Butterbees and Bumbleflies

Giraffes, giraffes, and more… giraffes!

You know that moment? The one when your child blows your mind, again… and you think, “Really, God? Am I REALLY the right one for this job?”
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This weekend Cody took me on a fabulous two-night stay to Las Vegas. It was our first getaway together since before we had kids. (No, a “babymoon” when super pregnant with each child does NOT count as a true vacation with my sweetheart!) And we had a wonderful time. We did Vegas right. We went to our favorite History Channel reality show stops (Gold & Silver Pawn and Count’s Kustoms), we spent time at various resorts along the Strip, went to do the Freemont Street Experience, spent a about $20 in some slot machines, and yes, we even renewed our vows in a service performed by none other than Elvis himself. It was a wonderful weekend. And then we came home. Which was wonderful, too. The kids were happy to see us, and it was great to sleep in our own bed again (although that bed at the MGM Grand was as close to perfect as I have slept in at a hotel in a very long time).

But then this morning came. And reality dawned. The two hour time difference smacked me in the face and coffee just wasn’t enough. After dragging the kids through a grocery shopping trip that was simply exhausting for all three of us (each in different ways and for different reasons), we finally checked out and got into the car. And that’s when it happened. That moment came.

Becca opened her mouth.

And out flowed the most amazingly long run-on sentence with no breath taken in between that I had ever heard. Basically, she wanted to learn EVERYTHING there is to know about giraffes IMMEDIATELY upon arrival to the house. I convinced her that we could wait until after nap time, and Mommy would be more prepared. (Aka – Mommy could be prepared at all because I have ZERO clue where this sudden interest in knowing EVERYTHING about giraffes came from, and of course had nothing printed about giraffes.) So, instead of slamming my head repeatedly on the steering wheel (as I wanted to do), I calmly drove home, wondering, as mentioned above, how I could possibly be the right parent for this amazing child.

So, I somehow got the groceries unloaded, kids into rooms for play time, groceries put away, and then sat down to my computer to do a little work… and to find something, ANYTHING on giraffes. Because with Becca, there is no hoping that she’ll forget. Nope, I said I’d have it after nap time, so I’d better have it after nap time or I’ll have a sad scientist on my hands.

This is where Teachers Pay Teachers came in handy once again, for the bazillionth time. I swear, I can always find just what I need on there – and this time each of the activities I got was free. So I’m linking to them below for you – the creators have information about his/her products inside the files themselves. And then I felt like I needed one more activity that would be a little bit more hands-on, so I created a cut and paste alphabetical order worksheet, which I’m also attaching below (for free!).

As soon as she got up, the first question she asked was “when can we start learning about giraffes?” So I got her some lunch and when she was done, we sat down to begin. She read the information sheets and answered the questions (I write her answers for her as she dictates them to me), and then she did the alphabetical order sheet, which she loved… and anytime I can get her to practice cutting it’s a good thing! When we finished (about ten minutes later), I set her up to watch the Wild Kratts episode about giraffes, and she was super content. When her daddy came home, she showed him her work sheets and told him everything she had learned about giraffes, and was so proud of all she had learned.

Whew. Mommy saved the day. Again. Barely. So, if you have a child who is super into giraffes, there are some fun (and FREE) activities here. Or, if you have a child who spontaneously spouts out things they want to learn about, check out Teachers Pay Teachers and search under the free stuff – you never know what treasures you’ll find! 🙂

Links to FREE printables about giraffes:
Graphic Organizers – with non-fiction Giraffe text

Giraffe Alphabetical Order cut and paste worksheet

Reading Comprehension Giraffes worksheet

Safari Literacy Packet

Let’s Get Organized!

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Well, so a LOT has been going on around here this summer. And one of those things has been some work in my heart… to finally get brave. To get brave and step out of my comfort zone to do something that I’ve never done before!

I’m super excited to be launching my first online video training course – which will start July 25th! It will be in a secret group set up on Facebook, and there will be five training videos to view at your own pace, before/after challenges, accountability partnerships made, and of course notes and printables to help you keep it all together!

