Day out with Thomas 2012

Hey Y'all,

My boys heart Thomas The Tank Engine. Erick is 7 and still plays with his train table, creates Thomas stories and borrows only Thomas and Friends books from the library. Myles is following on his big brothers tracks and is a die hard Thomas fan as well. Erick was introduced to Thomas by his dad but I am by far the enabler. Proof positive is the fact that I always seem to find Thomas the Tank Engine where ever he is in the US. We have been passengers on Thomas' coaches three times in three different states! Our latest adventure was in Philisburg, NJ at The Delaware Railroad Excursions. We had a blast. It was as hot as Hades but Lord knows that I will do anything for my children including riding on an steaming steam engine for 25 minutes dripping sweat. The folks that pull off a Day out with Thomas should be commended; especially when the weather is inclement (to cold or to hot). This trips theme was Mystery on the Rails, we were 'tasked' with helping Thomas find a treasure (which ended up being a tacky glass 'diamond'). The $18 train ride was well worth it because there were plenty of freebies including Imagination Station with featured temporary tattoos, splatter painting, storytelling, live folk music and two bouncy houses. I highly recommend Day out with Thomas and plan to do it again in the future (until the kids tell me they are done).

Check out a  few of our pictures here...

Twin Tuesday: SCRIBBLES

Hey Y'all,

I hope that you are having a terrific summer thus far. It has been a whirlwind of activity for me. The kids keep me going and I love it. This has been the first summer of their lives that I've been with them 24/7. I try to keep them as busy as possible so we all sleep well at night. Our days start off with Mommy Summer School and branch off (depending on the day) to $1 movies, swimming, visiting museums and day trips. I have a calendar chuck full of summer fun, until they head off to Nana's (thank you JESUS).

This Twin Tuesday's post is dedicated to the twins' favorite "play mall" SCRIBBLES. SCRIBBLES is a fantastic interactive and educational store in the Menlo Park Mall that features personalized gifts for children & educational toys. We visit SCRIBBLES at least once a week and hang out there for about 2-3 hours (yes hours in one store). Typically we don't purchase a thing (unless it's a work book on sale) but the twins play HARD with everything that is out on display.

A couple weeks ago during our visit we had the pleasure of meeting the owner Mary Thomas, of course I went into blogger mode and asked if she wouldn't mind being featured in one of my posts. Thankfully she agreed and shared a little about herself and how she started SCRIBBLES.



MrsDeveter: Thanks again for agreeing to chat with me. Can you share a little bit of the history behind SCRIBBLES?

Mary Thomas: We started on a kiosks 13 years ago in the Menlo Park Mall. We were doing personalized piggy banks, rocking chairs, toy boxes all kinds of fun things for 10 years. Then it became a little bit to much so we closed. It was a boring staying at home so we opened the first store and expanded beyond the personalized items into toys and other cool things.

MrsDeveter: Like I told  you before we can come here and stay for hours. Why did you branch out into toys and make the store so interactive?

Mary Thomas: Because it's fun. In retail everyone does clothes, clothes aren't fun. Kids are easy. They love everything, they are happy and love to play. I've found that no matter who they are the kids get along especially at the Thomas table they love to play together. The children get along so well, it's the adults that need to learn that. Sometimes they don't share... but they play well together and it's fun.


MrsDeveter: What was your 9-5 before SCRIBBLES?


Mary Thomas: I had three kids. I worked in the city for a publishing company but it was hard to to go back and forth. My husband also worked in the city and said he'd prefer it if I worked closer to home. So I started working retail. He would work in the day and I would go out for a few hours at night.

MrsDeveter: What advise would you give to anyone looking to get into retail.

Mary Thomas: Everything chances. Before I opened everyone told me not to go into retail because I was going into business at the wrong time. In 2008 that's when the market crashed. Manufactures, friends everyone told me not to do it, but I said ... people buy toys. I had a wonderful location to start and it worked.

MrsDeveter: So your advice would be ... don't listen to anybody's advice.

Mary Thomas: (chucking) yes. You have to feel it inside and know what's right for you.

If you are ever in Edison NJ please stop by and visit Mary and the ladies at SCRIBBLES she is located in the Menlo Park Mall steps away from The Disney Store and Build a Bear on the lower level of the Nordstrom wing. If you are looking to order online please visit www.scribblesatmenlo.com for great personalized gifts for children.

Until next time...
MUAH!

The Patriot

Hey Y'all,

I was going to call this post wordless Wednesday but it has words so alas I will keep it simple. And wish you all a very happy 4th of July. Have a wonderful day and be safe.



Until next time,
MUAH!

Related Posts:

• Top 10 Things NOT to Do This 4th of July

Working Women: The T-Cup Cafe

Hey Y'all,

Today I would like to spotlight The T-Cup Cafe. 

I spoke with Tanya Brown one of he owners and here is what she shared.

What is the name and focus of your business?

The T-Cup Cafe is a coffee shop that was established in September 2008, by my husband Reginald and me. We grind our coffee and bake our own cakes and cookies; our pastries and bread are delivered fresh every morning. The T-Cup also proudly serves delicious Belgian Waffles with toppings, Omelets, Jumbo Breakfast Sandwiches, Turkey Burgers, Salmon Burgers, espresso, teas and real fruit juice smoothies

 

Prior to starting your business what was your 9-5?
I was an accountant at Siemens Corporation in New Jersey.

What made you venture out and become an entrepreneur?

The T-Cup Café is located in the beautiful and historical Bedford Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn New York. We believed the businesses and residents in the community deserve the opportunity to have a place that serves healthy food choices and fresh food in a comfortable and friendly cafe environment. We offer the community the opportunity to dine-in or take-out. That was our main reason for wanting to open the T-Cup Cafe.

