Letter School

Love this app! Worth every penny (it is $2.99)! Children will learn how to write the letter, hear the letter sound/name with a cute little jingle and do the same with numbers!

Look for a post in the near future of how I am using it for calendar activities with my 3 year old!

Learn about this app by clicking HERE

Purposeful Crafting : Snowman Puppet!

Being a teacher, I just hate doing random crafts with my kids. By that, I mean the crafts with a specific end product with no purpose. So when we craft at home with a specific end product, I set some sort of purpose. A way to do that is to connect them to a book, poem, holiday, gift, etc.

***Sidenote: When I say random crafts, please don't confuse that with my FAVORITE type of crafting. That is the setting out materials (a "play invitation") and having the children create a piece of art work with no boundaries/no set directions.***


This week it was our turn to host playgroup. So, I thought I would read a book and do a winter craft. Any snowman book would do, so I chose I Know An Old Lady Who Swallowed Some Snow. I found this idea for a snowman puppet here.

I tweaked this idea a bit. Here's what I did:

Materials:

Elmer's school glue
Elmer's Glue-All glue
3 cotton balls
Thick craft stick
Pipe cleaners: 1 brown & 1 orange
Felt: 1 strip of colored felt - any color you wish for scarf
Googly Eyes

Directions:
1. Cut a brown pipe cleaner in half. Use the GLUE ALL glue. Regular glue won't work.

 2. Glue (with school glue) 3 cotton balls. If you want this to be more toddler friendly, squirt some glue on a paper plate and let them dip the cotton balls in the glue, then press them onto the stick.

 3. Use the felt strip for the "scarf". Set the felt piece under the snowman and then wrap it around attaching it together with a drop of glue. Toddlers can use their fingers to put glue onto the felt or a q-tip to dab it. Then squeeze the two pieces together.

4. Use glue to attach the googly eyes. 

 5. Use the small piece of orange pipe cleaner for the nose. Attach with glue. Use marker to make dots for the buttons! 

6. Make him DANCE like frosty!!!

Little Things

"Enjoy the little things in life for one day you will look back and realize they were the big things."
~Kurt Vonnegut

Mommy Date: Coffeehouse

I am not sure where I first heard of the concept "Mommy Date" but since I have I try to make an effort to spend one-on-one time with each of my boys. This school year it has been easy because C is 3 and W is in kindergarten all day, so I have plenty of time with C. But, I haven't always been good at making these dates strictly about spending time with C. So many times a bunch of "stuff" gets in the way and my attention is split. Not this year, this is the year to simplify! 

A "Mommy Date" can be anything you do with your child where your focus is on having fun together. It could be all your kids or just 1-on-1. I prefer 1-on-1. Throughout the year I will post some Mommy Date ideas. The first I'll write about happened today.

In the winter, I get a bit "shack happy" and just need to get out of the house. A change of scenery. Today I had a few errands to run but wanted to spend some quality time with C too. Thus, mommy date idea! After all errands were ran I drove downtown to this hip (and popular) coffeehouse. C was so excited! We bought a treat, ate and drank together, chatting about the place. When we finished I opened my bag. I brought along 2 games and the iPad to play together. He was gleaming! We played Curious George Memory and Snap I Spy. Then before we left we played a little Angry Birds. I just wanted simple and easy. That, they were. A FABULOUS morning with a hot drink and a unique Mommy date with my boy!

~kari

SIMPLE Recovery Bars

One thing that really relieves stress for me is working out. I enjoy running, kickboxing, yoga and strength training. What I don't love so much is cooking. But I want to eat healthy. Fortunately I found a recipe that not only is SIMPLE to make but also is awesome for my body after a hard workout.

This recipe I found from Season magazine that our local supermarket puts out.

Recovery Bars

(originally called Z3 High Octane Bars by Jenny Weber)

Ingredients: (makes 16-  2X2 bars)

 2 cups quick oats
1 cup natural peanut butter
1 cup honey
1 cup dark chocolate chips
1 cup dried cranberries (or your choice of dried fruit)
1 cup milled flaxseed
1 cup vanilla whey protein powder

Measure, pour and mix. Stir well. Spread into a pan sized 8X8. Refrigerate.

 It's that simple!! Remember these bars have oats in them & peanut butter, both good for you but in excess not. There are a good amount of carbohydrates in the oats and fat in the peanut butter, but if you cut these bars at 2X2 or 1 1/2 X 1 1/2 they make a great after workout snack! Not to mention the protein to repair those muscles and the fiber to ... well, you know what fiber does, right? Woman should get around 25 grams a day of fiber and these provide 5 grams!

Do you have a favorite no-bake healthy bar you make? If so, share the link in the comments below!!


Stayed tuned tomorrow for another bar that is EASY for the kiddos!

~kari

Stay tuned!!!

Welcome! Over the next few days I will be in the process of getting this blog up & running. My goal is to create a space that inspires others, along with inspiring myself.

What do I mean by "Simplifying Mom"?
I mean living life in a way that the business of everyday life doesn't rob my children of their childhood. I mean managing my own anxiety.
I mean creating an environment for my children where they don't feel hurried.
I mean being more "in the moment".
I mean creating a physical environment that is without clutter and tons of "extras".
I mean cooking and baking meals that are healthy.
I mean shopping in a way that is within my budget.
I mean blocking the noise of all that "has to be done" so I can do what I can do.
I mean being happy with my current position of stay-at-home mom and being fulfilled by it.
I mean managing our calendar so we don't fill it with "stuff".
I mean quality over quantity.
I could go on and on and on and on..  And I will! :)

What can you expect from this blog?
*Insights of how I am taking it day-by-day becoming a simpler and more relaxed mom
*Ideas, Crafts, Recipes that help make living simply possible
*Fun anecdotes, stories or quotes to inspire a life of simplifying and living life to the fullest
*Stories of times when things just don't go right in my quest
*Links to amazing tools/tricks/things online that I use to become a simplifying mom
*And much more!

I hope you follow! Check me out on:
Twitter http://twitter.com/SimplifyingMom
Facebook http:facebook.com/SimplifyingMom

~kari