Munchkin Monday: DIY Days of the Week Closet Organizers

This is a repost from my other blog that I published last year and I have loved it SO much that I wanted to share it again with y'all!


I am obsessed with the dollar store. To the point where I may need some intervention.  My biggest weakness is for all the cheap organizational stuff. I find myself buying plastic bins with no idea what I will use it for... and they just collect in a happy, one-day-I-will-use-them heap in my basement. And it certainly doesn't help that one is VERY close to my house, either. :)

I also have wanted to create something that will help my daughter get ready faster in the morning (my gal is just not a morning person). I have seen adorable hanger cards but they just weren't what I was looking for (lacking durability). When I was meandering down the craft aisle at the local Dollar Tree and saw these foam door hangers at 3 for $1 I knew I had an easy, budget friendly solution! (side note: I really enjoy meandering down the aisles at the dollar store)

Here is my final product! Using 7 foam hangers and a sharpie! I know the dollar store has different shapes- the heart ones fit nicely on our hangers, so that would be my recommendation for anyone interested in making these. I also color coordinated the hearts on top by using red for the weekend, pink for school days, and yellow for weekdays with no school.

We pick the outfits once a week. If my daughter changes her mind about her outfit for the day she has every right to pick something else! This just gives her something to fall back on, for those late mornings. Which we have a lot of around here... :)

A closet door knob is a great place to store these organizational gems once the outfit has been worn.

We are not perfect at using this system. There are weeks that slip by where we haven't used our clothing organizers. But when we do use them its been a wonderful way to shave off some time deciding what to wear in those chaotic mornings. :)

Happy Teaching!
Keri

Munchkin Monday: Rainbow Unicorn Birthday Party

You can also find this post here with a few more pics :)

My daughter is obsessed with rainbows. And unicorns. And her birthday is on Halloween. I wanted to incorporate all of that into one party theme.... and this is what I came up with.

A Rainbow Unicorn Halloween Party!

First- the decorations:

Rainbow streamers, paint card samples, and pom poms everywhere.

Even the pumpkins on the front porch were decked out in colored ribbon to fit the theme.

Treats:
Rainbow slush. So good!

 We made rainbow cookies by adding food coloring to different sections of the dough, sectioning them into little beach balls, rolling those balls into a snake, and then spiraling the snake into a circle. 

A picture of our treat table

One useful idea: Use Ikea plates/cups/utensils instead of purchasing paper products. They are better for the environment, pretty stinking cheap, and you can use them again and again! Plus they are in the rainbow colors- perfect for our theme!

Rainbow M&M treat jar/ balloon weight

Cupcake stand decorated with rainbow ribbon. Even the cupcake wrappers are rainbow colors!

 Of course the birthday girl got a special cupcake complete with a mini unicorn.

 Activities:
We started out decorating trick or treat bags with rainbow stickers and markers. Once they finished that,  they could work on making a rainbow fruit loop necklace.

While the kids worked, the adults mingled. I am still shocked at all the people we fit into our house!

Once the kids were done with their bags, Aaron read them the story "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". Its a tradition to incorporate storytime into Boo's birthday parties. I pick out the book- and Daddy reads it!

We all came dressed in rainbow colors- except Boo who was wearing a rainbow shirt.

In the basement, we had unicorn races. I made my own stick horses using socks and a broomstick and added a foam cone to make it a unicorn.

We also played with a colorful parachute and rainbow balls. The kids had a riot with this activity!

Our culmintating activity was rainbow trick or treating. We have 6 doors upstairs that I decorated with tissue paper. Luckily I had some awesome volunteers who stood behind each door and passed out candy that was the same color as the door.

Happy Teaching! And Happy Party Planning! :)

You can find this awesome post linked up to the following Fantastic Parties:

Gift Giving: Homemade Gifts

Here's some Homemade Gifts we've rounded up that we think would be great to give to those special people in your life this Christmas:

• Recipe Holder

• I (Teresa) have been on a Harry Potter obsession this year so I am making some things for my daugther and sister-Invisibility cloak, a sign on the wall with a Dumbledore quote or the platform 9 3/4, a sculpty Hedwig necklace, and a snitch ornament (so far this is the thoughts)
• Hats!!!! we have been loving hats and everyone always wants a new one
• Angry Birds!! We are a little slow at the Moon house but eventually we figure out what is happening in the world. I am working on these cute birds/pigs so my kids can throw them at each other and we can use boxes to make our own level
• I am planning on making Hot Chocolate mugs for our granparents. (hope they aren't reading this) I am going to buy the mug from the dollar store and then use sharpie to color on it and bake it for 30 min. I love my kids drawings so now their grandparents can enjoy ones made special for them. I might make a harry potter one too :) with his glasses and scar
  • I (Kayla) am planning on making this one day when I have kids. I saw this idea on pinterest. Go to the store and get some oven mits. At home paint your kids hands and put their hand prints on the oven mits. Then using a paint brush put the year on them. Great gifts for grandparents. 

Here is a website that has a list of some pretty awesome homemade gifts : the36thavenue

You can find this awesome post linked up to the following Fantastic Parties:

Gift Giving: Stocking Stuffers

Sometimes figuring out what to put in those Stocking can be quite the chore! Here are a few ideas to help you out this Christmas:

Kids:

• a new toothbrush- especially one that comes with stickers that they can personalize it (This is a tradition in Tiffany's family)
• bubble bath
• Card Games like Old Maid, Go Fish, or Matching

Teenagers:

• Jewelry
• Gift Cards
• a new toothbrush
• fuzzy, fun socks
• Makeup for the Girls

Dads:

• Cologne
• Body Wash
• A new toothbrush

Moms:

• favorite perfume
• bubble bath, bath fizzes

-This doesn't go in any category per say.  Last year was a crazy year for my family.  My sister got married 3 months after me and her wedding day was two days after Christmas.  My parents did an awesome stocking for us newly weds. The stocking was huge and  it was filled with things like batteries, toothpaste, office supplies, batteries, candy, gum, and lots of things newly weds need.  I really liked what we got so much that I asked my parents to do it again this year. 

You can find this awesome post linked up to the following Fantastic Parties: