Easter Traditions: Dying Easter Eggs

Our Eater Egg Dying Day

Emma and Analiese are all smiles

Abigail with a rare smile

Abigail and Rob having fun together

Emma pouring carefully

Our Left over dye

Our finished product!

I love Easter eggs.  They are a sure sign that Easter is closer then we think.  The kids had a blast.  Everyone was smiling and getting along and for the first time ever we had a lot of fun doing it.  We used two different dying kits and I would have to say that the PAAS brand really does work the best.  The other brand did not fully dissolve and I was not as pleased with the colors.  Either way we have some great looking eggs this year.  We used the clear wax crayon and made polka dots and designs.  Daddy even made an egg that says Eat Me.  I hope that you all have a great time dying Easter eggs this year.  I would love to see some pictures.

I had wanted to make the Easter eggs from an earlier post but it was a little too hard this time.  The kids just wanted to dig in.  I am not sure that I really want them to attempt the leaf ones.  I would try on my own but how many hard boiled eggs does one family need?  I think that 18 is more then enough for this family.  I hate hard boiled eggs as does Rob.  Emma will only eat the middle and Analiese just makes a mess with them..  I do not want Abigail eating them all on her own!

Becca

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Easter Kids Crafts

It is Easter time and with Easter comes Spring break.  Spring break means that the kids are home and need something to do.  I have been researching crafts all day to find just the right ones.  I have compiled a list with the links of crafts we are intending to try.

1. Fancy Feathered Friends: These are little chicks made out of egg cartons and eggs.  They are super cute.   They will act as super cute decorations on Easter around the house.
2. Nesting Instinct:  This is a cute birds nest which seems like it will be super easy to make.  All you need is clay and some sticks.
3. Easter Pins:  These will be really cute for grandmas on E$aster morning!
4. Leaf Print Eggs: These are so interesting and look so professional.  I cannot wait to give them a try!

These should occupy the first few days of our very long Spring break!  I hope that these look as good to the kids as they did to me.   I would love to hear and see what crafts you all have in mind for the Easter holiday.  I think that it will be a fun way to avoid the boredom bug!

Becca

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National Craft Month

I had not idea that in addition to national disability awareness month it was also national craft month.  I am really starting to think that there is a month for EVERYTHING.  While I do feel that some of these months are important such as Breast Cancer Awareness month and National Disability Awareness Month.  I just think that some just feel silly.  It would seem to me that the craft stores are the ones that began this national craft month!   Who else would have felt that crafts should have their own month?

While I do think that it is silly to have national craft month I am excited about the coupon that JoAnn Fabrics sent to my email!  Crafts  a great way for children and adults to express themselves.  It is a way to learn and have fun.  Crafts are fun and enjoyable.  As so many of you know I love crafts!  I am just not sure that they need their own month!

Either way I am going to take my 30% coupon and stock up on supplies.  Letting them go to waste would be a complete shame.  I am not one to let a bargin get away!

Becca

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Spring Family Fun

Spring is a time to awaken again.  Just as the trees are budding and the flowers are sprouting it is a time for us to be active again.  I tend to stay home in the Winter and am very under motivated.  Now that it is Spring I have been thinking a lot about all of the fun things we do as a family in the Spring months.

• Hiking:  Typically we start hiking in the Spring.  It is a great time to go out and hit the trails with the kids.  I love showing them all of the new life sprouting all around us.  The kids love hiking as well.  It is so fun and exciting and it is good for them.
• Letterboxing: Letterboxing is a fun adventure that the entire family can enjoy.  We went a few times last Summer and the kids LOVED it.  It was like a treasure hunt.  I know that there are many different letterboxes all over the world.  We visit letterboxing.org for box locations.
• Gardening:  Last spring was the first time that we had a garden and the kids were really into it.  They loved watching all of our plants grow into veggies.  It was something that we could spend about 15 minutes an evening.  It was a nice time that we had with the kids weeding and watering the garden.  The kids each had a basket to place their ripe treasures.
• Spring Clean Up:  This is the best.  It is when we rake all of the dead grass away, much the garden and prepare for the summer months.  We get all of our Spring out.  It should be fun!

I would love to hear all of the fun things that you do with your families in the Spring.  I think that this year it is important that our family keep Spring family fun lo in cost.  I know that with the economy we have tightened our belts some.  I also know that we are not alone!

