If you need me… I will be soaking up the California sun for Spring Break with the family. Be back soon!
The Great Sickness
January 10, 2013 By 5 Comments
I am not sure if you all realize this… But lungs are important. As I sit here typing I am pretty sure I just coughed up what was left of the right lower quarter of my left lung. (Brings such a lovely visual to your morning… right?) In other words… My lungs are super angry.
All this started with the “Great Christmas Plague of 2012″… What is that you may ask. Well it’s just like the black plague… Only with more elves and less rats. So… basically TERRIFYING.
Now it has morphed into a combination of pneumonia, strep, and a sinus infection. I have been on horse pills (not actually for horses… just the size of a horse’s head) for about 10 days now and I see no end in sight for this germ warfare my body is fighting.
I write this not for sympathy… but as a plea… I would like 23 singing and dancing unicorns at my funeral… or at my doorstep. I fear it may be my only hope. (I really like using … )
And if the unicorns have 2 left feet and are tone deaf… Just send them with some cough drops.
Sharing the Glitter… One Unicorn at a Time.
December 5, 2012 By 5 Comments
I’ve done it. I have entered the world of making printables. And by “making printables” I mean making a crudely fashioned, but entirely AWESOME, FREE unicorn coloring page printable out of my blogicorn. (aka Blog Mascot Unicorn). It may not be the most fancy, crisp, or professional thing you’ve ever seen. But gosh DARNIT… I am almost proud.
Free Unicorn Coloring Page Printable
(link to download below)
It’s pretty cute eh? I am sure you have some fab little humans that would love to dig out all their crayons and glitter glue and make this unicorn their own. (Printable may look a little blurry on your screen thanks to my lack of skills but it prints out GREAT!)
Appetizers Made Easy
November 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment
I am usually not big on appetizers before large meals. But, they are a necessary evil. You could have a group of hungry monsters if guests arrive early, if some guests are late, or if the meal is not running on schedule. This Thanksgiving… The latter was my issue. Due to some thermometer issues my turkey was about 1 hour late in cooking. I am pretty sure there is a giant meat thermometer conspiracy that aims to bring me down. But no worries… I was one step ahead of them with this lovely appetizer tray. Some assorted cheeses, prosciutto, grapes, and cracker made a stunning and delicious appetizer.
I was immensely impressed with myself on this one. The meat and cheese tray almost upstaged the meal because it turned out so pretty. And it also helped keep away the hungries until that pesky turkey was done. And it really was easy as 1-2-3 to buy all the items thanks to the Isis Mobile Wallet on my AT&T smartphone. If only my smartphone had an app to make the tray and clean up all the dishes. But hey… I guess that is what kids are for… right?
***Compensated campaign with AT&T. All thoughts, opinions, spelling errors, and grammatical catastrophes are my own
How I Made Soap Without Blowing Up The House
November 12, 2012 By 8 Comments
It’s true… I made soap without blowing up the house. My sister-in-law Molly and I had been planning to make homemade soaps for ages. In doing some research I realized that I was far to big of a wimp (and a complete failure at most crafts) to make soap using a lye process. I like my eyes, throat, hands, and various other appendages that I would likely have lost if going to lye route. I decided we should use a simple glycerin soap base and go from there. I am pretty sure Molly is happy she still has all of her body parts in tact thanks to my research. And as such… We invented a simple lavender soap recipe and I figured I’d show you how-to make it too. Because… I like your body parts as much as I like you.
Homemade Lavender Soap
Supplies Needed:
- 8 oz. translucent glycerin soap base
- 2 tablespoons dried lavender
- 3-5 drops of purple coloring depending on how deep you want your color (You can find soap/lotion safe coloring online or at your local craft or hobby store)
- 2 cup glass measuring cup
- 2- 4 oz. soap molds.
Directions:
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Place glycerin soap base in glass measuring cup and melt in microwave. Melt in 30 second intervals, stirring in-between, until soap is completely melted.
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Quickly stir in lavender and coloring.
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Carefully pour into molds.
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Cool for 1 hour.
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Remove from mold by pressing firmly on bottom surface of the mold.
Suggestions:
- Great as a bath or hand soap.
- Perfect gift for family or friends.
