Aloha Friday | The Angel Forever

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Crayola Crayon Crazy

Posted on October 26, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

I have an admission, I love Crayola crayons. Back to school used to be my favorite time of year. Walking down craft aisles and into stores with boxes and boxes of beautiful new crayons. Even though I am an adult, I still love drawing, coloring, and doodling with crayons. If there was more time in the day, I would have mandated coloring therapy with the kids. It’s fun, something we can all do, and a way to be creative.

Times have changed. Back to school is not the only time of year to get fun new crayons. Earlier this week I was shopping at Target. When I went down the craft aisle, a new display of Crayola Crayons caught my eyes. They were shiny, different, and intriguing. Check some of them out here:

Aren’t they pretty? Since I was in a hurry, I took a few photos to research them when I got back home. There are 12 different flavors, -er I mean types of the Crayola PYO Crayon 8ct that are only available at Target stores. They include:

Born to Rock – Pirate’s Treasure – Over the Rainbow – Metallic Magic – Dinosaur Roar – Mermaid Shimmer – Pink Princess – Cupcake My Day – Neon Dreams – Gliteratti – Rocker Girl – Sports Fan

Although I wanted to buy all of them, I decided to wait. I am going to take the boys back to let them pick out their own choices. If you are interested, you can see them on the Target website here. Crayola did not ask me to post this, I am just a big fan and thought they were fun for kids of all ages.

So my question to you this week:

Which pack of Crayola PYO crayons would you pick first and what would you color with them?

FYI – Three book giveaways are currently going on that would make great gifts. Linnea in Monet’s Garden (ends 10/30), some classic stories from Silver Penny Stories (ends 10/27), and a Spooktacular Book Prize Pack (ends 11/1). Another fun picture book coming on Tuesday Tales.

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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 #226

Categories:
Aloha Friday arts and crafts me moments photos shopping

Election Season Signs

Posted on October 19, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Living in New York state, we are lucky not to be a battle ground for the upcoming presidential election. Thanks to this, the nasty political ads for that race are less frequent. I take that back, perhaps they are more prevalent and I have just tuned them out or just not watching as much television. For those of you living those battleground states, I am SO sorry you have to keep dealing with this on a daily basis.

I promise this is not a political post. My style of writing about election day is nothing really controversial. Basically, similar to my Tuesday Tales post on a book called Vote for Me for kids.

Vote for Me - Election Day picture book

While driving the kids to school, something else made me stop and think. There were few if any campaign signs on lawns in the residential areas. I remember back when most lawns contained signs to support your candidate of choice. Of course around here, we had a lot of Bill Clinton signs. Now I think I can count on one hand the number of signs I have seen for both of the candidates. Even the local candidates are running for office are not as visible. It made me wonder why this is happening. Are campaigns spending less money (don’t laugh), are people less likely to share their political views on their doorstep, or is it something else?

A huge thank you to my friends for assisting me with the photo above. Traci, The View from my Fishbowl, helped me with the fall photo in Ohio. Then I reached out to Cathi, Simple Sojourns, and she took the photo in sunny California.

So my question to you this week:

Have you seen a decrease in political signs in your area? I would love to know what state you are in if you are willing to share. I’m curious if it matters based on location.

FYI – Two giveaways happening for books that would make great gifts. Linnea in Monet’s Garden and some classic stories from Silver Penny Stories.

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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 #225

Categories:
Aloha Friday bloggy friends books looking back photos real world news

Television Time

Posted on October 12, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

I have noticed recently that I am not watching as much television as I used to. For some reason, many of the old shows that I loved for years are not keeping my interest. I guess it is true that tastes change and sometimes storylines just are not ones you want to follow. This happened years ago with ER. I stopped watching ER around the time NHL was born (2007) and missed the last few seasons. Then, Desperate Housewives got too strange for my taste a season or two before it went off the air. Private Practice was a show that I adored, and then it went down a dark path that I just had no patience for.

Now enter Grey’s Anatomy. I had been a faithful fan from the start. Then, there was the end of the season blood bath two years ago. I could not get myself to watch it. The world is full of enough of these real life events that I did not want go down that road with a show. I skipped that episode, but started back up at the end of last year. Then, the last episode of the season happened in the spring. Rather than a psycho gunman going throughout the hospital shooting people, the bloodbath involved a medic copter crashing. Put a fork in me, I was done.

