Tag: mom blog

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Easter and April Fool’s: What a combo!!

I am not sure if this has ever happened before but having Easter Sunday and April Fool’s Day celebrated on the same day is a double whammy.  Additionally, since I grew up Catholic it gives me angst to think about practical jokes on the day Jesus rose.  But I digress.  To quote the much overused saying: “it is what it is”.  To that end, my daughter, Ella, enjoys celebrating Easter Sunday as a time to be with family and enjoy her visit from the Easter Bunny.  She also really enjoys April Fool’s Day.  As a matter of fact, she talks about it all year!  Ella still remembers the time she was in her first grade classroom and it was snack time.  Well, it was April Fool’s, so I replaced her Dum Dum lollipop head with a clove of garlic!  It was so realistic looking.  She was truly so excited at what an awesome mom I was for giving her a lollipop for snack!.  Then she unwrapped it.  Yep- the joke was on her.

So this year having both Holidays on the same day, I thought I would show what I am putting in my kid’s Easter baskets.  Additionally, I will share some of the April Fool’s pranks I plan for Ella.

The Baskets

The first basket is for my 22 YO son.  I know, I know- he doesn’t need an Easter basket but it’s fun for me.  Even though he is older, he still appreciates the thought.  For his basket, I gave him some Funyuns, a Nerd-filled Easter egg, a few packs of Juicy Fruit, and some scratch tickets.  He really isn’t into chocolate so I didn’t add any to his basket.  Being that he is older, I just tried to stick to items that he would use in his day to day.  In addition to these, some additional ideas are car air fresheners, gift cards to restaurants, movies or coffee shops, gift certificates to car washes, and even an iTunes card.  Personally, I think you are never to old for a basket!

My daughter’s basket contains quite a bit more candy!  She does love her chocolate (kind of like her Mom).  The big gift for her are some Pokemon cards.  She loves these cards and knows many of the characters, their special talents and even their evolved form.  I know she will love this!  I also gave her Flamin’ Hot Cheetos, Lindt chocolate lambs, a Kinder Easter egg, a Nerd-filled Easter egg, a pack of Juicy Fruit, hand sanitizer, and an Emoji lip balm.  This will definitely make her day!

The actual baskets that I use are the same baskets I have been using for many, many years.  I just store them when Easter is over and get them ready for filling the night before.  I love being able to fill my kid’s Easter baskets with things they like.  This way there is no waste of money and I don’t have to go store to store searching for a basket that already incorporates things they like.  It is a time saver and helps me maintain balance.  In addition, you can get really creative with any age group.

April Fool’s Pranks

If there’s anything you have to know about my Daughter, she expects to be pranked on April Fools’ Day.  I have been doing it every year since she was in Kindergarten -except one year.  That year, I had a business trip and my Hubs just didn’t have the bandwidth for the creativity.  I however, enjoy thinking about this and often scroll Pinterest for some great ideas.

The first prank of the day will be delivered during breakfast.  Here, I took 1 package of Gelatin and some orange juice.  I followed the package directions so that her ‘juice’ will be a solid mass!  This probably won’t take her long to figure out but having it happen first thing in the AM will be a great start!

The second prank has to deal with her electronics.  Back story here.  I have told her multiple times not to leave her Switch or her iPad on the floor.  We have a dog, Oreo.  I don’t want the dog stepping on the devices and I also don’t want the dog to ruin them.  Sometimes, she has a sensitive stomach and does occasionally vomit.

Therefore, I got some Elmer’s glue, some green food coloring, wax paper, and some of my dog’s food.  I mixed up the glue and the food coloring so that it was the color of bile (sorry if this is graphic – being a nurse, this doesn’t phase me).  Once I was happy with the color, I spread it onto the wax paper and placed some crunched up dog food in the puddle.  It takes at least 24 hours to set but once it does I will have dog puke!  My plan is to place these on the floor and on her electronics so that she thinks the dog vomited on her devices.  I am totally setting up my dog for the fall but it is worth it!  Just make sure you use a disposable cup and spoon for the mixing!

 

The last trick that I have planned out is already in motion.  You see, as I stated above, she loves chocolate just like me.  So, I bought some beautiful chocolate Easter eggs and I have already placed

them in the candy dish she made a few years back.  As a matter of fact, as soon as she came home after school today, she saw them and already popped one in her mouth.  Well, on Sunday, these chocolate eggs will instead be grapes! Yep.. grapes.  They are the same exact shape! So Saturday night, I will carefully unwrap some of these chocolates and use that same wrapper to wrap up individual grapes.

