Think Breakfast

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

Yesterday was my daughter’s last day as a Kindergartener!  It’s definitely amazing how I can feel as if time flew on by, but at the same time the jitters and anxiety over the first day of school are still fresh in my mind.  Like they say, “it was just yesterday…”, and that’s how I’m feeling.  With time, the unknown (school/Kindergarten) became familiar, but now we’re full circle and back to the unknown (1st grade).  I say unknown because I have absolutely no recollection of my time in the early years of school and this is my first kid entering the school system, so there you go.  Now, I can only hope that some of her new friends are placed in her new class and she’s given a great teacher like the one she had before, whom by the way I want to thank once again for writing a lovely message in my daughter’s Dr. Seuss “Oh, the places you’ll go! ” book.  Her message made me cry because it was so nice of her and I couldn’t wait to show it to Olivia.  I did debate on whether or not to keep the book and its messages a secret for a great surprise in the future, but then I don’t think the memory of each teacher would be fresh.  At the end of every school year I’m going to do my best to get a personal message from each teacher written in that book just for Olivia.  It’s a great idea and I knew once I heard about it that I was going to do it.  I’m very happy that I did.

Changing subjects and making the title of this post relevant, I wanted to share with you a great program that was introduced to my daughter at school.  It brings awareness to eating a healthy breakfast.  There’s even a song and dance called “Think Breakfast,” which Olivia performed with her class at her school during their annual festival dance.  She also received a water bottle and a pedometer (promoting hydration and exercise).  The pedometer was a hit with Olivia.  It simply fascinated her that this little gizmo could count her steps.  Of course, she put it to the test by walking around our apartment and stopping every so often to see the latest number.

Olivia: What number is this?

Me: Two hundred and fifty-eight

Olivia: Whaaaat?  That’s a really big number.

Me:  It sure is.  You’re walking a lot.

Olivia: I want to walk until it says 1 mile.  What number is that?

Me: Ten thousand, one, zero, zero, zero, zero.

Olivia: Whaaaat?

🙂

Check out the website for recipes, videos, activity pages, and games.  I had both girls watching the video, learning the dance steps and singing the song.  A funny and wonderful memory just for me.

http://www.thinkbreakfast.com/

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Many thanks

Many thanks

Thank you for being Olivia’s first school teacher.                                                           

Thank you for being so kind.                        

Thank you for noticing her struggles and fighting for her rights.                                  

Thank you for teaching her the tapping method, which she loves to utilize.                                              

Thank you for the smile that appears on her face when she’s read

something at her own pace.                                                             

Thank you for teaching her songs that she loves to sing.                                                            

Thank you for being a great teacher.          

 Thank you for everything!

– Angelica Mercado

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Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

There is officially two more days of school here in Brooklyn and I’m sending my daughter up to the last day for two reasons.  I want her to finish her Kindergarten year like a pro and I want her to enjoy the central air conditioning the school has to offer because it’s freaking hot (93 degrees to be exact)!  I’m also sending my daughter with a thank you card filled with graduation pictures and those words above.  I wrote them for her teacher who is a great person and I’m so glad that my daughter was able to begin her education with a smart and kind woman.  She will never be forgotten and she will always be her first teacher.  Thank you Mrs. Licata!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

My Kindergarten Graduate!

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

Another day, another milestone has come and gone.  My darling daughter, Olivia, graduated from Kindergarten today.  It was pretty exciting and the ceremony was kept short, sweet and simple.  Her school decided on breaking things into sessions, which is great because kids (and some adults) can get antsy when things take too long.  At my daughter’s ceremony/session, there were 3 graduating classes.  Their names were read by their teachers and each class sang an inspiring song afterwards.  When they were done, we all filed outside and my daughter was given her diploma by her teacher.  Lots of pictures were taken and off we went home.  It wasn’t drawn out and I didn’t even cry one tear, which is very surprising!  The sun was shining and my heart is contempt with knowing that my child had a wonderful start with her education, had a kind teacher, and made new friends.  I can only hope that things run as smoothly as they did for the following school year.

A special thanks to Mrs. Licata!  You will always be her first teacher and she absolutely loves you!

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1st grade, here I come!

Congratulations Olivia!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Building blocks + Mario & friends = FUN!

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

I believe the best toy we ever bought after having our first child was a set of colorful building blocks (STEP 2).  From the moment we received them, back in 2008, it has been non-stop fun for both my girls and visiting family members.  We corral and store the blocks in an empty, taped up diaper box.  These blocks have nurtured my children’s imagination, creativity, color and shape knowledge.  Also, let’s not forget the most important aspect of blocks, knocking them down.  If there’s ever one toy to get and keep for a while it’s definitely this one.

