Back to School Wardrobe: Planning Update {kids clothes}

I know it's not back to school anymore. It's already nearing the end of the semester! But... Back in August I talked about the kids' clothes for going back to school and looked at different planning tools/worksheets with which to build their capsule wardrobe for school. You can check out that post here.

To be honest, that post super stressed me out. documenting what the kids had and trying to find the holes (which is what I have been attempting for my own wardrobe for the past, I don't know, 4 years?)... I gave up documenting the girls' clothes. We are blessed to receive hand-me-downs and it's not necessary at all. Through the good graces of friends, we have not needed anything for them.

My oldest is in need of clothes, however. I was still overwhelmed by trying to document and find holes in his wardrobe. Totally overkill for a 7-year-old who still has tons of shirts he has yet to grow out of and a taste as simple as {tee + pant + shoe} and an aversion to layering shirts. No button-ups over graphic tees, or graphic tees over polos here. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that maybe he might decide to try that combo. I always thought it looked rather sharp.

The simplest approach for this mom of 4 is simply, did we make it through the week without the blaring "mom, I have no clean pants!!!"? I've since put a box in the kids' closets and much better about telling them to take off what they are wearing if it doesn't fit and put it into that box.

We've since made it to the point where he is in need of pants (about another 2 pairs). I got lucky with clearance items at both Target and Walmart, but since have stopped looking. He could probably use a khaki pair and another blue denim. He has blue denim (2) and a black denim (1).

He is also in need of another 2-3 long sleeve shirts. He currently has 2 graphic tees (1 is getting a bit snug) and a long sleeve school shirt.

So, I'm making a plan. I miss sewing. I want to sew him a couple shirts, and maybe store buy another 1 (or 2).

Shirt 1:
He likes Spock from Star Trek (the original series) and a shirt for that would be awesome.

Looking at this picture, I am thinking a raglan maybe modified with a v-neck but without the high neckline. It's moments like this where I wish I had an embroidery machine, or cricut maker, or silhouette. The symbol will have to be freezer paper stenciled on.

Shirt 2:
He likes Pokemon. Now, with it being super popular I was hoping to find a shirt like this in kids sizing. I have not had luck in my semi-non-thorough search.

I will use a basic long sleeve shirt pattern and color block in the black, red, and white parts. I am thinking either applique the circle, or sew a set in circle. either are an option.

Shirt 3:
Who doesn't love comic characters? DC or Marvel, gotta love them all. Flash seemed fun (plus Sheldon had a few Big Bang Theory episodes where he "ran fast in the flash costume" according to N.
Now picture something like this...

in this pattern

It's the Thumbs Up Tee by OUSM Designs. (Feeling Nostalgic at the moment. Seriously, my little boy was so cute!) I will be freezer paper stenciling the symbol on the shirt too.

Fingers crossed I will be able to accomplish these things! My machine is still hiding in it's case!

Read A Book: In This House We Will Giggle by Courtney Defeo {Parenthood}

I am the type of person who will fill up my holds list from the library with books I want to read and still not have anything available. It doesn't help that my husband and I share the library card for the electronic sources. Once my hold list is full and I need a new book, I scourge the database for an available book.

I came across In This House We Will Giggle by Courtney DeFeo and decided to give it a go.

This time around searching for a book, I was looking for a quick and fast read. This one seemed like it would fit the bill for a fast and easy read, but I had to check it out a second time. Not as a bad thing. I loved this book and the ideas presented. I'm considering purchasing it, and I rarely now purchase books.

Parenting is hard. Kids are hard. At first, I thought this book was going to be more about laughter, ways to parent without yelling, at this point I cannot completely remember what I thought this book was about. So, I cannot remember what I expected when I started reading. It does give some activities to do with the kids to fill the house with the sound of laughter. But the bulk of the book is about instilling virtues in our children, with suggested bible verses and applicable activities.

I like being able to use bible verses with the kids to teach them virtues and life expectations. And as we discuss the verses as we use them, it helps remind me too. Being a baby in my faith still, it's fun to watch the kids grow in theirs alongside me.

The study is broken down by month, which is why i feel i need to buy this book. Activities to practice the virtue are applicable and realistic. I couldn't wait to get started. Though for this month, the extent of our practice is thanking God for things in the morning. Which actually had helped my morning mood. 

I know, after getting this book and beginning the practice, I would have a hard time with forgiveness (the family cross is an incredible idea!) Because sharing your sins is embarrassing and should be humbling. It would be great at modeling for my kids though! 

