#RealityMoms

[serendipity1974]

It was a long, muggy summer, made even more uncomfortable by my being laid up with a broken ankle. September drew to a close and having just been cleared to bear weight on my booted left leg, and with my kids (finally) back in school, I gleefully escaped the Big Apple to go down the shore of New Jersey and meet up with some truly kick-ass women. Notably, I first met each of them on the internet. There will be more on those real authentic women later, but I must begin my story by talking about the Where before the Who.

This was my second year joining with my fellow Reality Moms in partnership with The Tuckerton Seaport and Baymen’s Museum to celebrate active duty military families who are either preparing to, or have just, welcomed a new baby.

I’m a military brat, so I know first hand that while our active duty military personnel sacrifice as part of their service, their families serve and sacrifice right along side them as well. It is an honor for me to spend time with these families, play with their kiddos and gave them time for more than two bites of lunch, and try to convey how much we appreciate all their families do for us as a country.

With help from the good folks at Joovy, Tervis, Viking Toys, and Corolle, the Military Salute Baby Shower gifted each baby with a stroller, adorable dolls and learning toys, plus a very special tumbler a backpack style diaper bag for their grown up. Bonus: each family went home with a quilted baby blanket of their choice.

I have to rave about the handmade baby quilts crafted with love and donated by The Seaport Stitchers especially for the Military Salute event. The Stitchers are a group of craftswomen who meet at the Seaport, working together to create quilts which they then donate to patients undergoing chemo, as well as other causes and events. Of course they also sell items at Tuckerton’s Christkindlmarkt, with the proceeds going to purchase supplies for more quilts to be donated. How cool is that? Perhaps my favorite moment was when each mom, after eyeing up their favorites all afternoon, got to choose which quilt was going to become an heirloom for their growing family. Priceless.

That was day 1, but what my friends and I didn’t realize was we had barely scratched the surface at Tuckerton Seaport.

The following morning we rolled into the gift shop to poke around a little, and to meet up with the Museum Director of Tuckerton Seaport, Brooke Salvatore. Although Tuckerton Seaport is generously run with the support of hundreds of volunteers, Brooke is the beating heart which brings life to all the amazing offerings of Tuckerton, and on this day she was going to be our guide.

Please note, I first visited the Seaport in the Spring of 2017, and since then I’ve brought my kids to Tuckerton numerous times. However, until last week, I’ve never explored it without children in tow. Visiting with a group of adults and no children was like exploring a brand new place.

First, Brooke took us to visit the charming Union Market for coffee and a late breakfast. With 6 of us there, I got to see a good variety of their menu, and oh my goodness, it was all so good (the Bikini Buster is deadly delicious). I could also gush about how welcome it is to have a place for good, affordable fare right there off the boardwalk of the Seaport, or how comfortable and relaxed the atmosphere was both inside the cafe and outside on the deck seating, or how I admire their commitment to be an eco-friendly restaurant, but all that will have to wait for a full review of their establishment.

Besides, I have to talk about all the opportunities to not only observe, but actually take classes with the makers of Tuckerton. I’m fortunate to have previously shared a demo by Stephen Nuttall, one of 4 professional blacksmith demonstrators who embody and teach about the art of working steel with fire. As amazing as it was to watch my children during that first encounter, watching him work while chatting with a gaggle of grown women was even more so. We’d have stayed there another hour, I’d bet, but Brooke wanted us to see a man about some ducks.

Andrew Tonnesen, a product of the Tuckerton Seaport Youth Carvers program, was working on a wooden duck decoy when we walked into his shop. While he carved, he explained to us a brief history on the tradition of duck decoys, as well as the differences between Barnegat Bay and Delaware River styles. Andrew also shared with us some of the delightful carved Santas he’s been working on recently, which I’m sure was in no way meant to entice us to return for the holiday woodworking class where wooden Santas will be made.

The tour of makers continued with a visit with the glass blowers who are renovating a site where they will soon demonstrate their craft, while creating everything from lighting fixtures to holiday ornaments. We weren’t able to hook up with the basket weaver or get into any fiber arts this visit, but we did stop in the shop where the boat building happens!

