Strategy for Reading to Little Ones - Linking Habits

I confess, I don't always enjoy reading to my children. But like exercise and home cooked meals, it's one of the things I value most, and I try to make it a priority.

Since I'm reading so much to my older kids, it's particularity challenging to read to my 4 year old. I never feel like it, and I certainly can't rely on myself to stick to a bedtime story. After dinner I'm a shell of a parent, here in body but not in spirit.

 

My strategy: linking this habit (reading) to a non-negotiable activity (in our case, leaving for school)
This is also called habit stacking in some circles.

4 days a week, I take Caroline to nursery school. About 20 minutes before we walk out the door, I tell her to pick out 2 books. We cozy up in a chair and I read to her for about 12-15 minutes. It's become a part of our routine as we prepare to leave the house. It's a sweet moment to connect before she leaves for several hours, and it's short!! There is an ending point. Ok, time to go to school.

I wish I had implemented this strategy with my other kids when they were younger - short and sweet read alouds linked to a habit. In the past I was hot or cold. It was 10 books or none. I think persistence and building the habit are preferable to occasional marathon sessions.

Other things you could link the reading habit it to:
read while the kettle gets hot or your tea steeps
read in the the carpool line when picking up an older child
read right before bath time
read during snack time
read when you pour your second cup of coffee, not the first - that's sacred 

Do you implement any strategies like this? How do you fit in reading aloud with multiple children?

Homeschooling

Hello, long lost friends. I'm aliiive!! ((hugs))  x x
I've missed you all.

We are homeschooling our kids this year. To document and keep myself motivated and accountable I started a private Instagram account @spooner_school. In response to that, a couple of kind people asked me to blog about it. So here I am!

I'm here to talk about homeschooling, why we are homeschooling our oldest 3 kids.

Reason 1 Finances

Previously, our children attended an amazing classical Christian, private school. We loved it and still do. In fact, we are participating in school sports there which is a really wonderful way to keep up with friends.

In January of this year, my husband began pursuing a career change, so our income was totally uncertain. January is also the month you sign up and pay a nice deposit on your spot at private school. X 4 kids. With so many unknowns, we made the decision to commit to homeschooling during this major career shift. It was a relief -- and exciting!

Stephen has since found a new job that he loves, and it's been a wonderful fit for him. We are so grateful.

Reason 2 I have always been interested and kinda wanted to homeschool.

On the side, I have been tracking and following homeschool gurus for years. Given reason #1, it seemed like for such a time as this....God had long ago planted the seed and desire for homeschooling.

Reasons 3-9

No homework!
free afternoons
more time for family read alouds
time to teach life skills - chores, cooking, etc.
ability to travel in the off season
time to follow our interests
free play

My oldest child is 10. These are the last of our "little years" as a family before the tweens and teens. I see this homeschooling gig as the sweetest gift. We are soaking it up.

There are so many wonderful aspects to homeschooling, some not so wonderful ones, too. Believe me we've already had our share of tough days.

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And you may be wondering why no public school for us. Well, our school system is...let's just say... complicated. We have many friends in public school, and we totally respect their choices.

Decorating for Christmas - Low Key (Low Cost)

Being completely honest, Christmas blows the budget. Rounding up a few hundred dollars to buy gifts is not such a big deal, but the cumulative effect of decorations, cards, holiday food, babysitters for parties, a December birthday thrown in, and all the unforeseen expenses - it adds up.

Over time we have curated our holiday expenditures and cut the things that are low on the totem pole. BUT if I have the opportunity to dial it back even more, I'm not gonna lie I get a saver's high.

All this to say, I'm pretty proud of my low key (low cost) Christmas decorations this year. It didn't start out that way though. December One I was psyched to go to Target and see what Joanna Gaines had to offer, but when the time came to part with my actual dollars - I thought twice.

I texted my mom and asked if she had any brass candlesticks I could borrow. She did! I had a bee in my bonnet to copy Caroline's mantel with the ivory and gold tones. I love how it turned out!

 

Along with the decor I already had (kids' art, advent calendar, nativity set), I found a huge Pyracantha bush in an empty lot on my street. It took the clippers to it and made a few Christmasy arrangements.

 

Besides the tree, a couple strands of lights, and 2 wreaths for $12.99 total - the rest of my decor was free. Either we already owned it, or I borrowed it, or I simply brought the outside in with my clippings and Christmas tree branches.

