So this week I’ve had the urge to be a bit crafty. I think it might be the “unplugged” theme going on in my town right now. Recently we all received a calendar full of fun, family-oriented activities that are of an unplugged, old-fashioned nature. And I’m all for it. I even busted out the sewing machine (ok, so that’s technically electric) to sew a couple of baby gifts for friends. And I actually know how to use the machine thanks to a sewing class I took at a local fabric store years back when I got laid off from a dot com. No paycheck and no job = learn to sew a dress. Perfect.

Anyhoo, in the middle of this crafty urge, my son requested we make our own stuffed animal because he saw an episode of “Little Bear” where they did the same (greeeeeeeat). So, off we trekked to the fabric store (bad idea) to get fabric for his stuffed worm (he chose a lovely camouflage waffle cotton print) where we slowly steered through the narrow aisles of precariously stacked columns of fabric. And note for future fabric shoppers - the neatly stacked display of colorful thread spools? Total kid cat nip. Avoid at all costs.

So that was my crafty outburst #1. (My son and his worm “Icabod” are having a ball by the way).

Then today, late this afternoon after a long, fun playdate with friends and some time to kill before dinner, I came up with a game…Sneeze Ball. Yup, as if we didn’t have to worry about germs enough. We pretend we’re about to sneeze (by saying “Ah, Ah, Ah”), then, as we throw the ball, we act like we just projected a big sneeze that’s actually propelling the ball, and instead of saying “Ah-choo,” we yell out a silly four-five-syllable word, such as “Snuffalofagus!” or “Zaboomafoo!” And the kids LOVE it. Giggles all around.

Two successful unplugged activities under my belt. The town recreation department would be so proud. Even if one of them does require hand sanitizer.

So finally, to add some physical activity to the mix today, I suggest a little pre-dinner dance party. And since the living room coffee table had been cleared away thanks to some earlier fort-making, the dance floor was calling. We pop in the “Happy Feet” soundtrack (awesome by the way) and we go nuts. We’re dancing, I’m showing off my moves from “Cardio Jam” at the gym. And because my daughter thinks my big head of unruly hair is hilarious, I’m shaking it like a lunatic (or like a reject from “So You Think You Can Dance”) and she’s on the floor, rolling around laughing…I bend down to tickle her, my big hair dangling above her face. But my son, unbeknownst to me, has swooped in below me and “WHAM!”…my face meets the back of his head. Ouch. Unplugged party foul for sure.

He cries.
I wince in pain and hope my tooth isn’t cracked.
He’s fine.
I have a cut inside my upper lip.
I grab ice.
We turn the music off.

So as luck would have it, I discovered another unplugged activity… the sudden-impact-non-collagen-non-injection-lip-enhancement! My lips are so Angelina Jolie now! Only it’s just the right side of my upper lip. Oh well.

We had fun. We sewed. We sneezed. We slam-danced. And we were totally unplugged. So mission accomplished!

And I can tell you this…I bet Brad Pitt has never played Sneeze Ball.