A back to school guide for the teenage (and college) years

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schick®. The opinions and text are all mine.

The start of this school year is a little bittersweet for me.  It will be the last year when I have all three of my kids at home starting school together.  

It's hard to believe this sweet boy who started Kindergarten with a teddy bear, will be starting his senior year.  We have been researching colleges and talking about future plans a lot, but it still doesn't feel like this little guy-my little guy-should be heading off into his final year of high school and preparing for college in less than a year!

When my kids were in elementary school we would receive a supply list from their school with everything they needed listed from glue sticks to markers on it. I would purchase the items and cross each one off as I got it filling a bag with their school supplies that would get unloaded on back to school night. Now that I have two teenagers the back to school shopping has changed a little bit.Instead of crayons we are picking up disposable razors, instead of safety scissors we are stocking up on deodorant.  Back to school shopping is different from those elementary school days, which is why I have put together a little back to school shopping guide for the teenager years.  

This guide works perfectly for our 13 year old daughter and it will last us throughout the college years, because you know your kids are going to want you to still go back to school shopping with them before college starts. Mostly because you open the wallet and follow behind them as they fling things into the cart.

I've put together five tips to act as a little back to school shopping guide for you.

1. Make back to school shopping a one stop shop

When our family does back to school shopping we always stop at WalMart because we can not only stock up on all of the pens, pencils, notebooks and binders my kids need, we also can get all of our back to school hygiene products.

The sweet boy with the teddy bear now grows facial hair. He's sort of let his "beard" grow this summer but I know once he heads back to school he's going to want to put his best foot forward and feel good, clean and confident as a senior.  

Schick has several disposable razor options to try for both men and women, which is good because these young men and women are still figuring out what they like. My son picked out the Schick Hydro® 5 and my daughter went for the Schick® Hydro Silk® disposable razors. 

2. Stock up

While we were in the personal care aisles we also stocked up on shampoo and conditioner {or two in one products}, deodorant, hair care products {pretty sure my son uses more product than I do!} and body wash, because who uses bars of soap anymore?  Apparently they don't.  The kids could already be stocked up on all of their shampoo but it doesn't take long before you get the trickle effect and start hearing "mom, I need..." or "mom, I'm all out of...". It's happened before where I will go to the store to pick up shampoo for one kid and the next day another kid will tell me they are all out of something. Stock up all at once.  Or if you are shopping for your college kid, buy as much as you need to get you through December and then you know they will need to go shopping with you when they are home on break.  It's a good little excuse to hang out with your kids when they are starting to feel distant.

3. Let them be particular

Through the school years my kids have gotten pretty particular about the school supplies that they like to use.  My daughter likes gel pens not felt tip. My son likes one kind of pen over another because it's easier to chew on. I'm cheap, so I balk at the $9 price tag for a four pack of pens, but if that's what makes school easier for them, buy it. You can save money on the items they aren't particular on and splurge on the others.

4. You don't have to buy it all before school starts

Contrary to number 2 when I'm talking about personal hygiene products, I have found this to be true many years over. One year we were told we needed five reams of graph paper for an algebra class.  Five years later we still have all five of those reams. Pick up the basics and then wait until your kids get their syllabus the first week of class.  If you have a college student, pick up the basics they used all the time in high school.  You know they are going to need pens {perhaps even special pens they can chew on!} , notebooks and notebook paper and folders and highlighters.  Any special supplies can be picked up on campus.

5. Relax

Do you remember the days when your kids were stuck to you like velcro?  Like literally stuck to you? I remember peeling kids off of my legs just to walk to the bathroom and now there are times that I have to bribe them just to hang out with me. I've been known to offer a special drink or treat from the store in return for some companionship on a shopping trip. I never have to bribe my kids to go back to school shopping with me. So relax. Enjoy the time that you get to have with your kids and soak it up.  Add in a stop to their favorite restaurant for dinner or a stop at the froyo shop on the way home. O.k. so maybe that part is bribing, but a moms got to do what a moms got to do!This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Schick®. The opinions and text are all mine.

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Garage Sale Friday roundup of my best kept secrets!

The summer is winding down, but our schedules seem to be amping up.  Especially on the weekends. We are doing our best to squeeze every last bit of fun out of our summer which means less time is being spent at garage sales. I've been traveling the last two weekends, which means no garage sale finds Friday from me.  I've bought zippo, nada, nothing the past few weeks but I'm dying to get back out to the sales for sure!

In the meantime, I thought I would revisit a few of my past garage sale tip posts {how to drive traffic to your garage sale, tips for the garage sale first timer, and how to negotiate the best deal} just in case you missed them.   

