3/28/10: Breakfast with the Easter Bunny

Today we went out and had fun at breakfast with the Easter Bunny at the Shawsheen HS as we do each year. The kids had fun eating, making crafts, having their face painted, doing an Easter Egg Hunt, and most of all seeing the Easter Bunny. We even got to see 3 of our teammates from the Green Goblins soccer team.

Showing off their eggs.

The family shot.

Yippee!
So much fun!

3/22/10: Live Like We're Dying

The song "Live Like We're Dying" by Kris Allen seems to constantly be playing on the radio and it got me thinking. Recently I have received a lot of bad news from friends. Of course I won't publish any details, but you know who you are and you are in my thoughts. It has made me think a lot about all the things I want to do and things I say I will do but never get the time to do.

It is so true that there really aren't enough hours in the day to work, spend time with the kids, spend time with your significant other, clean, do laundry, cook, eat, sleep, etc. As a Mom I am very well aware of this. The laundry is never done, the floors are never clear of toys and the dust comes back so quickly. But when we are gone these are not the things we will be remembered for, it will be how much we loved and the time we spent with the ones we cared about.

Some questions to ask:

Do we really take the time to tell people we love them or even that we are thinking about them? Have we become so technology driven that we rather e-mail or text a friend instead of picking up the phone or meeting them for coffee. Do we prioritize our life in the right way all the time? Do we get so caught up in the day to day that we forget sometimes about the big picture and how blessed we truly are?

A quote from the song that I love:

"We only got 86,400 seconds in a day to

Turn it all around or to throw it all away

We gotta tell them that we love them

While we got the chance to say

Gotta live like we're dying"

Let's take this to heart a bit. Call a relative, meet up with a dear friend, or just spend more time talking instead of texting, e-mailing, etc. We are all a victim to it. I know I am.

Sometimes even take the time to see things through your children's innocent eyes. My wonderful son the other day decided we should take plastic eggs to my Aunt's grave so she could celebrate Easter. What a wonderful thing, of course we took the time and went and did this.

Another quote:

"So if your life flashed before you,

What would you wish you would've done?"

Comment and let me know.

3/20/10: Spring has Sprung!

Well after a long winter and recently a lot of rain we finally got a nice day. It was 70 degrees! Of course we went out and enjoyed it at the park. Here are the kids having fun. It was 20 degrees colder today, but hopefully soon we will be getting more nice days than yucky days. Bring on Spring!

3/18/10: Hoppity Hop

Happy Easter early everyone. The kids loved going to see the Easter Bunny. Lauren thought the Bunny was very cute.

Hanging out by the Purple Topiary (Evan learned a new word today).

Here is our yearly card.

Here is a little video of the kids talking to the Easter Bunny. I was a little slow starting the video camera, they had already been talking to him for a while.

Here is another one when they first went up to him.

3/17/10: Perpetual Motion Fun

We love to try out playspaces. When I got the newsletter from Family Resource Network which included a sign up for going to Perpetual Motion Playspace in Lowell for 2 hours for free I jumped at the chance. Tonight we went. When we pulled in I was a little nervous as it did not look like the best place to go. As we went up the stairs even Evan made the comment that the stairs were old. I was a little leery, but again it was free. Typically it is $9.50 per kid and $12.50 for 6 and up that can go in both play areas.

With all the yucky rainy weather we have been having the kids were very excited to be able to go on the swings.

Of course Evan loves anything that involves Trains.

Lauren having fun.
Evan in the ball pit. Lauren enjoyed this area. She kept climbing up and going down the slide in to the balls.

A view of the Train.

The rest of the train. There was also a sandbox but even my kids didn't want to go in with just their socks and get too dirty.

On the other side is the 6 and up area with many things to climb and navigate. And this was the eating area. They had a concession stand. We got a free slice of pizza and juice. The pizza in my opinion was not very good and the kids didn't really like it either. Prices seemed reasonable.

