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May the 4th and Beyond

Posted on May 2, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Celebrate May the 4th You Will

Yes, my inner Yoda can not wait until Sunday. My family will be celebrating May the 4th, otherwise known as Star Wars Day. The boys are so into all things Star Wars, that it just seemed natural to use lightsabers as the focus of a new post on the Bedtime Math blog.

Over on Bedtime Math I wrote about how to Train Your Jedi with Star Wars Math. We had an amazing time making the lightsabers and the kids have used them almost every day. Even TechyDad had a blast with them and shared how we made them on his blog. On Sunday, we plan to celebrate by giving the boys something special for this geeky holiday.

If Star Wars is not your thing (*gasp*), there are plenty of other fun items to check out on the Bedtime Math blog. Some of the latest include:

These are just some of the latest and more always being posted, so please stop by and say hello to all of us. If you try one of our activities, be sure to take some photos and let us know. Oh and if you are interested in winning copies of the Bedtime Math books, you can enter their Spring Fling Instant Win Sweepstakes on Facebook. I also hope to see you next week on May 8 for the Bedtime Math Twitter Party. As one of their bloggers, I will be Tweeting along with you for a fun evening.

Disclosure: I am a freelance blogger for Bedtime Math. While I am paid for those posts, I share here because I love that Bedtime Math encourages families to find math in the everyday activities that you already do.

Categories:
arts and crafts Educational My Other Projects

Tuesday Tales – Motherhood by JC Little

Posted on April 29, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Motherhood is filled with a complex series of emotions that change and grow along with your children. People are often asked to describe what motherhood means to them. I am here to say that I think this is a trick question. Views and feelings of being a mother are in constant motion. Depending on the day of the week, the milestone in front of you, or the special hug from your kiddo – it is never the same. Why am I being so philosophical? Well, I blame it on JC Little and her latest book Motherhood (she sent me the Kindle version to check out).

Yes, The Animated Woman has birthed her second book and it is one that will tug at your heart and make you stop and think.

The beautiful illustrations tell the story of a mother’s growing love as she watches a piece of her heart grow up before her eyes. The pride and joy is visible in the illustrations and even though there are no words on the pages, it is a powerful story. What’s wonderful is you can read this book to your children and tell them the story that needs to be told on any given evening where they need a little extra motherly love. I believe this book would be a great gift for a mother-to-be, or even a veteran mom who has children ready to leave the nest. The timing is also nice with Mother’s Day just around the corner.

Motherhood is available for Kindle through Amazon. If you are more of a traditional book fan, you can purchase the softcover book from CreateSpace or from Amazon. Oh and if you are curious about JC’s first book The LAST Snowman, I wrote a review about it and shared a craft that goes along with it.

Are you a fan of JC Little – AKA The Animated Woman? If not run on over and check out her blog. As always, Tuesday Tales is all about sharing our love of books. Please let me know what you have read recently. Be sure to link up to your book posts in the comments below. Include something you read on your own, with a child, or someone else.

Disclosure: As noted above, I received an eBook copy of this book from JC Little to review. No other compensation was received and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
bloggy friends books Tuesday Tales

Capturing Natural Beauty on the Go

Posted on April 28, 2014 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

The classic saying states that you need to stop and smell the roses. How many of us can genuinely say that we do this? My guess is not many because of the hustle and bustle that exists in society. These days, many of us are often guilty of having our faces stuck behind a cell phone or other device. I have to admit that I am often guilty of this. During the warmer months, I enjoy heading outside with the boys. I have my smartphone with me, but try not to be as connected. Of course, my phone is often the camera that I have with me. Right before JSL’s surgery, a surprise arrived for me. Thanks to being a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I was sent the new Samsung Galaxy S5. The timing was amazing as the spring flowers are starting to pop up all over the place.

It really is hard not to stop when walking around to take in the beauty of the flowers. After this past winter, many of us likely wondered if we would ever see the lawn under all of the snow and ice. Thank goodness, Mother Nature takes the time to remind us of the beauty that is possible. Sometimes, we have to be patient waiting for the colors to emerge.

While waiting, I often spend time looking at Papa’s beautiful indoor plants that are blooming. It is hard not to stop and take a photo. What I was not expecting was being able to capture the shimmer on the Orchids and the texture on the other beauties.

Each day I try to take some time to look around and appreciate the flowers, the blue sky, and the special moments with my family. What are your favorite items to stop and take a photo of during the spring time?

Disclosure: As a member of the Verizon Lifestyle Bloggers, I receive devices like the Samsung Galaxy S5 to test out and share ways that I use it in my life (can not wait to explore this gorgeous phone). I am a long time Verizon customer, and all opinions are my own.

Categories:
flowers and plants me moments Technology

Monstrous Help to Feel Better

Posted on April 23, 2014 5:47 pm by TheAngelForever

One tired little boy (and his monsters), trying to feel better after surgery is the focus of my mostly Wordless Wednesday.

Be sure to stop by Focused on the Magic by clicking on the button above to join in the Disney magic this week.

Categories:
Disney sick kid

Surgery Day and Beyond

Posted on April 22, 2014 3:01 pm by TheAngelForever

Recently, I wrote about telling your child that they will be having surgery. While JSL cried after I told him, he did really the week before his surgery. There seemed to be enough distractions that kept his mind busy. On the morning of his surgery, we had him pick out some toys and a stuffed friend to bring with him. As we checked into the hospital, JSL and his friend George Jr. were given ID bands to wear to the surgical waiting area.

After a short time, they called us to go back to the pre-op area where JSL was weighed and measured for anesthesia. Then the nurse brought him over to the area where he would be staying until it was time to go back for his surgery. I have to say, this was probably the hardest part for him. It was bright, there were a lot of people waiting in many areas, and the reality started to sink in. Suddenly, he had a lot of questions about anything and everything.

The ENT and anesthesiologist also came to visit and talk to us. It was around this time that he started to cry. Something that the anesthesiologist said really bothered him. She was probably the only person that I was not a fan of because her bedside manner with children was clearly non-existent.

Next, JSL was given a hospital gown to put on. The nurse also handed him a pile of stickers for being a brave kiddo when it was time to take his medicine. He was not a fan of the Versed and had a hard time swallowing all of it without something to drink.

There is something magical about the medicine that they give kids before surgery. In a short period of time, JSL did not have a worry in the world. He was playing with his Jedi Force characters one moment and then, he asked to curl up because he was tired.

The timing was beautiful because that is right around the time that the OR nurse and NA came to wheel him away. He did not cry and barely looked up when we told him he was a brave boy and that we loved him.

TechyDad and I then went back to the surgical waiting room. The ENT told us that the three procedures would probably take 30-45 minutes from start to finish. He would come out to see us as soon as he was finished. We each made a few phone calls and let family know that he was in surgery and then we were walking into a room to talk to the doctor.

Everything went very well. One part of the surgery surprised the doctor a little bit, so some stitches were required. He explained restrictions and a few other items to us and said they would call us as soon as JSL woke up so we could see him. About 15-20 minutes later we walked into see JSL half asleep with a popsicle in his hand.

A short time later, JSL was moved into a small room of his own. He would stay here until discharged. The nurse was fantastic and helped us to get water, some more pain medicine (his throat was hurting him from the tubes), and tried to get him to eat a slushy. We tried to use his tablet as a distraction to help while the additional medication started to work.

Five hours from the time we arrived, we were heading home with instructions. We knew that the next few days would be a challenge, but I think we were a bit naïve. More about this coming soon.

To those who have had children home post-op, how do you keep their spirits up while they desperately want to play outside and do things that are not permitted?