I've seen a lot of mistakes made this summer from people who have obviously not read my How to Drive Traffic to your garage sale post. People who try to write a full paragraph full of all of the goodies they have to offer and then put their address and not an arrow drive me batty! It's all about the arrow people! Head on over to that post to find out what else will drive traffic to your sale.  You might also chuckle at some people's hilarious signs.

 

I have people tell me all the time that they wish they could find the kinds of deals that I find at garage sales.  Most people who say that don't actually go to garage sales.  If you don't go, you can't find deals!  Here are eight of my best tips for the first time garage saler.

And finally, after you find the garage sale, peruse the wares, your final step in garage sale success is negotiating the best price.  I've gotten some pretty amazing deals. I share my best secrets on how to negotiate at a garage sale here.

So while I don't have any pictures of my favorite garage sale finds, these three posts should give you the information you need to finish strong this garage sale season.  I would love to hear if you have any tips I may have missed.  Happy shopping!

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Top 5 reasons why you should volunteer as a family and ideas on where to start

There's a quote that I heard when I was early on in this parenting gig that says "more is caught than taught" and I think that is true of so many things. Most importantly, I think being a good example for our kids when it comes to how we spend our time is a great model to our children of what is most important to us.

We all have the same amount of time in a day.  The most important decision you make is what you choose to do with your time.

My husband and I think it's so very important to model and engage our children in volunteering in our community and here are five reasons why and some tips on how you can get your whole family involved in helping in the community.

It's not easy to find volunteer opportunities for young children. As a family with small kids, we tried to find food banks or homeless shelters that would let us come and volunteer, but with toddlers, there didn't seem to be any volunteer opportunities that we could take part in as a family. It was important to us that we all serve together and that our children were able to work along side of us while we were serving.  
It took some out of the box thinking but we have been volunteering as a family on a weekly basis for more than a decade.  When my oldest son turned three, we realized we had more than enough toys {thank you garage sales!}.  For his birthday party that year, we asked that all of his friends and family bring a wrapped toy that we could donate to the Toy Rescue Mission.  
The Toy Rescue Mission existed to be a free toy shop with shelves of toys that kids or their parents could come in and shop from and pick out a present for their birthday or Christmas when they might not otherwise receive anything. Aidan and I hand delivered those presents and you would think that a toddler handing over all the things he got for his birthday would be difficult but it wasn't.  
We talked a lot about what we were doing and why we were doing it.  Planting that seed early on in him was important to us, and quite honestly, realizing that he may not need therapy for the rest of his life because we were giving away his gifts, gave us the boldness to continue on in our endeavors to seek out more ways to help out in our community.
We met another family at church with similarly aged children who felt the same way about getting their families involved in serving others. Again, we started thinking outside of the box and we found a homeless shelter that was running a bible study for the women. This bible study required child care while they met, so our families came together to provide an activity, snack time and a safe place for the kids while their moms met. 
Our younger kids were able to play alongside the kids in the program, and our older kids were able to nurture the younger ones in the program. And because we were serving as two families, we got to model what it looked like to have two parents and male role models when all of these children were from single mother households.
When we moved to a new town, I read our local paper and found out about a weekly peanut butter and jelly sandwich making night.  A mom with three kids, saw a need in the community and started serving.  There was no age limit to serve so we showed up. We've been making over 500 pb&j sandwiches every Monday night for almost five years now.  We rarely skip a week.  It's just something we do.
We've adopted families in our community, we've spent hours at our local World Vision warehouse stuffing backpacks and packaging gifts that will go out into the community, we've served food to homeless men, and we've cleaned up parks.  We've sung songs and colored pictures for nursing home residents, we've run summer programs for kids and we've volunteered countless hours at our schools. We've picked weeds and cleaned up gardens for widows and we've written cards to our troops overseas.  
I'm not mentioning these things to give myself a pat on the back or to get recognition.  I'm simply hoping that it will help you realize the opportunities that are in your area to serve when it feels like their are age limits or restrictions to serving. 

You may be asking why exactly do we serve? Jesus came to earth to humble himself as a man.  He didn't come to be served. he came to serve {Matthew 20:28} and we are to use his life as an example of how we should live our daily life. 

I've spent my whole life in church and sometimes it feels like the only way to be a servant is to travel to another country on a mission trip. Sometimes we forget that our mission field is in our backyard!

"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth." Acts 1:8

You guys, our Jerusalem is right where we are! It's in our homes with our children, it's in our schools, it's in our neighborhood and it's in our community. We are called to serve, not to be served! Because our family has found that serving our community is important, here are the top 5 reasons why you should start serving as a family too!