Overall we had a good time. Here is a short virtual tour I took with my Flip:

3/9/10: Activity Mom

As I was at Gymnastics last night I got talking to another Mom there (she has two the same age gap as mine just a year younger), she asked me about Swim. I went on to describe the levels at the Y of Pike, Eel, Ray, and then went on to ask me about T-ball. We had also done that so I explained what the league was like. Then we got talking about Ice Skating, Soccer, Dance, etc. and she turned to me and said so you are an "Activity Mom". Hmmm, I had never been labeled like this but as I thought I about it maybe she is right. Is this a bad thing? I don't think so as long as they enjoy it that is all that counts. I have the type of kids that ask every night is tonight Gymnastics? All excited to go.

I love for the kids to try out many things and constantly scour the internet for Library activities (tonight we are going to a Movie at one) and other things going on. I love the smile on their face as they accomplish something. I am the Mom pressed up against the glass watching everything the kids do. For example Lauren had a huge grin on her face the other day as she swam all by herself with the teacher and no Mommy. Evan is so proud when he skates across the ice and gives me a thumbs up. I started the kids in activities around 1. So far Evan has done Gymboree classes, Soccer, T-ball, Ice Skating, Swim, Gymnastics and I was considering Karate. Lauren has done Gymboree classes, Gym and Swim, Dance, Gymnastics and Swim. They also have gone to many Music Times at the local libraries. To me it is all worth it. I know some people disagree but different strokes for different folks, it is what makes the world go round.

Maybe this is learned as I also grew up in a house with an "Activity Mom". I tried everything as a child. What my Mom would soon find out is that I only stuck with things that came naturally to me. This ended up being Baton and Dance. In both I was one of the 5 featured twirlers/dancers competing in competitions and taking private lessons in both. Eventually I taught Dance at the age of 12 and would continue through college where I started a Dance club for Gym Credit. We spent many weekends at competitions and every Saturday in Rhode Island for my coach's lessons with me for 3 hours. I even had my dresses for modeling designed by my Mom and made by a dressmaker. I also did swimming, gymnastics, ice skating, karate, etc. I guess this is just what I am used to.

Here are some posts about the classes and Sports posts we have taken.

Comment and let me know if you are an Activity Mom?

3/4/10: Evan is registered for Kindergarten!

I can hardly believe it. My little baby boy is going to be 5 and he is starting Kindergarten in only 6 short months! Where has time gone? Here we are going to his new school to register. It feels like just yesterday he started pre-school. Sniff, sniff.

Come on it is this way.

3/3/10: Donate for a good cause

UPDATE that Evan raised $235.00. Thank you to everyone who donated.

Evan is doing a Trike-A-Thon fund raiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. I am extremely excited about this event as his pre-school class will be learning about bike safety, raising money for kids who really need it and learning about giving in a selfless way. Also from talking to St. Jude Hospital I found out they are treating a child in Middlesex County in which we live.

Evan would love if you could donate. Your donation enables St. Jude to continue its mission of finding cures and saving children with cancer and other catastrophic childhood diseases. St. Jude is the only pediatric cancer research center where families never pay for treatment not covered by insurance and no child is denied treatment because of the family’s inability to pay.

If you would like to donate please let me know by commenting here or e-mailing me what amount Evan can count on you for and I will put it down and collect tax-deductible checks made out to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital by the event on March 17th.

More info about the Trike-A-Thon:
www.stjude.org/trike

Trike-A-Thon is a fun, week-long curriculum and fundraising program for daycare centers or pre-schools that teaches children riding-toy safety lessons through a series of interactive stories. Children receive these lessons from special St. Jude friends, Bikewell Bear® and Pedals the Bunny®, while raising money for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. At the end of the Trike-A-Thon week, students bring their trikes or riding-toys to school and practice the safety lessons they have learned.

2/28/10: Promoted to Tot 2

Evan did so well in Ice Skating. We are so proud of him. He was so excited to receive his ribbon for Passing Tot 1 and will be moving to Tot 2 next session.

Here he is being evaluated in class. He is able to go across the ice, touch his toes, stand up on his own, march on the ice, jump, and some other random things that I don't know the real names for.

Great Job!