Fun – Long Island Chick

Why Cleaning Is So Rewarding

Kathleen — Fri, 15 Apr 2016 16:30:21 +0000

With Miche going out of business, it was time to inventory my collection. To do that, required cleaning out the basement. You have no idea what our basement has degenerated to. It’s a cesspool filled with old toys, broken things, piles of tiny little things like nerf bullets, lego pieces, linkin logs, bakugan to name a few. Let me put it this way…I have to pass this room the get to our laundry room, pantry etc and I just look straight ahead and avoid eye contact with this monster.

But, now it needs our attention. This is going to be torture as I can’t even see the carpet. One by one I sort the little things into boxes. Oh Star Wars figures…those damn things are littered everywhere as well. Looks as if the Death Star scored a direct hit on our basement. But I digress.

While I was sorting all these crap that covered the Thomas the Tank Engine train table (did I mention my boys are 13 and 16 now?), I came across this little gem:

Ok. Let’s look at this. Apparently the boys decided to have a party at some point in time and judging from the handwriting it was a while ago. And they invited their father but not me? Really?! Getting past this possible slight, the boys were apparently concerned that Danny might not behave…so concerned they needed him to execute an agreement to behave. What kind of mischief, on the part of their father, prompted the necessity for a contract? We may never know.

It’s Caturday!

Kathleen — Sat, 14 Nov 2015 13:29:30 +0000

Just had to share this picture of Bella…isn’t she adorable?! I think she is just as excited as any human that it is the weekend!

Bella celebrating Caturday!

Sometimes I love nothing more than curling up with one of these fur babies on a Saturday!

Yeah We Are Going to Disney..Again: How to Get Fresh Photos

Kathleen — Mon, 07 May 2012 18:20:32 +0000

Our family is getting ready for our annual Disney World trip and this year I am very excited. We skipped last year because we were in somewhat dire financial straits. If you go every year like we have been doing since 2002, you tend to get a little jaded about the Mouse. So our excitement is mounting and it is going to be a little different this time because…my friend Jen is coming with her two boys! My boys are thrilled to have two friends to pal around with. Nick is a year younger than Ginger and Jonathan is a year younger than Ryan. So we will have 8, 9, 10 and 12 this year. What is also cool is that Jen’s boys have barely seen Disney so we will get a fresh perspective with them.

One of my greatest fears is to keep taking the same, old pictures at Disney. Everyone gets shot in front of Cinderella’s castle, fireworks etc but I look back at photos from past trips and there is a trend. So this time, I’d like to step out of the box a bit and mix it up. I found a great website, the Disney Photography Blog for tips, tricks and inspiration. I particularly enjoyed their post about Family Photography and making it fun. He set up some really cool shots, from different perspectives, that we will have to try in Disney. I have some fun photos, especially this one of Ginger from 2010:

This was another fun shot of my mother-in-law on Toy Store Mania:

Travel Hyper has a printable list of must-take Disney Photos:

I also found another great list here and I love some of the suggestions such as getting a shot while you and your family compare hand prints with the stars found in the Great Movie Ride in Hollywood Studios. I also love this idea for the World Showcase in Epcot:

World Showcase: When visiting Epcot a big part of the experience is visiting the different Pavilions in the World Showcase. A great way to remember each stop is by taking a picture in each of the countries wearing or holding something that represents those specific cultures. If you can get some sort of landmark in your pictures that represent the countries you visit that is a great idea too. For example, in the France Pavilion, you can get the Eiffel Tower in your shot by setting up between the United Kingdom and France Pavilions.

So, I’ll be getting my camera cleaned and ready for our upcoming trip and looking forward to getting some varied shots this year. Do you have any suggestions for me? What are your favorite Disney photos?

Sharing the Love

Kathleen — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 21:06:49 +0000

Came across this poster on Pinterest and had to share:

Kind of like my kids – sometimes a little nasty but with good intentions. Go buy the print on Etsy.

Infographic: Which Female Tech Influencer Are You?

Kathleen — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 13:44:33 +0000

Infographics are the latest internet craze and I do enjoy collecting them on Pinterest. Came across this one this morning:

Now some women are up in arms with the sexist thing but truthfully I can’t be bothered. It is just FUN that is all – no one is trying to force women back in the kitchen or take the vote from them for heaven’s sake. GET OVER IT!.

So I’m #1 Marissa Mayer apparently because I own a Blackberry, like CES and dream of a real estate investor – how about you?