Kids Work Spaces

Posted on August 6, 2012 by Jennifer

I’ve been looking at tons of desks for kids on pinterest and have found some beautiful work spaces.

My helpful crafting hint for the day is that you simply do a google search for “pinterest + kids desks” and you will find tons of examples. Or type in, “pinterest + printables,” and you will get loads of boards with printables.

Here are several kid desks that caught my eye.

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How fun would that wallpaper/doodle art be in a room?

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Ummm…YES PLEASE! Love the bright colors!

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Love the art wall and the organized art desk

The wall reminds me of the art wall in our house

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The empty frames here just invite creativity but I would have to move this wallpaper to an area where the kids wouldn’t have to climb on the desk to use it.

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This desk is brilliant for a small space – it folds up!

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Nice use of an odd space

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IKEA to the rescue again!

Looking at these inspiring work spaces makes me think I might be painting some walls white in the boys room.

Shhhh!

Don’t tell my husband because he would freak out if he knew.

August Goals

Posted on August 3, 2012 by Jennifer

Anything you’d like to accomplish this month?

A Stroke of Luck

Posted on August 2, 2012 by Jennifer

Whew.

Did you hear that?

That sound was my whole body exhaling.

Truth be told I’ve been holding my breath for the last five years.

We’ve reached a milestone around here and it’s reason for us to celebrate.

My husband had a stroke at the age of 34 exactly five years ago.

Whenever he talks to doctors they ask, “So when exactly did you have this stroke?”

My husband hums and haws and mentions something about late 2008.

I allow him to finish and then say, “It was August 2, 2007. It happened around 9:30 AM. I was wearing a black skirt and green skirt when I got the call. I had a two year old and a five year old at the time.”

My mom noted about the upcoming anniversary, “It’s just gone by so fast.”

No, it hasn’t.

For me, I remember everything – from getting the call, calling the babysitter, crying to my dad on the phone, to waiting around for more tests and doctors visits.

In the last five years we have visited more “ologists” than I care to remember.

With every migraine headache Derek had, I tried not to panic.

But…now that my husband has reached the five year milestone I feel like I can breathe a little easier.

We’re here today with big smiles on our face and feelings of being tremendously lucky. We are thankful for every day we have together and feel tremendously blessed in our life.

July Goals Revisited

Posted on August 1, 2012 by Jennifer

Unbelievably, it’s already August, which means it’s time to update you on the progress of my July goals.

Add item to etsy shop – Check! I added the “All About Me” form for kids to fill out.

Clean Out Game Closet with Kids – Fail! We’ve worked out way through about 5% of the closet.

Bring Clothes to an Environmentally Friendly Dry Cleaner – Check! and WILL NEVER DO AGAIN! Umm, people. Do you know how much an environmentally friendly dry cleaner costs? I took one dress in to be cleaned and was stunned when the price came to $10.93. I seriously had three one dollar bills in my hand waiting to pay and had to dig through my wallet for more money.I am all for helping the environment but this is one area where I will not be switching.

Add Crown Moulding in the Guest Bathroom – Fail! I was wishing and hoping but sadly those by themself don’t put crown moulding up.

Go on a Date Night – Check! We actually went for a lunch date and went to IKEA and grocery shopping without the kids – amazing how fast you can accomplish both of these when there are only adults in the mix.

Create items for Amanda’s Shower – Check! I shared some decor from the party – (food flags), (felt garland), (cupcake decorations) with hopefully another crafty post soon to follow.

Make Wonder Woman Costume for Caroline – Three-Fourths of a Check! So far I’ve made the crown, the cuffs, spray painted her boots red, and bought the red shirt and blue skirt. All I need to complete the outfit is a little golden lasso.

Did you accomplish anything you wanted to in July?

Olympic Party Food

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Jennifer

A few days ago we decided to invite a few friends over for an Olympics watching party.

Since it was so last minute, I didn’t whip up any decorations but I did have a little fun naming the food we served.

I cut out little place cards and placed them by the food:

Meatball Subs = Shot Put Subs

Grapes = Volleyballs

Mini Pitas & Hummus = Discuses

Salad = The Parade of Nations

Strawberries & Marshmallow Dip = Bengay for your tired muscles

Long Thin Chocolate Cake = Canoe

Cake Cones = Torch Cakes (looked something like these).

Around blogland there has been lots of wonderful Olympic food ideas. Some of my favorites include Michelle Paige’s Flag pizzas , all of the desserts on Miss Candiquik (the weight lifting cookies are the best!), and all of the foods shown on Tip Junkie.

