The Silliness of September

The month of September has been very busy. With back to school, changes in temperature, dance class start up, and various obligations this month has been a wild one. Here are the mostly highs, and some lows and even some funny mentionable events of September.

Well school has been great. I did in fact purchase the laptop lunch system and I have to say I couldn't be happier with it. If you could see into my Tupperware drawer you would fully understand the need for this kind of lunch system. The laptop lunch has its own containers, lids etc and it all fits perfectly into the box, which fits perfectly into the canvas lunch box. Brilliant I tell you. The wow butter(soy butter) did not go over well with my peanut butter fanatic girl, but we have found a new love for plain ham sandwiches, woohoo.  My husband nearly fell off his chair when my oldest daughter came home from school and told him she had five boyfriends. Oh boy, here we go…….

Dance class has started up again for the year. This is the first time my youngest gets to dance as well.  My daughters are in different classes so we have to go early Saturday morning for my youngest and then back again early afternoon for my oldest.  Last Saturday I somehow managed to convince myself that my oldest daughter’s class was at 1:30 (suppose to be 1:00) so we showed up just in time for dance class to wrap up. And the best Mom award goes to……. (wink).

So I defiantly have a lot on my brain these days trying to keep everyone's schedule straight. In my mad dash out the door I realized after returning home that I had my sweater inside out the whole time at the mall. Another time I had my nylon jacket inside out the whole time at the grocery store, lol.  That just goes to show where my head has been.

The weather has quickly changed over to fall-like at rapid speeds this year in the East Coast. For me this is the hardest part, adjusting to the colder temps. I freeze the first couple of weeks and then my body seems to adjust slightly.  All I have to say is hallelujah to heated car seats!

It’s always a chore transitioning the kids clothing from season to season. I have two girls so the clothing gets passed down which requires storing till the youngest fits into it. We are also grateful to receive hand me downs from two sources for my oldest. Some of this I have to store for a different season or when she grows into them.  I am extremely appreciative for the clothing although it is a “job” trying to keep it all straight.

So lots on the go and lots to look forward to for October. We will be doing some traveling and also busy getting ready for Halloween (one of our favorite holidays).

 

What does October have in store for you?

xoAngela
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Harvest Done Right!

Fredericton pulls in some amazing musical acts from all over the world for the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival.  Each year the festival gets better and better and this year was no exception to that trend. The festival began on Thursday and is scattered all around downtown with the two biggest tents being closest to the river.

I always look forward to this festival and wait on the edge of my seat till they announce the musical acts throughout the year leading up to spring and summer. We took our kids Saturday morning to see Scotty and the Stars, which is a really awesome kids band. For those that are not familiar with this group they have been featured on kids CBC and won several music awards. The kids and I always look forward to boogieing to the action-filled catchy and educational tunes of Scotty.

One thing that was really cool was the instrument petting zoo. Yes you read right, it was a tent set up that housed several musical instruments you could try. They also offered face painting, workshops and buskers to entertain people. Lots of fun for all ages.

For my hubby and I the real fun happens in the evening after we drop the kids off at Grandma's for the night (wink). This year we chose to buy a party pass that allowed us to stay in the biggest Moose Light tent for the entire night, which meant four different bands.

The first band was The Revivalist's who came all the way from Louisiana. They had a real funky, rock-like sound to them. This was a perfect start to the night.  Following them was Chris Robinson Brotherhood (you might all remember or know Chris from the Black Crows and once upon a time being married to actress Kate Hudson) than Moe, ending the night with the afterburner, Galactic. Moe and Galactic offered a more jam band funk sound. My dancing shoes definitely got a great workout.

Part of the fun of Harvest is running into people you rarely see. Sometimes this is the only place I see them, once a year. It's always nice to see familiar faces! Big hugs to all those that I was lucky enough to run into and spend time with.

As you know we have two small children and we don't get out as much as we used to. But when we do get the chance we don't hold back, we go all out. Give me live music and place to dance and I am in my element! Was I suffering yesterday as a result? You got it! We did have a ball though! Well worth the pain (wink).

