“MaM, guess where we’re going tomorrow?”

“Where?”

“We’re going to go see Cinderella on the stage.”

“Really? On the stage?”

“Yup. Does that sound like fun?”

“Yes. I will need to wear my princess dress to go see her.”

Last night, MaM broke out her Snow White dress (and Sleeping Beauty slippers, if you must know) and she and I headed out to enjoy an evening performance of Cinderella, which is playing at Beef and Boards through July 1.

I really wasn’t familiar with the Rodgers & Hammerstein’s version of Cinderella, but oh my goodness, this should be the version of Cinderella kids get to know and love. Nothing about it is scary, and the stepfamily is comical and clueless, not mean and vindictive. It’s a feel-good take on the classic fairy tale, complete with musical numbers.

MaM and I arrived at Beef and Boards as the dinner buffet was starting. After being seated at our table, our server took care of our drinks, and we were invited to the buffet. The buffet has something for everyone, including chicken fingers. There was plenty of time to enjoy dinner before the buffets were cleared from the stage and the sets went up to start the show. Our server took our dessert order before the house lights went down, and it was served during intermission (ff you like to enjoy an adult beverage during your theatre viewing, the full bar can easily accommodate).

Last night’s crowds was filled with five year old princesses just like mine, with a few prince charmings thrown in for good measure. The larger-than-life stepsisters (done with creative casting), the magic possessed by Cinderella’s godmother, the perfect in-time dancing of the ensemble cast, and a surprise entrance by the godmother (maybe she really is a fairy?) during the finale made the show delightful from start to finish. Once the show started, I heard a few little girls say, “hi Cinderella!” as the she made her entrance, but other than that, every kid in the house was mesmerized.

I admit it, I was too.

MaM’s favorite part was, predictably, Cinderella. Her jaw dropped as Cinderella’s rags were transformed into her ball gown. She watched intently as Cinderella danced with the prince. She clapped when Cinderella appeared in her wedding dress. My favorite part though, was the entrance of the Cinderella’s horse and carriage. I don’t want to spoil it, but the entire contraption was magical, right down to the softly dancing foal.

All in all, it was a magical evening, and if you’ve got a little princess of your own, I recommend taking her to go see the show! (It’s suitable for young princes as well) The show plays Wednesday-Sunday most weeks, including a 1pm Wednesday matinee that could be just right for families with children (we arrived shortly after 6pm for dinner, the show started at 8pm and I carried a sleepy MaM to the car just before 10pm).

In addition to shows  meant for patrons 3 and over (children under 3 are not able to attend this show), Beef and Boards also presents children’s theatre. These hour long productions are for all ages, and feature a snack rather than a full buffet. Pinocchio will be presented as the next children’s theatre piece, starting in October.

Disclosure: I was provided tickets to enjoy this production in exchange for my honest review. The opinions here are expressly my own.

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It’s not secret that my family members are huge fans of the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis. I mean, really, it’s the largest children’s museum in the world and it has some seriously cool exhibits. I love bringing the kids down for even just a couple of hours, to explore and enjoy all the museum has to offer. The kids know the museum well — they start getting excited when they see the dinosaurs outside the museum. They are always on “hat watch” — because they know the dinosaurs will have on Halloween and Christmas themed head gear during those seasons. Last weekend when we were there, MaM was wondering if maybe she’d see some shamrocks or bunny ears on these giant reptiles.

I secretly can’t wait until we go again. This Friday, the museum is going to out-do itself and every boy within a million miles is going to go NUTS from now on whenever they enter the Welcome Center. Why, do you ask?

BUMBLEBEE is going to be a permanent part of the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis!

Bumblebee, as every Transformers fan knows, is one of the good guys. He’s constantly trying to impress Optimus Prime, his leader, and took a star role in the latest Transformers movie. Also? Kids LOVE Bumblebee. My own kids are constantly on the look-out for bright yellow and black cars and shout, “Bumblebee” when they see one.

Walking into the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and seeing the 17ft tall, 1 ton movie prop? That will rock their world!

Bumblebee will be unveiled at 10:30am this coming Friday (yes! March 11), in conjunction with the special Members-Only Sneak Preview of the new exhibit, Incredible Costumes.

Now for the giveaway-

The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis would like to hook one reader up with a four-pack of admission tickets to see Bumblebee for themselves. If you are able to attend the unveiling Friday, you will also be on the VIP list to attend the Incredible Costumes Preview (the exhibit won’t be open to the public until Saturday, March 12). Otherwise, the admission tickets will be waiting for you at Will-Call on a date of your choosing.

To enter, all you need to do is tell me about a favorite family outing of yours — either now, as a parent, or as a kid. Be sure to fill in your email address on the comment form so that I can contact  you if you win. Because the premiere is Friday, I will pick a winner at 6pm Thursday (that’s tomorrow, March 10).

Thanks for entering, and good luck!

Disclosure: I did not receive any compensation for this giveaway– I just really like promoting this amazing institution!

