Wizarding World Of Harry Potter, here we come.

Our plans for our surprise vacation are moving along swimmingly thus far.  We bought plane tickets and have a rental car reserved.  We're currently scanning deals for a place to stay in or around Orlando.  One of my awesome cousins (who I adore, but don't get to see nearly often enough) offered to let us stay with her for the second half of the trip.

Our flight leaves early in the morning, so we're limited in what we can do for our big reveal.  That means there won't be time for a big Harry Potter-themed scavenger hunt or anything of the sort.  

So I think what we'll do is pack the van the night before while the kids are sleeping.  Then, in the morning, get them up and tell them we need to go out.  I think I'll ask them to check the mailbox where they'll find envelopes addressed to the big three (the 2-year-old will get over the fact that she doesn't have one, I assure you).  

I spent an hour last night creating the text for the envelopes and finding playing around with fonts so that they're very similar to Hogwarts acceptance letters.  Our twin daughters will get letters explaining that this is in honor of them turning 9 and 3/4.  I even used graphics from The Graphics Fairy to design tickets to mimic the Hogwarts' Express ones (my favorite part is the bottom portion. The original ticket from the movie read "Journey subject to the rules and regulations of the Hogwarts Express Railway Corporation."  Ours says,  "Journey subject to the rules and regulations of your parents.")  

Our son will get a letter which explains his dearest wish is coming true.  

You see, the last time we got Chinese food, his fortune read, "Your dearest wish will come true."  He hung that up on the fridge and announced, "My dearest wish is to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter."  SWEET!  So his letter works with that.  He made it easy on us.  I was wracking my brain trying to figure out what his letter would say until he made that wish.  Thanks, kid.  

This is one of his sisters' letters (identifying information has been removed): 

The geek in me must note that I'm assuming McGonagall would still be headmistress by this point.  Jo Rowling has said she wouldn't be in 2017, but I'm going to assume McGonagall would be in 2012.  And yes, I realize that the deputy headmistress/master is usually the one responsible for sending the letters, but I don't know for certain who that would be (Flitwick?  Sprout? Sprout would make sense because we know Neville takes her position in 2017, but we just don't know for sure).  So I took some creative liberty with that portion of the letter.  Let's wait and see how long it takes my middle daughter to pick up on that and argue about it.

I am SO freaking excited about this trip.  We're going to have a blast.  We've never been able to do anything like this for the kids and I can't wait until we tell them.  I've almost slipped up a few times, so I need to be careful or I'll spoil the surprise.

This will be our first ever family vacation AND we'll be able to surprise our kids with something they want so badly.  I'm so freaking excited about this.

Cancer and loss

Cancer is taking a friend of mine.

Here I am making plans for a vacation, trying to decide if I want to venture out on the snowy roads, trying to find time to write, bundling kids up to play in the snow, going about my usual routine and a friend of mine is dying.

This is not, by far, my first experience losing someone to cancer.  I've lost grandparents, cousins, aunts, even my brother to cancer.  A number of my friends have lost their mothers to various forms recently.

Still, this shakes me to the core.  Losing others doesn't diminish the loss of this soul.  I really thought she'd beat it.  She and her family have the strength, resources, and the knowledge to do anything and everything possible and they have done just that.

I'm so heartbroken and so sorry for her and her family.

Please daven (pray) for her and her family.

Pinterest: Tips & Tricks

I'm addicted to Pinterest and have been for quite a while.  It's incredibly useful for collecting links and making them accessible from any computer plus it's a fantastic way to find new ideas.  Nearly all of my recent projects, crafts, and decor have been inspired by Pinterest.

There are a few tips and tricks that not everyone seems to know and I've wanted to compile them all for some time.  So here we go.

#1.  Pin the direct link.  I've seen this rule broken time and time again and it makes it impossible to find the project, image, or link pinned.  For the love of all that is holy, do NOT pin the entire freaking blog.

