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Making Dream Pillows

Posted on August 9, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

It is no surprise that I love our library. I write about them, the amazing librarians, and the programs they schedule often. Last year, I fell in love with one particular day when the Tang Museum came to make Story Towers inspired by the artwork of Josh Dorman. This year, I knew that we HAD to head to the afternoon when Tang was again reaching out to the local libraries to do projects.

They started off talking to the kids about three dimensional art and what it means. Then they showed a poster of one of Oliver Herring’s sculptures. What I didn’t realize until I went to their website at home is that the Me US Them, Queen Size Bed with Coat is huge. I knew they said it would take up the space the kids were sitting in. It is actually a sculpture made of Knit silver Mylar and 12 x 57 x 88 inches. As a knitter, I am intrigued to learn more about this type of sculpture. They showed this to the kids and asked them what they saw. Many mentioned a pillow, shining objects, and more. Then they saw another piece before it was time to learn about their projects.

Since the theme of New York State Libraries summer program is Dream Big READ, the Tang Museum decided to make Dream Pillows. As you can see above, the supplies needed were on the table for the kids. Foam pieces, scissors, bubble wrap, double sided tape, and their imagination. The only additional item needed was some colored tape to make a frame around their art when the top layer of bubble wrap was added. Before the kids were sent to the table to be creative, they were shown a few examples. Here are two that I took photos of to share.

As soon as NHL and JSL sat down, they seemed to have an idea and got started. While I was chatting with a friend who came in to surprise me, the women from the Tang Museum helped the boys to find items that they needed (thank you). By the time I arrived, they were already taking shape.

NHL decided to make a scene from Back to the Future (he’s been watching those with TechyDad lately). JSL opted to make a fun robot. Here are the boys holding their finished dream pillows.

Thank you again to our wonderful library and the Tang Museum for bringing more art education into the lives of children in our community. My boys have been asking to visit the museum soon and I hope to be able to do that. I would love to know, have your children done craft projects while learning about a new artist or style of art work? Art mixed with education is a powerful tool and I would love to know. Please share in the comments below.

Categories:
arts and crafts Educational fun jsl local event looking back nhl photos summer

A Fondue Filled Date

Posted on August 2, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Melted, gooey, delicious cheese with items to dip in it. I do believe there are days that I have dreamed about what it would be like to finally head to The Melting Pot. I no longer need to think about it since we went there earlier this week for an early birthday dinner for TechyDad.

We have always been curious and wanted to head there for a nice romantic dinner, but never done it. Thanks to a great Living Social deal I snagged, I asked my parents to watch the kids so we could try this new fondue experience. When we arrived, we were seated in what we later were told is the “Lovers Lane” table. It was secluded, private, and nice to be able to take photos without glaring eyes. As The Melting Pot Twitter account knows, we had fun sending Instagrams during our meal. Kuddos to their social media team for A+ interaction with people as well.

Our server Kim came to our table quickly to explain some options to us. We had originally thought we would simply do a cheese starter and then a dessert. She explained that we could share one of the vegetarian entrees as well since we were talking about ordering salads. We talked it over and thought it was a nice idea to splurge since it was a special occasion.

To begin, we selected the Spinach Artichoke Cheese Fondue. Here’s the description: “Rich Fontina and Butterkäse cheeses blend perfectly with spinach, artichoke hearts
and garlic.” All of the cheese fondue options are served with rustic artisan breads, fresh vegetables (carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower), some tortilla chips, and Granny Smith apples. When Kim arrived at our table she had all of the ingredients and made the deliciousness right in front of our eyes.

There are few words to describe how delicious this was. I think the picture may help to explain it a little more than I can.

Our Caesar Salad to share arrived next. You may think it was just a Caesar Salad. You would be very wrong. The added bonus of Parmesan-encrusted pine nuts were an amazing touch.

Next, it was time to learn something new. The fondue pot was delivered to our table to get ready. Inside was our selected entrée cooking style. TechyDad and I opted for the Court Bouillon which was a vegetable broth hand-seasoned with herbs and spices. This sat for a while filling our little area with an amazing aroma.

When Kim arrived back at our table, she had a lot of items to show us. First was our entrée plate. We selected The Vegetarian which is: “A selection of fresh vegetables including edamame or onion rings, artichoke hearts, Portobello mushrooms and asparagus served with Thai peanut-marinated tofu, spinach artichoke ravioli and our Big Night Out pasta.”

In addition to this, we were given a bowl of vegetables and potatoes, along with all of the entrée sauces to try.

Kim explained how long to let everything cook in the fondue pot before it would be ready to eat. She also recommended making our own stuffed mushroom caps by cooking up the mushrooms and putting the Green Goddess Sauce (a blend of cream cheese, sour cream, onions, chives and parsley) into them. That was beyond melt in your mouth amazing.

I wish we had taken more photos of the cooked tofu and other vegetables from the first plate, but well we were too busy enjoying our meal. Before we knew it, we had to make a selection from the dessert menu. Since we were celebrating TechyDad’s birthday, it seemed like the right thing to do.

