Monday, November 28, 2011

Operation Binky Fairy

Owen has finally decided to part ways with his beloved "nasty old binky".  For months he has thrown away one bink after another.  This one last green binky has survived, months of boiling, lots of chewing and the nipple finally broke off. 

Owen decided it was time to say goodbye to his broken "B" and we decided we would give it to the Binky Fairy.  Last night, he put it under his pillow.  There were no tears, maybe just a few, as he said goodbye.  When it was time to fall asleep, he said "I need my... ", then caught himself and said "I don't need anything, I'm fine." 

This morning he woke up and immedietly threw his pillow off his bed!  He was so excited to see that his "B" was gone and the Binky Fairy left him $9!  He thought that was a pretty fair trade.  There was no saddness today and he hasn't mentioned it, other than to tell everyone about the Binky Fairy.

The "monies" were burning a hole in his pocket, so we ran to Target this morning after taking Sis to school.  He bought some Captain America action figures and was happy to spend his earnings.
We have been trying to do this for months and he wasn't ready.  He would say, "maybe on Friday?"  Friday would come and go and he would back out.  He only used it to chew on in the evening time as he fell asleep, but he sure loved his "B".  We're proud of you buddy.. we knew you would ditch the "B" when you were ready and you did! 

Thursday, November 24, 2011

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving was such a great day! The kids slept in and I made some warm, delicious Monkey bread. Then we watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on tv while snuggled up together. We had a late start, so it wasn't long enough before we started getting ready for our family Thanksgiving at the Richardsons.

Carson has a pretty big family and we all have such a great time together.  The cousins are all so close and I love that they get to grow up together!  We were missing four cousins today, but we'll all see eachother on Christmas.


Thre boys are way outnumbered, as you can see.  Owen sure loves these two guys that love to play "crash cars" and Xbox with him!
Carson's baby sister, Janesa, was in town from San Fran!!  I have a bunch of pics of the adults and will include them with my next post. 

After a fantastic Turkey dinner, the kids went out back to make a volcano erupt with baking soda and vinegar. 
Owen played in Uncle Justin's flower pots and was building a pirate ship.. "is that cool mom?"  He also played in the pool and got "fopping wet." 
The girls set up blankets out back and painted eachother's nails for about two hours!  They were listening to music on the iPad and singing along.  The rest of us ladies spent that time upstairs while Janesa did make-up.  Janesa works for MAC and is a fantastic makeup artist.  So it's always fun to get new tips and to find out what's new.  She showed us the new wrinkle filler and I am buying it tomorrow. 
Owen loves to play football and he had so much fun with Daddy! I caught Sam (the beagle) eating Owen's nerf football in the loft... which is why there is a chunk of ball missing.
Here's our little family photo.  We had such a fun Thanksgiving and have so much to be Thankful for!  This is the second recent picture where Kamryn looks taller than me. 
We took down our fall decorations today and started decorating for Christmas by putting up the tree!  I usually love Black Friday shopping, but there was nothing I needed this year.  Instead, we are spending our "black friday" relaxing in our pj's and watching Christmas movies counting down the days til Disney!!

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Smashed

Owen and I had a great day. 

He barely missed sitting on the bee in his stroller.

He got a good report from Dr Robin in regards to his cough.

We sat outdoors at the carwash, enjoying the 68 degree sunshine, while eating french fries.

The fun ended when Owen's fingers got smashed in the car door.

I closed the door just as he reached in to grab his sword... door shut.. fingers stuck inside.

Blood everywhere.

He was brave and tough as I get the bleeding under control.

I'm so glad he had the super cool Spiderman ice pack to make his fingers feel better.

Bandaids are pretty magical as well.




