A Materalistic world

I am guilty of spending way to much money at times. Sometimes on things the kids or even I don't need. How about you? I think at one time or another we all are. If we can admit it. For me it was hard to admit because I thought the girls deserved everything under the sun. What I was really doing was handicapping them.

Its not enough that we live in a world full of materialistic people, and now we are making our kids the same. I have learned over the last almost 6 years that spoiling them out of control doesn't do any good or anyone. For one, kids that are spoiled rotten, usually end up like that "ROTTEN".

I noticed my girls starting to act out more and not care about the toys they had. They already knew that mommy would go out and buy new ones. The thing is we aren't rich so throwing toys away and buying new ones gets crazy expensive. Have you seen the price of toys today? Seriously insane.

I am glad that I realized this now when I can still get it under control. Truthfully my girls haven't had new toys since we moved her. So probably around 2 months. That is along time from how it use to be. Every weekend I use to take them to target and or the mall. Yes I said and/or, because sometimes I would buy them toys, clothes, jewelry and books. Ridiculous right? I can admit, I was doing way too much.

Sariah and Kamille still have some learning to do when it comes to toys, but I can say that I do see a change in their attitude about toys. Actually about life.

The other day when I was cleaning the girls room, and purging, Sariah and Kamille said "mom these are the toys that we can give to someone who doesn't have anything". Do you know how amazing that made me feel? My girls thinking about others who are less fortunate than them. Mommy must be doing something right.

Parents don't be the reason our next generation is so absorbed in the materialistic things that everything becomes about what you have and what you don't. Those that don't aren't shit is how society has made it. Let me be the first to say my mom gave me the world and then some, and I became absorbed in stuff  like that. I couldn't even appreciate the love that comes from just a card. I would honestly be pissed if you gave me an empty card. Now just the mere fact that you took the time to write your honest feelings down shows true love (family and friends).

I am glad I can see that now, and I am instilling that in the kids. Lets set positive examples for our babies. They are innocent and if we teach them to be self absorbed they will be, If we teach them to love on others and help the less fortunate then will be better people and this world would be so much better. Let them know God will reward them with more than just toys.

I cant wait to see how they are in the next few years. My kids are amazing and I like to think I had something to do with that, but I give them all the credit.

A little extra time!!!

We as mothers all have different schedules. Some are in corporate America, some are nurses,

Here is a simple idea.
Side note: Use pintrest they have
the best "free" templates.

entrepreneurs, some are stay at home moms. The list could go on and on with the different job titles we carry., but the most important one is that we are MOM's. I want to give a quick little tip that can help ease up your week up and make coming home and having dinner with the family much easier and fun.

Here are a few quick steps:

1. Make a weekly meal list.
2. Clean out your fridge and freezer.
3. Look in your pantry or cabinet's to see what items you already have.
4. Then create your list to take with you to the store (put it in your purse, I always make it and then end leaving it at home, not very smart).
5. This next step is up to you... Sunday start the Prep. for the weekly meals.

Deciding what to make when you get home from work is not very smart. You come home from along day at the office, your exhausted, your not going to want to try and figure out what you have in the freezer to make. Plus you'll have to defrost the frozen food and hope that your meat does not end up dry from to much heat. Having your meals already planned out will help tremendously. It takes off a big load of frustration. When preparing your list of weekly meals, make sure you keep in mind: ingredients, prep-time, and length in time of cooking. Some foods can really be time consuming. So think about the amount of time you really want or can be in the kitchen. Another key tip: If you have children that are able to help, put them to work. My girls always want to help make food. It is some extra time you get to spend with them and trust me you will earn extra points from the kiddos.

Cleaning out your fridge and freezer is very important because you need to know what you have and don't. A lot of times we think that we have a lot of items, not knowing that half of them have already expired. Yes meats and frozen veggies can expire, especially if you don't store them properly. So dig in and clean it out. Once you've don't this you will have a better idea of what you might need for the weekly dinners.

Wow, makes a difference right?
This is not my pantry, I got this from Google.
I figured you could use an example picture
of why you should do this...

