kids – 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.

Crochet Snowboard Skullies

Kathleen — Mon, 11 Jan 2016 15:30:20 +0000

With the cold weather finally showing up on Long Island, I noticed Ryan needed a hat badly. Awesome! Something new to crochet! I wanted something a teen boy would like and, after searching the patterns on Ravelry, I found this wonderful, free pattern by Catherine Lindsay called Snowboarder Skullies. She had directions for both a male and female pattern. This was perfect because I had some nice, gray bulky yarn I wanted to use and this pattern was made for it.

Although I didn’t have to change colors, it was a little complicated because I had to figure out what a front post double crochet was but, thanks to YouTube, I got it down pat and started crocheting. It takes me a little longer than all those pros out there although my speed is starting to increase. After reading some of the notes by other Ravelry crocheters, I did alter the pattern a little bit. I changed the last 3 rows to single crochet to give it a bit of a band.

I just adore the finished product and so does Ryan (He might not look 100% thrilled as it is Monday morning):

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?

Give the Most Precious Gift of All: Your Time

Kathleen — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 19:04:20 +0000

Our time is truly our most precious commodity. We are always so busy doing something or going somewhere. This is the age of multitasking – I used to boast about carrying on more than 5 conversations at once – texting, instant messaging and email. Now, I don’t necessarily think that is quite as impressive as giving someone your undivided attention – especially our children. Many of the mom bloggers out there have infants and toddlers – take heed: THEY GROW UP QUICK! Before you know it, that little cherub of a son will be busy with his own friends and you will be wondering where the time went and why you didn’t spend more time with him when you were his whole world.

Today, I decided to do just that – give my son, Ryan, my undivided attention. I asked him to come out back with me to survey the yard and garden. It is such a beautiful day and I wanted to get some fresh air. Ryan, as long as you aren’t asking him to go to Walbaums (heaven forbid!), is happy to do what ever you would like to do. He promptly put his sneakers on and we went outside. Spring is a time of new beginnings and I love seeing the plants push through the soil. It is also the time for us to do some yard cleanup as we never really accomplish that in the fall. My one rose bush has shot up to be taller than me – we walked over there to admire its tenacity when I noticed a bottle of bubbles. These scented bubbles (green apple) were in Ryan’s Easter basket. Like finding hidden treasure, Ryan said “ooooooohh” and reached for them. You know your boy is still a child as long as he can enjoy blowing bubbles. So we sat down on the steps of the deck and blew bubbles together:

I was very content to just watch him blow bubbles and enjoy his delight in blowing some huge bubbles and catching them, especially after last week. The accident changed my perspective a bit I think – makes me appreciate the little things because it is these little things that sometimes count the most.

So, go out there and give your child your undivided attention and create some memories!

Sometimes We Would Like to Strangle Them and Then They Go Do Something Like This

Kathleen — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:37:54 +0000

While non-parents may be horrified, I consider beating the crap out of my kids on an almost daily basis. One is hitting puberty and thinks that not only his snotty attitude is actually “comedic” but that I am his personal assistant. The other one chucks his teeth when asked to do homework, constantly leaves my basement floor full of lego pieces which I invariably step on EVERY DAY. Ever step on a lego barefoot???? They are lucky they have not yet been maimed.

We had a particularly rough night with Ginger (Matt has auburn hair) and his inability to focus on anything but the opposite sex.

: Ginger has girls on the brain

To make matters worse, Ginger and I missed the bus this morning. So now I have to drive him all the way up to Kellenberg…in traffic. If you live on Long Island, the parkways are a disaster from 7 am on. I also had to wake up Ran who was not very happy about the situation. He demanded that I go away and leave him home. I can’t do that – he is 9. So, slow as molasses, he eats breakfast and gets dressed. Now the drive to Kellenberg has turned into a game of “Beat the Clock” and I am careening around corners and flying up the Meadowbrook. If he is “tardy”, they give detention and I was damned if I was gonna traipse up there again today! Ginger fished a pieces of loose leaf and a pen out of his backpack so I could draft a note on the fly if we were going to be late. Thankfully, we pulled into the parking lot in the nick of time and I shoved him out the door (I did come to a stop first). Ryan and I got home rather quickly, I got his lunch together and took him to Meadow.

When I got back in my truck to go home and turn myself into a human being, I found this on the car seat:

Now I’m gonna have to bake brownies or something. Dagnamit!!!!!