Preschool girl enters Kindergarten this year! I already have my teacher “please love my child and treat her tenderly” gift in progress, but with the help of Pottery Barn Kids, I could be a hero to the whole school. Or you could be a hero to your child’s school.
Sign up your school for the Pottery Barn Kids “Gear Up to Give Back” program* and as you make your back-to-school gear selections a percentage of purchase will be donated back to your school.** Once your school is enrolled, purchases from other parents at your school will be eligible as well.
As an added bonus, if you enroll your school now through June 14, you will be entered into the sweepstakes for a chance to win $2,500 for your school and $2,500 for yourself!
I was already eyeing a PBK backpack and lunch box for preschool girl’s first fall of “big kid school,” so I’m glad to know the purchase will also benefit her school. For the purposes of the program, duffle bags also count as “gear” and are eligible.
If you have older children, PBteen purchases are also eligible for the “give back” program.
Like any donation program and sweepstakes, there are lots of terms and conditions, one of which is that only U.S. schools and purchases are eligible.
* You will need your school’s tax ID number. If enrolling a private school, you will need an IRS Determination Letter or 501(c)(3) and 509(a) tax exempt certificate. ** Percentage varies with total dollar amount of purchases.
Tomorrow is the last day of preschool. Tomorrow is the last day of preschool? Tomorrow is the last day of preschool!
That’s right, summer is here or rapidly approaching for all students and parents. I’ve been researching summer activities for preschool girl for a little over a month and am excited to add the Pottery Barn Kids Summer Reading Challenge to our list of activities.
Now through Wednesday, August 22, we’ll read all twelve award-winning books on the challenge list and track our progress using the PBK Progress Tracker Poster. We frequent our local public library, so I will make every attempt to get a copy of these books through them; however, all twelve books are available for purchase at Pottery Barn Kids. As for the tracking poster, I love it because it allows preschool girl to record her own progress by coloring in a book each time we complete one.
Once we complete the books on the challenge list, we’ll visit the closest Pottery Barn Kids store to receive a FREE BOOK. Since visiting the nearest store is a bit of a trek for us, we’ll probably combine it with an “all-day Atlanta” excursion and do lots of browsing in lots of stores. We’re going to read “fast” though, because the free books are limited one (1) per customer and available only while supplies last.
Your child is too young for Jumangi? You can still participate in the Summer Reading Challenge with the Early Reader Book List.
Participants must be 10 years of age or younger and present the Award-Winning or Early Reader book list to a participating PBK store to receive a free book while supplies last. Offer ends August 31, 2012.
I don’t feel we pay one another enough compliments, so oftentimes when standing in line at the grocery store or at the coffee shop for my morning tea, I’ll let people know if “you look great in that color” or “that skirt is awesome!” I once saw an elderly lady with the legs of a 20-year-old. I told her she had “great gams” and she almost cried. She said I had made her year.
I also feel we don’t give companies enough kuddos when they’ve done a great job. Therefore, I want to take a moment to shout the praises of Naturepedic and MightyNest.
We recently played “musical beds” in our house as toddler boy moved from a crib to a regular bed. We moved preschool girl’s full mattress to his floor (for safety) and she needed a new mattress. I struggled with the decision of conventional mattress vs. organic and, after talking with some amazing folks at Naturepedic, knew that I needed to go with my gut and invest in the 2-in-1 organic cotton ultra mattress. In an effort to make the organic option fit our budget, I was looking for free shipping to our “remote” location and discovered that Mighty Nest is a Naturepedic vendor and ALWAYS offers free shipping on orders over $75.
Because shipping was free, I was expecting a long delivery time, but delivery was so quick (approximately 10 days, if that) I was out of town for the original delivery date. So, while in Florida with four kids under foot, I called MightyNest to reschedule delivery. My cell call was interrupted by either kids or a dropped call (I’m not sure). Approximately three minutes later I called the 800 number again. The wonderful representative answered by saying, “Is this Shannon?”
Never in my life have I called an 800 number and been greeted by name!
Of course, everyone was very accommodating in rescheduling the delivery date. I have the ultimate apology to make in that I don’t remember the name of the amazing representative I spoke with that day, but I have complete faith that MightyNest will always take care of their customers to the highest degree.