Becca

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Is My Baby Blind??? Part V

So the appointment was made for a week later to go and see the neuro-opthomologist.  My mother in law was taking me this time.  Again my mind was much too blurred to actually drive in a lot of traffic.  I had a little shred of light lit in my heart and was feeling just a tiny bit better.  I was trying so hard to remain optimistic!  I had to for my sake.  If I let all of these things get me down I would have quit a long time ago!

On a little side note I have to tell you that it is no joke going to a neuro-opthomologist.  They are VERY specialized.  When the other doctor’s office was making the appointment, they warned me to check that my insurance would cover it.  When I called my insurance company they told me there were only 2 doctor’s within 200 miles of my house in this specialty.   It was the doctor whom they had already made an appointment with or one in New York City.    I live within and hour of  “the city” so this is BIG!

So anyway, we are off to this appointment and arrive a little early which is what I like to do when I am stressed.  I think that every ten minutes this doctor was scheduled to see about 4 people.  He was running very behind as anyone would with this type of schedule.  I was so anxious sitting there in a cold and uninviting office.  There was no rug on the floors.  The chair was not comfortable.  No matter how nice you were to the staff they were down right nasty!  I felt like yelling at them.  I felt like saying, “don’t you know that I am here because my 4 month old baby cannot see?  Where is your compassion?”  I did not yell though.  It is not what I do.  I seethe inside instead!

After about an hour and a half we were called in.  At this point I had convinced myself that the baby was seeing a little more now.  I felt silly being there.  Trust me there was still something going on.  I was holding onto my mom dreams again.  I know we all have them!  We have to to make it through most days!

After he examined her he had said that Analiese had a visual maturation delay.  I looked at him like he had 6 heads.  I had no idea what this meant.  I was lost!  I guess he could tell because he went on to describe it to me.  The mylon sheathing on her optic nerve had not developed fully.  Over the next few months it should continue to develop.  Right there I was thinking, “is he saying what I think he is?  Will she be able to see?”  I was jumping out of my skin trying so hard to listen and calm my thoughts.  He then went on to tell me that by six months her vision should come in.  He said we did not need to go back unless it doesn’t happen.

After this rather quick diagnosis my mother in law started asking questions.  The most profound one was how common is this.  His words are words that I will never forget.  He told her, “We see three or four of these a year so it is pretty common!”  Was he kidding?  He is the only doctor in this specialty in the entire 200 mile radius and this is common?  His idea of common were jaded!

In the end Analiese’s vision came in slowly.  Now at almost two she can see wonderfully!  I thank God each and every day for this!  I am not sure that I could have handled another disability in my life at the time.   Especially not one that would have been so life changing for all of us!

Becca

My Emma is Sick!!

So after all of the flu hype around here recently, Emma is sick.  I just cannot believe it.  She developed a fever last night.  I am just so worried about it!  I know in my head that I am being silly but really I am worried.  I wanted to sit in bed with her all night and make sure that she was OK.  I wanted to tell her I loved her 1000000000 times just in case something terrible happened.

Emma has had a flu shot and I am sure that it is something else like an ear infection.  All I know is when her temperature read 102.4 I was worried.  I was scared.  I prayed.  Yes I know that it seems silly but I guess that I am still shaken a little by the entire thing!  I just want my baby to be alright.  When ever Emma gets sick she does it right.  She gets a high fever and cannot function.  I think that in part this is due to the cerbral palsy.  Her muscles just do not seem to be able to do anything.

I still pray that my baby Emma will be alright with this whole thing.  I cannot bring her to the doctor because it is Sunday.  Poor Emma is missing her first Saint Patrick’s Day parade today.  She was suposed to march in honor of the young girl who died.  Some Girl Scouts have chosen to march in memory of her but I guess we will miss it and stay home sick!

Becca

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You Want Me to Put that Where?

OK I know… it is not what you are thinking.  It is so much cleaner and better then what you are thinking.  This is a G rated site you know.

About a month ago my mother in law had advised me to put Vicks Vapor rub on little Analiese’s feet.  I had though that she was nuts!  Why would I put Vick’s on my babies feet?  So the next day my mother in law emails me an article on how putting vicks on a babies feet is actually better for the baby then putting it on their chest.  I laughed and forwarded it all of my friends.  I was thinking that they would also find the whole thing quite funny!

