My daughter is obsessed with Hello Kitty and Friends Supercute Adventures. I saw this on Instagram, and I had to buy it.
It’s a ten-day countdown to Halloween, but my daughter could not wait, so we started earlier, and we are now just opening them up whenever.
Each box has a cute sticker (or page of stickers), and they are gorgeous. Also, each one is meant to be a color activity, but my daughter just wants the stickers 😆.
I have always loved Hello Kitty and Sanrio in general, so I’m enjoying the calendar as much as my daughter is.
I’m a bit late, but I want to share my Easter this year. It was extra special because I helped organize an egg hunt at the New York Junior League (NYJL), and I had family from California visit.
We had approx 70 kids participate in the egg hunt at the (NYJL). The kids decorated their egg-hunting bags, bunnies and chicks, and photo frames. It was a huge hit.
Here are pictures of my family enjoying the event.
Maxine creating her bagSavvy and MaxiEggs with Tita!❤️Family Pic
For Easter, I did most of the cooking. I wanted to cook ham but couldn’t find any, so chicken it is!
With my family from California.
This year, I went a little light with the Easter baskets. Less is more!
Maxi’s basketMy nephew’s basket. Went with a board game.Got a dot activity book for my niece.
For family activities, we did cookie decorating and classic egg coloring.
Nothing better than spending quality time with the family.
Earlier this month, I celebrated my friend Adrienne’s birthday in true Adrienne style with an immersive adventure. This time we got ourselves locked up in jail for the Shawshankd cocktail experience. The show is inspired by the movie and was fun and laid back. Our group had a blast because we all embraced the role-playing aspect of the night. The strong drinks were a bonus.
This past June, I participated in the St. Jude’s Baking Challenge. I thought it could be something I could do with my parents and my husband, but it just turned out to be a solo mission. I didn’t mind, I got to eat everything, and I shared with as many people as I could. Each week I had a different baking challenge. In week 1, I had to make cookies, and in week 2, it was pie. In week 3, the challenge was bread, and in week 4, I had to make a cake.
Week 1: Lemon cookies
I don’t know what I did wrong, but it was a little hard to get into little balls.Came out ok though!
Week 2: Apple pie
Before After
This was my first time making an apple pie. It wasn’t as complicated as I thought if would be.
Week 3: Banana Bread
Before After
I didn’t have any eggs, so I substituted them with olive oil, and it came out fine.
Week 4: Cake, but I switched it up and did strawberry cupcakes with chocolate frosting.
Yum!It was so good my husband and I ate the whole batch and did not share.
Overall, the challenges were fun but most importantly, I raised $120 for St. Jude’s!
My daughter Maxine celebrated her first birthday on December 19. She is growing up so fast. I really can’t believe it! My cousin’s girlfriend told me about a fun Chinese ceremony when a baby turns one. It’s called the zhua zhou ceremony, where symbolic objects are laid out in front of a baby to grab. Whatever the baby reaches for and plays with can indicate future employment prospects or interests.
We are a little late, but I thought it would be fun to do! I researched and found more information and potential objects to use via Gathered Gifts’ blog story.
Here is a list of some objects and meanings.
From Gathered Gifts
I substituted the following:
Abacus to Cash; Paint Brush to Hair Brush; Calculator to Whiteout; Chicken leg to Bamboo; Lego to Puzzle Piece; Microphone to Fan; Stethoscope to Thermometer; Sword to Shield
Picture of layout
Moment of truth. Maxine’s top three…
1. Shallot = Intelligence
2. Measuring tape = Designer/Architect
3. Shield = Law enforcement
Rounding out top 5…
4. Cell phone = Tech Entrepreneur
5. Celery = Industrious
Not bad! LOL. I can’t wait till she is older to see what she likes and is passionate about.
Last year, my Dad fractured his hip, and for five months, he stayed in a hospital, a long-term care facility, and then a rehab facility. This was all through COVID restrictions, and I couldn’t visit him. It was tough, and I know it took a toll on my Dad. I wish that there were more opportunities to connect.
GlamourGals is a nonprofit that provides programming for elderly residents. They currently help reach out to isolated seniors through their #mydearfriend program, where individuals can write notes to senior citizens in need of some care and comfort in various facilities. This is my second batch of letters within the year, and I enjoy it. These cards are geared towards Valentine’s Day and Galentine’s Day, but you can make cards year-round.
If you want to do some good on your own or with friends, consider making cards or having a card-making party! Here is where you can find out more information.
This month, I took part in The Sweet Frugal Life’s January Pantry Challenge, where I took an inventory of what I had in the pantry, fridge, and freezer to make dishes. I wasn’t super strict with it and only made a handful of meals, but I still consider it a success!
The main takeaway from my experience; I have a lot of soup in my pantry!
Here are some of my dishes.
shrimp and veggie stir fryred beans and rice take 1red beans and rice take 2dumplings eggs and spammiso ramenramenNew England clam chowdercream of mushroom chicken
The Casual Explorer 