Cutting the Chaos - Educational Activities for Kids!

Hello everyone!! I hope you all had a wonderful long weekend! We definitely did, and after a little blogging break I am ready to share some fun things this week. I thought I would start off today by showing one of the ways I am trying to Cut the Chaos in my home :)

If you have read my blog for any amount of time, you probably know I LOVE doing fun, educational activities with my kids. It helps me get more involved with them, I love to see them learn something new, and I feel great anytime the screens are OFF and we are spending quality time together.

Some weeks this goes a lot smoother than others. I always try to have a weekly theme, this helps focus me and better plan things for my kids. Some weeks I am SO on top of it, not many...but some :) Other weeks we hardly do anything and thats ok too. That's reality. But instead of being all or nothing, I tried to come up with a way that will really simplify and Cut the Chaos so I can enjoy this time with my kids. Here we go! :)

I put this together last night and am thrilled with it so far! I grabbed a towel holder thing I had laying around in the basement that has 3 spots on it. In the first holder I placed a framed print that says Letter of the Week. Every Sunday night before I go to bed I can quickly use a dry erase marker to write what letter we will be focusing on that upcoming week.

In the bottom holder I placed another framed print that says This week we are learning all about...and then I write our theme for the week.

In the middle spot I place a book that we either have or borrowed from the library that we will read throughout the week that spotlights our theme and reinforces it.

In case anyone is interested, here are the printables I made. It took about 5 seconds to stick them in frames I already had and instantly my kids will know what we are learning for the week and will be reminded every time they sit at the table.

SO simple...right?!

The next part is my favorite though :) There are SO many great educational resources on different websites and blogs, you really can just click and print to provide your kids with fun, themed, educational activities. This takes a little bit of time, but know that I have my system down it is under one hour and I have a weeks full of activities ready to go!

I simply got binders for each of my children. Then I stuck in them a bunch of page protectors. All of the worksheets I print off go in a page protector and the kids use dry erase markers on them. Then when our week is over I just take out the worksheets, file them under the theme of that week, and I have them FOREVER!! Now when Britton is older and can do the Kindergarten worksheets that Kendall is doing this year I will just have to pull them out of my file. Love it! I don't mind the work half as much when I know I will have it forever :)

So here is how I set up my binders:

In the front pocket I place any coloring pages the kids can use throughout the week.

If there are any games, shape sorts, or anything else with small pieces I laminate them and place them in the pencil holder. It takes a little while to laminate them but once again...once you do it you have them forever!!

Every week I print out a tracer page for the letter of the week. Its great practice for the older kids and good for the little ones to become familiar with the alphabet.

Finally I place all the different worksheets in their own page protector to be used again and again!

I know it probably seems like such a little thing, but the amount of Chaos this Cut is amazing!! Now even on those weeks that seem to get away from me, when my kids are bored instead of always turning on the tv they can pull out their binders, color some pages, play some matching game, work on the alphabet etc! And on those rare weeks that I AM on top of things, these binders are a great addition to any fun things we have planned.

Since we are learning all about TEETH this week I thought I would share some of the places I got all these great printables:

Dental Theme for PreK and Kindergarten

Worksheets for 1st grade and up

Letter Tracing Pages

Thanks so much for stopping by today! I am looking forward to sharing some fun St. Patricks Day ideas, some great TEETH activities and more this week. Have a wonderful day!!

Cutting the Chaos...the Prayer Chair!

