Looking for something fun to do with those kids for summer break? I found just what you are looking for. I was scouting the Internet for fun things to do with the kids. There are only so many trips to the park I can make in one week. I came across a great opportunity. It's called Kids Bowl Free. It's so simple. You simply find a bowling center near you and fill out a form for each kid. You will receive vouchers by email every Sunday with a weeks worth of coupons. Every registered child will receive 2 FREE GAMES EVERY DAY throughout the summer. After signing up they even offered a family pass for a one time fee of $24.95 which allowed the adults to have 2 free games a day.
This is so great to switch things up in our house. Especially on rainy days and the kids get restless, I can simply load them up and head down the road to the bowling alley. I love this deal and really wanted to share it with all of you other parents out there in desperate need of activities for the summer!
Check it out here!
Monday, June 17, 2013
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Science Fair Project-Last Week of School
Devon had a science fair project due this week. We have been working on it for the last week now. He chose to do his project on landforms. Something he learned about before Christmas break, which is way too far back for me to remember which landforms they learned about. I, of course, turned to the trusty search engine Bing for the answers.
We found all of the major landforms and weeded through them to try to figure out which ones he was tested on. I also put my husband on a mission at work to find a large piece of cardboard, which he brought home the same day. After finding some examples and listing which landforms we wanted to use, we mapped out the project in pencil. We used numerous things to make this project unique.
The ocean was tin foil that Devon colored blue crayon. We tried using a marker, but after it dried it caused funny lines and wiped away easily. The desert and island are made from sand from Kaitlyn's sandbox. Devon just applied lots of glue to the places he wanted sand and I sprinkled on the sand while he spread it. The volcano is a soda bottle cut in half. I hot glued the bottle to the cardboard, then formed the volcano with newspaper (leaving a hole at the top for the opening). Then we spray painted more tin foil brown and black and hot glued it onto the newspaper. We created red at the opening and running down the sides with red nail polish. Worked perfect. The mountains were created the same way, just on a smaller scale. One of my favorite parts was the rice crispy treats as the plateau. It worked out perfectly. Another great addition was gluing small rocks to outline the river.
This project was fun for Devon and I to work on together. This was one of his first large scale projects and it was fun to be creative and talk about how to do certain things. I'm pretty sure he enjoyed it at first, but is glad it is over now.
Today was the Honor Roll ceremony. My little (well, not so little anymore) guy has been on A/B or A honor roll every time this year. This year, 3rd grade, has been his first year of experiencing "real" grades and testing. He has sailed by it like a trooper. I am so proud of the young man he is becoming and how incredibly smart he is.
Sorry the photos below are a little blurry but Kaitlyn wanted to help take pictures so the camera was a little unsteady.
We found all of the major landforms and weeded through them to try to figure out which ones he was tested on. I also put my husband on a mission at work to find a large piece of cardboard, which he brought home the same day. After finding some examples and listing which landforms we wanted to use, we mapped out the project in pencil. We used numerous things to make this project unique.
The ocean was tin foil that Devon colored blue crayon. We tried using a marker, but after it dried it caused funny lines and wiped away easily. The desert and island are made from sand from Kaitlyn's sandbox. Devon just applied lots of glue to the places he wanted sand and I sprinkled on the sand while he spread it. The volcano is a soda bottle cut in half. I hot glued the bottle to the cardboard, then formed the volcano with newspaper (leaving a hole at the top for the opening). Then we spray painted more tin foil brown and black and hot glued it onto the newspaper. We created red at the opening and running down the sides with red nail polish. Worked perfect. The mountains were created the same way, just on a smaller scale. One of my favorite parts was the rice crispy treats as the plateau. It worked out perfectly. Another great addition was gluing small rocks to outline the river.
This project was fun for Devon and I to work on together. This was one of his first large scale projects and it was fun to be creative and talk about how to do certain things. I'm pretty sure he enjoyed it at first, but is glad it is over now.
