Birmingham Children's Museum- Itty Bitty Magic City

Birmingham finally has a children's museum! Itty Bitty Magic City, designed for ages kindergarten and younger, opened on May 16. Itty Bitty Magic City is located on the second floor inside the McWane Science Center, located in downtown Birmingham at the corner of 2nd Ave North and 19th St North. I have visited several children's museums over the years and have always wanted one in Birmingham. I'm so happy this opened in time for Jaxon to get to enjoy for a couple of years!

Built to resemble a classic Main Street, Itty Bitty Magic City contains a diner, a market, a vet clinic, a market, a farm, a post office, a house, a fire station, and a mechanic's garage. Each area is designed to facilitate creative play and has room for multiple children to play at the same time. 

At the diner, there is plenty of play food and space for several chefs to prepare and serve food. Jaxon had a great time taking my order and assembling pizzas and sandwiches for me. At the farm, kids can plant and harvest vegetables or "milk" a cow. 

Jaxon's favorite place was the fire station. He dressed in a fireman's jacket and had fun running the lights and sirens and pretending to drive the truck. 

In the mechanic's shop, Jaxon replaced a "bad" battery and added fluids to the car. The battery buzzed when inserted incorrectly and lit up green when placed correctly.

There is also an elevated climbing/playground area (built so that parents can easily enter as well), a water play area, a building area with giant soft blocks and a conveyor belt, and a large train table. There are so many things to do that each visit can be a unique experience. 

Playground and climbing structure at Itty Bitty Magic City

Water Play Area at Itty Bitty Magic City

For its youngest patrons, Itty bitty Magic City offers a tot spot. The tot spot features foam blocks and soft surfaces for climbing and crawling. The area is only for ages 2 and younger. There is a low wall separating it from the rest of itty bitty magic city, making it easy for moms of multiple children to supervise preschoolers while baby explores the tot spot.

Tot Spot at Itty Bitty Magic City

Train table at Itty Bitty Magic City

Itty Bitty Magic City also features classroom space. While we were there, two programs on "pets" took place. Jaxon was too excited about the fire truck to attend the program but I'm looking forward to seeing what other fun things are offered in Itty Bitty Magic City in the future.

The entrance to Itty Bitty Magic City is manned by a McWane center employee, which helps keep children over kindergarten age out, though siblings of young children are welcome with their parents. There is stroller parking at the front and ample seating for parents throughout the play space. 

A day pass to McWane (which includes admission to Itty Bitty Magic City) is $13 for adults and $9 for children aged 2 and older. Parking in the deck is $5 per vehicle. A family membership to McWane is a great value at $110 per year and includes free parking in the deck with each visit as well as discounts on iMax passes and the cafe. For more information, visit McWane.org. You may also check out my previous review of McWane Center here.


I was not compensated in any way for this post. All opinions are my own.

Publix Breakfast Savings

I've posted several times about how much I love Publix. It's still my favorite place to shop for groceries. With clean and wide aisles, the freshest produce around, and helpful employees, what's not to love? But how did I forget to mention the savings? That's right, you can actually spend less by shopping at Publix. They are always looking out for your family's budget. From weekly sale ads to special coupon booklets for savings on specific household items, Publix has you covered. Right now, Publix is offering great savings on your family's favorite breakfast items from General Mills. Save on your favorites like Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Cheerios!

Publix has made it easy - great in-store savings, as well as a coupon site with extra savings where you can select and print the coupons you want. You can find it at http://www.everydaysaver.com/publix. Be sure and bookmark that site while you are there - each month, they change out the specials and coupons!

And if the coupons aren't enough for you,  can also win a Publix gift card for $25! Just leave a comment below telling me why you love Publix!  

Contest ends April 19th. Winner will be chosen by random.org. U.S. residents only.

"The information, products and General Mills gift pack were provided by General Mills and Publix® through MyBlogSpark."

Big G & Dreamworks (with giveaway!)

If your kids are like mine, they love movies, and they also love getting new movies to watch. The new promotion from Big G cereals and Dreamworks is a win for all of us.  

Right now when your purchase specially marked boxes of General Mills cereal such as Cheerios, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Lucky Charms, Cookie Crisp, Trix, or Reese's Puffs you will receive a DVD sampler from Dreamworks. Each DVD features new content featuring beloved Dreamworks characters from favorite movies like Kung Fu Panda and Shrek. We really loved the movie "How To Train Your Dragon" when we saw it at the theater so we watched that sampler DVD first. The sampler DVD contains previews of Dreamworks new Dragons show on Cartoon network, a music video, behind the scenes footage and more!

