Tag Archives: Christmas Fun

On the Tenth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…A Chance to Search and Find a Little Christmas Joy

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On the tenth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…a chance to search and find a little Christmas joy. Since my sweet girl was hospitalized at the beginning of this week, she’s been listless, only wanting to occasionally drink water, had a fever around the clock and just looks so pitiful. The team of doctors have been great with devising an aggressive course of action to get Quinn on the road to recovery as she not only battles ear infections but bacterial pneumonia and adenovirus. Yesterday, after more tests, they decided to change her antibiotic a third time to something even stronger.

Immediately after the doctors left Quinnie’s hospital room with the new plan, she perked up. As her dad sat next to her on the bed offering her comfort, Quinn asked for a snack, was talking more and asking questions. She seemed to have more energy and even smiled. It feels like ages since I’ve seen her smile. Though she reverted back to feeling listless with that pitiful look of exhaustion and discomfort on her face within ten or fifteen minutes, that brief moment of seeing the Quinn I know gave me hope.

I went home briefly to get washed up and decided to bring back a Christmas Fun Search and Find book in hopes of seeing her perk up again because my five year old has always loved search and finds. When I showed her the book, and asked if she’d like to do one together, she agreed. Even with her feeling ill, she was still keen on identifying and locating the Christmas items in the book. After the first one, I asked if she’d like to do another to which she responded in her faint voice, “Maybe later, Mommy.”

While it certainly hasn’t been fun, I’m so glad the doctors have been deliberate in their efforts to search and find out what is going on with my little girl so that they may treat her properly and get her on the road to recovery as we hope for a little Christmas Joy.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Ninth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…A New Perspective on Elf on the Shelf

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D40ED47C-7E2B-4455-90BA-ACA1DAEB8D59On the ninth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…a new perspective on elf on the shelf. She named her special elf from the North Pole, Lola, and since December 1st, Quinn has looked forward to spotting Lola’s new location. She’s been tucked in a Christmas stocking, hanging out with polar bears, and swinging from light fixtures. The last location was near the living room sofa so she could keep a watch over Quinn. It’s where my poor little girl wanted to rest as we tried to nurse her back to health with a high fever, cough and listlessness before taking her to the emergency room.

Since Quinn was hospitalized on Tuesday, Lola the elf remained at our home. My five year old has been so out of it that she hasn’t even noticed Lola’s absence. But we are so blessed to have many other “elves” watching over Quinn and praying for her speedy recovery. The positive energy and well-wishes from family and friends keeps me hopeful. Elves are known for their small stature, and while people may think posting a comment on social media or sending a text is just a small gesture, it really means the world to me, and I believe our prayers will be answered in a big way.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Eighth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…the Realization that “Ugly” is in the Eyes of the Beholder

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On the eighth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…the realization that “ugly” is in the eyes of the beholder. Yesterday, I posted about how the Grinch is trying to steal our Christmas with the hospitalization of my little girl. These last few days have been trying, but as I looked through some of the pictures we’ve taken during this holiday season, I was drawn towards the ones of us wearing our “ugly” Christmas sweaters. Though our sweaters are supposedly “ugly,” are they really? We both wore them smiling proudly, even her best friend Grover. They put us in the Christmas spirit and allow us to be festive.

As I look at my daughter while she battles bacterial pneumonia enduring the ugliness of fevers near reaching 105, uncontrollable coughing and lethargy, it upsets me greatly. But I know this ugly illness will make us all stronger and appreciate one another even more. I look to my Quinnie being on the road to recovery so that we can put back on our “ugly” Christmas sweaters and have some great fun while creating memorable moments.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Sixth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Nostalgia Taking a Photo with 🎅

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36A47DAD-54A8-4C33-89A3-7900A352743BOn the sixth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…nostalgia taking a photo with Santa. Even though my daughter and I were able to see Santa on the Paradise train ride and even at Sesame Place, our main location for taking the annual picture with Santa since she was a baby has been Willow Grove Mall. I love the tradition because I get to see her face light up with excitement. She even gets a little nervous as I did as a child and will ask me if I can join her when it’s her turn to meet Santa. Little does she know, I look forward to seeing him and am glad when she wants me to join her. This year, Mrs. Claus joined him and was such a special treat.