Monday, November 21, 2011

Head and Shoulders Review and Giveaway


It's no secret that I have a head full of naturally curly hair. It appears thick, but it's fine, and there is a lot of it! It requires a lot of daily product use to keep the frizz at bay, and moisturizing is a priority. With the use of multiple products, I am always tackling dry scalp and buildup. It's a daily job to keep my hair healthy and still keep it long. If that weren't enough, I get my hair colored every six weeks to keep it light blonde and cover the gray. My biggest hair complaint is my dry, itchy scalp. I have always had dry skin, and living in the desert doesn't help.
During the winter months, my hair and scalp get even drier! I was so excited to try the new Head & Shoulders Eucalyptus Itchy Scalp Care!! The first time I used it, I loved the cool feel of the eucalyptus, and it smelled fantastic! Since I can only shampoo my hair a couple times a week and keep it moisturized, I tried it again a few days later. Once again, I loved the smell and amazing tingly sensation all over my scalp.
In just a week of using the product, on only three occasions, I already felt relief of my itchy scalp. It felt great to not be scratching my itchy scalp, and my dandruff was significantly reduced!
In just a few weeks, I was seeing great results! My scalp felt clean and flake-free for the first time in a long time.
Now that my itchy scalp was improving, I wanted to make sure it was moisturizing enough for my curls. With ingredients including almond oil, eucalyptus, and aloe vera, I am happy to say I am not only flake free, but my hair looks healthy and great!! I have a frizzy spot on the crown of my head, and all I did was leave a pea-sized amount of conditioner on that area of my hair and let it air dry. It worked so well at knocking out the frizz, and I smelled pretty great all day too!
Winter is just around the corner and I know my scalp will start to get drier. I always tend to shampoo even less and condition more in the winter months to help keep my hair and scalp moisturized.

How do you change your beauty routine in the colder winter season from the warmer seasons?
Leave me a comment to be entered to win a $50 Visa gift card, courtesy of BlogHer!
Rules:
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The Official Rules are available here.

This sweepstakes runs from 11/21/11 - 12/22/11

Be sure to visit the Promotions & Prizes page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!

Want more great tips for winter hair care? Check out the newest “Looking Your Best” post in the Life Well Lived section of BlogHer.com.

Monday, November 14, 2011

November Randoms

Time is flying by and we are already half way through the month of November!!  I have a new obsession with pinterest and have found so many great Christmas ideas for teacher/therapists gifts and crafts.  I also found this great Thanksgiving subway art here and had it printed at Costco in a 16x20 for my walls.  Love it!!

Kamryn and Owen have been loving the countdown to Disney calendar!  This morning we were in a rush and we didn't have time to put our sticker on the 20.  I asked Owen if he wanted to put his sticker on and he said "nope.. I'm gonna wait til' Sis comes home.. we do it together!"  These two love each other so much!!
We have all had a little virus/cold/cough going around.  I started with a cough and shrugged it off as allergies, but now everyone is coughing.  I spent the morning disinfecting and cleaning my house yesterday.  Owen has a love of cough drops... I smash a honey lemon cough drop in a baggie and he chews on them like ice.  He LOVES them and it keeps him from coughing, which usually ends up with him puking.  The coughs are just a tickle in the throat, no junk included, so that is positive!

I found these super cute blinking LED light necklaces on sale at Walgreens last week.  I bought them Tink and Mickey, but they had Spongebob and Snoopy as well.  They blink in four different settings and the kids are going to love them at the parks at night.
We are so excited for Thanksgiving next week!! 

Black Friday, I will be up in the wee hours of the night shopping, just because I always do.  Then we will decorate the house for the holidays and put up our tree.  We drew names again this year with the adults in my family and with the kids in Carson's family. 


My kids wrote their letters for Santa and we are going to Macy's to mail them in Santa's box this weekend.  For every letter received, $1 is donated to Make A Wish!!  My kids are only asking Santa for a few small things this year, and our gift to them is the extra four days at Disneyworld.  I like simple because it allows us time to focus on the real reason we celebrate Christmas!!

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Braces!!

Kamryn got her braces on today!!!  We have waiting forever for those baby teeth to fall out, and she still has a handful of teeth we are waiting on.  She is missing four permanent teeth so we had to decide how we were going to handle the spaces, either pull them in or implant them as an adult.  We decided to just go ahead and pull everything forward, fill in the spaces and leave some room in the back for her wisdom teeth.

She was so excited this morning!!  She had already planned on getting lavender rubber bands around the brackets.  We had a long chat with the Orthodontist about her long term care plan and she will mostly likely have them on for about two years.  We will need to go back in the next six weeks or so and pull a few more baby teeth and hopefully the four top permanent teeth will have popped through.  We will bracket them as they come in and by the middle of 8th grade.. she will have perfect teeth!

They put this cool contraption on to hold her mouth open and there was tubing that continually sucked the saliva out to keep her teeth dry.  Very cool stuff that they didn't have when I was little.

Here is the final result!!  She loves her braces already and hasn't had any soreness yet.  I'm sure when we tighten the wires in six weeks, she will be feeling some pain. :( 
We watched a movie about how to take care of her braces, what foods to avoid and oral care.  She will do great!!  Yay for braces and yay for not having two kids in braces at once!! 

Wednesday, November 9, 2011

More Big Gives!!

