Heading Back to Work

I went back to the classroom four weeks as a long term sub. You guys, you would have thought it was my first day of teaching ever. I was so nervous and scared and sad and excited and everything. It's the first time that I'm leaving Elliott and a two kid household during the day. I knew that I needed to be super organized and detailed about what I needed and expected from myself to not feel burnt out after three days. Here are a couple of things that I did to help myself out and to keep myself sane.

Clothes
I picked out all of my outfits on Sunday night for the entire week. I also tried on all of my outfits since it has been two years since I've put on some of those pants and dresses.

Bobby was getting both kids ready for the day, so I wanted to help make his life a little easier. Each night, I picked out the kids' clothes and put them in piles so that if Bo felt like dressing himself he could. I would even put out Elliott's diaper and rubber bands. This process helped take away a little of the guilt that I wasn't there to help dressing kids. It made me feel like I was part of it.

Meals
I planned meals for the week that were insanely easy and that everyone enjoys. I knew I was going to be tired and I couldn't manage making a complicated dinner and hearing complaints. Be kind to yourself. When I went back to work when Bo was a baby, we ate a lot of BLT Sandwiches and Baked Potatoes.

I also packed all of my lunches the night before. Don't forget filling up your water :)

Pictures and Notes
Our Nanny shares pictures of our best girlfriend through Google Photos. I think this is a superior method for sharing updates. I turned the notifications off, so I can look on my own time. Without notifications, I don't feel like I'm missing out on each event as it happens. We also have a recording sheet so I can know about naps and lunches.

Get Up Early
I need quiet and slow in the morning. I also planned a couple of low key chores to do in the morning. I would put in a load of laundry or lay out kids coats. I knew I would be tired at the end of the day, but there are things that still need to happen. Morning is my best time, so if I could knock out a couple of things I would do it. I would also write this in my planner so I would hold myself accountable and not try to put it off to the afternoon.

Go to Bed Early
I found myself in bed each night at 8:30. I definitely didn't fall asleep at that time, but my face and teeth were brushed. I also drank an extra glass of cold water while I was in bed to make sure I drank enough water that day.

Give Yourself a Break
It's not all going to happen each day. I didn't do a lot of things that I planned to do, but I did hug a lot of babies. Babies don't keep.

What advice do you have for parents going back to work after an extended period?

5 Easy House Updates

Since it's winter, we've been stuck inside our house. Because of this, I'm constantly scrutinizing every detail and making constant lists of parts of my house that are annoying me or wish looked different. Truth be told, I've literally never lived as long in one house as I have in our current apartment. I'm feeling the itch to pick up and move. But since that's not happening next week, here are five easy house updates that you can make without breaking the bank or driving everyone crazy.

Put It Away or Move It

I am always a fan of taking away different pieces of decor for awhile and then bringing it back once I'm ready. I think blankness and simplicity is a great way to refresh your house. Give your space (and yourself) a chance to breathe and be ready for a change. Also, it helps me think of new places for me to move decor in my house. Moving it to a new room gives new life to something old.

Side Note- If you put something away and you don't get it back out, it's time for it to go. Donate it or sell it.

Recovering Art

Remember the Painting Party craze? It was so fun to go paint and drink with your friends on a Tuesday night, but for me it wasn't so great to hang that "artwork" on the wall. You can recover that canvas very easily with some pretty fabric and a staple gun or tacks. You can use your new art work as an art piece or a bulletin board. I recovered the Chicago Skyline picture with this Gingham Print that makes me pretty happy. I just used tacks to hang a simple banner, but you could put a wreath or sign over the top.

New Pictures and Frame all the Things

I realized recently that we haven't updated our pictures in our house in a couple of years. We only have pictures of Elliott from when she was a baby. I promptly printed new pictures of our family and friends. It was a quick and easy way to bring new faces and conversations into our house.

Also, frame all the things. I just framed three birthday cards and a drawing Bo did of me and my friend for my office. This corner has now become my very favorite place to hang. Dollar Store has really stepped it up with their decorative frames. You can find so many simple and lightweight frames that you can hang with 3M Command Strips. It honestly can't be easier.