Well done Fredericton! Can't wait until next year! Till then....

xoAngela

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Fall is in the Air

Now that school has started I think I am finally starting to get back into some kind of  a routine around here. We were so busy in the summer with camping, company and traveling that lots of things, including my diet (healthy, not weight loss) and exercise plan, went out the window.  Remember how I was so proud of myself for beginning to jog?  Well… that slowly came to a stop when the humid weather hit. Don’t get me wrong, I love the heat but I do not enjoy jogging in it. 

As for trying to eat healthy that is almost next to impossible to do when camping and really why would you want too?  Part of camping is making spider dogs and roasting marshmallows for smores. And the best part about camping is frying up bacon and eggs for breakfast in the morning. Some things you just don’t want to mess with you know?

I’m pretty sure last weekend was our last camping adventure of the season, (sob, sob).  We actually spent it with a couple of our amazing friends in their camper which was a nice change. It’s getting to that point now where it’s almost a wee bit too chilly for camping. In the mornings as your climbing out of the cold camper into the colder great outdoors (shivering) you’re asking yourself, what is it I enjoy about camping again?(wink)
Although summer is winding down there is still something that excites me about the fall.  Maybe the thought of getting a new pair of boots? (Joke, well kind of...) Seriously though, I do enjoy seeing the colors of the leaves as they change and I do look forward to pumpkin flavored everything and I love the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival.  I look forward to our family’s annual trip to the apple orchard to pick fresh apples and take photos. We are also traveling to Cape Breton to visit family in the fall as well. So although it is sad to see the summer season change there is still lots to look forward to in the fall.   

What does fall have in store for you?

xoAngela
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Halloween Already??

We spent most of last weekend in the great outdoors camping with the girls. The campground typically has a different theme for the kiddos each weekend. This past weekend's theme was spooky Halloween.

Friday night we arrived and quickly had to get the girls costumes on for campsite trick-or-treating. The girls were transformed into Minnie Mouse and a unicorn.

The way it works is you receive a sheet with a list of all the camp sites giving out candy. It's kind of like a scavenger hunt in a sense that you have to find the various sites giving out the candy too.  Some of the sites really went all out with decorations, costume's etc. The girls had a ball!

At one point my oldest daughter looked in her bag and yelled "I got socks"! I looked in her bag and yes there were socks alright. Somehow a pair of my socks had made it into the treat bag before setting out for our Halloween adventure. It was pretty funny. She was pretty excited about getting a new pair of socks. I think she was a bit bummed when I told her they mine, lol.

As the night went on candy was consumed and the night skies darkened.  The air was cool and calm. We decided it would be a great opportunity to set off Chinese Lanterns the girls were given a few months ago.

This was our first time using Chinese Lanterns but I am sure it will not be our last.  It really is amazing to see them float high in the sky until they are the size of a star. If you ever get the opportunity to buy some, do it!  They are so magical. We made wishes and sent lots of love high in the sky.

Here is what they look like close up. (source)

From bat-stashes to spooky spider paper plate crafts right down to glow in the dark bingo, these girls had the most memorable weekend of camping this Summer.

I kind of prepared  myself that this might be our last camping adventure of the season but... still banking on the possibility of one more weekend. We'll see.........

Jaxson the sun-worshiping dog was not to fond of the cooler nights. He sneakily managed to crawl into my sleeping bag in the night.

xoAngela

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Three Summer Delights

Yes I have said it before and I will say it again, I love summer!  I never take it for granted and my family and I try to enjoy every second of it!

For the last few days we have been experiencing a bit of a heat wave here on the East Coast. No complaints from me though. To beat the heat I decided to take the girls out for ice cream. We pulled into the local Dairy Queen and ordered up some sundaes for the girls (with smarties of course) and for moi, my all time favorite, the Mint Oreo Blizzard.  I know this is not the healthiest of things, but it sure tastes good!

I try and make a point to treat the girls to DQ a couple times in the summer, only for them though, my Mint Orea Blizzard obsession has nothing to do with it at all (wink).

