More Monogram Madness...Aprons

Recently, I found these really inexpensive aprons. They are the perfect size for a child under five. We started out doing a "cupcake" theme first birthday party for Little Bit, but then, we decided to do an "enchanted garden" party (I'll share my ideas for that in a later post). I bought these aprons originally for the little "chefs" to decorate their own cupcakes, but then I changed themes. Fortunately, they still worked perfect for a little gardner to plant their flowers! They would also be perfect for art projects!

If you want to make them, it was really simple to embroider them! I am always on a search for something "different" than the usual that I can make "special" by monogramming it! Hopefully, this will give you a new idea too! These were perfect favors for the children at the party. My girls wore them yesterday to do fingerpaint(Yes, I was feeling a little brave. It didn't last for long!). I'm selling these for 5 dollars with a name embroidered. I plan on using them for Christmas gifts for little cousins. Right now, while school stuff is on sale, you can buy a few extra paints and art stuff and put it together with a cute apron! How easy and personal! I mailed two of these out Wednesday that a friend had bought for birthday gifts. Postage was right at a dollar, which is even better if you have out of town family!

Worriers Anonymous

Hello, I’m Tammy, and I am a worrier. It should be the same as any other addiction group. I would definitely belong to Worrier’s Anonymous. I worry about EVERYTHING. It turns, twists, and tuns through my head constantly. I googled “how to stop worrying” and came up with 3, 150,000 hits. I guess other people should belong too! Unfortunately, I had no luck discovering the 12 step program.

I worry about my children. I worry about the decisions that I make that affect my children. I worry about what I eat, what I say, what I do. Hmm…is there anything else left? Right now, I’m worrying whether my Little Bit is teething, has an ear infection, or has just mastered getting me to run to her and give her a bottle when she wakes up. Have I just helped her create this new bad habit? Yep, worrying. Will my LaLa like her new teacher this year? Is she too young to go to preschool? Should I have kept her home or done a different program? Yep, worrying. Oh, the list just goes on and on. The older they get the more we worry because the less we know…or maybe it’s the less that we can control! I can’t even imagine the teenage years!

Yesterday, Little Bit made this scrunched up face. LaLa turned around to face her and said “oh, baby, are you worried?” Now, where in the world would a 3 year old come up with that? Then, she turned to me and said, “Mama, that’s her worried face.” Yep, you’re right….then, I worried that my kids are picking up on my addiction to worrying. It’s one thing to be the “family” joke that they don’t need to worry because they know I am! It’s another thing for my kids to pick up on my negative attributes!

Of course, it gave me something else to add to the list to worry about! Seriously, what do I accomplish by worrying? Absolutely nothing! I don’t think we realize that our kids pick up on everything—all of our traits both positive and negative! Addictions are known to be hereditary—often passed down from generation to generation. This is one addiction that I don’t want my kids to inherit. I knew I was a worrier…like most people know they are addicted to alcohol, shopping, or food, but I didn’t “claim” it. Now, I probably won’t stop worrying over night, but I am going to try to reduce my worrying to a minimum.

“My life has been full of terrible misfortunes, most of which have never happened” -Michael de Montaigne. This quote is going to my mantra for the next couple days! Most of what I worry about will not be changed by my worrying about it. Psalm 94:19 says, “I was very worried, but you comforted me and made me happy.” Obviously, if someone like David in the Bible was worrying, at least I am in good company! However, when I worry, I am going to be more aware of the worth of worrying and let go of what I cannot change…or control!

What’s your addiction or negative attribute? You don’t even have to look within! Look closely, your kids probably reflect the same “symptoms”. It’s our jobs as mama’s to stop the cycle so they won’t end up as…crazy…as we are!

Mama Drama Rule #6: Our children are some of the best teachers that I have ever had. On most days, they are an open window into my soul. Sometimes what I see makes my heart rejoice. Other times, what I see makes me cringe and strive to be a better person...for their sakes.

Going to share my cute, easy, and inexpensive apron project today! Look for a new posting later today.

Back to School Blues for the Kids!...or Bliss for the Mamas!

