Category Archives: About the family
No Bippity-Boo!
When I saw the Mama Kat vlog prompt “Things kids do that I don’t understand…” a million things ran through my head, because, seriously, kids do the weirdest things. But this one moment with my daughter when she was just shy of 21 months old stuck out in my mind so much, I had to share it with you…
Adaline wants me to sing Bippity-Boo…or does she? (Video here)
This post is linked to…
Making a Preschool Classroom Valentine
For Adaline’s Montessori Preschool class each child has to make one big Valentine to bring to school that their classmates will sign rather than bring in individual Valentine’s for each student. Honestly, I think that’s a GREAT idea and I’m so glad that she won’t be coming home with 25 different lollipops with eyes glued to them! 😉
I filmed the creative process of making “The Adaline Flower” with a 4.5 year old. Watch and be amazed!
(Video here)
(I post a lot of funny vlogs on my YouTube channel. Subscribe to follow along!)
To make the classroom Valentine for preschool we
-Cut a heart out of red poster board
-Colored craft sticks and glued them around a photo to make petals and a stem for a flower
-Made leaves out of fuzzy sticks
-Made a sun out of construction paper
-Made a pom pom lady bug
-Used glitter glue around the edges to make it shimmery
It was tough to reign in Adaline’s creativity. She LOVES art and wanted to draw all over the Valentine but she needed to keep it blank so that her classmates could sign it. I have a feeling her friends are going to end up with quite a few drawings of hers on their Valentines.
The pom pom ladybug was Adaline’s favorite part.
We used a black Sharpie marker to make dots on a pink pom pom, used a smaller black pom pom for the head, added googly eyes and adhered it all using craft glue. Adaline drew wings and legs around it onto the poster board.
Does your child’s school allow individual
Valentine’s or one classroom Valentine?
Let me know in the comments!
Jonathan’s Tie-riffic Little Man Mustache Bash 1st Birthday Party
Yesterday was Adaline’s half birthday!
She’s 4.5 years old and in just a few days Jonathan will turn 2!
(You can see how we celebrate half-birthdays here.)
Last year my little man’s 1st birthday came and went and I didn’t even mention it on the blog. I’m a bad mom. Or a bad blogger. Maybe both. Anyway, now it’s days before his 2nd birthday and I’m finally going to show you the pictures from his first birthday party.
(Please scroll to the bottom of the post to find a complete vendor list of party items.)
Jonathan’s Tie-riffic Little Man Mustache Bash 1st Birthday Party
The printable necktie banner is actually a free Father’s Day printable. The only letters missing for “Happy Birthday” were “b” and “i” so I put the file in Paint, painted over it and added new letters. I cut out some free printable mustaches and attached them to each letter of the banner.
The cupcake toppers were from the same Father’s Day set. Some had said #1 so I just removed the “#” symbol in Paint by “painting” over it. The wooden crates that the cupcakes are in are actually from sets of Melissa and Doug play food.
The Little Man cake topper was made using little dowel rod craft stick thingies (the technical term) and twine. The top hat, mustache, and necktie cutouts are from Etsy and were attached using craft glue.
Another look at the cupcake toppers
I think the Little Man drink station was my favorite detail of the party.
…and my favorite part of my favorite part is the punny names of the drinks: LeMANade and Mister Tea! I do love a good play on words! 😉
I used printable tent cards for the signs and added the text myself.
This was my first attempt at a chalkboard sign and I think the “Wet Your Whiskers” sign turned out really nice.
The drink glasses are mason jars with vinyl mustaches on them, cupcake paper toppers, and paper straws with mustaches or other details on them.
I make number ice cubes for the kids’ birthdays each year. This time I made mustache ice cubes in addition to the #1 ice cubes.
I wasn’t as thrilled with this #1 chalkboard sign as much as the “Wet your whiskers” one. I tried it a bunch of times but it never came out right.
Cute “Stache Bash” paper plates and adhesive mustaches for all to enjoy! I was going to fold the napkins into neckties and ran out of time, so it’s just a basket of napkins. Oh well.
These are my cousins. Weirdness runs in the family.
13 photos of Jonathan from birth to 12 months line the mantel. I attached adhesive mustaches to the picture frames. The picture frames were purchased in 3-packs at Target in 2010 for Adaline’s 1st Birthday.
Jonny checking out his cake.
It’s time to sing Happy Birthday!
For the cake we laid a plastic table cloth on the floor and let him go to town. He never really did go to town. He just kinda walked around the block a little.
I adore the smash cake set we found on Etsy:
birthday hat, necktie, and diaper cover
Jon barely had any cake on him but we still went ahead with his post smash cake bath. He was more interested in eating the bubbles than he was in the cake!
Here our little man was taking some of his first steps.
Adaline started walking on her first birthday as well.
Family photo!
By the way, it’s not easy to smile wearing one of those adhesive mustaches.
Here’s our family mustache free (for the most part).
I always try to get a photo of the birthday kid next to their number sign.
Jonny and Mommy!
What was your little one’s first birthday theme? How did they react to the smash cake? Let me know in the comments!
VENDOR LIST
This post does not contain affiliate links.
*Father’s Day Freebie Printables from Amanda’s Parties to Go
*Little Man Tie Onesie from Tabitha942 on Etsy
*Birthday Boy Diaper Cover, Necktie, and Cone Hat Set from JHP Couture on Etsy (Pattern #141) A note about the hat: It actually came with a small white fuzzy pom pom on it but we made a bigger one from yarn to replace it.
*Mustache Party Vinyl Stickers from QuiltedPolkaDot on Etsy
*Mucho Mustaches Burlap Border Banner from QuiltedPolkaDot on Etsy
*Mustache Stripey Straws from QuiltedPolkaDot on Etsy
*Little Man Straw Toppers (Top hat, Mustache, Necktie) from Confetti Grove on Etsy
(She made a separate price/listing for me to purchase the straw toppers alone.)
*”Stache Bash” Mustache Party Dinner Plates from Oriental Trading Company
*Polka Dot Paper Straws from Amazon
*Self Adhesive Mustaches Set – Fake Costume Accessory from Amazon
*Accoutrements Cool Mustache Ice Cube Tray Novelty from Amazon
*Solid Color Elastic Infant’s Suspenders by Suspender Factory from Amazon
*Blue Polka Dot #1 Birthday Candle: Purchased from a local party store, but you can find it on Amazon here and a similar one here
Ladybug Picnic: 2nd Birthday / Pink and Green Polka Dots and Cupcakes Party: 1st Birthday / Ham and Man Party: 30th Birthday / Celebrating 30 years in 30 days! All of my birthdays from 1980-2009 / Birthday Girl…2 years old
Birthday Traditions: Personalized Birthday CD / Birthday Traditions: Knife and Cake Server / Birthday Traditions: Professional Photos / Birthday Traditions: Photo Puzzle / Happy 2nd Birthday, Adaline!
DIY No Sew Party Hat Tutorial / Tissue Number Birthday Sign (Mini-Tutorial)
10 Things I’d Rather Do Than the Dishes
I truly hate doing the dishes so much that I felt it necessary to give you a list of things I’d rather do than the dishes so that you can truly understand my distaste.
10 Things I’d Rather Do Than the Dishes
1. Pluck my eyebrows
2. Clip my toenails
3. Clean the dog’s ears
4. Wipe boogies
5. Watch Elmo’s World 3,000 times
6. Change a poopy diaper
7. Clean the toilets (Yeah, you read that right.)
8. Repeatedly bang my head against a wall
9. Drive a sharp object into my skull
10. Push a nearly 10 lb baby out of my nether-regions
Related Posts:
*My Least Favorite Chore
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Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!
This post is for Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop #3.) A lie you told. I also linked up #5.) What was the occasion? Write about the last time you stayed in a hotel here.