I have great memories of my parents taking me to DQ in when I was a kid. It was only a take-out back then. When the Peanut Buster Parfaits and Banana Splits would go on sale we always made a point to go. My favorite as a kid was the banana split. It was as big as I was.

(Source)

Another more guilty summer delight for me has been the Bachelorette (Go Andi) and now the Bachelor in Paradise. I know what your thinking, WHY???? Well.......since I have watched the last few seasons of the Bachelor/Bachelorette I am familiar with most of the cast of the new show, so why not?  I know the concept is so morally wrong but yet it's so entertaining.  I really don't watch much TV at all,  but I do look forward to my Monday night in paradise (wink).

(Source)

My last summer delight for today is hanging clothes on the line. Yes this is a delight, not a chore. Sliding into sun kissed sheets in the summer ranks on my top 10 for sure.  I dare you to come up with a fresher, natural, more amazing smell. Not only is hanging clothes on the line eco-friendly but it saves money and it's actually very relaxing. Another bonus is you get to be OUTSIDE. Woohoo!

 I take every chance I have to hang my clothes out. My "power hours" often consist of coming home and hanging out a line.  I am thinking I might just do a complete post on this someday. I feel a "confessions of a neat freak" brewing. (wink)

Hope you are all enjoying your favorite Summer delights as much as I am.

xoAngela

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DIY Pedicures fit for a Queen!

My daughters and I picked up some really cute stickers to use on our toes. I believe I paid $1.97 at Walmart for these two sheets of stickers with jewels. Not a bad price at all if you ask me. I do love a good professional pedicure but when trying to save money improvisation and creativity come in real handy.

Here is what my youngest daughter and I came up with:

You simply paint your nails like you normally would.  Then you gently peel off the sticker and place it on the nail where you want it. (this is the tricky part) Once the sticker is where you want it you apply a clear coat of nail polish to seal the deal!

These were so much fun to do! Who needs a professional anyways (wink)?

xoAngela

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Good Old Fashioned Fun!

My girls love playing with cardboard boxes. No matter how many toys the kids have a cardboard box has always provided countless hours of imaginary fun. When they were very young the box and paper were so much more fascinating then the actual "expensive" toy inside. Isn't that the truth? 

A couple of weekends ago my husband brought three giant boxes home. We set them up on the lawn, cutout some windows and doors and attached the three boxes together. They played for hours with this and when they got board we turned it upside down into a boat.

 It's play like this that is so important for kids.  Not only does it allow them to think creatively but it "unplugs" them from our technology crazed world. I enjoy seeing what there imaginations can do and helping them to discover there own unique creativeness.

As a blast from the past, I decided to make some good ol' fashioned Rice Krispies squares the other day.  You really forget how good they are until you bite into one of these sticky, gooey, buttery classics. 

I made these for my daughter's class but thought they could use some "fancying up". I grabbed a piping bag and filled it with some pink icing and finished with some colored sprinkles on top. Amazing what a little icing and sprinkles can do.

How do you hang onto the good ol' days?

xoAngela

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Rainy Day Spa Party

I have been trying to plan a kids "spa day" with the girls for a little while now. There has been so much going on the past few weekends that we could not find the time. Well this past weekend we decided to make the time. Here is our "girls only" spa day party! (don't think hubby was too upset about be banished to the basement to watch the tube)

Number one is to have lots of choices. Kids love spending time going through the colors.  I think this could possibly be the funnest (word?) part.

I started by soaking their feet in a warm water mixture of bubble bath and epsom salts. Once dry I then applied cream for a mini relaxing foot massage. Next is the polish. The girls were allowed to choose two colors and we created a pattern by alternating the colors. Once the polish was dry we applied some flower decals and finished with a top coat of sparkles to seal everything in.  

I think they turned out pretty darn good!

To finish off the "spa experience" we decided we should have a tea party. I pulled out the tea set and set up the plates with treats and fruit. We talked with pretend accents as we sipped our tea and ate our snacks. 

It was a wonderful rainy day activity spent with some pretty special young girls. 

I honestly don't know who had more fun, me or the kids!

(Now if I can just get them to give me a pedicure I will be all set, ha ha)

xoAngela

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