Parenting Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Life in the DayngrZone

Daddy Daughter Spa Day

{ March 24, 2013 } - Trish

This weekend my little one has been feeling pretty icky. Her brother got to have a play-date yesterday and because she was sick, she wasn’t able to join in on the fun. But being under the weather doesn’t mean she can’t have fun at home. She hatched a plan to get her daddy to have a daddy-daughter spa day today, since she was stuck at home. She convinced him to paint her nails and in turn, she would get to paint his. I have to say, I was pretty amazed to see their pretty purple and pink nails. Never underestimate the power a little girl has over her daddy.

Pretty darn cute, isn’t it?

What fun things do you do when your kids are at home and feeling a bit unwell? I’d love to know.

Bigfoot, Monster Trucks and Life in North Carolina

{ November 11, 2012 } - Trish

Have You Ever Seen Bigfoot?

Not Bigfoot, the mythical creature, Bigfoot the monster truck!

We’re really getting into the swing of things here in North Carolina as we begin to build a life along the Crystal Coast. We went to see BIGFOOT for the grand opening of the Jacksonville, NC. Family Tire store! The kids had never seen a monster truck up close and personal so it was pretty exciting. After we arrived and had taken a few photos, Bella made me laugh out loud when she turned to me and said “Ok, when’s the show?” Turns out, that was what all their excitement was about. They thought there was going to be a giant monster truck rally of some sort where cars were going to be crushed. Don’t feel too sorry for them. They still had a good time. They got an autographed photo from Bigfoot’s driver and they got to drive a simulated race car. All in all, it was a fun day.

From Bigfoot to Mario Andretti

Earlier in the week, we went to the same location and they met Mario Andretti and got autographed pictures. It was a real treat since both of them are big fans of the Disney movie Cars. Now, that’s pretty cool. How many kids can say they’ve met Mario Andretti AND seen Bigfoot, too?

Family Tire, a Family Owned Business

Family Tire is a local family-owned business so, in the spirit of supporting small businesses, I’d encourage you to shop locally if you have tire needs. I’ve appreciated the family-friendly events they’ve created.

Jacksonville Family Tire
204 Yopp Road
Jacksonville, NC 28540
910-353-3700

Our First NC Halloween was a Success

{ November 2, 2012 } - Trish

Our first NC Halloween was a smashing success. As you can see by the photos below, even the moon and the trees were happy to give us the perfect spooky setting. The weather was great, too! It was truly a perfect night for going Trick or Treating with the kids – and we got SO many kids at the house. It was the best Halloween we all experienced. For me, it was like being a kid again. Good times!

I wish I could have gotten a better shot but I have no idea how to shoot in the dark and I definitely don’t have a telephoto lens. With that being said, here’s my best attempt to capture the spooky moon peeking through the trees.

Our First NC Halloween

Since it was our first NC Halloween we had to go all out. As you saw from my previous post, I made it fun for the kids by having cupcakes and cookies decorated for the evening. I also decorated inside and outside, though I will say, almost everything outside is done by their dad with me overseeing the project. It should be scary but not too scary for the little kids. We want everyone to have fun and a great memorable experience. Here’s what our house looked like to Trick or Treaters. Did you catch the glowing spider web in the upstairs window?

Isn’t this the cutest table cloth? I thought it was perfect for Halloween.

Upping the Spooky Factor

In addition to having some age-appropriate Halloween decor for the outside of our house, we even had a spooky character hanging around, too. If that isn’t one of the scariest. clowns I’ve ever seen I don’t know what is. EEK! Have no fear though, he only looked scary. He wasn’t jumping out and scaring the kids but he did peek out of the windows from time to time in an eery manner.

Here’s the spooky clown admiring our Halloween decorations. He thinks we did a pretty good job.

Our First NC Halloween was a Success

And finally, I think it’s safe to say the kids had a successful first REAL Halloween, here in North Carolina. Look at those bags! To give you an idea of the size, they’re the same size as the reusable grocery store bags. You can see they are almost filled all the way to the very top. There has got to be about 3 lbs of candy in there. So what did the Dayngrous Duo wear? He was Super Mario and she was a pretty little witch. Quotes to remember: She said “This is too much walking” and he said, “Do I have to wear this MOOSEtash?”

It really was a night to remember. First Halloween in our new house, first Halloween in NC, first Halloween in a neighborhood filled with kids, and certainly the first where it was actually chilly! It was a great night and we all had so much fun. Special shout out to my cousins who came by to see the kids in costume and a special shout out to Jen who spent the evening with us, and also had her very first Trick or Treating experience!