And I would have a hard time with generosity because the days we had nothing are so close still. Trying to feed a family of 4 (at the time) on $35 a week is still so fresh in my mind I get scared we will be back in that position again. A ridiculous fear, and one I'm obviously going to have to fight through. I get scared we may need something and therefore have a hard time giving things away. Goodness knows I want to give. I need to do it and get over my fear. I do have a lot of time to share though too, not just physical items. I need to remember, it's not about just stuff... after all, we are just stewards, everything belongs to God.

I am looking forward to buying this book and putting the activities into practice.

Back to School Wardrobe: Planning {Kids Clothes}

We have been in school for 3 weeks. Already it has been 3 weeks! I am stunned it has been that long. It has gone by so fast.

I was worried about my little one starting kindergarten, and I still am a little worried. She is loving it though! I am sure she feels like such a big girl going to school like big brother.

I'm sad she is spending more time away from the home. I loved having my bouncy high energy girl here at home. But, I am excited she is showing others how awesome she is. And, I do love the fresh start of a new school year. New backpacks, new supplies, new learning, old and new friends. And... Of course... New clothes!

Well, really, in our case it's paring down the wardrobe. You should see all of the clothes the girls have! It's boxes upon boxes of clothes! We have been so lucky to have friends and family give us hand-me-downs. I know we won't be this lucky forever. And, you should see how picky Samara is when it comes to her clothes. So we are going to go through and take out all the things she doesn't like to wear, then go from there. Maybe this might help keep her from changing her clothes 10 times a day?

I've grabbed a few planning tools for capsules and used those to compile a mixable wardrobe for the oldest two. I'm not going to suggest a certain one for you to use. It's more based on personal preference and what works for you. I will go through each one and which one worked best for us.

The Planners/Templates

Have you tried searching the website for planners, templates, and/or printables? It's ridiculous. And, they are all lists to type or write on. I prefer something I can use pictures. My overtired pregnancy momma brains can't comprehend past letters. Plus I love the visual the pictures give to my little ones. Even though my boy can read now, visuals are still nice to have.

Time for School Sudoku Planning Tool. From Free Notion. My first thought is that this might be good for my little guy to see that he can layer button-ups over regular shirts... I will need to do duplicates of this to have enough clothes to get through the week. My kids are too rowdy and play in the dirt, so re-wearing an item for them gets me a little grossed out. I have to do laundry once a week and refuse to do it more often.

4x4 from Vivienne Files. I've been using this one for my capsule, you can read about it here and here.
Harper+Lu's Capsule Planning Template. Mac is one of the awesome ladies behind sew altered style. This template is perfect for getting through the week.

I added a box for notes (so I can type in what I need for the kids. It kind of also turned into a holding place for items as I sifted through.

I am building these with the kids. Especially for the sudoku, they are dictating where to put a garment item. After all, these aren't my own clothes I am wearing. This is for them, and they will be wearing the clothes. Please forgive the quick phone photos. I can't waste too much time when going through the clothes with the kids. Attention spans only last so long...

Nikolai

For his sudoku. I like having the different outfit options laid out for me to see. Samara could care less, she mixes and matches everything anyway. Nikolai, however, has a hard time. If we buy a pair of pants and a top he has a difficult time pairing up those items with other garments. Eventually, they lose their newness and he can filter them into his closet, but it takes a while. I am hoping that seeing this helps that.

In the 4x4 I like that, without having to do multiples, I can have the clothes for the week. I honestly find it funny that we have mostly red and green for my little guy. I had no clue until I filled in this template. I am wondering if it was the season when we purchased the items, or just what we gravitated towards when making purchases.

Harper+Lu ... Another I love without having to make multiple times. It has one extra garment than the 4x4. It gets through the week perfectly. With changing likes for the kids I think this one is better as it doesn't necessarily focus so much on a specific color scheme but more on the items. Though for a true capsule wardrobe everything would pretty much blend together well.

What he needs?
A couple pairs of pants, long sleeve shirts (about 5 to get the full 7: some plain for layering short sleeves), a sweater, and a jacket. Oh, and a new pair or two for shoes! I was looking at his pair currently and it is starting to fall apart! I will wait on these for when the weather cools off. The boy is getting ready for a growth spurt, I'm sure.

Samara

You should see all the clothes we got rid of, just from stuff that fits but she doesn't want to wear. This girl is funny. It took us multiple sessions to go through it all. And, we need to do more! She has several shorts I do not want her wearing to school. I prefer a more modest approach to clothes and shorts are hard to find. 

Sudoku for her. I needed to get her other shoes pictured, But she is constantly wearing them! The black pair we picked up when Babies-R-Us closed and we got a few things for the baby too. Her wardrobe is not very mixy matchy capable from the looks of this. I had a really hard time with it.