Today was the Honor Roll ceremony. My little (well, not so little anymore) guy has been on A/B or A honor roll every time this year. This year, 3rd grade, has been his first year of experiencing "real" grades and testing. He has sailed by it like a trooper. I am so proud of the young man he is becoming and how incredibly smart he is.
Sorry the photos below are a little blurry but Kaitlyn wanted to help take pictures so the camera was a little unsteady.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
The Addams Family
I have some other posts that I am working on, but I wanted to write a short post about my fantastic weekend.
Over the weekend I saw an amazing show at the Tennessee Theatre, The Addams Family. Firstly, I have to say that I am a little partial because my uncle is a part of the cast, but it is a great show. This Broadway musical is touring in the USA right now and I strongly suggest that anyone who enjoys theater should see it.
This show does not have a major message involved, it's just fun and funny. It was 2 1/2 hours of pure enjoyment.
I wish I could show you some photos or videos but because of copyright I could not take photos.
Visit this website for more info on the show, cast, scheduled dates, and photos.
The second part of this post is to recommend a great restaurant in Knoxville TN. It's called Nama Sushi Bar and it is really a great place to eat. We ate Kama (amazing sauce) and sweet-chili ahi tuna and noodles. Great food and service!
Visit website here
Over the weekend I saw an amazing show at the Tennessee Theatre, The Addams Family. Firstly, I have to say that I am a little partial because my uncle is a part of the cast, but it is a great show. This Broadway musical is touring in the USA right now and I strongly suggest that anyone who enjoys theater should see it.
This show does not have a major message involved, it's just fun and funny. It was 2 1/2 hours of pure enjoyment.
I wish I could show you some photos or videos but because of copyright I could not take photos.
Visit this website for more info on the show, cast, scheduled dates, and photos.
The second part of this post is to recommend a great restaurant in Knoxville TN. It's called Nama Sushi Bar and it is really a great place to eat. We ate Kama (amazing sauce) and sweet-chili ahi tuna and noodles. Great food and service!
Visit website here
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
A Week at Myrtle Beach
We went to Myrtle Beach for the week. We just got back and I have been trying to organize and do laundry. The worst part about coming home from vacation.
We wanted to take our kids on a little getaway for a while. It was a great way for us to reconnect as a family and just focus on us. None of us really wanted to come back home. Devon and Kaitlyn just wanted to swim in the pools all day. We even spent a rainy afternoon in the pool. My son said "we are getting wet anyway, so why can't we just swim?" How can you argue with that logic? So, that's exactly what we did.
The hotel was called Caravelle Resort. A few things about this hotel. I thought it would be great for our family because they had several water features to choose from at a very good price.
A few positives-
Kids "waterpark"
Kids lazy river
Large pool
Large hot tub
Lazy river
Indoor pool on the 7th floor
Hot tub on the 7th floor
Oceanfront room with kitchen at a really great price
Away from the main strip in Myrtle Beach- positive and negative
Cons-
Tiki Hut for food and drinks closed at 5 Sat and Sun and never opened back up the rest of the week
On site ice cream parlor by the pool only opened once and ran out of ice cream. (only 2 flavors left)
Snack shop by the pool had NO food. Advertised pizza, hot dogs etc but said they had nothing when I went in to get food for the kids.
Requested the lowest level because I am afraid of heights, when I checked in they put us on the top floor. I asked if they could change it but they said they couldn't.
Had to contact security because of a couple of nasties on a balcony and according to a couple of other ladies, they contacted security too. Yet when I spoke to them they said this was the first time they had heard about it.
All in all it was a fun trip. We really only used the room to sleep because we stayed on the beach, at the pool or out on the town ALL day. We couldn't enjoy our oceanfront balcony like I had hoped because I was paranoid the kids would fall off, but we did enjoy some time talking and spending time together.
