Surprise! It's a baby! (Not long now!)

[Tink-erin-belle]

Once again, I am loving your movie nights! I love six-sided snowflakes. The kids and I are actually making some more tonight. Did you freehand the fairies? I thought about doing the Star Wars snowflakes too, but they don’t really go with our tree but maybe I could put them in the kitchen! Yeah! Thanks for the inspiration! If we do them, I’ll put pictures in my PTR ;-) I saw those “haycorns” on Pinterest. I never got around to making them for Thanksgiving, so it is nice to see that it is do-able. I have to think of an excuse to make them now I love the honey bee cake and the balloons! Robert sure is a lucky baby to be getting all of these Disney themed clothes and accessories! The hunny pots are too cute! I can’t believe you made real Turkish Delight for The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe! I am not intimidated by many recipes, but the one that I found when I did this movie night had rose water in it. I’ve never used that and people told me it can taste soapy. Eww So I made a fake Turkish Delight with cherry Jello and Knox gelatin to make it stiff Then powdered sugar topped it all off! It was a sight! The recipe you linked looks a little better, though, and yours turned out well! I might have to try it again one day. The lantern light project was adorable! How sweet that Toby reads by it all night! Yeah, it is hard to take something away when you know your kid is really enjoying it. Your Lady and the Tramp ornament is precious. We haven’t seen Arthur Christmas either. I actually forgot all about it! You have done quite a few projects over the past month! It’s nice that your kids are enjoying them so much

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

I am in love with that cake... I have to make it... I already checked out the site...which was awesome...

Also loved your Narnia night light... that is so sweet... may have to do that one too...

(you've heard that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...? )

All of your Christmas Carol's are on my list also but I would add the newer Patrick Stewart version as well... He does a great Scrooge...

I don't know where that quote came from... but it is really very lovely and moving... I know you recently lost your mum... and I know that your Christmas will be bittersweet... with your loss and yet the birth of Robert... I think that one of the things once we grow up (and I think that actually is a continual process throughout our life... is that continual combination and dealing with the bitter and the sweet... Christmas is a lovely wonderful time filled with new friends and (babies...) but we also are remembering older times and people who are no longer with us... I guess the challenge for some of us is to be able to remember without allowing it to pull us into a vortex of sorrow... since I can't believe that's what they would want, as that quote so very beautifully expresses...

and I'm still in love with that cake...maybe for New Year's...

 

[emmysmommy]

Alysa your crafts and themed dinners are simply adorable! I shared with your posts with Em since she is so crafty herself and she sends her compliments as well. The bee hive cake was wonderfully crafted!

I hope you survived your frigid walk to the school performance!

Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

Alysa,

Hoping that you and your family are enjoying the holidays and Baby Robert...

 

[Alysa]

Once again, I am loving your movie nights! I love six-sided snowflakes. The kids and I are actually making some more tonight. Did you freehand the fairies? I thought about doing the Star Wars snowflakes too, but they don’t really go with our tree but maybe I could put them in the kitchen! Yeah! Thanks for the inspiration! If we do them, I’ll put pictures in my PTR ;-) I saw those “haycorns” on Pinterest. I never got around to making them for Thanksgiving, so it is nice to see that it is do-able. I have to think of an excuse to make them now I love the honey bee cake and the balloons! Robert sure is a lucky baby to be getting all of these Disney themed clothes and accessories! The hunny pots are too cute! I can’t believe you made real Turkish Delight for The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe! I am not intimidated by many recipes, but the one that I found when I did this movie night had rose water in it. I’ve never used that and people told me it can taste soapy. Eww So I made a fake Turkish Delight with cherry Jello and Knox gelatin to make it stiff Then powdered sugar topped it all off! It was a sight! The recipe you linked looks a little better, though, and yours turned out well! I might have to try it again one day. The lantern light project was adorable! How sweet that Toby reads by it all night! Yeah, it is hard to take something away when you know your kid is really enjoying it. Your Lady and the Tramp ornament is precious. We haven’t seen Arthur Christmas either. I actually forgot all about it! You have done quite a few projects over the past month! It’s nice that your kids are enjoying them so much

Hi Erin, Thanks for all your kind comments! I did freehand the fairies but I remember learning how to draw them from a great Usborne craft book. Did you take a photo of the turkish delight? It actually sounds good! I'm craving cherry jello now!