 

The hominess of Christmas is my favorite aspect of the season (besides Jesus, of course). It made my heart happy to get resourceful with the decorations instead of swiping my Target card.
Mom life lends itself to a near constant struggle between creating versus consuming. It felt good to create.

 

What about you? Do you love Christmas decorations?  Do you find joy in restraint and taking the more homemade route?

Reminds me of a favorite quote...

The enemy of art is the absence of limitations 
- Orson Wells
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A Christmas post I wrote last year

Somehow We Manage BEST OF FALL - link round up

Finally, the temps have dropped, we have hit our stride with school routines, and our Halloween costumes are all planned out. We feel ya, fall! And we love you.

Since my blogging has been nonexistent for weeks, I thought it might be fun to do a little round up of the best of SWM with a nod to fall.

Here we go....

Back to School 2016 - Two Things Making Me Not Crazy

Forever and always the best after school snack - banana bread

My go to fall meals

Use What Ya Got (how I stored our backpacks, lunchboxes, and shoes before our lockers were built)
 
Tip for Wearing Button-Down Shirts

New Coat + I'm so over buying expensive clothes

Dressing For Fall When It's 80 Degrees

Spending and Saving + Girls Clothes tips for taking summer dresses to fall and winter

Halloween 2015 feels like yesterday

20 bags in 20 days I know de-cluttering is typically a spring thing, but it's not a bad time of year to do a big clean out in anticipation for Christmas, speaking of....Five Great Toys and A Toy Worth Investing In: Magna-Tiles

I snapped this picture on a school holiday, for sure a day we had to push past the boredom.

So what's new with you?

Routines, Socks, and Pencils - Back to School!

My kids started school this week. And as with every summer's end, it was bittersweet.

But this year feels a little different. Unlike years past when school was a total mayhem-inducing shock to our system, I feel like I'm in the driver's seat. I'm confronting the school year adult style - with a plan, with our pain points analyzed, and with expectations laid out clearly for my children.

Don't come to breakfast before you're fully dressed.
Don't tell me your life story as you're getting in the car in the carpool line. Save it for the drive home!
Hang up your back pack. 
Tidy your room before bed.

It's my 4th year being the parent of elementary age children, and I finally feel like I know how to run the ship instead of it running me. Sure we will get off course, and that's okay. We'll just get right back on...eventually.

Here's a few ways I've set us up for success this year.

Routines- 
In collaboration with my kids, we wrote down what we thought was a fair and reasonable routine for the morning, afternoon, and evening. This way we are not aimlessly wandering. We have a routine! I can already tell this will be a game changer.

routines posted on fridge

Socks-
I declared sock bankruptcy, threw away all the old, mismatched socks and bought 4 fresh new packs. That should do it. Finding clean matching socks was such a pain point at the end of last year. It doesn't have to be that way.

Pencils-
Pencils are cheap and I plan to keep an ample supply. Also, I set up a homework table near the backpacks to keep the school stuff off the kitchen table.

Lunches-
My younger two kiddos do not go to school every day, but I'm planning to go ahead and make their lunches anyway. We will have a picnic ready to go and can freely run errands without  getting tripped up by lunch. Also, this keeps me from getting out all the lunch stuff multiple times a day.

So let's do this! Bring it on school year 2018-2019!

What are your tips for living your best school life, for not going crazy with all the coming and going? What are your pain points?
And school lunches?

Jesus, take the wheel.

What Worked in 2017

Happy New Year! I adore this season. The serenity and calm of January is glorious to me after the hustle of Christmas.

But before I dive into the new year, I enjoy a look back at what worked the year before. This idea was inspired by Anne Bogal of Modern Mrs. Darcy.

What worked in 2017

1. The fruit bowl. Mid year, I started keeping a huge bowl of apples, bananas, and clementines on the counter. My kids ate so much more fruit as I made these items grocery staples. And it looks pretty, too!

2. Sending throw-away bottled water in school lunches. A pack of bottled water is $2.00 a week and I don''t have to worry about kids keeping up with their water bottles, which was a huge problem at the beginning of the school year. They have plenty to keep up with, especially in winter with coats, hats, etc. For some reason they could not handle the water bottle situation, and they were always losing their nice water bottles.

3. The 10 item wardrobe. I have written about this many times. The 10 item wardrobe is a small collection of clothes that is very well curated and suited to my lifestyle. Using this method I shop less and feel so much more put together. I bought Jennifer Scott's e-course and loved it!

