Friday, April 24, 2009

Kids Read the Darnedest Things...

This past weekend, my kids and I were walking along the Kemah Boardwalk enjoying a beautiful, warm afternoon. We watched as many boats cruised past the boardwalk.
One of the boats was named "G's Spot." The apostrophe was a Gene Simmonsesque-cartoon- drawing of a mouth with the tongue sticking out. I remember laughing to myself as I thought about the christening of the that boat!

Then, my daughter looked up at me and asked, "G-Spot? Does that boat say G-Spot?"

I bit my lower lip to retrain the laughter inside me. I scanned the crowd as I looked down at my daughter and replied, "Yes. Good job reading, sweetheart."
And I quickly changed the subject to lunch time...

Thursday, April 23, 2009

Thoughtful Thursday, April 23, 2009

"People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child -- our own two eyes. All is a miracle." -Thich Nhat Hanh

Look around you, share with your children what you see and hear, listen-really listen-to your children as they take in the world around them, and appreciate all the miracles together...

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Earth Day April 22, 2009

Isn’t every day Earth Day?


We sure think so.


Back in 1970, this historic event motivated and energized people to take action and think differently about life on the planet. Now, with almost 39 Earth Day Celebrations under our belt, we think it’s time to up the ante and think about good ol’ Mother Earth each and every day (after all, we know she’d want that).

We’ve come up with 10 easy ways that you can do to make a difference today, tomorrow, and every day. Trust us, they are really painless!



Recycle: We just had to start with that! But this Earth Day, we double-dare you to take a good hard look at your trash. We trust you’ll fish out some recyclables in the mix (probably from others), but also remember E-Waste like cell phones, MP3’s and laptops can all be recycled and repurposed.


Freecycle: The above double-dare is sure to stir up some goodies that can be useful to those around us: clothes, books, electronics, furniture, etc.


Reuse. Reuse. And did we mention Reuse? Products have life spans just like you and me. Leave behind paper plates, plastic forks and any other disposables. Reusable serve ware, portable mugs for that latte and a water jug for that necessary potable will lessen landfills and just make life taste better!


Wallet Activism: Look for products made from recycled materials, natural ingredients and minimal / biodegradable packaging. By supporting eco-friendly companies your green supports the greater green.


Park-It: Celebrate the beauty of spring with a walk when you could have driven. Carpool, take public transport, ride your bike. If you can’t do it every day, try once a week. When you do drive, make sure you pump up your tires so you can deflate your fill-ups.


Junk It: Putting the kibosh on junk mail and catalogues will save you time, save landfill space and save millions of trees (and probably make the post office happy too).


Bills. Bills. Bills. We won’t advise not paying ‘em, but we wholly support going paperless for your banking, bill paying and at the ATM.


Live Life Locally: Support your local farmers while enjoying fresh produce and organically grown goodies. You can even try going veggie once or twice a week.


Say Y-E-S to CFL’s: You’ll save time, money and energy…but you may have to give up on the “How many ___________’s does it take to change a light bulb?” jokes because you’ll change them so infrequently.


Spread the Word: Tell your friends how easy it is to shave off some carbon here, save some resources there and conserve a little energy here. And then they can tell their friends. And then they can tell their friends…

We’re committed to finding clean, green ways of existing on this planet. These simple steps above can help you save the world, each and every day.

Happy Earth Day to All!

Burt’s Bees

and


Burt's Bees is proud to partner with RecycleBank this Earth Day. For more information on RecycleBank, please visit: www.RecycleBank.com/earthday

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

31 Cent Scoop Night April 29, 2009 Baskin Robbins Ice Cream
















Join us for 31 Cent Scoop Night at Baskin-Robbins®and help us honor America’s firefighters with a $100,000 donation to the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC)National Junior Firefighter Program.
Participating stores will reduce prices of small ice creamscoops to 31 cents*.

At some locations, you may also have an opportunity to make a donation to local fire charities.