Pillowcases

New Pillowcases for your couch pillows make a world of difference. You can change the look and feel of your couch quickly with this easy idea. Amazon makes even easier. I've had my eye on these  and these and these and possibly a million more. All you have to do is slip them over your existing pillows. I don't even take off the old pillowcases.

Move Furniture 
I was that teacher that was constantly moving furniture in the classroom, so it's not surprising that I move furniture in my house.  I recently moved my favorite chair in my bedroom. It has opened up my office and I'm actually able to use my chair rather than creating random piles. Also, I can watch my favorite people as they do their favorite things. Getting a new view from the couch or your bed will help you get a new view of your space.

I know that none of these ideas are life changing or brand new, but I often forget about them. So instead of packing up your house or spending a billion dollars, start here. These small changes can help you take a new look at your lovely house.

How do you make small changes to update your space?

Meal Planning- Week of February 24th

I have too much in my fridge, freezer, and pantry right now. I have a small space, so I need to keep it organized well. Right now, I can't organize anything because there is too much going on. This week, I planned all of my dinners around ingredients that have been hanging out way too long. I have a lot of new recipes being made this week, I'm excited to see if they can join the rotation.

Also, welcome back Trader Joes Orange Chicken. You've been on the list three weeks in a row. Fingers Crossed we eat you this week since you are in a huge bag that is taking up space in  my freezer.

			Grocery List
Monday	Sheet Pan	Greek Sheet Pan	I have some variety of all of these ingredients in my fridge. I’m using this opportunity to make and eat.
Tuesday	Quick and Easy	Sloppy Joes Bo has been begging for Sloppy Joes. I’m thinking of going fancy and making these Big Mac Sloppy Joes. But I could always go back to the original favorite.	I’ve had buns lurking in my fridge that I’m tired of looking at.  Ground Beef
Wednesday	Crock Pot	Thai Peanut Chicken	Also, another recipe that I have almost all the ingredients (except for Chicken) that I’d like to use. I also have a bag of pea pods that I’d like to use as well.
Thursday	Sheet Pan	Chicken Sausage Roasted Potatoes Green Beans	Chicken Sausage
Friday	Quick and Easy	Trader Joes Orange Chicken and Fried Rice	Found this in my freezer. Done!
Saturday	Quick and Easy	Mexican Stew	Salsa Peppers Black Beans Corn Rice
Sunday	Crockpot	Beef Bourguignon	Too many carrots, onions, and potatoes hanging around my house right now. Insert this delicious dinner.

Five Things on a Sunday

This is my current view. Right now, it's better than looking out at any body of water or mountain view. It's been a really great weekend. Here are a couple of things that we did this weekend that made our time together really fun.

1. Find a place that you can take your kids and they can play while you wait for your food. We just went to the Chicago Fire Pitch Restaurant. They have Foosball, Ping Pong, Large Jenga, and Large Connect Four. Once we ordered dinner, the kids (and Bobby!) played while we waited. It made the dinner really enjoyable and easy going. Once dinner was over, the kids went back and played while Bobby and I finished our drinks and just sat. If you're in Chicago, I definite favorite of our family.

2. If you are looking for a show to watch with your kids that won't make you poke your eyes out, may I suggest Master Chef Junior. It's Gordon Ramsey's cooking show featuring 8-13 year old kids. It's a lovely watch for all ages. The episodes can be found on Hulu. Honestly, I watched it before had kids so the fact that Bo will watch this with us is a dream!

3. Last night, we had a Make Your Own Pizza Night. I bought a pre-made pizza pack from Aldi (I think I'm a convert!) and pulled out all of the toppings from the fridge. It was an activity that everyone loved- even though Elliott ate all of her toppings before her pizza made it to the oven. I don't know if it was because I was hungry or it was really that good, but I ate 1.5 mini pizzas. It was a great Saturday night fun activity!

4. Bobby is TIRED of playing Candyland, so he just bought Bo Go Away Monster. It's a game that teaches kids how to take turns, share, and enjoyment of playing a game. We play the Non-Competitive Way, so there is no winner. We've played every night this week and it's truly an enjoyable fun game.

What are some fun things you did this weekend? Happy Sunday, y'all!