A few days later a saw one of the friends that I had emailed the article to in the Mall.  She was so happy and excited.  She had told me that her daughter had been sick with a cough for about a week.  She had said that the poor baby had not even been able to sleep laying down so my friend had been holding he all night long!   Then she went on to tell me something quite shocking.  She tried the Vick’s on the feet solution out of sheer desperation and IT WORKED!  She was thanking me profusely.  I had to come clean and let her know that it was my mother in law who had figured it all out!

I have not had a sick child since my mother in law mentioned the Vicks on the feet trick.  I am anxious to try it on someone… Darn that flu shot! I would love to hear who out there has tried it.

Becca

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The Fine Art of Moving

Step By Step DYI Moving:

Alright so now that I know I am moving I am completely overwhelmed!  I used to really love moving.  It was always an adventure and something new.  This time is a little different.  Because we have moved the last 2 times with a moving company for various jobs for my husband I think that perhaps I have forgotten how to move.  This coupled with the fact thatthere are five of us now with double the things.  Let’s not even talk about the fact that my foot is still in bad shape from when I broke it this summer!  So this is what I am going to do in order to make all of this happen in two and a half weeks.  Please let me know if you think something esle would work better!  I need all of the help I can get!

1. Take a deep breathe.  I think that this will help a lot.  Every time I start to feel overwhelmed I think I will close my eyes and take a deep breath.
2. Access what I have.  Unlike the moving company I do not have to write it all down but I think it is good to take a hard look at what I need and what can go!
3. Clear out a spot.  I am thinking that I will clear out the downstairs hallway.  This will mean that nothing will have to go up or down the stairs.
4. Pack a room every two days.  I am hoping that this is realistic.  I guess in a way it has to be right?
5. Assure that when I go through everything I throw some things out.  Did I say SOME things… I mean lots of things.
6. As I pack each thing I am going to make sure that it is getting packed in the right room.  You know what I mean… I will not pack the kids toys in the kitchen box.  Things will be packed in the room in which they belong.
7. Breathe again… Just thinking about it is stressful.
8. Sell anything that can be reused on craigslist.

This is what I have so far.  Any additional thoughts would be appreciated.  I, again, need all the help I can get!

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Google honors Dr. Seuss

Dr. Seuss Celebrates his 105th Birthday and Lives on as an American Icon:

I just have to say really quickly that Google made me smile today.  Their tribute to the late Dr. Seuss was so cute!  The kids were very interested in it and excited to know more.  School was canceled today due to snow and we learned a little bit about Dr. Seuss.  Did you know that he was born on this day in 1904.   We even found some coloring pages and fun stuff to do with our day!  Emma is worried that tomorrow will not be Dr. Seuss day in school.  I assured her that it will be.  Who would forget to celebrate Dr. Seuss?

As for us this evening I think that we will be reading a few of my all time favorites.  Emma has requested “Green Eggs and Ham” and Abigail has requested “The Cat in the Hat” and “The Cat Comes Back”.  Either way I am off to read.  I think we will all snuggle in Abigail’s bed and enjoy our reading!  Thanks to Dr. Seuss for providing a whole new holiday!

Becca

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Moving

Last week we found the perfect house.  It is a typical old house with hardwood floors, a large livingroom and 4 bedrooms.  Right away we took it.  It was a no brainer.  For the same amount of money that we pay now we are getting so much more.

The first thing that made it a huge no brainer is that there are four… yes I said four bedrooms!  Right now we have two and for the 5 of us it is a tight squeeze.  The girls are so excited that they were able to go to the house today and pick their rooms.  Abigail picked the room leading to the attic.  Rob was against it at first but has given in.  He had thought that she would be scared but she is more then excited.  She wants to have a spot in the attic to write.  She is a lot like her mom in that she loves to write, tell tales and imagine.  She is super excited that she has gotten the room she wanted.

Emma is excited also.  She and Analiese may still share a room although Emma is unsure.  She hates when Analiese cries and wakes her up in the morning.  I think that them sharing still will be the way it turns out.  This will allow a play room.  I am siked about this.  A play room will mean that the toys have a home other then their rooms where they get messed up!

I am super excited about a bunch of things.   Rob and I will have a door again!  I did not think that it would be bad not having a door but I am really excited to be getting one again.  I also have a small area to make an office, a dining room and a fireplace.  Oh and the best part is that we have a huge front porch.

I led a tour to all of our family members today.  They all really loved it.  I think that it is going to be so great!  The kids already had  a blast in our new backyard and Abigail even mentioned that she found the perfect tree (she like to climb trees).  I think we are going to be VERY happy in our new home!

Becca

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