These days, I prefer reading. Books on the Kindle platform allow me to read on the go, while picking the kids up and beyond. Of course, I do have a few shows that I still adore. Two of those are Once Upon a Time and Parenthood. Very different, but enjoyed for multiple reasons.

So my question to you this week:

Have you ever quit a television show that you adored? I would love to know which one and why. Oh and while you are at it, what shows are on your must watch these days?

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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 #224

Categories:
Aloha Friday books me moments television

Steel Magnolias 23 Years Later

Posted on October 5, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Twenty three years ago, a group of women that we probably never pictured together burst onto the movie screen and created a classic film. Enter Sally Field, Dolly Parton, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah, Olympia Dukakis, and Julia Roberts who brought us Steel Magnolias. It was a movie that taught us about true friendship, motherhood, challenges, and more. All of these years later, the movie still holds up.

Lifetime Original Movies has remade Steel Magnolias and it will be premiering this Sunday.

Once again an amazing cast of strong women are playing the characters that we have known for over two decades. The actresses include Queen Latifa, Jill Scott, Alfre Woodard, Adepero Oduye, Phylicia Rashad, and Condola Rashad.

As a Lifetime Mom affiliate, I had the opportunity to get a screener of the movie. The story is the same, the lines practically identical, the acting very powerful. Some items are a little more updated (there is a mention of Facebook), but honestly the only real difference is that it is set in our current time and now there is an all African American group of actors. Since I adored the original, I wanted to see this new version. Would it live up to my expectations or would I hate it? Could I get past recalling Shirley MacLaine playing Ouiser?

Truth be told, I am not entirely sure what I think of the movie. The acting is strong, and the story is identical and scripted words the same. I guess I wish a few inaccuracies had been corrected from the first movie to this new one. Still, I did enjoy seeing new actors showing their interpretation of a classic role. Once again, these beautiful actors (inside and out) show the strength, courage, and compassion needed when being a lifelong friend. Yes, I admit it…I found myself crying with this movie even though I knew all along what was going to happen.

So my question to you this week:

Are you a fan of movie remakes? Let me know why you do or do not like them. I would also love to know if you plan on watching the Lifetime version of Steel Magnolias.

Disclosure: I am a Lifetime Mom affiliate. As a part of this, I was offered a screener DVD of "Steel Magnolias" to view. No compensation was given and the opinions expressed are my own.

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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 #223

Categories:
Aloha Friday looking back me moments Movies television

Baby Dolls for Boys

Posted on September 28, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Rewind to almost six years ago. I was the mother of a three year old little boy and was busy teaching and trying to battle morning sickness. I was pregnant with my second child, waiting to find out if NHL’s sibling was going to be a girl or boy. There were many reasons I wanted to know, but one of them was to buy big brother his own baby to take care of. I wanted the baby to be the same sex as mine. When we found out that we were expecting another little boy, the hunt for a baby boy doll began. We eventually found a baby boy doll that NHL named several times. Eventually, Howie Harry stuck.

Last year, JSL declared that he also wanted a “Howie Harry” baby to take care of. At nursery school, the kids were playing with dolls and he often felt left out there and wanted a baby to take care of. Problem, there were very few boy dolls to find that were reasonably priced. Eventually, NHL offered to loan Howie Harry to JSL. This worked, but only for a short time.

Just before going back to school, JSL started to beg, cry, and say he would do anything for a doll. There was a difference this time. He did not care if the baby was a boy or girl. He simply wanted to be a Daddy to a doll that was his own. We tried to distract this desire, but it was not working. JSL fell in love with a doll that he saw at Toys R Us a few weeks ago. TechyDad and I finally agreed that we would get JSL the baby that he really wanted. It was a very early Chanukah gift, but he has his baby and loves her.

Many may ask why JSL needed a doll since he is a boy. My answer is simple, it meant a lot to him for a very long time. He wanted to take care of something like a Daddy and it does not hurt anyone, so why not?!

My question to you this week:

Do you have any name ideas for JSL’s new baby girl? He is having a hard time naming her. He wanted to name her Howie Harry, but we insisted that was a no-go. Perhaps something you suggest will be one that he adores.

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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 #222