Yes, you CAN spend a weekend building a boat at the Seaport, but if you aren’t quite that ambitious, you can spend the better part of an hour painting “flatties,” another type of wooden decoy. Trust me, no matter how old you are, trying to paint realistic looking animals with a group of friends is a throughly enjoyable endeavor. Especially if your flattie turns out as flawless as mine!

(I don’t know the type of bird this is meant to be, but my instructor said I was hired!)

Had I not been hobbled in my walking cast, I would have loved to walk the 1/2 mile nature trail. Instead, Brooke took me and the rest of the Reality Moms to check out the newly opened Lady Magpie’s Tea & Curiosities, with it’s STEAMpunk Tea Room.

Stepping onto an enclosed porch I wasn’t quite prepared to step into a new world of repurposed and upcycled creations. Located in the old Captain’s house, the Tearoom is just behind a library filled with histories and artifacts from the Jersey shore and Ocean County’s long baymen tradition. The house may well be as haunted as the rumors say, but it is completely suited as a place where creations in steampunk style and vintage china meet for tea.

In a playful nod to their steampunk aesthetic, the proprietors set out displays with some of the library’s collection that focuses on one or more topics of Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM). In addition, Lady Magpie lived up to it’s name by serving up a proper tea, complete with sandwiches, scones and shortbread, followed by a tray of petite desserts, all of which was a scrumptious respite to round out a day of exploration at Tuckerton Seaport.

As it happened, we just missed the opportunity to catch the brand new ferry (including an eco-tour) which will soon begin running between Long Beach Island, NJ and the Tuckerton Seaport. I have to say, I’m almost glad. I’m not sure I could have taken in one more memorable and amazing experience from The Tuckerton Seaport.

Fantastic Fun with Real Authentic Women at Tuckerton It was a long, muggy summer, made even more uncomfortable by my being laid up with a broken ankle.

[quirkychrissy]

Believe in the power of yourself(ie). You are enough. You are magic. You are beautiful. And you are everything you need. I don't know who needs to hear this, but it's true. You know what else is true? Laughter is life. So spend some time with the people who make you smile doing the things that make you laugh. @realitymoms @theopgames #bigmotherhouse #onemillionlaughs #positivevibes #selfie #bathroomselfie #believeinyourself #believeinyourselfie #laughter (at Chicago, Illinois) https://www.instagram.com/p/B5RM9iTAJdq/?igshid=ypubcc1adalw

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: Not only was my girl not #bilingual, but she was avoiding learning about other lands and cultures. It was the exact opposite of everything I had hoped for and worked to achieve. I was horrified. https://t.co/qLrfSQazZH #momfail via @ShannanYounger https://t.co/TWkbKgTBYW

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[mamadefuego]

via Twitter https://twitter.com/MamaDeFuego

[susantregre]

Why I Love My Local Library in the Summer

One of the first things we did when we moved to our community five years ago was to sign up for library cards. Little did I know at that time just how very much I would come to adore my local library.

It’s safe to say I was a fan of books, and the library has those, of course, but in the summer it offers so much more. Here are a few reasons why the library is my best friend in the summer.

Magic Mike (and other movies)

Yup, you read that correctly. One day I walked past the display of new DVDs available for check-out and you couldn’t miss Channing Tatum’s abs. Front and center in the display was Magic Mike. I take suggestions from my librarians, trained professionals that they are, very seriously.

Aside from Magic Mike, the library has a great selection of movies. While I love a big summer blockbuster as much as the next guy, trips to the theater with the whole family can get pricey. And to be honest, we’re a few blockbusters behind, so the library allows us to play catch up, and for free. I have no idea how we missed Zootopia, but I checked it out for family movie night this weekend.

The library also shows movies so when the kids need a change of scene from the living room, they can head there. That became especially appealing when our air conditioning was out. For a week. During the hottest stretch of days so far this summer.

Prizes

Prizes elicit smiles from people of all age groups. They also serve as great motivators. Thankfully, my library offers a summer reading program–with prizes!–for all age groups, infants through adults. I’m signed up, and it’s fun. I love reading for its own sake, but I’m not going to argue if my library would like to offer me some fun prizes as incentives for a few months.