The birthday boy selected the Flaming Turtle. Please prepare yourself for this description: “We consider it Fondue Candy. It’s an irresistible combination of milk chocolate, caramel and candied pecans flambéed tableside.” All of the chocolate fondues are served with a variety of dippers that include fresh strawberries, bananas, cheesecake, Rice Krispy treats, marshmallows, pound cake, and brownies. Are you drooling yet? If not here is what was delivered to our table with a little surprise from Kim for TechyDad’s birthday.

Our meal was delicious and we had an amazing date night out. I think this is a fantastic location for parents to head for a splurge – it is well worth it. Of course, now I am wondering why we have never tried our fondue set that we received years ago. I have a funny feeling it may be coming out of hibernation soon. First up – making vegetables in some broth ….and then perhaps some cheese and chocolate.

Have you ever been to a fondue restaurant? What is your favorite item to use for a dip or dip into it?

Categories:
birthday food glorious food fun Local Business photos TechyDad yummy

Brothers Gone Goofy

Posted on August 1, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Each time you walk up to a PhotoPass photographer, the experience is different. You never know if they will be serious, silly, or sentimental. As we walked from the front of Epcot back to our resort for the final time, we stopped in the front for some pictures. The photographer did some with JSL and I as we were waiting for TechyDad and NHL to arrive. Then, he kept swapping people out when we were all there. The boys loved how silly he was. When I was editing them for our CD, I thought their pose and the border were simply perfect for each other.

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

Categories:
brothers Disney fun laughs looking back travel vacation

The New Face of Social Gaming – Tail Towns

Posted on July 31, 2012 10:16 pm by TheAngelForever

When you log onto your Facebook account what do you see? Do you notice friends and colleagues involved in games with icons that catch your eye and wonder what they are? I know that when I log onto my Facebook page I see a lot of this. Over the years, it has changed quite a bit. When I started, there were games to garden and tend to plants. Then, strategy games with words became very popular.

These days social gaming has grown in leaps and bounds. According to a 2011 Popcap Games Social Gaming Research (September 2011), the numbers show a major trend where people are playing more often and for longer periods of time. Popcap’s study showed dramatic changed in one calendar year. Those who play several times a day went from 36% to 44%. The number of people that place over six hours per week more than doubled from 7% to 15%. With the increase of mobile devices, it is not surprising to see numbers change since people can check in with their friends on the go more and devote down time to gaming when home.

Thanks to Global Influence, I recently heard about a new Facebook game called Tail Towns that intrigued me. It isn’t everyday that you hear about a game that is free, has photo-like graphics, and is filled with drama that likens itself to a juicy soap opera tale. While playing briefly the other day, I uncovered a snafu with some of the characters that meant my poor critter was sent packing from an orchard and had been scolded. No doubt, I will uncover more as I have more time to explore. Yes, Tail Towns allows you to create a getaway where you can customize your home in the country and more.

You can also buy Tail Towns figurines like the one below. When you register to secret code online within your game, you will receive rewards and hidden storylines for your specific character. Yes, this will help to add to the drama of the game and grow the tale that unfolds before your eyes.

For more information, Tail Towns has a blog, they also have a fan page on Facebook, and you can also get a taste of the action by watching this fun video:

The folks at Ganz World would like to help you to get started with your adventure in Tail Towns. One lucky reader will receive a Tail Towns figure from the first series. To enter you must have a Twitter account and Tweet the following:

Describe your ‘dream garden’ or ‘country getaway’ using the HASHTAG #TailTowns.

Once you Tweet, please be sure to come back here and link to your entry Tweet.

Please follow the rules above within the comment section. Giveaway begins July 31, 2012 and ends August 10, 2012 at 10:59 EST. You do not have to be a blogger to enter (you will need a Twitter account), 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 winner 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 US residents only.

Disclosure: I wrote this post as part of a compensated Global Influence campaign. As someone who enjoys social gaming, it was fun to learn more about this dramatic and unique game that continues to intrigue me. Now I hope to find more time to experience more of the fun myself.

Categories:
fun interesting sponsored post

Strange LEGO Groupings

Posted on July 30, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

What does one do when it is raining outside and the kids want to play with Legos? If you were me the other day, you would join in and get creative. My creative juices were not flowing while building a giant house, car, or other structure. I was much more imaginative. I looked at the piles of Lego people. First up was putting them back together again. There were pirates, wizards, aliens, and others that were missing parts. Poor Harry Potter was missing a head and his hair was not on his head. Disturbing scene.

Finally, people were mostly together and it was time to have fun with photos. The first pairing are probably BFFs. Can’t you just see Rubeus Hagrid and Captain Jack Sparrow working together?

Sure, they may mostly hang out getting giant tubs of Butterbeer, but they would be making sure that everyone around them was safe.

Then, Voldemort seemed drawn to the Aliens. I do believe they were plotting something evil. A brave Alien Hunter must have felt that he could take them both on without any backup or ray gun. Perhaps this was because “He Who Must Not Be Named” lost his arm that probably had his wand. Hmmm…

I have a feeling Bellatrix Lestrange may have been looking for Voldy’s arm and wand when she was cornered by another Alien Hunter who was armed.

What did the kids think? Well, after a while they encouraged me. They kept asking me to take the camera back out to take more photos. I have a feeling we may make this into an activity for another rainy day. Perhaps, I will let them use the camera, take photos to capture the story, and then help me make it into a movie like I used when jelly bean taste testing.

So what LEGO figures would you love to have and why?