The mattress arrived the day after our return from Florida and I couldn’t wait to open the box. When I opened it I found a high quality mattress that was proudly made in the USA, but I was more impressed with what I didn’t find – no odors, no off-gassing, no signs of toxic chemicals. I feel great knowing preschool girl will be sleeping on this for years to come.
In addition to feeling I’ve received a quality product, I also feel good about the purchase and the companies with which I did business (this from the woman who once tried to return a CAR, not because I didn’t like the car, but because the salesman and dealership were so horrible). Both Naturepedic and MightyNest provided immediate, courteous, and accurate responses to my questions and concerns and I will recommend both to everyone I know.
Do you have a business that you praise? If so, leave a comment below to let others know.
Ahem…don’t ask my husband about my laundry skills. This is the image he will immediately conjure…
Kate’s keeping it real with her recent posts regarding getting in shape. This is me keeping it real on the domestic front. Yes, that is preschool girl huddled up in the pile of laundry to be folded. Sadly, this is not a unique event in my house. Preschool girl and toddler boy love the warm laundry mountains and cuddle up in them for Thomas or George while I fold, so I’d like to think this is not a failure on my part, but rather family memories in the making.
I blame method for this situation. Admittedly, I have always dreaded folding and putting away laundry, but the efficiency with which I can get my laundry through the machines has increased 10X since discovering method’s detergent PUMP almost two years ago. Therefore, the clean laundry piles up much more quickly than I can put it away.
method Laundry
Why is the introduction of the pump dispenser so revolutionary? I’ll start with the reasons most near and dear to my heart and then work my way into those other reasons, like saving money and the planet.
Four pumps of method’s non-toxic, great-smelling detergent and you are done. For busy moms this means you can start your laundry one-handed (while holding a crying child), because there is no measuring. No measuring means no pouring. No pouring means no spill. No spill means no extra clean-up.
This is me keeping it real again. As many of you know, we moved into our current house last September. The former owner obviously used a myriad of detergents that had to be measured and poured from jugs. From the looks of my cabinets, she didn’t bother with the clean-up and the products stripped the paint off my laundry room cabinetry. With the method pump, problems of this nature are a thing of the past.
In addition to making the chore of laundry more efficient and less messy, the pump means no waste. No waste means no wasted money. Have you every looked inside the measuring cap of your laundry detergent jug to find out exactly where the “fill to” line is? Most people haven’t and simply fill the cup full for each load. This is a waste of detergent, which is horrible for the environment and hard for your budget. Other leading companies have been aware of this for years, but neglect to correct the issue because they sell more product.
With its ultra-concentrated formula, method laundry detergent can be packaged in much smaller containers than many of their competitors. This means it takes fewer fossil fuels to transport the product. And as if that weren’t enough, method uses 100% recycled plastic to make their pump and offers a refill package so you don’t keep buying large plastic jugs. Genius.
Need more convincing to switch to the method pump? Watch this!
Say No to Jugs! {Free Samples Giveaway!}
Still need more convincing? How about some free samples? method and The Shopping Mama invite you to “Say No To Jugs” with a laundry starter kit giveaway. The first ten people to comment on this post will receive a laundry starter kit (two 8-load bottles).
Say No to Jugs Facebook Photo Contest
method is hosting a “Say No To Jugs” photo contest on their Facebook page the entire month of May. One lucky person will win a year’s supply of method detergent and several people will win laundry starter kits (two 8-load bottles). The contest will feature two submission categories: one for existing “people against dirty” (i.e. method users) and one for potential “people against dirty” (i.e. current non-users).
Shop! method Coupon Alert: Every Thursday for the month of May, there will be a $2.00 off coupon for method laundry detergent on the perks tab of the method Facebook page. The coupon will only be on available to print on Thursdays, so don’t miss out. For our friends in Canada, instead of printing the physical coupon, you can get $2 off Method products available at http://well.ca using the discount code “WASHME.”
We are compensated method Mavens. Opinions are our own.
It’s May. I can’t believe it is already May? Sound familiar?