1. Volunteering helps teach your children to be selfless in a selfish world. 

We live in a materialistic society. We are able to provide for more than our children's most basic needs and yet they continue to want more.  They want the latest electronic gadget, the newest sneakers, the designer jeans and it becomes easy to overlook that some kids parent's can't provide them with school supplies or food for their lunches.If we weren't actively serving in the community stuffing backpacks, our kids might forget that there are kids just like them that don't get to walk the aisles of Target picking up the trendy composition notebook or the magnetic chandelier for their locker. There are kids that are showing up on the first day of school without even a pencil to put in their desk. 

2. Volunteering helps teach children that the world's solutions aren't black and white.

There are a lot of reasons why people end up in situations that they end up in. Children tend to think in a very black and white way. Kids can think, why don't we just give a homeless person a house or   if we give the kids sandwiches they won't be hungry.  These are all true things but it doesn't give us a long term solution. Volunteering gives kids a greater world view to be able to see that the solutions aren't simple.  We can help this one person right now with the need that they have and in the future, maybe our kids will be the ones with a solution to a larger scale problem.

3. Volunteering opens up conversations you might not have otherwise.

Every year during our cold rainy months, our church adopts a homeless men's and a separate women's shelter. We provide meals every night and pack lunches for the day. Our church families serve a hot meal and spend time sitting down with those we are serving developing relationships with them. I remember the first year we served in this capacity our then ten year old son came home and said that the guy he talked to had a cell phone and a laptop. He wondered why a man who didn't have a roof over his head would have expensive gadgets like that. 
We've been able to have conversations about the problems of this world and the issues people in our community face that we wouldn't otherwise have had if we kept living in our suburban bubble that we have created.

4. Volunteering teaches responsibility.

Our kids struggle to keep their rooms clean and I feel like I mention twenty times a day that they need to pick up after themselves. But when I see them working for several hours at a time throwing away garbage, cleaning up their work space and taking direction from another adult I realize that there is hope for them! My daughter loves doing the dishes every Monday night for the pb&j project but yet can't manage to put her dish in the sink at home. Just when I think my kids haven't learned a single thing and are doomed in this world, I get these glimpses of them and I realize they might just be o.k.

5. Kids are a great ice breaker and conversation starter.

It's easier for me to talk to kids than it is for me to talk to adults. Starting a conversation with an adult can sometimes be uncomfortable but with kids acting as an ice breaker it makes it easier. Have you ever walked into a nursing home with a toddler? The amount of eyes that light up is unbelievable! If I'm talking to a mom and she sees that I am a mom, it gives us common ground. Kids don't see a homeless kid, they see a kid. A child's presence is a powerful thing.
Of course there are more than 5 reasons why we volunteer, but those are a few of our top ones. My hopes are that our service now will turn our children into adults who are serving in their community. That they realize that we aren't existing on this earth to be served but that we need to be seeking opportunities to serve others. I will leave you with this quote from Martin Luther King and hopefully the inspiration to go out and serve!

  

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Anything but basic {but oh so easy!} turkey cranberry and swiss panini

We have a few more weeks to soak up every last bit of summer and then the long warm days are going to start to be filled with short crisp falls afternoons, homework and, oh yes, a return to the classroom.

I started substitute teaching last year in my kids school district and I love it.  But that means, not only am I packing the kids lunches, I am usually packing mine as well!  I do live fairly close to the school so some afternoons I come home, let the dog out and eat lunch in silence.  Regardless, I need to start thinking of some back to school lunch ideas for myself.

Not one to procrastinate, I wanted to start coming up with some yummy sandwich ideas that I could pack for lunch before life got overwhelmingly busy again!  I whipped up this anything but basic {but oh so easy!} turkey, cranberry and swiss panini.  I can make it in less than 5 minutes and either reheat it at school, or enjoy it warm and toasty straight from my panini maker at home.

You will need:

Turkey Breast
a handful of dried cranberries
lettuce {I picked mine fresh from the garden}
soft swiss cheese {I used three triangles}
roll or yummy bread

I'm pretty sure nothing says fall like turkey and cranberries mixed together.  It's probably my favorite combination!

I can't even start to tell you how big this roll is! It's massive, which is why I used three triangles of the spreadable swiss cheese {one spread on each side, and some nice chunks on the top of the roll to melt into some yummy goodness}.

Normal people could probably use far less cheese, especially if you were concerned with calories, but I'm not because turkey.  That's why. It's like it cancels out the calories in the cheese.

I smooshed all my yummy ingredients together, rubbed the top with some olive oil and put this guy into my panini maker when really, I just wanted to put it in my belly like right this second.

