A City Life For Me

I came across the “ Okay to Wake ” clocks through a review and Amazon.  I didn’t purchase at the time because we were on deputation.  We have been through the gamut with time zone changes and different sleeping arrangements, and I knew that I wanted to establish new routines once we got home.  The first thing was a regular wake up time. I was all set to purchase two of these clocks, one for each of the kids rooms.  But I read several negative reviews, including complaints that the clock glowed all night before it turned green in the morning.  I didn’t want a bright light in the room, so this didn’t sit well with me. There is another brand of wake up signal that seemed to be made very cheaply and lots of people said it broke easily.  As I continued to read the reviews on Amazon, I came across one with a brilliant idea.  And I copied it. The idea with this product is that you set the alarm, but instead of a noise to wake the kids up, the light glows g...

Recently a friend gave us some paint chip samples to make an activity for Elaine to learn her colors.  We put it together last week.  Here is the original inspiration for this craft.   They did it to teach different shades of colors. I cut the paint samples to 2x3”, rounded the corners, and laminated them.  Then we cut a smaller square, about 1x1” and glued each one to a clothespin.  Not only does this teach color matching (and names), but it helps to develop motor skills!

update: I was featured on IHeart Organizing for Reader’s Space !  If you are here from IHeart Organizing, thanks for stopping by! One of the two closets we have in our Brooklyn apartment is in the kids’ room.  It has been the catch-all for anything that doesn’t have a home…and it’s been driving me nuts.  It wasn’t high on Ben’s priority list because he isn’t in that room very often, and there wasn’t a lot of money in the budget to spend on cool organizational containers.  So…I decided the tackle the task, frugal style.  In the end I was very pleased with the results. BEFORE: I only took one before picture, and it’s hard to tell what is going on, but most of it was a mess! AFTER: Here is the final after shot.  I’ll show you some close-ups as we go along! Nolan’s clothes were organized into plastic tubs and labeled by size.  I already had these containers, but they were a mess.  I used the same labels that I had designed for El...

…random lessons from the life of a NYC mommy… :: Sleep is not overrated.  I’ve been getting more of it since Nolan has slept through the night (7+ hours) every night this week.  ::  Elaine is too smart for her own good…sometimes.  She helped herself to a screwdriver to try to open the battery compartment on Nolan’s play gym (when she couldn’t get the music to come on).  Unfortunately, Nolan was right underneath her.  Fortunately, Mommy walked in just in time! :: Elaine watches everything .  She has started nursing her baby doll this week.  Then she burps Betsy.  Just like I do with Nolan. :: The news reporters and weather forecasters are not always right.  Hurricane Irene was a bust, at least in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.  They totally played it up too big.  Ben was told by a reliable source this week that they were trying to make up for botching the snow removal from the Dec. 26th blizzard last year.  We had rain, and ...

Last week I posted in my Facebook status that I was taking a 30 day break from Facebook.  I would like to share more details and elaborate just a little bit! First, I know that I spend way too much time on Facebook.  Most of it is time wasted, and very little is profitable.  Secondly, during the last couple of weeks I have heard several admonitions about being careful with Facebook, and the dangers.  While I am not as easily swayed as younger teens, I realize that there are a lot of varying influences on Facebook.  Sometimes it may just be a friend of a friend, but there is a bit of language on Facebook that is inappropriate.  I have had to “hide” several people on my friend list because of the types of things that they say and post.  Thirdly, I have been discouraged to see the things that professing Christians “like” on Facebook.  Many of the movies and things listed as their interests make me ashamed.  I am embarrassed that they publ...

I’ve been absent here for a little while…sorry.  We made a fast trip to Brooklyn on Friday night to view an apartment. Wordless Wednesday Game On Wednesday I asked you to guess what Elaine had on her head in the pictures.  I never posted the answer.  It is the top to her shape sorter that Grandma Godby purchased.  Denise Sweede guessed on Facebook, and got it right!  Here’s a picture… Apartment I am 99% sure we are going to take it, but Ben has one other thing to check on first.  I will post pictures and a video once we know for sure. Faith This apartment is both an answer to prayer and a rebuke to my faith (or lack of it).  I have been praying specifically for a wash machine, though I know it is a rare find in NYC.  We use cloth diapers, and while it is possible to do them at the laundry mat, it would be very expensive because of the frequent washings.  I was looking into a portable washing machine when people told me I was crazy to hop...

I haven't published a Works for Me Wednesday post in quite some time. This blog carnival is now hosted at "We Are That Family". Today I was feeling crafty so I finally put together my placemat purse. I have had the supplies on hand for a little while. And while I was at it, I decided to make it into a WFMW tip. This is the placemat purse. My mom made one for me while I was in college. It has been used as a purse, a Bible bag, and a little bag for miscellaneous items, and many other things that I just can't remember right now. You can make your own placemat purse very easily. Just purchase a placemat in your color of choice, some trim, and ribbon for the handles. Sew the handles and trim on first. Then stitch up the sides, right sides together. You can stitch across the corners to make it stand up better. I got this placemat on clearance for a buck. It took me a half hour to stitch. It is just the right size for my pouchee purse organizer ! (I actually found out abou...

I have had a little more time on my hands lately so I have enjoyed some card-making and scrapbooking time. These are a few of the cards I made with my new Sweetheart punch from Creative Memories (Mom gave it to me for Christmas). I got the ideas from the Creative Memories Project Center , and I was very pleased with how they turned out! This is just a freehanded tree trunk from a brown paper bag, and circles and hearts. SO EASY! I think this one is my favorite - mostly because of the buttons that make up the butterfly's body. This little love bird was so easy to make with two circle punches, and the sweetheart punch. I also love the brown paper with faux stitching. So much fun! This is another butterfly I did without the buttons, and with a different color scheme.