I am in love with that cake... I have to make it... I already checked out the site...which was awesome...
Also loved your Narnia night light... that is so sweet... may have to do that one too...
(you've heard that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery...? )
All of your Christmas Carol's are on my list also but I would add the newer Patrick Stewart version as well... He does a great Scrooge...
I don't know where that quote came from... but it is really very lovely and moving... I know you recently lost your mum... and I know that your Christmas will be bittersweet... with your loss and yet the birth of Robert... I think that one of the things once we grow up (and I think that actually is a continual process throughout our life... is that continual combination and dealing with the bitter and the sweet... Christmas is a lovely wonderful time filled with new friends and (babies...) but we also are remembering older times and people who are no longer with us... I guess the challenge for some of us is to be able to remember without allowing it to pull us into a vortex of sorrow... since I can't believe that's what they would want, as that quote so very beautifully expresses...
and I'm still in love with that cake...maybe for New Year's...

Hi Patricia, thank you for all the kind words, especially about mum. I did miss her dreadfully. I'm adding the Patrick Stewart version to my list (I'm going to watch it after Toby's party). I love him! "Tea. Earl Grey. Hot."

Alysa your crafts and themed dinners are simply adorable! I shared with your posts with Em since she is so crafty herself and she sends her compliments as well. The bee hive cake was wonderfully crafted!
I hope you survived your frigid walk to the school performance!
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

Hi Brenda, thanks - I did survive the walk though it made me think "I could be in Disney right now!" 23˚C tomorrow!
"Hi" to Em as well! I almost feel like I know her from your reports!

For our final Christmas movie night we did Mickey's Christmas Carol. I looked everywhere for a goose but I couldn't find anything under $50. Since Harold wouldn't try it for our actual Christmas dinner, I decided to do the "before" version of the Cratchit's dinner. More our style anyway. So I went out and got a cornish game hen and we did it with a glorious new stuffing recipe. I guess that turkeys in the store are getting larger and larger and portion sizes are increasing all the time but because I am a vegetarian, the hen only had to serve 3 people and it was the perfect size! I will buy them more often after this, just for a surprisingly easy dinner. We had plum pudding with sauce for dessert (it was a favourite of my mum's) and I was thrilled that the kids actually liked it!

For the craft, I told the kids that we would take the money that we usually spent on the craft and put it towards the charity of their choice. We talked about all the different sorts of things they could donate their money to. Eveie decided quickly, and gave money towards a well in Africa with World Vision. Toby had more trouble. He thought and thought but he couldn't decide. And here is where it gets funny. He had been asking about Grand-Santa from Arthur Christmas and how he spits out his teeth when he eats his mince tart. He was horrified that he could actually do that and I told him a lot of older people have dentures they can remove. So out of the blue, all of a sudden, he says, "I want to give my money to people with no teeth!" So we did.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday with a lovely Christmas and a Happy New Year! God Bless Us, Everyone.

 

[Alysa]

Beauty and the Beast
We did a lot of movie nights over the break after Christmas and caught up on a few outstanding crafts. Beauty and the Beast was a new one and perfect for a snowy winter day. We made a cheese souffle for dinner and it was surprisingly easy! It didn't rise as much as I had hoped and it fell a little for the photo but it was still amazingly delicious. So much so that my carnivore husband asked for it for both New Year's Eve dinner and his birthday two days later. The recipe is here and I highly recommend it!

The craft was actually quite a bit of work but so worth it in the end. I decided to do a bookmark because Belle, and our family, love reading. I found an image here and converted it to black and white. I printed it and redrew the lines in a darker black marker. Then I showed Eveie how to use the exacto knife and she cut out all the white pieces. We then glued scraps of coloured tissue paper to the back and enclosed it all with a piece of white tissue. It turned out so nicely and she was really proud of herself. Here it is with a few of the books on her reading list for 2013. We also started her and her brother up on goodreads so they can record their books they are reading. They have challenged themselves to reading 100 books this year and if Eveie does 60 by the trip I told her she would earn a visit to Blizzard Beach. Yes, I am bribing her. Anyone out there have any good suggestions for books for kids 7-10?

