Archived Ideas for September, 2009

IDEA 11: COSTUME BOOK

Costume book_outside

One of my favorite pictures of my son was when he was about four years old. He had on red waffle weave PJ’s, a ten gallon cowboy hat and a red bandana tied across most of his face.

Costume book_cowboy

It was this picture that inspired me to begin a book of costumes. When kids dress up it’s a perfect opportunity to take pictures, and somehow putting only the costume pictures in a book made it quite simple. If these are the only pictures you manage to get into an album you are still way ahead of the game!

If you make costumes for Halloween, it’s the perfect way to “honor” all that work you did. But of course any dress-up occasion (or non-occasion) will do. Another great side note: If you have more than one child, chances are the same costume will get worn by each of them on different years. My book is loosley structured with scrapbook pages so I left room for future pictures and put the pictures of different kids in the same costume on the same page. We all get a kick out of comparing their different styles!

Costume book_inside

Filed under Halloween, Keepsakes, Kids, Organization, Projects | Comment

IDEA 10: SCARECROWS

Scarecrow_1

Autumn pulls you outside with such beautiful clear days it almost makes your eyes hurt. The annual activities of leaf-raking, piling and jumping-in, as well as general yard maintenance remain a top-notch family tradition.

It is not a new idea to create a fall scarecrow from some of the fallen leaves. But recently my eyes were opened anew to this long standing autumnal routine. It had seemed to me, since Autumn ushers in Halloween, scarecrows had taken on a bit of a maudlin nature. OK, a lot of them are downright creepy. But my daughter’s scout troop participated in some autumn fun and games, and one of the activities involved making a scarecrow. I’m not biased, but leave it to nine year old girls to find a way to make scarecrows, well, anything but scary! I submit these beautiful examples of autumnal souls for inspiration in the hope that your family may adopt this sweet fall tradition. And maybe in the process you’ll also get some yard work done!

Scarecrow_3Scarecrow_4Scarecrow_5Scarecrow_6Scarecrow_2


Filed under 09 September, Halloween, Kids, Projects, Traditions | Comments

IDEA 9: ANNUAL PHOTO

Annual_photo_d

One of the best ideas I ever had was taking an annual photo of the kids. I always do it Thanksgiving week. Then it’s perfect timing to turn into a holiday card. But any time of year that makes sense to you will work. The trick is to pick a time that is convenient and you can remember year to year.

Find a spot in your house that has a window. Arrange the kids so that the window light is lighting their faces from the side. (You don’t have to see the window in the photo). Ideally you will figure out which window and time of day is best. We use a window that faces west and shoot in the morning, so instead of a harsh light streaming in, we get a soft glow. Once you have figured out the spot and time, remember it. And do the picture there every year. If the setting stays the same, the variety will be in how your kids are changing. If you like, you can always use the same chair. I prefer putting a white tablecloth over the chair to make it less important.

Turn off your camera’s flash. Now, before they are completely ready, start snapping away. Of course it’s nice to get cooperation, but as long as the kids are being themselves, it’s a neat picture.

You don’t have to decide whether you want to shoot in color or black and white. I love the black and white but you can shoot the pictures in color even if you decide to print them in black and white. Take a look at these shots of my own kids. Over the years it is fun to see the goofy stages as well as the adolescent ones and even grumpy ones. If you don’t worry about making a “proper” picture, and just record the era, you will find you’ve created a real treasure. And don’t forget to celebrate each and every quirky phase!

Annual_photo_aAnnual_photo_bAnnual_photo_cAnnual_photo_dAnnual_photo_eAnnual_photo_eeAnnual_photo_f

Filed under 09 September, Keepsakes, Kids, Traditions | Comments

IDEA 8: TO DO LIST

ToDoList

You may wonder why you need a To Do list if you already have a great day planner or calendar. But if you are like me, you have found that you really do need something more. I found that I had so many lists going on in my head and it seemed there was just no perfect way to organize them, so I designed my own solution. What I wanted was to have at my fingertips the ability to begin a variety of lists. There were things that needed to be done today, and then more things that needed to be done eventually. In between, there were things, not for today but by Friday, etc, you get the picture.

So I designed a nice, clean “To DO” list and now I’m sharing it with you so you can print out as many as makes you happy. At the top it says To Do: and a blank. You can print out seven of these and fill the blank with each day of the week. Or you can print out one that says today’s name at the top and one that says “By the weekend”. For your more lofty ideas you can put “Eventually” in the blank, or even “Before I die”. You can also use the heading of an event, like “Party” or “Thanksgiving”.

I’m giving you a choice of two sizes. One is a full page [Large To Do List] and the other is half size which will be printed two to a page, and can be cut apart [Small To Do List]. It’s my gift to you, print as many as you like. List to your heart’s content. And hopefully it will make you the organized Domestic Goddess you have always known you could be!

By the way, because technology is mysterious, and computers and printers vary, there is a chance that the above documents aren’t centered when printed. Try printing the Small To Do List above. If the center cut line is NOT in the center of the page, here are two more for you to try: [Large To Do List Alt] and [Small To Do List Alt]. Happy listing, and let me know how they came out!


Filed under 09 September, Home, Organization | Comments

IDEA 7: MONDAY BREAKFAST

Monday_breakfast


This is one my kids taught me. One Sunday night my daughter was mourning the end of the weekend. She just wanted something to look forward to. “Can you make us ‘special breakfast’?” she asked me. When I told her I could, it helped her put a close to the day. She went to bed happy that Monday morning we would have “special breakfast”.

The key here was something speedy yet impressive. (Save the pancakes or waffles for the weekends when you don’t mind monitoring a pan for an eternity). In order to have time I only set my alarm about 15 minutes earlier than usual. The smell of the bacon got the kids up lickety-split. And they were delighted and thrilled to have a special breakfast all set out for them. It wasn’t a big deal: Orange juice, scrambled eggs (which really takes nano-seconds) and toast, and bacon. And a place all set for them with a place-mat and napkin.

Thus was born Monday Breakfast. We don’t do it every Monday, in fact it’s about once a month. On all the other school days we are making lunches and grabbing toast or cereal or a bagel and yogurt. But about one Monday a month my kids get off to school with a belly full. And the benefit lasts all month.

Filed under 09 September, Food, Kids, Traditions | Comment