Queens Museum of Art

Posted on May 20, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

On my quest to visit as many sites of NYC with my COOL Culture Family pass (http://www.coolculture.org/), we took a trip to the Queens Museum of Art located at the New York City Building in Flushing Meadows Corona Park. We went on Saturday and outside of the museum there was a family event presented by the COOL Culture program. They offered live music, games, raffles and prizes. There was also ginormous chalk pencils on the pathways for children and adults to enjoy.

You guys know that my girls LOVE to play outside with chalk so this was heaven.

CHALK FESTIVAL!

After we spent some time making some art outside, we went inside the museum and saw the best exhibit ever. They have a 9,335 square foot architectural model PANORAMA of the City of New York. It was built by a team of 100 people and it is amazing to see. http://www.queensmuseum.org/exhibitions/visitpanorama

I don’t have the best camera in the world so I’m clearly not doing justice to this wonderful exhibit. My husband was able to spot little airplanes actually taking off from the airport with the help of thin, almost invisible wires. It was pretty cool.

We also saw an exhibit of photographs taken by public school children, miniature models of buildings (example above), and portrait drawings (above) by some wonderful artists. This museum is currently under construction so there really wasn’t a lot to see so we decided to go and spend some time at the largest globe in the world, the Unisphere.

http://queens.about.com/cs/attractions/p/Unisphere.htm

I went back to our car and got our scooters. We scooted around the Unisphere until it started raining. Then we made our way home. It was another great adventure.

Take good care all and many thanks for visiting!

Until next time…

I question myself…

Posted on May 17, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

I used to question myself as a human being. What am I suppose to be doing here on this earth with my life? Then I became a mom/human being and started questioning myself as a parent, almost every day. Am I feeding, cleaning, teaching, treating, and loving them well enough to avoid any damage in the future? Yes, I’m dramatic, but I have a reason for it. It’s my wicked and over the top mind. It has been doing a number on me for many years and I have to work hard to Zen it down, especially for my daughters. I have to constantly remind myself that things are not going to go as plan. They might and that’s ok, but if they don’t, that’s ok as well.

Parenthood is a very scary world (I took my sweet time knocking at that door because I knew exactly what was in store) and if you add a worked up mind to the mix, things can go haywire. But then comes the day where you’re shown exactly what your best efforts have put forward. I was invited and honored this morning at my daughter’s school for their Exceptional Women Day Brunch. My daughter’s essay was chosen, along with others in different grades and classes. We began the celebration by sharing some of the essays that were written by the students. My daughter stood up and read hers without a second thought, which I so admire and love about her. She also showed everyone the drawing that she made. Now it’s my turn to share it with you and to let you know that at least for today my mind is very peaceful and my heart is very proud. I will remember this day when I’m questioning myself as a parent and know that I’m doing a good job. My daughter’s teachers, advisors and coaches have provided me with this day, which I’m going to cherish. I greatly thank them for the acknowledgement and for providing me with something to hush my mind with.

I also want to thank my darling daughter, Olivia, for her kind and thoughtful words as well as her lovely drawing of us at the dining room table doing her homework. 🙂 I love her artwork.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Cucumbers and cookie cutters

Posted on May 13, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

I had a wonderful Mother’s day with my whole family. I was gifted (by my husband) a, wait for it, SCOOTER! Yup, an adult size scooter. It’s pretty awesome. I tested it out for a little while before heading out to my mom’s house. I almost fell, but gained control and hopped back on it. I can’t wait to scoot some more with my girls and my hubby. It’s an unconventional gift, but it sure beats receiving a vacuum or blender. 🙂 I was also gifted a beautiful MOM necklace from http://www.lisaleonardonline.com/mama-necklace-P187C104.aspx. by my hubby and my girls. All and all, I had a great day.

Changing subjects so the title of this post makes sense, I came across this pin on Pinterest.

http://pinterest.com/pin/101753272802560641/

My daughter loves cucumbers and I have a small heart shape cookie cutter so of course after seeing this idea, I had to try it out!

As soon as I did it, I showed my daughter and she gasped at seeing the heart-shaped cucumbers. The next day after school, she told me that her friends loved them as well and were asking her who made them, at which she proudly said, “my mom!” Thank u to whoever came up with this idea. I know it’s not rocket science, but it’s cute and it made my little girl happy and it’s those little things that count the most for me.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Queens Botanical Garden

Posted on May 6, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

One can live in a certain place for a long time without ever visiting certain tourist attractions or landmarks. In my case, I regrettably never visited the Twin Towers here in New York City, which is why I’ve decided to venture out more with my family and see what this great city has to offer. I’m done with taking advantage of it. It’s time to explore and make memories. Plus, we have a COOL Culture Family Pass (http://www.coolculture.org/programs/cool-culture-family-pass), which is a pass that offers families free admission to 90 cultural institutions if they have children enrolled in Pre-K or Kindergarten.