Dreamworks new movie "The Croods" comes to theaters on March 22. Each DVD sampler includes a first look at this new movie. My kids are really excited about it and can't wait to see it! Alex was even more excited after she read a book about The Croods that was included in our package.

Want to see all 4 sampler DVDs? Enter below to win a gift pack that includes all 4 sampler DVDs, a croods book, and a movie reel tin filled with fun movie theater treats!

But just in case you dont win, head to the store and pick up a few boxes of your favorite Big G cereal today! 

Disclosure:  The information, products and General Mills gift packs were provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

Jaxon at 21 months

I've been a slacker when it comes to my blog over the past 3 months and have only managed to post those reviews & giveaways I had committed to before I lost the time for blogging. Since August, we've had a lot of life changes and to say I've been overwhelmed is an understatement. I'll have to try to update more on that later but for now, I want to talk about my sweet baby boy and document some of his achievements.

At 21 months, Jaxon is talking...a lot. His vocabulary is definitely larger than any of our other kids had at this age. He also speaks very clearly so even strangers can understand him (this can be a good and bad thing!). At this point he says so many words I couldn't begin to list them all. He also has a great memory and rarely needs to be told the correct word for something more than once. He loves Elmo, but doesn't have patience for a whole episode on TV - the theme song is enough for him!

His favorite phrase is "me too!" and he says it often in response to most of the things his siblings say. It's adorable...and a little frustrating sometimes since he can't always be involved in everything they do since they are so much older. He really thinks he is older than he actually is. 

I recently put out our Fisher-Price manger scene for him to play with. I showed him each piece and told him it's name: Jesus, Mary, lamb, shepherd. Later, I heard him singing "Jesus, Jesus" while rocking the baby Jesus in his hands. <sweetness>

I find Jaxon to be a very picky eater, but he loves spaghetti, salad, fruit (especially kiwi and watermelon), eggs and pizza. He's a cheese snob and prefers gourmet varieties from Whole Foods to standard Kraft. He doesn't like meat, and especially seems to turn his nose up at chicken. I think keeping chickens caused him to decide chickens were for chasing, not eating. 

Some other things he can do:

-point to all his body parts as I call him out, including things like his forehead, back and tongue. The only thing he has trouble with are knees- he always points to teeth when I say knees!

-retrieve items from other rooms for me or put things away where they belong.

-understand consequences. 

-makes connections. 

-count to 3

-recognize landmarks and stores. When we pull up to Wal-Mart he says "Mal-Mart" and says "football" when we pass the football field. When we get to the end of the road that leads to our church/his school, he says "Yay!" in anticipation of our arrival (and on days we don't turn in to the church/school, he cries and tells us to turn around!). He also knows which restaurants have his favorite foods and calls them out as we pass by or turn in.

He's a great little singer, as shown by this cute video - he had just watched the older kids sing "Joy, Joy, Joy" in a Christmas program and this was his own little version: 

Jaxon does two things that help remind us he's still a little bit of a baby:

The first is he is still breastfeeding, though typically it's only at night. I'd love to wean him, but I don't know how. He's very uninterested in weaning and I'm having a hard time taking a firm stance against it. 

The second baby like thing he does is wake during the night, often. He is not a good sleeper. At all. On most nights, he has difficulty settling down and when he finally does, I'm lucky if he sleeps for 3 hours before waking. Once he wakes the first time, he's often up every 1-2 hours after that. I keep hoping his sleep patterns will magically change, but so far, no luck on that.  

Dog Trots Globe Book Review

When I heard about Dog Trots Globe, I thought it was a children's book. The book is written from the point of view as the dog describes her travels through France. I just made an assumption that this was written for kids. I thought my daughter, who adores dogs and is interested in other countries, would find it interesting. However, when it came, it was clearly an adult book, and even contained a little grown up language on the first page. As info, there's only the little bit of language on the first page and one word on the last page. Not a big deal, but it made it unsuitable for a 9 year old. 

The book is written from the point of view of a dog who traveled with her owners for an extended vacation to France. The book is what I would call a coffee table book - light on reading, heavy on pictures. It's a visual tour with narration through Paris and a small village in France. After reading it, you will be ready to hop on a plane and visit the small village of St. Remy de Provence. The pictures of the bakeries, cafes, and open air food shops will have you hungry within minutes! 

