It was Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester. There were no supermarkets. No big box stores. No large shopping malls. For large items she would take the bus in to Manchester. For everything else she shopped at the corner shops.

The shopkeepers knew her. She knew them. If she needed a new book, one of the shopkeepers would order it for her. If she wanted a particular cut of meat the storekeeper would save the cut for her. The shopkeepers saved chocolate bars for me — “the English-born America-residing granddaughter come to visit.” The shopkeepers needed my grandmother and she needed them. A win-win retail situation.

I was thrilled to learn that I could open my own corner shop…virtually. OpenSky is a store where I only sell products that I have touched, worked with, squeezed, and reviewed on my blog. That’s it. If I haven’t worked with the product how will I know if you will like it or not.

My selection is small but growing. Here’s what I am selling:

• Soft, safe building blocks…limitless possibilities for designing the perfect structure for little kids.
• Scrapbooking supplies for capturing your memories from Disney!
• Wall stickers in the shape of a train. Win!
• and more

Come check my OpenSky store out. Would love it if you could pass on my link to your friends.

My son and I had the trip of a lifetime to Orlando. I was an #OrlandoMom and proud of it! Our trip was quite animal focused one day. We began the day at Gatorland — a park that is all animals all the time with none of the bells and whistles of an amusement. Part zoo and part animal rescue center, Gatorland gave my son and I an education on gators, birds, and other swamp creatures.

After spending time wrestling alligators and holding gigantic snakes, we trekked over to Sea World. I promise a post about Gatorland will follow. In the meantime, here’s what we did at Sea World…

…the kids got to feed dolphins! I was shocked when our tour guide led us to Dolphin Cove. She mentioned something about seeing dolphins up close, but I never thought that my son and I would be close enough to touch a dolphins snout! My son — in the picture he is wearing a blue t-shirt with a pattern on the front  — fed dolphins small fish. He was so engrossed in the activity I know that he only stopped feeding the fish as he ran out of fish!

The experience of feeding dolphins was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for my son and I. I hope that some day I can bring my girls and husband. Every one should get a chance to hear and see a dolphin “up close and personal.”

After the Dolphin Cove encounter we were led to the Dolphin Nursery. The Dolphin Nursery is home to dolphin mothers and their newborn calves. I could have watched the moms and babies swim around for hours. The pool was so tranquil with just the odd splash as a calve collided with its mother. Sweet.

Our day was a wet one. It rained for hours. Thunder and lighting kept us corralled at the Penguin Encounters — home to more than 200 penguins and puffins. The kids listened intently to EVERYTHING our tour guide had to say. She was a wealth of knowledge. The moms were able to take a breather and dry off in the Penguin Encounters building. The kids didn’t mind being wet at all!

Next stop on our Sea World guided tour was the Stingray area. Prior to my visit to Sea World I would have said that you shouldn’t touch a stingray, but now I know that visitors can safely reach out a hand to stroke the tops of the stingrays. Over 200 stingrays, swim around the pool. It was fascinating to see how close to the edge some of the stingrays got. It seemed as though a stingray was always just out of my reach. Of course, perhaps the stingray sensed that my hand was stretched out in a tentative fashion!

One of the pluses about visiting Sea World on a wet day, is the variety of shows available. The shows are held in open air arenas, but if you plan your day to get to the show early you can snag a seat underneath the partial roof.

I was mesmerized by Blue Horizons. Blue Horizons is a theatrical experience that combines animals with actors. In many aquarium shows, the people performers are there to feed the dolphins or demonstrate a trick. In Blue Horizons, the actors are just as much as part of the show as the dolphins, birds, and whales. As the dolphins perform, actors swing on trapezes and dive off platforms in a synchronized pattern. The show is part dolphin show and part circus trapeze act.

I was not in a “let’s see another show” mode as we crossed the bridge to the Believe show. I know that I should have been more enthusiastic, but my son was wet and a little whiny and I was sorely regretting wearing long pants. Revived by popcorn for my son and a churro for me, with piping hot chocolate for both of us, my son and I were enthralled by the Believe show. The show features Sea World’s entire family of majestic killer whales performing awesome choreography to an original score by the Prague National Orchestra.

If you are interested in learning more about Sea World Orlando, go here www.SeaWorldOrlando.com for admission prices, hours of operation, and a comprehensive listing of rides and shows.

