All Year Round week twenty three: 7 Summer Outdoor Games for Children

Here are some of the great posts shared at the All Year Round Blog Carnival with ideas for summer outdoor games for children. You can see more summer posts, and join us, at the Summer Carnival which is open for new links until 31st August. You can find out more about All Year Round here and also follow All Year Round on Pinterest.

The Indian Paintbrush Game and more games including a Neighborhood Photo Scavenger Hunt, Flying a Kite and Pooh Sticks at All Things Beautiful


Kick the Can, Swinging and Marbles and more games to celebrate National Backyard Games Week at famiglia&seoul


Playground Scavenger Hunt at KC Edventures


Chalk Letter Games at Tea For Monkeys


Constructing a Quick Outdoor Fort at Tea For Monkeys


A Mud Fight at The Mahogany Way


The Most Fantastic Bubble Wand + Recipe at My Chocolate Pieces


If your post is featured today you're very welcome to get a "Featured On" button for your blog.

125x125

<a href="http://sunnydaytodaymama.blogspot.com/search/label/all%20year%20round" target="_blank"><img alt="sunnydaytodaymama" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/bonitaz/sunnydaytodaymama/featuredonayrsummerbutton125.jpg" /></a>

150x150

<a href="http://sunnydaytodaymama.blogspot.com/search/label/all%20year%20round" target="_blank"><img alt="sunnydaytodaymama" src="http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y137/bonitaz/sunnydaytodaymama/featuredonayrsummerbutton150.jpg" /></a>

week fourteen: 7 Ways to Get Ready For Summer
week fifteen: 7 Summer Ideas for Children
week sixteen: 7 Summer Nature Projects
week seventeen: 7 Summer Water Play Activities
week eighteen: 7 Summer Things To Do Outdoors
week nineteen: 7 Summer and Summer Solstice Crafts for All Ages
week twenty: 7 Summer Book Lists and Literacy Projects
week twenty one: 7 Summer Nature Crafts
week twenty two: 7 Summer Nature Walks
week twenty three: 7 Summer Outdoor Games for Children
week twenty four: 7 Summer Garden Projects
week twenty five: 7 Summer Crafts for Children
week twenty six: 7 Summer Picnics and Days Out
week twenty seven: 7 Summer Ideas for All Ages
week twenty eight: 7 Blogs in Summer

Carnival co-hosts:
sunnydaytodaymama, Mama Smiles, Winding Circle,
The Mahogany Way, Smiling like Sunshine, Home Baked,
famiglia&seoul, All Things Beautiful, Like Mama~Like Daughter,
Plain Vanilla Mom, Little Homeschool Blessings, Simple Whimsy,
2 Big, 2 Little, jabberwocky

Always in our thoughts

Thinking today, and everyday, of our little fighter and all our babies.
We miss them.

Where there's tea there's hope

The last time I posted a picture as part of my Sharing Hope series was during the two week wait of my last IVF cycle that ended in an ectopic pregnancy. When we lost our little fighter it felt like I also lost the last of the hope that I'd been holding on to, that if I tried hard enough eventually I'd be able to give Sunnyboy a sibling. I felt I couldn't grieve properly for our lost babies and still have the strength to carry on trying, and face another IVF cycle. But I did grieve and still am, and so is Sunnyboy, and I've been coming to terms with Sunnyboy most likely remaining an only child while my heart aches because I know how much he wants to be a big brother. Now that I'm so close to another due date without a baby my hope is finally starting to return, just a little, but it's a different hope. It's a hope that I find the strength to try again and that whatever happens, and even without ever being able to have another baby and a brother or sister for Sunnyboy, we will be OK. Because we are OK. We're happy and we're enjoying the good days.

So here's my new hope t-shirt and if you'd like to share images and words of hope too I'd love you to put a link to your post in the comments.





I've submitted this post to the PAIL Bloggers (Pregnant and/or Parenting through Adoption/Infertility/Loss) July 2012 - monthly theme post - family building and Stirrup Queens 2012 Creme de la Creme List.

Make Me Smile (after an ectopic pregnancy)

When I walked back into the waiting room minutes after my last IVF embryo transfer, with two day 5 embryos (blastocysts) in my uterus, "Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me)" was playing on the radio. I told my little ones that this would always be our song.

After a two week wait that ended in tears and more tears, and then a miracle, the time that I was pregnant was extremely anxious but very special. I had a little fighter and I had hope, although I knew it was a very fragile hope. I had an ultrasound scan booked for day 31 and the day before the scan I heard our song on the radio again. Sunnyboy and I were at work stocking the toy shelves with soft toys when it came on and at that moment I knew in my heart that I was going to lose our little fighter too.

The next day after the scan, finding out the pregnancy was ectopic, being admitted to hospital and then discharging myself to come home and pack a bag, I sat down and cried until I was ready to face phoning a taxi to go back to hospital. While I sat at home crying I posted our song for our baby and said goodbye. Then I came home from hospital two days later without a baby.

I should be nine months pregnant now. I'm not. I don't get to give birth to and hold that baby but we still have our song. A song that always makes me cry and smile for a baby that Sunnyboy and I will always miss and love.

Thank you little fighter. You make me smile.