Even though this book was not what I expected, I still enjoyed it, especially the beautiful photographs. As a bonus for dog owners, there's a section in the back of the book that gives information on traveling with a pet overseas. There is great general information on flying with pets, as well as specific information on bringing a dog into France.




I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

How's Your Driving? #TrySnapshot

Last month, I had the opportunity to try out the new Snapshot device by Progressive. Snapshot is a small device that plugs into your vehicle and monitors your driving habits. Using Snapshot is easy. It's quick to plug in (just a minute or two), and then you have a portal where you can check your progress (and hopefully, your savings!) Most drivers save, on average, $150 a year!

Progressive's new Snapshot program measures three things: hard brakes, how quickly you accelerate, and how much you drive. If you score well in these three areas, Progressive might be able to save you money on your car insurance. We ended up scoring well on rate of acceleration and okay on hard brakes, but not enough to overcome the amount of miles we drive.  

I would not have thought we spent a lot of time on the road but we were in a month of transition while we were using Snapshot. My husband started a new job that was 45 minutes from our house, the kids went back to school, and then we had our normal daily driving to the drug store, Wal-Mart, Publix, and various restaurants. Our life has been a flurry of activity over the last 2 months! 

Want to take Snapshot for a trial of your own? Visit progressive.com to find out how you can enjoy a 30 day Snapshot trial -be sure and let me know if you end up saving money!  

Interested in the science behind the program and why Progressive can offer such great savings? Here's more information:

Content and/or other value provided by our partner, Progressive.

I received a 30 day trial and gift card for being a part of the Progressive Snapshot Blogger Program.

Show Your School Spirit With Crayola

Crayola has, once again, come out with some great new products and I'm thrilled to get to share them with you.

We received some fabric markers, perfect for decorating jeans, backpacks, and tshirts. These markers are designed so that the colors really pop when used on dark fabrics. We tried them first on Britain's black backpack. It's plain and we though it could use something to make it personalized and fun. Now I admit, writing on black is obviously iffy, but the box showed the markers working on black fabrics. I went over and over again on the line I was drawing before it (barely) showed up. Britain lost interest and decided he didn't want to decorate his backpack after all. I'm going to try again with some of the girls jeans and see how that does. I would love to also get the girls a pair of cheap, plain shoes from Wal-Mart and let them decorate some shoes. I think they would love that!

I love the new Wild Notes products. The Wild Notes products use a special pen. Instead of writing with a boring black or blue pen, this pen writes a rainbow of colors. I think I was probably supposed to give them to the kids, but I really didn't want to. So instead, I used them to write some notes and place them in the kids backpacks. The fun colors make even mundane tasks, like grocery lists, more enjoyable. 

I also received the Wild Notes Sticky Notes and Wild Notes Index Cards. The index cards and notebook are both spiral bound and the pages/cards are perforated for easy removal. Even Jaxon, at 19 months of age, is able to remove the pages without ripping them! He loves this notebook and pen, by the way and constantly steals it from me. He has a bad habit of writing on himself when he has a pen - I love that this pen does not allow him to do that. 

We also received the Dual-Sided Dry-Erase Board. It's about the size of an iPad, so it travels well. One side is black, the other side is white. The included dry erase crayons write in bright colors, so they work well on both sides of the board. There's a (machine washable) cloth for cleaning the board and a crayon sharpener.  

Finally, we received the Crystal Effects Window Markers and the Window Mega Markers. My kids adore window markers. We just use ours for fun drawing on windows & mirrors, but these would be great for decorating the minivan for a football game! Great way to show your school spirit! For all you homeschoolers out there, my kids have always loved practicing writing and math facts with these markers. Writing practice is more fun when you get to write on the windows! The Crystal Effects markers are very cool - the effect does not transfer well to a picture, but as we drew on the windows, the colors "crystallized" before our eyes. Very neat!

Thanks to the generosity of Crayola, one lucky reader will get a prize pack containing 6 Crayola products!

Packaways -The Best Way To Move, Organize, And Store Your Stuff!

Sometimes I get to review a product that I know I'll be using for many years to come. This is one of those times. Originally, I wasn't sure what to expect when I found out Packaways was sending me their new storage boxes. I had read that the boxes came folded flat. I didn't think they could possibly be very sturdy since they had to be put together. But I was wrong! These boxes are made from durable corrugated plastic and they are truly great. They are super easy to put together - no extra pieces or packing tape required. 

They ship to you flat. When you're ready to use them, just press the opposing corners and the bottom folds into place and locks. Just reverse the process to make them flat (and easy to store) again. 

