March Break... there is excitement in the air

Today is the first official day of March Break for my kids. 

"WOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHooooooooooooo",  screamed the children.

OK, that is from me too! 

This is my week to sleep in. And I am loving it already. As I have mentioned more than a few times, I work late. I don't get home from work until about 1:15 a.m. When the kids are in school it means getting up early in the morning to get the kids up and out the door for school. I usually only get about four to five hours of sleep most nights, except during March Break and summer vacation. Those days I get to sleep in and it is glorious. Yes, glorious. My children are old enough now to be self sufficient in the morning. They have been taught well. They have been taught not to wake up Mom early. They get up in the morning and are allowed to go downstairs to watch a movie and have breakfast. They usually get at least one movie in before the need to get me up. That need usually comes in the form of a fight (or more like bickering).


Today was a lazy first day. The kids (and Mom) stayed in their PJ's until late in the afternoon. There has already been a long list of movies watched and many more still to come. 

Tomorrow, the kids are going to go to a local shop for a gardening workshop. They are very excited. There will also no doubt be a lot of hanging out with friends this week. 

Here are a few of my March Break survival tips....

1. Be Flexible
I try not to plan too much for the week. This is for two reasons; my sanity and the kid's sanity. I am still working this week so I don't want to have too much on my plate during the day. I also think that if we do too much then the kids burn out or melt down and then no one has fun. I like the kids to have a chance to unwind during March break.

2. Have Fun
This is so important. The whole point of planning activities for the kids is so that everyone has fun. It is a chance for the kids (and Mom) to let loose.

3. Get Active
OK, I know this is not exactly what we did today. Today was all about tips number one and two; having fun and being flexible! There is always so much to do this week that gets everyone outside. Today the weather where we live was beautiful. After spending much of the day on the couch, the kids did get outside to scooter, hang with friends and enjoy the sunshine. There is nothing like fresh air to keep everyone happy and healthy.


What are you and your kids doing this March Break? 

What are your March Break survival tips? I would love to hear them, please leave me a comment and share! 

March Break FUN with Disney on Ice

I have been fortunate that I have been able to share the Disney On Ice experience with my kids every year since they were very young. Actually, my youngest daughter went to her very first Disney On Ice show when she was just about eight months old. My kids look forward to the show every year! OK, I will admit that I look forward to it also.

The show is always great fun. It is truly an experience. We get to take the kids to Toronto for the day. They always love the show and seeing the Disney characters in real life!

This was a few years back at Disney On Ice.

This year the show looks like another great extravaganza! Disney On Ice presents Rockin' Ever After! It features an all star lineup of all our favourite Disney characters from Disney Pixar's BRAVE, Tangled, The Little Mermaid and Beauty and the Beast! Can't wait!


I love to take my girls to this show. Sometimes Dad comes along too! It is always a great day to spend as a family. We get to share an experience together that we can talk about and remember for months and years to come.

We are going to the show on Sunday morning! You should join us!  check out ticket information here or here  . There are nine performances from March 13 to March 17th!

This year there is something special! On Friday March 15 Disney On Ice Rockin' Ever After is holding its first ever Rockin' & Reading Book Drive in support of Children's Book Bank. It is a charity that provides free books and literacy support to children in low income Toronto neighbourhoods. Families are invited to drop by Rogers Centre, 1 Blue Jays Way at 2 p.m. with new children's book!

Book donors will have a chance to meet Disney's most avid reader, princess Belle from Beauty and the Beast.

                                                                                                                                  

WHEN:                 FRIDAY, MARCH 15/13

                           

1:30pm         Families line up for access to Rogers Centre outside Gate7  

                                                                

2 -2:20pm      Book drop Belle Meet & Greet

2:30pm -2:35pm  Production number from the show                                                                                                               

2:35pm-3:00pm   Book Drop continues   

Hope to see you at the show!!!!!!

I Am Looking Forward to March Break

It is true.

I am sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo looking forward to March Break.

Here is just two reasons why....

REASON #1

 REASON #2

But there is another reason.....

While I LOVE spending time with my girls - since I don't get to see them much on school days because I work nights -  there is another, very important reason that I am longing for March Break.

IT IS THIS!!!!!!!!!!!

REASON # 3

And NO I don't mean feet. I am talking about SLEEP, glorious sleep. It will be a week where I can actually sleep in every single day. You see if you don't know already I work nights. I don't get home until 1 a.m. and get up with my husband in the morning to get the kids off to school for 8:45 a.m.. To be honest it is a schedule that just sucks the life out of me so I need this week ahead to recharge my batteries.

Are you looking forward to March Break? Why... OR Why NOT?


I would love to hear from you

A Look Back at March Break

 March break is over and it is time to get back to routine. We struggled with getting ready for school this morning...and yesterday too.  It was hard for all of us, kids and parents. It is amazing how one week of March break can change the routine. We all got used to getting off to a slow start in the morning. I think it might take us all week to get back into a rhythm... or as much of one that we can in our house.

I have to say that I really enjoyed this year's March break. We stayed home and it was great. I loved having time to spend with my girls, even though some days they drove me crazy with the fighting and bickering. Ah sisterly love. I don't usually get a chance to spend much time with my girls during the week because I work evenings. We got a chance to really hang out, we went to the ROM and Disney on Ice Toy Story 3...just Mom and daughter time. So great and so needed.

I had planned on blogging about health and fitness this month specifically and in a round about way I think that is exactly what the focus of the month has been, and so much more. I feel better this month ..better than I have in a long time. There have been some changes at work that have taken a lot of stress off my shoulders and in turn that has allowed me to lighten up, in mind, spirit and body. I enjoy going to work, I am sleeping better ( if there is such a thing when you get home at 1:15 a.m and get up with kids to get them off to school in the morning ) and I think I am a much happier person. I am in a better mood all around and that makes me a better Mom, wife and friend I believe. I have been able to reconnect a bit more with my kids which helps my mind and more importantly my spirit. We have had more days this month to just hang out and watch movies, more days for me to unplug from technology ( like facebook, twitter, email ). It is really important to do that. I want my girls to know they are more important to me than spending time on the computer. I think we all forget sometimes, when we are rushing around, trying to make connections and network online, we need to nourish the real life relationships we have with family and friends. I hope my husband and I can take some time out of our busy schedules to reconnect a bit. We both work crazy schedules, he is days and I am nights. We both work freelance ( him more than me) and that means we are often working from home on the weekends. It can be a struggle to make time for ourselves, we find time to spend with the kids and as a family but that sometimes leaves little time for the couple. Oh well, I will consider that a work in progress...one thing at a time.


So while I didn't blog about going to the gym or going for hour long hikes or watching what I ate, I think ultimately I did more for my health this month by nourishing my mind and spirit. It is what is going to help me to get to the gym and get out and walk.

What do you do to nourish our mind and spirit? What kind of things do you do to reconnect with the people you love?