What's new at The T-Cup Cafe?

On May 5^th we had the honor and pleasure of hosting one of Jane's Walk NYC, sponsored by MASNYC. The purpose of the tour was to expose my favorite places in the development of Bedstuy. To name a few of the places we explored- Akwaaba Bed & Breakfast, House of Arts Gallery, Lady of Victorian Cathedral, Sarraginas Italian restaurant & Garden and the newly renovated Lewis Ave library. This was a great way to bring exposure to the Café and to Bedstuy.

During  the summer we host live music right outside of the Café which gives the neighborhood exposure to the arts. This summer we will feature poetry by RL The Gifted One and live Jazz from Stix Bones & The Bone Squad. Please check out our websites events page for updates.


The T-Cup Cafe is located at 627 Throop Ave Brooklyn, NY 11216 they cater to commuters and are open from 7:30 am to 6:00 pm


Until next time...
MUAH!

Imagine That!!!!!

The twins and I went on an adventure today. My goal was to take them to the Zoo but 'mother nature' had another plan; it was POURING. There was no chance that I was going to take those two to the zoo in the rain. Although they really wanted to go... Leah even told me that they would be fine in the rain. Being the tech savvy mommy that I am, I parked in the zoo lot, pulled out my Galaxy and found another fun educational place to visit that was indoors. We found Imagine That! A children's museum of NJ. This place rocked. It is a huge warehouse cut up into different sections including, a train section, ballet room (with tap and ballet shoes), an anchors desk, veterinary, doctors and dentists office, a castle, transportation room, crafts area (which included cute smocks) and so much more. The price range was fair and the twins truly had a good time. My children are extremely friendly and met another set of twins from Florida and a little boy from either England or Ireland based on his accent.

Here are some pictures:


The only thing I would have done differently was to visit the museum after 1:00 pm because of the school groups. They children that were visiting the museum from schools were rather rumbustious to say the least. I would have also invited my cousin to join me because Myles wanted to hang out by the trains and Leah was more interested in the Shopping area (which was so cute). All in all we had a great day out and will visit Imagine That! again.

Until next time...
MUAH!

A Lesson In Patience

pa·tience

1. the quality of being patient,  as the bearing of provocation, annoyance, misfortune, or pain, without complaint, loss of temper, irritation, or the like.

2. an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay: to have patience with a slow learner.

3. quiet, steady perseverance; even-tempered care; diligence: to work with patience.

When she woke up this morning at 3:33 a.m. crying because she wanted to sleep in my bed I held my ground and didn't let her, no matter how long she cried.

When he continued to ask me to play on the computer at 7:30 a.m. I told him in a firm clear voice that he could go to sprout online later.

When I woke up and found that my phone was turned off (even though it's my only way to connect with people who may be interested in hiring me) I didn't flip out I just gave my potential employer my home phone number and kept it moving.

I'm learning patience and it's not easy. I can be a VERY impatient person. When driving I am that person who is "cussing" (I don't really curse I say things like big dummy and seriously) my fellow road warriors out. When things aren't going my way I have to walk away before I hurt someone. Patience is not something I can honestly say I possess. I must be honest and share that this time of unemployment and being home with my children is really teaching me how to be patient. I like the second definition of patience above "an ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay".

I know that as a Christian I must have patience because is it one of the fruits of the spirit. I want to live a life of patience and I guess I have to be tested to see how far off course I am. I am determined to win this test.

As a parent do you struggle with any of the fruits of the spirit?

Until next time...
MUAH!

Twin Tuesday: Double Standard

Hey Y'all,

It has been ages since I've written a Twin Tuesday post.
I've been going through the blog and reading some of the past posts I've written about the twins and have smiled and teared up while reading them. Leah and Myles are now 4 years old and loving life. Leah is a dancer (her first recital is on Father's day) and Myles is a train/car aficionado. They are both growing up so nicely. Both funny and fun loving, however when it comes down to their father and I there is a double standard.

As you know I am currently a SAHM (are you hiring) and I've been with them 24/7 for the past four months. My husband  is self employed and is often home working in the office when he's not in the studio or traveling. We are making the best of this arrangement but... the twins have a double standard. When Daddy is on the phone everyone is quite and leaves him alone but when Mommy needs to make an important call I am needed. Doesn't matter if they want a drink, are done in the bathroom and needs assistance with wiping, wants a toy from the room I'm taking the call in etc. I am needed.

When a door is opened in our house it make a little ding sound to alert you that someone has gone out. Yesterday when I went into the garage to throw out some trash the alarm of course sounded. My daughter nearly had a breakdown (she wasn't by my side for the moment) "Daddy where is Mommy? Did she leave?" My son goes to the window to see if the car is gone. I went to sit in the dinning room and listened while they searched the house for me. Myles found me after about five minutes and accusued me of hiding from them. Now if my husband leaves the house they could care less. "Daddy's gone? Oh ok" and the questioning ends.  Sometimes it feels good and others it's quite overwhelming. Why can't Mommy have a moment, an uninterrupted moment of course?

Since I've been home Leah has been connected to me by the hip. When I move she moves. Doesn't matter if I'm going to brush my teeth or cook dinner she is right there by my side. They don't do this to their father. Maybe they did when I wasn't around but now it seems that Mommy is the parent of choice. I know I should enjoy this because soon they won't want anything to do with me but, good gracious sometimes I need to be alone.

Are there any stay at home parents out there that can give me some advice on managing these two?

Until next time...
MUAH!