Simple Inspirations

You all know I love the circus, …amazing Asian elephants, fascinating tigers, popcorn, ringmasters…..truly magic. The words "ladies and gentlemen" make blood boil …If you are interested in this AMAZING experience read on…

Check out the site ringling.com for specific dates and shows near you or to check out thier amazing animal line up…Barnum and Bailey does it like no one can.

As with Disney on Ice, Mom Central is excited to extend the following special family offers when purchasing tickets for select Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey shows this fall and winter. Look for the box marked "MC Promotion" when purchasing tickets through Ticketmaster.com:

**Offer #1: Get 4 tickets for just $44 by entering the code MOM in the MC Promotion Box on Ticketmaster.com. Offer good on all weekday performances, which includes all weekday evening and Friday matinee performances; minimum purchase of 4 tickets required; additional tickets above 4 can be purchased at $11 each.
 **Offer #2: All weekend performance tickets will be $4 off the original price.
**Offer #3: Get the best Circus Celebrity, Front Row and VIP seats available – We have reserved seats in these sections just for you! Enter the code MOM. No discounts available on these sections.

* Not valid on Circus CelebritySM, Front Row or VIP seats and may not be combined with other offers including special Opening Night pricing.  Other fees may apply.

Looking for something fun to knock your kids socks off?? Try Disney on Ice.  One of Zoe’s best memories  is of Disney on Ice..the lights, the music, the crowd, the treats. There is something so special about watching their faces as their favorite characters come to life before thier eyes….

Check out these dates to see if there is a show near you:

Anaheim/LA/Ontario
Disney On Ice presents Worlds of Fantasy
December 16-January 3

Atlanta
Disney On Ice presents Celebrations!
October 14- October 18

Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic
December 26- December 30

Charlotte
Disney On Ice presents Celebrations!
Sept 8-Sept 13

Chicago/Rosemont
Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic
Sept 8-Sept 13

Cincinnati/Dayton
Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic
September 17-September 27

Disney On Ice presents Celebrations!
January 8-January 18

Detroit/Auburn Hills
Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic

Newark/East Rutherford/Uniondale/New York City
Disney On Ice presents Celebrations!
November 10-November 29

Philadelphia
Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic
October 14-October 18

Sacramento
Disney On Ice presents Princess Classics
October 28-November1

San Jose/Oakland
Disney On Ice presents Princess Classics
October 14-October 25

Sunrise/Miami
Disney On Ice presents Princess Classics
September 17-September 27

St. Louis/St. Charles
Disney On Ice celebrates 100 Years of Magic
September 3-September 6

St. Paul/Minneapolis
Disney On Ice presents Princess Classics
December 10-December 13

Toronto
Disney On Ice presents Princess Classics
December 18-December 27

Washington D.C./ Fairfax, VA/ Baltimore, MD
Dinsney On Ice presents Celebrations!
October 2009

I so want to share this with you too….this is a great deal…**Offer #1: Get 4 tickets for just $44 by entering the code MOM in the MC Promotion Box on Ticketmaster.com. Offer good on all weekday performances, which includes all weekday evening and Friday matinee performances; minimum purchase of 4 tickets required; additional tickets above 4 can be purchased at $11 each.
 **Offer #2: All weekend performance tickets will be $4 off the original price.

Don’t forget to check out http://disney.go.com/disneyonice/.  Not only does ithave the cutest theme music going on but there are live clips of the show that will enthrall the kids and give them something to envision, but you can also check show times using your zip code, there are also games activities etc for the kids to play.

“I wrote this review while participating in a blog campaign by Mom Central on behalf of Feld Entertainment. Mom Central sent me a gift card to thank me for taking the time to participate.”

In light of the many scary internet related tragedies I have heard about over the years, I decided a LONG time ago that the best way to keep the kids safe was to protect them from potential harm.  Makes sense right???  Wel, how can you protect them from the dangers of the internet…its everywhere.  Facebook, myspace, twitter, instant messaging…porn disguised as something else and accessible to the innocent eyes of of your kids simply looking for "pictures of princesses to color: (true story). I came across this product through Mom Central that can help make the whole internet accessibility issue a little less nerve fraying.  I typed up a little review things but realized that I wasn’t doing the product justice…so from the horse’s mouth here is what you get:

I really love that it records instant messaging, this is a great way to guide your kids into appropriate online behaviour.  In their innocence they may be missing something a wiser parent may clur into.  OH and as if you need any more influence….McAfee is offering a discount through August 31, 2009 to save $5 off the McAfee Family Protection. The promo code is: 5familyprotection. In addition, if you  have any questions you’d like to ask an expert, McAfee’s Chief Cyber Security Mom, Tracy Mooney, is available at cybermom@mcafee.com or at www.mcafee.com/cybermom

I’m I’m I’m I’m STAYING ALIVEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

What have we been up to ya ask?

Um..exam.  Did well.

Art History Thesis paper..90%

Canadian Desert.  Had a blast. Asher walked all 8 km himself and was AMAZING.  So as long as we can move where we have a limit desert like environment in our backyard and he may finally have somewhere he can run off all that energy.  There are pics below.  The hill with the speck rolling down it..that is Wendell.  Ha ha.

Watched Twilght.  Again.  and Again.  (I also use the score to study…its perfect)

Reading (at the same time no less…) Skin Trader by Laurell K Hamilton, Lover Avenged by J R Ward, Eragon by Paolini, and Inkheart.

Studying my buttocks off for exams and finishing up a paper.

Family minus me but plus my MIL are going to Tinkertown Today while I bond with Treaties 1 through 7 and the Indian Act of 18 something.

This song has been laying on my computer for days now. It speaks to me so CLEARLY. Especially when things feel overwhelming and you are sure that you are going to drop all the balls. I just remember…in any season, you are still God, I have a reason to sing…I have victory and I can do anything I put my mind to because of Christ Jesus that lives in me.

Time for a blog vacation?  Nah.  Blogome decided that they were going bless each of us with over a week of inactivity, bless their hearts (riiiiiiiiiiiiiiight).

Anyhoo, the first order of business now that things are back n track is a book review for Mothertalk, The Lace Makers of Glenmara by Heather Barbieri.  I thought the book sounded good, but 10 pages in I was not only assured that it was a good read, but it was one of those books that was sure to sit endlessly on my counter with a broken spine waiting to be read as I cook, clean, or steal a few quiet minutes of "me" time.  The book is a well balanced mix of heartbreak, humour, condor, joy, bitterness, and hope that immerses you in poignant story of life, loss, and rebirth.

Kate Robinson is a 26 year old fashion designer who is struggling to deal with the loss of her mother and the heartbreak of being betrayed by the love of her life.  She flees to Ireland on a trip she was meant to take with her mother. By happy chance, and a ride in a colourful wagon with a kind spirit, she finds herself in the small village of Glenmara. It is there that she finds love, inspiration, purpose, friendship….a place to lay roots and bloom. 

The lacemaking society - Bernie, Aileen, Moira, Oona, Colleen - their friendship becomes her source of strength and self reckoning and in turn it changes each woman’s life.  There is no epiphany, rather it is the gradual and constant change that realizing you don’t have to be perfect to be loved, you simply have to be.
The women of the lacemaking society each have their own story to tell.  Bernie –quietly wrestling with the loss of her husband she has sought a place of refuge and purpose, Aileen - struggling to hold on to her husband and daughter while battling with her own issues of self acceptance, Moira - the soft, gentle, and compassionate woman who loves despite the abuse she denies, Oona - as a survivor of breast cancer she struggles with her femininity, her marriage, and her role as a whole wife, and Colleen - waiting for the return of her husband from the sea she is sure has claimed his life.  Throw in a blood thirsty priest, a handsome man who suffers his own pain, and a village who rally around the women when they need it most and you have what is sure to be one of the best reads on your shelf. 
What struck me about this book was not only the captivating story line….but the way in which Barbieri weaves the tale.  A master at her art, it is the beautiful way in which she communicates that make the story so compelling…I have to share one of my favourite paragraphs from the book, one of the last.

"You’ll take up the same old needle and thread and see that they’re magic, or could be - if only you let them, if you try –that the women, who gossip like sparrows and bite like midges and laugh so hard they cry, will teach you something new and you will teach them too, and it won’t be all bitterness, not all, no, and the man walking up the road to see you is someone you could spend time with, make a life with, if you take a chance."

If you are looking for a great beach book or just a keeper to add to your collection this book will not disappoint you. You can buy it here ——> LACEMAKERS.