4. Walmart grocery pick up. Need I explain? I saved so much time, money, and energy by picking up my groceries. Sick kids, rowdy kids, too many kids - we just sat in the car and waited for the lovely Walmart employee to load up the car. This service ministers to my soul.

5. Audio books for kids. When school started this fall, there seemed to be no time to read aloud. So I downloaded 19 hours of the Ramona books, and we listened to the entire series just going back and forth to school. It was a big win!

A couple things that did not work in 2017

1. Jeans. I do not feel comfortable in jeans! Is is just me? Do I need to try a new brand or is it all jeans?
My aunt says these are great. Maybe I'll give them a try.

2. Blogging. I just could not keep up a blogging routine. Hope this changes.

What about you? What worked? What didn't?

Teacher Christmas Gift Ideas (File this post away for next year.)

We adore our teachers. I could cry thinking about how dear they are and how much they have loved our kids over the years. I want to celebrate them!

In the past, teacher gifts have sneaked (snuck?) up on me. But not so much now that I have become a little more seasoned school mom. If I could, I would buy every teacher a $100 gift card to their favorite restaurant. But... a few more realistic ideas...

Ideas of things that express our gratitude but also don't junk up their life.

Idea 1: Poinsettias
This is what we gave this year. My friend gave me the idea. I got most of them to our teachers early in the month so they could enjoy them all December long. Bonus: it was done early.

 

Idea 2: A personal gift wrapping party! My friend, Jessica, says this is her go-to gift for teachers. Some pretty wrapping paper, some tape, a nice bar of dark chocolate. Getting some gift wrap on sale for next year is a good idea. I also like the idea of getting some really special, upscale wrapping that is a step up of from Target or Walmart. Etsy has some great options.

 image

Idea 3: This third idea takes some forethought and is a little labor intensive. Make a batch of the Pioneer Woman cinnamon rolls and give some pretty napkins and paper plates to go along with them. Our teachers went crazy for this a few years ago.

image 

Gift cards are always appreciated I'm sure, and I have gone that route many times. But as we have more and more teachers in our life, these ideas are better suited to our budget but still express our big, big love we have for them.

In full disclosure, I did not give gifts to Caroline's teachers. She only goes one day a week. I totally dropped the ball and forgot. Maybe I can show our love for them on New Year's or Valentine's. Which is a reminder that Christmas does not have to be the only time to give a gift.

What's your go-to teacher gift? Ideas?!

Back to School....Two Things Making Me Not Crazy

Summer is a memory. We've moved on. Back to school! It's good, but hard. School life can be intense. Mostly, I'm just not used to it (yet)!

Clean clothes, back packs, packed lunches, early bed times, homework, getting there on time, decent meals...lots of details that fall under my umbrella of responsibility. Whew, I'm exhausted.

So the two things that are making me not crazy...

1. I keep all the uniforms, hair stuff, socks, shoes, everything we need to get ready for school in a laundry basket.

School wear lives in the basket.

This way, I'm not running to the 4 corners of the house to round up school clothes or sending my kids looking (because who are we kidding they can never find anything). This deal was inspired by my always keeping our swim bag packed this summer.

It's really working for me.

2. Convenience foods. For so many years I avoided prepackaged snacks. 

But for everything there is a season! 

Now is my season to embrace some convenience foods. Feeding a family of six is a huge operation. These grab and go foods help me catch my breath and save my energy to prepare meals.

I'm relying on these things for lunches and afternoon snacks. 

So what's making you not crazy? How's back to school? Are you surviving or thriving?

I hope thriving!

Star Oranaments + What I'm Into These Days

George made this one.

Merry Christmas!

Are you ready? As of yesterday, I think I am.

Today, I had the best time making star ornaments and reading Song of the Stars with my 4 year old's preschool class. These ornaments are so easy to make. It's basically a craft for a non-crafter. Popsicle sticks, Elmer's glue, sequins, twine. Let your imagination run wild.
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The older our family gets, there seems to be more Christmas-y details that fall under my umbrella of responsibility. To my benefit, I'm not a holiday fanatic, and I don't try to do it all. This time of year can get totally out of hand, but I have held my ground and made sure to have a lot of normal days.

Here lately, I've been enjoying some great walks. Our weather has been unseasonably warm.

I've been listening a few episodes of this podcast, Slow Your Home. I love the hosts' Australian accents.

I'm all about this tea! I'm seriously crazy for tea because I'm trying to stop drinking afternoon coffee, and I'm cutting out alcohol during the week. It all messes up my sleep.

