I’m sitting in a hotel room. No noise. The TV remote control all to myself. A nice dinner in the not too.distant future. But I miss my kids.

In my previous life, I never traveled for.business. I was the left holding the fort. These days I’m still not a jet setter. From time to.time, I travel to a conference or a blogging event.

One of the plusses of traveling is the hotel room. When I’m with my family, time spent in a hotel.room.is.less.than calm. 5 people. 1 room. Equals mayhem.

Tonight I will enjoy the silence. Split time between one or other of the double beds. I’ll listen to the sound of nothing. Just the sound of my own breathing.

Tomorrow I’ll be back in my own bed, making breakfast and lunch, wrangling kids, and more. For today, I’ll enjoy the silence.

I thought I was so CLEVER. The large box arrived last week. I stashed the box in the corner of the kitchen. With the family calendar and bulletin board up on the wall, I knew that no one would notice a box on the floor. Add an overflowing magazine rack and small computer stand to mix. Can you picture how a box would be camouflaged in the busy information central corner of my kitchen.

Let’s blame chores, shall we? Months ago I set about establishing a chore routine for the Kid, the Preteen, and the Teen. Dishes, Swiffering the floor, and recycling. After weeks of resistance, followed by weeks of half-hearted efforts, and finally some good ole gumption and effort, I finally have a regular chore schedule.

So, you can imagine the utter joy and glee on the face of my son as he dislodged the box I had been hiding after bashing said box with the Swiffer. The poor box didn’t know what was happening. All I heard, was “Clang!” as the Swiffer clattered to the floor, and “Pounce!” as my son well…pounced on the GeoMag sets in the box. He rushed in to show me his treasures.

I had planned on bringing out the GeoMags on a weekend or a quiet evening rather than a busy Monday after activities and dinner and homework. Quite honestly, I wanted to shuffle all kids off to bed toute suite. But, do you know what happened? My son played so well with those GeoMag set. He created what he said was an “ancient house” from the My son forgot about the scuffle we had had over homework. He moved past that he left his glasses case at school. Playing with the GeoMag set was just what he needed to wind down from a hard day at school.

I only knew Susan from her blog. By that I mean I didn’t meet her before I started writing my own blog. But, Susan was among the first group of local bloggers that I met.

We have a vibrant and very supportive group here in D.C. Second to none. But, to say that Susan was “just a blogger” would be missing the point. Susan was much more than that…she was a mom, scientist, researcher, public speaker, nurturer of budding female scientists, and a cancer warrior.

I met Susan one spring morning at a local Italian ice cafe in Rockville. A group of DC bloggers had tweeted about a tweetup meeting. Not one to miss a gathering, I set off armed with Mapquest and GPS to put faces to the names of people I had only “spoken to” on Twitter and Facebook.

After several missed turnings and u-turns, I was late…as usual. Disheveled and irritated with myself for not checking the map ahead of time, I approached a large group already seated at a large outdoor table. I was greeted warmly by one and all.

While I didn’t talk to Susan (@WhyMommy) that day, I had the pleasure of chatting to her at many gatherings through Momzshare, the DC Moms, and conferences. What struck me about Susan was her ability to engage with whomever she was speaking. Susan hung on to your every word even if what you were saying was quite mundane and ordinary. I’m sure I rambled on about something or another (my kids, my oft-forgotten blog, my taxi-driving life) while talking to Susan, but she always listened intently. And that is how I will always remember Susan…for her generosity.

It’s a cliche, but Susan did light up a room when she entered it. I will never forget what Susan told the audience on receiving the 2011 Bloganthropy Award. She said that she was accepting the award not for herself, but on behalf of her cancer warrior friends, some of whom had lost their cancer battles.

You see Susan was a cancer survivor. It was through Susan that I first learned in-depth about inflammatory breast cancer. I hate cancer and I hate that we lost one of the good ones when Susan passed away on February 6, 2012.

If you want to honor Susan, please consider supporting an organization she felt strongly about…the Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Or in the words of Susan’s husband (WhyDaddy) “make a difference somewhere, anywhere, to anyone.”

By the way, if you are wondering about the photo. A group of us painted our nails purple in support of Susan in early February. My preteen-now-teen did a great job with my mani/pedi. She even gave me purple toenails! I regret not having a photo taken with Susan. I tend not to take photos at blogging events and conferences.