 

[Alysa]

Christmas is gone, New Year's is over, we survived my husband's birthday (just) but Toby's Hobbit party looms ever closer (2 days!) and the kids are still home from school so we've been madly baking and papier-mâcheing. To keep them from climbing the walls I've been tossing movie night meal ingredients and craft supplies at them and letting them go crazy. The house looks like a bomb went off and here I sit feeding Robert ever so calmly. (Yeah, right!)

Photo of Smaug the terrible sans paint and wings. He'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye. He's a work in progress. I'm tempted to take the hair dryer to him. First coat STILL not dry.

Oh! I almost forgot to show you the stocking I made for Robert. I embroidered his name too high before I sewed the cuff to the stocking but it took 3 hours so too high it will have to stay!

Last night for the Pirates of the Caribbean, we had "Why is the rum always gone?" rum (apple juice) and turkey legs. My husband found this recipe for a glaze which smells exactly like the turkey legs in the Magic Kingdom. We used the leftovers from Christmas and just added the glaze but Harold has never actually ever been brave enough to try one at the park so it may taste totally different. I found pewter mugs at the Goodwill perfect for serving the grog in. Oh, and of course, apples. ""You know the first thing I'm gonna do after the curse is lifted? Eat a whole bushel of apples."

For the activity I got a treasure chest and come chocolate coins from the dollar store and I made up a treasure hunt with about ten rhymes, riddles and cyphers. I printed them out on some brown paper and tore and burned the edges a bit to make it look authentic. Then I hid them around the house with a pair of coins in each location. The kids had a blast!

Wish me luck over the next few days. I'm going to need it!

 

[lovethattink]

Followed you over from my PTR. I read the first couple pages and the last, I'm sure I'll catch up soon. Just wanted to let you know that our children are 10 years apart and I was near 37 when I had my youngest. We tried to have them closer in age, but it just didn't work out that way.

Hurray for soon being able to make ADRs. I hope they work out all the bugs on the new page. It took me over 2 hours to make 6 ADRs the other day.

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

I am in awe of your movie nights... Such great ideas...

It's interesting that Goose is so $$$ now... I went through a phase about 10 years ago (before DS was born) and I made Goose at the holidays a couple of times (It seemed so Dickens ...) It was actually really good... heavier than turkey but not as much as I was worried it would be... Funny that Turkey supplanted Goose in England... seen I guess as more modern...

I don't know if you have them in Canada... we have an upscale Grocery store that emphasizes organics , Whole Foods... they would have goose and you could order as well...- I'm sure you have some sort of equivalent...

Love your souffle... we are big B&B fans here... & your Pirates night was also very clever... Hmmm... haven't watched those in a bit...might have to do that today as we're all under the weather...

As for book suggestions... what are their interests...? My children are both readers... but DS was harder because his interests are more specialized... I had to think/work more to get him reading... DD just ate books when she was younger... literally & figuratively...lol... I do some work in DS's school library so if you give me some ideas... I might be able to come up with some ideas... LOVE CHILDREN's Books...

 

[PoppyGirl]

You are such a fun mom with all your cooking and craft ideas! It ALMOST makes me want to have another baby!

Thank you again for the coloring book pages/autograph book. I finished putting it together today and posted some photos over on my PTR (see my signature) if you'd like to see them. I'm very happy with how it turned out!

I bought some super fun metallic colored pencils to add to our collection for coloring.

 

[emmysmommy]

Hi Alyssa! I honestly think that you have a future planning themed kids parties (actually not even limited to kids.) your ideas are so spectacular. I now share them with Em every time since she loves your creativity as well. In fact, I just muttered "this lady is amazing" and she immediately said, "the themed movie night mom?" YES!!! You are quite well known around here.

What a great idea to have the kids consider a donation to charity - I loved Toby's idea of donating to kids with no teeth. You are really teaching them such valuable life lessons and reflecting the beautiful character that you model for them.

I wish you the best with the Hobbit party!

