Boys Room, step 1!

Currently this is still Button's room but by the end of this month the boys will be moving in together. We had an apparently cheap toy shelf in Button's room the last 2 years. I wanted to move it out and get them a new cleaner looking shelf but was going to wait another 2 weeks. Yesterday Button broke the shelf (it was dying a slow death ;)) so I decided today to move the new shelf in their room (was in our livingroom the last month, need to get another to replace this one ;)) I think it looks great and is going to keep their room looking nice and clean, hopefully anyways ;)

Purge Purge Purge!

Spent this afternoon purging upstairs... Im not done yet but this is a GREAT beginning! I went through our bedroom and some of Button;s room. Getting rid of a bunch of toys, books, picture frames, etc we dont need or use anymore! This entire tupperware container is FULL of stuff, as is the wicker basket... I need to drive them down to Salvation Army tonight, alone with a garbage bag full of clothes we dont need anymore (dropped another one off yesterday!).

Feeling great about all this clutter being gone! Please excuse the location of this picture lol I had to hide the items in the bathroom until bedtime so Button doesnt freak out about some of the toys (which he no longer plays with but you know the second he sees them leaving he will want ;))

Clutter Rehab - Tips so far...

I'm now about half way through Clutter Rehab book! She has awesome tips, heres a couple I really like and plan to implement right away:

1. Have a daily walkabout - With the kids, walk around and find things room to room that dont belong in that room and return them to their rightful place.

2. Never leave a room empty handed - Good way to put stuff away and avoid clutter, make sure you have something to put away everytime you leave a room!

3. Take Pictures of Sentimental things - To avoid saving things you're never going to use but are still attached to for sentimental reasons, take a picture of it to keep the memory of it. I think this will be a great idea for Kids art projects! Instead of keeping all the art the kids do, I think I will take pictures of them (save some ;)) and make a nice photobook for artwork they've done!

4. Create a backpack station - A problem in our home! We need a station for backpacks & coats so theyre not just throw on the floor making a mess! She says "Having defined areas for stuff in your home provides clear direction as to where things belong and need to be stored". I think this is especially important with children to teach them how to put things where they belong. I play on making a backpack/coat station this week!

5. Use Hook's for kids coats instead of hangers - To go with the backpack station. Makes sense! Kids can easily hang their coats on the hook!

6. Menu Plan and Make a list for the grocery store- Saves money & time! I already do this most weeks ;) Just need to get more consistent!

7. Have a central Calendar - Gonna get a new, bigger calendar to put by the front entrance so we can record all activities on it (as well as my Ipod touch ;)). This way everyone knows where everyone needs to be!

8. Colour Code the kids (and us too!) - Something I learned about a year ago that I thought was VERY interesting idea! I need to give it another go. Every family member has a colour, then has items in the home in those colours (ex. Tooth brush, towels, face cloths, etc...) so theres never any confusion as to what belongs to who. Makes cleaning up easier cause if you see a Yellow towel on the floor, you know that towel belongs to ___... I a crazy household with soon to be 5 people, I'm gonna try this out!!

So those are just some of the great tips Im learning from Laura! Cant wait to continue reading!

New Book!

Last night I went to Chapters and purchased a new book that's out. Im gonna start reading it tonight at work! It's written by one of my favorite blogs owner, Organized Junkie's Laura Wittmann and its called Clutter Rehab!



Looking forward to applying all the tips I learn from it to our home! Ill let you all know how its going!

Rainbow Cupcakes! (2)

Ive been taking a cake decorating class through Michaels the last 3 weeks. This week we decorated cupcakes! I had a lot of fun learning about flowers and different techniques!

I decided to do something fun for the boys and make rainbow cupcakes! To make them you need to purchase white cake mix, separate it into a couple bowls and mix food colouring. Then layer them a couple different colours!


Picture is sideways, sorry! I had fixed it but I guess it didn't save. A couple of my creations (the rest were already eaten up!)
Two of my willing taste testers ;)

Inside of one of the cupcakes! YUM!

Winter Carseat Safety!

Winter Carseat Safety!

As winter has arrived, I feel the need to remind or inform some parents of some winter no-nos for carseat safety!

1. Winter Coats: Thick winter coats or snowsuits can compromise your child's safety. In order for a childs carseat to function properly, the straps need to remain tight against the child's chest. It is unsafe to put a thick coat, snowsuit, or blanket on under the harness of a car seat because in a crash the coat would compress, making the straps too loose and possibly allowing the child to be ejected from the seat. Also when compressed the straps are not tight against the child making the child lurch forward more in a crash, not keeping the child in the safe position they should.

2. Bundle Me Bags - A big No-no, but sadly sold regularly at local stores as a great winter alternative. Again they are unsafe to have in an infant carseat as they have too much padding between the baby and the back of the seat. This padding would also compress in a collision, causing the fit of the straps to not be tight enough to safely protect a child.

Check out this video to see more info

Solutions:

1. Put your child's coat on backwards while driving. No need to zip up, place your child in their seat without a coat and simply put their coat on backwards, left open.
2. Purchase a nice warm, fleece jacket. A good quality fleece jacket is good in temperatures of up to -40c. (Great ones available at LLBean!)
3. Put a blanket over your child, as long as its not interfering with the straps.
4. Make, or purchase a carseat poncho, or even use a snuggy!
5. For infants, a safe alternative to the Bundle Bags are simply using the kind which goes OVER the seat known as a Cozy Cover, in which nothing is placed inside the seat (pictured below). So you can dress your baby in something warm, then put a blanket over them if you wish to keep them warm, then stretch this over their seat, has a small flap to lift up to see your baby!

So overview:

No-Nos = Big Bulky Coats & Bundle Me Bags:

Winter Alternatives that work!! Covers, Light Fleece Jackets and car seat ponchos!!

Blueberry Popsciles!

Couple days ago we made some yummy, super simple Blueberry Popscicles!

In our trusty Magic Bullet, I whipped up some Vanilla Yogurt, Fresh local Blueberries and a little milk up. Poured it into the popscicle mold and froze it over night. Next day we had yummy Blueberry Popscicles after supper! Kids LOVE them!