Small Things Are Big Things

Here is a peek at the deals in the September Newsletter.

(Besides something fun from Eli’s Lids!)

Shel Cosmetics

(Which I happened to spell as ‘shell’ in the first newsletter send out. Baby Brain!!!)

Mali Workman Photography

Cool Cuts 4 Kids

But you have to subscribe to find out their special deals for Eli’s Lids readers!

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Side Note:

Need something to do on Saturday the 17th?

I got an email from the kind folks at OC Parks about a FREE “Mars and Stars” series with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) over at Miles Square Regional Park this Saturday, September 17^th at 7pm. It looks like fun for any lil’ boy (or girl) who might be interested in space and science and robots… OK… fun for ALL lil’ boys!!

Click here for details in their Facebook invite.

OC Parks on Facebook

-AND-

Here are a few fun things coming up at Pretend City…

(I think we’ll be at the PBS SoCal day on the 25th… possibly with a new baby in tow… or a VERY LARGE and cranky me. Either way it should be a spectacle you won’t want to miss!)

PBS SoCal Day! with Duck from WordWorld– Sunday, September 25, 10am-3pm
Join Pretend City and PBS SoCal for a fun-filled day with a special guest visit by Duck from WordWorld!

Family Autism Event– Monday, September 26th, 5:30-7:30pm
This special evening is an opportunity for children and their parents/siblings/caretakers to play in an autism-friendly environment along with other families. Many of our community partners who specialize in supporting children on the autism spectrum or Pervasive Developmental Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (PDD-NOS) will be on-hand to enrich your family’s play experience with their welcoming smiles and practical support.

I’ve mentioned the Farmers Market at the OC Great Park a few time but I’m just getting around to posting pix from our visit!

We went right after church and the morning was a little chilly… Perfect for Lids!

Our main reason for going?

Meringue Bake Shop.

Of course! (me and Kristen below… I’m doing my camouflage the arm fat trick)

Meringue Bake shop on twitter and Facebook!

There are all sorts of yummy food vendors and unique crafty type things too. I’m thinking of doing an Eli’s Lids booth.

If I did, would you come visit me??

After you grab lunch from one of the yummy food vendors, you can enjoy the rock playground, kiddo games, the carousel, and giant orange balloon ride. (If you wanna do the balloon ride, it books up really fast! You HAVE to get there early and sign up and the little building and fill out a release form. They will give you a pager that works all around the park so you can hang out. You would hate to hype up the “awesome balloon ride” with your kiddos and then NOT be able to go… ahem!)

ALL FOR FREE!!

Details…

Farmers Market

Sundays from 10:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m.
Open Rain or Shine
FREE Parking and Admission

(714) 573-0374
Map & Directions

Follow the Farmer’s Market on Twitter and Facebook

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I also got the chance to visit the Great Park with loads of my fellow OC bloggers at Blog Crush for a fun Razor event…

(Dear Razor, If you want to sell like a jazillion more scooters, just put this little beauty on the packages! Smooches, KN)

Razor has a new scooter with a thing on the back that makes sparks (F-U-N!) and another neat one that you can attach chalk to, and make fun designs of your ride!

Razor on twitter and Facebook!

We had so much fun at the Great Park on both visits!!

After beach season we’ll be at the Great Park most Sundays for lunch after church. Join us!!

Eli’s Lids donates 10% of our profits to a great organization called Surfers Healing (read more about them here). Every once in a while we get to hear a little about the amazing things Surfers Healing is up to… from the people who matter most – lil’ Surfers and their families!

Below is a guest post from a friend about her moving experience with Surfers Healing…

   I’m a 47 year old mother of 4 – 3  girls aged 24 to 10 and my handsome Michael, age 5. At 3 Michael was diagnosed with Autism, or "on the spectrum" but high functioning.  Some days it seems like we spend more time on the spectrum then others.

   Working full time I don’t do many of Michael’s activities. Hubby is responsible for physical therapy, speech therapy, social skills, regular check ups, sick visits, you name it he drives to it! My responsibility is locating things for Michael to do. Anything that is free or within our means that will give him new experiences and awaken the senses. Lucky for me I have a close friend who told me about Surfer’s Healing. I immediately researched, sat online and waited for the reservation day. When we got accepted to an outing in San Diego we were so happy. Not Michael, he was not into it at all.

   Lots of questions followed. Will the waves be big or small..small of course.  Will there be sharks? NO!!! Will I be cold? Probably, but I will have a towel for you. I’m scared. Me too Michael, but it will be ok and so much fun.  

   The Wednesday we drove down to San Diego Michael was very apprehensive. Same set of questions, a lot of I’m not doing it. Then silence. When we got to the beach and saw all the people Michael remained quiet. There was an older boy crying by the crashing waves….not good. So we decided to move our little family away from the crowds a bit so that the crying wasn’t infectious.

   Michael took out his sand toys and began to play, never asking when he would go. We listened to speeches and watched the other kids hang ten. Some of the kids had great results, some not so much. All the while I was making eye contact with the other parents and giving them the "smile". That "I get it" smile, the "I feel your pain" smile.