My trip to Orlando was paid for by the Orlando Convention and Visitor’s Bureau. My airfare, hotel, and ground transportation were paid for. The opinions expressed in this post are those of myself and my son.

How is it that I spent my teen years eating Nutella sandwiches after school, but missed World Nutella Day? I can still smell the chocolatey goodness that was Nutella. I had the freshman 15 BEFORE college due in large part to eating Nutella sandwiches and English chips and gravy EVERY day. When I write statements like this, suddenly my present-day eating habits seem positively healthy by comparison. Food consumption in the England of my childhood was a landmine of fat, lard, gravy, and fried foods…all washed down with cups of hot milky tea.

February 5, 2010, was World Nutella Day! I missed it! Nutella even has a twitter account…and I missed it…and I am on twitter all day. A serious social media fail on my part.

I’m not a nut person — I am a nut, though. I could deal with the nuts if the nuts were hidden by rich chocolate.

Chocolate + Nuts completely submerged in Nutella = Yum.

Why was I so hungry after school anyway? My school was a 1 and a 1/4 hours away from home. My journey was as follows:

• walk to train station from my house
• take train from Wilmslow railway station to center of Manchester getting off at Oxford Street railway station
• walk from the train station to a bus stop
• take a bus from center of Manchester to Moss Side
• walk from the bus stop to Loreto VIth Form College

My school was surrounded by a brick wall with broken glass embedded in the top of the brick wall. Nice! No intruders were entering my school.

Phew! I’m exhausted just writing about my school commute. My journey was 1 and 1/4 hours each way. No wonder I chowed down on a Nutella sandwich after school. I would spread that gooey, yummy spread on white bread before I watched afterschool TV.

Now, I must explain that afterschool TV in Britain was a wasteland. First of all there were 3 TV channels. I recall sitting on the edge of our coffee table waiting for Channel 4 to start broadcasting. It was a momentous event to get a fourth TV channel. Secondly the TV shows ranged from shows for preschoolers to shows for teens. I would have to sit through The Wombles in order to get to something I really wanted to watch, like Blue Peter.

Here’s a little taste of all that was kids’ TV in the late 70s/early 80s. The video features The Wombles, Bod, Bagpuss, and Trumpton.

So why am I all a quiver about missing World Nutella Day. Well, I purchased a jar of Nutella after seeing one at Weis Market. I usually walk right past, but couldn’t resist bringing it home to the kids. It was a hit. All of us had it for breakfast on wheat bread. At least it wasn’t on white bread!

The other reason that I found out about it was from 5 Minutes for Mom’s Ultimate Blog Party. I scooted to peruse DaenelT’s post on herself. What should I spy but her love for Nutella!! She mentioned a recipe for a Nutella Milk Shake from Bell’Alimento. What?! This can’t be true. Where has this awesomeness been hiding? Away from me. I might just make one for myself tonight!

In conclusion, I heart Ultimate Blog Party and 5 Minutes for Mom!

I would spend the money on my family. Perhaps a dinner out or a movie or something that we could all enjoy together. I should probably spend the 100 buckeroos on myself. Oh, I could get a massage or go on a short trip. Could I go on a trip for $100?? Maybe not, but I could go in to DC for the day and see a show or a concert. But, given my druthers I would prefer to spend the moolah on my family.

I love planning family trips. Here are a few of my favorites:

• I took my daughter to Lancaster, PA, for a volleyball tournament. Loved showing her my alma mater, Franklin & Marshall College. The tournament was fab. The hotel was a little dingy. http://www.trekaroo.com/people/musingsfromme

• I’m a DC resident…well, not a resident of DC, but I do live in driving distance of D.C. Wrote a post over at @trekaroo on touring DC with tweens and teens: http://www.trekaroo.com/list/must-see-attractions-in-dc-with-preteens-and-teens
• A few years ago we visited Williamsburg at Thanksgiving. I wanted to go at Christmastime but the hotels were too expensive. We had fun doing many kid-centered activities: http://www.trekaroo.com/people/musingsfromme?place_id=388

Kodak and JuiceBoxJungle sponsored me to write this fun post, about what I’d do with a surprise extra $100 if someone handed it to me next month.

