TGIF!

I found out today that Lily loves stickers and just one will keep her entertained for a good while. She stuck that sucker to every surface possible then sat it down next to her like an old pal on her little couch while she drank her cup and watch Sesame Street. I also learned that just like popsicles and forts, stickers are not (sticky) forever and if Mommy's OCD kicks in and accidentily scoops up said sticker and tosses it, a minor meltdown might occur. Gotta stock up on stickers ASAP.

Happy Friday!

Paper Plate Crafts

When I taught preschool, the pickings were slim in our supply closet. If you found enough of the same size construction paper for a project it was a miracle, and if it matched you had better go play the lottery. Needless to say, the paper I did buy (from the good old Dollar Store) for my projects and class were kept in my teaching bag in my closet unless someone asked nicely. On the days were the kids were crazy or I didn’t have a specific project planned, I would pull out some tempera paint, foam brushes, and some paper plates and let the kids paint away. Most of those brightly colored circles became things like suns, flowers, even a seahorse. I bought a pack of paper plates the other week from the Dollar Store and have started doing the same thing with Lily and Tristan.

We started our weekly shape lessons with circles, so we painted our plates red and glued black paper circles and some googley on them to make lady bugs! This week for our triangle project, we painted two different plates two different colors, and I cut out three triangles from said plates. We glued them together, added a googley eye and it became a triangle fish! These are easy and simple projects that don’t take much prep at all, are easy to put together, and are slightly sturdier than regular paper. I need to brainstorm some more ideas for the other shapes.

Valentine's Day Project!

My quick and easy Valentine’s Day project came out better than I expected! I found mini canvases at Michael’s for cheap and I used some red finger paint I already had. The kids love getting their feet painted and just giggle the whole time. Or whine until it’s their turn. Lily’s first print smeared but I just wiped the slate clear with a diaper wipe. Oh the perks of tempra paint! I added some ribbon to the top so they could be hung up and voila! Simple, easy, and cute! 

Mom brain occurrences & the bishes...

When one of your legitimate questions that pop into your head while zoning out is “how much does the Dinosaur Train cost because not only do they use it every day, it goes through different time periods?!?” and you start to compare it to prices/experiences of your own using public transportation, it might be time for a vacation. Or at least a mom’s day out.

That thought did pop into my head on Friday. I am not ashamed to admit it. Both kids were contently immersed in their own activities and I was zoning out watching children’s television (which happens a little more than I would like to admit). These things happen. Good thing the weekend brought some fun adventures, shopping, and some family time.

We had a fun morning Saturday at the aquarium with Julie and Alyssa. We got there right after opening so we were able to let Lily loose to explore the eye level tanks. It was very nice to have 4 adults + Lily because one person could push the stroller, and the other three could chase her and show her the fishes. Or as she tends to call them, “bishes”. That girl loves her bishes. We are very fortunate to have a family pass to the Adventure Aquarium in Camden. We can bring two guests for free, so it has already paid itself off. I wish the area was nicer and not so scary, but it’s a great place for a morning trip. We’ve been there enough to know what we want to see and the best order to do it in. It gets better each time we go because Lily gets more and more exciting. She was pointing and squealing and trying to get the kids around her as pumped as she was. It was adorable.

My second mom-brain incident occurred Saturday afternoon at Kohl’s. I had a coupon for 20% off when you spent $100, and we had $50 in Kohl’s cash. Sidebar…if you are paying full price for anything in that store, you are a fool. There is always a coupon, a steal, or a reward. Anyway, I found two pairs of jeans that actually fit and somewhat flatter me, a pair of Chuck’s for $25, and some summer clothes for Lily that were under a buck a piece. Jordan threw in a pair of jeans so we met our $100 goal. The cashier rings us up, applies our coupon, and I hand over the Kohl’s cash…that starts the next day. I was so disappointed because our haul was actually stuff I wasn’t disappointed with. The kid was very nice and called his manager over to see what could be done, and the manager (who is always very helpful there) let us apply our cash because we had earned it the week before. It’s that kind of thing that helps me remember not all people are turds.

And so the new week begins. My to do list for this week needs to be written up. It includes Kara’s handmade shower presents (more on that soon), some cleaning and reorganizing, bill paying, mommy lesson planning, and maybe some crafting.

Have a good week!

Life Hacks Wanted!

I am all about finding ways to consolidate my junk and organize my life. We live with Jordan’s parents, so we have our room and Lily’s room to ourselves for our personal things, and then downstairs is where most of Lily’s toys reside. I have tried to keep everything as neat and organized as can be. It gets a little tricky downstairs in the family room where everyone always ends up sitting. Before Christmas, I went through all the toys the kids hadn’t played with in a while and boxed them up for the attic. I bought plastic bins from the dollar store and used my new label maker to sort and organize the smaller toys we have downstairs, like Lily’s “people” (FP Little People) and rattles/teethers.

My latest life hack concerns something I am sure we all have an abundance of somewhere. Possibly stuffed in a plastic bag. Yes, you guessed it. The handy dandy plastic bag full of other plastic bags. I am working with very little in the closet space department (more on that shortly) so the plastic bags floating around in there had to go. Even stuffed in a larger bag they take up too much room. So I bought contact paper from the Dollar Store, washed out an old boogie wipes container (any cylinder will do), and stuffed as many bags in there as I could. I slapped a label on it just in case someone was wary of opening it up, and voila. I can store this under the bathroom sink now or even out on my dresser.

As for my closet…eek. It needs help. Major help. I have been trying to brainstorm and rework it at least once a week and bit by bit it’s coming together. I have two wide plastic 3 drawer dodads in there that house my underwear, bras, tank tops, t-shirts (long and short sleeve) and all my yoga pants. It’s a tight squeeze and a little shaky, but it works since I don’t have any dresser space (I let Jordan keep his dresser since I just about took over the rest of his room). My sister in law Aubrey introduced me to the magic of a tension rod and let me in on her boot keeping secret. She will stick a tension rod anywhere and hang shoes from it. Boots are easiest, and she uses kid sized pants/skirt hangers. I don’t really have the space in my closet, but I have one jammed in between the wall and the huge hot water pipe that’s in there. It’s working for now.

Well back to the lovely task of putting away my laundry. I can, for the moment, say I have three empty baskets...only because I have Lily’s outfit from today laying on my bedroom floor.

Until next time!