But I had self control and I am so glad that I did because warm sandwich that's what.

Look how delicious this guy looks with all that melted cheese and warm turkey and cranberries.  If your mouth isn't watering then you just aren't human.

I want to hear all about your favorite sandwich combinations, since sandwiches are a big hit around our house.  So spill it!  What do you put between your bread?

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Three different ways to create the perfect pair of jeans. Tutorial on how to make skinny jeans, dye your jeans and hem jeans with the original hem

Jeans are a staple in my kids wardrobe {as well as mine!} so finding the right pair is important.Getting the right color of dye for a jean is of utmost importance.  The skinny jean has to be just skinny enough, but not too skinny {and no saggy knees}.The jeans have to be long enough to cover the back of the shoe, but not too long that they puddle.So do you see where we are getting with this?I have found over the years, several tips and tricks to CREATING the perfect pair of jeans.Most of the time I'm working with garage sale finds that we have on hand in drawers, or future donated goodwill items that the kids have turned their noses up to. I've got three different methods even the most novice seamstress can tackle!My most popular method of jean transformation is taking an old pair of flare leg jeans and turning them into skinny jeans.  Apparently, skinny jeans are what all the kids are wearing.  You can find the full tutorial here, but promise me you won't laugh.  This was a post from four years ago and I picked the most hideous shirt to pair with my jeans.  I'm pretty sure it was cool then...seriously, stop laughing!

It's been a popular post, so I tired to update it with this post on how to make skinny jeans for kids.

My daughter is a much cuter model than I am!

Another jean transformation that is so simple, but that people pay big bucks for, is how to hem your jeans.  I explain how to hem your jeans with the original hem without having to pay $15-$25 for the alteration.  I scored and bought several pairs of designer jeans (Seven for all Mankind and Joe's) for next to nothing and was able to alter them to fit my shortie petite frame. This is a tutorial you will want to pin!  

And finally, I bought a pair of jeans off of ebay in the hopes of replacing my favorite jeans for WAY less than the retail price, but alas, the jeans came and were "mom jean" colored.  In hopes of saving them, I bought a bottle of RIT dye and dyed my favorite jeans.

So there you have it.  Next time you are searching for the perfect pair of jeans, sometimes you don't have to look any further than in your very own closet!  

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Garage Sale Finds Friday

Welcome back to another week of garage sale finds Friday, where I share with you my favorite garage sale finds from the week. 

This week, I got some pretty great authentic vintage items. I even got some pretty great deals on those vintage items too. 

When I have my daughter with me, she is always drawn to bed frames.  I think because she doesn't necessarily love her current day bed {though I don't know why}.  She did an audible gasp when she saw this bed frame and I really shouldn't have let her persuade me to buy it.

At first glance the bed is gorgeous.  It has beautiful detail.  But it needs fully restored.  I don't like full restoration projects.  They are just far too much work and are usually out of my ability level.  I guess you can't regret the purchase of a bed frame when it's only $10 though.

It's shocking how many Hawaiian souvenirs I can find when I'm not even in Hawaii.  I picked up this vintage wooden pineapple bowl for $1 and I love it!  I'm so happy there is a pineapple trend right now because pineapple is my favorite.

You guys!  This ampersand is the real deal. It's rusty and awesome and was only $5! This was by far my favorite purchase from the whole day!

I love old vintage chairs. In my day, I've actually even had a few of these exact chairs.  I bet you could look back on a past GSFF and find one.  This guy is solid oak and was $15.

The thing I love most about it is the metal underside. So very cool!

Those are the fabulous things I found this week.  What did you find?

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Craft Room Organization

I know I'm not the only one that has craft supplies tucked into whatever nook and cranny I can find.  I have a hall closet with craft paper, a dresser full of my Silhouette supplies, a room with fabric and sewing notions...and well, I'm going to stop there because the more I talk about it, the more I realize I really need to get myself a little more organized! Thankfully, Bonnie from The Joyful Organizer is here to help give us some tips.

Just about everyone does one craft or another.  Knitting, scrapbooking, card making… What’s the one thing they all have in common?  They can easily take over our living space with their various tools, supplies, and materials.  Keeping your craft supplies in order not only helps maintain your sanity and the appearance of your home, it also helps keep your materials in good working order.  In addition, it allows you to sit down and complete a project without having to dig out first.  The best part is getting your craft area organized doesn’t have to take a lot of time or money.

Keep reading for some quick and easy tips and tricks to help you maintain order wherever you complete your craft projects.

Here are a few questions to consider:

• Do you have adequate workspace?
• Do you have adequate storage space?
• If you can’t finish your project today, do you have space to leave the project out?
• How easy is it to access and put away your supplies?