Going in your pantries and cabinets will help eliminate what you have with what you need. It not only saves time, but it saves money and space. I know that I always go to the store and think oh man I need that I don't have it at home. Then I get home to put everything away and long and behold, I had it. Now I have spent extra money and am now taking up space (which might I add, right now I don't have much).

Now that we have done the bulk of the hard work, lets make out the shopping list. I have a great system that works for me. When preparing your shopping trip set your list up in sections. Example: Meats- List the types you need. Produce- The veggies and fruits you will be needing. Boxed items, cans, diary. So on and so forth. You get the idea. It so will save you 30 minutes in the store. Just remember to take that list with you. Seriously I don't know how many times I have left the list at home. Just don't forget it.

This last step is totally up to you. You can wash all your veggies and fruits and put them straight

Just an idea, this is not my picture.
Keeps it simple and makes it easier for you moms.

away after. Or you can cut them up for each meal and seal them in an air tight container and store them in the fridge for each day. I like to separate my meats into portions for the week. I buy in bulk. It saves me money because I keep out what I need, and then freezer bag the extra and put them away for the next time I may need that meat. This will shave off anywhere from 15-20 minutes of your cooking time. It is totally up to you.

I hope that this will help you free up a little bit more time so that you can sit down and enjoy quality time with your family. Cooking is something that I love to do. When I am sad, mad this helps me relieve stress. Remember use those kids they will thank for it later.

Kids Fun for all.

Kids are simple, they don't need $100 dollar toys and big shopping sprees. All they want is to have some fun. The girls favorite thing in this whole world, is arts and crafts. Side note: It is mine too, ever since I was little I've loved creating things.



You can pick all these items up and allow your
kids to use their imagination, or use pintrest for
Some crazy cool ideas.

 My favorite place to go and buy things from for arts and crafts is the dollar tree. I know you may be thinking "Kayleigh, they don't have much to offer". Yes they do, trust me. My children love to paint, color and decorate any and everything (even walls, LOL). Set a budget for what you want to buy. Arts and crafts can add up very fast. Just because you are shopping at the dollar store doesn't mean much, a dollar adds up eventually.

When you have kids there is a motto that I like: Stay, Play and Walk Away. It is very simple.

1. Show them a few idea for things they can make.
2. Make a few with them.
3. Then allow them to have fun and enjoy themselves and walk away.

I love pintrest for new ideas on projects for children. Type in: Ideas for home activities with kids. You will be in pintrest heaven. I promise!!!

Another thing that my girls like to do is read books. Either it be at home with the trillion that we own,

Barnes and Noble kids section.

or going to Barnes and Noble to read. A side note: All Barnes and Nobles have a day for story time, call your nearest one and find out. It is totally free and the kids will love it. My girls even love the library (just not the being quite part). I am a firm believer that books help our children to become better people. I buy books that tell stories about change, friendship, love etc.. I never buy a book before reading through it. Now a days we parents have to watch everything we let our kids do, because the content is sometimes a little to raw for them, if you know what I mean.

Today we live in a generation of video games, I pads, Kid notebooks. You name an electronic and most kids have at least one or heck all of them. Now I am not against electronics by no means. I am learning how to cut their play time back on them

ABC Mouse is worth every dollar.

though. A good place I recommend for younger children is ABC mouse. Now it isn't free, but if you can afford to get your nails and toes down then you can buy it for your children. It will help teach them how to read, and add. It also gives you free pintable's. Which I loved. You can customize them or print out the premade ones.

The girls made this for when Logan was release from Loma Linda
Hospital after being there for a week because he was so sick.
They had a blast with grandma, and they were so proud of there
craft.

Now depending on the area you live and how old your little ones are, depends on some of the activities. When I lived in Long Beach I loved taking the kids to the park, beaches and museums. We had so much fun. There is a lot of places to go all you need is handy dandy Google and you can find anywhere to take them. Remember they are simple, we parents are complicated.

Confessions of a school crazy mama

Well summer is almost over and that time of year is about to be here. Time for school to start. Even if your child has been in school before here are a few key tips for getting ready.