In no particular order my top worrying moments:

• I worry about the kids when they are home AND I worry about the kids when they are away from home.
• I worry when the kids are eating a good meal AND I worry when the kids are picking at their food or snacking on junk food too much.
• I worry that I won’t spend enough time with the kids AND I worry that because I spend so much time with the kids my needs aren’t met.
• I worry that I don’t volunteer enough at the children’s schools AND I worry that I volunteer so much that I will need a school ID.
• I worry that my children are too over committed to sports and activities AND I worry that one or all of the children are not doing enough activities (I have one child who will be applying to college in a few years…)

Of course, over the years my worrying has paid off. I seem to have a sixth sense when my babies, toddlers, and preschoolers were on the verge of:

• dipping, dangling, or dropping something in to the toilet.
• pouring out shampoo in the bathtub or on the floor.
• sticking fingers in electrical sockets…scary!
• walking or crawling near a basement door or near the staircase.
• touching a hot oven.
• standing on the dishwasher door.
• opening and closing the fridge door.
• and many more.

Now don’t get me wrong, we have had our share of injuries, but I have saved more than one child from certain injury…by my constant worrying.

Kodak (who claims, with some clever ads on my sidebar, that we can at least partially knock off our economic worry with a printer) and Juice Box Jungle sponsored me to write this post, and they asked me to talk about the top and/or bottom 3 things I think/worry about as a mom. WHERE DO I START?

Oh and I discovered my voice in writing — amazingly gratifying for me. As a former editor, I would critique other’s writing, but never felt confident enough to take a professional stab at creative writing. That was what other people did, not me.

By writing about my life, myself, and my family on my blog and on the other sites I write for, I know I have something to say.  The comments I get are gratifying to read — “You like me, you really like me!” I now know that there are people out there who are interested in what I have to say. Oh, and they like the giveaways a little, too!

Let’s recap my year:

- Revived a forgotten blog so that I could get a couple issues of my chest. Online journalling is therapeutic. 

- Revelled in a quiet house during the school day after 13 years home with kids. Blogging, blogging, and more blogging, but not so much cleaning, cleaning, and cleaning. New Year’s Resolution, anyone?

- Discovered Tweetdeck…perhaps not a good idea for a person like myself already spending way too much time online, but Tweetdeck is love. I can set up my columns for friends, etc. Oh and did I mention, Tweetdeck disappeared on me for a few weeks. I was bereft, rudderless, and thrilled when I was able reinstall. Tweetdeck: Don’t quit me again!

- Discovered the joy of working for companies and people who are dedicated, innovative, helpful, and eager to construct a mutually rewarding relationship. Never worked with people like this all day every day in any other job.

- Dipped in to the online community of moms through twitter, twitter parties, and day-to-day ongoing relationships. While I find myself drawn to people who are local (hello! Janine, Amy, Jodi, Lindsay, Sandie, Mariana, and Joanne), I enjoy “talking” to people I will likely never meet or only meet at out-of-town blogging events – @a49erfangirl, Tara, Amy, Kim, Jennifer, and Toni.     

- Jetsetted to General Mills in Minneapolis, TypeAMom conference in Asheville, #bloggersbrunch in New York City, wiiFit Plus in Bethesda, and an infant nutrition press conference in D.C.

- Interviewed for TV not once, but twice! In the first interview, my teen was the star — she demonstrated what she loves about Yoursphere.com, a safe social network for kids and teens. In the second  interview, I weighed the pros and cons of a handheld cleaning device. Yes, cleaning and me in the same sentence! 

So, as the year draws to a close I can reflect on many events all good — not sure when I have ever said that about a job!  So many “best” parts of this job to choose from. My top events would be

…giving items to people who win my giveaways — love seeing excited e-mails of thanks

…helping bring recognition to a social network that is safe for kids, tweens, and teens to use and that my kids love – hello, Yoursphere.com I am talking to you!

…seizing the reins of something that I am not even sure you would call a job and hanging on for the ride of my life. Never in my life have I taken the sort of risks I am taking right now. It’s crazy. It’s amazing. It’s the life of a mommy blogger!

Which brings me to why I am writing this post. I want to thank my readers for sticking with me, entering my giveaways, reading my reviews, and supporting me during my first year of blogging.

I have the following packs of coupons for free items! Think of it as a blogging journey through my year.

Super easy giveaway. Leave me a comment letting me know what gift pack you want by number (Pack #1). Leave a comment for each pack if you want! 

