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Birmingham Mardi Gras Guide: Where to celebrate with the kids

Posted on by Angie

Not able to make it down to the Big Easy for Mardi Gras this year? Good news! Whether you’re craving the food, the King Cake, or the parades, there are several options for celebrating here in the Magic City, and bonus points… they’re kid friendly!

MOMS Club Mardi Gras Parade | February 25th, 4pm | Homewood Central Park
Watch out for flying beads and moon pies at the park this afternoon as kid “floats” of strollers and wagons take over the park on Fat Tuesday, or Mardi Gras. All are welcome — kids and moms are invited to bring musical instruments and decorate wagons and strollers ahead of time and be IN the parade. Or, feel free to show up and watch the parade and catch beads and Moon pies.

Mardi Gras Parade in Birmingham | February 25th, 6pm | Avondale
MCD will join the Merchants of Avondale to kickstart a Mardi Gras parade for Birmingham. A century ago, Birmingham celebrated with huge MG parades, let’s bring it back and build on it. Starting at Avondale Park, and ending with a Fat Tuesday party at Mom’s Basement!

Magic City Mardi Gras with Tragic City | February 25th, 4pm – 10pm | Avondale Brewery
Join us after the Mardi Gras Parade for crawfish, music and more! This event is free to attend for all ages.

Mardi Gras Brunch by Magic City Kitties | February 23rd, 11am – 3pm | Brennan’s Irish Pub
Join your friends with Magic City Kitties for music, fun, and a special brunch with all the flavors of the Carnival Season!  We will benefitting Sugarbelle Foundation with a silent auction that will be filled with great items for everyone.  There will be a door prize too and there is no admission fee, so you have nothing to loose!  All ages, bring a friend (or a feline) and we will make the Hurricanes!

Looking for a King Cake? Try one of these local spots, many require pre-order so make sure to give them a call!

Continental Bakery in English Village
Hero Doughnuts in Homewood (they’re even offering a King Cake Doughnut if you need something a little less)
Homewood Gourmet
Savages Bakery
Edgars Bakery
Publix Bakery

If you want to try your hand at making one at home, check out this easy recipe along with some tips on putting a Mardi Gras twist on your next playdate!

 

Easy DIY Valentine Ideas!

Posted on by Angie

If you’re looking to do something a little more than just the store bought Valentine Cards, but is still super simple, try one of these ideas you can do on the cheap and pretty quick!

Handmade Valentine’s Day Cards

Supplies needed:

  • plain white prepackaged cards and envelopes – available at craft stores
  • red or pink acrylic paint
  • a dish sponge

Grab a dish sponge and cut it into a heart shape – use a small cookie cutter as a pattern if needed.  (Just dip the cookie cutter in some paint or use a stamp pad and transfer the design to the sponge.

Dampen the sponge and wring it out so that it’s pliable but barely wet.  Alongside your child (at least for the first few), dip the sponge into the red, pink or white acrylic paint and then “stamp” the heart shape onto your white card.  Have your child write or draw on the inside – no matter what it reads it will say “love”


 

 

 

 

 

Bear Hugs

Supplies Needed:

  • Valentine M&M’s or red/white candy corn
  • chocolate/honey teddy grahams
  • cellophane bags
  • ribbon
  • tags or paper scraps to label.

For a really sweet Valentine’s Day treat – mix up some red and white M&M’s or red and white candy corn with chocolate teddy grahams.  Fill up a small cellophane bag with about 1/2 cup of the mixture.  Tie on some gorgeous red ribbon (or pink!) with an attached tag that reads: Bear Hugs from Jane (insert child’s name).  You can also use goldfish crackers instead of teddy grahams and call it “Fish Kisses”.

 

Lips and Mustaches: This might be one of my favorites! Use red craft foam for lips, black craft foam for the Mustache. Use a template or free hand lips and mustaches and cut them out. Put a small slit in the middle to slide a Tootsie Pop or Blow Pop in to.. Completely adorable fake lips and mustache.

Recipe: Best Valentine Sugar Cookies, Ever!

Posted on by Angie

If you’re looking for an amazing sugar cookie recipe, look no further! You can make these cookies as thick or as thin as you want- and if you want to smack some serious frosting on that thing, go for it! The great thing about these cookies is you can make them for any holiday, St. Patrick’s Day, Christmas….all of them!

If you don’t have holiday themed cookie cutters on hand, and want to save a little “dough”  just use the drinking end of a glass to cut some cookies. You can still decorate for the holiday of your choice with colored frosting and sprinkles!

