When you touch the Elf

One of the #1 rules of the Elf on the Shelf is: You do not touch it. Ever.

In our house, we've made our own rule that only myself and my husband can pick our Elf, Sarah, up to place her back on the shelf to watch over everyone for the day. This is our third year and no one has broken that rule, until now.

I knew it would be Noah. He believes rules don't apply to him, living his life like Mike and I are Smokey and he's the Bandit.

I don't think it was the fact that he wrapped his hands around Sarah, or that he squeezed her excessively, but more-so that he threw her across the room! I don't remember much after that. There was loud screaming, crying and just chaos all over. My kids tend to over dramatize situations and this was the perfect opportunity to bring out the Broadway show. Running out of the room to hide and falling to the floor as if in intense agony.

"Sarahhhh"

I had to stop the madness so I quickly turned to Google. I was instructed to place the Elf in the freezer and sprinkle cinnamon near her. Sadly this was the least ridiculous remedy. The freezer makes her feel like she's at the North Pole and cinnamon acts like a vitamin for elves. Obviously that makes sense right? In the Elf on the Shelf movie, Taylor McTuttle (fantastic name) writes an apologetic letter to Santa and his Elf, Chippy, returns completely healed.

This letter was actually mailed. The Post Office will have a good laugh the next morning!

The girls checked on her throughout the day to make sure she was alright and come the morning, Sarah was completely healed and stronger than ever! Working out and sweating sprinkles all over the place.

Another crisis adverted.

Frozen Birthday Party

For Lily's 5th Birthday, we threw her a "Frozen" themed party. She loves the movie, the princesses and the song. It was a last minute idea and with a party budget already in place, I tossed around what I could. For those of you who are oblivious to this new Disney marvel of a movie, the basic theme is ice, snowflakes and everything cold.

I decorated the food table and made a backdrop to go behind it.

The backdrop was a sheer white curtain accented with snowflakes and sparkled ribbon. Using blue tissue paper, I cut it in shape of icicles and hung it amidst a homemade Birthday banner.

Included in the theme, was a white table cloth, blue kool-aid jammers and themed plates and napkins.

For dessert I showcased an Elsa cake (her dress was the cake!) and snowflake cupcakes.

The party was a hit and my girl was one happy 5 year old !

DIY Headband Holder

Lily has an obsession with headbands. She wears them everyday, coordinates them with her outfits and even sleeps with them on. 

This was how she stored them. The organizing freak inside me gagged every time I looked at them.

She found it hard to look for certain headbands, they constantly fell on the floor and could easily break when digging through them all. So I made her a headband holder!

This project took less than 15 minutes and was so easy!

I used a paper towel holder and roll and covered the roll with fabric using a hot glue gun.

I tucked in the ends and placed the roll back on the holder.

Ta Da !

Taking your kids out in public

All parents fears this. Many parents try to avoid it. Some parents even succumb to drinking afterwards.

Taking your kids out in public.

Taking 1 kid, maybe 2 isn't so bad. You have 2 hands so you can easily hold theirs, or carry 1 under each arm. But what do you do when there is 4?

It's like they're circus performers. They see a crowd of people and they see what kind of reactions they can stir up.
I swear people see us coming and they turn and run in terror. We're like a tornado. We surprise you, enter quietly at first and then destroy everything in our paths, leaving the mess and destruction as we run out the door.

Appropriate Cinema Behavior

Sometimes you have no choice and have to take all your kids with you. You have to go to the grocery store, you don't want to cook supper so you decide to eat out, or you'd love to have a family night out together.

You're afraid of what they might do, what people might see? They might sneak into the kitchen at a restaurant, call 911 from the payphone, take down a shelf of chocolate bars at the grocery store?
Luckily these have all happened to me already, so I'm assuming it can't get much worse.

Or can it?

It's aIot like childbirth, you tend to forget about the painful experience. You forget about the last time you were out in public, and you talk yourself into believing it won't happen again? Your kids promise they'll be good, and you really want to believe them.

But don't.

When you spill your drink, why not lick it off the table?.

We learned a few tricks when it comes to taking our kids out in public. ( The hard way of course )

Entertainment

My kids need constant stimulation. If you have to sit and wait somewhere, like a restaurant or Doctor's office, bring along some colouring books, a puzzle or some cards.