Not so long ago, if the clock struck 6 in our home you’d know where to find everyone. Dinnertime was a given in our home. We would gather. Eat. Share about our day. Have talks about school or weekend plans. Dinnertime was a time to come together as a family.  One of the hardest parts of kids getting older is that the family’s schedule gets exponentially more complicated. Take last Friday as an example.

On Friday, we had an after school swim practice, followed by another swim practice. My husband had chaperone duty at his high school — he’s an administrator — so I was on solo parent duty. And then to further complicate matters, I had to go to the police station. Don’t worry…no one was in trouble or anything like that! My daughter had her Christmas present stolen from her locker at our health club. Her beloved purple sparkly Ugg moccasins were taken from her unlocked locker. (We’ve talked to her, and so did the cop, about always using a lock.) I filed a police report even though the chances of finding the person who took the Ugg mocassins is very low. But, do you see what I mean about evenings? Our busy-enough Friday was further complicated by an unexpected and unscheduled visit for me.

Once we were home from our activities, the kids disappeared while I cooked dinner. If you know me at all from IRL or this blog, you’ll know that one of my mad skillz is NOT cooking. I have accepted that I could be on the Worst Cooks in America. But kids and mom have to eat, so I was pleased to have on hand a couple of bags of Bertolli Meal Soup.

We all love the Bertolli frozen meals — especially the Shrimp Scampi & Linguine — so I was confident that the kids would enjoy the Bertolli Meal Soup.  Knowing that all I needed to do was pour two bags of the soup in to a large saucepan, I had time to spiff up our weeknight dinner.

Paired with the Bertolli Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta Meal Soup was brown bread and a fruit salad of melon and blueberries. To add a dash of color to our table, I used up the last of the candy cane napkins. I even used real bowls and plates and even cups! Shhhh…on busy nights I’ve been known to pull out the paper plates to avoid doing more dishes. Sometimes, you have to do what works for your family.

After resting, watching TV, and reading, I called the kids down for dinner. I was pleasantly surprised that the the two bags yielded enough soup for all four of us with food left over for when my husband arrived home after chaperoning the basketball game.

One by one the kids drifted in to the kitchen, sat down at the table, and tucked in to the Bertolli Meal Soup. The Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta was delicious. All three kids liked it., which is surprising since we always have one person who is not excited by dinner.

If you are like me and need a quick meal choice, the Bertolli Meal Soup is a very good option.  Easy to make on busy school nights. A nutritious option for families. Bertolli Meal Soups are hearty and packed with fresh-tasting with vegetables, meats, pasta and herbs individually flash frozen at the peak of freshness. You can find them in the frozen aisle. Bertolli Meal Soups are available in four varieties: Chicken Minestrone, Roasted Chicken & Rotini Pasta (the one we tried), Tomato Florentine & Tortellini with Chicken, and Tuscan-Style Beef with Vegetables.

Find Bertolli Meal Soup near you and more!

• Find where you can buy Bertolli products.
• Like Bertolli on Facebook.
• Follow @Bertolli on Twitter
• Learn more about Bertolli’s products by visiting their site!

I was compensated by Bertolli to participate in the Weeknight Meal Special Challenge. The views expressed in the post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.

I wanted to share this with you. I recently found out about about a site for WordPress plugins. If you are like me, you are not a coder or a blogging guru. If you are not like me, I worship the techy ground you walk on! Here’s what I know…

• plugins can make your life easier
• plugins can simplify a complicated task
• plugins can let people know what groups you belong to
• plugins can help you build a better blog

WPMU is a popular site for finding WordPress plugins. Click on link below (and my affiliate link).

This is a SocialSpark deal. I will be compensated for each deal sold through my link. The views expressed in this post are my own.

Every so often I try a new product. I might be strolling the aisles at Costco. I’ll see a sample kiosk. If I have my children with me, we ALWAYS stop. No questions asked. I’ll stand while my children take a sample. If there are enough samples left, I take a sample myself. I’m rarely disappointed. I’ve found samples that were so tasty. Without the sample stand in a discount warehouse or grocery store, I would never have known.