Her 4x4 back to school. I thought I couldn't make it work. I thought most of her colors would be pink and purple. I was kind of surprised. Just like with Nikolai's. I love seeing the colors my kids gravitate towards!

Her Capsule "prime"

What she needs?

Layering options. We have 5 pairs of bike shorts to wear under skirts and dresses. But she is in need of sweaters. She has a ton, but all of them she refuses to wear and half of them are getting too small. She is going to be in need of a winter jacket, but that can wait. As for pants... The kid has a drawer full of them! Ha! So she is in no need there either.

Perhaps a pair of pink shorts would be good if I can find the Bermuda style at Walmart like the pairs she has been wearing.

Which one?

Given that this is the first time I really have gone to this length for the kids' clothes, I am wondering if it was more time consuming than necessary. We have overspent on clothes in the past, and a lot of those clothes we still have that fit now (like my big guy's shirts. Ha!). 

I think I liked Harper+Lu's Capsule Planning Template best for Nikolai. It fits him the best, and even though he needs some more work mixing and matching his stuff, he gets there eventually after the newness wears off. I guess it kind of is a toss-up between that and the 4x4 from Vivienne Files. I asked him which one he likes better and he says the Harper+Lu's is better.

For Samara, it is a tough call. I also liked the Harper+Lu's Capsule Planning Template but I also really liked the 4x4 from Vivienne Files. Mostly because that girl has a hodgepodge of options.

As time passes I think I would like to cross reference mixability with the Time for School Sudoku Planning Tool. 

I'm hoping that if I continue keeping up with something like this the kids may be able to, if not do it themselves, at least be able to fill the holes and needs in their wardrobe more effectively later on. Unlike buying things just cause they like them or want them. Such is my difficulty with clothes. Intentionality is a good thing! Right?

Do you use a planning tool when going over what to buy/sew for your kiddos back to school wardrobes? If you do, share the one you use! If not, would you use one or do you think it is too much work?

1st day of School {parenthood}

When you walk your child up to the kindergarten playground for the first time, how did you feel? Excited, sad, nervous? How was your kindergartener?

I think having been a teacher help facilitate my excitement when I walked my first up to the kindergarten playground for the first time. Though this year, with my second, I was apprehensive. So many concerns ran through my head. Will she be ready? Will she follow directions well? Will she learn what she needs to in order to progress to the next grade level? She is such a young kindergartener, only turning 5 three days after the first day of school (meaning tomorrow!). I was not as sure of her starting kindergarten as I was of my first starting. 

It's hard to get over that apprehension. 

Wait. Back up a sec. School started already? It's only July! 

I know that's what you're thinking. How in the world have you started school already when it is only July. Haven't most districts just ended their school year?

We are in a district that sets up a "modified year-round" schedule. We love it. The kids were rowdy and ready to back right when it was time to go back. They missed their friends. They still have the same 180 day school year, but longer fall and spring breaks. If we were to travel, it would work out perfectly.

Still. I let them go despite my own nerves. The kids loved their first week. I was nervous. But as the week progressed I felt much better.

My kindergartener wishes it was full day kindergarten instead of half a day and my 2nd grader? Well, he is a second grader and ready for the weekend to play with his siblings.

The best way to overcome the apprehension? Time. I'm still nervous my young kindergartener will fall behind. I'm worried my play focused 2nd grader will end up needing remedial work in reading. But, only time will tell. I just need to let them be them. It's such a hard thing as a parent. 

Tear Paper Craft: The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli {Read and Play}

"Mommy, can you read this book to me?" ... or from the toddler ... "Read a book?"

Day after day after day, book after book after book. 

I love my kids' enthusiasm for reading.

I just don't love doing it all the time. the same book after book, over and over again.

And now that it is summer, it is the perfect time to get some crafty, playtime ideas together. 

Our MOPS group is bringing back Kids Book Club from when I was creative and activities leader and I am super excited, I had to jump in! It needed to be something summer-esque like watermelon or ice cream.

Ooh. Making Ice Cream would have been perfect too. 

We are not making ice cream. I'll have to file that for later.

I went searching the library and came across a few watermelon books. Have you seen how many watermelon crafts there are on google? I didn't even try Pinterest. We love some tear-paper art here. Can't go wrong with having kids tear their own pieces of paper.

"You mean I'm allowed to be destructive?" As their little faces beam with every satisfactory riiiip of the construction paper. Hey, It's good fine motor practice for those little fingers too.

