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Father's Day Gift Giving Guide

Posted on by Angie

Father’s Day will be here before you know it.  What do you get the man who has everything? We have a few ideas from Birmingham and beyond, as well as a deal exclusive to BirminghamMommy.com readers!

If you have a Dad that Rocks in your house, we have just the gift for this Father’s Day. Remember the thumbprint necklaces we love so much for moms? Well, we got together with Do It Yourself Crafts and came up with a version that we think dads all over Birmingham are going to love. Not only is this a super cool gift for Dad but DIYC is offering the keychain free with the purchase of the guitar pick to the first 20 readers that that go in and mention BirminghamMommy.com.

If you fancy yourself a Do It Yourself-er and you have a kid that likes to do crafts, check out this manly picture frame, made with washers and nuts. Incredibly easy, and super inexpensive, especially if you pilfer through Dads tool box! Here’s what you need:

  • Small wooden frame (any craft store for about a buck)
  • Black acrylic paint (or any color you want)
  • Washers and bolts
  • Permanent adhesive glue (recommended: GemTac jewel glue)
  • Photograph of the kiddos ( or you in a bikini, we aren’t here to judge)

  1. Remove glass from frame.
  2. Paint frame black and let dry.
  3. Use permanent adhesive glue to decorate outside of frame with nuts and washers. Let dry completely.
  4. Insert your photo and the glass into the frame

Done and Done, how easy is that?

If the Dad on your list is an adrenaline junkie, check out the Dale Jarret Racing Adventure at the Talledega Super Speedway. Got a golfer in the house, how about a gift card to the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trails? That’s a win/win, he’s happy to play golf, you are happy to have him out of the house for a day!

Need more ideas?  Check these out!

  • A gift certificate from Butler’s Executive Grooming Lounge.  This is like a spa for men.  It’s swanky – why not introduce your guy to the joy of pampering.  Then it will be an easier sell when you’re ready to head to the spa.
  • Tickets to a Braves game.  Ok, I’m going to admit it.  This is my standby Father’s Day gift.  My dad and husband can attest to receiving primo seats to a Braves game for many, many years. What can I say, it’s easy and a good time.
  • Head out to the great outdoors – either with him, or without.  Check out the many hunting, fishing and outdoor resorts located in Alabama.  This one looks amazing, if you’re into that sort of thing.
  • Zac Brown Band?  Kings of Leon?  Check out the many great shows heading to Birmingham soon – a night out is a great way to say thanks for being a rockin’ dad!
  • Need to think a little outside of the box?  How about a personalized gallon of Tabasco 😀
  • Ok, it’s not just moms who are App addicted.  Go grab an ipad for him.  Bonus – you get to play with it when he’s not looking!
  • You could get really creative and have “Dad Day” – start off with his favorite breakfast, served by his favorite munchkins.  Move on to his favorite activities all day.  Fill in the holes with picnic lunches, trips to the ice-cream shop – make the whole day revolve around him – when was the last time that happened?

52 New Things – Week 21

Posted on by Angie

Jamie –

My new thing was I took a hike. It wasn’t my first hike 🙂 but one day when we found ourselves bored, we hopped in the car and headed off to a hiking spot rather than vegged out in front of the tv like we would’ve done usually 😀

Trish –

My new thing this week was layers.  I have long hair that is all the same length.  It doesn’t change much.  Everyone tells me to get long layers and so I did it.  Not sure how I feel about it though…

Angie –

For my it was my first time to try Snapple.. Don’t judge me. I happen to be a fan of Celebrity Apprentice (you can judge me now) and their last assignment involved Snapple. I was thinking that it all looked tasty and would be yummy if  ice cold during this summer, so I bought some and it was meh. I don’t hate it, but don’t love it like I thought I would.. Maybe it was the flavor choice, so I think next time I’ll try something not diet and in a different flavor.

For more New Things or if you’d like to participate in 52 new things along with BirminghamMommy and many others – please join in by posting your new thing to your blog, facebook or on twitter (use #52newthings) – Also, you can head over to www.willblogforshoes.com to link up every Thursday!

Summer is here! How about a Road Trip? Tennessee Aquarium Here We Come

Posted on by Angie

If you are looking for a way to kick off your summer, how about a quick trip to the Tennessee Aquarium? This weekend is going to be packed full of fun as they celebrate 50 years of Dr. Suess’ One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, and World Oceans Day.

