question: How do you make snack time fun for your children?
1 Bonus Entry – Subscribe to my RSS feed (or let me know if you already are) in a separate comment.
1 Bonus Entry – Follow me on Twitter @TheAngelForever
1 Bonus Entry per day – Tweet about the giveaway. Be sure to include @TheAngelForever and Yoplait Kids yogurt in the Tweet. Please leave a direct link to your Tweet in a separate comment for each daily entry. Example Tweet (feel free to use): Chance to win from @TheAngelForever "Yoplait Less Sugar, More Fun" prize packs. Two winners (ends 11/15) http://bit.ly/1UnMG2
1 Bonus Entry – Which type of Yoplait Kids would be purchased for your kids and why?
1 Bonus Entry – Add TheAngelForever to your blog roll and leave a separate comment.
1 Bonus Entry – Look around my blog and leave me a comment on another post. Please let me know which post you went to here so you get the bonus entry.
3 Bonus Entries – Write a post on your blog linking to my blog about the Yoplait Kids yogurt. Be sure to leave 3 comments about this to get credit for all of your extra entries.

To enter, please follow the rules above within the comment section. Contest starts today November 5, 2009 and ends at 10:59 EST on November 15, 2009. You do not have to be a blogger to enter, but must leave a valid e-mail address for me to contact you for mailing address once the giveaway is over. I will select the two winners using random.org and contact you via e-mail. You will have 48 hours to claim the prize. If there is no response, another winner will be selected. Open to U.S. residents only because the coupons are not valid outside of the United States (also note the state restrictions listed above)

Disclosure: This review and giveaway was made possible by My Blog Spark and Yoplait. They provided me with the gift pack and coupon to purchase a package of Yoplait Kids yogurt. The opinions of this review were mine and I received no other compensation.

Categories:
food glorious food giveaway jsl nhl photos Product review

Going Bananas for The Wiggles

Posted on November 5, 2009 11:49 am by TheAngelForever

For over a month, we have been telling the boys that we are going to see The Wiggles soon. That day finally arrived. NHL understood what we were talking about. He is a pro and has seen The Wiggles twice before this. JSL had no idea. This was his first Wiggles live experience (Six Flags does not count). He probably figured we were taking him to watch a DVD in a new location.

When we arrived at the venue, we bought the program for the show. We really did not need shirts, we have tons of DVDs/CDs, and can get the stuffed toys from Wiggles World at Six Flags if we need/want them. The boys were thrilled with this. While the little guy looked around the theater, NHL and I browsed through the program. Then JSL saw it and well, it was his from this point on.

The theater filled up pretty nicely. Of course before the show, TechyDad and I joked that tons of sick kids would probably be there to spread things like the flu and more. Sure enough, a group sat next to me. As I was feeding JSL a snack I heard her on the cell phone telling someone that her child had been sent home from daycare. Why? Oh, because the child had a fever. The best part – several other kids in the facility had already tested positive for H1N1. GRRR!

About 20 minutes before the show, they put on a DVD that was advertising The Wiggles and their affiliation with Sprout.

The sad part is, anyone in our area that has Time Warner Cable does not receive Sprout – like us. JSL was so thrilled. When it was over he was upset. We tried to explain that this was not the show and The Wiggles were really coming. They played this video one more time and then the show started soon after.

JSL sat on my lap so he could see over the railing near our seats. His body stopped cold in it’s tracks the second he saw Jeff come onto the stage. Of course, this was nothing. Each time a new Wiggle arrived onto the stage he grabbed my hand and just kept staring and the smile got bigger and bigger!

The part that really got him was when the Big Red Car came onto the stage.

While JSL took it all in and watched The Wiggles, big brother NHL was up dancing and singing the entire concert.

He had a fabulous time watching this very different Wiggles show. At the end of the night, as we were walking to the car, I asked NHL which was his favorite Wiggles show. He said this one since he did not remember the others too much and then complained. Why was he complaining – the poor kid had no voice from singing along with The Wiggles for an hour and a half!

TechyDad and I both loved the show. Not only was it wonderful watching the boys as they enjoyed the show, we thought it was a great production. The Wiggles Go Bananas tour was like a Cirque du Soleil and Wiggles production combined. Confused? Not to worry more photos coming soon to explain what I mean. TechyDad took some amazing photos and fun videos that I will share to tell the store. The Wiggles actually encourage their fans to take as many photos and videos as you like – sweet!

Categories:
fun jsl kid talk milestone nhl photos show Uncategorized

Halloween 2009

Posted on November 4, 2009 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Stuck home and not happy to be in the chair.

Luigi with the lame mustache that came with the costume. It covered the mouth so talking was not possible (Hmmmm. . . . )

Fixed the mustache on the fly. Thank you Avon eye liner!

TechyDad wearing his costume from a wedding he was in last Halloween.

Of course, the rain started right when we went out in the neighborhood:

Having fun with Pluto hat and glow bracelets while waiting to give out candy to those that braved the rain.

As a mostly Wordless Wednesday, I just had to put a few filler items in to explain the photos. Thanks to his febrile seizure Thursday, the little guy was not able to get dressed up and go trick-or-treating. He was still celebrating in his own way. Big kid was able to head out to a few houses after being fever free three days after the week long flu battle.