Can you turn your dinner tonight into an “Olympic Meal” like I did for the party?

Go ahead and give it a try!

Olympic Story – John Orozco

Posted on July 30, 2012 by Jennifer

I’m a sucker for a good Olympics story.

A story of struggling, a story of adversity, a story of conquering.

John Orozco, an Olympic gymnast from the Bronx, has such a story.

John’s dad saw a flyer for free lessons and jumped at the chance for his 7 year old to participate.

Once Orozco reached a certain level and needed more intensive coaching, the entire family worked at the gym since they were unable to afford it.

When the family would travel to away meets, they would cram John’s mattress into the back and sleep in the car.

Now when you see his mom and dad in the stands in London you just feel the overwhelming pride they have for their son.

I came across this music video starring John and wanted to share it with you.

I’m a fan of the music and of the athlete.

Is there a special Olympic athlete you’re cheering on this year?

Short

Posted on July 27, 2012 by Jennifer

Andrew had a friend spending the night so of course it involved a trip to the pool before bedtime.

Hey, this ain’t my first time at the rodeo people.

I know how to tucker those kiddos out.

No one is staying up late in this house, at least not on my watch.

So, as we were walking to the pool, Caroline kept saying, “Leo, you’re short, like me.”

She said it not just once, probably ten times.

I think she was just thrilled to have someone close in size.

And in fairness to Caroline, he was only about a head taller than her.

I finally had to tell her to stop talking about it since Leo could have been developing a complex with the way she was badgering him, “You’re tiny. You’re little like me.”

All was fine for awhile.

As I was handing the kids their homemade pizza and watermelon slices, Leo walked to our table and said, “This table is dirty. These chairs are dirty.”

I looked at him, looked at the table, looked at the chair…

And said, “Caroline, what were you saying about Leo being small?”

Felt Garland

Posted on July 26, 2012 by Jennifer

For my sister’s baby shower I created 2 felt garlands to help spread the colors around the room. It was my first time to create these but it certainly won’t be my last.

Since turquoise and hot pink were the colors of the shower I used those but also added a bit of yellow and white to make it more interesting. All of the felt (except for the turquoise) was the hard felt that is not floppy.

I grabbed 3 spice jars from the pantry and traced their tops in order to create circles. I used 3 different size circles for this garland.

I then cut out my circles and sewed them together with my machine. Sewing them together was by far the easiest part of this project.

Here’s one of the garlands at the shower (my sister is preparing for major renovations so hence the paint samples everywhere).

I really loved these and think they would be so fun across a nursery, a play room, or even a classroom. I’ll definitely be making a few more for different occasions.

For the shower’s food flags, go here.

For additional photos of the shower, go here.

The Socks Debate

Posted on July 25, 2012 by Jennifer

After scouring the area for a pair of Wonder Woman boots for Caroline, I finally found some at a consignment store.

Since they are black I will have to paint them but I’m happy since the fit is good.

While I don’t mind shopping at consignment stores, the shoes can give me the willies.

Dried stranger sweat tends to do that to me.

So each time we tried on another pair of boots I would say, “Caroline, leave your socks on.”

She promptly told me, “No, Wonder Woman doesn’t wear socks.”

Breathing deeply I would reiterate each time that she needed to keep her socks on.

We persevered though and finally found the perfect pair.

As we were driving home, Alex asked Caroline what else she needed for her costume.

She must have had our previous conversation on her mind because she said, “Wonder Woman doesn’t need socks.”

And yes, she occasionally refers to herself as Wonder Woman in the first person.

I said, “I think she does wear socks.”

“No she doesn’t.”

Alex asked her, “Does Wonder Woman fly?”

“Yes but she doesn’t need socks.”

I responded, “I think she wears the socks underneath her boots.”

Exasperated she let out a sigh and said, “No. She doesn’t wear socks. It’s not on the super hero show.”

I couldn’t let it rest, “Maybe you just can’t see them.”

“WONDER WOMAN DOESN’T WEAR SOCKS!”

I’m still not convinced.

Can you imagine with all the running around Wonder Woman does how sweaty her feet must get without socks?

Instead of her lasso and cuffs, she could use her stinky feet to fight for justice.

Food Flags

Posted on July 24, 2012 by Jennifer

For my sister’s baby shower we decided on the colors of hot pink and turquoise. Our theme of the event was “What will the baby be?” or “?” since Amanda is choosing to wait to find out if she’s having a boy or a girl.

One of the items I made for the shower were food flags.

I didn’t actually get any pictures of them at the shower but I dressed up our breakfast to show you what they looked like.