Inspired by the theme of diversity in One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish Aquarium events scheduled for the World Oceans Day party will teach children how everyday actions impact the ocean and about the importance of protecting the variety of life found within its depths. Children will have Seussational fun getting to know the ocean’s creatures with Seussian crafts, tattoos, dive shows and activities in both Aquarium buildings.

Here’s something you need to do before hitting the road, it will save you a litte cash when you get there!

Visit the Tennessee Aquarium’s website to download a Suess-Styles scavenger hunt activity sheet. present the sheet at the Aquarium ticketing center to receive half off child’s admission. Offer Valid on June 5, 2010 only. The first 3,000 children will receive a FREE  Dr. Seuss’s “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish” activity book and if you dress up as your favorite Dr. Seuss character you may receive a prize!.

Download your scavenger hunt activity sheet here

So, if you were looking for a fun weekend trip – we’ve given you a great start!

Drumroll please!

Posted on by Angie

Our winner for the Abernathy Photographics is…. Mirena!

Congratulations, I’ve already emailed you the details!

Don’t fret, lovely mamas, there’s always SOMETHING up our sleeve… stay tuned!

Hello Mr. Potato Head! Welcome to Birmingham!

Posted on by Angie

Mr. Potato Head arrives this week to McWane Center in Birmingham!  You won’t want to miss this neat exhibit following “The Adventures of MR. POTATO HEAD, a new interactive traveling exhibit that features the much-loved MR. POTATO HEAD character will lead young visitors and parents on a number of fun and educational adventures. From trips to outer space to jungle safaris and archeological digs, each activity will provide children with engaging learning experiences”

Also, they’re now offering Potato Parties! “Sundays only this summer, celebrate your special day @ McWane with a party featuring Mr. Potato Head! Meet Mr. Potato Head, enjoy a crafts project & you will even a Mr. Potato Head stuffed animal for the birthday child! Book your spot: RESERVATIONS: 205- 714 – 8414″

Exhibit Opens May 28th
at The McWane Science Center

Amanda's Attempt To Entertain Us This Month: Mommies with Labels

Posted on by Angie

by Amanda from HushAmanda.com

I’m not exactly a professional, but I’m no freshman either. I’ve clocked nearly 5 years of experience in this “I am mom” gig, so I feel capable enough to start tossing out classifications for all of us. Bring on the labels, right? The following is an attempt to throw us all under a bus, group us together and strip us down.

The Type A Mom:

Oh goodness. Her. The one with an art degree, a schedule and an attitude. She’s well-dressed and all of her clothes are ironed. Her children’s clothes are ironed too, and it’s May Day at school. On rainy days, the kids have matching goulashes, rain coats and hats. They are, of course, monogrammed.
She’s the mom who makes the schedule for all the parties, and the one that organizes the snack rotation. She calls, and emails, and assigns us all our “role” for the upcoming party, and we don’t deviate because frankly – it works. She might not be the friendliest person, but the parties go off without a hitch, so we don’t complain.
I can never be friends with this one.

The Homemade Cookies:

She’s sweet, well-kept, but never overdone. Her children are “normal”, yet flawed like the rest of them and rather nice to your children (thank goodness). She’s never late, but never early and the tone of her voice could put even the fussiest of us to sleep.

Always accept her birthday party invites – but be careful to forget your husband. Wouldn’t want him to know it’s possible to keep house like that all the while baking amazing pies.

I suggest you ask her for her best recipe. It’ll never fail you.

The High Strung And Annoying One:
She’s the one with 11,000 off-the-wall questions at the “meet the teacher” event just before the school year begins. The mom that just has to ask “well… what about peanuts?” when their child doesn’t even have a peanut allergy (and no one else in the class does either), but finds a way to start a 30-minute soliloquy on the subject.

“But my mother-in-law does have a peanut allergy and she’ll be picking up <Child’s Name> every other Wednesday and…” which inevitably leads to an outright ban on peanut butter crackers,  trail mix and anything that’s been “processed in a plant that also processes nuts”. Fabulous.
Then, one afternoon in the pick-up line, you catch her child with a yellow M&M bag. That bitch.

The Not-So-Great-But-Trying:

I may or may not be this person.