Parents Vs. Kids

Oh you guys, we've had a rough couple of weeks at our house. There has been lots of arguing, refusing to help, ignoring directions, and so much more. I try really hard not to turn my house into a classroom, but I'm at my wits end and Mama Teacher has entered the room.

When I was in the classroom, we'd do Teacher Vs. Students. As a class, we'd choose a behavior that we needed to work on- walking in the hallway, following directions, etc. If the students met that expectation, they received a point and if they didn't, the teacher received a point. At the end of the day, if the students won they received extra tech time or something that they wanted.

Starting tomorrow, we're Parents Vs. Kids. Bobby and I came up with expectations that we want Bo and Elliott to meet in our house. We don't expect them to do all of these things every day or be perfect at all, but we just wanted to make sure that we were clear with what is and is not acceptable in our house. We also wanted to make sure that Bobby and I were on the same page about behaviors.

So every time a behavior is done, that team earns a point. If Bo and Elliott win at the end of the day, they get to stay up later and play a game or spend time with us. We chose to do a daily celebration so that our kids could feel that immediate reward for their good choices.

A couple of extra things:
-I included the chart this time, because we wanted Bo and Elliott to be able to visually see who was winning.
-When you give one team a point, be positive rather than negative. (Congrats, Dad! We earned a point vs. "Bummer, Bo and Elliott you didn't earn a point). You don't want to escalate feelings about not earning.
-You could have a reward everyday like we are or have another chart for a collective ten wins. You could have kids working for bigger things- like a movie or adventure.
-Put this in a page protector or laminate so you can use day after day.

I've also included my Parents Vs. Kids Chart plus some other goodies. I hope they're helpful! Give @ellibodesigns a shout out when you use them in your house!

We've got this, friends. Someday I know that I'm not even going to remember these difficult moments. My kids are going to do amazingly kind and caring things that make the world a better place. But until then, I'm just going to need to less laser shooting and being told I'm a bad mom. I hope this works for us. I need a win right now. What works well for you in your house to maintain some sort of order? Share below.

Meal Planning- Week of February 17th

The theme of this week is Quick and Easy. If I can make it with 3 or less ingredients it's happening for me. I'm calling on some help so that I can focus on the people in this house right now. Something has got to give and right now it's food. On Sunday, I'm making a Chicken and Stuffing dish mainly because I'm tired of having a huge box of stuffing in my pantry. 

			Grocery List
Monday	Crockpot	Meatball and Tortellini Soup *I’m doing this in my InstaPot, but using it as a slow cooker. This way I can saute onions and slow cook in one pot.	Tortellini
Tuesday	Salad/Bowl Situation	Fish Taco Bowls	Salsa
Wednesday	Quick and Easy	Indian Curry Over Rice	This is one of those premade packs that you can heat in the microwave.Thanks, mom for splitting a Costco sized box of this with me. I need to buy nothing.
Thursday	Freezer	Stroganoff Noodles	Nothing! Pull this out of the freezer and put in crock pot.
Friday	Quick and Easy	Trader Joes Orange Chicken and Fried Rice	Found this in my freezer. Done!
Saturday	Quick and Easy	Make Your Own Pizza	Individual Pizzas Sauce Toppings Cheese (I have way too much!)
Sunday	Crockpot	Crockpot Chicken and Stuffing	I have all of these ingredients in my house. Is this my favorite dinner? No.  Do I want to stop looking at a box of stuffing- yes.

Meal Planning: Week of February 10th

Oh hi Tuesday! Here we go. It's another crazy week at our house. To be honest, I'm not even sure any of this food is actually going to be eaten. I'm out of town for work, we have Grandparents coming in and out, it's Valentines Day. Because of that I've made the plan for Sunday for us to just eat food.

			Grocery List
Monday	Dinner Out
Tuesday	Find it in the Freezer	Trader Joe’s Orange Chicken and Fried Rice	Orange Chicken Fried Rice
Wednesday	Soup	Mexican Stew	Chicken Salsa Black Beans Corn Peppers
Thursday	Pasta	Spaghetti and Meat Sauce	Crushed Tomatoes Onions Italian Sausage Spaghetti
Friday	Kids’ Dinner/Adults Order	I got Heart Shaped Pasta to make Mac ‘n Cheese. The real key to their hearts.	Heart Shaped Pasta Cheese
Saturday	Crock Pot	BBQ Chicken	BBQ Sauce Chicken
Sunday	Leftovers?	It’s been a long week. I can’t figure out anything to feed my family. Eat whatever you want out of the fridge or freezer

A Couple of Things on a Friday

Oh you guys. It's Friday. I'm excited for sometime to be at home with family and friends. Bobby and I had a huge week. We took on a lot of new roles and traveled for work. By the end of today, I'm going to be exhausted.