The easiest way to do this is to click the title of the post.  For instance, if you wanted to pin my Lumos canvas, you don't want to pin http://ourgoatrodeo.blogspot.com.  You also don't want to search "canvas" and then pin the search result page.  Nor do you want to click a photo and pin just that.  Click on the title and pin the direct link.  At the bottom of most blog post, you'll find the date and/or time or a link title, "Trackback."  Clicking any of those will bring you to the blog post.  Pin from there.


On Tumblr, it depends on the layout.  On some layouts, you can click the date/time on top of the post and that will take you to a direct link.  If that's not there,  look towards the bottom of that particular post.  You'll see "Notes."  That will take you to a direct link.  Click that and then pin from there.

For some reason, certain Tumblr accounts won't pin.  I don't know why this is, but I found a way around it.  Go to "Notes," and click one of the others who reblogged it.  Click their link and it will open up a new blog, but the same graphic post. Try pinning from there.  That usually works.

If you Google an image, please click the link to go to the website or directly to the image (it may be necessary to follow the steps already mentioned to get a direct link).  Please don't pin the Google Image results.  Click through to the link and pin there.

#2.  When repinning, please change the text to something suitable and accurate.  In some cases, you can leave what others have written.  For instance, if you repin a recipe and someone used the title of the recipe in the description, you go right ahead and keep that.  If, however, someone has a personal note on that photo, please don't just repin with the exact same personal note.

This can cause confusion for everyone.

One of the great features of Pinterest is that you have the ability to search a ton of creative ideas.  That search, though, relies on accurate descriptions.  So please keep that in mind when you pin.


#3.  If you highlight text within a link before you click "Pin it," that text is automatically entered in the description box.  That's an easy way to avoid problems with #2.

#4. Pinning existing links is more useful than uploading your own images.  Don't upload something unless it's not already available on the web.  User uploaded pins are a pest.  Sure, they're pretty, but they don't provide any additional information.  If you made it yourself and you don't have a blog, upload away.  If you downloaded the photo from another site, please search for it and pin the link.  Professor Google is your friend.  Finding the link (see #1) is always best.

You'll notice both images I used here were uploaded by users, so I haven't been able to accurately credit them (although I tried).

#5.  Ask for an invitation.  If you don't have a Pinterest account, don't suffer in silence.  When you request an account through pinterest.com, it can take quite a while before you're approved.  If a friend, who already has an account, sends you an invitation, though, you're in instantly.  An invitation is so much faster.  So post on FB asking if any of your friends can help.  Tweet about your burning desire to be part of the few, the proud, the pinning.  People WILL help you out.

#6. At least for the first few weeks that you have an account, activate your notifications so that you can see when someone repins one of your pins or follows your boards.  When you get the notification, click their name and check out their boards.  There's a good chance you'll find that they have a board you want to follow as well and/or that they've pinned something you'll want to repin.

I've found TONS of people and boards to follow this way.

It can get overwhelming once your boards become popular (you could get quite a few notifications every day), so you may want to stop then, but at least early on, it's very helpful.

#7.  If you find a pin you like, check out the "Also from" on the left side of the pin.  That shows other pins from the same domain.  If you like a recipe pinned from one blog, chances are you might like another one that shows up under the "Also from" tab.  This is another reason #1 is so important.  If you don't accurately pin a link, it may not show under the related domain.

If you want to immediately see what pins are pinnned from a specific site, you can see the results by going to http://pinterest.com/source/DOMAINNAMEHERE.com/

For instance, if you go here: http://pinterest.com/source/google.com/, you can see all the pins from people who didn't follow rule #1 and pinned google results rather than a direct link.

#8. Change your boards to suit you.  Don't be afraid to create more if you need to.  Don't just limit yourself to the default titles and number of boards.  Change them to suit your needs, wants, and sense of humor.

#9.  Every once in a while, check out everyone.  By default, Pinterest shows you those you follow.  There's a whole world of pins out there that you're missing.  Along the top, it gives the option of clicking "Everyone" and then use the drop-down menu to find something that interests you (DIY & Craft is my favorite).  Then have a look around.

