Family Printables + giveaway
October 8, 2009 | Filed Under Household, Kids | 167 Comments
Updated: This giveaway is now closed. The winner is Joy from Frugal Menu Mamas!
A couple of weeks ago as I was perusing around Etsy, one of my absolutely favorite sites, I came across these fun Family Rules Printables by Perfect Sentiment and just had to buy a set for myself.
I thought they would be awesome hung in our dining room as a great reminder about what the family rules are. I love the idea of our expectations being clearly displayed for the kids in hopes that they might actually get it. A girl can dream can’t she 
The printables were reasonably priced at $4.00 and I figured that while I could easily make them myself I wasn’t willing to sacrifice the time it would take to do it. Not when I could purchase them so inexpensively and be able to download them right away.
I quickly ran down to my local dollar store to purchase some 5×7 frames and was able to get 6 black frames for $10.00.
This little project took me no time at all to assemble and I was so pleased with the results I just had to share it with you. This is how they look hung up in our dining room.
So for $14.00 I got a great piece of conversational art in my dining room that leads to many a family discussion around the dining room table. And now that I own the printables I can easily assemble some sets for Christmas gifts if I want to.
When I emailed Erin of Perfect Sentiment to tell her how pleased I was she offered to give away a set of printables to one of my readers. So if this is something that interests you just leave a comment on this post prior to Oct 11th at 12:00 pm PST to enter. Open to everyone.
Peter Walsh + Back to School
September 5, 2009 | Filed Under Giveaway, Kids | 178 Comments
This giveaway is now over. The winner is Ginny of Mom of 2 Dancers!
A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to sit in on a blogcast put on by Office Max and Organizing Expert Peter Walsh about back to school. It was hard for me to think about back to school at the beginning of August seeing as how my kids don’t go back to school until next Tuesday but I had every intention of getting this post up earlier for everyone who has kids that return sooner. Unfortunately life happens sometimes and I’m only now getting around to sharing this with you. I think you’ll still find it super helpful as the suggestions are just excellent for organizing kids for the entire school year. You can check out the video here.
Some of the highlights are:
TIPS FOR HOME
1) Find the vision you have for a space and start with a clean slate
2) Make organization a family value
3) Use the right tools for great organization
TIPS FOR ORGANIZING YOUR CHILD
1) Show that you value organization
2) Establish clear limits and routines
3) Always ‘finish the cycle’ (complete a task). For example: if you start something, finish it. If you open something, close it. If you use up something, replenish it.
TIPS FOR THE CLASSROOM
1) Establish clear routines
2) Involve kids with classroom organization
3) Use words, pictures and color to help organize
One of the best takeaways was Peter’s advice to get your kids involved in each step of the process, something I wholeheartedly agree with. Have your child set up their desk and they will be more committed to maintaining it.
Thanks to Office Max I also have a few back to school supplies to share with you. Here is what is included:
~ one green owl drawstring bag
~ one pencil box
~ one heart binder and 7 pocket expanding file
~ one composition notebook
~ 10 fun file folders in two designs (these are not from Office Max)
Office Max’s owl and cupcake product lines (available in store only) are absolutely adorable. My daughter went ga ga over the cupcake line which is why you aren’t seeing any of them up for grabs
To enter, simply leave a comment on this post by Tuesday, September 8th at 4:00 pm PST.
Good luck!
Recently Written
Miscellaneous