Hello everyone!! I hope you are enjoying these precious last few weeks of summer! With the start of the school year coming up I decided I wanted to rededicate myself to Cutting the Chaos in my home, so today I am posting one idea and will continue to do so at least once a week. This one was SO simple, literally took less than 10 minutes, and should really cut the contention at almost every meal in our home :)

ALL the credit for this idea goes to my amazing sister-in-law Jen! I saw this at her house probably a few years ago now, but haven't had the need for it in our home until recently. Does anyone else have the problem of kids fighting over who gets to say the prayer before EVERY meal? Up until the last 6 months my oldest was really the only one who ever wanted to say it. Recently that has changed to include my 4 and 2 year old as well, and I was getting more than a little tired of starting off every meal with a fight over who prays! Kind of ruins the spirit, right?! Reminds me of when my girls started hitting each other because they couldn't agree on the lyrics to Love at Home....ironic....;)

Anyways!! Jen had a cute little sign hanging on one chair that designated who got to say the prayer for that meal, and they would just rotate it around every chair so everyone got equal turns to pray. Now, we have set seats at our house, and that is really the only way this will work. Otherwise your kids will just fight over who gets to SIT in the Prayer Chair :) So I simply scrapped this fun little sign and printed off two copies.

Then I laminated both papers, stapled two equal pieces of ribbon to each paper and created our Prayer Chair sign! Here is what it looks like at my kitchen table...

Pretty cute, right? :) This morning at breakfast was the first time we used it and it was a hit! There was no fighting and the kids were excited for lunch when the Prayer Chair sign would make its move. It was so lovely to not listen to fighting and not having to try and remember who I had promised the next prayer to at dinner the night before.

Thank you SO much for stopping by, I hope you found a teensy bit of inspiration to Cut the Chaos in your life, even with something as simple as this :) Have a fantastic week everyone!!

Linking up at Craft Goodies

Lost library books no more!! (A return to Cutting the Chaos??)

I admit it....I have paid more than my fair share of library late fees and lost book fees :) We LOVE the library at our house, but we are usually so crazy that we either forget to take them back or misplace them all together. Since we just got new library cards for me and the girls yesterday, I decided we needed a little organization to make the most of our library experience. Luckily I had the perfect spot in my house just crying out for a simple project :)

First I grabbed one of these cute buckets that I got fro Ikea that matches my kitchen. This is the new spot for all of our library books.

Then I cut this darling saying out of vinyl using my Silhouette. I thought it fit just perfectly!

I also cut 2 library card holders using my Silhouette. I just taped them up on the wall and stuck the girls library cards in them. They were so excited to get them, but they did NOT want them in my wallet...they wanted their own special place for them!

Finally I cut a mini file folder that I stuck the receipts of all the books we borrowed in. That way I can check each book off the list when we go back and make sure we are not forgetting any.


Here is how the whole thing came together....I am ecstatic at how it turned out. Not only does it look cute but it is completely practical and cut a little bit of chaos in our home!




Thanks for stopping by today, hope you all have a wonderful day and enjoy those "Blue Skies Ahead"!

Cutting the Chaos...the simplest chore chart around!

I have been on the hunt for the perfect "chore chart" for my daughter Skylar for quite some time now. I had lots of specifications: must be easy enough for a 5 year old to use, needs to look cute :), and needs to be CHEAP! Also, I didn't want something that would overwhelm her, just something that would help her remember the daily things she needs to do as they become habits. Almost more of a reminder chart than a chore chart. Well needless to say I was having a difficult time finding just what I wanted so I came up with my own spin :)

I made this sheet using my digital scrapbooking program. It took me all of about 5 minutes and matches my girls bathroom perfectly!

Then I framed it in an old white frame I had sitting around in my basement and put a dry erase marker in the unused toothbrush holder next to it.

This is a picture of the chart up in their bathroom...I was excited that it is not only totally functional, but looks really cute in their bathroom too!



Skylar loves running up and putting a smiley face next to each item as she completes it and every night I just wipe the dry erase marker off the glass and we are ready for the next day!

I would love to know what kind of chore charts you use and how you motivate your kids to help around the house...:) Have a great day everyone, and happy St. Patricks Day!!

Cutting the Chaos, Party style!