Pack #1 — Pillsbury coupons and recipe cards 

• 2 coupons for FREE can Pillsbury Crescent Dinner Rolls.
• 2 coupons for FREE package of Pillsbury Refrigerated Pizza Crust.
• 2 coupons for FREE can of Pillsbury Grand Biscuits. 

Pack #2 — General Mills coupons

• 2 coupons for package of Wanchai Ferry Frozen Entree
• 2 coupons for one box of Wanchai Ferry OR Romano’s Macaroni Grill Dinner Kit

Pack #3 — The Village Company — www.TheVillageCompany.com — coupons 

• 2 coupons for $1 off ONE of the following products: Mr. Bubble Bath Products, Sesame Street Bath Products, Village Naturals Therapy, Village Naturals Foot Essentials, or Village Naturals Body Scrub.

Pack #4 — Clorox 2 coupons

• 2 coupons for ONE free 33 oz. Liquid Clorox 2 or ONE free 49.2 oz. Dry Clorox 2 Stain Fighter & Color Booster (coupons expire 12/31/09)

Pack #5 – Snikiddy coupons for ALL natural cheese puffs and cookie bites

• 3 coupons for $1 off any pack of Snikiddy products.

Pack #6 — Little Debbie coupon

• 1 coupon for a FREE box of Little Debbie cupcakes

I was given coupons by each of the companies listed to try their products. I was invited to visit General Mills as part of the MyBlogSpark program. Giveaway open to U.S. residents only. Giveaway ends December 9 at 11:59 p.m.

Once our oldest child was around 9 we started visiting D.C. sightseeing spots. There were times when are younger children were a little bored, but sometimes families have to choose activities that will appeal to all ages even if younger kids are only interested for a short period.

What’s a hit with our preteen, teen, and even our 6-year-old? Touring the monuments in Washington, D.C. No admission fees. Lots of history. Fresh air and exercise from walking outside. We did the following walking tour in one day!

Walking Tour of D.C. Monuments

Make sure preteen and teen are wearing comfy shoes. Bundle everyone up if cold. Pack water and snacks if hot.

- When you ascend the escalator at the Smithsonian station, you will see the Mall right away. Note: Driving in the D.C. is not recommended due to traffic, lack of parking, and high parking fees if you do find an parking space.

- Decide which way you will walk towards the White House or towards the Washington Monument.

- If going to White House for a tour, make sure you contact your Member of Congress up to six months in advance. I last visited the White House as a college student. A White House tour is on my list for my children. Last Easter I tried to get tickets to the White House Easter Egg Roll, but the demand was too high.

- The path to the monuments starts with the Washington Monument. As a long-time resident of D.C., I have never climbed to the top of this monument, but tours are available daily.

- Next stop Lincolm Memorial. On our last trip to the Lincoln Memorial my husband read the inscriptions a the top of the monument. As crowded as it was that day during Spring Break, my children stood rapt listening to their dad recite Lincoln’s words.

- A walk around the Tidal Basin is great for older kids or younger ones in strollers, but would be tough for the preschool set. My kids love walking around the Tidal Basin during cherry blossom time. The pathway around the Tidal Basin leads to the Jefferson Memorial, a magnificent, white structure. We spent close to an hour at the monument while one child photographed the inisde, one child read the inscriptions, and one child rested. After a drink and a snack we were ready for our next stop.

The kid, the preteen, and the teen at the Roosevelt Memorial

- Next stop…Roosevelt Memorial. I had forgotten that this memorial was even in D.C. The memorial is massive. It covers the Great Depression, Eleanor Roosevelt, the war, and many other evens in Franklin D. Roosevelt’s life.

- The War Memorials are somber and kids need to be respectful. I explained to my children that people view the memorial like a cemetery or a church. I pointed out a person rubbing the name on the wal, anoher person leaving flowers and a message, and yet another person doing a pencil rubbing of a loved one’s name.

Quiet voices t the war memorials. Talk to your children about the fact that the names on the wall are people who died in wars. My youngest had a few questions, but the preteen and teen walked somberly wihout asking many questions.

Vietnam Veterans Memorial…Korean War Memorial…World War II Memorial — all are well worth a visit.

After a well-deserved ice cream break, we even took a quick look at the National Museum of American History. From there it was back on the Metro headed home.

