DATE ARCHIVES : October 2015

Overheard at Bedtime Prayer: Part 2

About six months ago, I told you all about some of the crazy and silly things my girls are thanking God for during bedtime prayer. Well, the hits keep on coming. I am extremely glad that they are keeping up with their prayers and still have things to be grateful for. The day they’re not thankful for something is the day that I think I’m in trouble. Now that my older daughter has started her CCD classes, she’s getting a little more creative with her prayers and such. Just the other day she told her teacher she was thankful for “Target”…as in the store that I frequent at least twice a week! I would have loved to hear the teacher’s response to that one.

Here are some other things my girls have been thanking God for lately…some of them are a real hoot!

“Thank you God I had guacamole today.”

“Thank you God I had lots of sugar today.”

“Thank you God I’m buying lunch today.” (This one really made me laugh because I guess my homemade lunches aren’t cutting it!)

“Thank you God I had corn for dinner.”

“Thank you God for my wonderful mommy (Awww…). I’m never going to throw her away.” (Umm…thanks? That’s comforting.)

“Thank you God I had soccer today.”

“Thank you God I looked beautiful today.”

“Thank you God I went to Nuvita.”

“Thank you God I had pasta for lunch.”

“Thank you God I played with play-doh today.” (Mommy is not thankful for the mess you left behind, but I’m glad you were happy.)

“Thank you God I had cupcakes.”

“Thank you God I went to Kohl’s.”

And these are only the ones I remember! There are so many everyday things that we would never think to thank God for. But, my girls do! I can’t want to hear what they come up with next.

What’s the funniest thing your child has ever been grateful for?

 

 

Springfield Dolls Giveaway

Welcome to the Springfield Dolls Giveaway

Sponsored by Springfield Dolls

Hosted by Kathy’s Savings

dolls1

This giveaway is for the winners choice of a Springfield Doll. It’s open to the U.S. only. It will run from 10/21-10/28. The Mommy Rundown is helping to spread the word. You can enter below for your chance to win. Good luck to everyone. You can also check out Kathy’s Savings review on the Savannah doll HERE.

Disclosure: Kathy’s Savings and all other participating bloggers are not responsible for prize shipment. The giveaway is in no way administered, sponsored, or endorsed by or associated with Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest or any other social media. The winner will be contacted by email and have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is drawn. I received this product in exchange for a review. The opinions are all 100% my own and may differ from yours.

Home Sick With the Kids? Here’s What You Can Do…

Home Sick With the Kids? Here’s What You Can Do…

‘Tis the season of sniffles, coughs and fevers. It’s also the season of juggling sick days if you are a working parent. Do you take the day off? Do you try to get a family member to stay with them? It really can become a little complicated at times.

But, if you do stay home with your little ones when they’re sick, it can get a little hairy. We all know kids always want their moms when they’re sick. Although being someone’s human tissue and coughing sleeve is extremely rewarding, there are moments when going for a full body wax would be less painful.

After staying home with one of my sick kids for a few days and overdosing on Caillou and Dora, I felt like I wanted to poke my eyes out with a spork. I think all moms can relate when I say you can get a bit stir crazy. So, instead of plotting ways I could get secretly get rid of Caillou, I started thinking of how to use my time inside in a more positive way (not that getting rid of Caillou is not positive). So, here’s what I came up with:

Clean Away 

If your child takes a little nap to fight off that cold, why not chase those dust bunnies who have been playing hide and seek with you for weeks? Why not wipe down the kitchen appliances? We all know that’s one of the many chores that gets overlooked in the day-to-day pick-up. How about those baskets of laundry that just want to go back home in their drawers? The point here is to use your uninterrupted time wisely, especially if you did take a day off of work. You may be surprised at just how much you can get done. Then when your child wakes up you can go back to playing nurse.

Organize

We all know it’s called the junk drawer for a reason. But, it gets to a point where the that junk drawer could land you on the hoarders show. While your child is on the couch watching her favorite show, take a few minutes to sort through the clutter. If you’re like me, there’s something therapeutic about organizing!

Read or Catch Up on the DVR

If you’re not in the mood to clean then take some “me” time. Whether it’s to read a book that’s been collecting dust all summer or to catch up on your twelve episodes of “The Young and the Restless” that’s waiting for you in the DVR (that’s me), do something you like. We all know we never get a lot of down time during our daily hustle and bustle.