Today marks the last day that Kamryn will have crooked teeth. My baby girl is getting a full mouth of braces tomorrow and she is THRILLED!! I'll be sure to post pictures tomorrow.

Owen is having a hard time with the reality that Halloween is over. Every time I take down the Halloween decorations, I turn around and they are back up! :) He keeps saying "but I Love Halloween..it not over!" The rest of us are looking forward to a super fun Thanksgiving with family!!

This afternoon, we got three more Big Gives in the mail!! The first package came from disname: jcwill529!!
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It was a box full of winter goodies!!  We live in the desert, so the kids get excited when they get scarves, gloves and hats!!  Kamryn got a knitted Minnie Mouse hat with two scarves and mittens.
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Owen got his own set of Mickey ears, two scarves and mittens as well!!  How cute and warm are these?!
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We love them so much Jodi!  Thank you for the warm goodies that will keep us toasty during those cold Disney nights!

The second package came from disname: scouthawkk! 
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Jen made our entire family matching Christmas outfits!!  They are so great and we can't wait to wear them to Christmas at GKTW and also to Mickey's Christmas party!

Kamryn got an embroidered Pluto shirt with matching skirt!  She put a ton of work into this skirt, the detail is awesome!  She embroidered every other strip of material with something holiday and Mickey, then sewed it all together.  Kamryn loves it SO much and says she's wearing it for Christmas this year. 
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Owen got an embroidered Donald shirt with matching Christmas disney shorts!  LOVES them!!
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Here the kiddos are matching...
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Daddy got a Mickey Christmas tee.
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Mommy got a Minnie embroidered tee!
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Thank you so much Jen!! You put a lot of work into these outfits and we appreciate them so much!!!

The third package came from disname: Tonyababyrn!  The package was specifically for Sis and she was so excited!!
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She made Kamryn a super warm and girly Tinkerbell stripwork quilt!  Kamryn loves it and is already cuddled up to it reading now.  How cute is this??
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She also sent some cute knee high zebra socks and these fun glow goggles!!
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Thank you so much W. Family for the great package for Kamryn.  The quilt will get a ton of use and she loves it!!

I have said it before but we are so grateful to all of the families that have spoiled us with their generosity. It has been such a treat leading up to our trip to have so much Mickey Mail fun!!  I don't know if this is the end of Mickey mail or not, but from the Simmons to you.. THANK YOU!!!

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Bounce Dryer Bar Review & Giveaway

It's no secret that laundry is my least favorite chore. I would rather scrub floors or dust fans, than to rotate a load of laundry. With a family of four, I usually do at least one load of laundry a day. Towels, linens, whites, colors... it just never ends. When I finally empty the last basket and get my laundry room to look like this again, the baskets in our bedrooms are filling up again.
Since the laundry isn't going to do itself, I am always looking for ways to make it less time consuming. I was thrilled when I was asked to write a review on the new Bounce Dryer Bar. I requested the bar that was dye and fragrance free since my kids have sensitive skin. All I had to do was stick it on the wall of my dryer, and then forget about it! How easy is that?
I was so excited to dry my first load of laundry and find out how it worked. I recently gave up on dryer sheets because I was so tired of them sticking to my clothes. I would put a shirt on as I was rushing to get out the door, to later find out I had a dryer sheet stuck to the back of it. Classy.

The first load I washed was towels and they came out smelling so fresh, really soft and there was zero static! Static in towels is awful on my curly hair. Frizz is hard enough to deal with, and static makes me look like a poodle that got in a fight with a balloon. It's not pretty.

I was excited to do the next load. I put in a load of white undershirts and tanks. They came out smelling just as fresh and soft. I love that with the Bounce Dryer Bar in the dryer, the benefits are automatic, I don't have to remember to buy dryer sheets and pull them out afterwards. Don't get the wrong idea, I still despise doing laundry. I just found a product that makes the chore a bit more convenient. The best part of it all is that the Bounce Dryer Bar is expected to last for months!! That's a lot of laundry! When the bar needs refilled, you just buy a refill and slide it right on. For more information on the Bounce Dryer Bar, check out Bounce's Facebook page here.

I still need to find a product that will now fold all my clean laundry and put it away. I usually fold my clothes in the evening so I have an excuse to watch my TV shows. The kids stay far away because they know I will put them to work and my hubs is usually nonexistent too. It's the perfect plan if you need a little peace and quiet to unwind at the end of the day.
Leave me a comment telling me your best kept laundry secret. How do you keep up with it all? I will be giving away a Bounce Dryer Bar and a $50 Visa gift card from BlogHer and Bounce!