This weeks Cutting the Chaos deals with something close to my heart...throwing parties!! :) I LOVE a good party. I love everything about it, the preparation, the planning, the actual party, and mostly the memories that are made. I am always thinking about my kids next birthday and with all these thoughts running around in my head I sometimes feel like my brain is about to explode! Plus, I am thinking if this pregnancy goes the way all the others have, bedrest may be soon on the horizon. If this does happen, I plan on being prepared! :) We have some very special birthdays coming up that I don't plan on missing. So I give you, my very own Party Planner! :)

This is the cover sheet I just quickly threw together using my digital scrapbooking program. Everything is better when its cute, right?!

This cute little page is on the back...I just liked how it looked :)


Now on the inside I have a bunch of dividers and then inbetween each divider I have plastic sheet protecters for putting print-outs, ideas, clippings from magazines etc.



Here are my tabs:



Party Details - this includes the theme for the different parties (ie Monster Party for Britton, PJ Party for Skylar, etc..). It also includes estimated date, guest lists and any thing else I need.



Invites - This is where I can put different ideas for invitations or if I am really on top of things where I can store the actual invitations after they are made. Also a good place to put guest lists.



Decorations



Food



Games / Activites



Favors



Gifts - I buy the majority (okay, pretty much all!) of the birthday presents at big clearance sales, like when Target puts their toys at 75% off. This is a great place to keep track of what I have bought so I actually give the gift I bought months and months ago.



The absolute BEST thing about this system is how it is allowing me to not waste and save as much money as I can. I often buy things out of season and then use them for things later. When I am unorganized I forget I have them and usually go out and rebuy more things! Not so any more!! Also, now if I find a great deal on something I will know exactly what I could use it for and I won't forget that I bought it 2 months later! :) I also run across a lot of fantastic ideas online and now when I see one I just print it out and stick it in the appropriate divider. I would love to know, do you enjoy throwing parties?? If so, what are some of your favorite tips?

Cutting the Chaos in the playroom!! (At least a little bit)

Does anyone else have a playroom that gets looking like this?? (Please tell me I'm not the only one!:) My favorite thing about the home we are in now is that my kids have a playroom, but man, it is always such a mess!

One of my biggest pet peeves is having the toys stuffed away in a drawer somewhere. The kids forget they even have them, and if they do happen to remember they have to dump out the entire drawer to even be able to play with them.

This was the case with all of our Princess Barbie dolls. My girls LOVED playing with them when they got them, but really haven't done much with them since. I thought of a great way that would take up less room, and also make them visible to the kids so they could actually remember they had them :)

Introducing....the clear plastic shoe organizer!! I have several of these in my home in different closests and realized it would be the perfect size for Barbie Dolls. Now my girls can open the closet and see each doll and easily choose one to play with. Since I have done this they have been playing with these nonstop...so I think it worked ;)

And just so I'm not totally embarrased, here is the after shot of the playroom...we are not total slobs :) Have a great week everyone, I would love to hear some of your great playroom organizing tips!!

Cutting the Chaos in the car

I don't know about anyone else, but it seems like we spend a ridiculous amount of time in the car these days. Between taking Paul to work, picking him up from work, taking the girls to dance and school and just running errands we are in that thing all the time! We have to wait for Paul to come down from work, wait for Skylar to come out of school...wait, wait, wait!!

I should tell you we are very old-school and currently do not have a DVD player in our van, so needless to say I felt like I needed to come up with some ways to keep my young kids happy, our nice new van clean and be prepared for anything that comes my way. Here is my attempt at that :)

I put together all these containers, each with a seperate purpose, but each giving me the chance to be organized and prepared. It has been SO lovely to not have to try and grab a million little things as I am trying to run out the door, they are all ready for me in the car :)

These 3 containers provide different things I am always in need of in the car. The bigger one is full of trial sized cleaning supplies so I can keep the car nice and clean. I have a garbage bag, Windex wipes, Clorox wipes, and Febreze spray in there. It has been so nice to wipe down the messy spills in the car and leave a little spray when we get out. Its lovely to climb into a clean, nice-smelling van every morning. The middle-sized container has essential toiletries that you always want to have on hand: diapers, wipes, pull-up, Kleenex, hand sanitizer, feminine products, lotion and sunscreen. I cannot tell you how many times that extra pull-up would have come in handy! And finally the smallest container has band-aids and all kinds of medicine.

