Back-To-School: Make Your Mornings Easier

Three Days. That's how much time I have until my two older children return to school. My daughter will be entering the 3rd Grade, and my son will be going into the 1st Grade! It's crazy to think that our summer vacation is just about over. Gone are the mornings of "sleeping-in," the pajama days, the late breakfasts, and the "do whatever you want" weekdays.

It's time to change our summer habits and get back into the routine of school life. For us, that means rising early, making cute lunches, and preparing what we can the night before a school day. In order to get out the door in time, we had to find ways to make our mornings go smoothly and quickly. These tips may help your family as well.

1. Designate an area for everyone's backpacks, shoes, homework, lunchboxes, etc.

We are fortunate to have a built-in mudroom between our kitchen and garage. (Let's just say that this was a must for this mama when designing our house.) We have hanging hooks, a built-in bench, and some cubbies. Of course, you do not have to have a fancy mudroom for your things. You just need a special place, preferably, one close to your entrance/exit door. If your short on space, find tubs or baskets that can hold your kid's stuff. Install simple hooks or hanging folders/baskets to hold papers or homework. When my kids come home from school their backpacks go directly on those hooks. Shoes should go in their cubbies. (I will admit that we still have to remind the children not to leave them dropped around the house, but at least we have a designated space.) Folders and homework are packed away in their backpacks when they are finished with their homework. I check their folders, sign papers, and file or dispose of flyers and notes as they work on their homework each afternoon. This is the easiest way to stay organized, to get paperwork taken care of, and to ensure that everything returns to school as needed. In the morning, the kids just need to grab their packed backpacks before they leave the house.

2. Lay out clothes, shoes, and other school necessities the night before.

I have my kids pick out what they are going to wear for school the night before. This means they choose the top and bottoms that they want to wear the next day and hang them on their closet door. They stick their socks in their shoes. This eliminates the "I can't find my other sock," and the "I need a shirt to match these shorts," the next morning. Another battled avoided.

3. Prepare lunches the night before.

I know there are tons of parents who find it easier to have the kids' lunches completely packed and ready to go the night before. Some make and freeze sandwiches. This makes mornings easier, especially for working parents. If this works for you, go for it! I make my kid's lunches each morning. That means I have to get up a little bit earlier if I want to make them fresh, bento-style and cute, but I do not mind. With that said, I DO prepare as much as I can the night before, and simply put it all together in the morning. Preparing means cutting up fruits and vegetables, freezing ice packs or yogurt tubes, filling thermoses with water, and dividing snacks or fruits and veggies into individual containers or baggies. I find that putting out my lunch supplies, lunch boxes, bread, peanut butter etc. on the island the night before makes for easy prepping in the morning also.

4. Establish a morning routine.

Parents and children alike need to establish a morning routine. (This can even be practiced the week before school starts to get the children and yourself use to waking up early and getting ready.) Let the children know what is expected of them each morning. Make a list or chart for them to check off if they tend to forget things  or need a little nudging in the morning. (i.e. Get dressed, eat breakfast, brush teeth, brush hair, pack your lunch in backpack, etc.)

It's a little easier for myself to get back into the routine of school days. With a little help from my alarm I get up, and get myself completely ready. Then, I make the lunches. Sometimes they are simple and quick lunches. Other times, they are cute and fancy. (It really depends on how much time I have..and how motivated I am feeling.) By this time, the kids are starting to wake up on their own or it's time for me to go and wake them. I get a feeling of satisfaction knowing that I am dressed and ready for the day, and now I just have to guide the children through the rest of the morning.

Ready or not...It's "Back-to-School" time!

Do you have any tips on getting back into the routine of school days? How do you make your mornings easier?

  

DIY Mickey Mouse Applique Shirts

We just spent nine awesome days at Disney World! It was amazing! We were able to visit all four parks, and got to thoroughly enjoy each one. Two of those days were spent at Animal Kingdom. I knew that I wanted us to have at least one day of wearing matching shirts. I also wanted to have shirts with the iconic Mickey head. So, I made the girls (my mom, myself, and my two daughters) zebra print Mickey shirts. I made my son a camouflage Mickey shirt also. With the right supplies and a little of your time, you can make your own boutique style Disney World shirts..for half the price!

Materials:

• Plain T-shirt (I purchased hot pink craft shirts for the girls, and an orange shirt for my son from Hobby Lobby. Wash and dry before starting your project.)
• Fabric of your choice (Zebra print for the girls and camouflage for the boy)
• Heat-n-Bond Ultrahold iron-on adhesive (or HeatnBond Lite for sewing)
• Mickey head pattern
• Sewing scissors
• Sewing machine
• Matching Thread
• Iron
• Freezer paper

Directions:

1. Make a Mickey head pattern. You can print and/or blow-up a picture found online, or you can make your own pattern. I simply traced a cup and plate in the shape of Mickey's head. You may need to make a couple of sizes for children and adults.

2. Follow the instructions on the Heat-n-bond package to create your applique. Put the Heat-n-bond adhesive onto the wrong side of the material you are using. (Paper liner should face up.) Iron the adhesive onto the material, pressing until it is completely bonded. Let it cool completely. 

3. Trace your pattern onto the liner and cut the pattern out.  You will be left with the Mickey head shape. Peel the liner off the back.

4. Add your Mickey applique to your matching shirt. Center or measure where you want your applique to go on your shirt. Iron the applique onto your shirt, pressing for about eight seconds onto each section until it is completely bonded to the shirt.