AND YET IN THE NEXT BREATH…What am I going to do with the kids’ birthdays this year? Mind you, they are in late-August and early-September. Is anyone else insane like this?
Preschool girl will turn six this September…SIX! Not only is she going to start Kindergarten, but I fear our time of “magic and make believe” is slipping away.
So, I was excited to learn of I See Me! Inc.’s latest personalized book “Royal Birthday Adventure.” Written by Jennifer Dewing and illustrated Valerie Sokolova, this highly personalized hardcover book takes a birthday girl or boy on a magical adventure for their special day. It is complete with personalized text and illustrations.
Birthday girls are crowned princess for their special day and taken on an adventure in a magical birthday kingdom. Birthday boys are dubbed knights and treated to an adventure all their own as well. In addition to seeing their name appear in text, children see their name featured in the illustrations of their adventure. Names appear in a 10-tier birthday cake, parchment birthday invitation, fireworks in the sky and much more! To take a virtual tour of the books and view these wonderful illustrations, check out My Royal Birthday Adventure for Boys and My Royal Birthday Adventure for Girls.
The sample 10″ by 10″ book I received is very beautiful. The construction is high quality and I thoroughly enjoyed reading the sing-song, rhythmic text crafted by Dewing. One of my favorite excerpts:
Then a castle with turrets came into view, with flags streaming high in hues golden and blue.
Olivia’s name was spelled out for the kingdom to see. A castle for Olivia! Could this land really be?
Olivia caught sight of an emerald green moat, with a dragon, a drawbridge and a royal golden boat.
She glided into a land at the castle’s grand gate, and she hurried inside. She could hardly wait!
I can’t wait for my birthday girl to go on a magical adventure of her own in the months to come.
To Buy or Not to Buy
To Buy… I See Me! Royal Birthday Adventure is wonderfully written, beautifully illustrated book that encourages imagination and adventure in your birthday child. It offers a level of personalization hard to match in children’s books. Upon ordering you will need to provide your child’s name, birthdate, personal dedication from the sender and list friends or family to be the birthday “guests.” The quality of the binding and construction is exceptional. The recipient of numerous awards, I See Me! is dedicated to offering quality products through their numerous personalized book offerings.
Or Not to Buy… In my former life, I was an English teacher. I always give books for birthdays, Christmas, Valentine’s, Halloween, Easter, etc. As far as books go, this book is on the expensive end of the spectrum at $34.95. However, that price promises a highly unique and personalized treat for your birthday child.
Shop!My Royal Birthday Adventure for boys and for girls is available from ISeeMe.com for $34.95. Deal tip: If you sign up to receive emails from the company, you can save 15% on your first order. Also, right now you can enter to win a complete personalized library for your child. Keep up with I See Me! on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.
Today, I’ve organized my thoughts entirely around cliches…
Be Careful What You Wish For
I love to cook. That, combined with watching enough home makeovers on HGTV to “choke a goat,” convinced me I need a big, stainless, commercial stove. I’ve actually pined for one since seeing Monica’s on “Friends” long before they were popular. For more than fifteen years, I have yearned for a stove that will boil water in less than 20 minutes and that I don’t have to worry about cracking the glass with my enameled cookware.
While searching for our home in Georgia, my number one wish was for a stainless steel gas stove. Well, I finally got what I wished for all those years.
Ain’t she a bute? (She’ll be even prettier once we install a backsplash.) I must admit, this is far more than I wished for. I simply wanted to cook with gas again, but this thing has four burners, an indoor grill and a griddle. Truth be told, I’m scared of the indoor grill and the griddle, so I avoid using those. My husband, however, loves them.
There Oughta Be a Law
Having lived with a much bigger and “meatier” stove than I ever hoped to have, I’ve come to one conclusion: There ought to be a law against selling an open grate stove, grill or griddle without covers. I know some stoves feature them, those stainless “lids” that prevent food and grime from getting into the sections of the stove you are not using. I’ve become a big proponent of those things. Alas, my stove does not have them. Being the messy cook that I am, that means there is often macaroni and cheese down in the grill and I’ve used the griddle as a spoon rest. That, combined with the fact that this stove gets “hot as he**” to burn on food really quickly, means that I mess up the whole stove. Every night. Sigh.