I've been thinking about a couple of things this week.

1. Do you watch Bluey? It's on Disney+. It's about a family of dogs from Autralia. It's honestly one of my favorite shows to watch with the kids. It's clever and funny. Bo dies laughing every time. It's also pretty short for situations when you need something smaller. We just watched the episode called "Takeaway". I'm pretty sure there isn't a better representation of parenting than that episode. It's definitely a must watch.

2. We just discovered that we get a large quantity of books through Amazon Prime that we can read for free through the Kindle app. You don't have to have a Kindle, just a Prime Account. We've found lots of books that Bo enjoys, but I'm happy that I don't have to actually invest money in- Blaze and the Monster Machines, Bubble Gubbles, etc. There are also worthwhile books like The Bad Seed and Pete the Cat. There are also TONS of adult reads as well. I definitely recommend checking this out.

All you have to do is Download the App, Click Store, and then Prime Reading at the Top.

3. I picked out all of my clothes for the entire week on Sunday and it was a life changer. Does anyone else do this?

4. Let me be really embarrassed for a second. I can't drink water. I always realize at the end of the day that I only drank water. My kids have been really obsessed with Peaches lately and they come in a three jars to a pack. It feels wasteful to throw away the jars. They're big and good quality. They are also equal 64 ounces. So I've been filling those bad boys up each morning so I can be better about drinking water.

5. I'm obsessed with this soup right now- Italian Sausage Orzo Soup. It's like Grown Up Spaghetti-Os. I froze it in single servings so I can eat soup when that craving for processed food hits. (Is this something that only effects me?)


What are you loving this week? What's helping you be your very best self? Have a great Friday!

Classroom Valentines Day Gift Ideas

Valentine's Day is next week. When I was a kid, we threw candy in a lunch bag and called it a day. It's now important for us to think about the type of candy we're giving kids (for beyond good reasons). Because of this, I'd rather be safe than sorry! We're giving out Masks to Bo's classmates. I found a beyond good deal on Amazon and what 4 year old doesn't want a superhero mask?

Here are a couple of other great ideas for Valentines Day. Also, if you would like free Gift Tags for these gifts, find them here.

I’m STUCK on you: A sheet of stickers like this:

https://www.amazon.com/SAVITA-Stickers-Scrapbooking-Including-Dinosaurs/dp/B07HT9Y48V/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=sticker+sheets&qid=1579145221&sr=8-5

You are the WRITE kind of friend: Retractable Pens like this:

https://www.amazon.com/Frienda-Retractable-Ballpoint-Multicolor-Colorful/dp/B07BF99G7B/ref=sr_1_13?crid=1LM77JJUFX3XU&keywords=color+changing+pens+for+kids&qid=1579144578&sprefix=pens+chang%2Caps%2C211&sr=8-13

Valentine, I’m CRAZY for you: Crazy Straw

https://www.amazon.com/Straws-Homono-Colorful-Reusable-Drinking/dp/B07FVQV9W6/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=crazy+straw&qid=1579145273&sr=8-4

Happy Valentines to a SUPER Friend: Super Hero Masks

https://www.amazon.com/Superhero-Supplies-Masquerade-Halloween-Birthdays/dp/B07W9KHX28/ref=sr_1_10?keywords=superhero+masks&qid=1579145333&sr=8-10

You are my MAIN SQUEEZE; Squishy Balls

https://www.amazon.com/Stress-Balls-Assortment-Classroom-Stress/dp/B07VB5NH97/ref=sr_1_57_sspa?keywords=stress+ball&qid=1579145449&sr=8-57-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUE5VzdVUzBFRTBWUDYmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAyNzU2NTIyTDlVTldUNDFXUVVaJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA2MjQyODgzSFdWWjJaUUlHMlE4JndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYnRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==