#10.  Categorize your boards.  I realize it isn't always possible to find one category that fits the board, but go with one that seems to fit the best.  That makes #9 easier for everyone.

#11.  If you're inspired to make/do/cook something by a pin, give credit to the original creator/blog/website.  It only takes a second to add a link in your blog post.

#12.  You can add prices and tags to your pins.  $ before an amount will show a price in the corner of the image.  # before a word creates a text tag.  If someone is following you, you can tag them in your pin to make sure they see it.  Type @ and begin to type in their user name.  If they're following you, their name will auto fill.  Just be careful with that because not everyone gets notifications about their tags.

So realize that there's a chance they won't see it.  If you @ tagged your best friend when you pinned that horribly ugly hat because it was just perfect for her, but she never commented, don't get offended.  She may have missed the tagged entirely.  Then again, maybe she did see it and she thought you were out of your ever-loving mind for assuming she'd love that leopard print disaster.




This is what I have thus far.  Anyone else?  I reserve the right to come back and add more as I think of them or as others share them.



Image from the title courtesy of The Graphics Fairy

Calling all Potterheads: I need your help.

My goat rodeo this past Halloween.  

We're trying desperately to throw together a surprise trip to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter for this winter, when our twins will be 9 and 3/4.  

I'm putting out a call for help from my fellow Potterheads.  Assuming it all works out (knock on wood), how do we tell the girls?  I plan to not tell them until we're either on our way or the day before we leave.  How do we do that, though?

I've seen invitations for HP-themed parties delivered by balloons decorated to look like owls.  I could do something like that (although, rather than scrolls, I'd probably have them holding envelopes addressed to the girls and their specific room and beds, like Hogwarts' letters).   I could arrange to have those at the front door and ring the bell.  

What about in the van? We could get everything ready the night before (luggage packed and hidden in the back of the van), then just tell the kids we're going out, file into the van and find balloon owls in the girls' seats with letters addressed to them.  Maybe we'll splurge and buy cute stuffed owls.

I'd love some other ideas.  So, fellow HP-fans, what do you think?    

We've never taken a family vacation (deployments made that impossible), so we really want to make the most of this.

FWIW my girls each wrote essays to the Ellen show's call for adventure ideas asking for Harry-themed adventures.  One (Luna in the picture) asked Ellen to reunite her and the friends she had to leave behind when we moved at the WWOHP.  The other (Hermione in the picture) asked Ellen to send us to Kings Cross station when she and her sister turn 9 and 3/4 and have Jo Rowling meet us there so that my girls could present her with an award for "Being the best writer in the world and the whole universe."

We never heard back from Ellen, so we decided to take matters into our own hands and do what we could.

9:17 pm edit:  What about a scavenger hunt?  We could leave clues that lead them to Harry-related things and maybe eventually to the van where the letters will be waiting in their seats.

The picture is from Halloween.  You can read more about our costumes here.  

A Very Potter Xmas

A while back, I pinned these super cute Harry Potter ornaments.  Now, my 2-year-old will be the first to tell you, "Christmas is NOT our holiday," but I knew I'd have to make these for someone and I knew just the person.

Those are obviously loosely based on the Potter Puppet Pals (DUMBLEDORE!), so I took my inspiration from them.  I opted to leave Voldemort and Snape out (much to my kids' dismay.  Severus' absence meant they weren't able to recreate their favorite Puppet Pal song (not that they've ever needed anything extra to sing the song in the past--loudly and in public.  You can't even imagine the looks you get when your 2-year-old yells, "It's a pipe bomb. Yay," at Home Depot).  I, however, added Dumbledore to the mix.  He, however, lacks robes which can be removed (once again, much to the kids' dismay).

