And the Winner Is…
Lucky #10 !
The winner is Amy of Teach Mama!
The winner has been chosen by Random.Org.
Thanks to everyone for participating!
* Time is Running Out! Free Photography and Free Prints on BananaBlueberry Giveaway Page!!
Just a Reminder!
You have until 6pm Friday to leave a comment on
My Current BananaBlueberry Giveaway Page
to be entered for a Free Photography Session and Free Prints!
Click the bar above and enter!!
My Dad and His Roses… on ‘All Things Considered’
My parents have a 5+ acre Rose Garden.
And they open it up to the public each year on Memorial Day Weekend.
This year NPR’s ‘All Things Considered’ visited their garden!
The Heritage Rosarium: A Once-A-Year Experience
Um… Martians are Pretend
We have been learning a lot lately here about planets and the Solar System! My son recently went with his nursery school class to a planetarium… and then we ‘made’ a planetarium here at home with a small tent. We talked about the fact that our planet, Earth, is just far enough, and close enough to the Sun to support life.
“Yes!” My son was so excited. And I’m thinking how much we are learning and what a great mom I am to have a planetarium made from a small tent in our computer room!!
And then is happened-
“Except for Martians, Mom!”
“Um… Martians are pretend.”
“They are?… Oh.”
And he was fine with that. And we went on with our discussion, with me thinking all-the-while,
I’m amazed that #1, my son thought Martians were real and that #2, having just been told that something he thought was real is in fact- NOT REAL, was fine with him…
I think we’re going to tackle a discussion about the ‘Milky Way’, not containing any milk today,
wish me luck!
Photography Giveaway on ‘BananaBlueberry Giveaway’ Page !!
BananaBlueberry Happily Announces the first BIG Giveaway in it’s history! And what better item to giveaway to readers than pictures of your KIDS ??!!
You’ll notice up above that there is now a ‘CURRENT BANANABLUEBERRY GIVEAWAY’ Page!
I recently had the pleasure of meeting a full-time Nanny who also in the past year has started her own on-location photography business! She has a degree in Elementary Education, so she knows how to get great shots of your kiddies!
Click on,
CURRENT BANANABLUEBERRY GIVEAWAY! and leave a comment! That’s it! You’ll be entered to win a FREE 2 hour photography session AND lots of FREE prints!
There’s also a 25% discount to ALL BananaBlueberry readers!
Find out more details at CURRENT BANANABLUEBERRY GIVEAWAY!
And check out Kate’s website: Katushka Prints to see her great work!
Giveaway open until Friday, May 29th at 6pm!
Why I Love Women… A Shopping Story
I love women…
The other day I found myself in the rare situation of being childless, husbandless, and in the unfamiliar territory of being pretty-much-caught-up-with-stuff… baring laundry, coming up with a new kid craft, cleaning out my car…
And in my possession: a $25 gift card to a new favorite store of mine…
So what to do? Why, go shopping of course!
I embarked on my shopping journey and found 2 pairs of summer crop pants, and $25 off- perfect! I was leaving, when out of the corner of my left eye- a red sign caught my attention… 25% Off.
And it was in front of another favorite store of mine… I timidly walked over to check it out, and then hesitantly walked into the store, I’d already dared to spend money on myself, let alone the time I’d spent ‘frivolously’, instead of cleaning, washing, cooking, or setting up paydates, don’t push it, I thought…
And then an older woman approached me, “Do you have the 20% card?”
Continue Reading At DC Metro Moms…
Have You Ever Forgotten Your Mother-In-Law’s Birthday… While Standing In Her Kitchen?
Or rather, have you remembered it is your Mother-In-Law’s Birthday while standing in her kitchen? I have… just the other day.
My Mother-In-Law’s birthday falls on Mother’s Day or just around Mother’s Day every year. This year we went to the beach for Mother’s Day weekend, so we weren’t around. And everyone was fine with that…
I even got my Mother-In-Law a birthday/mother’s day present, which I’m not supposed to do- because my husband takes her out to a very nice restaurant every year for her birthday/Mother’s Day. It’s a nice tradition and they both enjoy it! He is taking her to dinner this week.
So, I tell her I got her a present and that My son and I are bringing it over… I took a GREAT picture of my son and his twin cousins who are all about the same age- you know: an unbelievable picture where everybody has a cute smile on their face, they are all kinda-hugging each other, everyone is looking at the camera and not picking their nose… one of those, great, pictures. So I blew it up into a 5×7 and framed it-
Nice, huh?
So, we go over to their house, and are having a nice afternoon. My little guy, me and my mother-in-law- we’re sitting around talking. And then she asks my son if he wants a piece of cake…
“Sure! Great!”
And I’m thinking, ‘Why does she have a fancy little cake out on the counter… what’s the occasion… Is it left over from Mother’s Day?’
And then I look at the calendar- and it’s her birthday!
“Happy Birthday!” I said very loud, I think because I was so surprised by my lack of tact and awareness/trying to cover up the fact that we had been over there for half an hour and not actually wished her a happy birthday…
So, I went over to my mother-in-law’s house, WITH A PRESENT in hand, forgetting it was her birthday…
Can anyone top that? No, I didn’t think so…
Thank God my Mother-In-Law has a sense of humor ~
Cleaning Out Closets… and My Mind
Over the weekend I FINISHED cleaning out the last of the closets in our home that needed de-cluttering. I organized shelves for playdough and painting. I organized photo albums… and even found room to devote a couple of shelves to paper towels and napkins…
I feel GREAT! I know where everything in the house is, and I’ve cleared out anything and everything that we don’t need. I, once again, went through my wardrobe and found things to give to charity…
Clothes and household-odds-and-ends are in the back of the car right now to be dropped off to charity later today.
And I’ve been thinking… I am not a clothes-horse and yet, I find myself every few months with plenty of clothes to give to charity. After cleaning our attic earlier this year, I found most of it was just… stuff. And now it’s gone. I have a couple of containers full of keepsakes from my husband and my childhoods, and special keepsakes for our son… and like I was saying, I’ve been thinking…
Why do people keep so_ much_ stuff_ …
I think ‘stuff’ comforts people; but just having ‘stuff’ is an illogical comfort…
Just for myself, it’s free-ing to declutter and choose a few special things that signify special memories,
the more I do this, the more I feel free to create new memories, and concentrate on today,
It’s Monday, May 18th, 2009- it’s never been today before…
Create a Memory~
and it doesn’t have to be CRAZY-complicated, come on, I’m not Joan of Arc, or Martha Stewart, or a
Mom-MacGyver, ‘Let’s get some string, pine cones, silly puddy, straw, a couple of socks…’
Just have fun~
THYME OUT for Easy, Great Dinners! and BananaBlueberry readers get 10% Off!
I just happened upon a great find for DC Area Moms…
it’s called Thyme Out!
I showed up (unannounced as a mom-blogger), I simply went in as a mom, on the recommendation of a fellow preschool mommy.
Thyme Out has prepared dinners, lunches, sides, a freshly-made-and-frozen section and the list goes on!
Before I go into how good this food is and how many options they have to choose from…
Let me just tell you-
This is a ‘Mom Business’ !!!!!
Missy Carr is a mom of 3 kids, ages 4-7 and a chef! She created Thyme Out in 2006 to help families eat better, healthier food without the stress of dinner preparation.
Check out the Thyme Out Website because it is very easy to get around and tells you all you need to know about menus and ordering online and even delivery!
And I almost forgot- Thyme Out has ongoing PROMOS AND COUPONS!!
I ALSO noticed on their website calendar that they are offering FREE DELIVERY On Saturdays during May,
AND YOU CAN ORDER ONLINE!
I really like that Thyme Out has Ready-To-Cook Family Size Meals! This is really nice as we move into Summer, when family schedules tend to be less structured, thus lending themselves to last minute pizza and fast food orders… Don’t order Pizza! Just swing by Thyme Out, or order online- for healthy family dinners!
** Thyme Out also customizes meals, so if there is a food allergy in the family, they can customize the meals to be “safe”. They work with many families with nut and gluten allergy especially.
Soon, they’ll be adding a
Thyme Out of Town menu designed for taking meals on vacation.
When I went in I picked up some Sweet Potato Fries… I just put them in the oven, according to the directions, and served them as part of dinner.
Thyme Out is right by the intersection of Rockville Pike and Nicholson Lane.
It’s 11401 Woodglen Drive, off of Nicholson Lane, behind Chili’s, and the phone number is 240. 221. 2777.
Check out this great meal alternative for Moms, created by a Mom!
Mention you are a BananaBlueberry reader and get 10% off any order!
And Last But Not Least, ENTER BANBLUE10 (ALL CAPS and then the number 10) for 10% OFF when ordering online!
*$50 minimum, cannot be combined with other offers… and this is good through June 30th!*
Bethany Beach on Mother’s Day
We spent Mother’s Day weekend at Bethany Beach. It was quiet and peaceful and wonderful. You know how crowded Bethany Beach gets? Look at these shots-
To the North-
And to the South-
These were taken Friday afternoon. Saturday turned out to be beautiful, so there were a few more people on the beach- but that’s it 
We played on the beach, went out to dinner, visited FunLand in Rehoboth on Saturday afternoon (opening day- it’s open for the season now), played some more and had a great time.
We ‘cut a swath’ through the outlets on the way home on Sunday too!
If you’ve read below, you know that my son woke up bright and early on Monday morning with Strep Throat, but he’s been on antibiotics since Monday morning, feels fine now, and life is back to normal.
And a good weekend was had by all !
On a lighter, navel-gazing note: It doesn’t matter how long you go to the beach-if you go for a month or just a weekend, you still need ‘all the stuff': beach toys, all the beach stuff, etc. etc.
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I Was In The 2012 Show !
Check Out …
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Nicole’s Book
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