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Last Wednesday, I wrote the post on how we were approaching Advent, and so far, it’s going really well. The kids are getting ready a whole lot faster in the morning so we can get the next ring down before we walk out the door. It’s been great doing a short project every day, and it’s inspiring me to make a little bit more of a monthly plan to enjoy knowing that we will get to fun things every month with some planning. (Check out this idea from Heather, I love it)

Today’s activity was supposed to be write a letter to Santa. MaM was kind of intrigued, but got distracted and never brought it up again. If she’s ok with that, I’m ok with that. We did have an interesting conversation about it.

“Mom, I know what I can write to Santa!”

“You do?”

“Yes. I will say, ‘Don’t worry mom and dad, I’m out helping Santa,’ ”

“Oh that would be a letter to us, do you think you’d like to ask Santa for something?”

“Well, I’ll see presents when I help him.”

“True. Is there a present you’d like to ask him for?”

“I’ve already asked him for a pogo stick.”

“Would you like to ask him for anything else, in case he can’t find a pogo stick for you? Maybe some books?”

“Books are too boring. I need something else. Maybe a Barbie bath toy.” (last year’s gift)

And with that, she busied herself with something or other.

So here’s the thing. Actually, two things.

1) She’s kind of obsessed this year with “helping Santa”. As in, Santa is going to pick her up on his sled and she’ll go riding with him Christmas night. And that’s why she’d leave us a note so we don’t worry about her. Of course, every time she brings it up, I take the opportunity to tell her it’s not ok to leave with any Santa Claus who approaches her, anywhere, anytime. And if Santa comes knocking on her window, she must come wake us up. Strange, but I wanted to make sure all of our bases were covered. (Last year, she was obsessed with him visiting her on Christmas Eve)

2) She’s also obsessed with getting a pogo stick for Christmas. Here’s the thing, it snowed yesterday. If she were to get a pogo stick, it would sit in the garage for months before she could really use it. Also, her present this year is a Fisher-Price iXL. Have you seen these? I hadn’t even heard of them, until I went to BlogHer. There I spent some time in the Fisher Price booth, and came out a winner of an iXL. I’m hopeful that she’s as excited about it as I am for her. She absolutely loves using our iPhones, but she’ll have more flexibility with this device. There are games and a drawing program, it can play MP3′s and more. There can also be more than one user profile, so theoretically, the kids can share (we’ll see about that). I need to carefully pull it out of the box and get it ready to go for Christmas morning sometime soon. (disclosure: I won the iXL at Blogher. Just like I said. I am not under obligation to mention this fact, but OMG, this thing is cool.)

So that’s what the first week of Advent in our house. How’s yours going?

P.S. Indy friends, if you’re reading this and it’s not 5pm on Friday (12/3) yet, and you need a Christmas tree, check out this Savvy Savings deal for 50% off a live tree!

P.P.S. There are three huge gift guides over at Grown in My Heart, one for donations, one for goods, and one specifically for fair-trade. There are some amazing organizations you can support this holiday season.

P.P.P.S. I’ve got a few gift guides listed over at Persephone, arranged by age. There’s Baby’s First Christmas, Toddlers, Preschoolers and School-Agers, along with some ideas for large families/copious numbers of small children.

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1. Tis the Season for…Wine-Making!

I decided early on in the college searching process that I wanted to go to a small college. The idea that Indiana University had the same number of students as the entire population of my hometown was overwhelming to me. I’m sure my parents had a bit of a heart attack as brochures came in for schools that were twice the amount of in-state tuition, but for the most part, they held their tongue.

They drove me all over the midwest — to Beloit College in Wisconsin, to Kalamazoo College in Michigan, to St. Mary-of-the-Woods near Terre Haute. I’m wondering if senior vists are cut down today by the advent of the Internet. Had my mom seen the condition of St. Joseph’s College in Renselessar on the internet, she would have saved the gas money.

My girlfriend laughed when I told her how I chose Marian — I had a stack of applications and I completed Marian’s application first because it didn’t require an essay. I mailed it in first, and had every intention of getting started the essays required for all of the other schools. Then I got busy being yearbook editor and stage manager and you know, being a senior in high school.

And I got accepted into Marian with a great financial aid package before I ever even started writing a rough draft of an essay for any of those other schools.I visited one more time, thought it was good and made the decision to attend. I then got back to being a senior in high school.

As it turned out, I made life long friends, got a solid education, and developed a fondness for the city my family now calls home……..but conversations like today sometimes make me wonder what would have happened if I had even just applied to one more school.

And I wonder if I will be able to give MaM and Junior the wide berth my parents’ did when it came to choosing a school. I mean sure, it was my education, but it was their tuition money. Years later my mom told me she was incredibly relieved that I chose Marian over all the other schools we’d visited — it was Catholic, it was small, it was affordable w/ financial aid, and it was a drivable distance from home. As I type this, I realize maybe once they figured out that I was happy with Marian, they’d just keep their mouths shut and thank their lucky stars.

How did you choose your school? Was it a process? Were your parents very involved? Was the internet involved in your college search at all (it wasn’t in mine)?

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How’s it shaping up so far?

It’s been great. It’s been busy. It’s been full of day trips and friends, family and celebrations. It’s been full of daylight (amazing how awful it feels to drive at night in the winter, and how great it feels in the summer).