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 1 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Salt

Directions:

  • Mix butter and sugar together in a medium sized bowl.
  • Add in the two eggs and the vanilla.
  • In a different bowl, mix together all of your dry ingredients.
  • Add the dry mixture to the egg mixture slowly until the dough forms.
  • Cover the dough in the bowl with cling wrap and let it sit in the fridge overnight. Some recipes will tell you that you can let it chill for at least 3 hours. I tried that with this recipe and they did NOT turn out as well. Because there is so much butter in this recipe the dough will be too soft if not chilled.
  • When you are ready to bake preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Flour your counter and dump the dough out of the bowl. Roll it out with a rolling pin (as thick or thin as you like) and start cookie cuttin’!
  • Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes. Keep and eye on them because you want them to barely be golden when you pull them out.
  • Enjoy the deliciousness!!!

World Read Aloud Day: 20 Read Aloud Books Your Family Will Love

Posted on by Angie

For 11 years, World Read Aloud Day has called attention to the importance of sharing stories by challenging participants to grab a book, find an audience, and read aloud! The global effort is now celebrated in over 173 countries and counting! Here are 20 books, perfect for reading aloud to the whole family!

The Paperboy
Pre-K – 3
In the still before dawn, while the rest of the world is sleeping, a boy and his dog leave the comfort of their warm bed to deliver newspapers. As the boy pedals his bike along a route he knows by heart, his dog runs by his side, both enjoying a world that, before sunrise, belongs only to them.

Big Dreams Collection
Pre-K – 3

Pig the Pug
K

Future Baby: Future Engineer
K

Baby Shark
K

The Wonky Donkey
Children will be in fits of laughter with this perfect read aloud tale of an endearing donkey. By the book’s final page, readers end up with a spunky, hanky panky, cranky, stinky, dinky, lanky, honky tonky, winky wonky donkey!
Pre-K –  K

The Dinky Donkey
K

Baby Faces: Splash!
K

Peppa Pig: Chinese New Year
K-3

It’s Spring!
Pre-K – K

I Am a Big Sister
Early Childhood – Pre-K

Lego City: Wrecking Valentine’s Day
Pre-K – 3

Baby Faces: Eat!
Early Childhood – Pre-K

Are You Ready to Play Outside
Pre-K – 3

Brown Bear, Brown Bear What do you see?
Pre-K – K

The Giving Tree
“Once there was a tree…and she loved a little boy.” So begins Shel Silverstein’s beloved story about a tree that literally gives her entire self to the person she loves
K-2

Down by the Cool of the Pool
Pre-K – K

Red Pepper, Yellow Squash: A Book of Colors
Early Childhood – Pre-K

The Snowy Day
Pre-K – 3

Perfect
Pre-K – K

Grab your favorite read aloud book, find a buddy, and start celebrating World Read Aloud Day!

 

Tips on Protecting Your Home This Winter

Posted on by Angie

As temperatures continue to drop and frost visits your home each morning, feeling more like January, it’s time to start thinking about protecting your home from the colder weather.

Most of you have probably heard and are familiar with the tips we hear about on the news- leaving the water dripping, opening the cabinet doors and if you can, wrap the pipes to insulate them… but do you know what you would do if a pipe in your home actually did burst? I sure wouldn’t know what to do or where to start, so we got some advice from our friends at Stanley Steemer, who offer 24/7 Emergency Water Removal.

Minimize the Damage

If possible, stop the water at its source. (Do you know where your main water valve is?)

Turn off the electricity and remove small electrical devices from the areas with excess water, if it is safe to do so.

Avoid walking on wet carpet.

Remove small furnishings from carpeted areas or place aluminum foil under furniture legs. This helps prevent permanent rust of furniture stains.

Hang draperies and pin up furniture skirts to avoid contact with wet floors.

Remove any breakables, moisture-sensitive and high value items, as well as items that may stain floor coverings. Check under the beds and other furnishings.

Plan for restoration crews to move furniture into dry areas.

Wash your hands after handling damaged items.

Avoid the possibility of electric shock. Do not use home vacuum or shop vacuum to remove the water.

Avoid the temptation to turn on fans or heating and air conditioning units as they may spread
contamination if the situation is sewage-related.

Ok, so you’ve managed to minimize the damage as much as you can on your own, now it’s time to call for back up. Proper extraction and drying techniques help minimize the possibility of secondary damage, potential microbial growth and reduces long term costs. Certification and accreditation are important when considering who to call. You’ll want to find a company who can be there regardless of time or day, these types of housing emergencies don’t happen when it’s convenient for you.