Thursday, April 09, 2009

THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY, April 9, 2009

Five simple rules to be HAPPY:

1. Free your heart from hatred - Forgive.

2. Free your mind from worries - Most never happen.

3. Live simply and appreciate what you have.

4. Give more.


5. Expect less.

Monday, April 06, 2009

Create the Coolest Colored Easter Eggs



My friend Tiffany sent me this link-and the Easter egg colors and designs are simple and amazing...


"Creating beautiful and colorful eggs is a rewarding and fun Easter activity for families to do together."








EASTER EGGS



Makes 12 colored eggs.
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes





DIRECTIONS:



1. Gently place eggs in single layer in large saucepan. Add enough cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Cover. Bring just to boil on high heat. Remove from heat. Let stand 15 minutes. (Adjust time up or down by 3 minutes for each size larger or smaller.)

2. Pour off hot water and rapidly cool eggs by running them under cold water (or place in ice water) until completely cooled.

3. Mix 1/2 cup boiling water, 1 teaspoon vinegar and 10 to 20 drops food color in a cup to achieve desired colors. Repeat for each color. Or, use our Color Creator for more colors. Dip hard-cooked eggs in dye for about 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon, wire egg holder or tongs to add and remove eggs from dye. Allow eggs to dry.


TIPS:


Decorating Ideas:
Two-toned eggs: Dip top half of hard-cooked egg in 1 color and the bottom half in another. Or, dip each half of the egg in the dye for different lengths of time, creating different shades of the same color.

Painted eggs: Mix 20 drops food color and 1/2 teaspoon vinegar in small container. Paint hard-cooked eggs with a small paintbrush or cotton swab. Go wild with stripes, polka dots and zigzags.

Designed eggs: Before dyeing, place rubber bands, stickers such as chicks, rabbits, flowers or other springtime favorites, or paper reinforcements on the eggs to create the design of choice. Once dry, remove the rubber bands, etc., to view the design.

Personalized eggs: Write initials, names or draw pictures on the egg with a white or light colored crayon before dyeing.

Marbleized eggs: Mix 1/4 cup boiling water, 1 teaspoon vinegar, 1/8 teaspoon oil and 4 to 8 drops food color in shallow bowl. Gently roll egg in the mixture for 30 seconds, or until the egg is the desired shade. Transfer the egg to a second color mixture, and repeat the process. Allow the egg to dry completely. Wipe away excess oil with a paper towel.

Tie-dyed eggs: Place several eggs in a colander in the kitchen sink. Splash eggs with vinegar. Drop yellow food color onto eggs. Gently shake the colander for a few seconds to help the color spread. Let stand 30 seconds. Repeat with 1 or 2 additional food colors. After the final stand time, lightly rinse eggs with water. Drain completely. Allow eggs to dry.

My son wants a baby...

My 4-year-0ld son and my six-year-old daughter were talking about babies. They were playing with a few of my daughter's baby dolls. She stated that some day she would have baby and placed the doll under her shirt.

My son was very excited and exclaimed, "I will have a baby in my tummy some day!"

My daughter told her lil' brother, "You can't have babies."

My son looked hurt and countered back, "Yes, I can too have babies in my tummy!"

His sister teased, "Only GIRLS can have babies!"

My son then cried real tears and asked me if he "could have a baby too." My son sobbed, as I explained that he couldn't have a baby, but he could help make a baby. It was sad and also, absolutely adorable...

Thursday, April 02, 2009

THOUGHTFUL THURSDAY, APRIL 2, 2009

I read the quote below which started, "If I had my child to raise over again..." and I changed the tense to read as something to strive for instead of reading as coulda, shoulda, woulda...

-I'll build self-esteem first and the house later
-I'll finger paint more and point the finger less
-I'll do less correcting and more connecting
-I'll take my eyes off my watch and watch with my eyes
-I'll care to know less and know to care more
-I'll take more hikes and fly more kites
-I'll stop playing serious and seriously play
-I'll run through more fields and gaze at more stars
-I'll do more hugging and less tugging
-I'll see the oak tree in the acorn more often
-I'll be firm less often and affirm much more
-I'll model less about the love of power And more about the power of love.
Diane Loomans