Storage and Work Space:

Start by assessing the amount of space you have to work with.  If it’s just a closet, consider installing a closet system with a workspace so that you can craft and then simply close the doors to have it all out of sight.  The Container Store (www.thecontainerstore.com) sells Elfa systems that can be customized to your space and craft.

If you have a whole room, picking out storage products is a little easier.  Browse design websites for inspiration, and if your hobby has a magazine, purchase a copy or two for ideas.  Consider purchasing some repurposed furniture such as library catalog card files to house your smaller tools.  Visit yard sales, flea markets, and browse Craigslist for used furniture you can refinish and recycle.

Consider browsing your home for furniture.  A hutch from the dining room can be turned into a craft supply cabinet, an old kitchen table can be used as a work surface and even rolling tool carts can be used for portable supply storage.

If at all possible, look for solutions that allow you to put uncompleted work away.  But furniture pieces aren’t the only way to accomplish this task. Having the right storage pieces for similar items makes cleanup a cinch!

Storing Your Supplies:

Once you have your basic furniture structure in place, and then consider your organizational accessories.  Again, these don’t have to be specialized or expensive items.  These products will be the key to keeping your space organized.

Visit your local dollar or superstore to find items that can be used to store craft supplies. Here are some ideas:

     Pails-Hang from the bottom of a shelf with a mug hook for marker/scissor/pen storage.

    Garbage pails-Use to house rolled wrapping paper, or rolls of fabric.

   Tackle Boxes-Use to hold beads, thread, buttons, etc.

 Ball Jars-Use to house anything small.  (Then store the jars on a small shelf with a tiny ledge to prevent jars from falling off.  This gives you a visual of the items in the jars and easy access.)

   Food Storage Containers-Great to for preventing paints from spilling and making a mess.

Keep the Best:

Once you have all of your organizational pieces in place, make sure that you get rid of any supplies that are too old or too small to use (such as scraps of paper).  Donate anything that is usable, but you no longer want or need to a local school art department.  Then categorize, contain and label the remaining items.  Purging the items that you are keeping “just because” gives you the space for new and better item.

Other Things to Consider:

Safely is an important issue when designing and organizing craft spaces.  Make sure you have adequate light to see what you are doing.  Adhesive LED lights are an inexpensive option for adding light where there are no existing fixtures.  Also, make sure that any sharp tools like scissors or craft knives are well out of reach of children.  If you are using knives or needles in your craft make sure to have a first aid kit nearby.

You want your craft space to make you happy.  If possible, paint it a color you enjoy.  Frame or display some of your previous masterpieces in the space and put up a bulletin or magnetic board to capture inspirations from magazines or photos.

A craft space can be located any where in your home.  The most important thing to remember is to make it functional and FUN!  If you just don’t think you have the time or inspiration to create your perfect craft space contact a professional organizer who will assist you with the task.

Thanks Bonnie for the great tips!  I just made note of a few things to help me get more organized.  I hope you did too!

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Pineapple pencil pouch made with Duck Tape

Duck Tape is by far my favorite back to school supply. I use it for everything! I update boring supplies,  I make one of a kind lunch bags and tote bags out of it, and I used it for making this fun pineapple pencil pouch for my daughter.

There are some great new prints and always fabulous solids out there. Duck Tape has the best selection!

I knew I wanted to make something pineapple themed with the pineapple tape because, hello, pineapples.

I started by making duck tape paper. You basically roll out your tape and then fold it on itself.  You connect the strips by overlapping them slightly on the top edge.

I used three strips to make the Duck Tape paper that would be big enough for my pineapple base.

I folded the paper in half {keeping the folded crease at the base for the bottom} and then cut around the edges making a pineapple shape.

I then took the coordinating yellow duck tape and attached two strips each to the top edges on both sides to make the top of the pineapple.

My husband walked in on me during this stage and thought I was making a bathing suit top!

At this point, the only part of your pouch that is attached is the base.  Anything you put inside will fall out. We need to fix that!

I took a piece of the pineapple tape and put it on the backside of the pineapple base. I made sure the length of tape was long enough and folded it on top of the tape creating a side seam.

I secured that side seam and then cut around the edge.  I didn't cut right up to the original edge, but gave it a 1/8" overlap so that the edge would close and be secure. I did this on both sides of the pineapple base.

For the top, I used the solid yellow and put tape overlapping on top of it horizontally. Then I cut out the pineapple top shape freehand.

Your pouch is complete! The edges are secure and you can slip in anything that you want.

I like using the pouch for pencils.

What would you use it for?

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