1. Get a full supply list for your child's school.
2. Find out if the school is uniform or free dress.
3. Check to see if the school has a policy about the snacks your child brings.
4. Know what size clothes and shoes your child wears.
5. Make your list

I believe that these 5 things will help you tremendously with getting ready for the school year. Trust me, I spent way too much at the beginning of the school year because honestly I just didn't know. So lets go in a dissect why each point is important.

School clothes at the beginning
of kindergarten 2013.

Now for me number 2 is what really makes a difference. Sariah went to two different schools last year. The one that she started at didn't have a policy in dress attire. It was openly free dress. I hated it. I found that I was spending way to much on clothes that were just going to potentially become ruined. Although they look cute and what not it still isn't worth the amount of money going in. It is school and they are going to paint, play and get messy. Now once I took her out of that school due to lack of education I put her in a Prep. academy school that had a strict dress code policy. Uniform was a must. I found that I spent less money on her clothes and she still looked cute. I wasn't worried about her coming home and having a stain, because most her clothes were dark and the stains weren't that visible. Also must of the uniforms I found to grow with the child. The all have elastic pull strings on the inside. Love it.



Only purchase what they need for home
through out the year the teacher
will ask for what they need.

I am not sure about your child's school, but I do know that the two schools Sariah went to they give you a list full of items the child has to bring. This is where I have an issue. Granted I do understand that not all parents have money, I get it. What I don't understand is why I spent way over $70 dollars in supplies for my child's class and she never once came home with homework on the colored paper, the white paper or any paper for that fact. I was very taken aback that on the first day they ask the
parents to bring in the supplies and maybe 1/3 actually do. I will go on record saying this now " I will not do this again". I did it for both schools and although her academy did use the paper and sent her home with homework I truly felt used because I was so willing to spend my money on the classroom. Keep one thing in mind the supplies that you bring are not for your child alone. It is to supply the whole class because schools are not wanting to give the teachers anything like when you and I went to school.
I put number 3 on there because Sariah didn't allow certain things to be brought. One that I saw a lot

I like to organize the snacks
so that she can choose what
she wants to take.

was hot Cheetos being taken from the children and thrown into the trash. That child would go home with a note telling the parents to please not send them to school with those. Not every school cares, because at her first school every kids brought them. I sent Sariah to school with a variety of snacks so that she could make the decision on what to eat. One day she came home and told me a teacher took her string cheese from her and put it into the trash. I am sure you all are thinking what the hell. Right, so as you can imagine I was furious. What is wrong with string cheese? I went to the school and asked for a list, that was not one of the items that weren't allowed. The teacher was just being overly strict and rude. It is nice to know that the school cares about what is going into our kids body, but it is not okay for teachers to make up there own rules. With that said make sure you know what they can and cant have so you don't waste your money on thing that are going to be asked to put into the trash.

Sariah's first day of school 2013.

Number 4 is very simple, If your child is currently in a size 6 and he/she is just fitting it perfect, don't buy all size 6. Be smart it is money that you worked for don't throw it away. I would recommend only buying maybe 2 pants in the current size and the next size up there after. Depending on how you like to do your school clothes shopping it is going to be up to you. I like to buy for the whole first part of school. So for example, Sariah will be starting school in Aug. I will buy her clothes for Aug till Dec. When winter break is over I will buy her a whole new set. Now her shoes I buy all through the year. My baby has big feet and they keep growing. Also she is rough at school on her shoes. I don't spend a whole lot of money on her shoes because I know they play and I don't want to be mad that I spent $80 on some shoes that she can only wear for so long. Now if you don't mind and you got it like that, honey boo do you... LOL
Well we have made it to the end, number 5. Simple, make your list for the items you see fit to buy. Stick to it, if it isn't on the list your probably don't need it. Saving money and saving time is something I know that I have to do. I cant go all willy nilly in target because everything is cute, or I think she may need it. I need a strict list so I don't get side tracked. Oh yeah and something that might be a bit of a tip, leave your children at home if possible with daddy. They see everything and want it all but they don't need it...

I hope this helped you out. For more tips leave your comments, add me and ill see you tomorrow...