Sorry to have not posted more this week, but Ben was sick, I am now sick, and it is just a crazy week. I hope to be back in a day or two with more regular posts.
-Denise
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Sunday, September 14, 2008
A Trip to the Elmwood Park Zoo
I have never been to the Elmwood Park Zoo in Norristown, PA http://www.elmwoodparkzoo.org/, even though I have lived close to it my entire life. We took B. there this weekend for his first visit to the zoo. He loved it! He kept saying. "I see aminals!" Yes, he hasn't quite mastered the word animals yet, but he is getting there. he cracked us up with his pronunciations of certain "aminals". Particular favorites were the buff-a-lo (really bison, but not a big difference for him), mouse (really prairie dogs), and leopard (really a jaguar, but we were just impressed he knew what a leopard was!) The conservation playground slides were also a huge hit with B.
The really cute prairie dogs. a.k.a. Mouse to B.
We spent probably spent approximately two hours there. We really did see everything. It is a small zoo, and older kids might get bored quickly. It was perfect for B. at age two. We will definitely go back again. We had a free child's admission coupon as a bonus, so we spent under $20 to get all three of us into the zoo. Food was reasonably priced as well compared to bigger zoos and attractions we have visited.
Here are a few photos.
B. and Daddy petting the goats. B. was a little scared at first.
The really cute prairie dogs. a.k.a. Mouse to B.B. enjoying the slide at the conservation playground.
-Denise
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Overdue Library Books
Over the summer I started taking B. to the library more frequently. He loves getting new books from the library. I have also been getting music on CD as well to check out some new artists before buying CDs. B. is obsessed with The Wiggles, so I like trying out CDs this way to see if he likes them before buying them. There are few artists he will listen to that he doesn't scream over requesting The Wiggles instead. (It is so much fin when you get a Wiggles song stuck in your head all day! Not!) I also have a new addiction to audio books. I never have time to read all of the books I am interested in, so audio books for my 45-minute commute to and from work gives me time to listen to books I have been waiting to read.
In the few months we have been going to the library more frequently, I have also experienced a few overdue fines for a few items. The worst was for a Wiggles DVD (darn Wiggles!) that I had a $2 fine for when I returned it. These fees can add up quickly. For some reason I just can't always remember when our books and CDs are due. When I was reading a blog last night, I read about www.libraryelf.com. (Yes, I once again can't for the life of me remember which one it was and can't give it credit again. Yes, I read a lot of blogs! Maybe my husband is right. Nah!) It is great! You create an account, enter your public library card numbers, and the site emails you reminders when items are getting close to their due dates. I am hoping this well save us a lot of pennies in fines.
-Denise
In the few months we have been going to the library more frequently, I have also experienced a few overdue fines for a few items. The worst was for a Wiggles DVD (darn Wiggles!) that I had a $2 fine for when I returned it. These fees can add up quickly. For some reason I just can't always remember when our books and CDs are due. When I was reading a blog last night, I read about www.libraryelf.com. (Yes, I once again can't for the life of me remember which one it was and can't give it credit again. Yes, I read a lot of blogs! Maybe my husband is right. Nah!) It is great! You create an account, enter your public library card numbers, and the site emails you reminders when items are getting close to their due dates. I am hoping this well save us a lot of pennies in fines.
-Denise
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Coupons for Troops
Did you know that you can help out our overseas troops simply by sending coupons, even expired ones, to overseas bases? I happened to stumble across an article about this on a blog I was reading. I would give credit to this blog accept I can't remember which one it was. It was a blog I don't normally read, and I can't even remember how I found it. Sorry to this blogger in advance! As my husband likes to tease me, I read too many blogs!
How does it work? I am so glad you want to know! LOL Overseas bases accept current and expired coupons as long as they are only two months out of date, and the base puts them out for the families to take at the stores located on the base. The base stores will take the expired coupons for a few months after the expiration date. It is just a little way to help out these military families that are far away from home. They get to save a few dollars, and we can feel good for helping out in this small way.
I started collecting my expired coupons and even ones from new circulars for products I know I will not use. I have a large manila envelope that I have been filing these away in. At the end of each month, I will separate them and tally them as the organization requests and mail them away. Yes, I do have to pay the postage, but I am okay with this.
If you are interested in getting more information, check out the link below.
http://www.ocpnet.org/
I just adopted Alconbury, U.K., a US Air Force base. I am not on the list yet, but it is really easy to pick a base, send the adoption email, and get started. I'll post what my totals are for the first month in a few weeks.
-Denise
How does it work? I am so glad you want to know! LOL Overseas bases accept current and expired coupons as long as they are only two months out of date, and the base puts them out for the families to take at the stores located on the base. The base stores will take the expired coupons for a few months after the expiration date. It is just a little way to help out these military families that are far away from home. They get to save a few dollars, and we can feel good for helping out in this small way.
I started collecting my expired coupons and even ones from new circulars for products I know I will not use. I have a large manila envelope that I have been filing these away in. At the end of each month, I will separate them and tally them as the organization requests and mail them away. Yes, I do have to pay the postage, but I am okay with this.
If you are interested in getting more information, check out the link below.
http://www.ocpnet.org/
I just adopted Alconbury, U.K., a US Air Force base. I am not on the list yet, but it is really easy to pick a base, send the adoption email, and get started. I'll post what my totals are for the first month in a few weeks.
