Valentine Round Up

Here’s a quick sampling of FREE PRINTABLE Valentines I found:

Zebra Valentines from Bunny Cakes

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Angry Birds Valentines from Big D & Me!

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Star Wars Valentines by MeckMom

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Pop Rock Valentines from Onesie Twosie

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Playdough Valentines from g*rated

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Color Me Valentines by With Envy Studios

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Fun(tache) Tic Valentines by plum adorable

Mustache-Valentine-Cards

I “Wheelie” Like You by Yvonne Byatt’s Family Fun

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and finally…here are some LUNCHBOX Valentine printables from Over the Big Moon

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Enjoy!

Cheetah Print

I’ve started making a Halloween costume already.

I know, I know.

But you see, there’s this adorable little 3 year old who has been sick for days who was asking for a cheetah costume.

She’s already determined to be a cheetah for Halloween.

Now you would think being a typical kid she would drop this idea in a week and be onto the next costume. But not this girl. A year ago we had a Mary Poppins birthday party for her. Roughly three days later she decided she was going to have a Wonder Woman party for her next party. And low and behold, here I am making super hero cuffs for her party eleven months later.

After watching her with a runny nose and a terrible cough I decided to get this girl her cheetah costume.

The starting point for the costume was a black tutu my brother gave Caroline last year. It’s adorable and she loves it.

For the next part of the costume I headed to the mall.

Why not the fabric store you ask?

I just can’t stand in line with that big bolt of cheetah fabric. I think I would have to start talking needlessly to everyone in the line explaining why I would be paying money for gobs of  fabric which screams street walker to me.

Surprisingly, once you start looking, there is a lot of cheetah clothing out there.

Just walk into Forever 21 and scan for cheetah. You will be amazed at the ensembles you could put together.

Slinky cheetah dress with rhinestones – check!

Cheetah print camisole – check!

Pleather cheetah pants – check!

Actually as I was on my hunt for cheetah I honestly did consider buying the camisole in size 3X and using the fabric to make a cheetah shirt for Caroline. Again, I’m sure I would have found myself explaining the purchase to the saleslady.

Ultimately, I found cheetah leggins in Dillard’s for $12 and was happy with that.

Then I walked into Janie and Jack.

My eyes saw this skirt.2cymnopHer size..only $17.

Nope. She already has her tutu. Don’t need it.

This cheetah dress….100016197Don’t need it but it would be perfect if she wanted to be Jane of the Jungle the following Halloween.

I passed by hair bows, coats, socks, and purses – all cheetah print.

And then I saw it…100016255Yep, for $7 these cheetah ear muffs were mine. And Caroline’s. I knew she would love them. They’re just crazy but make perfect cheetah ears.

And I was right. She loved them.

So for the past two days she has worn her cheetah leggings, cheetah tutu, and cheetah ear muffs going growl, cough, growl, cough.

No shirt but really, who needs a shirt to distract from all that cheetah goodness.

So there you have it. Halloween costume#1 is partially done.

We still need to add a black shirt and claws but I’m hoping to wait her out until at least June.

Prodcutive Weekend

I start every weekend the same way.

With a drink.

No just kidding.

It’s only milk and cookies for me on a Friday night.

And a Thursday night. And a Wednesday night but that’s beside the point.

I start every weekend by writing a to do list.

I usually put a craft project for me, an activity with the kids, cleaning chores to be completed, a house project, grocery store list, returning items list, piano practice reminders, any sports listed for the week, reminder to walk the dog, and about 30 more things.

Usually I have broken up the tasks by day so as to not feel too overwhelmed.

Thanks to one kid with walking pneumonia, one with a fever, and one with a sporting event, this weekend was looking doubtful in terms of productivity.

But amazingly,  I fee like so much was accomplished in our house, whether it was on the list or off the list.