She’s late to a few parties, and the last one to remember the tuition check, but she’s never forgotten the snack bucket and takes directions from the Room Mom quite well. The homework may be ugly, but it’s done. It’s likely she’s bogged down with work, or her other young child(ren). Or maybe she was just never good at this whole “multi-task” thing in the first place.

The Super Mom:

Oh, the holy grail. She’s super sweet, and a great listener (actually, that’s the post that inspired my current blog name, just so you know). Her children are well-behaved and outgoing. Her house has the perfect yard for end-of-the-year parties and she has a wonderfully supportive husband and mother to lend a hand as well.

She seems to have the best recommendations for dentists, summer reading programs, and soccer camps. She has 3 kids, all boys, and you have no idea how she looks showered.

The Old Hand:

She’s doesn’t stress – it’s all no big deal. With several older children in “big school”, she diligently follows the manual because she knows it by heart. If you ever have a question, but can’t find the teacher, she can answer (probably even better than the teacher). You’ve won the lottery if this one IS your teacher.

She’s a wonderful source of wisdom for the rest of us – school related, child related, and otherwise.

Other Notables:

The Certifiably Crazy One

The Dorky Mom

The Power Suit

The Granola

About Amanda:

My name is Amanda and my last name is hardly pronounceable. I’m currently 25 and the mother of 2 half-breed monkey/gorilla hybrids wonderfully rowdy boys (under 5), blogging LIVE! from a city somewhere in Alabama…  I have the personality of a 6′6″ man trapped in a 4′10.5″ body. I’m loud, sometimes bitchy, occasionally moody, disorganized yet incredibly passionate and a total goofball. My friends just think I’m odd and that’s fine by me.

You can read more from Amanda over at hush, amanda and you can follow her on twitter @hushamanda

What's Your Mid-Year Financial Plan?

Posted on by Angie

With the middle of the year approaching, it’s probably a good time to review your “first of the year” financial goals.  Many of us start out the new year with certain goals in mind – whether it be contribute more to our retirement funds, starting (or beefing up) that college savings plan or  to simply spend less and save more.

There’s no better time to review your 2010 goals than half-way through, to make adjustments or give yourself a pat on the back for sticking to your plan.

Eric McClain CFP® of Wesban Financial Consultants, P.C. in Birmingham offers these tips in addressing your financial plans:

  1. Compile a Net Worth Statement. It doesn’t need to be a complicated form, just a sheet of paper with what you own, what you owe, and how it’s titled. Update this at least annually.
  2. Track, most of your spending. Don’t tell the other financial planners, but most people don’t need to know where every cent goes. If you routinely overspend, are not saving for retirement or other goals, then yes you probably need to track it all. Be sure to keep up with all tax deductible or potentially tax deductible items.
  3. Set goals. Goals, financial or otherwise, give us purpose and point us in a direction. Think about your financial goals for retirement: If you retire early, what will you do with your time? Or your estate: What values do you wish to impart on your children or perhaps your grandchildren?

McClain suggests busy parents check out Mint.com for its ease of use and detailed expense/income tracking. “I use it personally; while it takes some time to get it setup, it is a great way to track spending and net worth changes overtime.  You can also link up your loans and investment accounts and make manual entries for personal stuff. You get a weekly summary with all your account listed; you can set alerts for payments, etc. It’s very handy,” said McClain.

He does caution to not spend too much time worrying over each detail. “Let me also say, that while it’s important to track this information, be careful not to stress over it. Knowing your spending and debt situation is tool to help you save and make wise financial choices.”

How will you spend your financial attention for the remainder of 2010? There’s no better time to think about it than right now!

Happy Birthday To Us, BirminghamMommy.com Turns Two!

Posted on by Angie

BirminghamMommy.com turned 2 this month and we have you to thank. If you’ve been following us from the beginning you know that we have come a long way from the original format where we shared only events. Everything has grown! Our content, our readership, our followers and our sponsors, we couldn’t have done it without all of you!

Next Wednesday, June 2nd from 10am – 12pm we’ll be celebrating at Homewood park so please stop by and enjoy some birthday cake, some prizes and goodies. You can RSVP on our Facebook Page or here in the comments (not both please, we confuse easily) We hope you will stop by and say hi!