Food

Kids stop talking when they're eating. Most of the time.

Games

Kids love games! A quick game of "eye spy" can save you some stress while waiting in line for a coffee.

Participaction

Involve your kids in what you're doing. Let them read the grocery list or push the cart. Most of the time they're acting out for attention. I find if I make them feel apart of what I'm doing, I'll get through my task quicker.

Bicycle makeover for under $10 !

This season we scored some free bikes for the kids. Neither myself nor the kids are gender conscious when it comes to material things. However, the thought of Lily's first bike being yellow and black and covered with flames just wasn't acceptable. Whether it's her socks, headbands or even the way she writes her name, she's a girl who loves sparkles, purple and all things fancy.

This bike needed a Lily makeover.

I used Krylon Outdoor gloss spray paint. It only cost $4.98! I taped up the pedals and covered the seat and wheels with plastic bags. This paint dryed in under 10 minutes and hardly needed a second coat.

I purchased this cute bike bell for $1.25!

I added on some handlebar streamers - $1.25!

Ta da !!

This makeover cost me a total of $7.48 and took me less than 30 minutes!

My baby girl is thrilled to be riding in style!

Blog Birthdays !

Today my blog is a whole year old! I've been waiting a long time for this milestone.
My husband had been telling me for months that I should begin a blog to share stories and pictures. One May morning, I wrote and shared my first post you can read here.
I thought Mike was crazy to suggest it, but he proved me wrong!

12 months later this little blog has shared 107 posts and seen 14493 page views. My blog has been featured on Shutterfly and held a spot within the Top 10 blogs on www.topmommyblogs.com.
It's been a wonderful year of inspiration, creativity and fun! The phrase, " blog that" has become a household regular.

I've had the pleasure of sharing inspirational writings from good friends and creating fun recipes and activities.
Along the way I've discovered how to challenge and express myself as a mother through my blog. It's also opened me up to the world of blogging. It's such an interesting world and fun to follow other people's lives and learn so much from them.

I've been so blessed to have the love and support of my family, friends and readers. Your positive comments and suggestions have been uplifting and enlightening.

Thank you, and Happy Birthday, blog!

Royal Protocol

For years I've been a huge fan of the Royal Family. When I was 9 years old Princess Anne visited my hometown and I was lucky enough to present her with flowers.

 My father and I circa 1991 with Princess Anne

After the news of Diana's death, I became enthralled (that's polite for obsessed) with the Royals.I absolutely adored them, was fascinated by them and loved following their lives via television and magazines. The protocol, the castles, the hats! The fact that The Queen always wears the same style dress, just a different colour.

When Will and Kate got married, I followed the television coverage from the beginning. Awake at 3am with a brand new tea cup just for the occasion.
When they honeymooned to PEI, I regretted not taking the 75 minute ferry ride to see them You can be sure I followed their every move via social media!

Now, my (almost) Royal dream is coming true. Charles and Camilla are coming to town and I've got tickets to the Welcoming Ceremony! !

Mike and I are taking the 3 girls plus my younger brother. We contemplated taking Noah, but then I remembered - throwing dinkies, temper tantrums and destructive behaviour. Security would be all over that toddler.

Would it be rude to bring my Will and Kate masks?

The tickets have lots of big words and are printed on cardstock. Now, that's fancy. A written protocol is included describing how to address the couple and how to properly bow and curtsey. As well as a proper dress code. It states "business casual" which means no jeans and no tuxedos. Anything in between is appropriate.

I am loving this.

But, most Importantly, what do I wear?!

#Mom Problems

As a mom, some of the simplest problems really throw off your day!


                     You're stuck with a house full of kids and run out of dishwasher soap.

There's no room in your bed amidst all the dinosaurs.

Not 1 of these socks match.

No matter how hard you try, you can't stop singing Frozen's "Let it go". You just can't.  

These are my Mom Problems.

My top 5 Family Movies

We spent the majority of Sunday watching movies. We had a very busy week, so lazying around on the couch, losing ourselves in the imaginary wonders of Wizardry and e-woks seemed like a great way to spend our day.
Since our kids range from the ages of 3-9 it's hard to always pin point an appropriate movie that everyone enjoys. Here are a few that solved that problem and remain family favorites!