Now this container has been heavenly! I filled it with fun little toys the kids can play with in the car....but they HAVE to stay in the car! That way the kids actually look forward to playing with them and are not already bored with them. I have basics like books, Color Wonder coloring books with markers that came with a little tray and holder and those magnetic drawing things...doodle-something-or-other :) I also got some small puzzles and attached magnets to the back of each piece. Then I stuck a small magnet board in there and the girls are loving putting together their magnetic puzzles and I am loving not finding puzzle pieces everywhere! The beautiful thing is when they get in the car they pick up what toys they want for the drive, and when they get out they put them all back in the bucket.

Finally...the snack bucket!! I don't always have time to grab things as we are running out the door so I filled this bucket with kid-sized water bottles, fruit leather, kidz clif bars (so good!), instant breakfast packets, and packs of trail mix. Once a week I try to replenish the bucket and change it up...its also been quite nice for me to grab a healthy snack on the go too! :)

All these things are helping to make our van a less chaotic, happier place to be!

Cutting the Chaos...its back!!

Ok, its been a while, but we are back!! I can't guarantee I will be posting a Cutting the Chaos post every week, but I'm going to do my best!!

One of the things we focused on in our Family Home Evening last night was making the Sabbath Day in our home more holy. I have been excited to put in place an idea I have had for quite a while....introducing the Sunday Bucket!!!

This bucket is full of activities my kids can do on Sundays. We ONLY pull out this bucket on Sunday, and I really think that helps keep it special and something to look forward too. I am always on the look out for things to add to the bucket, but some of its contents right now are:

Coloring books of the bible with crayons

The Primary Songbook CD

A binder with all the Gospel Art kit pictures in it

A Noah's Ark matching game

Book of Mormon floor puzzle/book

Pictures I printed from The Friend to color

Latest issues of the Friend magazine

Book of Mormon Bingo

Articles of Faith game

LOTS of book about Bible stories and Jesus

Book of Mormon Eye Spy Game

Sunday Quiet Book

and so much more!! :)

Many of these things I have gotten for SUPER cheap at Seagul Book in their clearance section. Other things I have gotten at the Distribution center and some I have made myself.

To go along with our Sunday Bucket I also made a little CTR jar for our family...always reminding us to Choose the Right to keep the Sabbath Day Holy. In this jar I put different ideas for activities we can do on Sunday. Each week the kids pick one out and that is what we do. I love doing this because the kids get SO excited to see what they will pick, and it also ensures that we don't end up doing the same activities and have the kids get sick of them.

Here is a list of some of the activities in the jar:

Go for a Walk (weather permitting:)

Act out favorite Scripture Story

Color a Sunday Picture for Grandparents

Play Sunday Games on the computer

Listen to our favorite Primary Songs

Pick a game from the Sunday Bucket

Play with Sunday Quiet Book

Watch a Sunday Movie (The Testaments, etc)

There are many more things, these are just a few. I have been thrilled with the Spirit that has been in our home that last few Sundays. Of course it is not perfect, but it does feel like a different day, just as it should. Cutting the Chaos and making Sunday's a more holy day in our home has been a huge blessing....what do you do with your young ones on Sunday's??

Cutting the Chaos Week....Oh, who am I kidding?!

Its been so many weeks since I posted anything about cutting the chaos, I probably don't need to be keeping track any more :) But I have been doing a few things over the last few weeks that have helped me manage ALL of the chaos abounding around me. These are not new ideas, original, or very creative, but I think they are the most important out of all the things I have posted so far. I have felt like lately the only thing I have been able to do is keep my head above water, and these simple things that I have been doing every day have been helping me do just that!

First up: Daily Excercise! I cannot tell you what a blessing it has been for me to be able to wake up early every day and make sure I am taking care of myself first thing in the morning. Aside from the weight loss benefits (which, lets be honest, are awesome!!) I FEEL happier! I have more energy and even though I get less sleep I am less tired than usual. Years ago I attended a yoga class, and the instructor said something to me that has stuck with me ever since. As we were doing the cooldown she said "Thank you for loving the people in your life enough to take care of yourself first, so you have more to give to them." I think many times as women we spend so much time doing so much for everyone else, the one person that gets neglected is us. I have found that statement to be so true- when I am taking care of myself the way I need to be I have so much more to give to everyone around me.

The second thing and by FAR the most important is simply this: Daily scripture study and personal prayer. I know, I know, this is nothing new! But here's the thing-sometimes life can feel like its caving in on you. Things are unsure, unsteady and unlike how you thought they would be. But its been my experience that when I dedicate my time to doing the things the Lord would have me do, I am blessed with an almost overwhelming ability to accomplish the things that need to be done in my life. Not only that, but I am uplifted and edified every step of the way. At a time in my life where nothing has felt very secure, I have been reminded of the stable things in my life that will NEVER change-my love for my family, my relationship with my Savior, and the truthfulness of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ. Heavenly Father is truly kind, and I am grateful he has provided a daily way to cut the chaos in my life, simply by turning to him and reading his words.

I hope you all keep on keeping on...I know I will! Cutting the chaos in whatever way I can, and trying to find that joy in the journey! Have a great week everyone!!

Cutting the Chaos, Week 6!

Hello everyone!! This weeks project is a little different, but turned out SO fun and cut out a lot of chaos at our house this week. My darling little Skylar had her 5th birthday yesterday!! For ever she has been dreaming up a grand birthday party with every kid she has ever met, piles of presents and cake and treats as far as the eye can see.

Well, thats great in theory, but when I really started trying to plan it, the timing was not great. We are moving in 3 weeks, trying to save every penny that we can, and in general just trying to simplify until we get into our new place. But here was the problem: How could I still do something special for my little darling without breaking the bank and throwing me into a nervous breakdown? ;)

This is where a stroke of genius came into play :) You may remember a recent post where I talked about how we eliminated enriched flour and high fructose corn syrup from our home, well the hardest thing for my kids to let go has been their breakfast cereal! They LOVE all the sugary stuff, and have been pretty sad to see it go. This is where I came up with the idea for our very own Princess Cereal Birthday Bash!! When Skylar woke up on Sunday morning this is what she saw....

I simply chose 4 of her favorite cereals, incorporated 4 of her favorite princess, and WALAHHH! A breakfast fit for a princess :)

Ariel's Underwater Treasures (Lucky Charms)

Jasmine's Royal Jewels (Trix)

Princess Aurora Puffs (Cocoa Puffs)

Cinderella's Glass Slipper Squares ( Cinnamon Toast Crunch)

Add fun glass jars, cute ribbon, and adorable chipboard cutouts of princess and there you have it!

Skylar had such a fun morning trying out all her favorite princess cereals :) She also kept saying, "Mommy, this is the best birthday ever!"

So if you are ever feeling like me and a birthday party is just too overwhelming, try something like this! Just find something simple that your child loves, tweak it to fit their personality, and instantly you have a hit!

In the coming weeks I have a feeling I will be overtaken by CHAOS!! You can expect a few posts on packing and organizing, and definitely dejunking :) Hope you're all having a wonderful week, and getting closer to being more organized so we can all enjoy the fun things in our lives!! :)

Cutting the Chaos, Week 5!!

Well here we are on the 5th week, and I'm still going strong :) I usually have a lot of great ideas and even better intentions, but always tend to get busy and have a hard time sticking to things. I am glad 5 weeks into this crazy thing I am still finding some ways to cut the chaos. The project for this week was not original, crafty or very cute, but oh so needed in my life!!