-Denise
Sunday, September 7, 2008
The New Daycare Classroom
Well, B. seems to be enjoying his new daycare classroom for the most part. He loves the new toys, special activities, and going outside more often. There was even a day this week that he told me he didn't want to go home because he wanted to play.
He is having a few minor issues that I am hoping will get straightened out as time goes by in the next few weeks. One is nap time. While B. is used to music at nap time, the music in this room is played much louder. There are also a lot more kids camped out on mats around the room. The two things together are apparently keeping B. from settling in and getting a decent amount of sleep in. Most days he is sleeping only 1 hr. when he usually sleeps 2 hrs. + at home and in his old classroom. This is causing B. to be extremely cranky when we get home. He has to get up at 6 AM on several days of the week when Steve and I work the same days. B. is jut not getting enough sleep some days and shorter naps are not helping. He already goes to bed at 7 PM, so I am not sure we really want to make that any earlier.
B. is also apparently feeling a little stressed in the bathroom department. This room is very focused on getting kids potty trained. I am glad because we have been working on it at home, but not as much as in his classroom. He has only really gone on the potty maybe 4 or 5 times in the last 2-3 months. In t his daycare classroom they sit him on the potty before every diaper change and keep sticker charts. This all sounds okay to me, but from what we can figure, the constant potty sitting and the fact new people are changing his diaper has lead him to hold his #2 and gets him constipated. Then he has a bellyache and is even crankier than before. bet that was all more than you really wanted to know! Sorry for the TMI!
As I said, I think the new classroom will be a good thing once we get a few things worked out and B. starts to feel a little more comfortable with his new teachers.
Hope you are having a nice weekend!
-Denise
He is having a few minor issues that I am hoping will get straightened out as time goes by in the next few weeks. One is nap time. While B. is used to music at nap time, the music in this room is played much louder. There are also a lot more kids camped out on mats around the room. The two things together are apparently keeping B. from settling in and getting a decent amount of sleep in. Most days he is sleeping only 1 hr. when he usually sleeps 2 hrs. + at home and in his old classroom. This is causing B. to be extremely cranky when we get home. He has to get up at 6 AM on several days of the week when Steve and I work the same days. B. is jut not getting enough sleep some days and shorter naps are not helping. He already goes to bed at 7 PM, so I am not sure we really want to make that any earlier.
B. is also apparently feeling a little stressed in the bathroom department. This room is very focused on getting kids potty trained. I am glad because we have been working on it at home, but not as much as in his classroom. He has only really gone on the potty maybe 4 or 5 times in the last 2-3 months. In t his daycare classroom they sit him on the potty before every diaper change and keep sticker charts. This all sounds okay to me, but from what we can figure, the constant potty sitting and the fact new people are changing his diaper has lead him to hold his #2 and gets him constipated. Then he has a bellyache and is even crankier than before. bet that was all more than you really wanted to know! Sorry for the TMI!
As I said, I think the new classroom will be a good thing once we get a few things worked out and B. starts to feel a little more comfortable with his new teachers.
Hope you are having a nice weekend!
-Denise
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
Tired
It is really hard trying to get back on the school year schedule. B.'s sleep schedule is all out of whack making him rather cranky. We are trying to get him on our new/old schedule again, but it will be a few weeks before he really adjusts. Mommy is tired too! I stayed up rather late most nights in the summer, so I am having to make myself go to bed earlier even though I still have tons of work to do. Luckily, my insomnia is not an issue right now. I think this is the first year I actually slept the night before my first day teaching for the school year. Maybe that is because this is now my ninth year teaching?! I am just happy I can sleep because I am exhausted.
I hope to give a report on how B. likes his new classroom at daycare tomorrow night. Stay tuned.
-Denise
I hope to give a report on how B. likes his new classroom at daycare tomorrow night. Stay tuned.
-Denise
Monday, September 1, 2008
Beware when they get quiet!
I have firsthand experience that when a child gets unusually quiet, it often means that he/she is getting into trouble. If only I had remembered this a few minutes earlier today.
I was going through old coupons and throwing out expired ones before clipping some new ones. B. decided to throw all of the old coupons on the floor and was sitting there next to the dining room table playing with them. I continued what I was doing until my brain suddenly focused in on the sounds coming from B.'s corner of the floor. It was not crumpled paper that I was hearing. B. was throwing handfuls of dirt from a potted plant all over the floor in the dining room and in on the carpet in the attached living room. It took a minute for the situation to settle in before I yelled, "No! What are you doing?"
"I play with dirt Mama."
"No, no more dirt."
I then brushed him off and started sweeping and vacuuming up the mess. B. just walked away and started playing with cars instead. We chatted about plants and dirt in the house a little more later, and I am hoping there will not be a repeat performance again on another day.
I was going through old coupons and throwing out expired ones before clipping some new ones. B. decided to throw all of the old coupons on the floor and was sitting there next to the dining room table playing with them. I continued what I was doing until my brain suddenly focused in on the sounds coming from B.'s corner of the floor. It was not crumpled paper that I was hearing. B. was throwing handfuls of dirt from a potted plant all over the floor in the dining room and in on the carpet in the attached living room. It took a minute for the situation to settle in before I yelled, "No! What are you doing?"
"I play with dirt Mama."
"No, no more dirt."
I then brushed him off and started sweeping and vacuuming up the mess. B. just walked away and started playing with cars instead. We chatted about plants and dirt in the house a little more later, and I am hoping there will not be a repeat performance again on another day.
-Denise
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