The Trekaroo KidsMobile is a blog carnival with a twist.  It’s designed to provide a unique opportunity for mom and dad bloggers to be featured on Trekaroo while receiving visitors to their own blog.

He doesn’t really understand what I do, but he supports me.

He doesn’t blink at the boxes coming in to our house.

He doesn’t ask why none of the boxes contain a paycheck.

He helps my #notechie self create business cards.

On his day off, he made breakfast, played Scrabble, drove one kid to a sleepover, bought a printer/fax, made dinner, and is now watching Transformers 2 with the other two.

Since September, he has managed the Musings from Me household while I attended a blogger overnighter — General Mills #tabletalk, the TypeAMom Conference, 6th Grade Outdoor Education Camp, and the #bloggersbrunch in New York City.

I’m very thankful for my husband!

What are you thankful for?

So glad I didn't have to get tie dye out of my 6th grader's laundry from Outdoor Education Camp!

We have a joke in the Musings from Me house that my MIL is so intent on keeping the kids clean that she puts the kids in the washing machine. Disclaimer: I only joke about this with my preteen and teen…don’t want to the kid to get any ideas!

It is not unheard of for my MIL to wash an outfit that a kid got dirty and have the outfit washed, dried, and possibly ironed before we leave after spending the afternoon at Grandma’s house. In our house my kids are lucky to have clean clothes on a daily basis!

It is not just the speed of the laundry process that is noteworthy…it’s the scent, too. All items smell of detergent, fabric softener, bleach, and dryer sheets. It’s a little overpowering, but still smells good and clean…odd I know! My MIL leaves no stone unturned in her laundry arsenal. 

The scent is not wholly unpleasant. It’s just a little overwhelming in an olfactory sort of way. There is no question as to whether a garment has been washed or not. The scent gives it away — you can smell the garment in the next room.

Speaking of scents, I can’t help but think of perfume… As a teen my family travelled to France regularly — we lived in England so it was easy to drive to Dover, drive on the the car ferry (the Chunnel had not been built yet), drive off the car ferry at Calais, and motor in to France. We visited Paris (a couple of times), La Rochelle (it rained every day for our July vacation), the Loire valley (chateaux and wine country) Le Sable d’Olonne, the south of France (Monaco/Monte Carlo, La Cadiere D’Azur, Menton), and quite a few places in between. One of the most memorable was a visit to Fragonard perfume factory in Grasse.

My parents were constantly stopping to tour vineyards and cognac factories. Oh and of course sampling the wines. Hey! I don’t recall a designated driver! My sister and I would enjoy the tours, but were never able to sample the wines or cognac. Lest you feel sorry for us — it was a good thing as I was 14 and my sister 12!

At the Fragonard perfume factory I saw how perfumes were made and then tested out many of the fragrances. Fragonard made the essence for perfumes such as Chanel, Miss Dior, and many others. For years I had a small bottle of Le Cinq, which was a version of Chanel No. 5 before Chanel added the secret ingredient. I bought my bottle of Le Cinq with my pocket money something I could not afford if I purchased the real Chanel.   

Why am I writing about the smell of our laundry? I saw this post and got inspired. If scents are your thing — Downy is hosting a contest, Design Your Scent. Enter their contest for a chance to help design one of the next Simple Pleasure scents. You could also win $100 Spa Finder Gift card in their weekly sweeps. Check it out here.

How can you NOT laugh at this photo?

Do you ever go back to your online photo albums and search for a photo? I searched and found this photo. I search in the October 2006 folder and found a true Halloween memory!

Let me tell you the back story on this beauty… The photo is from 2006. I was in a “my kids eat too much candy phase and I will not buy candy for Halloween.” Mean Moms of the World Unite! My kids were NOT happy when I told them I would hand out PlayDoh instead of candy. I purchased a huge bag of tiny Play Doh tubs to give out. Note: The tubs were a hit with young and old and were the topic of conversation for months.

Anyway back to the photo. While trick-or-treating my then 10-year-old, 8-year-old, and 3-year-old went to a house where they were given marshmallow eye balls. My husband said that the kids talked about the eye balls all the way home. 

Once home it was like a science experiment as Play Doh met eye ball to create weird eye prosthesis??? The kids had the best time placing the Play Doh on different parts of the body. My 8-year-old walked in to a wall while wearing both eye prosthesis. Ouch!