When we started decorating for Christmas and put out photos over the years with Santa, Quinn, herself, reminisced. “This is when I was a baby meeting Santa and Mrs. Claus,” she remarked. I’ve always had a soft spot for Santa, and not just because he brought gifts but because he cared about me and was always so jolly.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Fifth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…The Importance of Spending Time With Family

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On the fifth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…the importance of spending time with family. For the past few days, my five year old hasn’t been feeling well. Her cough and runny nose has been accompanied by a fever. It all started on last Thursday when she was sent home from school due to a fever and becoming ill during lunch. On Saturday, she had no fever and was starting to feel better, so we kept with our scheduled plan and had a blast at Sesame Place. Unfortunately, late on Sunday, her fever came back with a punch, and over night it spiked to 104.2, so my husband and I decided to take her to the emergency room. (Where we are right now)

While this is an unsettling experience for us all, and it is upsetting to see my little girl so listless and ill, she still constantly reminds me of the importance of family togetherness, especially during this time of the year. For almost ten years, I’ve thrown a Christmas party and invited my extended family and some of my dear friends.

Since Quinn was born, it’s become even more special. She’s always excited to spend time with family and will ask me who’s coming to the party. In life, it seems like everybody is so busy. There seems to be a limited amount of time to simply enjoy life. I am grateful to have a daughter like Quinn. She helps me to not get so caught up in the hustle and bustle of life and to just appreciate my family. I truly am grateful for the experiences I have with them and love them all dearly.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Fourth Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Sunny Days Chasing the Clouds Away at Sesame Place

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On the fourth day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…sunny days chasing the clouds away at Sesame Place. Quinn just loves Sesame Place and all of the characters, so for the past few years, we’ve looked forward to seeing Elmo, Abby, Cookie Monster, Ernie and Bert, and all of the other characters to enjoy “A Very Furry Christmas Celebration.”

We went yesterday, Saturday, December 15th. While the temperature was nearly twenty degrees warmer than last year, which was great, we still weren’t too sure about how much outdoor fun we’d have since the forecast called for all day rain. So we started our day by enjoying the Dine with Elmo and Friends buffet for an hour. We were able to enjoy our food and tasty treats and meet and take pictures with many of the Sesame Street characters as well as Santa.

After lunch, it was misty yet not raining, so we quickly headed over to get on Oscar’s Wacky Taxi rollercoaster which was just erected in April 2018. It’s a real scream! Afterwards, we got on Super Grover’s Vapor Trail Rollercoaster and then checked out, “A Sesame Street Christmas” show where Abby Cadaby learned all about Christmas. It is such a lovely show that kids and adults can enjoy and contains most of the characters.

Apparently, the rain forecast meant that the crowd was much smaller, which was fantastic! We had no problem doing all of the activities Quinn wanted to do. We got on a few more rides and played some games too. Then we caught another show, “Elmo’s Christmas Wish.” I have a feeling that I enjoy the shows more than my five year old does! There was even an outdoor section with Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and Clarice that we did not get to see last year since it was so cold. It was nicely set up and looked just like the land of misfits.

We ended our day at Sesame Place with the special Christmas Parade. My husband jokingly said, “Isn’t this the 100th time you’ve seen the parade?” No matter how many times we’ve been to Sesame Place or seen the parade, it is always the icing on the cake  not just Quinn but for me too. There’s such a positive energy and fun-filled happiness when we go to Sesame Place. Even if it was a dreary day,  the fun and memorable moments made it a sunny day to add to our Christmas memories.

All the best,

Tanya

On the Third Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Family Fun Time on a Christmas Train Ride

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On the third day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…family fun time on a Christmas train ride. Last year, my daughter, husband, mother and I had such a fun time on the train ride with Santa at Strasburg Railroad, so it was on the top of our list for fun activities this year. On December 1st, we traveled to Ronks, PA, a little over an hour commute from our home, to board Santa’s Paradise Express to Paradise, PA and back. There was a bit of a chill in the air, so we were bundled up and ready to enjoy ourselves.

Before boarding the train, we were able to have a tasty lunch at the restaurant located at the station. Then we headed down to the boarding platform. “Here it comes, Mommy!” My five year old shouted as the train came down the track for us to board. I quickly snapped a picture of my family, and we eagerly hopped aboard and claimed our plush seats. The ride is 45 minutes, and within that time we met Santa, who gave Quinn a special wooden Strasburg Railroad ornament for our tree, enjoyed people caroling and playing instruments and just taking in the sights along the way.

The fun didn’t stop after our train ride. We were able to do some of the fun activities, such as meeting Mrs. Claus, writing a letter to Santa, and doing some of the riding activities. Luckily, we were able to squeeze in everything because it started to rain in the later part of the afternoon.