It’s that time of year where it looks like a tornado has hit the school supply sections at your local Wal-mart and Target. It’s kind of an area that you should enter at your own risk. I took both of my girls to Wal-mart and the LONG list of supplies to do the shopping. I was near insanity as I left because it is just too difficult to think straight with two little ones in the chaos! I was seriously ready to hurt somebody if they could not just help me find the BLUNT tip FISKAR scissors…sounds simple enough…but it took twenty minutes and a lot of moving boxes around! Honestly, though, the “teacher” in me gets truly giddy when I get to buy school supplies! My husband (aka SANTA) even puts pens, markers, etc. in my stocking each year!

I sat debating last night whether or not to label things with her name on it. Usually, due to the easiest way of managing a multitude of children, the teacher will simply use the supplies as a “community” resource for the students. My dilemma was…to label or not to label? As a teacher, I did it both ways. I ended up labeling her crayons and such that I felt like they would probably leave in her box. Everything else, I labeled on the outside of the packaging. The best thing to do is warn your kids that these are for the class not necessarily just for them. Then, you avoid a serious meltdown when your child melts down when some other kid is using those green BLUNT tip FISKAR scissors that we spent FOREVER looking for in the store!

I have spent lots of time over the last week researching ways to get organized for back to school. I know the perspective from the teaching side, but now, I have a totally new one on the mama front! From both of those perspectives and from ideas I liked through "stealing", here are my ideas to help get the school year started off right…

1. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT…at least POSSIBLE: Practice going to bed on time and getting up on time for school. (We haven’t mastered this quite yet! Mama likes to sleep in and thinks it a sin to wake up sleeping children…even if I will pay for it next week!)
   


2. HAVE A MORNING ROUTINE: For me, with little ones, that means I get up first and get dressed. I do whatever I was supposed to do the night before—pack lunch, snack, check backpacks, pack sippy cups, find uniforms or clothes, etc.
   


3. HAVE A SPOT FOR EVERYTHING: It works for us to have a crate and/or a hook for everything. In the school crate (2.50 at wal-mart) is where book bags go, lunchboxes, show and tell item, whatever we need for school. In a soccer crate, we put cleats, socks, uniform, ball, etc. I even take them out of the crate to wash them and put them back in. Yes, I need it as much as the kids do or I would be looking EVERYWHERE for it! At the same place, I keep hooks with rain jackets, an umbrella, sweater or jacket for whatever the weather is like.
   


4. BE PREPARED!: I know that we will always forget something in the midst of our drama so I have learned the HARD way to be prepared. Yes, I have been the one that forgot her kid's shoes and took her to church. I have forgotten a spare diaper (But had EVERYTHING ELSE KNOWN TO MAN) and had to wrap her baby around and around with towels from the dispenser in the bathroom of chick-fil-a just to make it home! Pack a little box with wipes, Tylenol, diapers, extra clothes, tissue, sanitizer, (extra shoes because we seem to get out regularly without them!), extra sippy, snack, juice box, etc.. It never fails that something you need will not be with you…your best luck is to roll with punches and think fast! I get in a bind when I use something from the bucket and forget to replenish it…or when my husband takes it out of the car when he is vacuuming it!
   


5. BE A PROUD MAMA! Have a place to hang up some of your child’s artwork! A couple years ago, I saw the cutest thing and kind of copied it in my daughter’s room. It’s just wooden clothes pins that I painted with cute little wooded items hot glued on the ends (Michaels Art Store for 25 cents). It matches her room, and she loves to have her school stuff hanging up there…Our fridge appreciates that it is not the sole display unit now! If you don’t have a spot for it, the amount of stuff they bring home will overwhelm you! Have a plan for what you are going to save and keep too!
   


6. HAVE A MAMA SPACE: You are the dictator of this domain! This is usually our fridge or our garage door that faces our kitchen. Have a spot to put a calendar to note when show and tell is, when it’s your turn to bring snack, field trips, special days, etc.. As a teacher, I had many of kiddos desperately upset (at least for that week) that they FORGOT their show and tell item or their book report. For little ones, it’s our job to start implementing how to keep organized and keep track of this kind of stuff. The older they get…you can have them have their own calendar, but you are still the calendar dictator!
   


7. BE LOOKING FOR THE SLUMP: The beginning of the school year brings excitement and anxiety. By about week three or four, all that is over. All that is left is sleepy, tired, and grumpy little ones that are over getting up early and missing the freedom days of summer. As a teacher, that was when it was the toughest! Be prepared for the slump and maybe it will go smoother!
   

