Be their encourager!!!

Sariah on her first day of kindergarten.

Encouraging your kids is vital to how much they actually take in while learning at school. You should not leave all the teaching and rewarding up to the teacher. Yes we send our kids to school so that they get an education., but remember that is only the first steps.

When I would pick Sariah up from school everyday I always made sure to ask three questions.

1. How was school today?
2. What did you learn?
3. Did you get homework?

On our drive home she would tell me about her day and what she learned. This probably had to be the best part of the day as a parent. I loved hearing her talk. Listen parents this is key, because had I not asked Sariah how her day was I would have never known that a little boy beat her up. If the child isn't acting normal and seems timid or has their head down, chances are something happened. If they aren't willing to talk about it, you need to turn around and speak with the teacher. This happened a few times. Riri wouldn't tell me what happened, so I would go to her teacher, and she would explain what happened and why Sariah was upset. Communication is a big factor no matter who old or young they are. Once you stop talking to them about things, don't be surprised if they keep things bottled up inside and lash out. I've seen this happen before.

You may be thinking "lash out, my kid is only in kindergarten" Yes, honey it happens. Our kids aren't like the kids we were when we went to school. This generation is much more smart. They see more,

Sariah loves school.

hear more, and do more. 

When asking the question "what did you learn"? Make sure you are asking for full details. Have them explain. For an example. If they say "today we learned about the earth" your question would be "Great, now what about the earth did you learn"? So on and so fourth. I don't think I need to elaborate any more, right? Great, hopefully you got it.

Learning is so important for them at whatever age they are. When they are babies we want them to  learn how to talk, walk, grab things. So when they get older why should it be any different?

Something that my girls loved to do was head out to the library on Wednesdays to check out books. Sariah usually would find books related to what she was learning about at school. She is so smart, and I am blessed to be her mom. We would come home and Riri would tell Kamille about what she had learned. Now Mimi was learning. Your kids can help teach the younger ones. It an added bonus.

This is the most important part of your child's day. Homework time!!! Parents don't slack on this part of the day. Yes, you had a long day at work, the baby is screaming, your husband is driving you crazy, you probably just burned the dinner. I get it, I have 3 kids its not always easy. Just remember if you don't have your kids do homework you are only setting them up for failure.

Sariah would come home every Friday with two new packets of homework, due the next week on Thursday. One would be writing, reading, home connections and the second math. Depending on how many pages of homework she had, would depend on how long we took. I usually had her do 3 a day. Even on the weekend. Our favorite part about homework time, was our one on one time together. I included Kamille in the reading portion because we did it before bed.

I learned a lot about Sariah when helping her out with homework. My daughter is very self conscious about herself and is afraid that people are going to judge her if she does something wrong. This is where parents have to intervene and lift your child's spirits up. Be their encourager!

She still battles with this, but it is something I am working with her on. I see so much potential in her, and I let her know that. If they are struggling in certain areas in school, talk to their teachers. They can give them extra work, and or recommend great "free" websites to use for pintable's.

My homemade packets for Sariah.

Kamille has homemade homework packets
as well.

My favorite place to go is Barnes and Noble. I love to buy there learning activity books. I have the member ship so I get 15% off. It is a must for how often I shop there. I buy them for both girls. They have age one or grade. It just depends on what you want.

Hopefully you have learned a few key tips, school is almost here again. Remember our kids are the next Doctors, Lawyers, Nurses, Engineers and much, much more.

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.