Can't Buy Me Love

So...I'm kinda in charge of a party. It's a daunting task, with the participants having high expectations and not being the easiest bunch to please. There's an intense time frame that I have to work in, not to mention the fact that I really need to find some additional bodies to help me.

It's the Valentine's Day party for Boo's second grade class.

The teacher would like me to have different stations, with at least one adult per station. One station should allow the kids to pass out their valentines, another to make some sort of snack. The rest of the details are left to me.

I need your help! What are some really good games/tasks/treats that your kids/neighbor's kids/cousin's sister's brother's kids have done in the past? Ideas, please!

Here's what I have so far, with the kids divided into five groups of six kids, with about eight minutes per station:

1. Group gets to deliver cards to their classmates. Not sure this is going to fill the allotted time...any suggestions for filler?
2. Valentine Bingo. Everyone gets conversation hearts to use as markers.
3. Some sort of treat...I'm thinking sugar cookies because those are easy, decorated with candies that I'll ask the parents to send to class. One of the kids has a pretty intense set of allergies so not sure what to do here.
4. A craft. The kids will have their valentine boxes made before the party. I'm thinking I'll get some pompoms, pipe cleaners, wiggly eyes, and have them make warm fuzzies. That's kinda lame. I'm sure someone has a better idea.
5. Another game. I don't know what yet. Yikes!

Any suggestions, links, or detailed descriptions are most welcome! (And helping me might just get you a couple extra entries into my next giveaway...)

Worn Out Welcome

You might have noticed that I'm an emotional person. That might be why I get sentimentally attached to inanimate objects. It took me nine months to box up Baby's infant clothes because I was going to miss seeing those little outfits, even if there was no way she could fit them. There are stacks of the kids' homework with cute mistakes or funny observations. Ticket stubs from movies the Man and I went to when we were dating, pictures from my crazy teenager years, broken jewelry, and shirts that are several sizes too small. I keep it all.

Sometimes, you just have to say goodbye.

And sometimes, you really, really want to say goodbye but your son won't let you.

Remember the Boy's security blanket, affectionately called the mee mee? Remember how we mourned the loss when his beloved item went missing a year and a half ago? Remember the rejoicing and jubilation that resulted when the mee mee reappeared? Yeah...

This is what the mee mee looks like now:

It's in scraps. I find little shreds of it all over the house. At this point, I think it's less cotton, more snot and dirt. Now, being sentimental, I've saved a couple fragments for the Boy's memory box (and also to use as fodder for his teenage angst). But seriously...the rest of it has to go. Ewwww.

$45 Resolution

Wanna know who won the $45 CSN stores gift certificate? Yeah, me, too!

Random.org gave it to comment #38, which was from Debbie.

Debbie said...

Tweeted: http://twitter.com/suburbsanity/status/25924890183864320
http://twitter.com/suburbsanity/status/25924890183864320
entry 1

January 14, 2011 7:39 AM

She was also my 100th follower so that's pretty cool. Makes me grin like a fool thinking that more than 100 people might read my blog...at some point...if there's nothing good on youtube. Congrats, Debbie! Check your email.

In the meantime, the kids don't have school tomorrow. This would actually be pretty fun if a) they weren't grounded from playing with the Wii and b) the Man wasn't gone the entire day. Looks like I'll be investing in Benedryl and duck tape...

Lots o' Linkage

Hey, do you read Mommy Snark? She's a talented writer, with a knack for funny and serious. And she's absolutely lovely in person. And she has cute babies. And her sister is pretty awesome, too.

Recently, she started a feature called Servicemen Sunday, where she highlights a member of the armed forces, putting a face to the heroes. This past Sunday, she wrote about my brother. If you have a moment, head on over and check it out. Makes me nearly bust a button with pride. In her post, she mentions Flat Daddies, a project to help families in the military. It's also a program that Annette Lyon features.

So go read about the hero in my family. Please leave a comment for him, if you feel so inclined.

And don't forget to enter the contest for a gift certificate to CSN stores online.

Keeping Up With The Joneses Giveaway

What is the one upgrade you'd like to make this year? Maybe it's time to give up the diaper bag and carry around a fashionable purse instead. Perhaps that discount dining set needs to be replaced with modern dining furniture. Could be time to stop wearing the ring you got in high school that turns your finger green and find something made of a more precious metal.

Have you heard of CSN stores? There's over 200 of 'em, filled with all sorts of things that could make your life just a little bit more luxe. The good people of CSN stores have offered one lucky reader a $45 gift certificate to their assortment of stores. It won't cover the entire cost of the flat-top range you've had your eye on but it will get you closer to it. I've coveted half the stock at their cooking site but you might be more in the mood for purse-shopping or updating the kitchen chandelier. The sky is very nearly the limit here.

To enter, leave me a comment on this post saying what one thing you'd like to improve this year. (As for me, I'd like to get my butt down to a more sensible chair size but I don't think they have a store for that.)

For extra entries, you can do any or all of the following. Please leave me an additional comment for each one.

• Follow DuckDuckCow. 1 Entry.
• Follow The Cake Cow. 1 Entry.
• Mention this giveaway on Facebook or Twitter. 2 Entries.
• Blog about the giveaway with a link back to this post. 5 Entries.

Contest closes Saturday, January 15th, at midnight MST. Good luck!

Because I Couldn't Care Less

Sorry, my friends! I've been attacked and held hostage by germs. Again. At least they waited until after Christmas. So while I lay on my bed and the kids run rampant (and possibly diaperless), I've been seeing scenes from some of my favorite movies, music, and tv shows from the 80s. Because I love the 80s. Ferris Bueller's Day Off. That one cool video that made me wish I could draw something other than stick figures and puffy horses. And Fawlty Towers.

That show began my appreciation of British humor. It's why I have a limited edition, collector's version of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail." Also, because I'm a dork. So it was only fitting that my hero, John Cleese*, could explain one of my pet peeves in a way that had escaped me all these years. Sure, I knew why what these people were saying was so wrong that it caused my internal editor to gag, choke, and possibly dry heave a little. But it took the perfectly eloquent Mr. Cleese and his Windows 95 clipart charts to explain it.

And since my current template tends to cut off the edges of videos, you might have better luck viewing it here.

* Thanks to the lovely and talented Annette for bringing this nugget of grammar gold to light.

What I Learned On My Christmas Vacation

• As much as I love the GPS system we have, it's rather depressing to get on to the main highway and see that your next turn is in 419 miles.
• There's a reason why there are no smash hit songs, popular movies, or best-selling books about Omaha.
• During the summer, Kansas is full of sunflowers and humidity. During the winter, the sunflowers are all gone and the humidity turns to ice.
• Everything in Texas is bigger. Especially the highway systems.
• Being two hours from your brother's house on your way back to Utah is a really bad time to discover his car keys are still in your purse.
• You know your anxiety medication is working when you see multiple cars sliding off the icy highway and you can still communicate with your spouse in a recognizable form of English.
• If you have to get stranded by the snow and poor road conditions, Moab, UT, is an absolutely beautiful place to do just that this time of year.
• When you finally get home, your messy kitchen will never look so inviting.

What was the best part of your Christmas vacation?