Sweepstakes end on Tuesday, 12/6 at 5:00 P.M. PST.
Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
a) Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
b) Tweet about this promotion and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
c) Blog about this promotion and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
d) For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older.
Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail.
You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.
The Official Rules are available here.
For more opportunities to win, visit the Bounce round-up page on BlogHer.com to read other bloggers' reviews!

Monday, November 7, 2011

Cardiology & Echo Results

This morning was Owen's six week cardiology appointment and Echo.  This was the first Echo that I didn't stress about... ever.  This is huge!  In fact, I forgot about his appointment until yesterday afternoon.

Owen woke up this morning and said "alright.. I am going to see Dr Stock today.. it's going to be a good day!" 

We pulled into the parking garage at 9:15 and Dr Stock pulled it at the same time.  We walked through the building and on the elevator chatting about life.  We talked about how Owen turned yellow, and then pink again.  Owen just loves him so much and we had a good chat on the way into the office. 

Owen started with his Echo and was a champ as always.  He watched a movie, talked to the tech and relaxed.  Then we went for his EKG, blood pressure, pulse ox and weight check.

Here were his stats today..

Weight: 32lbs
Height: 40.5"
Oxygen Sats: 81% on 2 liters of O2
EKG: Normal
Blood Pressure:  I wasn't paying attention.

They gave Owen a turkey to color and enter in their contest.. it was a pretty great turkey and I wish I had my camera.  I'll have to have the ladies in the office take a picture of it for me. 

Dr Stock came in with a Med Student.  He said the Echo looks like usual.  His Tricuspid Valve looks a little more leaky today, but no worries.  His function looks "better than ever!"  Owen said "leaky valve?  I can live with that!" 

Then he said "Dr Stock?!  Can I go on the Rollertoasters at Disney World.. yes or no?"  Ha!! 

He took the docs by surprise, but we got the OKAY!! :)  Owen is just big enough to go on Tower of Terror, Splash Mountain, Big Thunder, and most of the big rides.  Owen was grinning ear to ear when Dr Stock said yes!!  He threw his hands up and said "I'm gonna ride dem like this!" 

I know that all the rides say 'Do not ride this ride if you have a heart condition... '  but since Owen has no pace maker, no dangerous arrhythmia's and is stable.. he is fine on the big rides.  He is so excited!!

As we were leaving, Owen got a bunch of suckers and stickers.  We said our goodbyes and headed out.  We'll be back on Jan 3rd for our next appointment. 
On the way out, I got a call from our Make A Wish manager.  He said everything is ready on their end!  We just have to sign a few papers when we get our airline tickets and debit card.   He wanted to confirm we had our oxygen ordered and our hotel for our extended stay booked. 
As we were driving home from our awesome cardio appointment, Daddy called and wanted us to meet him for lunch.  We switched directions and went to pick him up.  We ate lunch at Rula Bula and had a great time.  I sat in the car and nibbled on my leftover brownie, while Daddy took Owen into his office to see all the "peoples," as he calls them.  They were gone for close to 20 minutes, so I assume Owen was chatting them up. 

It has been a great day!  Owen is doing so great and it's exciting that he doesn't have any other scheduled doctors visits for 2011!

Sunday, November 6, 2011

Congenital Heart Walk 2011

This morning was the Congenital Heart Walk!! This was the first year that we were able to attend the walk and I'm so glad we did. I had a million ideas for creating "Team Owen" shirts and I even created a way cool design. Then October disappeared and November crept up on us, and I didn't get around to our shirts. Bummer. No worries, I plan to use the design and get shirts made for Ethan's Run in February. There is always next year too!

We woke up early and headed to what I thought was the correct ball field. Turns out I drove to the wrong ball field and got lost in Tempe due to a billion road closures. Ugh. We finally made our way to the stadium, but just missed the 5k and fun run. We decided to have fun while we waited for all the walkers to get back! We were there to raise awareness, have fun and donate some money.
The first obstacle was to find our way to the ball field.  We found a ramp to go up to the main concourse, but the only way onto the field, was to carry the stroller down the stairs.  We did find a service elevator and took it to a totally creepy basement, wandered around for a while and realized we were trapped as all the doors were locked to the field.  Back to the elevator we went.  The kids thought it was great!!
We finally made our way down to the field and the girls got their faces painted.  Kamryn wanted a heart with a bandaid for her baby bro! 