Today, my youngest brought out the blocks and decided to include Mario and friends (another great toy purchase because this little girl loves these plush toys to bits).  She asked me to help her build it tall so she can “bust through it.”  Okay, I told her to bust through it and she had a ton of fun doing just that.

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TAKE GOOD CARE ALL.

UNTIL NEXT TIME…

DIY Super Mario and Friends Treat Bags

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

This year for my daughter’s birthday we decided to keep things simple.  We found a bowling place and invited Olivia’s cousins who live out-of-state.  Unfortunately, the weather was not cooperating making driving dangerous for our out-of-state family (same thing happened last year) so we had to postponed our gathering.  We did go bowling ourselves because we wanted to take her somewhere fun, plus we wanted to check out the place, which turned out to be great.  I also went ahead and made treat bags for my daughters and their cousins.

Here’s what I did:

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I purchased plain red treat bags at Target.  Then I searched online for Mario and friends.  Print, cut and glued the characters onto the bags.

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I found Super Mario and friends mini notepads, erasers, pencils, and pencil sharpeners at partycity.com.  I got all the candy and birdie whistle from orientaltrading.com.  The fruit snack packs, which come in a great family size box (50) are from Market Pantry available at Target.

I labeled each bag and my daughter, Olivia loved her birthday treat bag.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

To my firstborn

To my firstborn,

Every day I walk by your baby picture and

I’m amazed at how much you have grown.

Today, you’re an official 6-year-old.

Time rushes by and before you get any older

please let me describe what I see in this moment.

You’re a magnificent little artist,

who uses her imagination beyond and then some.

You just started learning how to read and

you’re tapping out words left and right.

You’re also writing up a storm, asking us how

you spell this or that or once upon a time.

Your yuk yuk laugh is infectious and a lovely sound to hear.

You love to learn new songs and you sing them at full blast.

Your little sister can belt out “America the beautiful”

because you’re a wonderful big sister/teacher.

I will continue to watch you with amazement

because you are my world, my heart, my firstborn.

Angelica Mercado

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Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

My daughter celebrated her 6th birthday today.  She was very excited and the night before I decorated our living room with balloons and banners.

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This number 6 balloon is huge and I also had a big butterfly (just because).  I ordered the balloon banner when Olivia was about 3 years old so it is a good reusable banner.  I made two Super Mario Banners (theme) and came upon the stars at the dollar section at Target.  I just drew in the eyes with a sharpie marker.  I also put up three tissue paper pom-pom balls (again, just because).

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http://oldnavy.gap.com/browse/product.do?vid=1&pid=484345002

I ordered and gave my daughter this T-shirt from Old Navy so she could wear it to school and she loved it.  She jumped into my arms and gave me a big ol’ hug.  You’re welcome my darling.

At school my daughter handed out little treat bags filled with a small coloring page with the number 6, gummy snacks, a raisin box, pretzels, and mini marshmallows to her classmates and teacher.  She later informed me that she had a great day at school.  Always great to hear!

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While my daughter was at school, I was busy at home baking a cake for her and wrapping her gifts.  I purchased the Super Mario and friends figures at Amazon and I found this cute wrapping paper at the dollar section at Target.  The bows were made using this great bow tutorial http://howaboutorange.blogspot.com/2013/04/how-to-make-paper-bow.html by Jessica Jones.

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We had a wonderful dinner followed by singing Happy Birthday to Olivia and eating great cake.  She got to open her gifts, which included books, a great Spider-Man T-shirt, and LeapFrog headphones.  This little girl was beyond happy and I’m very happy to have given her a great day.

Happy 6th Birthday Olivia!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

The State Museum of Pennsylvania

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

We spent our Memorial Day week-end visiting family in Harrisburg, PA.

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My daughters were very happy to see their Grandma Lucy, Auntie Vera, Uncle Alex, and little cousins A.J. and Victoria!

My mother-in-law barbecued some great food, little cousins played, laughed, bickered and made up together, and we got a chance to visit a great museum.  If you’re ever in the vicinity you should really check this place out.

http://www.statemuseumpa.org/

The main entrance is on Third Street and we immediately made our way to the CURIOSITY CONNECTION section of the museum.  This place is awesome for kids five years and under.  It’s a hands on play area.

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We were totally over the moon with this GIANT chick.