Harry Potter

What's not to love about these movies? We love imagination and learning about a new world and way of life. It's full of magic, some laughs and just the right amount of scares. Mike and I can always sit down to watch these with the kids over and over again. Maybe it's the accents, the historic castles or Rob Pattinson's cameo.
We enjoy movie collections because the stories continue on and my kids enjoy seeing their favorite characters grow. Luckily for us, we have a choice of 8 amazing installments of witchcraft and wizardry to enjoy. My 4 year old is obsessed with the movies, and my 3 year old regularly recites many of Harry's spells.

Toy Story

Another Amazing movie collection that we never grow tired of. My kids love all the bright colors, music and familiar toys in these series. My girls loved seeing Barbie and Ken come to life together in the 3rd installment.
Not to mention the few adult jokes that amuse me every time. This collection has definitely developed a kid-cult following and I know will be one of our family favorites for years to come.

  Monsters Inc.

This movie brings real monsters to life, throws in some hilarious comedy and invites us into another world of imagination. It brings to life the familiar "Monster in the closest" scenario and adds some humor to it. My son loves monsters and everything about them, and enjoys watching this movie over and over again!

   Enchanted

We love movies with singing and dancing and Enchanted has all of that. Plus the classic fairytale storyline, with a touch of the 21st Century. How do you not fall in love with Giselle's super sweet character and taste in fashion? It's a happy movie that always makes me think of Springtime, warm weather and flowers.

  The Muppets

One of the best things I love about being a parent is introducing my kids to movies and tv shows Mike and I  loved as a kid. We both grew up watching The Muppets and made them a household name within our family. Every Muppet movie is a hit, but the 2011 film is one of our favorites. I love the wholesome, 50's era theme Disney created. It's a great plot, answering everyone's questions about the characters whereabouts since their Muppet Show days. It's silly, humorous and fun!
Again, we fell in love with the music and dancing and even I find myself humming "Am I muppet?" now and again.

Of course, there are many more awesome movies. I could have easily made a top 50 list! I'd love to hear some of your family favorites and maybe add some new flicks to our list!

Friday Fun Snack - Snow Ice Cream

 Remember when I talked about "embracing Winter"? Today, we did just that!



 Here's our recipe for Snow Ice Cream !!

1 huge bowl of snow (clean snow of course)
1 cup of Sugar
1 tbsp Vanilla
1-2 cups Milk (depends on your desired consistency)

Mix it up !

Happy Weekend !!

Travelling with Kids

This time of year, my Facebook Newsfeed is littered with pictures of People going on trips! Friends and family posing beside Mickey Mouse, laying on the beach, in front of a ski slope and packed up at the airport ready to hop a plane somewhere!

I'm very jealous.

We travel frequently with the kids and usually take a mid-winter trip. However, we stay within our budget, which means staying within a few hours drive of our house.  This year we're forcing ourselves to stay put so that we can save our money for one of those big trips everyone is going on this time of year!

Traveling with kids is always a challenge, whether you're just driving a short distance, or hopping a plane for a foreign destination.

Here are a few tips I think are worth sharing.

1. Hotels
When booking a hotel, check for family rates or if breakfast is included in the price. I rarely stay at a hotel that doesn't offer a complimentary breakfast. We're a cereal and toast type of a family who love buffet style meals.
If you're traveling with a baby, check ahead to make sure they have proper baby sleeping essentials available so you don't have to lug along yours.

2. Sticking Together
My biggest fear on trips is that I'll lose a kid. In a new place, we always designate a meeting point in case anyone gets separated and make sure the kids repeat the plan back to us to make sure they understand. It's a good idea to have them wear bright colored shirts, or similar colors so you can spot them in a crowd.

3. Snacks
We always pack a cooler of snacks whether it's for a long drive, or if we're headed to an Amusement Park. Park food can be abnormally expensive and not very healthy. If my kids want to survive a full day of fun, they need fruit and water, not french fries and Pepsi.

4. Entertainment
Whether you're waiting at the airport, on a plane or driving a long distance, your brain could use a break from entertaining. Pack some books, games or a gaming device. A few minutes of silence can be golden.

                                       
                                                      

5. Get Along Bag
I always have a small bag of essentials with me like it's my 3rd leg. It can be a long walk back to the van and a huge waste of family time just for a new pair of underwear.