Gigi then asked for 1/2 a heart for her favorite cousin!
We wandered around and they had this giant photo of Owen hung on the fence.  He was around 15 months at the time.. look at those baby blues!
It was so great to see fellow heart families, cardiologists, some of our nurses, and the sponsors.
Owen took a picture with his fellow HLHSer Zoe.  They had a huge team and rocked the fundraising.  Next year.. we will aim to match their efforts!! :)

Owen wanted to play in the bouncy castles and go down the slide over and over again...
The kids had a fantastic time and the weather couldn't have been nicer!! It was a gorgeous 65 degrees and sunny!  We are so proud of our little heart Superhero Owen!  He is a survivor and he is the toughest little man we know.  We were proud to represent Mister Owen today at the CHD Walk!! 

Friday, November 4, 2011

EIGHT Big Gives!!

The kids have received EIGHT more Big Gives over the last few days!! I have said it before but WOW!  We are so overwhelmed with gratitude for the Givers!  The letters that come along with the Gives are kept private, but they are so great!!   We appreciate everything so much!

The first package came from disname: mydisneytrio!
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She made Owen the cutest Darth Vader with Mickey ears shirt and R2D2 jeans!! How cute is that??
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Here's a closeup and Owen loves it so much!
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Kamryn got this super cute Minnie Tinkerbell shirt and I love the pattern of her skirt!
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Here's a closeup of the Minnie embroidery.  Thank you so much L. we love everything you made!!
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The second package came from disname: Blyssful!
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Owen is squeezing his crayon roll that he loves..he's such a nut! :)
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The kids got home made crayon rolls... they roll up and keep the crayons organized and in place. I love these!!! She also made the kids personalized activity books with mazes, puzzles, and word finds.  Then of course, treat bags!! 
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Thank you so much Blyssful and your entire family for thinking of us.  You are awesome! :)
The third package came from disname: evsgranny!  The package was damaged in the mail and was completely torn apart, so I am hoping nothing is lost or missing.
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Inside the kids got glow sticks and a home made Eye-Spy bag for Owen.  There is a list of things for Owen to find in the bag and it should keep him busy for hours on the plane!! :)
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Thank you so much evsgranny!  I need to learn how to make these, they are so awesome!!
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The fourth package came from the D. Family! 
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She had individually wrapped packages for all four of us! SO fun!!
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She made our family the cutest Pooh and Friends shirts.  We have reservations to dine at Crystal Palace in the Magic Kingdom with Pooh.  So these shirts are perfect to wear to our breakfast!  Owen got Pooh..
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Kamryn got Tiger...
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Piglet for me and Eyore for Daddy!  We love this set and can't wait to wear them!!  Thanks so much D Family!!
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The fifth package came from disname: ilovechipndale!! 
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Owen got another pooh bear.. which he loves!!
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Owen also got a Toy Story shirt, a coloring activity set, and Toy Story socks.
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Kamryn got a Tink water bottle, Tink Diary set, socks and a Tiger!  Thank you so much Amber.. the kids are thrilled!!
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The sixth package came from disname: Little Miss Magic and was a biggie!!!  The girls worked on opening the package for a while.. Owen is chilling like "you got this girls!"
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She sent us the cutest Family wish trip shirts.. I love the design!!!  We are going to wear these on the plane!!
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The kids also got a ton of loot.. Owen got another backpack, coloring books, glo stick necklaces, cards, chalkboard. poncho and crayons.
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Kamryn got a Tink backpack, poncho, glo necklace, nail polish, word finds, chalk board and coloring boards.  Thank you so much Victoria.. we love them all!!!
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The seventh package came from disname: chelleydi71!
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She sent pixie dust!!  A color explosion (Owen LOVES these), glitter goop, a light up sword, a disposable camera for the kids to take pictures on the trip and home made magnets.  The magnets are claimed by me and are on the fridge!!  Thank you so much to you and your family!!
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The eight package came from disname: jessica52877!
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She made Owen the cutest Incredibles outfits!!  The Incredibles shirt matches Carson's!  The yellow shirt had Mister Incredible and Dash embroidered on it and the cutest pants.  He also got a snowman pooh, that he thinks is so great!!
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Kamryn got an angel Pooh bear and three Disney World stamps.  The kids played with these stamps last night for hours.  What a great idea!  Thanks to you Jessica!!  We love it all!!
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Thank you to everyone!!!


If you have made it to the end of this post.. thank you for bearing with me.  I really want to document the Gives for my kids yearly blog book.