We ate at a few different places. Landshark's was great. It seemed a tad generic, but they had decent food and drinks. It started POURING rain while we were walking on the boardwalk and we jumped into a place called 8th Ave Tiki Bar and Grill. It was really great. Food and drinks were great and our server was the BEST service I have ever had. Even my husband said the same. Our daughter fell asleep in my husbands arms while we were waiting for our food and she was even courteous enough to whisper every time she came to our table. She was really great. It left such an impression that once we were back home I asked my son what was his favorite part of the trip- answer- "8th Ave Tiki Bar". He had chicken wings and raved about them all night. He even begged my husband to take him back the next day. We loved the music and atmosphere.
We wanted to take our kids on a little getaway for a while. It was a great way for us to reconnect as a family and just focus on us. None of us really wanted to come back home. Devon and Kaitlyn just wanted to swim in the pools all day. We even spent a rainy afternoon in the pool. My son said "we are getting wet anyway, so why can't we just swim?" How can you argue with that logic? So, that's exactly what we did.
The hotel was called Caravelle Resort. A few things about this hotel. I thought it would be great for our family because they had several water features to choose from at a very good price.
A few positives-
Kids "waterpark"
Kids lazy river
Large pool
Large hot tub
Lazy river
Indoor pool on the 7th floor
Hot tub on the 7th floor
Oceanfront room with kitchen at a really great price
Away from the main strip in Myrtle Beach- positive and negative
Cons-
Tiki Hut for food and drinks closed at 5 Sat and Sun and never opened back up the rest of the week
On site ice cream parlor by the pool only opened once and ran out of ice cream. (only 2 flavors left)
Snack shop by the pool had NO food. Advertised pizza, hot dogs etc but said they had nothing when I went in to get food for the kids.
Requested the lowest level because I am afraid of heights, when I checked in they put us on the top floor. I asked if they could change it but they said they couldn't.
Had to contact security because of a couple of nasties on a balcony and according to a couple of other ladies, they contacted security too. Yet when I spoke to them they said this was the first time they had heard about it.
All in all it was a fun trip. We really only used the room to sleep because we stayed on the beach, at the pool or out on the town ALL day. We couldn't enjoy our oceanfront balcony like I had hoped because I was paranoid the kids would fall off, but we did enjoy some time talking and spending time together.
Kids Area
Devon relaxing after swimming
Kaitlyn being launched into the air and loving it!
Kaitlyn asleep
I took the kids on the Skywheel, which is stories high. If you will remember the beginning of this I mentioned being afraid of heights. It was terrifying, but the kids really wanted to do it. Once it was over I was extremely proud of myself for doing it. 
Top of the Skywheel
We had a really great time in Myrtle Beach and thinking about it makes me want to go back to the beach. We probably won't be staying at Caravelle anymore, but the rest was memorable.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Baked Shrimp with Garlic Lemon Butter
This was a fantastic meal and a hit with the entire family. Even the picky 3 year old!!!
I found this recipe on Pinterest, of course. My new obsession. I have been struggling with losing my weight for a while. I did good for a long time and lost 35 pounds, then I just lost all of the motivation and completely went off of my diet. I started eating really unhealthy and gained some of the weight back. Then I decided I wanted to lose it again and have been exercising but am not losing the weight as quickly as I did the first time. I am averaging about a pound a week where as before was about 4-5 pounds a week. What is the difference? Well, my eating habits are still not great. I have been sneaking in junk food and soda's. So even though I have been working out it is still difficult to lose weight when you stuff yourself with nastiness.
Which brings me to the recipe. It is about 120 calories per serving! Yes you read that right, 120 calories. WOW! And the shrimp is really great. I made it a couple of nights ago for my family and to be honest it wasn't even enough. My daughter came back for thirds. Everyone wanted more because they thought it was so good. I served it with some bread for the rest of my family ( I opted not to eat the bread, unwanted calories) and a salad with a healthy dressing. Great tasting and healthy for the whole family.
CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE
Photo from Pinterest
I found this recipe on Pinterest, of course. My new obsession. I have been struggling with losing my weight for a while. I did good for a long time and lost 35 pounds, then I just lost all of the motivation and completely went off of my diet. I started eating really unhealthy and gained some of the weight back. Then I decided I wanted to lose it again and have been exercising but am not losing the weight as quickly as I did the first time. I am averaging about a pound a week where as before was about 4-5 pounds a week. What is the difference? Well, my eating habits are still not great. I have been sneaking in junk food and soda's. So even though I have been working out it is still difficult to lose weight when you stuff yourself with nastiness.
Which brings me to the recipe. It is about 120 calories per serving! Yes you read that right, 120 calories. WOW! And the shrimp is really great. I made it a couple of nights ago for my family and to be honest it wasn't even enough. My daughter came back for thirds. Everyone wanted more because they thought it was so good. I served it with some bread for the rest of my family ( I opted not to eat the bread, unwanted calories) and a salad with a healthy dressing. Great tasting and healthy for the whole family.
CLICK HERE FOR THE RECIPE
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Breakfast in Bed
This morning I had a special surprise from my kids. It was so nice and generous. Let me start by saying that my husband is working some overtime this weekend and left the house this morning at 5 am. I have been awake since then just watching the news and recently started a movie.
My daughter got up and wanted a drink a cartoons. Dora, of course. I decided to lie back down in bed and enjoy my movie while my daughter was in her room watching TV, still trying to wake up enough to wreck havoc on the house. Then my son got up about 15 minutes later. Since he is 9 he pretty much is an independent spirit who doesn't ask for much help. He came in to let me know he was awake and then took off. I could hear them both rummaging around in the kitchen, but I just figured my son was getting a drink and some cereal and letting his sister help. A few minutes later they arrived in my room carrying this together...
How incredibly thoughtful of them this fine morning. It just made my day.
Here they are right after they gave it to me. My son has "war paint" on his face. He drew washable marker on his face and played army last night outside. He fell asleep with it on. I don't think he remembered it was still on his face until he saw the picture.
.jpg)
My daughter got up and wanted a drink a cartoons. Dora, of course. I decided to lie back down in bed and enjoy my movie while my daughter was in her room watching TV, still trying to wake up enough to wreck havoc on the house. Then my son got up about 15 minutes later. Since he is 9 he pretty much is an independent spirit who doesn't ask for much help. He came in to let me know he was awake and then took off. I could hear them both rummaging around in the kitchen, but I just figured my son was getting a drink and some cereal and letting his sister help. A few minutes later they arrived in my room carrying this together...
They walked in and said HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY! It was so cute and adorable. I couldn't help but laugh. It is my son's version of grilled cheese (toast the bread and then arrange cheese sandwich and microwave until the cheese is melted) some grapes and the kids snack jello.
How incredibly thoughtful of them this fine morning. It just made my day.
Here they are right after they gave it to me. My son has "war paint" on his face. He drew washable marker on his face and played army last night outside. He fell asleep with it on. I don't think he remembered it was still on his face until he saw the picture.
.jpg)
Thursday, May 9, 2013
Freebies 5/9/13
I used to post freebies often on this blog and in the last year or so have slowed down. I'm not sure why I just stopped posting them, but I still love finding good deals and coupon regularly so I thought I would give everyone a few freebies today since it has been so long.
Free BIOTRUE contact lens solution
Get a FREE sample of Bausch + Lomb Biotrue Contact Lens Solution. Just answer “No” to the first question to qualify and that's it.
Free contact lens solution!
Free NEXCARE waterproof bandages
Simply take the pledge at the Nexcare facebook page and you will receive a sample pack.
Allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.
Free Glad Force Flex Sample
Free BIOTRUE contact lens solution
Free contact lens solution!
Free NEXCARE waterproof bandages
Allow 6-8 weeks for delivery.
Free Glad Force Flex Sample
If you are a Sam's Club member then you can take advantage of this deal. Membership number is required.
More to come this week. I have to pause this post because as we speak I have a niece in labor. YAY!!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)