Added bonus: there is no sign-up deadline. I feel like my library gets it. Summer is busy. They’re not going to judge if you sign up a month after the program started. Reading is reading and that’s good, whenever you do it. Hear, hear!

Beyond Books

Trips to museums and zoos can get expensive, but our local library offers free passes that you can check out. When we lived in Chicago, it was possible to check out fishing poles from some of the public library branches.

Summer is all about fun music, and you can check out CDs and/or take advantage of five free song downloads per week. (Currently grooving to JT’s ‘Can’t Stop the Feeling’ courtesy of my local library!) 

Volunteer opportunities for kids

Finding a summer volunteer opportunity for a 13-year-old is trickier than you may think. Most organizations would rather wait until the raging hormones of middle school are well under control before accepting free labor, and even then, many nonprofits want volunteers over age 16.

Parents, however, want their young but not that young ones to learn to give back. Enter the local library! They have many volunteer opportunities for tweens and teens in the summer. Even better, the kids do them on their own. No parent presence is required. It’s great to see them getting a chance to really do something on their own, and have a positive impact.

The Farmers Market

As I strolled through the Farmers Market, it dawned on me that I had no idea what to do with the many pounds of vegetables I had just purchased. Whoops. But wait! The local library was stationed at the next booth, offering recipes. Problem solved! I was surprised to see that the library there, but these people think of everything. The booth had a variety of information from nutrition info to crafts for the kiddos to reading logs.

Trip Planning

Travel review websites are great, and I use them often, but sometimes it’s best to trust the folks at Fodor’s instead of going with the online opinions of Sheryl in Schenectady. That said, I don’t need Fodor’s Boston 2016 or Lonely Planet New England on my bookshelf forever and I’d rather save money for the trip, so enter the local library! The library had lots of books for our road trip to the New England. A few of the fun and random activities we did I had discovered while flipping through a travel book. I’m not certain I would have found them on Google.

Having your kids read a travel book can also be a good way to get them learning about your destination as well as finding some activities they may enjoy. Travel books are usually very accessible and easy to read.

Office Space

I work from home and love it, but it is far more challenging in the summer than any other time of year. With more family members around, and driving to camps and different practices during the day, it can be tough to “work, work, work” as Rihanna says. At the library, no one can ask me about laundry. Well, they can try, but I can to go “shhhh!” sharply and they can’t argue. It’s great to pop in to the library and snag a carrel during the hour-long dance class when it’s not worth my while to head home. Bonus: coming here keeps me from going to Starbucks and spending more money/ingesting more calories than necessary.

While the library is pretty great all year round, you can see that I have a special relationship with it during the summer. Hope you are feeling the love for your local library during these warmer months!

This post originally appeared on RealityMoms. It has been reprinted with permission.

Shannan Younger lives in the suburbs of Chicago with her husband and teen daughter. She’s a recovery attorney who now blogs at BetweenUsParents.com, ChicagoNow, and as part of the Chicago Parent Blogger Network. Her writing has appeared on the Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop, Scary Mommy, BonBon Break, Brain Child and In the Powder Room, and her essays have been included in two anthologies by The HerStories Project. She is also freelance writer for regional magazines. Shannan was in the 2013 cast of Listen to Your Mother, despite the fact that her daughter often fails to do so.

The post Why I Love My Local Library in the Summer appeared first on Kids Activities Blog.