And remember, prevention is always the best, but keep these tips handy in case you need them! Stay Warm everyone!

Stanley Steemer of North Central Alabama services the greater Birmingham Metro Area and surrounding counties, spanning from Cullman to Clanton and from the Mississippi state line to the Georgia state line.

All Stanley Steemer water restoration specialists have Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC), the most widely recognized and accepted certification program in the industry. These individuals are highly trained and prepared for any emergency water removal task they encounter. In addition to certification, our technicians attend IICRC-accredited continuing education and training programs throughout the year. We provide the time and money to train our people, and we supply them with the best equipment available.
For more information on their 24/7 Emergency Water Resmoval visit their site

Stanley Steemer provides trained technicians and state-of-the-art equipment you can’t get anywhere else. When flooding occurs, why muddy the waters? Call Stanley Steemer.

Use Code: Mom30 for $30 off any service. (Minimum charges apply)

Children’s Consignment Sales in Birmingham, Spring 2020

Posted on by Angie

It’s time for Spring Consignment in Birmingham! Are you ready to shop?

Spring Consignment Sales in Birmingham

Alabaster:

Renewed Threads
Alabaster First United Methodist Church

Thursday, March 12th
Friday, March 13th
Saturday, March 14th
Times TBA
Sale Info

Gardendale:

Kingdom Kids Consignment
Gardendale Mt.Vernon United Methodist

Wednesday, February 19th  – 8am – 6pm
Thursday, February 20th – 8am – 7pm
Friday, February 21st – 8am – 5pm
Saturday, February 22nd – 8am – 12pm
Sale Info

Homewood:

Lil Lambs Consignment
Trinity United Methodist

Open to the Public:

Friday, January 31st– 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM

Saturday, February 1st– 9:00 AM – 12 Noon (many half of items)
Sale Info

Hoover:

Bargains on the Bluff
Bluff Park United Methodist

Open to the Public:

Friday, February 28th, 9am – 6pm
Saturday, February 29th, 9am – 2pm Discount Day
Sale Info 

Twice as Nice Sale
BAMOM – Birmingham Area Mothers of Multiples –
Metropolitan Church of God

Open to the Public:

Friday, February 28th 4:30 pm to 8:30pm
Half Price Saturday, February 29th, 8:30 – 12:30
Sale Info

Irondale:

Kids Market and Mom
Located in the old KMart  in the Eastwood Shopping Plaza.
7845 Crestwood Blvd (Hwy 78),
Irondale, AL

Receiving (by Appt)
Tuesday- Thursday, February 11th – 13th

Regular Receiving:
Friday and Saturday, February 14th and 15th

Public Sale:

Monday, March 2nd 9am – 8pm
Tuesday, March 3rd 9am – 8pm
Wednesday, March 4th 9am – 8pm
Thursday, March 5th 9am– 8pm
Half Price Day Friday, March 6th 9am– 8pm
Half Price Day Saturday, March 7th 8am – 4pm
Sale Info

Mountain Brook:

Sweet Repeats Children’s Consignment
Mountain Brook Community Church

Friday, February 21st  9am – 6pm
Saturday, February 22nd 9am – 12pm
*Saturday select items will be reduced to 1/2 price!!
Sale Info

Trussville:

Trussville Methodist Consignment Sale
Trussville Methodist Church

Friday, March 13th,  8:00 am – 7:00 pm
Saturday, March 14th , 8:00 am – 2:00 pm
Sale Info

Vestavia:

Whale of a Sale
Vestavia Hills United Methodist Church

Thursday, February 20th open to the public 5pm – 9pm
Friday, February 21st 9am – 2pm with many items marked 1/2 off
Sale Info

Consignment Sales Near Birmingham:

Cullman Wee Swap
Saint Bernard Preparatory School

Open to the Public:

Friday, April 10th 8am – 7pm
Saturday, April 11th 8am – noon (25% Discount Day)
Sale Info

** Please remember that all dates and times are subject to change without notice to BirminghamMommy. Please make sure to double check the sales website and/or Facebook pages for the most current and up to date information. If you have a sale you would like to see on our list, email us at contact@birminghammommy.com

Want to know how to make the most from the items you plan to sale, check out these tips and tricks!

Beaker Bash: Forecast Fun

Posted on by Angie

It’s almost time for the McWane Science Center’s Annual fundraiser, Beaker Bash!