Clean as a Whistle
The former owners of this home were not “maintainers.” They bought something and then used it. There was not much in the way of cleaning or proper repair. So, upon moving in, I spent three days scrubbing the parts to this stove in the yard. To then mess it up thoroughly each time I use it breaks my heart. I’m not looking forward to three days in the yard on an annual basis. Enter, method all-purpose cleaner.
Unless I’ve made a HUGE mess, I take off the grates and clean once per week. The method all-purpose cleaner cuts grease and grime really quickly and makes cleanup a total breeze.
The all-purpose cleaner (available in some awesome colors and scents – I love French Lavender) starts breaking down the yuck right away and I see the bubbles start to turn brown. After waiting just a few minutes, I use a Dobie sponge to add a light scrub and then wipe up the whole mess with a wet cleaning rag. This leaves my stove “squeaky clean” with so little effort. Knowing that I’ve done this kind of deep cleaning with a non-toxic product makes the process even more satisfying.
All’s Well That Ends Well
method makes cleaning my kitchen monster a “piece of cake” and I’m grateful. With all the mess gone, I can get back to loving my gas stove.
What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’?
Besides my stove, what’s cookin’? The folks at method know that no one cleans like moms do and have released their newest video, “Clean Like a Mother“ featuring their ever-present sense of humor (c’mon, the title alone makes you want to view it), the all-purpose cleaner that works so well for my stove, and NOAH!
You’ll see from this video, and others to follow, that Noah is quite a personality. I had the opportunity to meet the “official spokesinger” of method last month and, in addition to being a talented musician, he’s quite the comedic force. The folks at method know how to laugh and they picked the right person to make a song about cleaning and cleaning products fun, entertaining and easy on the ears. When previewing the videos, I was laughing so hard tears started to roll.
Steal of a Deal {Coupon!}
Shop! While I want you to ditch your old all-purpose cleaner and buy some of method’s to try for yourself, the folks at method are providing a $1.00 coupon for ANY of method product. Simply visit the method Facebook page and look for the Perks tab from now until April 30th to help yourself to two (2) coupon printouts per account. Visit method to find a retailer near you. Our Canadian readers can participate, too! Instead of printing the physical coupon, you can get $1 off any of the method products available at http://well.ca using the discount code “CLEANME”.
Like many, I’ve been so inspired by the images, recipes, products and creativity I see on Pinterest. But, because I hear so many comments from friends about how much time they waste on Pinterest, I’ve decided to challenge myself to DO SOMETHING with the inspirational things I see on the wildly popular site. My goal: Each month I must act upon two different things I see on Pinterest. I have to make it, buy it, cook it, craft it or do it twice per month…and report to you how it goes. If you haven’t joined Pinterest to see what all the buzz is, check it out. And if you are inspired to action by what you see, let me know how it went for you!
Easter Crayons
I still have candy from Halloween 2011. The only reason I don’t have candy from 2010 is because I threw it in the trash when 2011′s arrived. Piled on top of the peanut butter pumpkins is Christmas candy, Valentine candy and some jelly beans from “who knows when.” So, I’m that mom that refuses to give candy at special occasions. Pinterest has been such as wonderful asset as I search for small gift alternatives for my children’s friends and classmates.
I absolutely adored these heart crayons I saw back in February and I knew I wanted to try them, but ran out of time at Valentine’s Day.
This project was so super simple. It really is just as simple as the “Pinned” picture indicates. We started by gathering our broken, peeled crayons and many others from our “big box o’ crayons.” We chose to use pastels for spring and will save our bolder colors for other holidays. Preschool girl loved peeling and breaking the crayons while toddler boy loved loading them into the silicone baking pan we purchased from the local big box store. Of course, mom handled the knife for chopping the crayons into smaller pieces.
After loading the tray with crayons, I placed the silicone baking tray on an aluminum baking sheet for stability. While it may not seem necessary before placing the crayons in the oven, it is absolutely necessary as you pull the melted, liquid wax from the oven. While the original Pinterest post indicates baking at 230 degrees for 15 minutes, I found that I needed an extra five minutes for each baking session. Ovens vary, so don’t fret if yours take longer.