You need:

half a paper plate

about a quarter to a half a piece to a full piece of red construction paper

about a quarter to a half piece of green

liquid glue

q-tips to dab glue

black paint for seeds (little fingers make cute seeds)

         or black construction paper circles cut from a hole punch if you don't want to brave the paint. We just ended up using construction paper

Kids tear and glue to make a slice of watermelon. then glue the black seeds down (or paint the seeds) on the red. Super easy, super cute, and the kids love tearing the paper.

We read "The Watermelon Seed" by Greg Pizzoli to go along with the craft. It's all about swallowing a watermelon seed. It made me laugh a little given my current state. The kids didn't quite get why I  thought it was funny.

I'm super excited that the big guy has enjoyed reading this book multiple times over since this activity.

What are some watermelon crafts you have done with your littles?

Making an Announcement {Motherhood}

This post contains affiliate links. I receive a small commission only if you were to make a purchase at no extra cost to you. All views expressed are my own.

I have managed to keep this secret (kind of) from the social media world. Mostly my general facebook account and other media outlets. Yes, it has come out in some of the groups! It is so hard keeping something like this a secret! Especially when it feels so exciting! How long have you kept something a secret?

It was the beginning of December when I first suspected. It was way to soon to really tell, but I had a feeling. My husband just laughed at me when I told him, but I could see the wheels in his head turning.

We told the kids New Year's Eve. We weren't just celebrating the coming of a new year, but also celebrating...

the coming of a new...  Baby!

We are beyond excited!

We found out the gender a little over a month ago, and we couldn't be happier the baby looks healthy. The most important thing is a healthy baby.

I know Nikolai is beyond words excited he is getting a little brother!

2 of each.

Our little guy is due to arrive on or around August 24th.

I figured I should probably say something if I wanted to share some new items I am working on for a mini capsule (and the need for it since I got rid of most of my maternity clothes!) Oops!

Yes, I made the kids shirts! How could I not?! Especially after how much I loved these!

Nikolai's

GYCT Primary Tee. size: 6 in width and 8 in length. It is perfect.

Samara's

GYCT Tinley Tee. size: 4. I made it with the flutter sleeves and without the waist binding.

Kiera's

GYCT Tinley Tee size: 2 taken in a little in the width. Also with flutter sleeves and plain hemming.

Baby Boy

PAB Rompalls. size: newborn. Pants length. It seems so tiny and yet so big for a newborn!

I used a freezer paper stencil to make the design on the shirts (though I am wishing I had a machine that worked to cut some htv!).

I love these so much! I'm hoping we might be able to use the baby boy's as a going home outfit or something. Either way, I'm excited!

Bonus! GYCT is having a summer sale until the 20th! Perfect time to pick up the tinley and primary tee!

Budgeting Back to School {HomeLife}

I kind of have been working on the back to school budget. Woah. Back to school what?!? It's only May!

I know. I actually worked on the budget back in February.

It was the "kinder round up" which prompted me deciding to start it then. Especially since Samara starts kindergarten in the next school year!

Our school year here in Arizona (and I am fairly certain it is most of the state) starts at the beginning of August. The district in which we live starts in the middle of July. It is a modified year-round, so our summer is shorter, but we get longer breaks.

Starting the budget for it in February gives 5 months to save up for buying the supplies, clothes and other necessities. It is easier to save earlier than to start saving later. Plus it is a bonus to plan for the cost non-sale items and have money left over.  I think after this next year I'll start saving right after the start of the year instead of only the 5 months I gave myself this year (this is all in theory anyway. I may forget! Ha!).

I'm fairly thankful our school has the supply shopping lists for each grade posted on the website. I don't know what my parents did in the time of no internet. I remember getting the shopping lists at school, was it at the end of school for the next year or at the beginning of the school year I do not remember. But I need so much more time than that to plan. It must be my type A personality. I'm just thankful I can access it anytime.

I used the list from the website and entered each item into a spreadsheet. I used google sheets because it's easy to access from my phone and computer straight from my google drive. The columns from there are the total of the item, running total to spend, what I spent per item, running total spend and the difference. Here is an example of the columns...

I did this for the optional items as well. If we can save up for those we would try, but I am not too worried about those.

To find the cost of the items, I went online and checked out Walmart, Office Max, and Target for their current cost of items. I'll be honest, some costs carried over from previous years and I didn't bother to check those. I tried to make it as up to date as I felt necessary. I'll see next year how much it changes.

I took the final tally and divided it amongst the paychecks between then and the start of the school year. And each kid has their own budget, they each get their own line.