5. Use your sewing machine to stitch around the applique. Turn the shirt inside out. Iron a piece of freezer paper (shiny side down) onto the inside of your shirt (the applique should be directly on the other side.) This will help prevent your shirt from bunching up when you sew around your applique. Turn the shirt right side out. Make a zig-zag stitch around the applique or use a satin-stitch to prevent fraying. I set the stitch length to zero, and used the highest setting for a zig-zag stitch. (You may need to play around with the settings on your sewing machine and do a couple of trials on some scrap fabric to get the stitch the way you want it.) Simply follow the applique all around when sewing it to the shirt. I made a satin-stitch for the first time, and it was easier than I thought. I really loved the finished look!

6. Remove the freezer paper from the inside of the shirt. After sewing, the freezer paper practically peels off in seconds. Any leftover freezer paper should come off in the wash.

7. Enjoy your new shirts and wear them to the Disney parks...especially made for Animal Kingdom!

I loved the way the shirts came out, and I am so glad I took the time to make them for our trip! 

We're Going to Disney World- A Surprise Scavenger Hunt

Yes, it's a dream come true for us! I have heard the countless and exciting stories from everyone who has made a trip to Disney World. My husband went to Disney World when he was younger, but I have never even been to Florida. Of course, my three children have not experienced the "World" yet either. My husband and I started talking about going, and then we took the plunge in December. We booked our hotel and flight. Fortunately, we were able to use points that we had earned for the hotel. Because we were booking well ahead of time we were able to get great flight times and routes to Orlando and back.
It was a bit torturous not to tell our children right away...for us, at least. But, we did not want to tell them the news and then make them wait and wait for months. We did, however, want to get them prepared for the trip and help in some of the planning process. So on Easter we gave them a surprise they would not forget!

How We Told Our Children

After we went to Sunday mass, opened Easter baskets, and searched for Easter eggs in our back yard, my husband took our kids for a nice, long walk. I placed eggs and clues throughout the house. Each clue would lead to the next clue and egg. In each egg there were alphabet letters that they would have to unscramble at the end of their scavenger hunt.
The kids were greeted back with a letter telling them how proud we were of all of them. It also explained that as an extra special treat they were going to go on a scavenger hunt around the house.
My kids had no clue that Disney World was even being considered by mom and dad.

We took videos and pictures of their hunt and their reactions. I cannot even explain how happy we were to tell them and how ecstatic they were when they realized where they were going this summer. My six year-old kept "fainting" afterward. It was quite funny to watch them jump up and down, and see the giddiness that followed.

Though I am sure it would have been an awesome surprise to tell them the morning we were leaving on our flight, I am glad we chose to do it ahead of time. Not too early and not too late. They have had time to plan what they want to wear and pack, get even more excited and countdown the days until the trip, research and read about the rides and adventures that they want to experience, and watch lots of Disney movies!

P.S. I know I am a month overdue with this post, but I cannot tell you how busy we have been since then..Disney and many other events have taken over our life. Haha! More Disney fun to come!

Valentine's Day Creation Station

Valentine's Day is quickly approaching! I made one comment about Valentine's Day to my kids, and that is all it took. They began asking begging to make Valentine's cards and crafts with me. The good thing is I am always replenishing my craft supplies so we have enough art supplies for such an occasion. The problem is that all the craft and art supplies are scattered in different places around the house.

I thought the best way to kick-start our craft time would be to get a little organized first. I wanted to set up all their supplies in a special way, too. Why not surprise the kids with a Valentine's Creation Station? Everything would be at their fingertips and they could let their creative minds go wild!

I raided my own craft containers, pulled out my leftover Valentine's craft supplies from last year, and went around the house to gather their usual supplies. After I had everything I went on to organize and set up a surprise Creation Station for after school.

Organize your children's craft supplies for easy access.

Here is a list of  some of the supplies that can be used to make your own Valentine's Day Creation Station:

• Glue 
• Scissors & craft edged scissors
• Crayons, markers, paints
• Construction paper
• Scrapbook or patterned paper
• Valentine's Day stickers
• Foam stickers
• Valentine confetti
• Stamps & Ink pads
• Twine, ribbon, lace
• Stencils
• Doilies
• Glitter and glitter glue pens

I found these cute, little tin heart containers with lids on sale last year. They were the perfect sized containers to hold small stickers and all those tiny confetti pieces. We just snapped the lids back on for easy clean-up.

I encourage you to pull out your craft supplies and set up a Valentine Creation Station just for your kids! It does not have to be anything fancy, but they will appreciate some (organized) fun options.

Fall Bucket List 2013

I live in South Texas where we always joke about our two kinds of weather.  Hot and Hotter.  It is no surprise that we suffered through yet another hot and dry summer.  (I won’t complain too much though because I am really blessed to live here.) But, that does not stop me from dreaming of wearing a sweater and boots on the first day of Fall this year.  Will it happen? Highly, unlikely!  Still I am itching for that cooler weather and for all the fun Fall events and activities that go along with this time of year. Our family just completed our lengthy and exciting Summer Bucket List. And, even though summer isn’t officially over and the heat has not subsided, I just had to create our Fall Bucket List. We visit at least one big pumpkin patch and Fall Festival every year. The kids cannot get enough of all the events put on throughout our community! As for me, I know I still have a list of crafts and recipes that I want to try out and maybe feature on this blog. What do you have planned for this Fall season? What are your “Must Do’s” in Autumn?