A few posts back I mentioned my love of couponing. It takes a little while to get into it, but once I did I went a little crazy! It was just so exciting to feel like even though I don't bring any income into our home, I can have a huge effeect on how much of that income leaves the home :) Although recently as we have tried to eat a little bit healther I haven't been using the food coupons AS much, I still love all the toiletries I get for amazing deals. Anyways, with all these coupons floating around I had to have a way to keep them organized, right?

You would think so :) This is a pic of my previous, ahem, system (if you could call it that!)

I would cut out all my coupons, group them into categories, and then paper clip them and throw them in the pile. Hmmm, see that huge pile of coupon inserts on the right? Those are all the ones I was behind on that still needed to be clipped. I loved the idea of clipping coupons, and for months was able to keep up with it, but NO MORE!! Not only did it take me hours to clip the coupons and organize them, but then to dig through the pile of paper-clipped categories and try and find the ones I needed, it was just too much!

My sister-in-law Crista introduced me to this brilliant method of organizing your coupons. If you visit different coupon sites like I do, you will notice that they always tell you where the coupon you need comes from (i.e., Red Plum 5/2). So now instead of spending hours clipping every Sunday I simply stick that weeks inserts in a plastic sheet and put in a binder I got on clearance at Walmart.

This way as I am making my grocery lists I can check the coupon blogs and ONLY cut the coupons I will actually be using that day at the store. Isn't it beautiful?! :)

I can't tell you how wonderful it feels to have these organized! Just one more way I am trying to Cut the chaos so I can enjoy all the fun things in my life!!

Do you coupon? If so, how do you organize your stash?? :)

Cutting the Chaos, Week 4!!

Holy moly...what happened the last few weeks! :) I tell you people, I took on the chaos, and the chaos won! :) But never fear, it didn't keep me down for long and I am here with another project I am doing that I know will significantly cut the chaos in my life :)

The inspiration for this project came a few week ago as I was on the verge of hysteria as my insurance company was calling me, demanding Brittons social security number or else his coverage would be terminated! Only one problem, I couldn't find it anywhere! Having a hard time visualizing it? Here is what I looked like as I dug through all of our paperwork...

(I stole this pic from my awesome friend Emily's blog...hope you don't mind Em :)

It really was ridiculous! I realized I had never recieved it in the email, and not only that but to get it I needed his birth certificate....hmmmm, never got that one either. Are you seeing a trend here?? I am so completely unorganized with our important papers! Something had to change! So after doing a little research (ie, blog-hopping :) I found this amazingly ridiculous blog you MUST check out immediately:

http://www.executivehomemaker.com

This blog was created by the mastermind Laurie behind my all-time fave blog, Tip Junkie! On this blog she has an entirely FREE printable for an Executive Homemaker Binder. It was exactly what I needed to start off my pitiful attempts at organizing. I also love her motto, "Organize your life so you can get to the fun things about being a mother, wife, and woman!" Amen Sister!! I tell you, I was not having very much fun running to the vital records office, then standing in line at the Social Security Admin for 2 hours :)

Anyways, she completely lays out for you how to get organized with categories like Daily Tasks, Monthly Planner, Family info (this is where I included all our important papers and immunization records for the kids) Expense and more! It is a great starting point, and I added things that I knew would be helpful to me and left out some things that I don't need.

You can't imagine how good it feels to have all of our important info in one place! Now when I need to call someone in the ward, I go to my binder. When I need to see what this months Food Storage item to stock up on is, I go to the binder. When I leave the kids with the babysitter and they need an info sheet, you guessed it, I go to the binder! :)

Now I realize I am probably the exception to the rule and you all have already done something like this years ago. But if for some reason I am not completely alone in this and you are feeling a little overwhelmed with it all, check out the blog and get started on a binder today! Mine still needs alot of work and it will constantly be changing and needed to be updated but it is a START! Hope you all are having lots of success cutting the chaos in YOUR lives, I am slowly but surely finding some success in mine! :)

Cutting the Chaos, Week 3!!