Last summer, the Musings from Me family journeyed to Southern California. While the kids and dad explored San Diego, I walked the Expo Halls at BlogHer. I met people, played in-booth games at the Expo Hall, learned about products I had never heard of, and most importantly, sampled some awesome treats. Walking the Expo Hall is thirsty work.

As I hauled my bags out of the Expo Hall one day, I spotted a white booth with comfy white couches. As I cast my eye to the side and back of the booth I spotted several displays of Trop50. Trop50? I was intrigued as I looked at the familiar shaped bottles with a name I had never heard of. What was this Trop50? Looked like the Tropicana I buy for my family, but what was it exactly?

I sampled the Trop50 Lemonade. Let me tell you how it tasted…it was delicious. Tart, but not too tart. Sweet, but not overly so. Kind of like a lemonade stand lemonade, but with 50% less sugar and 50% less calories. Plus, no artificial sweeteners. I knew my family would love it and that I would be happy to buy it for them. In fact, I brought a few bottles back to my family in our hotel room, which we enjoyed on our drive to Legoland. Delish!

Which brings me to New Year Resolutions and the thorny subject of sticking to ‘em. I think of resolutions each, but do I stick to them? Sometimes. I find that the smaller, more focused, and more doable the resolution, the more likely I am to do it. For instance, resolving to exercise is not nearly as effective as resolving to exercise every other day. I need a resolution spelled out for me. Another resolution is to cook more dinners that are healthy, with mostly fresh ingredients. My resolutions need to be short on vagueness, and long on specifics.

More about Trop50…

• Trop50 by Tropicana offers fruit juice goodness with 50 percent less sugar and calories, and no artificial sweeteners.
• Trop50 juice beverage comes in the following flavors: No Pulp, No Pulp with Calcium + Vitamin D, Some Pulp, Farmstand Apple, Pomegranate Blueberry, Lemonade, Pineapple Mango, and Raspberry Lemonade.
• New! Trop50 introduced the following new flavors: Red Orange, Raspberry with Green Tea, Peach with White Tea, and Pear Lychee with White Tea. Can’t wait to try these!
• Do you like those funny Jane Krakowski spots? Here are a few funny ones.

Connect with Tropicana and Trop50:

• Find a store near you that sells Trop50 juice beverage.
• Like Trop50 – 50% Less Sugar and Calories on Facebook.
• Follow on Twitter by following @TropicanaOJ and searching for hashtag: #Trop50.
• Visit the Trop50 Web site.

I was given samples of Trop50 juice beverage to facilitate my review. The views expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.

If you read this blog, you’ll know that I don’t host a giveaway every week. Sometimes it is months between giveaways. But, when I do host a giveaway, I. Go. All. Out!

Last month I held my Musings from Me Holiday Gift Guide and Giveaway. And oh it was a lot of fun. I loved sharing the toys, games, and even phones that we love in the Musings from Me family. And now the announcement you have all been waiting for…more winners! Two lucky readers won a Hasbro game!

• Taboo — Congrats, Katrina!
• Rubik’s Cube — Congrats, Christine @justicecw!

Two giveaways just closed or are about to close. Congrats to everyone who entered! I have one more giveaway this week…for #BigMiracleMovie. Enter…now!

Congratulations to all winners! I must give a hug thank you to all the amazing companies that sponsored giveaways on my blog. I LOVE sharing what I love with you…my readers.

Way, way back when my oldest was born, going out was a snap. Dinner? Movie? Dinner and a movie? No worries. I’d pack her and her diaper bag. I wouldn’t pack my daughter in the diaper bag, of course(!), but I’d pack practically every other baby gadget, gizmo, you name it. With everything packed, I’d hustle my husband to the car. And, that was it.

Grandma and Grandad were always willing and able to babysit. We would drop our daughter off with food and diapers, leave a list of instructions about what her routine was, and hightail it off to dinner with friends, to watch a movie, or even a date night. At the end of the evening, we’d return to my parent’s house. My husband would carry our sleeping (and happy) daughter out to the car. And that was it.

Many years later with a Teen, a Preteen-now-Teen, and a Kid, going out is exponentially more complicated. We have to sync my work calendar to my husband’s work schedule cross referenced to the sports/school/activity schedule of the three kids and then if the stars are aligned and no one gets sick we can go out. Are you exhausted? Do you think we go out a lot? If you answered “No,” you are correct!