It helps to keep up with what you spent the previous year. I did this for when my first started kindergarten as well and discovered I underbudgeted for some of his clothes. The difference for things like his backpack made up for the amount I was short (I only spent half), but I have since adjusted those overspent amounts. Tabs at the bottom help keep track of it.

This year I plan on working on keeping the kids with a capsule wardrobe (yup. love those things) to limit the number of clothes they have and so I do not need to spend too much money on things for them (and don't forget not having loads of laundry). Luckily, for now, they still have shirts that fit. Pants, shorts, and undergarments will be the biggest expenditure for clothes.

I'm excited. I love shopping for school supplies and new clothes.

I'm sure the way I do it is either harder than it has to be or too simple.

How do you budget for the school year?

I Love Food {I Hate Food}

I have a love-hate relationship with food.

You know the battle? I love to eat food. Yummy... Tasteful... Flavorful... I love ingredients that are common but thrown together in such a way which cause your taste buds to dance. I love foreign and exotic flavors from across the globe which add an element of excitement to dinner. I love trying new foods, new recipes, and eating something outside of our normal dinner line up.

But, for the component of supreme dislike: I don't like to prep food. I am not good at taking the time to read the ingredients and follow the directions. I usually end up making a mistake and botch dinner or I change it to the point where it isn't the same and can't recreate the amazing meal. Hey, I'm working on that! But, it probably keeps me from eating all the food all the time! Ha!

The other night I was super excited. I found a cool cookbook at the library and was going to try one of the recipes. It called for wine, an inexpensive cut of beef, some simple ingredients in my cupboard already, and a new veggie I have been trying to fit into dinners lately. It was a win in my book all the way around. I even doubled the sauce, a mistake I thought I learned the week prior with a recipe from the same book. I followed directions, prepped the ingredients, set the crock pot and was good to go!

I loved it. Loved the flavor. Loved how the meat turned out, tender and juicy. I loved the combination of it with the orzo (first time trying that too). Took a bite and I was ecstatic. Looked over at the baby who was happily devouring her food...

See, I have this tendency to cook for the people in my house. I cook to appease the minions. I cook to feed the husband.

This time, I did it. This time I cooked for me.
Love. The. Food.

I look back at the baby who was silently spitting out all her food. The oldest was complaining about the leaves being something you weren't supposed to eat (it was bits of dried basil). My middle was pushing her meat around with her fork and her orzo with her spoon. Husband asked with every bite, "what's this, what's that flavor, what's this flavor".
Hate. The. Food.

We made a meal once and had some people to come over. One of our guests complained about feeling bloated from "eating this junk". That was a few years ago. What we made was from scratch. How could it be junk? It wasn't junk. But it stuck with me. It was enough to discourage me. Maybe there was/is something wrong with my taste buds. Or, maybe my flavor palate is just different.

And now my family was not eating what I had made...  again...

Love the food...

Hate the food...

It's a fine line.

Do I cook to appease the masses? Or do I cook for me?

I think I am just going to start cooking for me. I have a feeling there will always be that love-hate relationship with the food.

What Kind of Example is My Messy Room!?

"Why should I clean my room, Mommy, when your's is such a mess?"

My mouth dropped open. I'm sure a fly might have flown in, buzzed around a bit and left. Those were the words that came out of my oldest, my 6-year-old's, mouth. Sure, I might have been scream yelling at him to clean his room for the last few hours days prior to that question's utterance, just to get the house ready for guests. But, come on. Your 6, child!

How do you respond to a statement such as that? How do you combat the logic and reasoning presented to you by a 6-year-old mind? Because, it's true right? I mean, what have I shown my son besides a messy room? What kind of example am I leading?

We celebrated the baby's 1st birthday a few weeks ago. It was glorious. Funfetti cake with bright blue frosting... The kids were playing their little hearts out in the backyard... We spent the better part of a week cleaning the same parts of the house over and over again just to be ready in time.

As a friend of mine went through our master bedroom to use the bathroom (the guest bath was occupied) I cringed at the thought that she would have to traverse the tiny pathway and actually see the mess! Oh good gravy, the mess... The Mess... With all the yelling and watching and supervising, I never got to lay a finger on my own room.

How much time a day do you talk to your kids about cleaning up? I am pretty sure I tell my kids about 10 million times. Ok. Maybe not that many times. But, I'm sure it's a lot. I tell them to clean up if they want to watch tv, clean up if they want candy, clean up so they can drive their power wheel car outside, clean up for this, clean up for that. I am sure I say it 10 million times more than is absolutely necessary.