There are a lot more GREAT ideas, but I think these are the best basic ones! We’ll be trying them out this year! We mamas need all the help that we can get so it can’t hurt to try it! It’s a lot easier to try to get organized at the beginning and stick with it than try it in the middle of the year! A break (even though it’s a short four hours three days a week!) sounds quite wonderful at this moment! Pure Back to School Bliss for this MAMA!

Mama Drama Rule #5: Don’t be too hard on the teacher in the beginning! Remember, she’s trying to get settled with new kids…learn all their names…learn all their parents’ names…learn what drama goes along with kid—custody issues, peanut allergies, etc—who knows what, make sure everybody gets home at the end of the day, convince the screaming child holding onto mama that it really is okay, and still has to suffer through the mama looking in the window every ten minutes. (Yes, I will resist the temptation…or at least try…this year. I completely caught myself doing it at mom’s morning out last year. I felt so guilty that I had become one of THOSE parents!)

Project for the Day~Sippy Cups & Embroidered Inserts~

This was my project for today. We are getting ready for preschool, and I thought this would be great to avoid writing all over my sippy cups, especially because we tend to share all the cups between the girls. I was determined that these could not be THAT difficult! Unintentionally, we happen to take the "cow" one to Chick-fil-a when we went to lunch today. We had so many compliments on it! My daughter loves "cowgirl" things so that was her pick. The leopard print was in a preschooler's language "baby jaguar" print...ya know, from Diego, of course!

If you try to make these, I figured out that the trick is to use thick, really thick, stabilizer. It works better, too, if you iron it. Then, when you hoop it, use an additional stabilizer so it will fit the entire hoop. I, then, covered the back with a solid color...just because it looked better, but I guess no one really looks at the back of the insert. It would simple to make it reversible. You could put the same name on both sides. This would give the child the option...or if you have two kids, it might be easier instead of searching. You would then have them all double sided with both kid's names.

I'm totally going to start doing these for gifts! It's perfect for preschool or nursery! I'm selling the inserts for 4 dollars. If you want two & want the same "font" and "name" on different fabric, I'll do those for just 3 dollars more. Check out ebay...they are at least 5 dollars (not including shipping). The cups are tricky to find and range anywhere from 4.99 to 5.99. I have had luck finding them sporadically at Publix. If you want the cup and the insert, I'm selling those for $10. I have teal, purple, and green...and on the hunt for more!

It Might Just Come Back to Bite You in the Butt!

Whew! I thought I was having a truly incredible awesome mama day. If things keep going this way, they might even pronounce me as an inspiration to all other mamas out there! I was on top of things this particular morning doing laundry, running errands, (even went to the gym!), effectively adhering to our schedule. I put Little Bit to bed to nap and silently praised myself on the trip down the stairs. Yep, I even did the little happy dance.

Now, we had our squabbles throughout the morning, but with the accomplishments of the day thus far…this was not even necessary to mention! Little Bit is teething and gnawing on everything…including humans. I remind her NO BITE and tell LaLa that she’s teething. Our Little Bit is also copying and following LaLa around lately like a shadow. I, personally, think it’s adorable…LaLa becomes highly annoyed. I try to explain to LaLa that Little Bit just thinks she is REALLY cool and wants to be just like her.

Now, with one child asleep, I effectively maneuver LaLa on a “shape” project. Oh yeah, I’m really good…I didn’t even pop in a video. She had a "bon-a-fide" project! I had a called a few friends in route on errands (AKA the only place that I get a chance to have a civilized phone conversation). Well, one I had missed called back. I decided that I was doing so well with my lists, tasks, and day as a whole that I would go ahead and indulge myself with a girl chat. Throughout my chat, I tried to keep my 3 year old focused with little tidbits of redirection and encouragement. She came over and (what I thought) hugged my leg. Well, suddenly, in the midst of “hug” and phone conversation, she took the biggest bite out of my “hiney”(our AC—after children—term for butt)! Oh, I was furious!

I quickly ended my phone conversation and was ready to set this child straight! She said, “Well, you know how Little Bit bites. My teeth don’t hurt, but I want to be like her. I just think she is really cool.” I heard my own words come back to bite me…literally! She had some time in her room and a little redirection on that concept, but I think I was the one who learned the lesson! By the way, I still have my reminder of teeth marks on my butt cheek!

Mama Drama Rule #4: Remember…Just when you think you have got it all under control, it’ll come back to bite you in the…hiney!