 

[Alysa]

Followed you over from my PTR. I read the first couple pages and the last, I'm sure I'll catch up soon. Just wanted to let you know that our children are 10 years apart and I was near 37 when I had my youngest. We tried to have them closer in age, but it just didn't work out that way.
Hurray for soon being able to make ADRs. I hope they work out all the bugs on the new page. It took me over 2 hours to make 6 ADRs the other day.

Hello Love! Welcome! Thanks for stopping by. I love the pics in your trip report of your son as Max (in my favourite Christmas story!)

I am in awe of your movie nights... Such great ideas...
It's interesting that Goose is so $$$ now... I went through a phase about 10 years ago (before DS was born) and I made Goose at the holidays a couple of times (It seemed so Dickens ...) It was actually really good... heavier than turkey but not as much as I was worried it would be... Funny that Turkey supplanted Goose in England... seen I guess as more modern...
I don't know if you have them in Canada... we have an upscale Grocery store that emphasizes organics , Whole Foods... they would have goose and you could order as well...- I'm sure you have some sort of equivalent...
Love your souffle... we are big B&B fans here... & your Pirates night was also very clever... Hmmm... haven't watched those in a bit...might have to do that today as we're all under the weather...
As for book suggestions... what are their interests...? My children are both readers... but DS was harder because his interests are more specialized... I had to think/work more to get him reading... DD just ate books when she was younger... literally & figuratively...lol... I do some work in DS's school library so if you give me some ideas... I might be able to come up with some ideas... LOVE CHILDREN's Books...

Hi Patricia, We have Whole Foods here too, my brother in law designed their store in Oakville here in Ontario. It's fun to shop there. Hope you are all felling better now. I volunteer at the school library too, well I did until we moved. Both kids like fantasy (Tolkien, Rowling, C.S.Lewis, Edgar) but Eveie has started asking for a bit of romance too (think Gilbert pulling Anne's braids kind of thing).

You are such a fun mom with all your cooking and craft ideas! It ALMOST makes me want to have another baby!
Thank you again for the coloring book pages/autograph book. I finished putting it together today and posted some photos over on my PTR (see my signature) if you'd like to see them. I'm very happy with how it turned out!
I bought some super fun metallic colored pencils to add to our collection for coloring.

I'm telling you PoppyGirl - cuddles with Robert on a Dismeet would be so much better. Then you can hand him back when he cries of spits up or is teething (like this week!) And I LOVE your book. You've inspired me to try and fix our ratty cover. You did a beautiful job!

Hi Alyssa! I honestly think that you have a future planning themed kids parties (actually not even limited to kids.) your ideas are so spectacular. I now share them with Em every time since she loves your creativity as well. In fact, I just muttered "this lady is amazing" and she immediately said, "the themed movie night mom?" YES!!! You are quite well known around here.
What a great idea to have the kids consider a donation to charity - I loved Toby's idea of donating to kids with no teeth. You are really teaching them such valuable life lessons and reflecting the beautiful character that you model for them.
I wish you the best with the Hobbit party!

Brenda, you are so sweet - thank you. I read your kind comments to my husband, they made me so happy.

The party was great. I'll spare you many of the photos but from the "No admittance except on party business" sign on the door, to the flowers and birthday banner, to the table groaning with food, to the "Smaug the terrible" piñata filled with chocolate gold coins, to the soundtrack playing on the tv with a loop of photos from the film, to the loot bags of treasure chests and lego hobbit sets, it was a huge success. We had also planned for the kids to play riddles in the dark with gold rings my husband had "forged" but the kids were too busy playing so we just handed them out. I had also planned to do fireworks but one small box was $50 and I was already at my budget's edge and I was worried my husband was going to think I was getting carried away a bit (who, me?).
Toby was dressed in the most adorable waistcoat I sewed him from a brocade runner I found at the Goodwill. I also tacked the hem of his grey slacks to just below the knee. He went to the theater like that with his sandals on and I carried him in from the car (during a snowstorm of course). We gathered up all his friends and went and sat down and as the movie began and Ian Holm said the words "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit…" Toby was sitting in the row directly behind me and he threw his arms around my neck in excitement. We'd had such fun with him reading the book to me and he was so excited and this was finally the big day! It was truly a "party of special magnificence" and it was "brought home to me, it is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life."
The menu was from the book's "an unexpected party" chapter: Seed cake, scones with raspberry jam, apple pie, mince tarts, cheese and pickles, ham, pork pie, cold chicken, plus a giant birthday cake like the one from "The Lord of the Rings".