This past Saturday, we visited, for the first time, the Queens Botanical Garden at 43-50 Main Street, Flushing, New York. We went around mid-morning and this place can be easily described as beautiful and absolutely peaceful or as my husband put it, “completely Zen.”

As you can see my daughters had a blast. My youngest, Sophia, loved running around the grass while my oldest, Olivia, loved throwing herself and laying down on the grass.

I had fun taking pictures of all the flowers and…

…this little fella. I got close enough to zoom my camera in and take a great pic of him or her!

At the Wedding Garden everything is set up so you can get married there. Isn’t it wonderful?

My husband enjoyed the Herb Garden and I greatly enjoyed visiting the Queens Botanical Garden with my family. We will definitely be visiting again soon.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Chalk Art

Posted on April 30, 2013 by themercadoproject

Chalk Art

Let me draw something for you

Just wait and see

It’ll be something new

You’ll be so proud of me

The ground will be my canvas

We’ll share it with the world

The colors will be vibrant

Every single line and swirl.

A year ago, I drew

a plain happy face,

warranting many snapshots.

Nowadays,

my art has evolved

comprised of such details

including a diamond wand.

You asked me if I was done

and I said, “Not yet,

she needs eyelashes

and rainbow lipstick.”

Finally,

I dust chalk off my hands and knees

and sit proudly

beside my art while saying, “Cheese!”

– Angelica Mercado

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

We had a great week-end with nice weather and as you can see some fun at the park with chalk! I always bring a Ziploc bag full of jumbo size chalk so my daughters can let their creativity soar out. My oldest daughter impressed me with how far she’s come along with drawing. It was a lot of fun watching her and my youngest, who is currently drawing simple happy faces as well as shapes. My husband joined in the fun and afterwards we treated the girls with a trip to McDonald’s for some happy meals. It was a great day.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

A NOT SO PUZZLING EFFECT

Posted on April 23, 2013 by themercadoproject

A not so puzzling effect

Her eyes dart

from piece to piece

looking for a place to start.

She takes a quick glance to see

exactly what she’s looking for.

I can’t take my eyes away

from her beautiful face.

As it comes alive with a series

of emotions

such concentration,

undivided attention,

then, sheer frustration.

“Help me mommy,” she says.

“Look for a corner,” I offer.

She has to do it on her own.

And when she fits the final piece

seriousness instantaneously

shifts into happiness

for us both.

– Angelica Mercado

_____________________________________________________________

Hello everybody! I hope you guys are well.

My children are a great inspiration and when a moment occurs, in which I want to describe and keep it forever in words, I toss procrastination to the side (along with some housework, I’ll get to it eventually), sit down, and just write. Some days it’s hard to get the right words down quickly when you have a 3 and 5-year-old beckoning every two minutes so I have to hit SAVE and walk away, but lately I’ve been getting back to my writing instead of letting it sit there in oblivion. It’s a good feeling to get back to it.

Thanks for visiting!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Happy Earth Day!

Posted on April 22, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody!

I hope you guys are well.

Last week, on Wednesday, I picked up my daughter, Olivia, from school and she came home with a plastic cup of dirt. Inside the cup, there was a tiny plant growing, and my daughter was super excited. We placed the cup in direct sunlight and she has given her plant a little bit of water in the morning, every day since. Look at her small plant so far. Not so small anymore! It’s such a beauty and the joy that it brings my daughter is priceless!

Happy EARTH day!

Take good care all.

Until next time…

A glance at last weeks school lunch from home

Posted on April 17, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody! I hope you guys are well.

Here’s a glance at what I made/put together for my daughter, last week, for her school lunch. We try our best to send her off to school with a nutritious, balanced meal. I’m glad to say that there are more days where her food containers come home empty.

I try not to repeat the main dishes, but if I have to it’s usually the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches or the pizza bagels, which are my daughter’s faves. I give her nuggets once a week because we all know process food is not exactly healthy. I also abide by the recommended serving sizes. In regards to the serving size for the nuggets I take one away (serving size is 5 nuggets, but I give her 4) because I also give her tater tots (serving size is 9, but I give her 6). It’s all about moderation, plus including the veggies and fruits that we need.

Take good care all.

Until next time…

Celebration Recap

Posted on April 15, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody! I hope you guys are well.

My youngest daughter is officially three and we had a birthday week-end celebration with friends and family. We broke things down by celebrating her actual birthday on Friday, just us in the house. I wanted to make a small (I like the Jiffy cake mix), funfetti cake

and it was the perfect time to try out these Bake-Even Cake Strips (Wilton) that I’ve seen online and found on sale at AC Moore craft store.

I didn’t realize I went overboard on the sprinkles until…

…the cake was done and I flipped it out of the baking pan.

