jsl | The Angel Forever

Category Archives jsl

Together Counts for Fall Activities

Posted on October 11, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

We live in a part of the country that is lucky enough to experience all four of the seasons. My favorite really is the fall. The weather is not too cold, hot, or humid like other times of the year. Typically, there is not a lot of snow, we do not need to wear heavy jackets, and usually we can do a lot outside. This year, the weather has not allowed us to get to our favorite family activity for the fall. We love to go apple picking. We are able to explore the orchards together. It is fun to watch the kids running around and picking apples that they proudly snack on. Then, when we get home TechyDad, the kids, and I think about items the make. One of our favorites is to get the apples ready for our own fresh applesauce. Eating it warm out of the crock makes it seem like a special treat.

Since the weather is not cooperating, we probably will skip the apple picking and possibly go to get a pumpkin at a local farm. Then we can bake up the pumpkin seeds to have a tasty snack. Until that time, the kids love to explore the blocks around the house on their scooters. They enjoy collecting colorful leaves, pine cones, and other items that nature has left on the ground. Just the other day, my youngest hopped off of his scooter to save a caterpillar that was in the middle of the sidewalk.

Together Counts is a program for all of us. Their goal is to inspire families to lead healthy and active lives. Energy Balance is key and the main principle with their pledge. This means that the calories that we eat are the ones that we burn. Together Counts brings together more than 200 retailers, food/beverage manufacturers, restaurants, sporting goods stores, insurance companies, non-governmental organizations, and professional sports organizations to get the message across. For additional information, head to the Together Counts website learn more and take their pledge on finding balance and moderation. Families need to get eating and active together while practicing moderation.

For more information and ideas, you can head to the Together Counts Facebook page, look for them on Twitter, and also on Pinterest.

Please be sure to join Together Counts for their Twitter party on 10/17 from 8-9 PM EST using hashtag #TogetherCounts. More information on Resourceful Mommy with details about the prizes.

So have you made the Together Counts pledge yet? If not, what are you waiting for?

It's Me

Disclosure: I wrote this post as part of a compensated Global Influence campaign. As someone who strives to find balance, I love the principles behind Together Counts and am happy to share this with my readers.

Global Influence Network

Categories:
exercise family fun health awareness jsl photos PSA sponsored post

My Viking Family Experience – #DragonsLive

Posted on October 7, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Right now my brain is whirling around and I feel like I am flying. Flying with dragons, of course, so it is a good thing. Thanks to just getting back from an amazing time at the DreamWorks How to Train Your Dragon Live Spectacular at the Times Union Center. TechyDad was contacted by PR from the show and he shared some of the specifics about it recently. After watching the movie with the boys the other day, I was excited to see what the VIP Hero’s Welcome would be all about. As JSL (5) says, it was stupendous!

A huge thank you to the amazing VIP tour gentleman who was stationed outside. He was fantastic chatting with us and answering questions from our boys. He told us about previous cities and more about the upcoming shows throughout North America. After this, we were whisked away into the arena before they opened for the show. We received our Hero’s Welcome badges, bags, and posters. Then, we were taken to an area to get dressed like Vikings for a family photo.

The crew helping to dress our Viking family was fantastic. We never told Papa about this part and he played along and had fun. Before long, the five of us were sporting chic Viking styles for our photo shoot.

We were not able to get a photo with our camera dressed up, but we took a quick picture of the one they gave us. Yes, I present you with my Viking family in their finest attire and all of their weapons and shields.

Although it took some time to get this done, it was a worthwhile experience. Seeing the smiles on the kids faces and knowing that memories were being made was priceless. After we returned our Viking items to the bins, it was time to wait for the official Hero’s Welcome. We went a small area with seats to wait and meet Hiccup and Astrid who are some of the stars from the show.

This was just the start of an amazing adventure with the Vikings and Dragons. More coming soon about the show and the Dragons 101 session after the performance. The session after was a geeks dream come true and the VIP team member from this part was also super (wish I could recall his name from the 11:00 am show). If you are in the Capital District and have a chance to see the show before it leaves town, I highly recommend it. It will also be touring to many other cities in the United States and Canada in the months ahead.

If you are interested in attending a show, you can find tour dates and tickets by going to http://www.dreamworksdragonslive.com/tickets.php. You can also save 25% off the cost of select seats by using the promo code "MOM". Oh and do not forget to think about the VIP packages that you can add on for your family. All of the items seen above were thanks to that.

Disclaimer: TechyDad received tickets and the VIP package to the How to Train Your Dragon Live Spectacular for our family. No other compensation was given and all of the enthusiastic Tweets, Instagrams, and posts that follow are 100% my own opinion of the show.

Categories:
family fun jsl laughs local event nhl photos show TechyDad

Kindergarten Learning

Posted on October 6, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Dear JSL,

You have been a kindergarten kid for just about a month now. Mornings are still a bit rough. You say you are nervous and do not want to leave me. Still, the smile on your face at the end of the day tells me a different story. I can see that you are enjoying the time with your teachers, classmates, and learning.

What I love is watching you after school each day. You pull our your Doodle Pro and teach me things that you have learned. You recite the letters and their sounds. You tell me words that begin with the letters. Even on the way into school, you like to rattle off things that you have learned. You are in love with centers. This time seems to be your favorite, especially when there are science activities. You have already learned about the five senses and it made a big impression on you. Just the other day, you were explaining to me how the eyeball has an image that is turned upside down as it is carried to the brain. The science teacher in me was so very proud.

I have also watched you talking to your big brother about math. I knew that you were talking about shapes (which you already knew) in class. What I did not realize until I was looking at your sheets that I had heard you say another word.

$Kindergarten math - learning about vertices$

Yes, you know how to identify a vertex on a shape. You can count them and the side and record the numbers. I was definitely impressed and you love sharing this information with me. The other item that you have been talking about a lot are apples. Since you are going to an orchard soon, you have been learning about how they grow. I can not wait to hear more about this subject over the weekend and next week. Thank you for taking me on this learning journey with you.

Love,

Categories:
Dear Kid Saturday jsl milestone photos school

Celebrating Sukkot

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

Many people do not realize that the holiday season continues for Jewish people beyond Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. We are actually celebrating Sukkot right now. In the past, I have shared photos from our Sukkot celebrations, including those from JSL’s nursery school last year.

While we do not have our own sukkah, the boys helped to make decorations for the one at Hebrew School. We also hope to bring them to visit the one at our synagogue. While I am off sharing traditions with my family, I thought I would include a new Sukkot video from the Fountainheads.

The song is a beautiful parody of a popular song that teaches people about the holiday and was filmed in Israel. Enjoy and happy holidays to all that celebrate

Categories:
arts and crafts holidays jsl looking back Music photos video

My Ghoulish Family

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

Dear PicMonkey, thank you for keeping me entertained while having my coffee on National Coffee Day. Seriously, the timing on your release of the Halloween effects could not have come on a better day. Early Saturday, I decided to make myself into a witch for my October profile picture. Note to the peanut galley: NO COMMENTS!

Many hours later, I was showing JSL what I had done to myself. He wanted to try to transform a photo as well. So I selected a photo of him with Baby No Name. He decided to go with the zombie look for both of them. This was our final product:

Then JSL and I wanted to have some fun creating something for NHL. He is a big fan of Hulk. The Demon option on PicMonkey did a great job with this. Thanks to the “gnarlifier” I was able to change up his nose a bit. In the end, this was what we came up with:

Of course, we could not leave TechyDad out of the mix. I guess I channeled my inner Twilight fan and had some fun. NHL thought the moon should be red in his photo and I agreed it made it look unique.

What can I say, it was fun and it let some creativity fly. So fess up. Have you made your own October creation with PicMonkey yet? If not, what are you waiting for?