The main focus of our training will be for homeschooling moms who are prepping this summer for “back-to-homeschool.” But, anyone is welcome to attend – the trainings could easily be applied to non-homeschoolers as well. Our video sessions will focus on:
-what to do with all those arts and crafts supplies that are coming out of your ears (including some GLITTER and FEATHER storage options that will hopefully be helpful!)
-how to keep your completed work and thematic units from overtaking every nook and cranny
-how to set up a home/homeschool command center that can easily be cleaned and put away (in 5 minutes or less!)
-how to organize (and help your kids maintain) an activity/game area
-some general things to be sure to include in your homeschool room that will help you AND your kids stay focused and on task!

THE BACK STORY…

So what makes ME of all people feel like I’m qualified to teach people how to get organized? Maybe it’s partly because I have lots of friends who tell me I’m the most organized person they know. (If you want references, I’m sure they’d be happy to oblige!) But I think it’s also partly because when I was in the classroom teaching, I always felt the constant struggle to maintain order in my classroom. I had great ideas but they rarely came to fruition… and I never could figure out how to get organized, because I simply didn’t have the time in the day to focus on organizing when I was so focused on test scores and assessments, assessments, assessments. In my home, however, the DESIRE to be organized has met the REQUIREMENT to be organized. I feel the pressure of educating my daughter not only to the best of my ability, but also she is my daughter! I need to train her how to keep a tidy home, how to organize things, and how to pass along her knowledge and skill to her children, should she choose to have them. There’s another piece to that organizational puzzle though… and that’s the dollar signs.

ORGANIZING ON A BUDGET…

Ya’ll, I am NOT independently wealthy. We have not found the seeds for a money tree to grow in our back yard. (If you ever find some, just one would suffice – I have a green thumb!) So I’m all about organizing using diaper boxes and containers I already have. I’m all about Dollar Tree. And while over the years I have spent WAY too much money on some FABULOUS and AMAZING organizers from Thirty One, ALL of what I’m going to teach you in my training courses can be done with things you ALREADY HAVE IN YOUR HOUSE, or can be purchased at Dollar Tree for less than $20. So don’t feel like you’re going to lay down $7 for this class and then have to go out and spend $200 to make it happen. NOT HERE. If you chose to lay out $200, that is between you and your spouse – because I’m not about to promote that. Save your money for curriculum and manipulatives!

ACCOUNTABILITY…

I have some fabulous friends that have been there for me day in and day out – I can text them a picture of my “before” mess and set my timer for 15 minutes and get some serious work done, then send them my “after” and get the praise and positive reinforcement that I seem to crave. And I realize that what will make this course the most successful for you, is if I provide that accountability for you as well! So, the Facebook group will be there for you to post questions, comments, and most importantly… your before/after photos! The support in the group will continue throughout the fall semester, so as you face questions or new concerns, you can continue to share with us and I can offer support and new ideas as time goes by, and we can brainstorm together to solve these problems as they arise. I will also randomly ask you to post a photo of certain areas of your home for accountability. Remember – it’s a SECRET group, so only the people participating in the course will be able to see what you post. And seriously, all of this is just $7. Wow. I must be crazy to offer this so cheap, right? Nope. Just wanting to share, and be helpful!

HOW TO JOIN…

SEND ME AN EMAIL TO GET ADDED TO THE LIST! CLICK HERE!

So you like what you’re reading? Awesome! I can’t wait to have you join us! I will be sending out a welcome email with details on how to make your payment ($7.00USD – though the course is available to anyone anywhere – yes, even Australia, my lovely Aussie friends!), and how to get added to the secret Facebook group! All you need to do to get started is simply send me an email so that I have your email address! And it’s as simple as that! Please tell your friends so they can join us as well – the more, the merrier, and the more ideas we’ll have to pass around as we conquer questions that have to do with home layout and size/multiple students in your homeschool/various ages of students… not only do you get me with this, you get each other!! So be sure to share!

SEND ME AN EMAIL TO GET ADDED TO THE LIST! CLICK HERE!

