nhl | The Angel Forever

Category Archives nhl

Brother Snuggles and Being Silly

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

Dear NHL and JSL,

There are days when the two of you fight like siblings always will. Those are not the moments that I care to remember. Of course, I know Uncle I and I used to fight a lot when we were growing up. What I love is that the two of you genuinely are really good with each other.

The other morning, as I was rushing around getting everyone ready for a day of school, something caught my eye. The two of you were curled up on the couch. It was too cute to watch the two of you just resting and watching something together while waiting for clothes to get dressed.

By the time I pulled out my camera to take a photo, NHL was on to me.

NHL, you saw me coming and decided to be a clown. First, there was the tongue and then you were suddenly sleepy. Of course, JSL, this made you laugh at your big brother.

These moments help to melt away the other stresses that are happening. The two of you truly are great brothers to each other and I love watching you grow up together.

Love,

Mommy

Categories:
brothers Dear Kid Saturday jsl nhl photos

Counting Down the Days to Disney

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

To tell the kids or not to tell the kids? That is often the question that many families contemplate as they plan a Walt Disney World vacation. I will admit, as we finalized our plans to go to the 2012 Disney Social Media Moms Celebration, I was not sure what to do.

I wondered how I would be able to keep this BIG secret from my boys. I always watch the videos of people surprising their children the day of and wonder how they do it. TechyDad and I just did not think it would work for several reasons.

Our house is not large enough to have a secret packing area. Packing for a big trip is stressful enough in a smaller house. I could not even imagine trying to do it while in stealth mode.
How does one talk to teachers and others at school about missed days, but not tell their child? My eight year old would know something was up as I went into school and came out with a load of work.
I am WAY too excited and can’t stop thinking about everything. I wanted to be able to share the magical planning and joy in my heart with the kids now. Winter can be depressing enough, so having something to look forward to as a family seemed like a great idea.

There were other items on my mind, but those were the biggest things. To date, we have never been able to keep a Disney trip a secret from the boys for long and I think it has been the right decision for our family. When we told the boys that we were going to Disney World, their faces lit up. Then, they wanted to know when and how many days away it was. Chatter about rides to visit, places to explore, and Hidden Mickeys to find have dominated things in recent days. The boys sit together and read planning guides and think about how they will notice a new Hidden Mickey in their adventures.

Each day, they recite how many days are left until we head to see our favorite destination. Excitement is definitely in the air. At eight, NHL gets that we have just under three months until we go to Disney. JSL is only four and does not quite get it. I have thought about making a Mickey Ears paper chain to help us count down the days. This will help him to see as we get closer to the day of our trip.

Have you ever kept a Disney trip or something else a secret to surprise your children on the day of your trip? I would love to know how it went and if you have any other count down traditions that you do with your family.

LINKY

P.S. A huge thank you to Mariana from The Domestic Buzz for creating this magical Blog Hop!

Categories:
Blog Hop decisions Disney DisneySMMoms fun jsl looking back nhl photos TechyDad travel

The Power of a Hidden Mouse

Posted on February 4, 2012 9:02 am by TheAngelForever

Dear JSL,

This has been a rough week for you. First, a fever in the middle of the night. Then, you had nap/night terrors that scared us out of our mind. When we went to the doctor, your throat was swabbed and ear blasted with a new contraption to clean it out. In the end, it looks like you have a virus. The fever went away, but suddenly a horrible cough and leaky nose appeared.

While I sat by you and you slept away the fever, I pulled out some old school knitting of mine. I wanted to make something special to help you smile. It brought me back to when I was knitting next to your hospital bed in February 2008. Of course, this time you knew I was making something for you and were so excited when you saw what was hidden within the cloth. The minute it came off the knitting needles you declared it was yours and a blanket for your little monkey. Of course, you were too tired to get your monkey, so you went to rest with it on your puppy pillow.

When NHL saw the hidden Mickey in the cloth, he asked me to make a blanket for his little lion. With your help, we made sure this was made quickly.

Of course, now you are asking me to knit you a Mickey Mouse blanket. Hmmmm……I will have to figure that one out. Now, to work on getting rid of the cough and making you feel better.

Love,

Mommy

Categories:
Dear Kid Saturday jsl knitting looking back nhl photos sick kid sickness

More Magical Memories Ahead

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

Categories:
Disney DisneySMMoms nhl photos Wordless Wednesday

Collection Time

Posted on January 27, 2012 12:00 am by TheAngelForever

Growing up, we would usually take at least one family vacation a year. It would be to Disney World, Ocean City Maryland, Virginia, or various other places along the east coast. Along the way, my brother and I started to collect buttons/pins from the places that we would go to. This collection continued as I would get pins from locations I visited when I was in college and even beyond.

Over the summer, the boys and I found my giant box of goodies from growing up.

The boys were mesmerized with everything inside. They loved seeing all of the ones from different Disney attractions and locations. Some of these sadly are long gone. NHL spent quite a lot of time reading all of them and asking me questions about the different pins and when I received them.

My question to you this week is inspired by my old collection:

What items have you and/or your children decided to collect and why?

It's Me

___________________________________________________________________________

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.