6. Easy Pack-Up
When you're packing to come home, do your best to make the unpacking as smooth as possible. Put all the dirty clothes together in a bag so they're ready for the wash and pack everyone's clothes separately so clean clothes are easier to put back in drawers. I've been guilty of just tossing everything in the suitcase and telling myself I'll worry about it when I get home. I've discovered that when I get home is NOT when I want to worry about organizing clothes, garbage and laundry.

Happy Traveling !!

Valentine's Day

For me, Valentine's Day has changed it's meaning entirely since I had kids. Once upon a time, I spent all my time and money on presents, surprises and romantic gestures for just 1 adult.

Imagine.

Now, Valentine's Day means buying and helping Madison and Jessee fill out Valentines for both their classes and planning a Valentine's party for Lily and Noah, and the kids I babysit. Oh, if I remember, Mike gets a gift and card too!
The kids love Valentine's Day. They enjoy making up all their Valentines for their classes, decorating bags, and dressing festive for the big day. Not to mention the thought of any type of "party" ! I love any reason to celebrate something, so I tend to go all out for such holidays too!

Of course, we should celebrate LOVE everyday, but Valentine's Day is a fun way for everyone to maybe go a little overboard on the love (which isn't a bad idea) and just have fun with it.

Making Valentines!

I'm planning a party today for the kids I babysit. We're decorating cookies, putting on Valentine tattoos and making heart hats from paper plates. You can find the tutorial here.

Happy Valentine's Day !!

Celebrate the Olympics with your kids!

We are loving the Olympics this year! My kids are always tuning in to watch the events, cheer for their country, and watch some amazing athletes show off their talents.

Another way to beat the winter blues is use these 2 weeks to celebrate and enjoy this fantastic world event with some great kid ideas!

Visit nobiggie where fellow mom-blogger Kami shares some great kids snacks to celebrate the Olympics

 

 

 

Here's a great Olympics craft from mommypoppins.com

Homemade medals made from cookies courtesy of saveoneverything.com

Go Canada !!

Guest Post - Being a Stay-At-Home Mother

Alena is a busy mother of 2. She went from working full time to being a stay at home mother to her kids. She's here to share her experience, her ups and downs and why she loves being a Stay-At-Home mom!

13 Months ago I became a stay at home mom. I went from working full time outside of the home (at a job that I LOVED) to being a stay at home mom to my 2 kids (at the time my son Xander was 6 years old and in grade 1, my daughter Cameron was 4 years old and home with me). When I first got the news that I was losing my job due to a store closure (I worked retail, I’m good at it and I enjoy it very much) I was scared! Home alone, all day every day, with my kids… I was sure I would go stir crazy and wishing to be back to work in 2 months tops. I mean, I love being busy, I love having a huge to do list to check off every day. I loved working retail and the interactions with people. I loved the break from my kids; I felt it made me appreciate what time I had with them more. I would have sworn that being a working mom made me a better mom (and in some ways I was right); I just couldn’t imagine being home.  So after my last day of work last January I became a stay at home mom. What happened next surprised me. After years of hearing how hard it is to be a stay at home mom, how you never get a break and it’s your whole life, I was not expecting the best, but what I found out is that for ME being a stay at home mom is easy, and I love every second of it.

    

Xander lost his 1st tooth,
and Alena was able to be the first to see!

Alena welcomed Cami home
with her 1st report card!

However, 4 months in to being a stay at home mom (who provided child care in my home), I made the mistake of saying this to my friends and family in a general Facebook status. It did not go over well, the black lash I received from this status update both surprised and hurt me. I was up all night unable to sleep, so at 1am (when I have normally been asleep for a couple hours) I got up and got it off my mind the best way I know how. I wrote it down and sent it to my 4 best friends. This is what I wrote:

Okay Ladies I have been in bed for the better part of an hour unable to come anywhere near sleeping. This thing is bothering me so instead of losing several more hours of sleep, which I will do because that’s how I work, I am getting it out of my system. I don't feel that I expressed myself well earlier because I got very emotional. I am not a writer and I don't say things the way I mean to most of the time. I am sarcastic. I speak my mind and stand up for what I believe in, I am not afraid of confrontation. I cry when I am frustrated and talk over myself and things come out wrong, that’s what happened tonight. Hopefully I can express myself the way I want to now and get some friggin sleep tonight, so bear with me it’s going to be long winded.