Low-Key Play Time

If your child feels well enough to play a little, there’s nothing wrong with letting them. A sick day from school doesn’t mean they have to be chained to their beds and glued to the tissue box. Take the opportunity to play a board game or a card game. Color a picture. Read them a book. Basically, spend some time just hanging out with them. It’s fun and makes the time go by much faster than watching kiddie shows all day long.

The next time your children’s sick days have you feeling a little stir crazy, check out this list and then add a few of your one:)

 

 

At What Age Are Kids Most Lovable?

So, as I’m sitting here with my morning coffee as the kids are still sleeping (on a day off, no doubt, score one for Mom), I came across this article talking about when kids are the most lovable. In my current situation, I would say right at this minute when they’re asleep…lol. But, all kidding aside, this study found that kids are the most lovable at age 5. It’s probably because they can feed themselves, go to the bathroom themselves, and dress themselves.

I don’t know if I agree. Being the parent of a now 6 year-old, I can tell you that there is a little sassiness at age 5. There’s a little bit of the “I got this Mom” attitude every now and again. There’s a bit of the eye roll too. That’s not very lovable. So, I’m going to disagree with this study and say that kids are most lovable when they’re just born. There’s an innocence about them at this stage that is undeniable. They have that “new baby” smell that you can inhale for hours. They are so fragile, yet so strong. They just want hugs and cuddles…and a bottle.

Do you agree with this study? Are kids most lovable at age 5? What age would you say?

The “Little Things” are the Biggest Things

The “Little Things” are the Biggest Things

“Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”

I have this little quote on one of my wall decorations in my house. I bought it because I thought it was meaningful and “deep”, if you will. If you think about, it really is true. The things that we often classify as little and “meaningless” have the most meaning…especially when you have kids.

This rang true for me this week when I chaperoned my daughter’s field trip. It was just a simple trip to a farm to see some animals, pick a few apples, and get a pumpkin. We’ve done these things plenty of times during her six years of life. But,  it was different this time.

Rewind a few weeks ago when the permission slip came home. Actually, a few minutes before that when I picked up my daughter the day the permission slips came home.

“Mommy, mommy, we’re going on our first field trip and you have to come!”

“Okay, okay, “I remember answering. “Take it down a notch and we’ll check it out when we get home.”

“But Mommy, we’re going to pick apples and pumpkins!” she said as we drove home.

As soon as we got in the house, she ripped open her book bag to hand me the paper.

The first word that stood out to me was Tuesday.

Tuesday.

See, I picked up a little freelancing gig and Tuesday is one of the two days that I actually work outside the house. It’s only for a few hours a week. But, half of those hours happen to fall on a Tuesday. They couldn’t have picked a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday. Nope, they had to pick Tuesday.

Anyway, it really was a no brainer. As much as I felt silly saying I couldn’t work that day, I knew I had to try to go. That was one of the many reasons why I decided to be a stay-at-home mom…to do things like this. I know there’s going to come a day when choices like these are going to be made for me and I won’t have the luxury of deciding whether I want to go.

“So, Mommy, can you go?”

“Yes honey, I’ll make it work. As long as the teacher says I can go, I’ll be there.”

Hugs and kisses followed. I felt great for making her happy.

Fast forward to this week.

All morning my daughter was buzzing with excitement over the “big” field trip. I dropped her off and told her I would see her soon. When I walked into her classroom and gave her a little wave, she was already grinning from ear to ear. My little mommy heart did somersaults. She introduced me to some of her little friends. I know there are days ahead when the thought of me meeting her friends will “embarrass” her, so I’ll take these little moments all I can now.

So, we went on the trip and had a nice time with her classmates. The two-and-a-half hours were over before I knew it. The bus dropped us off. I kissed her goodbye. She went back to school. I went home to her little sister.

Field Trip Fun!

 

Fast forward to pick-up time.

My daughter was happy to see me (score for Mommy again). She started telling her sister all about this huge pig we saw…and how it pooped…of course. She told her about the apples and the pumpkins and everything else. The pooping pig was the only thing that got any response…of course.

The rest of the afternoon was status quo…homework, snacks, playing, dinner, etc. Then as we were sitting down for our nightly dose of Caillou, my daughter held on to my arm really tight and said, “Mommy, thank-you so much for coming on my field trip today.” It made my mommy heart all mushy to hear a thank-you for such a “small” thing. Just to know how much those tiny two-and-a-half hours meant to her meant even more to me. So, the next time you think you’re doing something “small” for your kids remember to , “Enjoy the little things. For one day you may look back and realize they were big things.”