WORKING ON A PROJECT TODAY! WILL POST LATER HOW IT WORKS OUT! OF COURSE, THAT’S ONLY THE PLAN…WHO KNOWS WHAT WILL HAPPEN BY THE END OF THE DAY!

This Season of Our Life

Everything has seasons. Even the Bible reiterates that in Ecclesiastes. Ecclesiastes 3 says, “For everything there is a season…”

I never thought about our own lives having seasons. I have a friend that always compares what ministries she is involved in with what season she is in life. The older I get, I realize exactly how much this is true in my life. These seasons evolve as where we are in life change—getting married, being pregnant, having babies, working, not working, having teenagers, retiring, etc. Our children even go through these “seasons” in life. We often call them “phases”. As these seasons change, our relationships with our children change. I have a completely different relationship with my mother since I have had children. It is now more of a mentor relationship just as much as it’s a mother/daughter relationship. Has our love changed? No, our relationship has just changed as our seasons—where we are in life—has changed.

All relationships must evolve and grow as you go through different seasons in life. Marriages and friendships must change with what season you are in life too. In part, I believe this is why the divorce rate is so high. In addition, this is why friendships grow closer and farther apart. Partners refuse to evolve with the seasonal changes. It takes work, understanding, and acceptance. If you left your yard untouched for an entire year, what would happen? It wouldn’t be pretty, would it? Regular upkeep and maintenance during seasonal changes is what keeps the yard looking nice. Relationships are the same way.

I had this conversation recently with a friend of mine. When you have children, one of your biggest fears is that you’ll lose your single friends or friends that don’t have children. You don’t lose these friends, but you can’t maintain the same relationship you had BC (before children). You are on a new timetable with new priorities. The problems arise when you try to resist the season of your life changing.

“The most beautiful discovery true friends make is that they can grow separately without growing apart”—Elisabeth Foley. Relationships change as we change. We must accept that and embrace it in order to get more out of them. For example, I can’t expect my husband to be the same person he was when we dated. We are closer and stronger, now, because we have both changed as our seasons in life have changed. Relationship should lift you up…not bring you down. It should bring acceptance and compliment who you are. No one other than God should complete you or fulfill you. Samuel Johnson said, “If a man does not make new acquaintances as he advances through life, he will soon find himself left alone; one should keep his friendships in constant repair.”

Mama Drama Rule #3: Treasure the season of life that you are in right now. It will change, and you will change with it. Know your season so you can enjoy it to the fullest. Know your season so you aren’t trying to get tulips to bloom in the middle of the winter! If it is being a wife and mother, cultivate that season!

A Trip to the Dentist

Oh, wow, I was intimidated by the thought of taking my active three year old to the dentist, but I actually had no idea how to prepare. I read her books on the dentist. We practiced 'playing' dentist. We looked on the Internet at 'dentist tools'. Anything, I could think of...we probably did it. Well, I got there and the waiting room was packed. They had a television playing a movie way over a 3 year old's interest. And, their first cardinal sin...no toys, no books...nothing to amuse the multitude of children waiting nervously. Okay, well, it is part my fault. I should have brought same 'busy' toys, but I didn't. We filled out a multitude of paperwork. We played I Spy with the colorful murals on the wall. My three year old pointed out random facts about the people around us...which really scares a mama what she is going to say in her simple honest comments!

Finally, they called us back. It took serious coercing to get her in the seat...for a full two seconds. Then, I sat with her in this NOT adult sized dentist chair with her in my lap. They did an x-ray of her teeth. Then, the assistant left the room and us in the room for about fifteen LONG minutes while my three year old is getting more and more nervous. The assistant's last words to my daughter was..."oh, you'll love the dentist. She'll give you a special little ducky and a toothbrush when you leave." This helped a little bit. She actually begins to sit in the chair alone and asking questions about the items around the room. Honestly, if I didn't know what it was, I just made it up!

Finally, a young woman came in and asked if I had any concerns. I didn't realize this at first, but she was the dentist. Once I realized it, I asked her name and introduced her to LaLa. Now, I believe professionally, especially working with children, you should come in, introduce yourself, and speak to the child. So, strike one for you Miss Dentist.

She ended up being very nice...even with the strike against her. As I have to sit back down in that tiny chair with my daughter in my lap, she tells LaLa that she is going to turn her bright sunshine on so she can see all her pretty teeth. Hehehe...you don't know my daughter! She looked up at me, and she said, "mama, what did she say?"I repeat what the dentist said, and my daughter looks up again and says, "Is she kiddin'? That's just a bright light." I explained that she was pretending so it would be more fun. Miss Dentist just smiled and sighed. I'm sure she was counting down until her day would be done.