But, how often do they see you cleaning? I am pretty sure I spend most of my time standing at the sink washing the gazillion bowls they thought was necessary for breakfast. Apparently a kid needs more than one bowl for cereal in the morning. I don't understand their rationale, or how they manage to get the bowls. I place them high in the cupboard on purpose. They are ninjas... But, do they see me tidying up my own things? Not really. I leave them where I put them, set them down on the counter real fast so that I can pour a glass of milk and forget what I was doing in the 10 seconds the action of pouring milk takes. They don't see me clean.

After everyone at the birthday party went home, we were left behind to take in and absorb the shambles that only a really good birthday party leaves in it's wake. I walked into my kids' rooms and saw the mess. My son looked at me with defeat in his eyes. I just shook my head, shrugged my shoulders and gave him a hug. "did you have fun with your friends?". "yes" he told me. Then I walked to my bedroom and looked at the mess there. No one except my 1 friend went through there and it was worse than my son's room. What am I showing my son? What kind of example am I setting with my own room a mess?

Have you read The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up (check out my initial review here) or ClutterFree with Kids (initial review here) or Allie Casazza's Blog? Even the multitude of the organizing/tidying/purging/cleaning facebook groups say to do the same thing when it comes to teaching your kids how to clean/tidy their own spaces. I'm sure if I search harder I could find it stated more. Lead by example. Eventually they will do it too. 

Really, that's what I need to do to get my kids to clean their rooms? Lead by example? At least that's the position we are in now. The towers of boxes and books and fabric and patterns all need to get torn down, purged/cleaned/organized. No matter how long it takes, I need to clean my own stuff and my kids need to see it being done by me. 

Maybe they might not clean it right away. Maybe they will find another excuse. But if I can get it under control at least I am leading by example, and they will learn through their interactions with me and my things. At least I wont hear him say "why should I if you don't."

Penguin and Pinecone by Salina Yoon: Using Your Senses {Read and Play}

We jumped in with Virtual Book Club for Kids and their weekly book selections this past week. Since S has only a year and a half until she starts Kindergarten, I figure it might be a good idea to start doing more to get her ready. It was so fun when we followed along while N was a preschooler... This week's theme is penguins, and the main book is Penguin and Pinecone by Salina Yoon. We love her Penguin series and S was super excited when this one came in at the library! (seriously, holds are awesome!)

There are so many directions you can take this book, one of the reasons we love the series! We went the science route and combined it with art!
**Check out my inspiration of the painting activity over at Inspirational Laboratories**

What you need:

• Penguin and Pinecone by Salina Yoon
• objects from around the house to practice using the senses (Sight, Sound, Touch, Smell, Taste)
• Rocks (we searched for ours outside. Yay, Desert Nature!)
• Black, white and orange paint
• paintbrush
• newspaper (I'm just glad I had the wipes available! oops!)
• wipes for quick and easy surface clean-up

We've read the book several times by this point. I opened this "lesson" by feeling, sniffing, and looking at the book.

When I get to the point where Penguin is using his senses to discover that pinecone is not a snowball and cold we pause and talk about what Penguin is doing in each of the images (using sight/eyes, taste/mouth/tongue, touch/hands/feel).

Discuss the senses and how we use them to observe and make sense of the world which surrounds us. Practice on objects from around the house and what senses we use for those particular objects. We used a koosh pool ball, a soft rattle, a foam number, and a lolipop!

Using sight, touch, (and maybe smell) search for the perfect rock on which to paint your own penguin. We talked about not always using all our senses (we don't want to lick rocks, Yuck!)

If you decide to wash off your rocks, give them time to dry. We just dry brushed off the dirt before starting.

While we painted we talked about P being for Penguin and Pinecone too! And I think these turned out great!

I ended our activity with a quick recap of our senses!

The possibilities are endless!

These little rock penguins were super fun! We did some role play after they dried. Paint some more and use them for counting, one-to-one correspondence practice, non-standard units of measure, Paint some pinecones and use them in combination with penguins for adding/subtracting, create a tic-tac-toe set

My Motherhood is {not} Defined by a Pair of Toddler Jeggings

My life seems to revolve around the kids' clothes. I buy their clothes as they grow bigger. I make their clothes for special events. I wash, dry, fold and put away their clothes as they get dirty. Doesn't it seem like a never ending flow of laundry?! It only gets bigger and bigger and bigger by the day, no matter how many loads are done. Oh yeah, right... I keep buying more... And. cannot forget those outfits and clothes I favor! You know. The ones I feel I need want to take a picture of every. single. time they wear it? Yeah. those ones. They are so gosh darn cute! They should wear it Every Day!! (too much? yeah, too much..) But they are so cute! 