Jambalaya was cooked. Homemade hot pockets were made. One birthday present was bought. Two Valentine packages were wrapped. Many books were read out loud. One basketball game was played. Three Shots on Goal…MADE! One trip to Gymboree. One birthday present bought. One item returned. Cleaning all bathrooms from top to bottom. Four frames hung. A billion pieces of laundry washed. Three episodes of Say Yes to the Dress viewed. Ten Super Girl cuffs made for birthday party. And One Boy Scout Proboscis monkey project completed. And for those of you who are not familiar with the Proboscis monkey, it may win ugliest animal ever.

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Told you.

All in all it was a good weekend. Now hoping I can get two out of three kids out the door tomorrow so I can start working on my Monday list.

Theme Park Appropriate?

There are certain do’s and don’t when it comes to theme parks for me.

I think this stems from the fact that we get there the moment the doors open and then walk around for the next 12 hours enjoying the attractions.

So for me, naturally tennis shoes and shorts are the number one “do” when them parking it up.

I thought this was a “do” for everyone but during our recent trip to Disney I discovered it is not.

For example, these shoes, while cute, seem to lack a little cushion for my legs…

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I can’t really imagine where this look would be a “do.”

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Again, I couldn’t walk for 12 hours in these…

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Maybe if we had been at the pool or fought gladiators while we were visiting…

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And finally the piece de resistance of inappropriate theme park wear…

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O yes we did take that picture.

Time Out

Have you ever put your child in time out, walked away, only to walk back 20 minutes later to discover your child still sitting in the same space even though you had completely forgotten about them?

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No?

Me neither.

Classic Movies to Share with Kids: A Printable List

OK I have assembled my list of “Classic Movies” to share with your kids. Thank you for your suggestions, you had several movies I had not thought of.

My disclaimer: The movies I think would be appropriate for certain age groups may contain words or actions you may not find appropriate for that age group. Please don’t go off my recommendation alone if you have not seen the movie. Read reviews and determine if they are right for your children.

I have broken up the movies into 3 categories: When They’re Younger, When They’re Older, and When They’re Much Older. My kids are 10, 7, and 3 and no one has seen anything from the third category.

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 Click here for the above printable.

 And here’s a look at what the list looks like now for our family.

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Looks like we need some more movie nights soon!

If you think of any that I’ve missed be sure to let me know 🙂

Inauguration Dresses

When I studied American History when I was younger I could have cared less about battles, policies, or explorers. Instead I loved to learn about the social history or culture- homes, entertainment, and clothing.

A few years ago I was lucky enough to view the First Lady’s Inauguaration Dresses at the National Museum of American History in D.C. I enjoyed this exhibit immensely and hope to take Caroline one day.

Seeing as today is Barack Obama’s inauguration I thought it would be fun to look back at some of the dresses the first ladies have worn to the occasion.

Mary Todd Lincoln, 1861

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I have to be honest and say this is not my favorite look because it seems over the top even for that time.

Add 100 years and then we have…

Lady Bird Johnson, 1965

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Looks like Lady Bird tackled a bear before coming to the inauguration.

Pat Nixon, 1969

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The picture actually doesn’t show how bright this yellow was – I’m talking vibrant yellow – Might have been better in white or a pale blue.

Rosalynn Carter, 1977

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Ummmm….no.

Nancy Reagan, 1981

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I like the dress but thought Mrs. Reagan was a little old to wear it the one shoulder number.

Hilary Clinton, 1993

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Hilary Clinton, wearing an unknown designer, was slammed for this dress. I think it could have been better without the flowy bits on the bottom half.

Michelle Obama, 2009

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This dress, designed by Jason Wu, received positive reviews, and gets two thumbs up from me.

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Can’t wait to see what Mrs. Obama wears tonight!

Taking Pictures with Only One Child

People with only one child do not understand.

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Just think how easy it must be for them to get a Christmas card photo.

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There’s never anyone touching or bothering someone in the picture.

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No one has suddenly sprouted bunny ears in the picture.

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There’s no arguing about everyone facing the same direction.

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But then again, I could be wrong.

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 Happy Weekend Everyone!