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[serendipity1974]

Let's be #Real, mmmkay? I just took these pics of my apartment: the living room/dining area above, and 2 views of my bedroom below. Believe it or not, I spent 75% of the day yesterday decluttering my room. After days of rising anxiety I realized my mental health required that I shift my sights away from the laundry, cooking, and anything writing-related, to containing the chaos around me. All the Christmas boxes were finally sent down to the basement storage, I moved around furniture, actually unpacked from the ski trip (which I returned from over a week ago), tossed out tons of paper, and put things in their place. You can't see the closet, but it has been overhauled as well. I went to bed feeling a huge weight had been lifted, and woke up pleased with myself. Then, I walked into the living room, where the Rebels had already reconstructed the forts of blanket-covered toppled furniture my husband and I dismantled last night. Toys, books, #veryimportant scraps of scribbled paper, and lord knows what else liter every surface. It's normal, I reckon, given that the Rebels are a 6yo Boy and a Girl who is spitting distance from her 5th birthday. So I'm not angry, or even frustrated, I'm just tired. I simply do not want to clean up the mess in the living room. The corner of the dining room you can't see is filled with #LEGOS, #KaplaBlocks, art supplies, and who knows what else. I try to organize it all, purge what I can, shove it all back into their bedroom... It never lasts. For apartment dwellers the conundrum of what to do with all your crud is the real Neverending Story. The other day @darlademorrow broke the bad news that the Organizing Fairy isn't going to swoop in and save me :( On the bright side, I'm going to chat with her tomorrow. Why? Because she is literally writing the book on organizing, and wants to pick my brain about some of my challenges. Which, now that I think of it, is reason enough for me to ignore this mess. At least for today. #MorningMusings #OneWord #Focus #SerendipityIsRandom and an #Overwhelmed #Clutterbug #RealityMoms (at New York, New York)

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: At 7:18 a.m., my daughter started freaking out that she couldn’t find her gym uniform. “I figured I would just bring it home again tonight to wash, and now I can’t find it,” she cried. #MomFail on so many levels. https://t.co/Kbnrlt0mml via @PlaydatesFriday #momguilt https://t.co/auIjEK2kWG

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: At 7:18 a.m., my daughter started freaking out that she couldn’t find her gym uniform. “I figured I would just bring it home again tonight to wash, and now I can’t find it,” she cried. #MomFail on so many levels. https://t.co/Kbnrlt0mml via @PlaydatesFriday #momguilt https://t.co/Uwkg4gJpSE

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: Not only was my girl not #bilingual, but she was avoiding learning about other lands and cultures. It was the exact opposite of everything I had hoped for and worked to achieve. I was horrified. https://t.co/qLrfSQazZH #momfail via @ShannanYounger https://t.co/Wg5aBcmBcQ

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: At 7:18 a.m., my daughter started freaking out that she couldn’t find her gym uniform. “I figured I would just bring it home again tonight to wash, and now I can’t find it,” she cried. #MomFail on so many levels. https://t.co/Kbnrlt0mml via @PlaydatesFriday #momguilt https://t.co/OACaRXtdP4

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: Not only was my girl not #bilingual, but she was avoiding learning about other lands and cultures. It was the exact opposite of everything I had hoped for and worked to achieve. I was horrified. https://t.co/qLrfSQazZH #momfail via @ShannanYounger https://t.co/fl6S1pviXq

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: At 7:18 a.m., my daughter started freaking out that she couldn’t find her gym uniform. “I figured I would just bring it home again tonight to wash, and now I can’t find it,” she cried. #MomFail on so many levels. https://t.co/Kbnrlt0mml via @PlaydatesFriday #momguilt https://t.co/KLOoFEnHPN

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: Not only was my girl not #bilingual, but she was avoiding learning about other lands and cultures. It was the exact opposite of everything I had hoped for and worked to achieve. I was horrified. https://t.co/qLrfSQazZH #momfail via @ShannanYounger https://t.co/ED5f3LopC1

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: Not only was my girl not #bilingual, but she was avoiding learning about other lands and cultures. It was the exact opposite of everything I had hoped for and worked to achieve. I was horrified. https://t.co/qLrfSQazZH #momfail via @ShannanYounger https://t.co/sFB2Iybljo

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms

[momfailhashtag]

@RealityMoms: At 7:18 a.m., my daughter started freaking out that she couldn’t find her gym uniform. “I figured I would just bring it home again tonight to wash, and now I can’t find it,” she cried. #MomFail on so many levels. https://t.co/Kbnrlt0mml via @PlaydatesFriday #momguilt https://t.co/wP4T81YMPp

http://twitter.com/RealityMoms