Mind Block

I’ve been in a slump. A summer funk. Enjoying life, don’t get me wrong… but seriously just not feeling like writing. Perhaps it’s because the only thing I feel passionately about right now is something that I prefer to keep to myself – my political opinions. I don’t like to get involved in messy confrontations or debates. Because my opinion is my opinion, and I have it for my reasons… and your opinion is yours – for your reason. Neither of us is going to persuade the other to be any different. And honestly, I think that’s ok. Because it’s important to stick to your convictions. But when I sit down to write, it’s what pops into my head, and I just flat out refuse to take my blog to a political low. I could go at it from the parenting angle of why I feel the way I do because of the future for my kids, but seriously, that’s still a political low.

SO, here’s what we are doing this summer.

Becca is driving me bananas because she wants school, school, and more school. So I have pulled out some science review worksheets she can do starting tomorrow to occupy her and stave off some of that desire for school.

Gray is into everything. And he’s talking up a storm. He is rapidly discovering his world, and learning how to express what he’s learning. He is easily frustrated when he doesn’t know how to verbalize his thoughts, and he cries easily. It drives me bananas.

I have been working on reorganizing and rearranging much of the house in preparation for this fall, when we’ll be full-on officially homeschooling for Becca’s “Pre-K” year. I decided that I never felt comfortable having toys and school stuff in the dining room, and that I wanted it cleaned out. So I did. I have rearranged our family room, and cleaned up my office – so that my office can be our classroom – right next to where Gray can play. But with all this rearranging and reorganizing comes the issue of all the stuff. And, well, all the stuff we have is driving me bananas.

Notice a theme? We could start our own zoo. Or perhaps our own bakery. I’ve been making a lot of banana protein muffins, which the kids love. And in an effort to cut my unhealthy snacks, I decided today to try the reduced fat cinnamon swirl bread at Starbucks instead of my usual banana bread… and I decided that it’s not worth it. Either get the banana bread, or don’t get a snack at all. The cinnamon swirl was ok, but slightly stale… or perhaps since it’s healthy it’s just that dry to begin with. Either way, it didn’t fit my tastes.

I feel like I’m rambling. But it’s good to write again. I just wish I had a topic. LOL. Seriously, though, I’ve made some mini-posts on my Facebook page, so if you aren’t following over there, you’ll want to dive in and go ahead and hit “like” and “follow” – because right now the more educational content is over there.

This fall I look forward to diving back in full force over here as I work through units with Becca. Gray starts Mother’s Day Out after Labor Day, but I may go ahead and start getting into some school routines with Becca before that. We’ll see. I love that we have some flexibility.

Also this fall will be our process of IQ testing and charter school lottery entering, and all kinds of other stressful parenting experiences that I’m sure to write about, so stick around, the good stuff will be back soon. Right now I’m just working with a fried brain… the heat index of 110 tomorrow is sure to make me even more scrambled. It’s hot, ya’ll. Really hot.

So anyway, this was a totally random post just to write again and remind you I’m here… and implore you to stick around. God bless, and stay cool!

This super fun and easy painting project was a mini-blog post over on my Facebook page today. Check it out for more information! And we'll be finishing up a project with our completed art work in the next couple of days and will share there as well! — This super fun and easy painting project was a mini-blog post over on my Facebook page today. Check it out for more information! And we’ll be finishing up a project with our completed art work in the next couple of days and will share there as well!

Summer Bucket List… Modified.

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I keep hearing from folks who have a summer bucket list. And I’ve done that in the past. It’s fun. Especially if you have a cute picture (like this one from Lindsey over at Pen and Paint) to add your list to! But what I’ve done in the past is try to think of all these amazingly outstanding things that honestly, end up being a lot of work… so I don’t do them.

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This year, my summer bucket list is MODIFIED. And so far, the kids are loving it! It’s all about finding activities we already have that they haven’t done in a while, or using dollar store items to try something new and different.

Right at the end of the school year, we made glitter playdoh in two colors. It still hasn’t lost its sparkle, or its excitement. When it does, we’ll take a break for a couple weeks, and then make some in new colors!

I got dollar section Crayola bathtub soap/paint – that we’re going to use in our water table outside. (affiliate link, thank you!)

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I got some little toy boats from Dollar Tree that will be another water table outside modification.

