Back to School: Sign of Encouragement

With the new school year in full swing, I wanted to give my kids a simple reminder of how awesome their Dad and I think they are.  I love to see our kids grow, learn, struggle, win and blossom.  Childhood is filled with wonderment.

Each day we talk with our kids about their day.  What was great?  What was not so great?  How can we start tomorrow with a fresh outlook.  I wanted to remind them of the words we tend to use when helping them through their struggles and their triumphs.

 I have seen versions of this on other blogs and on Pinterest.  I love how it reminds us that there are many sides to us and that each and every day we should be proud of who we are.  This is a great mantra as the kids leave for school each day and a perfect reminder at the end of the day.

I had the perfect spot for this sign, a small wall right between the kids bedroom doors.  It is right at the end of the hallway so it will always serve a reminder as we reflect on our days.

I used a dark gray vinyl and some craft paints I had on hand.  After painting my board a creamy white, I used my Silhouette to create the words in a variety of fun fonts to help each word stand out.  I placed it on the board, slight off center.  This allowed me to add some color with a simple dry-brush technique using blue, green and gray.

 

It still needed a little something so I decided to put a banner across the top.  I found a fun chevron card stock in my stash with just the right blues and greens.  I used the Silhouette again to cut out a bunch of 1" circles.  I then pulled out the sewing machine and quickly sewed the circles together.  Gluing the end circles in place the banner was perfect.

I love the reminder for the kids (and for me too - as we all can use a little encouragement).

Back to School: Homework Station

Day two of getting ready to head back to school.  Today I am sharing how I put together a simple homework station with the goal of keeping us organized.

Our kids are young enough yet that I still have them sit at the kitchen table after school to do their homework. One of the big frustrations I had from last year is that we could NEVER find a sharp pencil or other supplies needed to complete their work.

I had the perfect thing to create this station - a picnic organizer that I picked up at Target a few years ago in their summer section.  It is designed to hold utensils, plates and napkins but the compartments were perfect for notebooks, paper, pencils, markers, etc.

Using my Silhouette, I cut out some vinyl letters to remind the kids that the items in this bucket are to be used for homework.  I don't know about you, but everything I own gets "stolen" by the kids and hauled upstairs to their bedrooms, never to be seen again.  The kids know that these items may NEVER be removed from the bucket unless being utilized for homework!  I will have to let you know how that goes!  hee hee!

This year when doing our supply shopping, I decided to pick up extra supplies to put in our homework station.  With elementary age kids, the supplies I have included are:

• pencils (only Ticonderoga - they are the best)
• markers
• colored pencils
• crayons (only Crayola - again, the best)
• highlighters
• ruler
• school glue & glue sticks (Elmers - the best)
• index cards (to make flash cards)
• wide ruled loose leaf paper
• pencil sharpener
• scissors

I will not be surprised if I need to add a few things once school starts.  As I typed this I thought of scissors.  I will need to head to the store this week and pick up a couple of those.

Now if I can just get the kids to sit down after school and do their homework without whining!  Wish me luck!

Back to School: Water Bottles

School starts this week for us (doing the happy dance)!  It is hot and dry in Arizona so our school requires each student to bring a water bottle everyday.  I love this about our school.  Well, with all those kids there are bound to be duplicate water bottles.  Face it, we all shop at Target and the options are limited!

These are the bottles I chose for this year - actually the same style we used last year.  I love these bottles by Embark because the lid is tethered and therefore can't be lost.  I also love the wide mouth which allows for super easy cleaning.  It is also really easy to fill with ice in the morning, rather than struggling to push large cubes through a small hole!  We are a busy family, I don't have time for that!


To make sure that we don't lose our water bottles, I always try to make them easy to spot and differentiate them from everyone else.  This year I decided to use my Silhouette machine to put the kids names on them.  It was quick, easy and the kids love the results.

Just a few more projects and we are going to be ready for school!

Quick & Cheap: Back Door Makeover

I love to wake up and make a quick and cheap update to my house that brings a smile to my face.  Today's project does just that. 

I was wiping down the door knobs and light switches around the house to help tackle germs during this flu season.  When I got to the garage door I noticed how dirty and scuffed it was so decided to wipe it down...to no avail, it was just too dirty.

I decided to give our back door - the one that comes from the garage - a little freshening up.  The perfect subject for a Quick and Cheap makeover.

To start this makeover I headed to my paint stash.  I found a great little sample jar of green paint from Lowes.  It was a little duller than I wanted so I stirred in some blue paint I had on hand which gave me the color I was looking for.

Within a few minutes, I had a coat of paint on the door.  A little later, I brushed on a second coat.  Perfect.

While the paint was drying, I pulled out the Silhouette Machine (my Christmas present from the hubby - LOVE HIM!).  I did a little search of Pinterest for ideas but didn't like what I was finding.  Welcome home seemed to boring.  Instructions to remove shoes and hang up coats seemed to nagging.

A quick web search and I happened upon some quotes from Dr. Seuss.  Fun.  Simple. And brings a smile to your face.  A quick download of the "Grinched" font and I was in business.

Now, isn't that an awesome saying to greet us when we come home from a long day away!

Here is the before and after...

By definition, Quick and Cheep makeovers are just that - quick and cheap!  So here is the breakdown...

• $3   Paint Sample (1/2 left)
• $1   Vinyl  (if even)
• 45   Minutes (not counting paint drying time)

I kind of look forward to leaving the house, just so I can come home and see this greeting me!