Mr. Director

CP became Project Manager. 
We repainted our dining room and my husband is building the most amazing shaker style wainescoating! Well, someone woke up hard from his nap so he needed to be with daddy. I set him up in his sister's highchair (keeping him contained while paint was drying) and he had his snack. 


While sitting there, he started telling daddy where to paint and what he needed to be doing. He had a blast. I realized, quickly, that he was practicing such wonderful vocabulary and building complex sentences. We started using the "manager" game to do different things around the house. 

-  Have your child tell you where the toys go as you are picking WITH them! They have to pick up too otherwise, they don't get to be "the manager". Kids start to learn vocabulary for different places around the house and learn nice ways of telling people information without being bossy. 

- Try doing dishes together. 

- Feeding animals/pets

- Fold blankets or clothes (depending on the age)

    

- Sorting animal toys/ different balls/ blocks/ letters/ pictures/ numbers into categories. - Teach them how it looks to think about how to sort things. 

***Remember**** Demonstrate to your kid what it looks like to give information and not be bossy. No matter what the age (I see this with fifth graders daily), you need to show them what the expected behavior looks like and vocabulary sounds like. It will help create a very thoughtful kid! I promise!!!

Singing our ABC's

 

A few years ago, having the privilege to teach kindergarten for a year, I created felt letters cards. I used a bulletin board stencil to draw on scraps of felt and then glued the felt on to foam boards.

We pull the cards out frequently. We lay them out to find different letters, colors, sounds. We sing the ABC song over and over. It's an awesome activity to share with those who want to play with the kids but don't want to get messy.

Pops of Color

Moving into a new house has been WONDERFUL, however, new spaces sometimes call for new colors. The family that lived in our home prior us, left an entire cabinet of vases. I decided to take left over paint from various projects and give them new life.

 

I pour a bit of paint into the inside and swirled it around. I allowed the paint to drip out for a bit. It is OK to have a bit extra in the bottom. I did find an issue that if I didn't allow excess to drain out the paint didn't really dry out. Even after two weeks on the shelf. I now have them scattered around the fire place mantle and bookshelves. 

The cost to me......absolutely NOTHING!

Cheap Furniture!

We are blessed living near on of the midwest's largest flea market. Here I found a little night stand for $5. Yes, you saw right, $5. I used chemical stripper to quiclkly take off the many, many layers of lacquer.With 2 cans of spray paint (for about 3 full coats), I ended up with a fabulous piece for our quest room. 

 Don't be afraid of doing something crazy, go wild with color. What's $5? It can be changed.

 I have started to pair some great bright pinks and blues to enhance the space.