Time for an update!

Well I finally updated my daily schedule! It's been a year and I've fallen away from my old routine and am in dire need of a new one! I've started doing home school preschool It's so much fun but can take up so much of my time if I'm not careful. My Etsy shop has been keep me ridiculously busy and while I should have spent tonight sewing I desperately needed to create a good routine for me and the kids during the day while my husband is away at work. As a stay at home mom I struggle with finding a balance between being too rigid or too looesy goosey. Finding time in the day to do devotions has also been a bit of a struggle so I'm trying to get some time in there for that :)
Here goes nothing!

We Love you Daddy

I loved this idea so much I just had to do it myself. I got my kids all spiffed up and then colored on each of their feet with washable markers. My four year old was delighted and was begging to color on mine later. (Guess that's something fun we can do this summer ;) YAY! Color on Mommys feet! )
Then I hauled each one out to the yard and lined them up :) I think it turned out rather well...

Fathers Day

It's getting close to the time where as a mom I reflect on what a wonderful father my husband is. He is kind, caring, disciplining and playful. However the area that I see him most shining in is living how he wants his children to live. Our boys are modeling their lives after him. There are so many things I hear echoed by them and jokes I see them copying. The are desperate to be just like daddy.

Most recently my husband has started the "Insanity" workout program. He works his butt off and I'm very proud of him for having the will power to stick with it. I'm one of those people who get a gym membership in January and start getting lazy mid February! But the thing that has impressed me most with his devotion to staying fit and being healthy is his excitement to invite our children to work out with him. A couple of nights ago I snapped a few pictures of them working out with him. It's cute but it's also a good reminder to myself.

Who am I modeling to my children? What do I want for thing and what is important? Recently I've been reading the book "Effective Parenting in a Defective World" by Chip Ingram. He says "Character is always more caught than taught. Always". Now, I know that this is common sense. But it hit me hard. Do I really want my kids to copy my worship, lifestyle, prayers, devotion, habits, stewardship, generosity, schedule, love and kindness? What needs to change in my life for my childrens sake? Now is the time to change them. Not tomorrow, once my children have started mimicking my behavior, but now.

Melted Crayon Art

I am a major pinterest junkie. I always find these crafty things that I put in a folder of "things i'd like to do...". Most of these never amount to anything but I loved this one so much I decided to do it myself for my daughters bedroom. She currently is in a bare room with a white crib, white sheets, one chair and no decor except for a wooden elephant clock. It was time to start adding a few girly touches. There are a few more pieces I'd like to make but this one seemed the easiest :) So this picture is my copycat version. The link to the original is here: http://www.aroundbeads.blogspot.ca/2012/01/grandmas-garden-crayon-art.html?m=1

Just a fun day!

Being a pastor, my husband has Mondays off. We usually try to make the very most of them. So yesterday we went to a BEAUTIFUL lagoon near our house and then finished with some backyard playtime. It was such a nice day.

Creating a Good Routine

As a stay at home mom it can be hard to establish a good routine. Life is always changing, naptimes adjust or end, different activities are started, but there is a lot of downtime. I need to find a routine or I end up just going with the flow and then we don't ever accomplish anything! My kids are far happier with a steady routine. So I decided to take a tip from Supernanny and make my own daily schedule! We don't follow it religiously but it helps me realize where my time is going. It really is more for me than the kids anyways.

It looks pretty set in stone, but it's soft like clay. If we plan to do other things, or someone is having a meltdown we just do the old switcheroo and it's really no big deal. 

I like to have my career be SAHM. This in no way is stay at home tv watcher or stay at home reader. I want to engage with my children, teach them to play alone, together, to enjoy reading and making things with their hands. Without a schedule it can be easy to find days that slip into those other categories. That being said, Mommy's do not get days off and finding a little down time is always a good thing :)

Fun with Face Paint

Make believe is always fun and the boys have a current obsession with anything that roars.

Dinosaurs, lions, tigers, hippos (yes they think hippos roar... who would have thought?)

Anyways I found some facepaint crayons at the dollar store the other day and here we are :)

My little tigers.

The website I found this tutorial on is: http://www.parenting.com/gallery/tiger-face-painting