This one I have been SO excited about, not because it is an original, crafty amazing idea, because frankly its pretty simple :) The reason I am so excited about it is it will help me keep up with something I feel really strongly about doing in a much simpler way than the way I have been.

JOURNALING!! I love it! I am a big believer in keeping a journal. I have found so many blessings in my life from keeping a journal, and even though I go through phases where I am better than others, I would say for the most part I keep a decent record of our life. One thing that has really helped strengthen my testimony of journaling is going back and reading old entries. Something I have been amazed at time and time again is how often the Lord has guided me and my family, even if at the time I didn't realize it. I found a particular entry the other day that was really profound for me. I was writing about before Paul and I had any children, when we were trying to decide if we were ready to take that next step. I wrote something to the effect that I had was worried that I might have a difficult pregnancy or that there would be complications with my baby. I also wrote that I didn't know if I was just being paranoid, or if it was the Lord's way of preparing me. Months later when we had Skylar 8 weeks early I remembered those feelings, and I was very humbled to see that the Lord had never left me, he had slowly been preparing me for one of the most difficult experiences of my life, but one that had brought about a sincere change of heart. The birth of my Skylar completely changed my outlook on life and my faith, and reminded me that I was capable of hearing the Lord when he speaks to me and taught me to trust my ability to feel and recognize the Spirit.

Sorry, that was a little bit off the point, and a lot rambling!! If you are still with me, I'll show you the project! ;)

As much as I enjoy journaling for myself I have always felt strongly about keeping journals for my children. I started with Skylar, and then added one for Kendall when I had her. Then I thought it would be good to have a journal for my personal scripture reading, and of course my own personal journal. Put that all together and this is what I am looking at every night before I go to bed...

Yeah, I think its a little much :) And if you realize, there are only two kids' journals....HELLO!! I have 3 now, have for about a year now :) I feel like so often I feel so overwhelmed at writing in all of these, I instead write in nothing! And come on, I have some hilarious, adorable, charming children here that need to be written about. Fast forward to my new way of journaling for my children, I think I have to give credit to my amazing Aunt Sheri for this idea :) I'm pretty sure it was hers a few years ago, and I am just finally seeing the genius in it.

I simply went to Walmart, found this cute little index card holder and got 3 different colored packs of index cards. Blue for Britton, Pink for Kendall, and Purple for Skylar. I stuck a pen in the holder, and now any time one of the kids says something I never want to forget or reaches a new milestone, I can run over, grab an index card and write a short note. The biggest thing I try to do is make sure I date everything, and I am so excited to be able to look back on all these notecards and remember those moments that you think you will never forget but inevitably do! :) I hope some of you are having your own luck at cutting the chaos. :)

Cutting the chaos, Week 2!

Well, I have to be completely honest here. I had something very different planned to share with you today but last week became (what else?) a little chaotic and I wasn't able to finish it. However, I decided this project is to cut the chaos, not add to it, so even though I didn't like it I put it on the back burner until next week and chose something that I could do without taking near as much time away from my family. I still hope it gives you some ideas to cut the chaos in your life, I know it has helped out in mine! :)

I don't know about your family but when we go somewhere we pack alot of stuff! The kids always want to take little toys along, shoes and socks, sometimes a change of clothes, etc. I think most young families are like this. I have noticed over the last little while after we have company I often find a trail of socks, toys, sippies, etc that I know are not ours. Herein lies the problem: where do I put this stuff?? If I hide it away somewhere I will NEVER remember to give it back but if I leave it sitting out it just adds to the clutter of an already cluttered house! :)

So I give you...

Our very own Lost and Found :)

I simply found these cute boxes at Ikea and stuck one up in my laundry room with the sign "Lost and Found"

Now when friends come over I try to bring out the baskets before they leave to see if there are any treasures they have been missing :)

See, I told you they wouldn't all be complicated :) Sometimes in life its the simple things, right? Hope you are all having some success in cutting the chaos in your life. Have a great day!