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Tuesday Tales – Harry Potter Edition

Posted on July 12, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

When the Harry Potter books first came onto the scene, I was in college (September 1997). By the time I had switched from a pharmacy major to education, they were a hit in the United States. I started reading the books around the time that I met TechyDad. When I used to go and visit him in Long Island, they would allow me to have an office with internet and desk to use. Since it was the summer, and I had no “school work”, I caught up on children’s literature.

Harry Potter books were on the menu and I managed to read several of them that summer and caught up to where J.K. Rowling was writing. When I started to teach, I was able to keep up with my middle school student that were into the Harry Potter craze. I still remember the day one of my homeroom kids came in and told me the amazing news. They had just announced a park in Orlando, FL was going to house a land with rides, shops, and more to visit. She had her trip planned and I secretly wished I could go. Hopefully, one day, I will.

Eventually, I’ll read the books with the boys. NHL has even expressed interest in them since the books, ads, and movies are all over the place now. Good thing I won the complete set not too long ago.

For now, I have amazing memories of reading/watching Harry, Ron, Hermione, and the rest of the group grow up and fight HE WHO MUST NOT BE NAMED. Of course, I have never seen any of the Harry Potter movies in the theater yet. Something always comes up. This past Friday, TechyDad and I finally caught up with the first part of Deathly Hallows. Since that day, I have been having odd dreams that include Voldemort in a different form.

Are you a fan of the Harry Potter books and movies? Which in the series is your favorite and why?

This weekend, I may head out to see the final Harry Potter movie, but there is a small issue. We promised our boys that we would also take them to see another famous character in a movie being released. Here are two fun teasers about that that you have to check out and will make you smile.

And the other short one is here:

What have you read recently? Please be sure to link up to your Book Posts, and/or leave a comment below. Include something you read on your own, with a child or someone else. Tuesday Tales are all about spreading the love for books.

Categories:
books Disney looking back me moments Movies Tuesday Tales video

Getting Ready For the Holidays in July

Posted on July 7, 2011 2:18 pm by TheAngelForever

As I mentioned the other day, we often try to get my niece, nephew, and two boys for a photo together for our family members. As you know, that quest is often a comedy of errors. You would think that it would get easier, when you are trying to do this with only two children.

Insert extreme laughter, sarcasm, and rolling eyes here!

Yes, I will admit it. Since we had the kids, we actually start to think about Christmas cards long before December hits. When Global Influence and Storkie asked me to participate in a post about Christmas in July, it made me laugh. By Halloween, we begin to talk about a photo shoot with the kids. What should they wear, when should we do it, and the list of options goes on.

Then, we inevitably forget about time and it is nearly Thanksgiving. TechyDad and I start to talk about things, we agree to photo cards.

The clock is ticking as December is suddenly here. Some years, Chanukah has already begun before my birthday which is early in the month. This is about when we really start to panic. Yes, we need to get cracking. Photos must be taken, cards ordered, and then ship them out.

The photo shoot itself is usually full of stressful, but fun laughter. The boys get silly and we keep snapping away until we hope that we have at least one photo to work.

Once the kids are asleep, TechyDad and I sit at the computer and toss out a lot of the pictures. Once we find THE one, we have to agree on a card. Since we are Jewish and a lot of friends celebrate Christmas, we opt to make New Years cards. This is also a nice way of being able to drag out the process a little longer and not being late.

So, admission time here. How are you about getting your holiday cards ready to send to family and friends? It may only be July now, but before you know it the holidays will be here.

Disclosure: This is a sponsored post from Global Influence and Storkie. For sharing this information, I will be receiving compensation. All content and opinions are my own.

Global Influence Network

Categories:
holidays jsl looking back nhl photos sponsored post TechyDad vent

Shrinky Dink Memories

Posted on July 2, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL and JSL,

The other day we went to the craft event at our library. I had heard that it was going to be something very different for the two of you. It was not new to me. No, Shrinky Dinks were part of my childhood. Yes, I remember making countless Shrinky Dinks with kids and later jewelry items.

When we got there the two of you had NO idea what I was talking about. You heard that it was time to draw on this strange paper, but never knew how special it truly was.

NHL, you decided to do a windmill first. Then, I drew you a big circle to fill in with something special to you. You drew the Tree of Life from Animal Kingdom. Sad to say that your first Tree of Life had a Shrinky Dink melt down and would not flatten back out. The librarian was nice and suggested that you try again, so you did.

JSL, you saw a ship and immediately declared that it was a pirate ship. I helped you to trace that so you could color it in. Then you took random colors for a modern creation in a circle.

Here are your final items. Each circle was a pendant and the other made into a magnet.

We all had such a fun time that I knew we had to find more Shrinky Dinks to make at home. So while at Michaels the other day, I bought this to test out:

I can not wait to have more Shrinky Dink adventures with the two of you.

Love,

Mommy

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arts and crafts Dear Kid Saturday fun jsl local event looking back nhl photos summer

Tuesday Tales – Summer Library Fun

Posted on June 28, 2011 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Tuesday Tales

Summer break is finally here. We try to spend a lot of time outdoors playing, running, biking, and so on. Of course, we also make sure to read. The summer is the perfect time to rest/cool off at the end of a busy day and read a book. We own a lot of books, but the boys adore going to our local libraries. A field trip to the air conditioned library means time to play, read, check things out, use computers, and catch up with friends.

As a child, I have so many memories from summers with my neighborhood friends. I remember when our local library started doing a summer reading program. Our parents would take us to the branch to sign up, and we would go back each week to write in what we had read. As we got older, we would often walk to the library, have lunch on the way, and make an afternoon of the experience.

For our first day of vacation, I took the boys to the library. I had already signed NHL up for the elementary aged program. Once he reads books, he can log in and record the titles that he has completed. For every five books that he read, he will receive some sort of prize. NHL is finally into chapter books. He has finished two of the A to Z Mysteries, read JSL several picture books, and started one of The Boxcar Children books. I am so proud of how he loves to read and is trying items out of his comfort zone.

JSL was able to sign up for the pre-reader program. You receive a calendar and mark each day that you read 15 minutes to your child. This is not hard for us to do and JSL seems very intrigued. When we got back from the library, he begged me to read him three of the books we took out. The boys are also excited about events that are taking place at many of the library throughout the summer.

So did you participate in a summer reading program as a child or are your children doing one this summer? I would love to know all about them.

Categories:
books fun jsl looking back nhl photos summer Tuesday Tales

New Third Grader

Posted on June 25, 2011 10:21 am by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL,

Second grade is finally over and I think we can all agree that it was a challenging year. I am so proud of you and how much you learned and grew this year. With everything that happened, you trusted us to make hard decisions and go with them.

The last nearly two months of school were amazing. The new school was the best choice we made. You were put into a caring classroom and thrived. The little boy who loved learning was back and excited to be doing multiplication, measurement, writing, chapter book reading, and more.

This morning, you woke up crying. It broke my heart, but I had to smile. There you were saying you were sad because school was over and you wanted to learn division now. So much different than past years when you cried and worried about going into a new grade and having a new teacher. This year you were upset about a stoppage in learning.

Daddy and I promise, we will make it a fun summer. We will keep teaching you things related to math, science, social studies, and read many more of those great new chapter books that you love. Thank you for trusting us and we can’t wait to see how wonderful you do in third grade.

Love,

Mommy

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If you want to participate in Dear Kid Saturday, head on over to Cutest Kid Ever by clicking on the button below.