   When it was Michael’s turn we walked him over to the tent to get  his wetsuit and life vest. He talked a little with the young lady who was helping him, but never with us. What struck me as strange was that once he was preparing to go into the water  he never looked at us. He took the girl’s hand and walked straight down to the water.  He never looked back, he never said no, he never dragged his feet. Just straight to the water to wait for his surfer.

   When the surfer came he took Michael’s hand and he looked at us and said don’t worry he’s going to do great! Then they were gone. The waves seemed to get bigger, they seemed to go out farther then anyone else. So far that for a minute we lost track of him. Then suddenly there he was standing on the board, not really balancing but standing there. The surfer was holding his jacket by the shoulders, then he let go and Michael was doing it on his own. It was amazing.

   I of course, started to cry and couldn’t look at my husband. My husband said nothing just had a big smile on his face. Michael rode the wave all the way in.   We all cheered his success. He only did two rides that day, but they were long rides on big waves. His surfer buddy said that Michael was so groovy out in the ocean…yes he used the word groovy. And that he really enjoyed himself.

   His sisters told him that I cried. He was concerned and asked why. I told him that I was so proud of him, that my tears were from happiness. He hugged me and asked me if I was proud of him. I told him yes so very proud. He said he didn’t want to do it again, because he was ready to move on to wakeboarding!

   He is totally groovy!

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Thank you Millie for writing this post! I feel like I was standing right next to you on the beach… sobbing with pride!

It’s Labor Day!

But I’m not in labor…he he he!

I’m due in 15 days.

If the baby is as EARLY as Cy then we’ll have a baby in 3 days.

If the baby is as LATE as Cora Jane then we’ll have a baby in 24 days.

That’s quite a spread.

We found out the genders of our first 2 babies – a boy, then a girl! When it came time for the 3rd we opted for a surprise because we had everything we could possibly need for for both genders.  It was really fun socially to tell people we weren’t finding out and very practical because I wasn’t picking up unneeded baby clothes while out and about.

Come delivery day it was a such an exciting surprise for everyone (& me!) and a slight distraction from the tiring labor we had just gone through! But a day later, while I was packing up to leave the hospital I was folding the unused girl outfit (which was adorable) and I couldn’t help but be a little sad there wouldn’t be a baby girl to fill it. It was a little surreal because I was drunk with love for Cyrus but mourning the loss of a daughter that never existed.

Is that strange?

It’s not that I really wanted a daughter. It was quite the opposite – I thought (and still think) a son for baby #3 fit better with the dynamics our family.

Now it’s just about time for baby number 4 and our bags are all packed for the hospital, with each outfit lovingly bundled for it’s pending use. And I can’t help but think about the one that won’t ever be unpacked.

Blame hormones.

Or the fact that I don’t “feel done” with babies and someone else does.

Am I the only one who has felt that way?

Did you keep the gender a surprise for any of your babies?

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(Mondays I like to share something I got. We all like to share a good deal, splurge, unique find or fun activity. If you got something awesome (or lame) recently and blogged about it, be sure to leave me a link to the post in the comments!)

I got each of the coming home outfits at Sam’s Club for $4.51!! And coordinated all our coming home outfits to match. Can’t wait to share!

Linking up with Life Rearranged’s InstaFriday. Post your cell phone photos and link up too!

Me at 36 weeks! Has this pregnancy flown by or what! (I’m now 37)

Cupcakes with gummy worms and an awesome BBQ with our most tattooed friends!

Discovered Dragonfly Shops and Gardens and their Fairy Garden Class!

Reason #749 why Dads are funner than moms: Vacuum Dragon Crossbow Launcher!

Car ride.

Eli had his 5th VBS of the Summer (yep, 5!!) over at Kingsfield and I think it was his favorite.

Cora Jane and I had girls day everyday.

This little gal is RAD!

Tip: When letting your 3-year-old paint your nails, clear sparkles is the only option!

The whole fam-damily doing P90X together! (Mom – Notice CJ is holding “babydoll” just like Hot Hubby is holding Cy!)

My 4 slot toaster is halfway broken.

The morning 8 slices of toast takes FOR-EVAH! 

It’s the simple things that can throw me over the edge.

If you’ve hung out with me for more than 5 minutes, you know I have a strange obsession with Sam’s Club.

It’s odd.

I’ll admit it.

Where else can you find a life-size pinata!!

Our last trip was in during the So Cal heat wave. I plopped my preggo self in every freezer I could find.

My sis gave me a doughnut cake pan and it is awesome! I made it for one of my bestie’s bdays at Lazy Dog Cafe. It was delish.

Monday Eli’s Lids was on BabySteals!

We sold out of almost all the colors but there are still some available at the Steal price in their archives!

If you have kiddos (or grandkiddos) you have to check out the BabySteals daily deal site and fan them on Facebook. They have great deals (aka steals) and an awesome Facebook Mom community!

The End!

Happy weekend!

A historic 1920s house filled with…

Yes please!!

There is also a room full of awesome baby everything. Don’t you think they need some Lids!?!When you go into the shop tell them I sent you and get 20% off!!

See my post about their Fairy garden class at OC Family here.

Dragonfly Shops and Gardens

260 North Glassell Street, Orange, CA 92866
714-289-4689
Mon-Sat 10:00–5:00 & Sun 11:00–3:00

Dragonfly Shops and Gardens on Facebook here!

They have some big shoes to fill…