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Time to get mom organized for back to school (Giveaway)

Tiny Prints Back to School

When we think about back-to-school it’s usually about getting the kids ready. But really it’s mom’s time to get ready for back to school. Here’s some quick tips for getting Mom ready for afterschool sports, birthday parties, meal planning and more.

School Zone at Home

  • Pick a spot for backpacks. Have the kids leave them there when they get home and return them there after completing homework so they are ready for the morning.
  • Put together a craft supply basket with scissors, pencils, markers, etc. to be used in a homework zone. Now is the time to stock up with back to school sales.

Meal planning

  • Pick a Sunday afternoon to put together a few freezer meals for when life gets busy and you don’t have time to make dinner.
  • A new notebook and meal planning printables are a great way to stay organized. Make notes of what dinners are favorites and incorporate them into your week’s meal plan.
  • Pinterest is my go-to for meal planning. You can find my meal plan posts here and dinner recipes here. If you need some lunch box inspiration, head over to my Lunch Love board.

Play dates

  • Schedule one or two in advance so you can plan for some free time to check things off your list.
  • Mom contact cards make connecting easy on the playground or in passing at pickup time.

After school activities

  • Pack a bag in advance with sports gear, clean and ready to go. (Pack second small bag for siblings if they will be hanging out waiting)
  • Keep some snacks ready to go and prepackaged so getting out the door is a little easier.

Birthday Parties

  • Buy a few gifts at a time for a certain age group so you are always ready
  • Gift tags are handy to have on hand and personalize a store wrapped gift.

Tiny Prints Labels

 

To help get Moms (and Dads) ready for Back to School season, Tiny Prints is offering a great package of products to get you started! The giveaway is up to a $97 value!

  • 5 sets of 24 gift tag stickers
  • 1 – 5×8 lined notebook
  • 100 – mommy/play date/contact cards

Giveaway is open until August 22nd to US and Canada residents only. (Canada must pay for shipping~ sorry!) Please enter using the Rafflecopter below.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Get another chance to win by entering Tiny Prints Back to School contest for another $200 in prizes! Contest is open until August 28th.

I will also be receiving my own customized Tiny Prints back to school package…I can’t wait to pick out some new labels for the kids and I will get new mommy cards with all THREE kids names on them! All opinions shared here are my own. 

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Give the Gift of Experience Instead of Stuff

Experience Gift Ideas for Kids

Both of my kids have birthdays shortly after the Christmas holidays. For anyone else in the same boat, you may share my hesitation to see any new toys come into the house. As we are committed to decluttering our home, one option that needs more attention is giving the gift of an experience, instead of another item from a store. Whether your kids are 2 or 20, there are so many options for them to enjoy that are outside the box.

Here are some of my favorite experience gifts for kids.

  • Trip to a show
  • Children’s museum visit, or a specialty museum that ties into your kid’s favorite hobby
  • Visit the zoo or aquarium
  • Spend the day at a local theme park
  • Let your child pick their favorite restaurant for a special birthday dinner
  • Attend a concert
  • Spend the day in the city, be a tourist even if you don’t live that far away
  • Sporting event. From basketball games to a gymnastics tour, there are many different options.
  • Movie tickets
  • Tour a local farm or orchard
  • Cooking or art classes
  • A session of classes: music, sports, dance, etc.

Yo Gabba Gabba Live! Boston

Giving the gift of experiences is also a great suggestion for the grandparents and extended family looking to do something special for a birthday or holiday. We recently took a trip as a family to see the Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE!: Get the Sillies Out! event in Boston. It was just a delight to watch the kids get excited for the show. They danced, twirled, clapped and laughed the entire time. It made me realize that we are at the point where the kids are old enough to enjoy these type of experiences together now. (Although JJ is still saying “Loud” and covering his ears when Madison starts talking about the show!) I consider it a success when both Mom and Dad are happy coming out of the show and the kids are both singing on the car ride home.

As one of my readers said, “Making memories is better then a toy that will be obsolete sooner, then later.”

What are some other experience gifts you would add to this list?

Disclosure: We attended the Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE!: Get the Sillies Out! event to help facilitate this review and story. It in no way influenced my opinions shared here. I’m sharing this with the Tuesday Baby Link Up , Frugal Days and Your Green Resource.

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Monday Meal Plan Jan 28

It’s not just another Monday in our house. A little someone is turning 4 today! How did she get so grown up already?

Madison turn 4 collage

This week is happily filled with birthday parties, class cupcakes and her choice of pizza for dinner. Can’t argue with the birthday girl. For her class cupcakes, I made mini pumpkin muffins (nut-free) with cream cheese frosting. The birthday girl requested pink frosting so I used a recipe from Weelicious that colors the frosting with some beet puree. You can hardly taste the sneaky addition of a veggie in the fun frosting.

Monday Meal Plan Jan 28 Random Recycling

On our menu plan this week…

Sunday: Italian spaghetti, sautéed zucchini in garlic grape seed oil

Monday: Birthday pizza along with cake and ice cream

Tuesday: Sandwich and Soup night, this mommy is going out with friends.

Wednesday: Beef Stew (if timing is tight, I’ll make it in the pressure cooker)

Thursday: Slow Cooker Coconut Ginger Chicken and Vegetables. One of my all time favorites. It makes a lot so it’s great when you have company, or save half for leftovers.

Friday: Pizza night or CORN if we have too many leftovers by the end of the week.

  Congrats to Sandra L. for winning the Kids in the Kitchen Giveaway this weekend!! Happy cooking.

For more menu planning ideas, head over to OrgJunkie’s Meal Plan Monday post.

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