All in all this should be a successful day on both the Easter front and on the April Fool’s Day front.  I cannot wait! What items are in your Easter baskets? If you are also celebrating April Fool’s Day, what is your favorite trick?

 

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Quick, One-Day Flight: What’s in My Work Bag

Traveling for work is something I have been doing for many years.  I actually love it.  Please don’t tell the hubs!  Outwardly, I whine and complain but inside I am giddy and excited to dodge my regular household chores!  I truly believe it makes me a better person.  At least, its what I tell myself and the hubs.  It allows me to meet new people, see new places and forces me to spend some serious time alone with my thoughts and come up with ideas like this blog!  For me, one of the harder trips to pack for are the quick ones where you fly out early in the AM and return by night.  I anticipate a flurry of activities with no real down time- except during the flight.  As I go through and systematically pack my bag, I am sharing with you what’s in my work bag.

The Bag

Since I am flying out early int he AM and returning the same day, I really do not need to pack very much.  Completely different story if I am spending a night or two!  This is why I will be carrying my Henri Bendel Gotham Tote.  It is made out of beautiful, black pebbled leather with gold hardware.  It has a brown silken lining with several pockets – including 2 that are zippered.  Oh and the smell: leather!  It’s just divine.  Although this bag was from a collection a few years back and no longer available, I have linked a similar tote with the same beautiful pebbled leather.  This is the best work bag I have ever purchased.  I used to buy the ones you see at TJ Max and it would last me about 2 months (if I was lucky) before strings would fray, zippers would break, or the “leather” would crack.  That does not look very professional.  I would then have to start searching for another bag all over again.

I decided to go all in and make an investment in my bag rationalizing that the life span of  Henri Bendel at full use should be about 3 years before any major flaws occurred.  Mathematically, that comes out to .59 cents a day! The investment made total sense.  A cheap bag shows wear after 2 months and would cost about .75 cents per day.  Did I tell you that I can rationalize anything?

Pro Tip

One thing I will use to create additional organization within my bag will be the Ipsy bags I used to receive with my subscription box.  They are just the right size to contain a lot of different necessities so that you stay organized, stylish, and discreet.  I have one to hold my cords and power-banks. One will also hold feminine products and the other will hold a variety of items that I may need to freshen up during the day.  These little bags are amazing in all of their potential uses.

The Notebook

I suggest you invest in a really good notebook.  When in meetings, there is always something you may need to write down and it shows that you are prepared.  There is nothing worse than being in a meeting and looking unprepared by asking for a pen or paper.  For my notebook, I chose the Circa line from Levenger.  Shown is my Bomber Jacket Circa made from beautiful soft-grain leather upon which I have my name stamped on the front cover.  Oh and the leather smell!  The paper is amazingly thick (no ink bleed through) and I love the versatility of the various types of note-taking formats available.

 

What Else will my Gotham Tote Contain

Again, since this is such a short business trip, I will pack very minimally.  Here is the full list:

  • Good Vibes Only Mini Bag
    • Feminine products (you just never know)
  • Black / Gold Mini Bag
    • Tresemme Hair spray
    • The Body Shoppe Hand Cream in Almond Milk & Honey
    • Bath and Body Works Hand Sanitizer
    • Soap & Glory Extreme Plump Lip Gloss
      • It does feel really weird when applied but it gives a little bit of pucker to the lips
    • Rimmel’s Kate Moss lipstick in the color 08 pink
      • It gives me just a touch of color
    • Covergirl Tru Blend Face Powder
      • This is a matt finish that does not look cakey
      • It will help me look refreshed and not oily after my flight
    • Wet Ones
      • You never know
    • Hair ties and bobby pins
      • in case my hair is extra crazy
  • Blue/Orange Mini Bag
    • Cube
    • lightning cable/earbuds
    • Charger
      • I really like the style pictured because I can plug my phone into it and  I don’t have to fumble with a cord or second device as it is all attached
  • Food
  • Gum
    • Not pictured and always needed

So, as you can see, I will only be bringing the necessities on this trip.  I will not need my laptop or iPad so I am going to keep it as light as possible.  What are your go-to necessities on a short day trip for work?  Let me know in the comments!

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