Great Prizes given by:

A Play Place
Target
Butterflies and Rainbows
McWane Science Center

Thanks again and please continue to spread the word and share us with your friends. If you aren’t already, make sure to follow us on twitter @birminghammommy and on Facebook.

We look forward to seeing you on Wednesday!

Easing Into the Post-Baby Workout

Posted on by Angie

So, you’ve had the baby – now what?  If you are like me, after a few weeks of taking it easy, you can’t wait to start moving around a bit more than you have been.  If you previously enjoyed regular exercise, you’re probably more than ready to jump back into your routine and get moving.

Mary Zarate, of Adventure Boot Camp in Birmingham, has given us some great tips for easing back into a workout regimen post-baby.  First things first, you need to get approval from your doctor. “Wait until you are cleared to exercise, especially after a c-section. Just because you feel normal on the outside (besides the extra weight), you have to remember the trauma is on the inside of your body and you may not be as aware of it!”

There are a few things to consider as you begin a post-baby workout.  Things may need a little help that you didn’t think about before.  One thing Zarate encourages is integrating kegels into your workout. “Most importantly, unless you want to pee on yourself the rest of your years, you MUST do kegels.  Do them while driving, standing in line at the grocery store or just anytime you think of it.  Do them while you are exercising as well!”

Losing that baby weight is similar to losing any weight that seems to just want to stick.  With hard work and the right combination of activity, you’ll get to your main goal of shedding the pounds and toning up.  Zarate recommends a combination of cardio work and strength training to achieve maximum results.

“In order to be fit and loose the baby weight, you have to have a combination of cardiovascular exercise combined with strength training.  The best way to do this is through interval training.  You do not have to kill or bore yourself running for 45 minutes!  It would be better to do intervals of running combined with strengthening exercises.  A few ways to do this would be set a distance ( 2 miles) and do run/walk combo.  You can run 1 mintue, walk 1 minute.  If this seems too challenging just shorten the intervals to 30 seconds running and 1 minute walking.  You can also set a time limit, for example do the run/walk combo for 20 minutes.  When finished with that do 3 to 5 rounds of all of these exercises, 10 to 20 repetitions depending on your fitness level.”

For strength-training, Zarate recommends starting with push-ups, squats, lunges, crunches or sit ups and lying back extensions.  “Planks are also great at developing your core!  Do 10 planks from your elbows at 8 seconds each, resting only 2-5 seconds in between each plank.”

Starting off at a slow pace will help you build momentum and get back to your fitness routine in no-time.  Just don’t forget to take it easy – the weight will come off, in my experience, it just takes a little longer.

If you’d like more information on Adventure Boot Camp, visit their site here

52 New Things – Week 20

Posted on by Angie

Week 20 and we’re still going strong!

Jamie –

This week was the end of an experiment. I am what you call a flexitarian.  I eat meat rarely (maybe once a month.  I eat fish more often).  Personally, I think it’s a stupid name for someone who can’t commit (j/k to all those flexitarians out there).

But this month, I committed to one month of eating vegetarian meals only.  I experimented with many new recipes that were filling and nutritious.  My family didn’t really have any complaints as they went on the journey with me.

I have eaten “flexitarian” for many years as it just seems to be what my body prefers, so I decided I would try to go all the way and see how it went.  It was a success.  However, I’m still not ready to commit to a complete vegetarian lifestyle because I just love bacon too much.

Trish –

My new thing is a cleaning calendar. I know, contain your excitement!  I keep losing track of the filth and then it overpowers me. So I’m treating it like I treat important things- I’m putting it on my schedule.

Angie –

We visited the Cincinnati zoo. It was incredible. We were in Lexington visiting my sister and decided to make the drive a little over an hour north. The girls had a blast, I can’t say enough about how nice the zoo was. They have tons of animals, animals that we don’t have here at our zoo so it was a great change of pace. the polar bears were putting on a show and kept the girls mesmerized for a long time. If you are ever up that way, stop in but be prepared to spend the day, the zoo is massive. Make sure to mention your zoo membership if you have one for Birmingham. We were able to save 50% on admission, it was just over $20 for me and my 3 girls.

For more New Things or if you’d like to participate in 52 new things along with BirminghamMommy and many others – please join in by posting your new thing to your blog, facebook or on twitter (use #52newthings) – Also, you can head over to www.willblogforshoes.com to link up every Thursday!

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