They also love it when I let them play in cheap shaving creme – which would be another fun outside water table activity – where it’s easy to hose them down when they are done!

They are still enjoying Gray’s new garden table (affiliate link, thank you!) that my parents got him for his birthday, so it hasn’t lost it’s novelty yet. If you don’t have an outdoor activity table, this is one to consider because it can double as a sand/water play station, or they can simply pretend they are gardening!

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I re-organized our kid movies and we’re going to watch a different movie that we already own each week as a family.

We’re discovering new recipes on Tasty Junior that we want to try.

My next big goal is to clean out/reorganize our activity closet – and I’m sure we’ll find all kinds of fun things we haven’t played with in a while.

The other day, Becca rediscovered her love of Castle Logix (affiliate link, thank you!), and has played it several times. She even asked to move it to her room so she can play it in there!

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Grayson is now big enough to enjoy our Animal Habitat Boxes, so I plan to pull those out – a new one every couple of weeks – and let him explore (and Becca can re-explore).

He is also big enough now to start building more complex train tracks, so I plan to play with him (and Becca) to make some of our family name tracks like we did with Becca last year.

We have a bunch of puzzles in the family room – my goal is for us to work one each week.

Yes, we’ll take a weekly trip to The DoSeum and Sea World, and a monthly trip to the zoo, but this summer isn’t going to be all about going places – it’s going to be about enjoying and exploring AT HOME. I feel like our kids get so stuck on going places and doing things that they forget how much fun we can have at home!! So while two days out of the week we’ll be going somewhere, I plan to have lots of fun at home the rest of the time!

I do plan to take one big, fun trip out and about – to have both kids paint at Painting With a Twist! Did you know that they have “all ages” paintings that are perfect for kids? Becca has loved painting there in the past, and I’m ready to take the plunge and let Grayson try it as well! (I’m thinking I’ll get some adorable pics of him painting in his diaper…;) Note that while each painter is a $35 fee, they frequently do drawings and giveaways on their Facebook page, so you should follow them to possibly earn your painting trip for FREE!

If you like this idea, but you’re just not sure where to start on activities without spending a ton of money buying stuff, you really should consider getting THIS BOOK – Raising Creative Kids (affiliate link, thank you!)– my friend Colleen has done a wonderful job of compiling ideas to get you AND your kids thinking creatively! I plan to pull it out at least once a week and set up challenges for the kids!

I would also challenge you to go through closets, book shelves, and boxes in the attic – find things that you think your kids are done with… and recycle them! Find new ways to entertain them with those activities. Or if they are simply way too young for your kids, stick them in a box for your next local consignment sale and turn them into cash! Your summer bucket list could MAKE you money instead of costing you money!

Just keep in mind that the summer shouldn’t be all about ONE thing. It’s not all about sitting in front of the tv. It’s not all about going somewhere new every day. It’s not all about swimming every day. It’s about BALANCE. A good, wide variety of activities that don’t have to be expensive, or take you away from home.

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Goose Needs A Hug

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This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting our family!

I first came across this adorable book when visiting a quaint little bookstore near downtown called The Twig. (If you are in the San Antonio area and haven’t checked it out, you really must!) Becca was just little, and the bright colors on the cover grabbed her attention – and mine. I’m so glad that we purchased it that day!

Since then, we have added nearly all of the Duck and Goose books to our library, and both kids love them! We have also added some of Tad Hills’ other books to our library as well. He is truly a fabulous author/illustrator! Becca still reads all of ours on a regular basis, and Gray loves them too, so I’m sure eventually we will have to own them all!

If you haven’t seen the Duck and Goose books, you really must get them! I highly recommend starting with Goose Needs A Hug. It’s a wonderful story of Goose, who yes, just needs a hug. But it also is a fabulous story about how to be a good friend, and how to truly LISTEN when a friend needs to tell you something. A lesson parents can learn from as well, as our little ones attempt to tell us what they need.

If you are already Duck & Goose fans, did you know that a new book was released earlier this year? Duck & Goose Let’s Dance! looks like a super fun book – I can’t wait to add it to our library! (And it has a free song to download, too! My little musicians are gonna love this one, and so will yours!)