And what, Alysa, you may ask, does this Hobbit talk have any business on a Disney/Universal pre-trip report? Well, I'll tell you! This!

 

[Alysa]

Hope everyone had a wonderful Robbie Burns day with lots of fair haggis and guid auld Scotch drink! When your poor wee lad is teething and wants to be held at all times you need EASY movie nights. So Cars it was last week! The kids watched both the original and Cars 2 and enjoyed both.

For the craft Toby made a keychain but the felt didn't want to stay on so I got him to practice his sewing skills. I promise you that when my son leaves for university, along with all his math, science, English, French, politics, business, finance, history and art, he will also know how to hem a pair of pants, sew on loose buttons, iron his shirts, make a souffle and clean a toilet.

For the snack we had Dinoco fuel and Rust-eze (iced tea with labels that Toby cut out) and white walled tires (I couldn't find chocolate nut free ones and lately one store is my limit for the day). When Toby came into the kitchen he screamed "You're making Casa Della Tires!" he was so happy! So we printed out a photo of Disneyland's neon sign to decorate the leaning tower of tires. I found the dinoco art here, the rust-eze here and the Casa Della Tires image here.
Toby went and found his old Cars Halloween costume and we put Mr. Grumpy Pants in it too. He was quite intrigued and the kids howled at how cute he looked.

101 Dalmatians was this week's movie night. Still teething - look at the poor little bunny gnawing away on that baby spoon.

Nothing worse that having your teeth tear through your gums, however a close second is having to listen to it and not being able to help too much.

Here is the dessert, I know it looks dreadful and I should have used something like crumbled oreos for the spots on the cupcakes but we had all these ingredients in the house already and I could fit it in among a figure skating competition and a Robbie Burns day party this weekend. But the craft - well that was the height of awesome! Because Robbie did his first movie night craft! Eeek! I drew a dalmatian sans spots on a spare canvas we had.

Eveie held Robbie and dipped his little finger (which ended up being most of his hand) in a blob of black (toxic free - very important!) acrylic paint and then she helped him blot spots on the dalmatian. The kids were in heaven with this one, laughing their heads off and Robbie was completely engrossed in it.

Ta da! Fun times! I'm using his canvas as the spring board for an idea I have for the kids art display in the basement on a big huge blank wall we have down there. And I'm going to run a copy of these house rules I made up down the side of all the art.

 

[Millie12591]

For the craft Toby made a keychain but the felt didn't want to stay on so I got him to practice his sewing skills. I promise you that when my son leaves for university, along with all his math, science, English, French, politics, business, finance, history and art, he will also know how to hem a pair of pants, sew on loose buttons, iron his shirts, make a souffle and clean a toilet.

Alysa!! Such wonderful pictures and ideas here!! I'm always impressed. He will be one well rounded young man, that's for sure!!

For the snack we had Dinoco fuel and Rust-eze (iced tea with labels that Toby cut out) and white walled tires (I couldn't find chocolate nut free ones and lately one store is my limit for the day). When Toby came into the kitchen he screamed "You're making Casa Della Tires!" he was so happy! So we printed out a photo of Disneyland's neon sign to decorate the leaning tower of tires. I found the dinoco art here, the rust-eze here and the Casa Della Tires image here.

Oh my goodness!! So stinkin cute!! Where do you come up with these ideas!! As a previous poster said....you truly need to take all this creativity and start your own party planning business!! AMAZING, I tell ya!! Amazing!!

Toby went and found his old Cars Halloween costume and we put Mr. Grumpy Pants in it too. He was quite intrigued and the kids howled at how cute he looked.

Awww, how cute is he?!?

101 Dalmatians was this week's movie night. Still teething - look at the poor little bunny gnawing away on that baby spoon.

Nothing worse that having your teeth tear through your gums, however a close second is having to listen to it and not being able to help too much.