We just moved, and these boxes were extremely handy. We made multiple trips when moving and I took these boxes back and forth several times. I loaded them up with everything from bedding to toys to picture frames. They worked very well and were extremely easy to use. The carry handles on the ends make them easier to carry than standard moving boxes. They have panels  for labeling, and if you use China Dry Erase Markers, you can wipe the panels clean and relabel them as you change the contents of the boxes. They stack neatly and for those of you who don't unpack quickly (like me), they look a whole lot better sitting in a corner of the room than the cardboard boxes do. They are also not prone to breakdown like cardboard is since they are immune from the effects of moisture and humidity. In fact, the first thing I put in them were our toiletry items. I knew if shampoo or lotion spilled in the bottom I could just wipe it clean once we arrived.

Now that we're getting settled in, I plan to use Packaways to store toys. I don't like for my kids to have access to all of their toys at once- it's much better for them and for me if we rotate some toys in and out of their playroom. It keeps things fresh and it keeps them from having too many things to get out at one time. I love that these boxes will be easy for me to move in and out of the garage or a closet. 

Packaways come in 5 different sizes and 4 colors and are made in the USA. Prices start at 8.75 per box, and bulk pricing is offered for orders over 25 pieces. Visit Packaways.com for more information or like them on Facebook at facebook.com/PackAways. 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Publix Running Out? Run In. event and a giveaway!

I've written about my love for Publix several times before. I'm so happy that we have moved (more on that later!) and are now close enough to Publix to do all of our shopping there. 

One of the many great things about Publix are their "Running Out? Run In." events. During these events, you can take advantage of great savings on your favorite General Mills and Procter & Gamble, such as Cheerios, Charmin, and Crest. We are always running out of toilet paper, so I'm sure we'll be picking up some Charmin while we're at Publix this week. 

During this Running Out? Run In event, you will get a free gallon of milk when you purchase any 6 of the participating items like Tide Pods, Yoplait Yogurt Kids, or Trix!

Thanks to the good people at General Mills one of my readers will win a $25 Publix gift card. Enter using the super easy Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway 

Disclosure:  The Publix gift card, information, and additional gift pack has been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

Hearts For Hearts Girls

 

We first discovered Hearts For Hearts Girls a little more than a year ago. Alex really wanted a new doll for her birthday, but didn't want the new doll to be her only birthday present. We went looking for some affordable, quality options for "big girl" dolls, and stumbled across the Hearts for Hearts Girls. At $28-$30, the dolls are reasonably priced. When I saw that they donate a portion of proceeds to World Vision, a ministry that we've supported for many years, I was hooked. 

 

The Hearts for Hearts girls each come with a mini storybook that tells their story. Alex chose Consuelo, who is from Mexico. Her parents run a bakery and Consuelo comes up with the idea for how they can help feed the hungry kids in her neighborhood. We love that the Hearts for Hearts Girls are such great role models and help to inspire girls to change the world around them. 

 

When Hearts for Hearts girls contacted us about having a party to share our love for these dolls, we were super excited! We were sent a doll for Alex & Emily to enjoy and another doll to give away at our party. The girls quickly fell in love with Nahji, who is from India. We decided to give away Lauryce, who is one of the newest Hearts For Hearts Girls. 

Lauryce, from New Orleans

At our party, we served beignets & Cafe Du Monde coffee (just for the mommies!) in honor of Lauryce's hometown of New Orleans. We also had Indian Mac & Cheese bites. Speaking of the moms, they all loved the message behind the Hearts For Hearts Girls. 

We were sent some "passports" for each girl to decorate and put stickers in. The passports showed how to say hello in each language that the Hearts For Hearts Girls speak. But mostly, the party was filled with lots of playing! The girls all loved the Hearts For Hearts Girls dolls. 

Unlike some other dolls geared towards girls this age, Hearts For Hearts girls come with several accessories and have many small touches to make them unique and fun. For example, Nahji wears a choker and earrings, as well as a pearl headband. She also has strappy sandals, gold bangle bracelets, and a nose piercing. 

Nahji's nose piercing

She even has a henna tattoo on her hand! 

Nahji's henna tattoo

We were sent two bracelets for each girl at the party, so they could each keep one and take the other home to share with a friend. Each girl also received a coupon to get a discount off of the purchase of her very own Hearts For Hearts Girl doll. All of the girls were talking about which doll they wanted!