Two Saturdays ago, the stars as they say aligned for us. One kid went to bed early. One kid stayed home to babysit the sleeping kid. One kid was at a friend’s house. And so my husband and I ventured out on a sleety, icy Saturday night around 9ish. We eat late, but never that late. Actually, and I know this sounds a little pathetic, but I was actually quite excited to go on an impromptu date night even though it was late and we would have to be home by 11 p.m. at the latest. But, excited I was!

I was last at Red Lobster in the late 80/early 90s. Today’s Red Lobster is very, very different from what I recall. The restaurant we visited on Saturday night was in Frederick, Maryland. My first impression was wood. The wood paneling is dark…reminded me of a the galley of an old sailing ship. I loved all the wood paneling and decorative accents. The nautical theme was subtle but not overpowering. We were shown promptly to a booth in a quiet part of the dining room. There was a small bar area as we walked in that was also nautically themed.

The service was impeccable. Our waitperson seated us. A few moments later a second person stopped by to let us know that our waitperson would be with us momentarily. She appeared a few minutes later. Good service!

While we both wanted to try Red lobster’s new Four Course Seafood Feast, with the lateness of the hour and the fact that both of us had had snacks earlier in the evening, we chose to share two appetizers instead. We will definitely return with the kids. In fact, the next day the “sleeping” kid asked if he could try the Seafood Feast the next time we go. I said “Yes!” This kid has a bigger appetite at 8 than his sisters combined when they were 8.

We shared two appetizers: Shrimp Nachos and Lobster-Crab-and-Seafood Stuffed Mushrooms. I washed my meal down with a yummy Sangria drink. By the way, there are variations between the menus at each Red Lobster restaurant. Each restaurant offers a fresh catch of the day. Our server announced that Atlantic salmon, tilapia, rainbow trout, and North Atlantic haddock were available that night. To find out what is available go to the Red Lobster Restaurant Locator page, find the location nearest you, and take a peek at the offerings at that location. I know your mouth will start watering as you read the dishes.

As our meal wound down, our waitperson returned to see how we were doing. We told her we were definitely coming back with our children.

For more information about Red Lobster…

• Follow @RedLobster on Twitter.
• Like Red Lobster on Facebook.
• Don’t forget the Four Course Seafood Feast! Four yummy courses AND Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Only $15. Limited time only!
• Find a location near you and find out more about menu offerings.

I was given a gift card to Red Lobster to facilitate my review. The views expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.

Some tips for getting the most out of Disneyland and Walt Disney World.

FASTPASS

• FASTPASS is the key to getting the most out of your Disney experience. My husband is somewhat of a pro about the FASTPASS.
• FASTPASS can be used on the following attractions at Disneyland: Autopia, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, Indiana Jones Adventure, Roger Rabbit’s Car Too Spin, Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, and Star Tours.
• Use FASTPASS on these California Adventure rides: California Screamin’ (well worth it even though I was terrified!), Goofy’s Sky School, Grizzly River Run, Soarin’ Over California (our family’s favorite ride at both EPCOT and California Adventure), The Twilight Zone of Terror (I couldn’t get anyone to ride this ride with me!), and World of Color.
• When you enter a Disney park, check the bulletin board at the park entrance. The board shows wait time for rides and which rides are FASTPASS. You will also see which rides are closed for the day.
• Look for FASTPASS distribution kiosks near the entrance to each ride.
• Check the FASTPASS return time to know when you can ride the attraction. Don’t use a FASTPASS if you will not be available to ride the ride. Save your FASTPASS for another ride.
• A tip about World of Color at California Adventure… World of Color is a spectacular light, water, color, and movie show. You will want to use your FASTPASS to get a good viewing spot. Go early to the Grizzly River Run to get your FASTPASS for World of Color. You can hold a World of Color FASTPASS and a FASTPASS for a ride, so go get one as soon as you arrive in California Adventure.

Season

• We have visited Walt Disney World twice in the fall. While the parks have shorter hours in the fall than in the peak seasons, we loved walking on rides and waiting for just a few minutes to get on a ride.
• In addition, to short wait times, you’ll also find that flights in off-peak season are cheaper as well as hotels.
• On this trip we visited in August. Because it was the height of a peak season, we planned our days with FASTPASS, wait times, and our stamina in mind. If we were all up for waiting in a long line, we did.