Poor little guy. I don't think I've ever seen a pic of hubby before, is that he in the pic? If it is, he's a handsome fella!

Here is the dessert, I know it looks dreadful and I should have used something like crumbled oreos for the spots on the cupcakes but we had all these ingredients in the house already and I could fit it in among a figure skating competition and a Robbie Burns day party this weekend. But the craft - well that was the height of awesome! Because Robbie did his first movie night craft! Eeek! I drew a dalmatian sans spots on a spare canvas we had.

Eveie held Robbie and dipped his little finger (which ended up being most of his hand) in a blob of black (toxic free - very important!) acrylic paint and then she helped him blot spots on the dalmatian. The kids were in heaven with this one, laughing their heads off and Robbie was completely engrossed in it.

He did such a good job!! He looks like he's really into it!!

Ta da! Fun times! I'm using his canvas as the spring board for an idea I have for the kids art display in the basement on a big huge blank wall we have down there. And I'm going to run a copy of these house rules I made up down the side of all the art.

Loooove the house rules!! They sound like us and the things we've said and still say! LOL Where did you find this?

 

[Millie12591]

For the craft we made a lantern night light. I found the idea here. I got the lantern at the dollar store (score!) and I used a larger vintage preserving jar from the goodwill so we took an old spool of thread and covered it with glue and fake snow to prop it up a bit higher. The idea backfired slightly because I've come into Toby's room countless times since then to find him asleep over a book by the light of this tiny lantern. He's going to ruin his eyes, but I have not got the heart to take it away yet, I'm just so happy that he loves reading so much and I remember doing the same thing as a child.

This is so adorable. I just love your ideas.
And yes, you are right to worry about Toby's eyes. My daughter read by night light and ended up with glasses. The doctor said when they are young their little eyes are developing (naturally) and they can be damaged with too little light while reading. Nice, right?!? I can't tell you how many times I got after her about reading in her room by night light, but she wouldn't listen to me and did it any way, she ended up with glasses.
I guess this is not the same for adults though, although the stress of low light doesn't feel so great.

 

[PracPerfPatricia]

Poor baby... Teething is awful... both obviously for the little one... but it's so hard not to be able to make it stop for them...

Although he does look darling in his CARs "costume"... (well Toby's actually...lol)

The Hobbit party sounds awesome and like it was a big hit...

I'm glad to see that you are getting Robbie in on the crafting and the spirit of Disney early...

BTW... what is Robbie Burns day? (the Scottish poet?) Does he have his own holiday... We don't have that in the states but it sounds like fun...

 

[momto3gr8boys]

Hi Alyssa! What a great PTR. I had to skim through most of it (but your pregnancy did fly by that way ), but glad to have found it and caught up a little. First of all, your family is beautiful! And secondly, I LOVE your movie nights. The crafts and snacks are so clever! I would love to do that...too bad mine are a bit old for it. Although when it comes to Disney, they indulge me quite a bit, and they eat me out of house and home, so the snacks would go over well. We can skip the crafts .

Looking forward to following along as your trip plans come together!

 

[Alysa]

Alysa!! Such wonderful pictures and ideas here!! I'm always impressed. He will be one well rounded young man, that's for sure!!
Oh my goodness!! So stinkin cute!! Where do you come up with these ideas!! As a previous poster said....you truly need to take all this creativity and start your own party planning business!! AMAZING, I tell ya!! Amazing!!
Awww, how cute is he?!?
Poor little guy. I don't think I've ever seen a pic of hubby before, is that he in the pic? If it is, he's a handsome fella!
He did such a good job!! He looks like he's really into it!!
Loooove the house rules!! They sound like us and the things we've said and still say! LOL Where did you find this? ]This is so adorable. I just love your ideas.
And yes, you are right to worry about Toby's eyes. My daughter read by night light and ended up with glasses. The doctor said when they are young their little eyes are developing (naturally) and they can be damaged with too little light while reading. Nice, right?!? I can't tell you how many times I got after her about reading in her room by night light, but she wouldn't listen to me and did it any way, she ended up with glasses. I guess this is not the same for adults though, although the stress of low light doesn't feel so great.

