Kids and dishes

Yes she can. And you don't have to do it all. 7 year olds can put away dishes. #kiddieresponsibility #havethemhelp

TV and laundry

TV is a reward. And they watch, have them fold some laundry. #kiddieresponsibility

Eating more veggies. Intentionally.

Summer break is upon us. Girls are home with a shared nanny. And it seems, they are always in the fridge. Starving and searching for food. My oldest has a huge aversion to green things. My battle has begun. She does like cucumbers and celery. So I bought a celery stalk and cut it up in "ready to eat" bites. And she loves chocolate. Nutella and peanut butter with cucumbers or celery? Yup. Now it all sits in the fridge ready to grab for a car ride or quick snack. 

Bye bye toys

If you have ever tried to give away or organize your kid's toys, today is your last day of cleaning up their messes. Drun roll please. This article will change you. I promise. One of my fav sentences is at the end of the article where Ruth says that her girls like not being overwhelmed by toys and it makes it easier to clean. Aha!! Read on...then get your black trash bags out and start filling it up. http://www.livingwellspendingless.com/2012/09/14/why-i-took-all-my-kids-toys-away-why-they-wont-get-them-back/

10 things to tell your daughter

Good reminders! 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lindsey-mead-russell/ten-things-ten-years-olds-should-know_b_1553134.html

Play date eggs

The girls had some friends over the other day and we dyed a dozen Easter eggs. Cheap and fun. Before dying the eggs, I had them color and write on the eggs with crayons. We also dipped some of them in blue cupcake sprinkles. 

Get inspired to declutter

Tired of clutter in your home? I am. Too many toys? Too many clothes? Need more time with your kids and less moving paper and barbies around? Time to declutter. Read more here http://www.yourmodernfamily.com/day-2-of-decluttering/

Quality time

As the night wears on my eight-year old gets sad, defeated and cranky. So lately, soon after dinner, we have a daily 1:1. This is unstructured mommy time where she creates the agenda and leads the discussion. I only take myself. No laptop and no cell phone. She needs it.  I need it.

READ to your child

Never stop reading to her. Even when she can do it all on her own. I admit, I kinda slowed down on reading with my girls over the last few years but my oldest just got Charlotee's Web the other day and she asked me to read it to her. And I loved it. She loved it.  The story and spending time with each other. Perfectly needed.

Dr. Laura asks  "But why give up such an important time to connect with each other emotionally?  Why give up the chance to read books that trigger good discussions about values and choices and hardships and hope?   Don’t stop till she fires you." Read more here http://www.ahaparenting.com/Default.aspx?PageID=1280625&A=SearchResult&SearchID=7650494&ObjectID=1280625&ObjectType=1

Check lists

If you check it, they will come. My girls Love lists. So this week I created one for the morning routine and another for the evening.

This has helped us keep track of all the tasks and activities that need to occur so we can make the bus and get to bed. It's also a great way for them to be more independent and manage their time. 

I also made a quick one today of some chores. I let them decide on the consequences if they didn't finish by 130pm. Here's my hastily written list.

They have a few hours to do all of this and I am not going to micro manage them. I promise. Let's see how the do!