Technology

• Our two-day stay at Disneyland Resort would have been far less fun had my husband not had an app on his phone. He kept us apprised of wait times. With a Kid, a Preteen-now-Teen, and a Teen, we had the flexibility to race from one ride to another. Families with younger kids will want to pace themselves due to weather, crowds, and wait times.
• Here’s an app for Disney World Wait Times.
• Visiting Disneyland? Here’s an app for wait times.
• And of course, charge those batteries. Bring all chargers on your trip. Charge digital, video, and phones at the hotel each night.
• We had a couple of Flip Video Cameras which we let our kids carry.

Safety

• Stay connected with cell phones.
• Our Teen and Preteen-now-Teen did not carry their phones as they were worried about losing them or getting them wet. Because of this we stayed in a group of 5 or we split in to a group of 2 and a group of 3. My husband and I coordinated a meeting spot if we split up to ride different attractions.
• Let each family member carry his Disney ticket in a lanyard. You can bring a lanyard from home or buy a colorful lanyard from any of the Disney stores. Each lanyard comes with a clear plastic case for holding the Disney ticket and money. We found it helpful for each child to carry his own lanyard and ticket so that it was easier to get FASTPASS.
• My older two know their name, address, home and all our cell phones, but I wrote down all our details on a piece of paper for my youngest child to carry with him. If he got separated from us, I wanted him to know how to reach us.

I was given passes to Disneyland and California Adventure. We paid for our own flights, car rental, and hotel accommodations while in Southern California. The views expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.

As a child, we traveled a great deal. I lived in three countries. Attended three preschools. Three elementary schools. Two middle schools. And one high school. Lived in seven homes, including one hotel. Yikes that’s a lot of moving!

As well as moving, we vacationed all the time. When we first moved to the U.S., my parents weren’t sure how long we would stay. Consequently in a 6- to 7-year period we visited Niagara falls, Williamsburg (VA), Skyline Drive and Luray Caverns (VA), West Point (NY), Pennsylvania Dutch Country, the Jersey shore, New York City, and Washington, D.C.

One memorable trip was a quickie visit to Disney World. It was 1974. I was about 8. My parents knew that a return to England was in the near future. We stayed off site at a motel in Kissimmee (FL). March can be chilly even in Florida, so I recall wearing a sweatshirt while we were there. It was back in the day where you bought tickets for each ride. We had a handful of “A,” “B,” and “C.” As near as I can recall, you needed 2 A tickets to ride one ride, but only a C ticket to ride something else. While we didn’t ride every single ride, I have vivid memories of Captain Nemo’s 10,000 Leagues Under the Sea, the Hall of Presidents, the Country Bear Jamboree, Tom Sawyer’s Island, the magic Tea Cups, and the Polynesian Resort.

Disney IS the most magical place on earth. While we had taken the kids twice to Disney World, none of us had visited Disneyland. I was anxious to experience a Southern Californian Disney with my husband and kids. After a stay in San Diego, a visit to LegoLand, and a brush with celebrities in Hollywood, we were ready to do Disneyland.

On Day 6 of our trip to Southern California, we hit Disneyland. Our experience was magical from start to finish. Our day began at the park bright and early after a buffet breakfast at our hotel.

We took a spin on Buzz Lightwear’s Astro Blasters in Tomorrowland. Everyone loves to laugh about Mom’s low score. I guess I have a little hand-eye coordination problem! While we were in Tomorrowland, we also rode Autopia, Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage, Space Mountain, and Star Tours the Adventure Continues.

This is not my score!

Heading to Tom Sawyer’s Island. I was the most excited to explore the island. The kids were meh about it. Disneyland’s version of Mark Twain’s classic story of growing up in America is very different to Walt Disney World. We spent close to 45 minutes running through caves, climbing ladders, hopping on swing bridges, and generally having a boatload of fun (pun intended!). This part of Adventureland is actually called Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer’s Island.

Autopia otherwise known as “Who let that 8-year-old get behind the wheel?!” Actually everyone was a better driver than mom. I needed the hefty bumpers!

I was given passes to Disneyland and California Adventure. We paid for our own flights, car rental, and hotel accommodations while in Southern California. The views expressed in this post are my own. I follow the tenets of Blog With Integrity.