Preschool at Home: Kindergarten Preparation

Now that we've gotten into a better schedule centered around learning I thought it would be a good idea to make a list of everything I wanted to teach Savannah before she starts school next year. This is my last school year having her at home and I want to make sure she is prepared for her first day of school.

This list is based off what Sav already knows and what she still has to learn. I'm pretty sure there are some things that I may have forgotten so I'll do an updated list and share it if I need to. I am still really loving the Preschool Prep Company's literacy tools. She's on their level 3 sight word reading books now. As we go through each book she gets better at sounding out words. It's been so neat watching her become a little reader.

I really need to do a lot better about teaching her numbers and math. I am a word person and I naturally gravitate towards books and writing. I plan to start alternating our lessons. One day we'll do Reading/Writing and the next day we'll do Counting/Math. That's my plan between now and next August when she starts school.

What do you think of this list? Anything I missed? Feel free to pin and share if you'd like!

Preschool at Home: Establishing a Routine for Learning

Whew. Hello. I feel like I have been neglecting the blog a lot lately. A while ago I talked about simplifying our schedule by taking a couple weeks to quiet my life and regroup. That's where I've been the past couple weeks. Quieting our routine so that I can get a good understanding of what can stay and what can go.

The weather here has been beautiful. Hello Spring. We've been hanging out at the playground a lot. Once the triple digits hit in a couple months it'll be hard to get out to play so I'm trying to let Savannah soak up sun while she can...


It has been really great enjoying them. Taking the time to worry less and play more has been a huge sense of relief for me. It also gave me the time to determine exactly what I want our schedule to be going forward. It's hard to revise your schedule/routine when you're always doing something or going somewhere. While all of her activities were on Spring Break last week I took that opportunity to really figure out what's going to work best for us.


I discovered a lot. Mainly that we were not getting nearly as much playtime in as I thought. Don't get me wrong we were going to play dates, classes and dance but my little family wasn't getting much play time together. We were playing with everyone else but each other, LOL!

As Savannah approaches the age of four and BabyM turns one I want us to settle into what I think is going to be the routine that works for us. It's a 50/50 learn and play routine. The best of both worlds. In the mornings we'll do all of our learning and development. When the baby goes down for his nap Sav and I normally eat lunch. Once he's up, we'll play together until it's time to make dinner. We can go to a playground or play some of her board games. Whatever she wants.

handwriting practice. she's getting better. we've got to work on that backwards N though.

During my little hiatus I also figured out exactly what our learning goals are going to be. I know what I want to teach them. I'll share my goals for learning in a different post. So far our new schedule has been working out really well. I still have some fine tuning to do with grocery shopping and housework. It's a work in progress but at least I can say we are progressing.
Have you changed your family schedule lately? Have any plans to?

Married & Dating: A Lasagna Dinner

Yay! So today is the first month for the Married & Dating link up! This is a link up that celebrates the courtship that exists in marriage. As women, we're busy with kids and work and sometimes it's hard to make time to keep the dating relationship alive with our husbands.

For us, it's hard to get a traditional date night. We don't have a sitter unless family comes to visit so many of our dates are done as a family or right here at home. My husband and I really try to make the most out of our time after our kids go to sleep. That's why I am a stickler for that seven thirty bedtime…

Today was no different. I mentioned before that I love creating my husband's favorite meals for him. So this weekend I wanted to do lasagna with a twist. We started off dinner with a salad. (If you look really close you can see Sav on her tricycle.)

For the lasagna I tried something new. I might share the "recipe" in a different post if anyone wants it. This was a Chicken and Shrimp Pesto pasta with Mushrooms and Zucchini. It was banging. My husband loved it. For dessert we had brownie fudge chocolate chip cookies courtesy of Pillsbury. They were so good and we devoted them before I could take a pic. 
After our tummies were nice and full we snuggled up on the couch to catch up on our DVR. I had previously recorded Silver Linings Playbook. Ever since I saw it get so much acclaim during the awards season last year I wanted to see it. Just in case it wasn't good we had Argo as a back up.  I feel like someone's DVR says a lot about them, LOL! Check out our mix of kid friendly and adult only shows up there. Banshee is such a good show... And here is my look from today on our way home from church. My husband likes the all natural look. It was super windy so I wore a hat to church with my LBD. Once we were home I changed into a more relaxed outfit.
During the week things are so busy that we don't get to have a lot of quality time together so I really cherish our time together on the weekends. This is what I call a home date or couch date. Can't wait to link up with everyone again next month! We'll be doing this on the third Monday of every month.
What do you think about the lasagna I made? Would you like the "recipe"?

Coming Soon: Married & Dating - A New Series

Every third Monday of the month (March 17th) I'll be sharing a date night that my husband and I have recently had. This is a series that I'll be hosting along with Baby Teems, Drea from So She Writes by Miss Dre and Carissa from The Green Eyed Lady blog.

We are asking other bloggers to join us and share how they date while married. Celebrating the courtship in marriage isn't something you see often. We hope that this new series will encourage married couples to keep the sparks in their relationships flying.

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Giveaway: After Bedtime Fun...

I feel like Varnell Hill from Martin… "Did ya miss me?!"

