Writing Disney

I had seen a post on Pinterest about writing to Disney and decided to try it out. 

 

Amelia and I wrote a letter to her favorite Disney characters, Princess Ariel and Prince Eric.  It was hilarious.  In the letter, Amelia told Ariel she loved her red hair and wanted Eric to know that she wanted to give him a hug.  I wrote a simple letter to Lightning McQueen from Alex just stating how much he loved cars and how he always carries cars with him wherever he goes.

 

Ahhh, the magic of childhood innocence...

 

About five weeks later, we heard back from Disney. When the postcards came in, I left them in the mailbox so the kids would be the ones to discover their special surprise mail.  

 

Since Amelia is older, she definitely understood what was happening more than Alex.  We had been waiting and talking about it for weeks.  It also provided a great lesson on the mail system! 

She was just so excited that the princesses sent her a card!  She touched and studied each and every one of their signatures.  The thing that impressed her the most was that she recognized her own name on the back of the card.

Alex seemed to recognize the characters on the card.  I think he was excited because he mimicked the emotions Amelia was feeling.

Alex felt special to have received a card in the mail too!

 

All the pictures in the world couldn't capture the excited Amelia had... and continues to have as she carries the card everywhere with her still.

She keeps it under her pillow at night and in her backpack when she goes to preschool.

Painting Letters

The kids used water to paint the letters I wrote on the chalkboard.  It made the letters disappear and they were super impressed.

 

 

Picture Perfect

We were trying to prep Amelia for her upcoming school pictures... "Mimi, how are you going to smile for your picture at school?" 

My mini photo shoot before we left for preschool on picture day

 

Country Park

On the weekends, we like to take drives through the country with the kids.  Honestly, a lot of times it's because they are fussy and it always seems calms them down.  Another benefit is that since the kids are preoccupied with the scenery, it gives Jimmy and I a chance to talk without getting constantly interrupted, ha ha.

We have a favorite route, which is gorgeous.  The scenery is right out of a storybook.  Beautiful red barns, country houses, sheep, farmland, cows, horses, silos, gigantic bales of hay, huge tractors... I could go on and on. 

We noticed a small park being built in the town our country drive ends on.  Over the past few months, we've been monitoring it's progress.  Much to our delight, it finally opened up this weekend.  Now, we can take our country drive and stop by the park before we head back home.  Yay!

It's a quaint park with a small playground and walking trails.  It is perfect and the kids had a blast.  Amelia has appropriately named it the "country park."

 

 

Alex is about to destroy that leaf.  He's an awesome leaf cruncher.

 

Looking for birds

The boys going for a jog

Good Morning Dance Party (videos)



They obviously get their sweet dance moves from their mom...

 

Fall Fun

Fall is upon us and weather has been great.  The kids and I spent most of today outside.  I'm so looking forward to more days like this.

We had a simple scavenger hunt around our cul de sac.  We collected leaves, dandelions, and rocks, and counted garbage cans, mailboxes, and butterflies.  I was really surprised to have found 7 butterflies during our search.  Alex found two of them all by himself.  I was so proud of him.  He just pointed and screamed.  It's also amazing how easily entertained the kids are sometimes.  They loved it!

Afterwards, I broke down a few boxes in our garage and the kids happily played swords with the styrofoam and paper packaging.  Our timing was great too because the kids got a great view to see the garbage truck pick up the trash in our neighborhood.  They were awe struck.  Again, my kids are easily amused.  It was a good day...



 

Getting ready for our scavenger hunt

Shades... check.

Upside down as always

First find of the day, a leaf

Alex found a dandelion

Alex kept trying to blow dandelion seeds away

Amelia's attempt..

"Mommy, we are going by ourselves.  Stay right here.  Don't come.  We will be back but I won't go past Jordyn's mailbox."

 I usually let them play freely in our cul de sac, but they know they can't go further than our neighbors mailbox.

 Sword fight

 



Fall Frenzy

Fall officially starts today, but with the cooling temperatures, amazing breeze, and start of school,  it has felt like Fall for a few weeks now. 

Our Fall  schedule is well underway.  With Mimi's preschool three days a week, our schedule is much more structured.  Pick up and drop off times keeps us more limited.  Our new routine is hectic, but we have adjusted well.

Alex and Mimi continue their gymnastics classes once a week.  Although, since Mimi turned three, they can no longer be in the same class.  I also enrolled Alex in a Kindermusik class.  We go once a week while Mimi is in preschool.

This summer, I also joined a mom's group.  I was hesitant at first, but I knew a few nice moms in the group already, so decided to give it a try.  The new moms I've met have been so kind and it's refreshing to have so many opportunities for play dates with other cool moms during the week. 

I continue to volunteer with the hospital FRG.  We've got a lot of fun activities coming up along with our regular meetings, so I've definitely been keeping busy with that. 

Unfortunately, Jimmy's crazy work schedule has been affecting my ability to get to the gym.  Jimmy watches the kids, so I usually go in the evenings.  However, he's been getting home so late from work, that I've only been able to go once or twice a week.  I'm currently trying to work out childcare so I can go during the day.  However, finding time to squeeze that in might be difficult.

We are also looking forward to an upcoming visit from Jimmy's family in October.  Amelia has a trip to the zoo and pumpkin patch already planned for her cousins.  She has been talking about it everyday and is so excited for their visit.  She's been asking me every morning if we are going to the airport to get them. 

Pinterest Fails = New Toys

After several failed Pinterest projects (don't ask), I found myself with a ton of Popsicle sticks, clothespins, tubes, jars, and cups.  The box of craft items was a constant reminder of my failure at multiple attempts to be a crafty mom, ha ha.

Little did I know that I didn't have to do anything fancy with them at all.  Alex got a hold of the box and emptied it's contents onto the floor.  Surprisingly, he just started playing with items and Amelia joined in.

I helped by taping some tubes onto the dresser and stool, but the kids found tons of random things to do with the objects.  I was impressed!

Drumming with sticks and cups

Sorting in cups and jars

Peek-a-boo with cars and cups

Making a road for the cars