- Wrap in ribbon or tissue paper for that added touch.
- And of course… Enjoy!
Now you can go out and make soap too. Because if I can do it… A chimpanzee can. And don’t worry… with every triumph comes failure. I introduce to you… Soap BALLS
Be a Kid Again With Tinkertoys at Discovery Gateway {Plus a Giveaway}
November 8, 2012 By 4 Comments
You have arrived. The Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum giveaway is at the bottom of this post.
Let’s take a journey. Back to our youth. The days when you rode your bike all over town. Stayed outside all day in the summer and only came home for dinner. When toys were simple and just plain old fun. The days of the Tinkertoy. You are getting all misty eyed and nostalgic aren’t you? It’s okay… I will give you a second to grab a tissue before I talk about the awesome GIANT Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination Exhibit at Discovery Gateway in Utah.
Now that you have had a chance to recover from that amazing trip down memory lane… Lets explore the fabulous world of Tinkertoys at Discovery Gateway. You don’t have to be a kid to let your imagination be carried away by this amazing traveling exhibit. Thanks to some fabulous sponsors, like GE and Energy Solutions, Utah is lucky to have access to tinker around until January 6th, 2013.
Some of the hands on features you and the children in your life can enjoy in the Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination exhibit are:
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Invent – Children are encouraged to think about where ideas come from, and to explore the emerging field of biomimicry – nature’s influence on design. Visitors can match real inventions with their natural inspiration and create a design of their own.
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Collaborate – Dual-sided panels allow visitors to work independently or with a partner to create TINKERTOY designs.
- The Tinker Tank – A walk-in size replica of a TINKERTOY canister is the starting point for the exhibit’s challenging scavenger hunt, a must for those with an eye for detail and a nose for knowledge! The Tinker Tank contains a variety of educational materials that attest to the impact of unconventional ideas on some of the world’s greatest – and strangest – inventions, and serve as a reminder that “If at first you don’t succeed…”
- You can read about all the amazing hands on learning here.
Don’t worry about cost. This exhibit is included with your regular admission or annual pass. In fact that isn’t the only activity that is included in your admission cost:
- Time for Tots- A parent and child literacy program for children 18 months-3 years. Tuesdays at 11 am, 12 pm, 2 pm, and 3 pm
- Science Saturdays- Every Saturday, families will explore evidence, conduct experiments, and draw conclusions with different scientific themes. Saturdays at 12 pm, 2 pm, and 4 pm
- Studio 444- Led by DG’s Arts Educator, little ones, older children, and parents create masterpieces of art together using a wide variety of media. Sign up for this class at the Info Desk. Fridays at 4 pm and Saturdays at 11 am, 1 pm & 3pm (They were making the coolest sugar skulls when I was there. I wish I could have stayed longer
- Read about some of the other amazing programs offered with your admission here.
Of course Discovery Gateway Musuem still has all of the hands on learning exhibits that you have grown to love.
Like the “hive”. I may have stayed and played in there for a few minutes… or more.
And what little kid (Or grown up Steph) doesn’t love to play in the water? One of the coolest hands on water play displays I have ever seen.
You can even take a shot at being a serious newscaster… Even if your co-host has the giggles.
Really… There is just so much fun, learning, exploring, and awesomeness to be seen I could just list pictures ALL.NIGHT.LONG. (Mostly because it’s the middle of the night as I write this.)
Now… What are you waiting for??? Go visit Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum and the Tinkertoy: Build Your Imagination exhibit.
Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum:
444 West 100 South
Salt Lake City, UT 84101
801 456-5437
www.discoverygateway.org
Get Social:
Twitter- www.twitter.com/DGChildMuseum
Facebook- http://www.facebook.com/DiscoveryGatewaychildrensmuseum
There’s an app for that:
DGPlay App- Available for FREE on iTunes
And don’t forget to BEE a HERO
Discovery Gateway Children’s Museum Giveaway
- 1 Family Pass that admits up to 6 visitors to the Discovery Gateway ($51.00 value)
- Entering is easy just fill out the form below.
- Giveaway will end on 11/21/2012 at midnight MST
- Winner will be notified via email. If no response within 48 hours new winner will be chosen.
***Compensated giveaway. All opinions, photos, and amazing newscasting skills are my own.