Can’t wait to do it again next year!

Happy Halloween, Crystal Coast

{ October 31, 2012 } - Trish

Happy Halloween, Crystal Coast! This is our very first Halloween in our new home here in North Carolina and the kids and I quite excited. They’re already dressed in their Halloween costumes (She’s a pretty witch and he’s Super Mario) and they’re chomping at the bit to get out and go door to door. What fun!

Halloween on the Crystal Coast is really different from Halloween in Miami. Here, each town sets a time to begin and a time to end. In Miami, you head out as soon as it begins to get dark and you don’t stop until people turn their porch or house lights off. Between you and me, I think it’s really odd to have set times. It kinda takes the fun out of it, but I’m sure they have their reasons.

The Dayngrous Duo has never really been trick or treating the traditional way as I did when I was a kid. Crazy, I know but I explained why in an earlier post titled Halloween Adventures in the DayngrZone. So, as you can imagine, this Halloween is going to extra special and they are thrilled to have the opportunity to go house to house in our great big, brand new neighborhood. What a wonderful and wholesome experience – finally!

First Halloween

To set the scene for the best Halloween ever I baked some cute cookies, which has become a sweet tradition. To add to that we’ve got cupcakes, appropriately decorated for the big night, and the kids decorated mini pumpkins. Why didn’t I take a picture?

Easy Halloween Cupcake Decorations

Want a tip for the easiest Halloween cupcake decorations ever? Buy or make some cupcakes. Buy frosting in the colors of your choice. Buy plastic Halloween rings at your favorite party store. Frost your cupcakes and push the rings into the frosting. That’s it! Easy peasy. Enjoy.

More First Crystal Coast Halloween Fun

To officially celebrate our first official Halloween on the Crystal Coast, I also made treat bags for the kids in the neighborhood. They’re really cute. One side says Boo and the other is clear so you can see the contents inside. I found them at our local part store in Swansboro called Carolina Party, they’ve got everything.

I filled the bags with fun things like Halloween erasers, pencils, vampire teeth, rubber bracelets, and bubbles! Everyone loves bubbles. Aren’t they cute?

I’m looking forward to seeing how many kids we get coming to the house. We’ve bought a few bags of candy so we’ll see if we run out or have a bunch of candy leftover.

Do you get a lot of trick or treaters at your house? Does your town create set times for trick or treating? Let me know! I’d love to hear from you.

Have a safe and fun Halloween!

Click the photo below to read the blog post and see how our First NC Halloween turned out –

MacDaddy’s – Family Fun on the Crystal Coast

{ July 25, 2012 } - Trish

One of the great things about moving to a new area is getting to explore. If you’re a long time follower of this blog, you already know I make weekends an adventure even if we don’t leave our own city. Here are a few photos from a fun place we found in Cape Carteret, North Carolina called “MacDaddys.”

MacDaddy’s – Family Fun on the Crystal Coast

It’s a fun little spot with plenty to do indoors and out. Inside, they’ve got a general area bowling alley and a smaller VIP bowling alley that you can reserve for parties, billiard tables, two dining areas, and plenty of kid-friendly and family-friendly arcade games (though not exactly budget-friendly if you’re used to $20 keeping the kids entertained for a few hours like at Chuck-E-Cheese). With that being said, you can still have a good time without going broke. Looking for a place to have a kid’s party? They have party rooms you can reserve.

This is the larger bowling alley –

This is the VIP bowling alley –

Thinking more of the adult kind of fun? They also have a full bar for the grown-ups and their pool tables are in this area, too. They also have plenty of big screen TVs for watching sporting events and lots of seating.

Family-Friendly Dining at MacDaddy’s

If you love finger food they have a great selection. They have a small dining area in the arcade area and a larger one with a bar toward the back. On the menu, you can find items like tacos, burgers, hot dogs, chicken, chicken fingers, and fries. You can’t go wrong bringing the kids here. The food is good and the kids will certainly be entertained. Here’s a picture of their delicious beer-battered mushrooms. I can honestly say they are the best I’ve ever had, and I’m already dying to go back for more.

MacDaddy’s Family Fun Outdoors

Outside, there’s mini-golf, batting cages, a driving range, bumper boats, and go-karts. Tons of fun for just about anyone. The Dayngrous Duo loved it and they’re sure glad we live close enough to visit regularly.