We couldn’t wait for our crayons to cool, so we placed them in the refrigerator to speed the process and free our baking form for the next batch. You will know it is too soon to remove the crayons if they start to crack when removing. Once cooled, the silicone sheet makes it simple to remove the crayons. Just push up on the bottom of the bunny shape and pop up the cooled crayon. We made 48 crayons in less than two hours. So, why do I only have two to photograph?
I only have two to photograph because I forgot to take a picture of the entire batch before giving them away! I gave mine away in a little Easter bucket with egg-shaped chalk, and Easter bunny colored pencils so that our little friends could “color their eggs” and to show them that “somebunny loves them!”
I absolutely loved this project and plan to do it again for upcoming holidays. I’m thinking of new variations for this coming Halloween.
Now, to dump some more candy before the new jelly beans arrive.
I approach every mothering milestone with apprehension, excitement, sentiment and chatter. Lots of chatter. I will talk about things until my husband, for the sake of his own sanity, stops listening. I even talked about our latest milestone with all of you – our beloved readers. In February, I shared pictures of toddler boy’s bedroom and shared that he would be moving to a bed soon. Well… Toddler boy is in a “big boy” bed!
All that apprehension, excitement, sentiment and chatter turned out to be really anticlimactic. Truth be told, they always are. I work myself up for no reason. Toddler boy has taken to his big bed with no fuss at all!
Seriously, sleeping through the night with no drama from the first night. Here’s how we did it:
Set Up the Bed
Since toddler boy is our youngest, we had the luxury of waiting for him to show interest in moving from the crib. For several weeks, he would crawl into preschool girl’s bed and pull up the covers while saying, “I seep here!” That’s a pretty clear sign. So, from there I did the same thing I did for preschool girl when she moved from the crib.
I set up the big boy bed, leaving the crib in its normal spot. Because we don’t have a dedicated guest room, my husband and I want each of our children’s rooms to have a full-size bed. So, we put toddler boy’s new mattress (actually preschool girl’s former mattress) on the floor and outfitted it with bedding from Pottery Barn and white sheets we already owned. My ace in the hole? Thomas the Train and Lightening McQueen throw pillows from Target.
After setting up the bed, I talked with toddler boy and told him that each night before bed he would have his choice. He could choose the crib or the big boy bed. If he chose the crib, he had to stay in it and not climb out (though that was more a problem with preschool girl). If he chose the big boy bed, he had to stay in it the entire night and he would sleep in it each night from then on. There would be no going back to the crib once he chose the big boy bed.
Choice at Bedtime
Like preschool girl, we gave toddler boy the choice to sleep in crib or bed the first night the bed was set up. When doing this with preschool girl, she chose the crib for at least ten nights before choosing the bed. The first night, toddler boy chose the crib. Not to fear, the big bed did not go unused.
On the second night, he chose the big bed! That was much faster than I anticipated. I lay down with him to say prayers and be with him until he fell asleep. At this point we had an unexpected meltdown, not from toddler boy, but from preschool girl. She was not happy that I was in his room and not hers, so my husband lay with toddler boy and I left to read to and say prayers with our girl.
Disassemble and Remove the Crib
Alex slept through the night and the next day my husband disassembled the crib. Sniff. Sniff. I also moved the new bed into the spot formerly occupied by the crib.
Set Up Gate
The night toddler boy chose the big bed, we also installed a safety gate at the entrance to his room. There are many things throughout the house that could harm him should he get up and roam throughout the night, so this is to keep him safe. Because his bedroom is on the second floor of our home, this is one of two gates we have installed. We have another in the hallway just prior to the stairs. Safety.
We learned with our daughter that a gate also helps later, when they get bolder. Toddler boy stays in his bed as instructed at this point, but my husband and I know the “do as I’m told” stage ends really quickly. We anticipate several nights in our future when he will pop up out of bed many, many times before falling asleep.
Next? Potty training. Should I chat about that with you?
What did you do when moving your child from crib to bed? What are your thoughts on toddler bed vs. real bed? How did your child(ren) respond?
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