Thanks Millie, you are so sweet! That is my husband. I think he's pretty cute anyway! I just made the house rules poster up myself - I can do a custom one for you and email it to you if you like! And I had no idea that his eyes can truly be damaged by low light levels. Yikes!

Poor baby... Teething is awful... both obviously for the little one... but it's so hard not to be able to make it stop for them...
Although he does look darling in his CARs "costume"... (well Toby's actually...lol)
The Hobbit party sounds awesome and like it was a big hit...
I'm glad to see that you are getting Robbie in on the crafting and the spirit of Disney early...
BTW... what is Robbie Burns day? (the Scottish poet?) Does he have his own holiday... We don't have that in the states but it sounds like fun...

Hi Patricia, I can't believe that the States doesn't have a Robbie Burns day! Really?!?! Wow! Well, I imagine not that many people celebrate here either but we have Scottish friends so we always go over to their place for a lovely party they host every year. Lots of drinking (and taxi cabs home), they hire a piper, we eat Haggis, Neeps and Taties, nibble cheese and oatcakes. "So I Married an Axe Murderer" or some Sean Connery movie is always playing on their tv. Good times!

The kids asked me if we could do a Phineas and Ferb night and since it's Disney I said sure but never having seen the movie, I had to rely on the Disney site for ideas. We made these cookies .

To make these nut-free I washed the candy colour off 4 smarties for the whites of their eyes and subsituted chocolate icing for the pupils. I used nut-free jelly beans for their bodies and ears, and I just used choclate icing for the smiles instead of almonds.

For the craft Toby made a Perry the Platapus treasure chest. Instead of felt we used craft foam but it worked just as well. Actually, this was one craft Toby did completely on his own with no help at all from me! Okay, wait, no, I hot glued on the tail and the legs when they fell off. But that's technically repair, not design.

 

[Alysa]

Hi Alyssa! What a great PTR. I had to skim through most of it (but your pregnancy did fly by that way ), but glad to have found it and caught up a little. First of all, your family is beautiful! And secondly, I LOVE your movie nights. The crafts and snacks are so clever! I would love to do that...too bad mine are a bit old for it. Although when it comes to Disney, they indulge me quite a bit, and they eat me out of house and home, so the snacks would go over well. We can skip the crafts .
Looking forward to following along as your trip plans come together!

Skimming through a pregnancy is the best way to do it! Thanks for all the nice comments! I know what you mean about getting too old for the crafts - this will probably be my last year for things like this with the first two. And having had a 6'3" hockey player brother, I know about the food thing as well. My mum used to go to Costco and buy $200 worth of food and he would hoover it up in a week! Who knew you could eat an entire box of Frosted Flakes in a day and still be thin?! Not me, that's for sure!
My daughter's name in french means "little bird" and my son's means 'big" so we call them "Big Bird" and "Little Bird". He said to me "How can I be Big Bird if I am so much smaller than Eveie?" (he's really skinny). I said "Just you wait, when you hit 14 you will grow a foot and a half like Uncle Dave did and then you will tower over Eveie." He really liked that idea.
Thanks for coming by!

 

[momto3gr8boys]

Skimming through a pregnancy is the best way to do it! Thanks for all the nice comments! I know what you mean about getting to old for the crafts - this will probably be my last year for things like this with the first two. And having had a 6'3" hockey player brother, I know about the food thing as well. My mum used to go to Costco and buy $200 worth of food and he would hoover it up in a week! Who knew you could eat an entire box of Frosted Flakes in a day and still be thin?! Not me, that's for sure!
My daughter's name in french means "little bird" and my son's means 'big" so we call them "Big Bird" and "Little Bird". He said to me "How can I be Big Bird if I am so much smaller than Eveie?" (he's really skinny). I said "Just you wait, when you hit 14 you will grow a foot and a half like Uncle Dave did and then you will tower over Eveie." He really liked that idea.
Thanks for coming by!

Yes, that is exactly how it is with teenage boys and food. BTW, my youngest is a hockey player. When we went to Africa in October, my mom stayed with the boys for two weeks. She said everything was perfectly fine except all she did was feed them and drive them places, and they ate non-stop. I was like, yup! Love the big bird and little bird nicknames - too cute!