First of all I am a good mom, being at home now does not make me a better mom. If I could CAP, bold italic and underline the words ME and I in the following paragraphs I would (however I am tech dumb and I only know how to do that in word). This is how I feel being at home makes it easier for me to be a mom.

When I was a working mom I spent a measly 39 of my kids approximate 91 awake hours with them a week. A very large chunk of these 39 hours were spent going through the motions of getting ready to go to work/school/ babysitters for the day, cooking a fast supper eating, showering the kids, doing school reading and getting the kids ready for bed. This left about 10-20 minutes of quality time with them 5 out of 7 days a week. I was cranky all the time and tired too, this meant that although I so looked forward to my family time on my days off and had the best intentions, my kids are just that, kids. As much as I wanted perfect days off my kids wanted to fight with each other and whine and cry and not spend time doing the things I wanted to do. This normally ended up in my being cranky due in part to my disappointment that things weren't going the way I wanted them to (mature right), but that’s me I'm not perfect either. I would ask "what did you do at school today Xander" and he would answer "I don't know" because school was over 4 hours ago and this was the first chance I got to ask him. I was lucky if I got to go to 1 swim lesson out of every 20 which means Dave told me how they were doing and they gave me their swim reports 6 hours after they got them. I missed countless birthday parties. Xander begged to have friends over and I wasn't here so he didn't. My phone rang every night and often when I was putting them to bed about something work related. I missed bed times.

In many ways being a working mom made me a better mom, more often than not it gave me better patience because I knew I only had some much time to enjoy with them (you know when I wasn’t cranky), it gave me socialization which helped keep me sane and it made me appreciate the little time I had with them.

Staying at home makes it easier for me to be a mom because now I spend a whopping 85.5 of my kids approximate 91 awake hours with 1 or more of my kids! That’s a difference of 46.5 hours a week and I am thankful for every one of those. Now those 46.5 extra hours a week aren't all on the floor playing one on one time with my Kids. I still have a house to clean, meals to cook and other kids in my home to watch and spend time with. BUT and for me this is a very big BUT, those hours are spend under the same roof as them, most often in the same room as them. I get to sit down in the middle of the day and read stories just because one of them says "mommy will you read this book to me?" and I don't feel the need to answer "later hunny mommy has to get stuff done for tomorrow first" because I had no other time to get ready for tomorrow. I can't tell you how good it felt to be the first person Xander showed his missing tooth to and how happy it made him that I was the one he got to hand his report card to when he got off the bus (and not hours later after we picked him up from the sitters) I get to be the person to greet him at the door every day after school and say "how was your day today" and then listen to something totally awesome that happened. I get to cook meals for them that take more than 10 minutes to make. I don't have to rush, which means they don't have to rush. I get to see them interact with the kids I babysit and see how awesome they are instead of someone telling me. I put my kids to bed every night uninterrupted. I have been to all but 2 swim lessons since January and was there when they got their medals. I've been to 9 birthday parties with them in the past month and a half.

My kids are still not perfect, they are kids, they still fight and whine and still don't always want to do the things that I want to do, but it’s okay because we can do it tomorrow instead. They still make me wanna tear my hair out and make me yell to be heard more often than I would like. They still do dumb kid things like leave the bathroom sink running and complain for an hour that they can't find one of their toys that is on the table in front of them. They spill drinks and start crying right away instead of cleaning it up. But staying home makes being a mom easier for me.

I'm still tired and I still get cranky but I love and appreciate every second that I have to spend with them, because in reality in 6 months from now, I'm going back to work and I have to go back to seeing my kids 39 hours a week while other people get their other 52 hours.So skip to 11 months later (now), I didn’t  meet my go back to work dead line in 6 months, or the next one after that, or the one I set after that (I have a new one now, I hope I fail at that one too). My kids are still kids (both in school now), I still take children into my home, I still love being a stay at home mom and I still find it easy! I consider myself lucky every single day that I am home and have tried my hardest to make the most of my time here (and I think I have), because like before I know it won’t last forever, I will be a working mom again at some point.

Alena and her family