Blog Swapping with Delicious Ambiguity

Pin It Now! Hi Autumnfawn Lane readers! I'm Jenn from Delicious Ambiguity and I am so excited to be swapping blogs with Brandi today.

First let me tell you a bit about myself: I am a twenty-something Canadian who used to teach English as a Second Language in South Korea and Thailand. Nowadays I am a stay at home mom to a very busy and clever twenty-two month old boy, K, who keeps me on my toes! We are currently living in Sydney, Australia and trying with great difficulty (and very little success) to not take on the slang or talk like we have marbles in our mouths! When I'm not busy baking, crafting, creating, procrastinating from cleaning, wiping butts and toddler wrangling, I am a self-confessed blog-a-holic.

Here's some of the themes you will find on my site:

I share stories and photos about what's going on in our home or what's on my mind. I also feature new followers and commenters of my blog.

Link-up party for crafts, activities, educational resources and recipes for toddlers.

Just as it says- I will share random things that I am loving every week!

Parenting and domestic tips that I think are useful for every stay at home mom/ domestic diva. Some are written by me and some are submitted by my readers.

I feature printable freebies of various topics, awesome DIY projects, giveaways and other blogs that I enjoy.

I post questions submitted by my readers or myself about being a mom, raising and educating our children, keeping a home and keeping our sanity! Readers can contribute by submitting their own questions to be featured or answering the question in the comments section under each post.

A "Tot School" post with the montessori inspired activities I have made or have been doing with my son. Once a month I will post a specific theme (ie: Colours) link-up party on educational resources for early childhood children as well as Busy Bag Activities. It is my hope that we can create a one-stop-shop by theme for printable resources and creative ideas that are useful in educating our toddlers and preschoolers.

When I'm not blogging I like to craft. Here's some of my favorites:

Peek-A-Boo I Love You Memory Game

DIY Kids Stove

Toddler Busy Bag

Head And Shoulders Book

Sensory Bottles

New Job Survival Kit

I'd love it if you'd stop by Delicious Ambiguity sometime and day hi. If you like what you see you can also stalk find me on Feedburner, Twitter and Facebook. Thanks for having me Brandi. It's been a blast!

Summer's End

Pin It Now!

I made it -- through the first week of officially teaching 3 students. (Insert big, deep breath here.) I know there are other mommas teaching 1/2 dozen or more, but 3 for me was like, "Whew, I am WORN out!"

FIRST REAL WEEK OF SCHOOL

Lincoln - 8 1/2

Favorite subjects so far - Science and History. He loves learning about war. Right now we are learning about the Civil War, and he can't wait until WWII.

Shiloh - 5

My sweet girl is so excited about kindergarten. So eager to read. She's already made it through her first set of BOB Books.


Mullin - a few days shy of 11

I am so thankful he is doing just about everything on his own! Here, he is delving deep into the wonderful world of Middle Earth. I hope he loves the book - he's been playing with the characters and watching the movies since he was 5. :)

WFMW: Sibling Notes

Pin It Now! "Lincoln, something is wrong with the computer, " I heard my daughter say (in her sweetest voice) to her brother while I was upstairs.

"If you put my Lord of the Rings characters away, I'll fix it for you, " he bargained.

"OKAY!" she beamed.

And all was well. Miracle of miracles. :)

I don't know about you, but hearing a sibling conversation like this one is better than a big bag of peanut M&Ms! I usually have to come flying down the stairs all decked out in my black and white striped shirt, whistle hanging around my neck, and wisdom at the ready to be able to solve whatever controversy has sprung up amongst my 3. (Or 2 -- it's usually a battle between my boys.)

Anyway, here is where the "Works for me Wednesday" comes in. In the midst of daily chaos where oftentimes sibling rivalry abounds, I can forget how important it is to "spur my children on toward love and good deeds." I think notes from siblings is a simple way for brothers and sisters to show each other that they really are appreciated.

I was so touched by my son's willingness (without being asked) to help his sister! When he was out playing later, I mentioned to my daughter that maybe she could make a card expressing her thanks.

Shiloh thought that was a great idea! She had a spread of markers, stamps, paper etc. with which to design her card.

We secretly entered his room, and she placed the card by his pillow. I know my daughter felt good inside about making and giving this card to her brother.

Later, after my son had found the card, he kinda laughed and said fixing the computer was no big deal -- Shiloh had just clicked the wrong thing. He said he got the better deal b/c he didn't have to clean up his toys. Even though he saw it that way, it was a great teaching moment -- I tried to get him to realize that to Shiloh he had become the big brother to save the day!! Fixing the computer problem was huge to her -- it was something she couldn't do, so picking up his toys was a small price to pay. EVERYONE WON, and everyone was happy. Including me!!

Sibling Notes work for me ~ siblings getting along works for me! Siblings showing appreciation works for me!! How do your kids show their appreciation for one another?

*For more WFMW tips, visit We are THAT Family.

Pray for Daisy

Pin It Now! This little girl has gripped my heart. She's battling cancer ~ a Wilm's tumor. Please join me and my family in prayer for Daisy, her mom, dad, and brother.

I do not know Daisy personally, but Kate, my TOS Products Review Manager, sent this information to me. And I just can't stop thinking about her.

I watched this video and had a hard time keeping myself together -- listening to Daisy's dad speak about their heart wrenching trial and seeing pictures of a lively, beautiful girl turn to a weak, struggling life was just too much. One image of Daisy in the hospital, before she lost her thick, wavy hair, sort of took my breath away for a split second. It looked a lot like Shiloh. So, for a moment I pictured my own daughter, who probably isn't much younger than Daisy, lying there on that bed. I just can't imagine.

If you do watch that video, you will hear her dad declare that after 7 months Daisy is cancer free, but that is not the case. Her cancer is back, and the battle rages once again. Please consider praying.

WFMW: Favorite Fairy Activity

Pin It Now! For my daughter's 5th birthday, my husband and I gave her a Wee Enchanted Fairy Garden. We found ours at Borders, but you can also view this and other products at www.creativityforkids.com.

We LoOoOve this toy/activity! It's the gift that really keeps on giving . . . and growing!! So, for all the sweet, little girls in your life, I highly recommend it. Suggested age: 7-97 -- but my 5 year old did fine with a little help that I totally didn't mind giving!!

What you will find in the box: Fairy Garden dish, Flower fairy, Resin fairy house and 2 toadstools, Sparkly gems, Pixie dust, 2 tulle butterflies, Fabric flower bouquet, Glass opti-stones, Purple gravel, Wheat grass seed and bean mix, Potting soil mix, Paint and paintbrush, Instructions and ideas. Everything you need!

We started off by painting everything. That is all we did the first day. It gave my daughter something to look forward to the next day. :)

I helped her paint the dish, but she added special touches including her name.

Once everything was dry, we added potting soil and arranged decor. Don't forget to sprinkle magic pixie dust!! Lastly, we planted about 1/2 of the seeds. I filled a spray bottle with water, and every morning my daughter watered her garden.

She was so excited to see her first sprouts, and now after a little patience, her garden is coming along rather well!!

Now, we only have one thing left to do -- write a story!! Included in this garden set is a sheet of paper with a story prompt: Once upon a time there lived a beautiful fairy named . . . (Shiloh named her Rosa.)

My sweet girl has been dreaming up all kinds of stories, and now I need to help her write one down. This activity has afforded us much wonderful mother/daughter time!

The cost of the Wee Enchanted Fairy Garden is $24.99, but we had a 40% off coupon! This truly is a GREAT gift!!

**For more tips visit WE are THAT Family.