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Sophia loved petting the pigs as well as sitting on top of them.  There was a neat play room with a tunnel that led into the enchanted forest where you could read books sitting on top of mushroom stools and hear an owl hooting nearby.  Such a magical and endearing place.

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Olivia played in the build your own truck section while Sophia picked apples from the tree in the farm section.  The apples and the tree had velcro on them.  Too cute.  There was also fabric covered carrots that you can pick from the ground as well as cabbages.  The kids took turn acting like a farmer and taking the produce to the pick up truck.

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Olivia turned into a flower fairy and made music stepping on a big floor piano.  She had a lot of fun!  There was also a section that had lincoln logs, toy cars, and Lego parts to build whatever your heart desired.

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After we bid adieu to Big Chick and pigs, we explored the rest of the museum.

We were greeted by a big statue of William Penn.

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A.J. really wanted to show us the dinosaurs and the bones of a massive Mastodon.  It was very impressive.

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At the Man and Machine: Industry and Technology Exhibit we saw cars, planes, and trains.

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The following day we visited a playground called Possibility Place. This is a wonderful place where the kids can play (swings, fort, slides, mini rock climbing wall, monkey rings, rope bridge, etc.), ride their bikes or scooters on the nearby path and you can even have a picnic at the benches, which is completely shaded!  There are clean bathrooms and when it’s really hot outside there’s a sprinkler door frame to cool the kids off as well as the adults at the playground.  We love visiting this place.

http://www.yelp.com/biz/possibility-place-harrisburg

We had a wonderful time visiting great places and spending time with our beloved family members.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

It’s School Spirit Week – Wed., Thurs., and Friday

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

Today is the last day of my daughter’s school spirit week.  Here’s what we did:

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Wednesday was Crazy Hat Day

 My daughter, Olivia, wore her Perry the Platypus hat from the Disney cartoon Phineas and Ferb.  It’s not exactly a crazy hat, but it does have great personality and Olivia loves this hat.

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Thursday was Decade Day

I decided that the decade of peace and love was the way to go so my husband bought a plain tee and a tie dye bandana for Olivia.

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I took the bandana and scanned it on my printer so I could have the same image to iron on my daughter’s T-shirt with transfer paper.

It came out great!  I told my daughter to say, “peace and love,” but she got all shy on me and didn’t want to say it.  Oh well, she still looked so darn cute!

And last but not least…

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…Today (Friday) is Jersey Day

Students were asked to wear a jersey or shirt of their favorite team.  The Mercado household are big NY GIANTS fans so off she went with her T-shirt and I picked up her hair using red, white, and blue ponytail holders.  Let’s go Giants, when the season starts again, of course!

It was fun putting together and participating in her school’s activities.  I can’t wait for next year!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

So Inspirational…had to share with you!

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

I just saw this short documentary about Zach Sobiech and it made me go through so many emotions.  Happiness, sadness, inspired, sadness, and glad to have seen this so I can share it with you all.  I also made a donation in Zach’s name because we have to find a cure for cancer.  We have to find it NOW before more people like Zach get taken away too soon.  Spread the word, spread the love.  Let’s find a cure.  Help research.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/21/zach-sobiech-18yearold-cl_n_3312838.html?utm_hp_ref=mostpopular

R.I.P. Zach

Take good care all.

Until next time…

It’s School Spirit Week: Monday and Tuesday

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

It’s Spirit Week at my daughter’s school and yesterday was rainbow day.  All of the Kindergarten classes were asked to wear RED.  Today was Disney day.  I wanted my daughter to participate so last week we took inventory of what we already had before venturing out and finding the stuff that we needed.  Among her clothing, we only found a red tutu.  A trip to Target was a bust, but my husband saved the day by suggesting we go to the craft store.  At AC Moore we got three T-shirts (1 red and 2 white) and a tie dye happy face bandana (for Decade day on Thursday, more on that later on). 🙂

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My daughter Olivia wore a red shirt, tutu, headband, and pony tail holders on her braids.

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Today was Disney day.  My daughter does own several Disney princess shirts, but I asked her if she wanted me to make her one with all of the princesses together.  She said, “Whaaaat?”  I explained, she understood, and the excitement started building up.  I searched for a picture of each princess on Google, save and pasted along with their names on Word, and printed it out on iron on transfer paper.

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The shirt was a HIT and at school the kids were given a huge surprise…

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…in the form of people dressed up as Mickey and Minnie Mouse.

I was able to take a quick pic of Olivia and Minnie.

Afterwards, Olivia said, “It was a great day!”  Indeed it was. 🙂

Take good care all.

Until next time…