Dell & Nahji ready to hand out bracelets to our guests

We really love our Hearts For Hearts Girls and highly recommend them.  

I was selected to be a MommyParties host as part of a promotional program with MomSelect. All opinions are my own.

Oliver's Labels {Review}

I like labeling things, especially things that might get lost. I quickly found that Sharpies may be permanent on clothing, but will quickly fade on a sippy cup or bottle. 

Oliver's Labels are the most unique labels I have found! I love their bright and fun designs for kids. They offer photo labels that you can customize with your child's picture. They also offer allergy labels, something I wish I had found several years ago when my daughter had multiple severe food allergies. They even offer designs that are perfect for labeling items that belong to teenagers and adults. 

We received a sample pack of labels in the Sea Life design that included original labels, mini labels, Stick-eez clothing labels, and shoe labels. I love the vibrant colors and adorable little sea creatures. These labels are microwave and dishwasher safe and look great even after repeated washings. The colors are just as vibrant as the day we first received them. 

I didn't think we would use the shoe labels. I had seen shoe labels before and wondered what kinds of kids needed labels in their shoes to keep from losing them. Apparently, kids like Jaxon! 

He is awful about taking his shoes off -he is especially prone to removing (and losing) the right shoe! I'm glad to know that if he loses one at church, someone will know who it belongs to and will return it to us. The labels are cute, and he loves them! He points at them and says "neem" (name).

The clothing labels are neat in that you don't have to iron or sew them on. They stick securely to the tag of the garment. Perfect for daycare or school. The great thing is when you're done and ready to pass on or sell the item, you can just remove the label. For someone like me who likes to consign clothing, that's a great feature!

Oliver's Labels also offer a very unique (and free) service called "Found It." If you choose, they will add a found it code to each of your labels. If an item is found by someone else, they can visit Oliver's Labels website and enter the code on the labels. 

Oliver's Labels will then notify you that the item has been found and will even act as an intermediary between you and the person who found the item so you do not have to share your personal information. I didn't add this to our labels, since I'm using the labels for things like sippy cups, but this would be a nice addition to things that older kids lose often at school that are not as easily replaced. 

The only thing I didn't like about these labels is that they are difficult to peel away from the paper backing. They are extremely thin, which makes them look very nice on your possessions and less "sticker like", but that makes them harder (at least compared to other labels I have used) to peel. Keep in mind that I am Shaky Mommy, lol, and fine motor skills are not something I excel at, so you may not have this same issue. 

Right now Oliver's Labels is offering free shipping on orders over $30! 

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

Creativity for Kids Craft Kits Review & Giveaway

My kids love doing crafts. Me, not so much. I am not creative and have trouble coming up with creative crafts that we actually have the supplies for. So I was  very excited to receive the Creativity for Kids craft kits. We received the Tile Art Necklaces, Deluxe Glitter Art, and Mossy Meadows Gnome Garden.

The first thing I loved about these kits was that everything you need is in the box. Creativity for Kids has made sure that everything you need is in the box, including detailed directions. The Tile Art Necklaces even included a pair of scissors for trimming the ribbon. We don't often have time to do crafts without Jaxon getting into everything. So when he naps, we need to use that time to actually create, not gather supplies from different rooms of the house. 

This kit is labeled ages 8-98. However, the girls (ages 9 & almost 8) needed lots of help from me to make these. It was pretty involved. 

For slightly older girls, this would be a great party activity since the kit includes enough supplies to make 8 necklaces. Just make sure you let the necklaces dry overnight before wearing them. The girls really wanted to wear their necklaces just a few hours after we made them and the clasp came apart from the tile because the glue was not fully dry.  

While they worked on their necklaces, I put Britain to work on the Mossy Meadows Gnome Garden (he said that glitter art and necklace making was too girly). He started by painting the base that the grass would grow in.  

Then, he painted the rocks and little house and once he was done painting, we had to let everything dry. The next day, we came back and added the soil, planted the grass seed, and set up the little Gnome Garden, complete with tiny ladybugs. 

It's been 14 days and now look what we have! How cool is that? We have loved watching the garden grow. I'd buy another one of these -the kids have really enjoyed watching the grass grow and playing with the little gnomes. I know they'd love to each plant their own garden next time. 

The Deluxe Glitter Art Kit is full of everything you need to decorate trinket boxes, gift tags, greeting cards, and envelopes. There's glitter glue, glitter stickers, glitter paper, and more. If you like sparkly things, this is the kit for you! This kit has a lot in it and there's plenty for more than one crafting session. You'll have the chance to win this kit below!
 Connect with Creativity for Kids on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest. 

