I want to start by announcing the Kroger Winner. Random.org selected comment # 36 which is Lisa G! Congrats. I will email you soon for contact information!

On to preschool mishaps! Monday was the first day of preschool for #4. He was ready for the day, dressed in new clothes, hair brushed, teeth brushed, new Target shoes  (Grandma bought his new shoes for school at Target. He loves them and thinks that the fact that they are Target shoes makes them extra special.) I had the camera in my purse, ready to  record the day for his scrapbook… But as we arrived at the preschool we discovered that he had forgotten his book bag… This, of course, was devastating and he just could NOT go to his first day of preschool without his book bag (The book bag is an important part of preschool. They use it to bring home their projects from the day as well as acting as the pathway of communication for the school and parents.) Needless to say, we had to turn around, go home and find the missing book bag. By the time we returned to preschool, we were 10 minutes late and class was already in session. We had to rush him in, which of course resulted in a balling session that lasted about 15-20 minutes, but eventually resolved itself before the end of the day. But, the end result was a total lack of first day pictures…I know…and I call myself a scrapbooker.

Another bit of excitement from the past week was a visit from my grandmother (who resides in Texas).  The two little boys and I were able to spend a great deal of time with her and my mom, while the older kids were in school. We visited two places in the Salt Lake City area that, even though we have lived in Utah for four and a half years now, we had yet to visit. Our first stop was last Thursday at This is The Place Heritage Park.  The park like a museum, but set up like a village to replicate what life was like during the time when Salt Lake was being settled. It was a fun place to visit, and we were incredibly lucky because a University of Utah Student was doing their Master’s Thesis at the time, and in exchange for taking a survey at the end of our visit and allowing a docent to take us on a personal tour of the park, we got our entry for free! Yep, SCORE big time!

Our next trip was this past Tuesday to Thanksgiving Point. They were having their final $2 Tuesday of the summer, so the place was packed, but the kids had a blast. Thanksgiving Point is a group of attractions including Gardens, a Museum of Ancient History, a Farm Life park and more. We chose to check out the Farm Life park and the Museum of Ancient History.  We started with the Farm Life park where the kids saw farm animals and enjoyed a ride on a large wagon pulled by a tractor.

Here’s my little guy looking through the fence..he was trying to get a closer look at the pigs:

At the end of our visit to the Farm Life park my mom bought each of them a cute little tractor to take home.

By the end of our visit to the Farm Life park we were ready for lunch (was it looking at all of the cows that got us thinking hamburgers and ice cream…hmm..maybe) so we headed to a local fast food place to get some lunch before making our way to the Museum of Ancient History (with two little boys, how could we NOT take them to see the dinosaurs?). My sister was able to meet us for our visit to see the dinosaurs so we had a little time outside the museum while we waited for her to arrive…the boys found a rock on which to play and I snapped a couple of photos..here’s both of them acting cute

Finally we made our way to the museum and the boys had a great time looking at all of the dinosaur bones (ok so they were mostly all replicas of dinosaur bones, but shhhh don’t tell the boys.) #4 had a great time digging for fossils:

Grandma headed back home yesterday and I know some little boys who will sure miss having her here with them! Thanks for visiting Grandma and thanks for all of the fun Mom!

Come back tomorrow for the return of Fitness Friday! I have a fabulous product to review (and I might just have some to share)!

Monday was the day that I have been longing for for weeks now…THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. Yes, I admit it, I was anxiously awaiting the return of school. With five kids ranging in age from 2.5 to 10, trying to accomplish anything with them all home all day, everyday is pretty near impossible.  So now I have three of my children in school all day, and starting next week I will also have one in preschool three days a week in the mornings. I am definitely enjoying having time with just my younger guys, and I can definitely get more accomplished (like maybe posting to this blog..yeah…that would be a good thing).

Unfortunately my children usually bring home more than just homework when they go to school. They bring home a lovely collection of germs… like those that cause colds, the flu, pink eye, strep throat, etc!

With nearly 22 million school days lost each year due to the common cold and flu (CDC) and as many as 2.7 million bacterial found per square inch on common school surfaces (NSF International), it’s no wonder that 82 percent of parents with kids in grades K-5 fret about the germs in their children’s classrooms (according to a survey conducted by Seventh Generation).