“I can’t wait to go on the train ride with Santa again next year,” Quinn told me. Actually, I can’t wait either!

All the best,

Tanya

On the Second Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Her Inspired Theme for Our Christmas Tree

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On the second day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…her inspired theme for our Christmas tree. A major part of getting a Christmas tree is decorating it. It’s an opportunity to express creativity, to create a theme and to simply display your favorite colors or items. For the past three years, we’ve had a rainbow theme tree, but this year my five year old wanted to do something different.

Back in October, she said, “Mommy, how about a tree with our favorite colors? Pink and purple for me and blue for you?” I loved this idea but knew it was going to require us to go shopping for some new ornaments to really make our tree theme perfect. This was just fine with me because shopping for ornaments together is all a part of the fun process.

We started our search at Michaels in early November checking out their beautiful ornaments at 50 percent off, of course. Quinn then said, “How about a treat tree theme with different candies and cupcakes?” While I loved that idea too, I knew it would not only require a more in-depth search but more money too. So we put our heads together and came up with a theme: a pink, purple and turquoise tree with a few treats here and there to make our tree extra sweet.

Decorating our tree was a real treat! We had our Jackson Five Christmas music playing to set the mood, a step stool so that Quinn could easily reach some of the higher branches, and a strategy to make sure it was a nice balance or pink, purple and turquoise ornaments. I then made sure Quinn was still okay with naming our tree Gerald since it would be pink, purple and turquoise. She then reassured me that boys can wear pink and purple if they want and that it’s not just for girls. My response was, “No problem!”

The decorating process took a few hours. There’s beautiful ballerinas in turquoise and purple, a pink flamingo, pink elephants, a purple hot air balloon, purple, pink and turquoise birds and butterflies, a purple poodle, pink frosted donuts, pink and purple popsicles, cupcakes a roller skate, a unicorn, of course, and even Ralphie from the Christmas Story in his pink bunny suit.

We finished off our tree, Gerald, with purple, pink and turquoise tulle is wrapped around it from top to bottom with GlowBalls beautiful lights set in pastel hues to cascade off of the ornaments. I’m so happy Quinn asked about doing a new theme this year and am happy with the finished product.

Not only is the tree beautiful, but the experience of decorating it with my little girl is too.

All the best,

Tanya

On the First Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…Fun Picking Out Our Christmas Tree

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On the first Day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…fun picking out our Christmas tree. On Black Friday, when some were out searching for deals, my family was keeping with tradition searching for the perfect Christmas tree. It was more colder than 2017, 2016, 2015 and even 2014 when we wore light jackets or even jean jackets, but that didn’t stop us from seeking out a tall, wide, fluffy tree who would become a part of our family for the next month and a half or so.

Actually, we spotted “Gerald” shortly after arrived at the tree shop and knew he was the one, but we still milled around for another ten to fifteen minutes just in case there was a better one hiding amongst the others. Then, in the distance, we saw a family looking at “our” tree, so Quinn shouted, “Hurry! They’re going to get our tree!” We hustled back over to claim him, and both Quinn and I smiled knowing that the tree would be ours.

One of our traditions is to name our tree as a part of our family. We’ve had BG, short for Big Green, BGJ, short for Big Green junior and BG3, short for Big Green the third. Last year, Quinn picked a very interesting name: Heavenly Brownie! This year, she picked Gerald. When I asked her what made her choose that name, she said, “I just like it!” Who knows what we’ll call our tree next year, but I’m definitely looking forward to the experience.

Here’s to fond memories with our 2018 Christmas tree: Gerald!

All the best,

Tanya

On the Actual Day of Christmas, My Daughter Gave to Me…So Much Happiness

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On the actual day of Christmas, my daughter gave to me…so much happiness. She woke up anxious, ready and excited to head downstairs to see what Santa and mommy and daddy got her for Christmas, and it wasn’t simply the smile on her face or joy in her eyes that made me happy, but it was the gratitude in her voice as she asked if her daddy and I could help her write a letter to Santa to thank him for the gifts he gave her. It was her eagerness to leave our home earlier to spend time with her Nana and see her Aunt, Uncle and cousins.

The importance of displaying gratitude and appreciating and spending time with family are so important to me, and it pleases me that they are important to my four year old as well. Here’s to a merry Christmas with my daughter and family!

All the best,

Tanya