One lucky reader will win two craft kits: the Deluxe Glitter Art Kit and the Beach Buddies Shells Craft Kit. Enter using the easy Rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway



I received free products to test as part of a promotional program with MomSelect and Faber-Castell. All opinions are my own.

Bees, Teeth, and Mommy Instincts

I've always known I'd do anything to help my kids, without hesitation, even if it meant putting myself in harm's way. That's just part of being a mom, right? I've never really had a chance to put it to the test, though, until this past Sunday.

Britain and Emily were playing outside in the backyard. I was in the kitchen and heard Britain start screaming hysterically. He and Emily were running around and appeared to be playing tag or chasing each other. But, as Britain turned, I saw a look of sheer terror on his face. I immediately ran outside to help him, thinking he had stepped in an ant bed. But as I got closer to him, I saw he was being attacked by bees! Emily was 30-40 feet away and appeared to be fine. I immediately began grabbing the bees off of Britain and crushing them between my fingers and hands. There were so many that swatting them away wasn't helping at all - they were just coming right back. Killing them was the only way to stop them from stinging. Jason had also come outside to see what was going on and he was getting attacked as well. Britain and Jason are both very allergic to bees, so I was terrified for them.

We began to try to get back to the house. Jason went inside and got the Benadryl out. The bees were all in Britain's clothes, so I was trying to get his clothes off of him while shepherding him to the back door. I managed to get his shirt off and kill a few more bees, but then Britain started to fall. I caught him, and managed to keep him from falling, but the momentum I used to keep him up caused me to fall. I fell flat on my face, hitting the sidewalk. I heard my tooth crack as I hit the sidewalk.

It all happened so fast, and yet, it felt like it took forever to get inside. Alex helped me get Benadryl into Britain (who was still hysterical). Emily had been stung twice so I gave her Benadryl as well. I put Britain in the shower to make sure all the bees were off of him, then went back to the kitchen. We had come in the sliding door and we let a lot of bees in with us. I killed at least 40 bees within minutes of being inside. I went to check on Jason. He had run back to the bedroom, since he had already been stung dozens of times and couldn't risk being stung anymore. When I opened the door, Jason yelled that I was letting bees in. They were all over me. I had been so busy killing them on the counter, in the air, and on the windows that I never even noticed they were all in my hair and inside my clothes. Jason rescued Jaxon (who had been sleeping) from the room and I began killing more bees. I have never seen so many bees before. I killed another 30 bees and finally got them out of my hair and clothes.  

Britain was still hysterical, and so after getting him out of the shower, I examined him to see if he needed to go to the emergency room. A quick check revealed only 4 stings, which was nothing short of a miracle considering how many bees were all over him when I reached him. I still don't know how he managed to avoid being stung more than that. A quick call to the doctor confirmed that Benadryl was enough for him & Emily. They were both okay the next morning. Jason has large red welts where he received multiple stings close together in some areas. 

It wasn't until later that we realized these were yellowjackets. Apparently, Jason and Britain are not allergic to yellowjackets like they are to honeybees. This is what saved Jason, since the number of stings he received would have landed him in the hospital had they been honeybees.

Reflecting back on this, I've realized how my mommy instincts kicked in for this situation. I don't like to go outside without shoes on. We have chickens in the backyard who poop everywhere. But I flew out the door without even thinking about putting on shoes. I don't like to kill bugs. I usually call Jason to handle that. I definitely don't kill bugs with my hands! Ever. But I killed scores of yellowjackets with my bare hands, not even thinking that they might sting me. I was just in the mode of "Must Save Britain" and completely unfocused on saving myself (as evidenced by the fact that I was still being stung even after everyone else was safe and dosed with Benadryl). 

I ended up with dozens of stings. I have stings on the ends of almost all of my fingers, all over my hands, my chest, my hips, back, and legs. I broke my tooth and busted my chin, lip, and knee when I fell. I look like I've been in a fight...and lost. My tooth...well, my tooth is bad. 

All banged up

I saw the dentist today and he said my tooth had been crushed to the bone. It will have to be removed later this week. I'll get a temporary tooth, and later, a permanent fake tooth as a replacement. For now, the dentist was able to remove the nerve so I'm not in pain anymore. He also fashioned a temporary fix to make my tooth look more normal until I can get to the oral surgeon for the extraction. 

I'm not looking forward to this process :(