I made a friend at school in Kindergarten. I think her name was Amber, but I’m not sure. One day I told Amber that I was going to be having a birthday party at Brady’s Run Park. I was not. What was actually going on was that our church was having the Sunday School Picnic at the park fairly close to my birthday. I knew that it wasn’t my birthday party…but I told her that anyway. I had forgotten all about it until we were at the Sunday School Picnic. Our family was at the shelter when a car pulled up. A little girl with a wrapped present got out of the car. Oops…busted! I had to tell my mom, and Amber, and her mom that I had lied about my birthday. I really don’t recall getting into a lot of trouble. In fact I remember our moms telling us that we could have a play date and maybe I could even ride the bus home with Amber one day (which was exciting for me because I was a “walker”). Then Amber and her mom got back into the car with the present and drove away. I don’t have any memories of Amber after that. I know that we never had our play date and sometime before the end of the year she moved away (probably to a place where people tell the truth). Amber did not come to my real birthday party that year. I’m not sure if it’s because we didn’t invite her, or if she just didn’t believe me, or if she had already moved away by then. I have absolutely no idea why I lied. It was very out of character for me. In fact while preparing for my Mommy’s Piggy Tales posts I asked my mom if she had any cute stories of me at this age. She told me that I was such a good girl all the time, I never did anything wrong, and there just isn’t anything funny about a little girl who’s always behaving herself.
The thing that I find weird about this story is…how did two 5 year old girls get the details right? How did I tell Amber the exact day, time, and place with shelter number to come to? How did she then relay that information to her mother…correctly? Why did her mom just take her to a birthday party without there being a written invitation and without speaking to my mother first? I have no idea! But aside from the lying, those were some great communication skills at work!
This post was originally included in the post Dancing in a box for my Mommy’s Piggy Tale series. That original post has been edited to create this new post.
My Piggy Tales:
*My Birth Story: I’m always late!
*Ages 3-5: Dancing in a box
*Age 5 Kindergarten: Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire!
*Age 6 First Grade: There’s a bra in my lunchbox!
*Age 7 Second Grade: Bossy Wheels and Shady Deals
*Age 8 Third Grade: I will not talk in class
*Age 9 Fourth Grade: I didn’t really need those fingers anyway!
*Age 10 5th Grade: Nothing’s Scary in the Fifth Grade
*Age 11 6th Grade: Jenny Got Ran Over by her Grandma
*Age 12 7th Grade: Youth Camp Stinks
*Age 13 8th Grade: “Talent” Show
*Age 14 9th Grade: (N)O Christmas Tree
*Age 15 10th Grade: The Newsboys Wouldn’t Ditch Their Friends
*Age 16 11th Grade: Acrophobia Gets You the Good Seats
*Age 17 12th Grade: In School Suspension
My Young Adult Years
*Dreams and Aspirations: The Long Road There
*Friends and Fellowship: Friends Don’t Get Friends Grounded
*My First Job
*How I Met Cool Daddy Part 1
*How I Met Cool Daddy Part 2
*Colonel Mustard on a Rollercoaster with a Plastic Fork
You can find links to posts about my 1st-5th birthdays here: Celebrating 30 Years in 30 Days
Introducing Jonathan Paul
Our newest member to the Cool Family arrived a week ago.
Jonathan Paul was born on Wednesday February 08, 2012 at 11:59am via unmedicated VBAC. He weighed 9 lbs 6 oz was 22 inches long and had a head circumference of 36.5 cm (14.37 inches). Birth story to follow when I have some time.
Things are going to be pretty slow around here blogwise. As you can imagine I have my hands full with a newborn and a toddler and I’m pretty much exhausted. There’s not much time or motivation for blogging right now, but I wanted to be sure to introduce the little man to the blogosphere.
Thanks for following along during the pregnancy.
Related Posts
Click for the latest pregnancy news
*Our Infertility Story: The Short Version
*Trying to Conceive: Take 3 (Secondary Infertility)
*Trying to Conceive Tuesday (Take 3 Continued)
*Wordless Wednesday: Two Lines
*Early Ultrasound 7 Weeks 2 Days
*Early Ultrasound 9 Weeks 2 Days
*The Night I Got Arrested and Changed My Name to David (not really): A trip to the ER, Ultrasound 11 Weeks 4 Days
*NT Ultrasound 12 Weeks 4 Days
*Half Way There! 20 Weeks
*It’s a…
*Wordless Wednesday: Is That a Pumpkin Up Your Shirt?
*Third Trimester Already?!: 2nd Trimester Recap (Weeks 20-27)
*1 Week Left!: 3rd Trimester Recap (Weeks 28-39)
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Fun and Dysfunction 