Have you ever wondered how lightning works? Or why snowflakes never look alike? Find out the answers to questions like these and more at McWane Science Center’s biggest party of the year! You are invited to join us and your favorite meteorologists* as incredible, one-of-a-kind activities rain down all over McWane during this one night only event! Your family will be blown away at the amazing experiences and great food you’ll find as you explore our exhibit halls in a way you’ve never seen it before. So bring the kids, the grandparents, and your friends and make the memories of a lifetime at Beaker Bash 2020 – Forecast: Fun!

Tickets are available now!

To purchase, visit the McWane Website

Indoor Play in Birmingham

Posted on by Angie

We’re pretty lucky here in the DEEP south when it comes to avoiding long stretches of frigid temps, but we do get our share of cold snaps and that can leave us scrambling for some activities that will help the kiddos work those wiggles out, and not leave us popsicles in the process.

Here are some great places to go for fun when the playgrounds become the frozen tundra!

Your local library! As you know, your library can be a great resource for so many things, including regular storytimes. We have many of their schedules listed on our events calendar, make sure to check those out when you’re looking for some indoor fun.

Let them climb! Try Birmingham Boulders or the Kid Zone at Highpoint Climbing and Fitness for a little rock climbing fun.

Check out the Indoor Play Places – Urban Air, Surge Trampoline Park, Pump it up, Chuck E Cheese, Let’s Play and of course the McWane Science Center. The Science Center has lots to do year round, for all ages, including the IMAX, and BONUS! They have covered parking.

Birmingham Museum of Art – Bart the Art Bat has come up with tons of fun things for kids and adults to do together! Explore, discover, and create art with Bart the Art Bat, the Museum’s fun and funky mascot! For tips on visiting with kids, visit their site.

Watch Some Hockey! The Birmingham Bulls are back and you can find them playing at the Pelham Civic Complex through March. They have plenty of promotions running on certain nights throughout the season. For a full schedule visit their site.

Trussville Playstation – Roller skating, and arcade.

Sparetime in Trussville – Lasertag, bowling and arcade

Dave and Busters – largest Arcade in Birmingham

Do Some Art! Check out the new splatter room at Pinspiration Birmingham, this is something the kids and adults will love to do, AND bonus, you come home with a cool piece of art!

What are some of your favorite activities to keep the kids busy on these cold winter days?

Guitar: The Instrument that Rocked the World

Posted on by Angie

The McWane Science Center is Rockin’ with this new exhibit!!

Experience the science of sound and the cultural impact of the guitar by exploring more than 70 instruments and 100 historical artifacts-ranging from the rare and antique to the wildly popular and innovative. This special exhibition from The National GUITAR Museum features hands-on interactives for all ages, video performances, x-ray images of guitars’ inner workings and plenty of opportunities to strum and jam.

Visitors will be able to explore the history of the World’s most recognizable instrument and play the Guinness Record Breaking 43.5 foot long Guitar! Experience the science, sound history and cultural impact of the guitar through hands on interactives, models, touchscreens, videos, audio, photographs and real artifacts.

Explore sound and sound generation from the perspective of engineers and musicians. 10 Video displays
Interactive kiosks, computer displays, and sound stations. Listening and viewing environments for different musical genres Photos, posters, graphics, illustrations, and banners all included Educational materials for classroom and gallery activities ready for download.

This exhibit opens January 17th and will run through May 10th

MLK Day in Birmingham

Posted on by Angie

Honor and celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr with these events happening around Birmingham.

Martin Luther King Day Food Drive ad Half Price Admission at the Birmingham Zoo

In the spirit of service, the Birmingham Zoo will be hosting a Food Drive in partnership with the Community Food Bank of Central Alabama on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Monday, January 20.

Guests are encouraged to bring a non-perishable or canned food item* and will receive half-price admission* to the Zoo (Limit one ticket per guest. Cannot be combined with other coupons/offers).

Free Admission to Birmingham Civil Rights Institute

Join us as we honor the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. with our annual day of FREE ADMISSION. Monday January 20th, extended hours and programming for all ages including live performances, music, games, and giveaways. Experience our permanent galleries as never seen before with a unique 3D visual experience!

MLK Day In their Footsteps, Civil Rights Tour

Passengers will board a luxury tour bus and go to 6-8 communities in Birmingham that was pivotal in the Civil Rights Movement. The 4 hour interactive tour also includes lunch. Space is limited.
Click Here to purchase tickets

MLK Day of Service with United Way Hands On

For the past 19 years the citizens of Birmingham and the surrounding areas have come out by the thousands to give back to their community on MLK Jr. Day of Service. We’re proud and you should be too! You’ve refurbished schools, built homes for the needy, fed the homeless, cleaned up neighborhoods and socialized with seniors-the list is endless.

For more information or to sign up visit their website

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