1. you will have to put away 7 baskets of clothes (which are not sorted and may have to folded again, they are children not trained monkeys).  This will likely take more than an hour..and at some point your nearly undivided attention.  Yeah.
2. Abby will open the front door so your diaper clad 18 month old son can go see the garbage truck
3. Your 3 year old daughter will put High School Musical 3 in the mini portable DVD player, plug it in - in the kitchen so she can dance on the dining room table and swing from the chandalier (literally.  oy.)
4. Above mentioned daughter will also take her older sisters brand new Webkin and cover it in hair gel (all the hair gel you had left to stop you from looking like Hagrid with a bad hair day, but look at it this way…..you now make a great place for some cold and needy bird family to nest and this makes a great opportunity for your children to experience the wonders of nature firsthand)
5. Your son will be mad at you for saving him from sure death and to show his displeasure he will try to put his feet in the heating vents in the floor, and when he realizes they won’t fit he will resort to your silverware.
6. If you had coffee, you don’t now.
7. When you stop the son from playing hide and seek with the floor vents and pull your 3 year old chimp wannabe daughter from the hanging fixtures..they will likely amuse thsemselves by playing with their older sisters lipgloss.  The sparkly kind.  It will be on them.  It will be on the walls, it will also be in your hair.  It will even be between your toes, so dress to match and perhaps people will just assume at the mere age of 28 its simply a mid life crisis of sorts and not your inability to keep up with your own children (or the naughty androids as I refer to them…)

No one.  Its a proven fact.  So when you want to know if your two year old should be able to count to 10, or if your 10 year old is old enough for allowance and makeup, or even if your 16 year olds moodiness is normal…. where else would you go than to other Mom’s….millions of them.  Topics open right now include potty training, healthy living choices, recipes, seizures, conception..you name it it is there! There is this site you need to check out MAMAPEDIA. You can ask anything..anything and get answers from the pro’s quickly and easily. You can search by topic, question of age of your children.  There is info on health, finances, home life…or even an all about Me (thats us Moms). You can even join your local group and make friends, read reviews of businsses and services, receive free coupons and discounts for great Mom owned businesses, and its free (and easy..yay!).

They say it takes a village to raise a child (two if they are as wiley as Asher) so take advantage of the resources that you know have great potential to help you and make life less complicated!

Thought I would do a quick post an update everything that has been keeping me away from my beloved readers (my mother and father in law,,LOL).  We got the big ass play structure up, pardon my french.  It took Wendell a few (three about) days on non stop slave type labour..but he got it done.  It was a work of love, from the frame, to the structure, to the sand and rocks he worked HARD….I helped wheelbarrel some of the stones from the driveway..you can see my rocks in the far right corner of the picture. It is gorgeous and the kids LOVE it. Freedom and Abby would never leave if they didn’t have to sleep in the house. Zoe spent hours going through rocks to identify new ones for her collection.

Wendell also got the pool up and it is WAY bigger than I pictured it!  I would take a picture but I need a reference person in the picture to really illustrate its size!

Just a few more tidbits of Hildebrand info..Chey is all healed up and her cast if off (yay she can help with dishes again!  ROCK ON!!). Zoe said her all-years scripture verses (8 different "verses" all 8 to 12 verses long) and was the first one done in her class.  Asher is getting quite the vocabulary..he says Dog, Mommy, Daddy, puppy, Zoe, Mama, papa, bottle, dipi (diaper), nummie, bath, night night, bye bye, HI!, jam, more, some.  Well a bunch of words anyhoo. He is a real mimic (which is funny when you tell him no.and tells you no).

I woke up on Saturday and the first thing I saw was Freedom watching me sleep, she had abviously been waiting for me to wake up.  I open my eyes and she is bursting with excitement.  "Mommy!!!  I just watched a long commercial and I have to tell you something Mommy.  I NEED TO GET YOU THAT FOR MOTHERS DAY!!!  You can lose 3 inches in 14 days!"  Nuff said about that.

Gave up on myself…might as well focus my attention on something with potential (haha). Studying art history (napping intermittently and walking around to make sure I stay awake for 5 page intervals).

Just a quick share…I know it is far away but is this not a freaky deaky deer?  It’s hide looks like a horse..but its a deer.  We saw it eating just off the highway by our house.  Odd.

Cute cousins……best friends.  They even wear matching colors almost every day.  Awww……..

And is this not the cutest little man ever?   (argue with me and it could get uggggggggggly)