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 OPEN-TOED SHOE PLEDGE

Hey folks:

I am a little late  posting this pledge since the unofficial start of the Summer is just about a month in the past. I couldn't let the official first day of summer pass without posting the open toed shoe pledge! Ladies get your feet right before you put on those $2.50 Old Navy Flip Flops or $3,000 Louboutin platform sandals!

THE OPEN-TOED SHOE PLEDGE

*please raise your right hand and say the following*

I promise to always wear sandals that fit. My toes will not hang over and touch the ground, nor will my heels spill over the backs. And the sides and tops of my feet will not pudge out between the straps.

I will go polish-free or vow to keep the polish fresh, intact and chip-free. I will not cheat and just touch up my big toe.

I will sand down any mounds of skin before they turn hard and yellow.

I will shave the hairs off my big toe.

I won't wear pantyhose even if my misinformed girlfriend, coworker, mother, sister tells me the toe seam really will stay under my toes if I tuck it there.

If a strap breaks, I won't duct-tape, pin, glue or tuck it back into place hoping it will stay put. I will get my shoe fixed or toss it.

I will not live in corn denial; rather I will lean on my good friend Dr.. Scholl's if my feet need him.

I will resist the urge to buy jelly shoes at Payless for the low, low price of $4.99 even if my feet are small enough to fit into the kids' sizes. This is out of concern for my safety, and the safety of others. No one can walk properly when standing in a pool of sweat and I would hate to take someone down with me as I fall and break my ankle.

I will take my toe ring off toward the end of the day if my toes swell and begin to look like Vienna sausages.

I will be brutally honest with my girlfriend/sister/coworker when she asks me if her feet are too ugly to wear sandals. Someone has to tell her that her toes are as long as my fingers and no sandal makes creepy feet look good.

I will promise if I wear flip flops that I will ensure that they actually flip and flop, making the correct noise while walking and I will swear NOT to slide or drag my feet while wearing them.

I will promise to go to my local nail salon at least once per season and have a real pedicure

I will promise to throw away any white/off-white sandals that show signs of wear...

Ladies if you have taken this pledge, please sign your name in the comment section.

By signing this pledge, you are acknowledging that you will abide by all the guidelines set forth above, and will abruptly let a woman know if she is in violation. Let's keep this Summer crusty feet free!! Not only with the fellas appreciate it, but those of us that do take care of our feet will too.

**LADIES SPREAD THE WORD.TELL YOUR GIRLS TO SIGN THE PLEDGE**

**FELLAS PASS THIS ALONG TO YOUR LADY FRIENDS TOO**
Until next time...
MUAH!

Summertime and the livin' AINT easy!

Hey Y'all:

The song lyrics say "Summertime and the livin' is easy" George Gershwin must not have had any children because he would have known that when you have children and a job the summertime is just as taxing as the winter, spring and fall! Aint a thing EASY about it!

I wasn't able to get Erick into summer camp anywhere. He's only 5 and the programs that were reasonable and convenient only took children starting at age 6. I found this horrible lesson out by experiencing a NO when trying to sign him up.

The family and I left home early one Saturday morning to sign him up for summer camp! This particular morning it was raining like nobodies business, and it was cold out! We were troopers because we really wanted to get Erick into this camp, it's right up the block from my job and super reasonable.

I was number three in line while the hubby and children waited in the car with the DVD playing their Nick Jr. favorites. I sat and waited until it was time to fill out all the paperwork. I think I pretty much ignored the sentence that said ages 6-13 because I was reasoning with myself that Erick is in Kindergarten why wouldn't they follow the rules of the public school system? If he's old enough to be in Kindergarten; surly he could spend a summer in camp! Well I walked up about five flights of stairs, filled out about 6 pages of information and waited for my number to be called. The young lady checked my paper work... so far so good I thought. Until she got to the D.O.B. 2004 was the year she saw, she must have been trained to look for the year 2003 or anything earlier, she look at me and said "sorry".

I thought for some strange reason that I could 'reason' with this woman, convince her that my boy was a mature 5, I worked right down the block and was confident that he would be fine. "He's in Kindergarten", I said almost near tears. She looked at me and said... "Sorry Mrs. Brown maybe next year."

So my 4th of July weekend will be spent on the road taking him down for a two week visit with Nana. We'll just have to wing the rest of the summer I guess! Ugh!

What are you doing with your little people for summer vacation?

Until next time...
MUAH!

5-4-3-2-1 Summer Camp Blast off!

Hey Y'all:

I know it's a bit early in your mind to start thinking about summer time especially since it's still cold outside (if you are in the north east it might even be snowing like it is for me right now) but.... I received a booklet in the mail yesterday about summer camp and it got me to thinking. Registration forms are typically due by March/April. I guess I need to get the ball rolling because Erick is going SOMEWHERE this summer!

My mom was a stay at home but we still either went to sleep away camp for a couple weeks or went to visit a relative out of state. Most of my family members who live out of state have to work as well so we don't have that option and I'm not to keen on any type of sleep away camp for Erick just yet. Since I'm embarking upon this journey of finding summer camps for my little one I figured I'd share a top 5 list of things to think about when searching for a summer camp.

5. Location - Should the camp be near home or work? How long is the commute to said center. Would you rather deal with a pick up and drop off bus service or do you want to do the honors yourself? Lots to consider

4. Hours - Now if you are like me and work from 9-6 you need a camp the opens early and closes late. If the camp doesn't offer either of those options you have to consider alternate options like someone else taking your little one to camp and picking them up. Lot to think about so make sure you know what the hours are. Some places have later hours but you have to pay more... make sure you aren't shocked by any of this in the unfortunate instance that you are stuck and can't pick your child up on time.

3. Activities - There are so many summer camps out there. Make sure the camp you choose has everything that your child would be interested in . I would recommend a camp the offers a range of activities like day trips, sports, education etc... if you choose a camp that only has one particular focus your poor little one might get bored.

2. Affiliation - Most large churches and synagogues have summer camps, then you have the YMCA and camps that are run through schools and private organizations. Make sure you are comfortable with the camp affiliation.

1. Price - Camp can be rather costly! Especially if you have more then one child attending. You have to consider what your true budget is and what it includes. Is the camp price all inclusive? Does the total price cover meals and all activities or will you have to come out of pocket for those? Make sure you read the fine print. Don't want to get any surprises during the summer. If Erick comes home with a permission slip to go to Six Flags it better be included in that over all payment I made when he registered!

Here are a few sites I've fond for the Greater NY area to assist with finding summer camps.
NYC.gov
Camp Page
Free & Cheap Camps

What are your suggestions? I need all your help.

Until next time...
MUAH!