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Thursday, July 23, 2015

Free Blogger Template

So I desperately needed a cute template for my blog but I'm so new to this I have NO IDEA how to create one yet!! So in the mean time, I counted on Pinterest to find me exactly what I needed.

I found a cute, simple template that I was able to easily put on my blog with no problem! Who would have thought??? It was made by This Creative Mom.

Her blog is soooo cute AND she gives away free blog templates! Definitely check her blog out. ;)

This picture is from The Creative Mom blog.
http://thiscreativemom.com/free-blogger-template-2/

Thursday, July 16, 2015

Positive Reinforcement

Grounding, taking away privileges, etc. will only get you so far with kids. With my kids, it doesn't seem to work at all. I still do it because if they are misbehaving or being disobedient, I will not allow them to get away with it. However, it isn't very successful in helping them make better choices the next time around.

Because of this, I needed something positive. My kids respond best to positive reinforcement and we didn't have a system in place for this. I created one and it's already working wonders.

It's simple... I just used scrap paper and wrote out points. I made slips of paper worth 1 point, 5 points, and 10 points. Then I used more scrap paper to write out rewards that the kids can "buy" with their points. They simply save their points up and turn them in for a reward. They are mostly very simple rewards, but there are some better rewards for more points.



We just started this morning, and already Nevaeh has earned 5 points! She cleaned the living room and vacuumed without being asked or required to do so. I'll take it! I'm sure she's working her way towards a trip to the movie theater or all-skate. 

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

And I'm having another one?!

This is my feeling about kids today.

We already have 3, and another coming in October.
It gets soooo hectic around here!!

The kids conned us into having friends spend the night last night.
Nevaeh asked first, and we said yes.
Then Peyton's friend Logan from our neighborhood came over and he wanted to spend the night, too.
How could we say no?

THEN, two of Logan's sisters wanted to spend the night, as well...
and how can we say no when their brother is spending the night?
I let Chris make the final decision on that since I had to get my glucose test done this morning.
He said it was fine. His problem, right?

Well, I babysit two of my nephews during the day so they came over this morning at 7:30.
Chris had to make breakfast for 10 kids. HAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh how funny.

He sent me a text while I was sitting in the waiting room at the hospital that said,
"only one friend per kid is allowed to spend the night from now on".
Oh he had a good time, I'm sureeee.




Monday, July 13, 2015

Baby Girl Bedroom

Well, Peyton is all moved downstairs so that we can prepare our Princess' bedroom. I wanted her to be right across the hall from us but NOT share a room with Sylas (two babies in one room, no thanks!!). We haven't gotten anything else done yet but I plan on going to pick out the paint colors this week!

My vision: SUPER GIRLY!! I don't want a "theme", I just want her space to be cute, elegant, and absolutely gorgeous. I want pink walls, and then lots of lace, frills, and anything else that screams "girl".

Soooo, of course I have been scouring Pinterest in search of ideas. I plan to do quite a bit of DIY for her decor to make it more personal and to save money.









Click on the pictures for their original location! 

I can't wait to get started!! 

Thursday, July 9, 2015

Summer Time Adventures

The summer struggle... 

The kids seemed to be getting restless ALREADY and it's only July! 

I was desperate for new things to do with them so I checked out the library that is literally a 3-4 minute walk from our house. It turns out they offer a TON of activities for kids of all ages. Thank God. 

Yesterday we went to a minion party. I took my three kids and my niece and they all had a blast. Sylas couldn't really participate in any of the activities but he had a blast interacting with other kids and watching all of the excitement going on. The other 3 just had a blast in general. Unfortunately I didn't get pictures of the actual activities because I had my hands full.

The first activity was making minion bookmarks. It was so easy but required the kids to do a little thinking WHILE being creative. They turned out really cute. The next activity was pin the eyeball on the minion. I DID get pictures of that. I'll post the pictures at the end. The third activity was bowling. Minions were made out of 2-liter soda bottles and the kids used miniature soccer balls to bowl the minions down. After that, they made minions out of toilet paper rolls, construction paper, and eyeballs that were glued on. How creative! Then the kids all went outside, broke up into groups based on age, and played a silly game that I didn't really understand. They got to run around, burn some energy, and have fun with other kids, so it was a success.

Today we went back to the library for a thing called Birds of Prey. A woman came in with a hawk, a bald eagle, an owl, and I believe one other bird. These birds had been injured in the wild and so they were unable to survive in their natural environment. The kids got to see them all and learn all about them. It was really great. Peyton lovedddd this while Nevaeh didn't so much. She bailed half way through to go and choose some books to check out. Win, win. 

I am so relieved that we found these activities. It's good for them to get out of the house and the library is the perfect place. Peyton and Nevaeh aren't big fans of reading so it's usually such a chore to get them to sit down and relax with a book but today they both signed up for summer reading and chose a few books to check out. Peyton chose a book about sharks and a book about snakes. Perfect!! As soon as we got home, they both sat down to read while I made lunch. I sent Chris a picture of them reading and he was literally shocked. I hope they keep it up! I hate forcing them because then how much are they really going to enjoy it? Thank God for the library's huge selection and excellent children's area. 

What have all of you done to keep your kids busy and occupied this summer? I need more suggestions!! :) 








What a surprise!! Peyton ran into his best friend at the minion party!! They are holding the minions made from toilet paper rolls.


Sylas had to get in some nuggle time with his sissy while he ate his snack.

Friday, July 3, 2015

Babies!

My pouting little man. He was standing on the glider and I told him to sit down on his butt.... he didn't like that. He's only 13 months old and he's already throwing tantrums and pouting. What in the world am I going to do?! <3 

26 weeks pregnant with baby number 2! This pregnancy has been soooo different from my pregnancy with Sylas. In a good way, for sure. I can't wait for my princess to have a name!