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Category Archives looking back

A Magical Morning Moment

Posted on February 10, 2011 8:10 am by TheAngelForever

It’s official, there is magic in the air in our house. This morning, both of the boys woke up and started to talk while resting in bed. As I sat in my room, I could hear my kiddos chatting away. They were laughing, making plans, and debating with each other over favorites.

What were they talking about?!

Our upcoming trip to Disney World! It seems that the visit is now quite real to the boys. Once out of bed, JSL ran into tell us that his favorite part of the Winnie the Pooh ride is when we bounce like Tigger. Then he started to quiz us about eating with characters.

My excitement comes in watching NHL and JSL. It helps to ease my fears about missing something when I pack, or not planning just the right meal. I know that no matter what, the boys will have a fantastic time and keep them wishing for another trip soon.

Of course, I am excited not only about our family time at Disney World, but about the second Disney Social Media Moms Celebration that I will be attending. Seeing good friends, meeting new ones, learning mountains of information, and doing all of this at Disney World. There truly is nothing better as far as I am concerned.

I am also looking forward to seeing several of my Disney Driven Life friends. It should be a lot of fun to catch up with them now that I am a part of the team.

On Tuesday, my latest post was published. Please stop by my EduMICKation post for this week: Geography Disney Style.

On that note, I should probably start to write some lists of things that I need to take on our next adventure to Orlando. Please let me know if you will be there, I would love to know.

Categories:
Blogging Conference bloggy friends Disney DisneyDrivenLife DisneySMMoms EduMICKation fun jsl looking back nhl photos vacation

Knee High Up on the Roof

Posted on February 7, 2011 8:22 am by TheAngelForever

About a year after we bought this house, we learned a new winter term. What is this winter vocabulary item that will now haunt our winter lives? The word is ice dam.

We learned about ice dams the hard way. One late winter morning, I woke up and heard dripping. I slowly turned on the light and saw water coming in our bedroom. Yes, we had a leak there and on the other side of the wall, in our bathroom. We had no clue what was going on. We called a handyman that we knew and he came over. When he went on the roof he immediately saw we had a few giant ice dams that were allowing the rain to flow back into the house via the roof shingles.

Ice dams are something to be feared as a home owner in the northeast. If you drive around and see pretty icicles hanging off of homes, it typically means there is more going on up over the roof. Our fear of water coming into the house from ice dams means that TechyDad is constantly outside raking our roof and working on the ice.

The windows in our upstairs room allow us to get a first hand look at the lower section of our roof on the one side. Checking the ice dams has been very depressing this year. Saturday morning, we were scared of the weather report. It said a lot of rain and ice was coming our way. We went out and bought supplies to target the ice dams after others had suggested this technique. We wanted to make channels for the water to flow off of the roof and not back into the house.

When we came home from Home Depot with the 50 pound bag of calcium chloride, I went and found an old box of knee highs. TechyDad and I filled four of them to begin the experiment. After about an hour, we could see that they were doing something, so we went and filled six more knee highs to tackle the ice dams before the rain. We noticed an area of water pooling in one section and worked there. Sure enough, these nifty knee highs did the trick. The opened up an area for the water to flow off the roof.

So far so good. Of course, next year we plan on installing some heating coils on the lower roof section and other problem areas to try to prevent ice dams from forming. And if you are wondering, I will never be able to look at knee highs the same again!

Categories:
house looking back messy TechyDad weather winter

Donald Duck Inspired Me to Teach

Posted on February 3, 2011 9:12 am by TheAngelForever

Did you know that I was inspired to become a teacher thanks to Donald Duck? Seriously, I really was! Head on over to my first post on The Disney Driven Life where I wrote all about it: Inspired To Teach Thanks To Donald Duck

Hope to see you at The Disney Driven Life!

Categories:
Disney DisneyDrivenLife EduMICKation looking back me moments photos

Time For a Little Chuck E

Posted on January 29, 2011 5:49 pm by TheAngelForever

Dear NHL & JSL,

This afternoon we went to Chuck E. Cheese. It has been a long time since we went there. As a family, we tried to go there when visiting Bubbe and Grandpa (January 2008), but it did not go too well. JSL’s last visit to the one near here was in April 2009, before he turned two. You are quite a lot bigger now:

Since JSL was invited to a friend’s fourth birthday party, we asked NHL if he wanted to go and play. Much to our surprise, you said yes, so we all went. It can be a bit overwhelming there, but you both had a great time. NHL, you went off and played with Daddy and had a blast winning tickets. You loved surprising me with your mega win. JSL kept clapping every time he got a ticket. It was so cute to watch. JSL, you are still not a fan of the Chuck E Cheese character, but you coped when he was around.

My favorite part of the day is the drawings that each of you had made with Daddy. Here they are:

Thank you for a day of fun and happy memories together.

Love,

Mommy

_______________________________________

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

Categories:
Dear Kid Saturday fun jl jsl looking back my boys nhl photos weekend

Asking For a Friend’s Forgiveness

Posted on January 6, 2011 9:22 am by TheAngelForever

Growing up, my mother and her friends had a playgroup. There were five families and we often did things together. We would get together at different houses to play, go to Mc Donald’s Playland for lunch, and have holiday gatherings.

Over the years, all of us grew up. Some of the girls saw each other at different Girl Scouting events during elementary school. As a December birthday baby, I was not in the same grade as the majority of my friends. Thanks to this, we were not as close as we got into middle and high school.

Flash forward to the world of adults. One of my playgroup friends moved back to the area with her husband. We started talking and spent the entire summer practically with each other all the time. We were both teaching at the time and had time to frequent book stores to enjoy the air conditioning, hang out at her pool, eat her amazing salad creation, and go on double dates with our husbands.

What I loved the most was watching my friend and her husband with NHL. They were so patient and wonderful with him. I still vividly recall the two of them coaxing him into their pool and getting him excited about swimming. TechyDad and I had never been able to do that. You could tell they were going to be amazing parents one day.

When JSL was born, the two of us would often go to visit my friend together. Then as things got more hectic with two kids, we drifted apart a bit. It wasn’t that I didn’t care, I was just too tangled up in my own world and did not want to burden my friend with our chaos. I also felt guilty. Yes, I felt guilty talking about my boys with her. Chalk this up to stupidity on my end.

We have talked here and there over the last two years, but it has not been the same as it was before JSL was born. I have tears in my eyes as I type this because I know I am to blame for a lot of it. I have wanted to make things right for a while now, but life kept getting in the way. Not using this as an excuse, it’s just the way it happened.

I have missed being there for my friend during some rough times, and now I want to be there during a joyous time. Yesterday, my friend and her husband announced that they are expecting a baby boy this summer.

Memories of my friend and I talking after JSL was born come flooding back to me. She was worried about having a baby and things that go along with it. I want to be there for her and her family and help them during this special time. I only hope she will allow me to be a part of this.