Speaking of sleep, Stephen and I have been staying up way too late watching season 3 of Mr. Selfridge. I'm loving Jeramy Piven almost as much as I'm loving tea right now!

The last thing on my to-do list today is to finishing ordering items to complete my winter capsule wardrobe. I'm pretty sure this Gap scarf is going to make the cut. I'm all into capsule wardrobes these days.
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What are you into these days?!

Homework + Coffee + Fridays!

Hello out there!

It's Friday. And I love Fridays because I (we) have no homework. Whoop whoop!

First grade stepped it up in the HW department and no, it's not that much and Stephen is a smart kid. But, it's one more thing. I make coffee it.

Friday is like a deep breathe for me. No lunch preparations, no homework, no pressure to get to bed early.
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I've been trying to grocery shop during the week so that I have Saturdays at home or to run fun errands.... like going to Earth Fare for coffee and a muffin. My mom and I did this the first week she was here after Caroline was born, and I just keep going back. I love the way the store smells. And they have $0.99 baguettes.

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Caroline continues to be a great baby and her nursery is still the best...so conveniently located right next to my bed.

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There are so many ways I'm having to adjust to life with four kids. Having "big" kids, one in real school, and a newborn - it's a lot. But it's also so much fun! I love the mom job. God has called me to do exactly what I've always wanted to do. And that is such a gift.

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And oh fall, y'all. It's slowly but surely making its way to the deep South.

Soups, fires, long sleeved t's - they are just around the corner!

Have a great weekend! Be back soon, I hope.

Packing School Lunches

I'm totally burned out on making peanut butter and jelly/honey sandwiches for lunch. So when my mom was here last week, and doing me the huge favor of going to the store for me, I told her to buy some (nutritious) prepackaged foods to make easy lunches with.

Yesterday afternoon, we pulled all the choices out and spread them on the table. I told each child to pick four things. They packed their own lunches!

I'm so pleased. This was fun and easy. Lunches may be a little more expensive this way, but paying for the convenience is like "hiring help." I don't have to make sandwiches in the wee hours of the morning. In this season, I need to hit the easy button as much as I possibly can.

Also, I think this type of lunch is healthier than my standard sandwich lunch. We'll see if it sticks.

 Laurie's choices

Stephen's choices

How do you feel about packing school lunches?

First Day of First Grade

Officially, we have a first grader!

Stephen was eager to start a new year. I love this picture with his good buddy, Townes.

Here's last year. 

His love language is physical touch, can you tell?

One of my favorite things about Stephen's school is the elementary age kids are dismissed at 12:30. I love this unusual schedule, and I think it is a real gift to the families. The idea is you have time to do your homework, rest, be with family, and do extra curricular activities- unhurried. 

Three cheers for a new year!
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A tip from my friend, Beth, about school uniforms...come home and change right away. This will prolong the life of the uniform. They ain't cheap.

We are trying to start and keep this habit. We are 1 for 1, so far.  
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P.S. Tomorrow is baby day! Will keep you posted.

May

Well, hello there. May is/was CRAZY. The calendar was full, and my head was spinning with so many details about end of year school year schedules and celebrations. And then there was business as usual at home - laundry, meals, etc.

I'm glad the "storm" is over, and summer has officially begun!

We have few plans since I'm nearing what Michael Scott calls "the terminal stages of her pregnancy."

Almost 28 weeks!

Our agenda - Bible school, swimming, reading, visiting grandparents, crafting, playing with friends and eating Popsicles. Oh, and potty training. Can't forget that. Knowing we had another child to potty train, we installed these toilet seats when we moved into our new house. I shudder to think about the plastic, portable toddler potties.

(side note: Stephen cannot take a picture for love or money right now. Six year old boy problems, I guess. This was from muffins with mom. Best he could do. Promise he wasn't miserable.)

I'm excited about this summer because my kids are in great stages. They are really turning a corner. Their attention spans are getting longer and their imaginations are on fire these days.

They can play and play and play.

Mostly, they are content to stay at home and be in their own little "worlds." Stephen and Laurie will often retreat to their rooms for half hours at a time and pour over maps (Stephen) or play candy store or cupcake shop (Laurie).

George is winning most days with a 3 hour nap. He's gotta get his beauty sleep.

We've had a big project in progress for the past couple of months, re-building our backyard. When we moved in, there was a pool, which Stephen filled in right away. This spring, we (and by we I mean Stephen) have finally gotten around to putting down five dump truck loads of dirt and sod.