I think it's even harder when those favorite outfits, those favorite pairs of clothes, are hand-me-downs from older siblings. It's as much a favorite then as it is now! And you get to experience all the glorious cuteness again! Like a pair of girl's toddler jeggings. The kind that actually looks like jeans, but isn't. It even had pockets, real pockets, on the back with the word "love" embroidered on them. I swear, it was my go to pair of pants for my middle when she wore that size and by golly, it's my go to pair now for my munchkin too. But gee whiz if I never got a picture of those darn cute pants with 'love' on their little bottoms! Gah, I love them even now!

What happened to those favorite pair of pants? Gone. Vanished! Off the face of the earth! (ok, maybe not off the face of the earth, but it sure felt like it!) I was in a state, looking everywhere. Literally turned the diaper bag inside out, looking for those pants. Could. Not. Find. Them. I was devastated. Seriously, ugly cried about a silly pair of toddler jeggings with the word 'love' embroidered on the back pockets. I try to justify my feelings by saying they are one of the few pairs we have which actually fit. They are one of the few pairs she can wear with everything. But, all that does is make it worse. I become more of a basket case.

How in the world did I end up in such a state over a pair of pants? It's not just the pants! It was a blanket, a pair of shoes, a stuffed animal, a toy car. Something. Something hard to replace. I felt like such a bad mom because there I was yelling, crying, so distraught over a pair of pants. I asked myself how, how could I keep my kids safe and healthy and happy if I cannot even keep track of a simple pair of pants?!?

As I sat on the floor, the contents of the diaper bag surrounding me in the entryway, I realized the absurdity of the statement. My motherhood is not defined by whether or not I've kept track of a pair of pants! How many other items have I lost my cool trying to find? How many other items have I let get to me so much to the point where I feel like a failure because I cannot find them in a moments notice? Why am I letting objects dictate my worth as a parent?

I looked up from my weeping mess on the floor (the Kleenex' adding to the pile surrounding me) and look at my kids. Do they care the pants are gone? no, they care about their mommy weeping on the ground. The baby would rather go naked than wear clothes anyway! They smile at me and ask if I am ok. I'm alright because they are safe and healthy and happy. After all, it was just a pair of pants, right!?!

My house is a mess. Chock full of stuff that doesn't matter, stuff we really don't need. The laundry, be it dirty or clean, scatters it's way across the floor from bedroom to laundry room. I might loose a pair of socks here or there, accidentally leave a spare pair of underwear in the bathroom at the grocery store. Have a shirt fall out of the diaper as I search for my wallet at the gas station. But I can always replace those things. Even if I never got them in a cute dressed up picture I still have the precious moments and memories. I cannot replace my kids. Their smiles are what define my worth as a mom.  They are happy and healthy and safe and they have stayed that way because I focus on them and not the contents of the diaper bag .(hence those lost items!)

You know what happened with the pair of jeggings? I kid you not, it showed up 2 days later. In my son's room. It disappeared long enough for me to have a revelation. I was so upset; I'm surrounded by junk and can't even hold on to a special pair of pants. I needed those special pair of pants to disappear for me to realize where the imposed importance came from.

The pants aren't what was special. My kids made those pants special. 

There will be more things made special because they will make it so. Their smiles, their laughter, their beaming little faces is what will add sentiment to whatever comes next. And, regardless of the endless flow of laundry, I will do my best to remember...

My life is not defined by a pair of toddler pants!

The Kids Behind the Blog

1. Which reindeer is your favorite?
2. What do you want for Christmas?
3. What would you do if you caught Santa at your house?
4. What if Santa go stuck in your chimney?
5. Do you want it to snow on Christmas? Why or why not?
6. Have you been naughty or nice this year? Why?
7. If Santa asked you to fly in his sleigh, would you do it?
8. What is your favorite Christmas movie?
9. If you could chance the color of Rudolph's nose what color would you make it?
10. Sing me one Christmas Carol (then note which song they picked and how they sung it. This could be funny because kids are always mixing up lyrics!). 

Nikolai:
1. Um... (
2. walking dinosaur bones
3. give him cookies
4. help him
5. yes, because I would like it snowing so we can throw snowballs and make a snowman. I haven't even done those things!
6. nice, because I love my friends and because my birthday is coming up!
7. yes
8. ninja turtles and Christmas
9. brown, because it's my favorite color
10. frosty the snowman, frosty the snowman, frosty the snowman.... (repeat for infinity lol)...