The ornament who lived

I free-handed everything and tried to work with what I had on hand.  The heads are from felt.  They're basic round shapes with ears on the sides.  The red hats are cut from the Xmas tree skirts I bought on clearance (I told you they'd come in useful, even for a Jew).  There was still more than enough left for the kids to use as a cape.  I painted all the faces with fabric paint.  Ron and Dumbledore's eyes are the exception.  Those are nail polish.  Ron and Hermione's hair is felt.  Harry's is black duct tape.

On my trip to the craft store, I forgot to grab white felt.  So I had to use white ribbon I had for hat trim and white foam I had on hand for Dumbledore's beard.  There wasn't much which is why it looks a bit thin.

The 9-year-old's work

My oldest and I stitched around the heads and hats.  They're stuffed with sliced up clear plastic packing material.  We have a TON from all the Chanukah gifts, so we put it to good use.  The hats that could be stitched on were.  Dumbledore's couldn't, so it's sewn in the corners and then we used craft glue.

The white puff balls on top of the hats are from a foam menorah kit.  See, even when it comes to making crafts for my Christian folks, I'm still a proud Yid.  They're held on with craft glue.

There are tied bits of yarn on the back for hanging.

I must say, I love Ron.  Now, I've got a thing for sidekicks to begin with and I've always adored book Ron and I think Rupert Grint is pretty damn adorable as well, but I really liked how the Ron ornament turned out.  I didn't want to part with him.  He's cute!

Probably should have paid more attention to the back.

Through this craft, I found my youngest daughter is a Harmony shipper. My 2-year-old broke my canon-loving heart when she insisted on making the Harry ornament kiss Hermione.  My middle insisted, "No, she loves Ron.  Let me go get the Ron ornament and she can kiss him."  The youngest pitched a fit and insisted that was not going to happen.  I put Harry out of her reach after that.  I like Harry too, but, damn she can go Romione or go home.  Wait, this IS home.  Well, that complicates the matter a bit, doesn't it

Romione FTW!

Chanukah with the Goat Rodeo

My big 2 in 2006

Tonight, at sundown, Chanukah begins.  No, it's not Chanukah just yet (much to my children's dismay and Facebook's confusion).

I'm going on the assumption that everyone knows what "The Festival of Lights" is all about.  I realize, based on my friends' experiences discussing Chanukah at their kids' schools, that this may not be an accurate assumption.  If you really have no idea about the story of Chanukah, you can always set up a consultation with Rabbi Google.

Luckily, if that's too much effort, the Maccabeats exist.





Chanukah, like nearly every other Jewish holiday, can be summed up as, "They tried to kill us.  We won.  Let's eat."  It is NOT a major holiday at all.  People seem to think it is since it occurs around the same time as a major Christian holiday, but it's actually a pretty minor holiday.  It is NOT the Jewish Christmas (which doesn't even make any sense).

We celebrate in the standard way--lighting the menorah (aka hanukkiah) every night at sundown for 8 nights.

Our family has quite an extensive collection of hanukkiot.

There's the large silver one we bought right after we got married (pictured above).

There's the electric one Bubbe gave us the year before.  It doesn't fulfill the mitzvah (Chanukah candles must burn to do that), though, so we put that one in the window and use it in conjunction with another one.

Anyone who has Jewish children in any sort of religious programming/schooling will tell you we quickly collect far more hand-made hanukkiot than we can use.  We have two clay ones the big girls made in their pre-school Sunday school program 7 years ago.  We had sand ones the big 3 made as part of their yeladim group, but the sand didn't hold up well after being stored in the attic in the Great Big Box o'Chanukah.  What was carefully crafted layers of pretty color sand became a giant mess the following year.  One year, they made some out of painted wood blocks.  Those fell apart before we were able to pack them away.  Last year, they made some out of a long piece of metal, dominoes and nuts (as in nuts and bolts, not food).  They went into the box as hanukkiot  They came out this year as a jumbled mess of parts.