It's not done, but what we've got is beautiful!

Next project, the baby's room. We have a small office/closet off the master bedroom that will work perfectly as a nursery.

I'm mostly using what I have to decorate, artwork and an extra crib I'm borrowing from my sister. I ordered a changing table, and now I need to come up with an idea for window treatments.

We don't know if we're having a boy or a girl. We love the surprise! And with 6 years of parenting under our belt, we are humbled enough to not even take a guess. We have no clue. But when we do know, I'm hoping I can get my cousin to make a quilt like one of these.

On Stephen's last day of kindergarten we celebrated with a Little Ceaser's $5 hot and ready. Can I get an AMEN?

He had a fantastic school year. We love his school. It far exceeds what I could ever dream up for my children's education. They have this quote on the website -

"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."- William Butler Yeats

I love that.

Three cheers for summer!

After School Snack: Banana Bread

My kids have been coming home from school ravenous. And I have not had a plan! The other day when Stephen was eating chocolate chips and Laurie was finishing off a bag of marshmallows I thought to myself - okay, it's time to get organized.

So today, in anticipation of hungry tummies, I made an old faithful - banana bread. Is there anything more homey than banana bread?! I love this recipe. I've experimented with different ones, but always come back to this one.

2 sticks butter, room temp
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 ripe bananas
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
 
Mix all ingredients and pour into two greased loaf pans. Bake on 350 degrees for 40-50 minutes or until golden brown on top.

We ate an entire loaf! Me + the kids.

What are your kids favorite after school/ afternoon snacks? I need some inspiration.

A Little Crazy In Every Week

Every week has a little (or a lot) of crazy. No matter how much I plot and plan out the week, some days just go so nuts. There was one day last week that I drove Stephen to school - back home- drove the younger kids to preschool - home again - then back to preschool - and back to Stephen's school all before 9:30 a.m. It was the perfect storm.

Stephen could not take Stephen to school as he usually does, so I took him. Then I forgot to bring George's bag with his diapers and lunch when I dropped him off at preschool. Follow that with a volunteer commitment at Stephen's school. Mix in there weird amounts of time lags between when and where we had to be. I was beat. 

All this to say, I'm keeping George home with me next year. Preschool was there for me when I needed it, but it just feels right to keep him with me for next school year. Simpler. Laurie will still go though.

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Speaking of, that girl had her 4 year old well check up last week. All was well, except the two shots. Thankful. She looks so tiny in this picture.

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I read Modern Mrs. Darcy's post about Stitch Fix and immediately signed up for a box. I got it Saturday. I loved one item and sent the other four back. Overall, it was a great experience, and I'm totally going to try it again. Right now I'm signed up for a monthly fix. It is more money than I'd typically spend on clothes for me. BUT I am paying someone to run the errand and best of all - narrow down my choices. So I will hopefully blog about this more.

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I'm making Ina Garten's roasted chicken for dinner - minus the fennel. Can't wait!
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So that's what's up with us.

P.S. I forgot to send Laurie's lunch to school today when I dropped her off, and had to make an extra trip back to the school. I was kicking myself. 

Taco Soup + Decorating Wins + Photo Bomber

Made taco soup this week. It's an old-y but a gold-y, don't you think? I used a similar recipe to this one.

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I'm on a decorating kick after reading Myquillyn Smith's book, The Nesting Place. But of course, I'm trying to use as much of what I have as possible.

Truly, the message of her book freed me to be myself in the decorating sense. I'm feeling more confident and not so afraid of making mistakes. It's all trial and error, and messing up can just be part of the process to creating a room/home you love.

I considered the wall gallery over the sofa a huge win this week! I've been trying to decide what to put up there. I wanted something colorful and after some experimentation I settled on a vivid collection of prints I have. The common theme - all Mississippi artists. Nod to my home state ;)

My cousin did the water color of the house in Seaside and gave it to us as a wedding gift. It needed to be re-framed, so bought the frame for $25 at Hobby Lobby. I wish could have gotten it on sale, but given that HL is not close to my house, I figured it best to just get it.

I'm giving myself a small allowance each month for home improvements.

If you can't tell, let me state the obvious.... I love color! Especially unexpected color combinations. 

Here's another area I'm tweaking and loving.

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For laughs, check out this photo bomber...
I stuck a sweatshirt in his backpack expecting cooler weather to come in, but it was totally unnecessary. It's still hot. Come on, fall!

The end.

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!