What Kinsey Wore: Our announcement

To share the news of our pregnancy with Family and Friends we got Kinsey in on the act with this sweet tee from Target.  I instantly knew that a picture would be the way to convey our message and I definitely knew I wanted Kinsey to do the "talking"; so when I laid eyes on this beauty, it was pure gold.

Shirt: Carter's

Skinny Jeans: Old Navy

What creative way did you announce your pregnancy?  I saw so many fantastic ideas on Pinterest, but in the end you just can't do 'em all (unfortunately).

Linking up with One Little Momma

   

   

Monkey masks

My little monkeys in class wanted to learn about monkeys this last week so we made these cute monkey masks!

Materials:
paper plates                                                  glue                                             masking tape
tempera paint                                                Popsicle sticks
paint brushes                                                 ruler
construction paper                                        scissors


Each child painted their own plate with brown tempera paint and let dry over night.

I prepped my brown construction paper circles before the project but depending on age or skill level, your child can cut them out independently. Glue to dried paper plate. I added nostrils and a smile :)

I slit the bottom of the masks with my scissors and inserted the Popsicle sticks and taped the back with masking tape.  I then measured out eye holes and cut them out.

My students loved them and they got a lot of use.  We used ours with the song "5 Little Monkeys swinging in the tree" and just subbed the amount of monkeys for students.  They enjoyed acting it out and got some of their sillies out too.

{How's that for 'monkeying around'?}

   

   

InstaFriday

I look forward to Friday all week and then almost forget what day it is! Does this happen to anyone else? 

{Instagram: TheFamilySmith3}

We are so blessed to live in an area that values recreation for children.  We took full advantage of that this weekend and took our daughter on a "tour" of a few parks in neighboring towns.  This park was down the street from where my husband grew up.  She was attached to that spiral pole.  "This twisty thing is awesome!"

I always love the sight of a good, fluffy dandelion.  Brings back many fond childhood memories. And it tickled me that she instinctively knew that you just had to blow the white puffs. So precious.

Like we didn't get enough BBQ on 4th of July, we went all spontaneous and picked up The Works from Trader Joe's: Veggie Cheese burgers, sweet white corn, Garlic fries, and pineapple, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and button mushroom teriyaki kabobs.  I cleaned my plate.  It was glorious.

Another park stop; this park was down the street from the Elementary school my husband and I (and my mom, my brother, my brother in law and in a few years, our daughter) attended. It was a beautiful day and a celebration of sorts- we just discovered we are expecting Miracle #2!

Happy weekend, Friends!

Linking up with Life Rearranged

   

   

1st Trimester Survival Tools

1st Trimester Survival Tools by work-it-mommy

So it's that magical time in my pregnancy where everything smells 1000X stronger than it should, Saltines make me queasy and I just want to lay down like ALL the time.  But I wouldn't trade it for the world :)

So here's a compilation of the things that get me through this crazy time.

0) This is obvious- gotta find out your actually pregnant!

1) Cozy slippers and 2) Cozy blanket to get those power naps in style and comfort.

3) Insane amount of water; gotta stay hydrated

4) Prenatal Vitamins and 5) DHA Vitamins 6) I'm prone to migraines so it's Tylenol to the rescue

7- 11) Food I can actually stomach: cereal, Goldfish crackers, pretzel thins, yogurt and fruit

{I hope this is helpful!}  

And remember to give yourself some grace; it's hard work growing a baby!

Second Trimester Survival Tools here.

   

   

DIY Patriotic Beads

{Happy 4th of July!}

I found this amazing tutorial on DIY homemade sparkling beads from drinking straws and just loved how easy it was to put together. 

My school doesn't use glitter in our crafts so I improvised and used glitter glue. For a Patriotic flair, I also wrapped my straws with red, white and blue masking tape.  For the thread, we re- purposed bracing rubber (the colored rubber on braces.  Yes, the braces on your teeth. Not used of course :) 

*It took me 45 minutes to prep and make all the beads; give it a night before cutting the glitter beads to allow the glitter glue to dry. Plan to make these beads ahead of time (I made them Monday to present to my students on Wednesday.)

Not only did my students have fun making Patriotic jewelry they also got to strengthen their eye-hand coordination, fine motor skills, and patterning. They couldn't get enough of it!  

And how cute do these look?!

Happy Beading!