This school year, Seventh Generation is sharing tips from best-selling author and pediatrician, Dr. Alan Greene, to help parents protect their child’s health during back-to-school season. Dr. Greene suggests taking the following precautions:

Optimize the immune system

• Reap the benefits of probiotics like those found in yogurt. A recent study showed that children who received enough probiotics daily throughout the cold and flu season had a significant reduction in the number of illnesses they had and, when they did get sick, the symptoms were both milder and didn’t last as long.
• Be sure your child is getting plenty of vitamin D from the sun, from food, or from a supplement.
• Build a strong foundation. Good food, good sleep, and good physical activity all help the immune system to flourish.

Be wise about reducing unnecessary exposure to harmful germs

• Teach children the key times to clean their hands in the classroom. The most important times include after sneezing, coughing or using the restroom, upon leaving “high-risk” places (recess, naptime, play stations) and before meals or snacks.
• Sixty percent of teachers surveyed said that they request that parents donate disinfecting wipes to the classroom. Seventh Generation’s disinfecting wipes kill 99.99% of germs* naturally using the active ingredient thyme, a component of thyme oil which is derived from the herb thyme.
• Stress the importance of not touching their eyes, nose or mouth. Germs are often spread when a person touches something that is contaminated with germs and then touches his or her eyes, nose, or mouth.
• Demonstrate to your children how to cover their mouth and nose for every cough and sneeze. This simple maneuver has spectacular results in decreasing the spread of viruses and bacteria floating about the room, waiting to be inhaled.

*Refer to disinfecting product labels for full details

You can watch this short video about the history of germs:

Seventh Generation was generous enough to send me this great kit to help combat the germs in my house  and they have one for a lucky reader as well. Each kit includes a Seventh Generation backpack, two canisters of Seventh Generation disinfecting wipes (one for home and one to donate to your child’s classroom), disinfecting multi-surface spray cleaner, facial tissue and paper towels.

Here’s how to win (US entries only please)

1- (Mandatory, must be done for bonus entries to count) Share your tips for keeping your kids healthy and germ free

Bonus Entries:

2. Follow Sticky Fingerprints through Google Friend Connect and leave a comment (please list your Google name if it is different than shown)

3. Follow Sticky Fingerprints on Twitter

4. Link to this giveaway on your blog and/or on twitter (and leave me a link where I can find it; one entry each) (if tweeting, please include #myblogspark and @SeventhGen)  #

5. Add Sticky Fingerprints to your blog roll

6. Connect with Seventh Generation either on facebook or twitter and leave a comment with your twitter name or first name and last initial for facebook.

All entries must be received by 11:59 PM Mountain Time on September 8th. Winner will be selected at random and posted on the blog as well as contacted by email. Winner will then have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.

Kroger wants to help you earn Box Tops for your school! Now through September 8th, 2010 you can earn bonus box tops when you purchase participating General Mills products. You can earn 25 bonus Box tops when you purchase any 8 participating items or 10 Bonus Box tops for purchasing any 4 participating items (Bonus Box tops will be awarded in the form of a printed certificate that you in turn redeem at the Reward Your School website). And to make it better, these items will also have box tops on them that you can turn in to your school!

In order to participate, you will need to head to www.RewardYourSchool.com and register. Then simply scan your Kroger (or shopping card from your local Kroger family store, here in Utah we have Smiths) shopping card and your reward will print automatically.  Hurry, though, because this deal won’t last long (you have until September 8th)!

Thanks to My Blog Spark, one lucky reader will win a $25 gift card to spend at Kroger.

Here’s how to win (US addresses only, please):

1 (Mandatory Entry): Head to the  Reward Your School website and tell me which 4 General Mills Products you would buy for your reward.

Bonus Entries:

2. Follow Sticky Fingerprints through Google Friend Connect and leave a comment (please list your Google name if it is different than shown)

3. Follow Sticky Fingerprints on Twitter

4. Link to this giveaway on your blog and/or on twitter (and leave me a link where I can find it; one entry each)

5. Add Sticky Fingerprints to your blog roll

All entries must be received by 11:59 PM Mountain Time on August 31st. Winner will be selected at random and posted on the blog as well as contacted by email. Winner will then have 72 hours to respond or a new winner will be selected.