It’s been full.

Too full to sit down and type about it at day’s end.

Too full to tweet about it while it happens.

Too full to Facebook it when the kids are watching TV.

You can’t tweet and swim at the same time.

You can’t blog while you’re rolling down sand dunes.

You can’t be on Facebook while you’re pushing kids on swings or catching them at the bottom of the slide.

I am liking it that way. A whole lot.

Are you in central Indiana and looking for things to do away from your computer?? Check out the Indianapolis City Guide on Savvy Source!! I’ve hand-picked the best just for you!

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1. It’s Been a Decade (full of cake, laughs, and love)

My was fabulous, fun, busy, and filled with family….and it was exhausting.

It all started Saturday morning when I packed up the kids and brought them down to the Children’s Museum of Indianapolis for the Beatles cover band, Brit Beat. They were amazing, and the kids humored me by sitting through their “Ed Sullivan Era” set. MaM needed earplugs. Jr danced. Then they wanted to see the rest of the museum.

Typically we go for 2-3 hours at the most, and we hang out in just a few exhibit rooms. Saturday, however, the kids were on the move. We saw probably 75% of the museum, and they spent 5 hours in constant motion, with only a 20 minute break for lunch.

They played with Barbie, dug for dinosaurs, played at the train table, flew to Egypt, road the carousel, and checked out the newest exhibit, Rock Stars, Cars and Guitars.

For the down-low on Rock Stars, Cars and Guitars, check out my review at Savvy Source. If you’ve got a budding rocker, you won’t want to miss it!

Five hours later I was able to convince them it was time to go home. Jr was asleep before we pulled out of the parking garage. He slept for the 20 minute ride home, and then was recharged for the afternoon. Funny how 35 yrs makes a difference.

When we got home? I waved briefly to BgK, and then went upstairs and took a two hour nap!

And that was just Saturday……

MaM was thrilled there was a red-headed Barbie!

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Now that it’s 2010, I don’t get to see live music all that very often, so when the One2One Network put the word out that a few bloggers were welcome at the One EskimO show at Radio Radio last night, I jumped at the chance. BgK literally walked in the door at 7:30pm after being gone all week. I was glad he made it home in time for me to pick up my friend Becky and make it to Fountain Square for the opening act.

Before the show, I had only heard the song, “Kandi”, which is currently getting mainstream radio airplay. It didn’t matter….once they started playing, the music was inviting and comforting. I was surprised by some of the instruments played…the percussionist had a full variety of ways to turn out a beat, and the bassist also played a horn   (my friend Becky is musical, and she’s thinking it was a flugelhorn), which had a fantastic sound.  We found ourselves swaying along and singing along to choruses we’d never heard.

Summation without much detail? Awesome. I went directly to iTunes this morning and downloaded the entire album.

Summation with detail? Go to their website, under the band tab. That describes their sound far better than I can. And, if you get the chance, see them live. You’ll love them.

Remaining 2010 tour dates:

Jun 12 – Minglewood Hall – Memphis TN USA
Jun 13 – Crossroads – Kansas City MO USA
Jun 15 – Blueberry Hill (solo date) – St. Louis MO USA
Jun 17 – 3rd & Lindsley (solo date) – Nashville TN USA
Jun 18 – Southgate House (solo date) – Newport KY USA
Jun 19 – Taste of Randolph Street (solo date) – Chicago IL USA
Jun 20 – People’s Court (solo date) – Des Moines IA USA
Jun 21 – Waiting Room (solo date) – Omaha NE USA
Jun 28 – Largo (solo date) – Los Angeles CA USA
Jul 01 – Anthology – San Diego CA USA
Aug 14 – The Fields at Dick’s Sporting Goods Park – Mile High Festival – Denver, CO USA
Nov 13 – Fox Theater – Boulder CO USA

Disclosure: I was given a pair of tickets to attend One EskimO’s show at Radio Radio in exchange for this review. The opinions on the show and music are mine. Thanks, One2OneNetwork for turning me on to this great band!

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On the video page there’s a link that says “share” and it says I’ve shared it successfully on WordPress, but I sure can’t see where it’s been shared.

So here’s the link– http://www.colts.com/sub.cfm?page=video&content=98c2c079-79b2-458c-839e-f2c49b5232ba

The boy now sits, riveted, saying “And-roo, football, again!” over and over as the video plays. He’s the boy in the still photo at the beginning of the video (looks similar to the one above) and he’s running toward the end zone around the :50 second mark (in the #44 Dallas Clark jersey). You know it’s him by his crazy hair!

Day 8 of NaBloPoMo is done! Phew!

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Saturday involved footballs, motorcycles, and WNBA basketball.

Open House at Lucas Oil Stadium

Indy West Harley Davidson Open House

BgK won tix at 4pm for the 7pm tip-off. When he told MaM they were going, she said, "Yeah! I get cotton candy!"

Sunday was slightly calmer….Church, the pet store, playground play & cookout with friends, then MaM’s first night of Vacation Bible School.

What she gleaned from tonight?

“God is EVERYWHERE.”

She’s exactly right.

How was your weekend?

Day 6 of NaBloPoMo? In the bag…

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