A bounce house, a clown and a lot of fun.

Posted on April 21, 2011 by Christy

Last weekend my Aunt KK and her daughter-in-law Tiffany worked till 3 in the morning putting together an amazing birthday party for Tiffany and Matthew’s son Evan’s first birthday. It was a circus party and they pulled out all the stops. The backyard was all set up with a bounce house and a game area, the dining room and kitchen were busting at the seems with goodies. The party was filled with family and fun. Everything was perfect.

When we first got to KK’s house my cousin Melissa’s 11 year old daughter took Lily out to the backyard to see everything. Let me stop here and point out how amazing it is that Lily went with Hannah without complaining, this never happens. After probably 5 minutes I stepped out to check on Lil, she was in the bounce house looking very lost and a little sad. When she saw me she immediately wanted out and ME. We played on the swings till everyone was out of the bounce house and then we went back in. When it was just the two of us she LOVED it. She’s been on a bouncing kick lately so this was magical to her.

To keep with the circus theme my Aunt got a clown to come and entertain the kiddies. I have to admit I totally assumed that Lily would hate the clown and want nothing to do with her, but she didn’t, she was just her normal shy self. The makeup and crazy clothes didn’t bother her at all, this amazed me when you consider how much Santa scared her at first.

Buttons the clown was a hoot. She made balloon animals, bracelets and hats. She did some face and arm painting and did a little magic show. The kids loved her and I loved how she interacted with the kids.

Lily got a flower bracelet. Apparently the bracelets are harder to pop.

Tori (the birthday boy’s big sister) got a ladybug bracelet.

Tori got her face painted too.

Lily didn’t seem interested in the painting at first, so I got a little heart painted on my arm first.

After she saw me doing it, she let Buttons paint on her.

Olivia got a lot of painting done. She loved it.

She got some little hearts on the other arm too, but I didn’t get pictures of it.

Logan (the birthday boy’s big brother) decided to be a lion. Every circus needs a lion, right.

Evan, the birthday boy himself got a monkey on his cheek to match his shirt.

He quickly rubbed it.

Group photos are hard. I think this was the best out of 10 tries. 🙂

At the end of the party, when it was just a few of us left, we all got in the bounce house and relaxed. Or bounced. Or played. Whatever, it was fun.

Max (Olivia’s big brother) and Olivia playing.

Jolene and Max relaxing.

Matthew (my cousin and the birthday boy’s daddy) and Logan playing.

My aunt Kk and Uncle Dixon relaxing.

Lily slept really well that night, she played herself silly. And now as a result of how much fun she had in the bounce house we have to avoid the park on weekends because she doesn’t understand or believe that strangers don’t want to share their bounce houses with her.

Going on a bike ride

Posted on April 14, 2011 by Christy

A few years ago Waldo bought a really nice bike and he loved riding whenever he could, but since I had no bike and no desire to join him his pleasure rides were few and far between. Then a few weeks ago something changed in me and I decided that going on bike rides would be great family time and a great way to get some much needed exercise into our lives. We looked around at Target and Walmart for bikes and trailers and while they have a wide selection with a range of prices, we decided to spend a little more money and buy from a locally owned bike store. We are so happy that we did. We got a really good deal and I love helping out a local business. We bought my bike, Lily’s trailer and a helmet for Lil and got some maintenance done on Waldo’s bike from the shop, the owner did a little jig as we walked out.

Before we hooked it up we let Lily sit in the trailer in the living room and since the trailer can be used as a stroller I took her for a little walk around the block so that she’d be comfortable in it.

We know better then to just throw Lily into something big and new and call it good. She needs time to adjust and get to know something first. Once she was okay with it we hooked the trailer to Waldo’s bike and let Lily watch him go for a ride out in front of the house. She thought this was great.

I hadn’t ridden a bike in at least 20 years so I was very scared to get on my bike for the first time, but the old saying is right on, you never forget how to ride a bike. What the saying fails to mention is the balance takes a little practice to get back. The first time I braved my bike I felt so shaky I was shocked that I was staying upright. After a short ride I returned to the house and Waldo (with Lily in the trailer) followed me around the block and the following conversation ensued:
Waldo “see, you are already much less shaky”
me “oh you could see that”
W “you looked like you had Parkinson’s.” I laughed so hard I nearly fell off my bike.

I am much more comfortable at this point and weather permitting we go on a ride just about every night after dinner. It has been wonderful and the best part is that Lily will tell us at some point during the day “we go on a bike ride together later”. The “together” part is my favorite.

Zoo! Again.

Posted on April 12, 2011 by Christy

We went to the zoo again last weekend. Can you tell, we love the zoo? We actually bought a membership to the zoo this time so now we can go as often as we want without worrying out our budget. Our goal is to go at least once a month, but more often if possible. I might or might not blog every time we go, that will be decided on a trip by trip basis.

This time we let Lily decide our route around the zoo, so we probably went from one side to the other 5 times. We were so tired when we left.

Here are some of the highlights from this trip, in no particular order.

I helped Lily feed the giraffes this time, but we waited too late in our trip and she was too tried to want to do anything. So I fed the giraffe.

Super Grover’s on my cheek

Posted on April 4, 2011 by Christy

Homemade soft scrub

Posted on March 30, 2011 by Christy

I have been trying to figure out ways to clean our house with more natural cleansers. I have been using a spray of 50/50 white vinegar and water and it works pretty well, but it has no scrubbing power. While looking around the other day I found a recipe for homemade soft scrub and tried it last night. It was super easy to make and worked great.

Homemade Soft Scrub for Bath and Tile

This recipe is adapted from the recipe for Earth Paste in Clean House, Clean Planet by Karen Logan (page243). It is quick and easy to put together and effectively cleans the bath (hooray). Make this in small batches because it can dry out and harden when stored. This recipe makes enough for two to four uses. Keep any remaining mixture in an air tight container.

Ingredients
3/4 cup baking soda (slightly heaped)
1/4 cup castile soap (I use Dr. Bronners Peppermint)
1 Tablespoon water
1 Tablespoon vinegar

Method
In a bowl, combine the baking soda and castile soap. Add the water and stir with a fork.

Lastly, stir in the vinegar. The mixture will fizz a little. Stir to make a nice soft, paste-like, consistency. (This is important – the vinegar must go in last or else the scrub will be like sludge instead of a creamy paste.)

Scoop out the scrub with a sponge and start cleaning.

This scrub can also be used to clean the toilet.

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I love that there’s nothing scary in this. I realized that I left a little on the sink this morning and didn’t care because if Lil touches it, it won’t hurt her.

I love the smell of the Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint soap, but it was a little overwhelming when my head was in the bathtub that was covered it in. The smell dissipated pretty quickly. And it doesn’t take much to clean effectively, I used all of the above recipe to clean my sink and bathtub and I used WAY too much.

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Jinxyisms

Taking life one day at a time.

Category Archives: Life