During the teeth inspection, LaLa mentioned that special duck again. She mentioned something about it being a cheerleader. This should have been my first clue that everything was about to go down hill fast! Miss Dentist compliments LaLa's beautiful teeth, and she gives her a princess rubber ducky, a toothbrush, and floss. In a flash, my child goes from being completely shy, nervous and normal to something that looks like I imagine the Biblical examples of a demon possessed person thrashing around on the ground and speaking in some frantic, crazy cries.

Then, I saw it. On the top of the towel dispenser in the room was a little cheerleader rubber ducky...not a princess one. From the very beginning of the appointment, LaLa was trying her best to control herself from this random person with items in her mouth to earn this ducky that the assistant had mentioned. Since she had seen that particular cheerleader ducky, she decided that was what her heart desired. Upon my brain comprehending what was happening and also trying to control the wailing child on the ground, I tried to explain to Miss Dentist. She looked confused, which is understandable with the need for an exorcist at this point. She said, "I'll just give the ducky to mommy in case you change her mind." Strike 2 for Miss Dentist.

We make an attempt to leave, which is really me just holding her as she twists and contorts her body telling me about this cheerleader ducky they said she could have. I make one last attempt and ask the lady up front for a cheerleader ducky in trade for the princess one. She gave me this look...like, Lady, you are the worse mom ever rewarding your fit throwin' child with a different duck. My response back (in my mind only, of course) was a quick kick in her big behind and yelling at her that it was her dumb assistant that mentioned this duck...this duck that my child saw and had genuinely thought was hers for suffering through this event. She wasn't helpful, which made LaLa meltdown even more. I have never seen her meltdown to quite that degree. It was like all the nervousness, anxiety, and frustration bubbled to the surface making her incapable to talk and walk and appear normal. We sat in the car almost thirty minutes until she finally calmed down to hiccups and a red, tear stained face.

Now, here I am working for weeks to completely prepare her for the dentist. What I didn't prepare for was this stupid little duck! It took me by complete surprise. Despite the meltdown about this little cheerleader duck, LaLa did well for the actual "dentist" part of the event. We may not be allowed back in that particular office...just kidding, I hope, but she really just acted the way I feel when I go to the dentist...heck, and when I feel like I've been "duped"!


Mama Drama Rule #2: As prepared as you think you might be, it's NEVER prepared enough! Kids have a way of showing you that! Just remember that being prepared is not the key in raising children, it's focusing on what went RIGHT and SURVIVAL!

The Rules of Mama Drama

I am completely new to blogging and to this entire idea! I'm not sure how or where to start! I have gotten completely hooked on several blogs so I thought I would give it a try! I know that I will read through blogs and not feel quite so crazy about all my mama drama when I hear other people going through the same craziness! At the end of the day, the only thing you can do is look back, laugh, and reflect. When you have children, everything changes--your body, your mind, your marriage, your friends, your life, and a whole lot in between! I was one of those that thought I knew...everything! Well, I have learned quite a lot! I knew....nothing! After teaching dozens of kids for five years and getting a doctorate in education, I still stand clueless when my child is laying on the floor pitching the biggest "hissyfit" in the middle of the grocery store. BC (before children) when I saw a child having a "throwdown" fit and causing a raucous, I secretly glanced over analyzing what those parents were doing wrong. Now, AC (After children), I try not to make eye contact and say a silent prayer that it's not mine doing it....this time!

I "steal" crafty ideas and inspiration from blogs regularly so I thought I'd start contributing too! I have hopes of one day selling some of my "crafty" things on the side. I just got an embroidery machine in May, and I am experimenting with....um...anything and everything that I can embroidery in my house and put on my girls! I'll keep you posted! I have two beautiful little girls. "LaLa" is my oldest. She is 3 going on 13. My youngest, "Little Bit," just turned one. So, here's my opportunity to share with family, friends, and soon to be friends my journey of "mama" hood and all the drama that brings along!

Mama Drama Rule #1: There is nothing like being a mama to make you feel like you don't know anything at all. The best thing to do is to accept you will learn more through your children than any book or expert can ever offer, and enjoy every minute. Being a mama is being a lifetime learner!