Author Archive
Easter Bunny Blues
The other Day we all went to the Happiest place on earth no not Disneyland, Costco. I have written about my love of Costco before so I will not gush I promise but I seriously just love that place.
We had all the kids in tow but I saw things I wanted to put in my girls easter baskets, Swim Suits, Goggles, Treats. How would they not see them? I made a hasty decision. I told the girls I wanted these to be part of there Easter (Not all, I am planning on getting them a few more fun things to be surprises today) I then decided to say:
“You guys know it’s just me and Daddy that give you presents on Easter right?” I worried a little bit what their answer would be. Was I destroying there Easter dreams dashing all of their hopes about life? I breathed a sigh of relief when my 6 and 9 yr old looked at me and said “Yeah mom we know it’s just you and Dad”.
PHEW!
My 6 yr old then said. “Mom even if there was a bunny it would actually be a guy dressed in a bunny costume”.
So I did not just ruin Easter after all and right when I was still a little worried a lady came up to me and said “I heard what you said to your girls and I think that was really great”.
I really did want my girls to focus on the real meaning of Easter this year. Why we really celebrate it. So we can think about Christ and the sacrifice he made for us and to spend time with our family.
While I never know if I truly make the all the right decisions for my little ones I will always know how much I love them and how they are always a step ahead of me.
So there you have it. I am going to make it a fun day for my girls for sure. They will search for eggs, eat tons and tons of candy ,and enjoy there Easter. Easter Bunny or not.
Yes they still believe in Santa and no I will not ruin that. until they figure it out for themselves.
*Photo from Wikipedia.
Winner of Bob Books Giveaway
Using Random.org and getting Number 11. The winner of the two adorable early reader Bob Books is Victory!
Thanks you all for entering! 
Bob Books Early Readers Review and Giveaway
Shout, my Kindergartner is loving school and really enjoying everything she is learning. I knew she was a little behind in reading and wanted to get her up to speed and start working with her a lot more. This pregnancy has made me so sleepy that I know I use the TV way too much as a baby sitter and as far as I know The Mario Brothers show from the eighties that she loves does not teach early reading.
I was so glad when I was contacted by Bob Books to do a review and Giveaway of two of their Early readers.
I did make the mistake of telling Shout she would be getting books in the mail. Every second of every day she would ask about her books. It was quickly becoming as frequent as the amount of times I read and heard that Snooky was indeed expecting a child.
She loved reading these with and without me by her side. Cutest reader ever.
When the books came she was thrilled. I loved the bright colored pictures and how easy it was to point to the pictures and have Shout identify the words. I loved the level of words and was happy to see that a lot of the basics words were ones Shout had been working on at school. Each book also has flashcards in the back to cut out and quiz your child. Love that feature!
I wanted a little feedback about the best ways to incorporate these books in our every day lives of craziness so I asked the Author Lynn Maslen Kertell a few questions about her books. Her answers are below my questions. I loved what she had to say.
I’ll start with the second part of the question. The wrong amount of time is going until you and your child are cranky and irritated. Every kid (and parent) is different, so there is no “perfect” amount of time that is right for everybody. Some kids are natural readers, they love the attention of sitting with Mom or Dad and showing all they know. Other kids would rather be jumping off the couch than sitting on it with a book. I think a minimum amount of time is 5 minutes per day, even for kids who are not fond of reading. If you child wants to keep going – great.
There are lots of active ways you can practice reading skills with your child, too. Ask your child to read traffic signs while you’re driving. See if they can find the letter “M” in Market when you go shopping. Ask them to draw letters in the dirt or make them out of pipe cleaners or clay. Skill building can be a game, not a drudgery.
Bob Books help with beginning reading in a couple of ways:
- the stories are funny (I hope!!) to both parents and kids, so they’re enjoyable and satisfying.
- a many words as possible can be “sounded out.” It is important for kids to feel success when they’re starting to read. Our English language is complicated.Bob Books are written to be phonics-based, so children can sound out the words and be successful from the start.
- The two new books (Cupcake Surprise! and The New Puppy) have flash cards in the back, so you can help your child become familiar with the difficult words.
- If your child is struggling with these two books, review the basics by reading any of Bob Books Sets 1, 2, 3, or Sight Words.
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The awesome people at Bob Books are letting me give one lucky reader the two books I received.
To Enter leave me a comment. I would love some more tips on how you read with your children but writing anything will do.
This contest will close on Friday March 30th at midnight.
Be sure to Follow Bob Books on Twitter and like them on Facebook to get more information on their early readers.
*I received 2 books from Bob books for this review all opinions are my own.
Guest posting at I Heart Maternity
I am guest posting today at the adorable I Heart Maternity. Seriously could her header and button be any cuter? I am talking about the perks that come with pregnancy. Come check it out!
My life summed up in iPhone photo’s
I have mentioned before my love affair with the iPhone app Instagram. (my user name on it is livingthescream if you want to Follow me!)
I wanted to share my last few photo’s from it because I think there is no better way to sum up life then candid photo’s using rad filters.
My girls begged me to get them ready for a princess birthday party they had that day, approximately 5 hours later! This is them looking in the “TV mirror” as they call it making sure they are looking their princess best
My happiest moment ever! Finally got my stash of Girl Scout cookies. Guess how long it took me and my family to eat this? if you guessed more than 1 day you would be wrong.
I have come a long way in 28 weeks of pregnancy! June can’t come soon enough!
Of course you can not watch a show on an iPad without a little cuddling. Gotta love it when I see sisterly happiness occurring because lets just say it does not happen all of the time.