To celebrate, we light the menorah (I usually light the silver one and the kids light the electric one.  The big girls take turns lighting theirs each night) each night, say blessings and sing songs.  Of course, Chanukah hasn't even started yet and I've been randomly bursting out into Sivivon* for more than a week now.

Here's a tidbit you may not have known: traditionally, women don't have to work while the Chanukah candles are burning.  Here's another tidbit: Our hanukkiah holds regular shabbat candles which are about 5x's as thick as the usual Chanukah candles.  ;-)

We eat traditional food cooked in oil to remind us of the story of the oil.  The most well-known ones include latkes (potato pancakes) and sufganiyot (jelly donuts).

In our house, the kids get one gift each night, more than one if there are enough.  Some people plan out exactly which gifts to give their kids on each night.  We usually just plan for the first and last.  Back in his youth, my husband got "useful" gifts on some nights (the family cats usually gave him socks or underwear).  That's not our thing, though.  Our pets aren't allowed anywhere near the lingerie department.  The kids usually get toys, books, electronics and/or clothes.  This year, among Journey Girl dolls, DS games, dresses, books, and all things Harry Potter, my middle daughter asked (and will receive) a bath mat.  I don't understand it, but she's fascinated by those plush ones, so we put it on her wish list and Mémé bought it for her.  I can't tell you how thrilled she will be.  I also can't tell you why in the world she asked for one in the first place.  Well, she IS my daughter.  I guess that should be sufficient to explain all.




*The lyrics are slightly different in Israel.  Nes Gadol Haya Sham (A great miracle happened there) becomes "Nes Gadol Haya Po," in Israel (A Great Miracle Happened Here).  Dreidels are also slightly different to reflect that change .  The letters correspond with each word: Nun (Nes), Gimmel (Gadol), Hey (Haya), Shin (Sha), but the Shin is replaced by Pay in Israel.  

We're Thankful for...

Over Thanksgiving lunch (we had to do lunch since my husband worked on Thanksgiving, as always), we talked to the kids about gratitude.  They told us they were thankful for each of our immediately family members and when they were done with us, the younger of our twins added, "And J.K. Rowling."  Her twin sister agreed and added, "and Harry Potter."  My son agreed.  When we asked the 2-year-old, she insisted she was not thankful for Jo Rowling.  She is, however, thankful for Dobby, Hedgwig and Luna, so that's Ms. Rowling by default.  

I suggested the kids let Jo Rowling know they're thankful for her, so they each made cards for her.  

G-d bless Pinterest!  We headed there and found some inspiration.  

This was E. (younger twin)'s card inspired by this.  She used magazine pictures for the feathers and the boxes from our stuffing and apple pie.  She used the inside of the apple pie box for the body and the background is a page from an extra phone book (I've since opted out of the phone book since Google exists).  

This one is courtesy of my son.  I can't find the inspiration now on Pinterest and I didn't think to save it at the time.  Sorry.  He used recycled magazines and sequins--lots and lots of sequins.  

Cover

Inside

This one's from my oldest.  This was her inspiration, but, in the end, opted to stamp dots and draw and color circles rather than use finger prints.  The outlined it all as well.  Then, she cut a circle from cardboard and added googly eyes.  

Front

Inside

Up at the top, you see one all of the kids made.  I saw this and thought it was perfect for our 4.  So we traced and cut out each one's hand prints and then they each decorated their own hand print.  They each signed the back of their hand print.  Well, the toddler scribbled and I printed her name.  Hey, that's what she meant, even if she doesn't know it yet.  

The toddler did NOT want to let hers go.  "Dat my hand," she screamed when I tried to put the card in the envelope.  I had to explain that we were sending it to Dobby and Hedwig.  Only then did she agree.  

I included a note of thanks to Ms. Rowling as well.  Just before I sent it, I added another quick note explaining that turkeys made from hand prints or cutouts are common for Thanksgiving.  Not being American, I could just imagine her receiving that first card and wondering what in the world was wrong with us.  

We Americans really are weird, aren't we?

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