I know it's been a week since I've updated the blog. My kids and husband have been fighting pretty bad colds. The kids actually got better after a couple days. My husband is still on the sick and shut-in list. Pray for a brother.

Anyway. I always promised myself that I would make my thirties all about getting in great shape and strengthening my relationships. If you come by here often, you've read all about my husband and I. How we met, fell in love, got married young - all that.

I feel that it is so important to foster the relationship with my husband. One way to do that is by trying new things to keep our lives interesting. Our trip to Vegas was amazing. We really got a chance to reconnect and have fun with each other.

While I can't giveaway a couple's getaway I can giveaway the next best thing. A couple's kit from Nite Time Toys.

People don't like to discuss their sex lives. I can respect that. However, if you have kids then it is pretty obvious that you like to get it poppin' every now and then. Why not try to spice things up a bit by trying something new? This couple's kit is valued at $200. Enter for your chance to win below, Good Luck!

Oh. And if you prefer to just buy a little something for you and your man feel free to use this exclusive discount code while you're shopping, ChicMom. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are my own.*

My "Wayment" Moment...

Today I was trying to do Savannah's hair while she having a picnic with a headless Princess Tiana and Peppa Pig. She kept moving and squirming and serving sandwiches and I became frustrated. Doesn't she know she has dance tonight? I have to get her hair done before we run errands and start dinner. She needs to sit still I kept thinking (and repeating over and over again).

While I was cooking dinner I decided to start researching some half day programs. My baby girl will be four this year. As I was seasoning ribs, talking on the phone to the preschool lady and listening to the baby cry Savannah kept asking me to blow up some balloons for her. "Can't you see I'm on the phone?", I thought.

After I got off the phone I started blowing up balloons. She was so happy. Twirling and playing as if she was seeing a balloon for the first time. That's when it hit me…

Wayment…[Pronounced: way•mint] 1. the act of saying, "wait a minute…" in a hurried fashion.

She will be starting school next school year. This is my last year having her home with me all day. This is it. She's going to be at school. With a teacher. In class. All day. My baby will be gone… at least from eight to twelve anyway, LOL!

So.

I am sharing this because it made me realize that maybe we take our kids for granted sometimes. It occurred to me to day that I am guilty of this. I have been letting her 3s work all my nerves lately. All of them. It has caused me not to truly enjoy the little moments. I should have been enjoying that picnic with her but I was too busy letting my frustrations get the best of me.

Can anyone else relate to this? Have you had a 'wayment' or aha moment lately?

Vegas Recap: Flirty 30 Day Three

Our last day in Vegas was bittersweet. We both agreed that we could have gone home that morning and been happy. Since we weren't leaving until the following morning we decided to venture up the strip to check out some of the sights. 

I kept the look for the last day very natural and relaxed. Here I am dancing on one of those moving floors. We realized that Bellagio had one that puts you right on the strip. Very convenient.

I can't get over how amazing this hair color is. Gorg! If I do say so myself...

We ended up spending a lot of time in the MGM. I actually flipped a dollar into $20 in there. I was excited, LOL! I really liked the MGM. The vibe there was so young and fun. We have LOTS of photos from this trip. I feel like a photo dump would be slightly offensive and too much to bare. I think I'll occasionally slip some of my favorites into some upcoming Thought Bubbles posts.

Sunday morning when we woke up the view was so peaceful and serene. The sky was so many different colors. It was beautiful. Our shuttle picked us up (a little tardy) and we were on our way to the airport. In true Vegas fashion one of the other passengers had to throw up so the shuttle driver obliged him at a red light and opened the door. It was gross.

My husband was like, "Don't touch anything. He's either drunk or contagious." 

My view from the plane on our way home. Gotta love Southwest….

And my last footage round up from our trip…

I hope you enjoyed my Vegas trip as much as I did. I have a lot of fun and exciting things coming up on the blog in the month of March. Thanks for reading!

Disney Side @ Home Celebration

I was selected as a Disney Side @Home Celebration hostess. Today we hosted our party at a park here on base. I think the kids had a great time playing and eating cupcakes.

Since Savannah and her friends are between the ages of two and four I thought I would keep the food simple and fun. Here are some cupcakes I made. I used mini Oreos for Mickey's ears and sprinkled a little red sugar on top for some extra #DisneySide flair.


Please overlook the dishes in my sink. Who has time to clean and stage for blog pictures? Not this Mom...

Here is the table all set up. The wind was giving us some issues in the beginning but it stopped just in time for us to enjoy a game of Bingo. Our yellow punch was inspired by Mickey's boots. It was delicious. We also used the cookie cutters from my party kit to make fun play-doh shapes. 
Before all of the kids went home I gave everyone a little box filled with balloons, stickers, a bracelet and a tattoo. We had a blast showing our #DisneySide and sharing with friends. It's always nice to get together with friends and hangout.
I couldn't resist sporting a little Disney gear. While I normally don't wear cartoon characters, this tee shirt was perfect for today's party.

And a very sassy Savannah was a super cute Minnie Mouse! Fun!

I was provided with a free celebration kit in exchange for hosting this Disney Side @Home Celebration. All opinions expressed are my own.