Samara:
1. raphael purple and pink
2. pink present
3. give him my present
4. I don't know
5. yeah, because I throw snowballs at Kiera
6. good, because I want a candy
7. yeah!
8. 
9. Leave it red
10. 

Being Thankful

I have not posted in a long while! I've been lucky to get through day to day! This thanksgiving, as the kids and I discuss the holiday we are also talking about being thankful for what we have and what we are given. Especially since the start of school, attempting to introduce my middle to letters (I think we are going to wait and focus on other things, like this), and the baby needing much attention and rarely sleeping, having the visual reminder of things we are thankful for is so important. The kids and I need it (ok, maybe mostly me), and it's been fun!

I did a simple 'kids thankful craft' search. There are so many ideas on pinterest for thankful trees, displays, banners, and even jars! I've decided to go with a banner, writing what we are thankful for on leaves printed from here done like what was done here.

But before we got started with the leaves, I needed an introduction. Teacher me coming out here. They really have no frame of reference for the Thanksgiving dinner. I don't think I have really talked about it with them directly. And if I did, they most likely do not remember. Especially my middle, after all she is only 3!

I reserved a lot of books from the library. Some that we have been using are: (each book is linked)

It's been a fun. We have been talking about:
-The First Thanksgiving and how the pilgrims were thankful for the help when they needed it
-How to be thankful when you don't have much and are given something (even when it might not bee what you specifically want) <-- This one is because we have a hard time with that, just thankful for generosity
-Finding things to be thankful for when you think there is nothing to be thankful for
-Saying thank you to people for more than just giving you things
-Being thankful for God's grace and love

So far, I love it. Writing and coloring on the leaves is so fun.

Filling out some of our #thankful leaves

A photo posted by JessiBerry (@jessiberry09) on Nov 15, 2016 at 10:00am PST

My favorite one to this date is my middle, "I'm thankful for my heart that beeps". I think that is the cutest thing!

My little boy so far is thankful for star wars characters. Ha!

It might not be the most glamorous of banners, but it is something we've been looking at and reading as a reminder. It's serving it's purpose. The leaves have some thing written on the front and the back...

And, what I am very thankful for, is that this has been said by one of my littles...

#thankful At least this has been said. Makes my heart happy.

A photo posted by JessiBerry (@jessiberry09) on Nov 15, 2016 at 2:53pm PST

I'm hoping to make this a tradition. Or at least some variation of this every year. I'm not going to save the leaves though. That would be too much, and I trying to use craft supplies not change their shape.

What thanksgiving traditions do you have?

The Kids Behind the Blog: Happy Summer! {TKBTB V6}

Hope you all have had a fantastic summer; ours is almost over! We start school in 5 days! So exciting for kindergarten for little man! But, it sure is hot! We are so thankful for our monsoon season!

Hosts │ Our Pretty Little Girls │ The Adventure Starts Here │ Secrets of A SAHM │ Wife Mommy Me │Hall Around Texas

1. What 2 things do you like to do outside in the summer?

Nikolai// Have a picnic and play, have friends when we play outside, (added after hearing Samara) fly a kite

Samara// Fly a kite, eat carrots

2. If you could go anywhere this summer, where would you go and why?

Nikolai// Back to the house that has stairs where we can sleep and I can have the bed on the bottom and Samara could have the bed up top. It was fun (We went to Sedona last summer and he slept upstairs when his sister slept downstairs). I like going to Judy's (friend of the family, we visit for the 4th).

Samara// across the river (their dad was showing pictures of a fishing trip the boys took a few months back)

hatchery outside Sedona, AZ (2015)

3. What is your favorite thing about summer

Nikolai// Swimming!!

Samara// flying a kite

4. If you could pick any way to spend a hot summer day, how would you spend it?

Nikolai// stay inside when it's hot because it is really really hot in the desert where we live. (wow, I'm kinda impressed this came out of my little guy)

Samara// Get in the pool

Summer Swimmin'

5. What is your favorite summer treat?

Nikolai// biscuits, fruit snacks, catching fish and eating them, sandwiches, and ice cream.

Samara// I eat yogurt.

I am going back over the kids responses to see what pictures to add and Samara just cracks me up. That girl is so funny. Seriously though, I had to bribe her with fruit snacks to get any type of response from her! LOL! And I thinking we can work on sentences for her too, meaning lots of reading with more complex sentence structures. Preschool for her starts in about 1 week!

Next up August 10th!
1. what was your favorite thing you did over the summer?
2. What's your favorite thing to learn about in school?
3. Who is your best friend from school?
4. What do you want to be when you grow up?
5. What is your least favorite thing about school?

Linking up this month!