As you can see the cake strip (around the pan) worked, but there were noticeable differences other than the cake dome that appears when you don’t use this strip. The cake sticks to the side of the pan more and the bottom was moist when I took it out. I like that it baked even, but I don’t know if I’m going to use the strip again. We’ll see.

I melted a little bit of the Betty Crocker Rich & Creamy Chocolate frosting (15 seconds in the microwave) in a glass bowl and this made things easy to spread on the cake. I really don’t like when the cake crumbs combine with the frosting. I threw a little bit more of sprinkles, yes more, on the frosting and then…

…the #3 candle. My daughter loved her funfetti cake.

I chose the theme of the cartoon Bubble Guppies featured on Nickelodeon. I decorated with free printables from nickjr.com and purchased a huge #3 balloon. Balloons are always a huge hit.

The banner, poster, and pin the tail game were cute, easy, and fun to put together. Just go to nickjr.com and click on birthdays and you’ll see all of the themes and projects available for each.

The following day was Saturday and we invited friends and family with kids to join us at an indoor playground/arcade (funtopiausa.com). We paid for the kids admission, tokens for them to play the arcade games, and food (pizza, popcorn, and drinks). We stayed for about two hours and when it was time to go I gave each invited guest a goody box filled with candy, toys and stickers.

My aunt had given me these boxes about a year ago and I was so happy to finally have a reason to use them. I glued the images of the Bubble Guppies, which I printed out at nickjr.com, and made the middle image with my daughter’s name. I then took the glitter glue in blue and green and made swirl lines like waves on the boxes. I then filled the boxes with candy (skittles, smarties, Tootsie rolls, lollipop, rose ring pop, candy bracelet, and sixlets) from orientaltrading.com along with little toys like a mushroom spinning top (not shown) and Easter Pop-Ups, which are a lot of fun for children and adults.

We ended the day with my husband’s homemade piñata, which he made with a balloon, scraps of paper, and modge podge.

My husband had fun making this and the kids had a lot more fun whacking the heck out of it.

On our last day of celebration (Sunday), my family came over and we sang happy birthday once again with another cake (Oreo No Bake Dessert), chocolate lollipops (vanilla, dark mint, & peanut butter), and great, homemade food. Thanks Mom and my aunt Aida!

I was pretty happy with this plan of action for celebrating my daughter’s birthday. Many people get really stressed out planning birthdays and end up spending a lot of money. I didn’t want the headaches or the empty wallet. No offense to anyone who goes big, because of course, if I had space and extra money, I would be singing a different tune, but at this moment minimal is the way to go. So one birthday down, one more to go.

Take good care all and thanks for visiting.

Until next time…

Happy Birthday Sophia!

Posted on April 12, 2013 by themercadoproject

Hello everybody! I hope you guys are well.

Today is a very special day for me. It’s my daughter’s birthday.

Happy Birthday Baby!

Can I even call you that anymore?

Because today you’re 3 years old.

Your brilliance astounds us, you’re stubborn as a mule, your sweet, adorable face charms the wits out of people instantly, you’re fierce (just ask your big sister who you try to “lovingly” knock down), and you’re definitely a comedian in training, hence the picture above.

You keep me on my toes and make my nerves go haywire, but then you stretch your arms out wide and declare that you want a big hug, which is always followed up with a big, sloppy kiss on my cheek. You coyly say “I love you Mami,” and melt my heart away. I then want to devour you, figuratively speaking, of course (us mothers can’t help this feeling, it’s just there) and I tell you so, prompting you to say with a very serious face, “No Mami, you can’t eat me.” Ok, maybe not today, so I tickle you instead.

You’re filling my mind with sweet memories and I hope I’ll never forget them. Two days ago, we watched a squirrel munching away on something and you giggled with delight. You have a love for animals and aren’t afraid to venture close enough. Not even big dogs deter you. You’re amazing. On our way back from the supermarket, we spotted another squirrel. He disappeared around the massive tree and you asked, “Where he go?” I told you to look up and there he was. Suddenly, he turned and looked straight at us with his beady, little eyes. I’ve never seen that before and I whispered to you, “he’s looking at us,” and you slowly backed away, making me laugh. I couldn’t resist and said, “Run!” We held hands and started running and laughing down the block.

You bring me joy, you drive me nuts, but most of all I’m so honored to be your mother.

I love you baby girl, ‘cause you’ll always be my baby, no matter how old you become.

The many faces of my little girl.

There’s the “don’t-take-my-picture!” look, mischievous (that’s grandma’s lipstick on her face, which she secretly applied and got caught red-faced, HA!), and pure happiness!

Happy Birthday Sophia! We love you!

🙂

Take good care all.

Until next time…

themercadoproject

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Category Archives: Children

Queens Museum of Art

I question myself…

Cucumbers and cookie cutters

Queens Botanical Garden

Chalk Art

A NOT SO PUZZLING EFFECT

Happy Earth Day!

A glance at last weeks school lunch from home

Celebration Recap

Happy Birthday Sophia!