Organizing Toys and Teaching Colors

This week has been my Spring Break. No, I didn't have big plans of a warm weather destination like many of my friends. That’s okay because I couldn't wait to catch up on some things at home! Plus, spending time at home with the kids has honestly been great this week. The weather here in Indiana has been okay… could be better, but I won’t complain.

I had a chance to sit down and have some learning time with my two year old. She is finally starting to grasp colors! She still gets a few mixed up and when she isn’t in the mood (gets sick of mommy asking what color everything is) she just starts saying random color names, but she's getting better!

We are big Kentucky Wildcats fans at our house. When I pointed to our Kentucky blanket and asked the color, she says “Kentucky.” I laughed and said, “No, what color is it?” “Kentucky,” is her only response. Kind of a witty kid...because I know that she knows the color blue. :) If you are interested in this color sorting activity for your little one, check out my product below.

{They are only $1.00!}

One BIG thing on my Spring Break list was to clean the girls’ rooms and GET RID of some toys! AY AY AY, I should have taken some before pictures, but that may have been embarrassing. We worked hard on sorting and organizing. We will see how long this lasts.

I also wanted to share this awesome box that I found. I bought this one at Big Lots, but then I ended up seeing it at Target too. If you have a Big Lots, I know their inventory can be hit or miss, but it was a few dollars cheaper there than at my Target. I feel like this box could be used for so many things and I’m still thinking of good ideas for it in the classroom, but for home it’s perfect for the girls’ crayons and coloring books! The top and bottom box connect together! Love it!

Sharing this quick freebie of the labels I put on the girls’ boxes. Some are obviously pretty specific to my kids, so I'm not sure if you can use the same labels or not, but just thought I’d share!  Enjoy!

{Click the picture below}

Back to work on some TPT projects I have started. Treasures 2013 packets coming up soon! Unit 5 is soon to be finished! 

My Summer (In Photo Form!) Completely Non-School Related

Everyone seems to be in BACK TO SCHOOL mode, so I think I need to post something non-school related! :)

This summer, I got into a fun, crafty, Pinterest mood for a few weeks! These are some of the fun projects I worked on for the girls' bedrooms!! Pinterest inspired of course. Here are my Instagram pictures of my projects.

To do these wall hangings, I started with some old wall hangings that I already had and didn't use anymore with my décor. The rest is just scrapbook paper, mod podge, and stickers. Fun to make.




Also made these, after finding cheap wall hangings at my Salvation Army. Also used mailbox letters and spray paint. I'd really recommend the vinyl mailbox letters because they were easy to move around when I didn't put them on straight and they peeled right off. The LOVE one I used scrapbooking type stickers and they didn't peel off very easy at all. Left the white residue underneath.





 And the finished products:

 

 

Some other fun this summer---All in pictures! :)

 Lilly has become quite the little character! She's at the point that everything goes her mouth, she laughs at everything, she makes tons of loud noises that she thinks are words, her hair is growing a ton,  and she is just exploring her world! What a fun age for me to get to stay home with her for 2 months. Also, we love going to the zoo. We have a zoo pass and made good use of it this summer!!

 

 

Mommy Time! Favorite Things for Baby

People sometimes ask me what my favorite gifts were for Lilly.  Well I truly loved all of the gifts I received for Lilly and some of these things were gifts but some I bought myself. Also, these are my favorite things as of now (6 months in!) I am guessing that in the next 6 months, my favorites may change as Lilly has new needs!!!

1. Philips Soothie Pacifier

Lilly won't take Amy other pacifier. Now, I put this under my favorite things, but please know that I can't stand these things. I wish she'd use one of those cute pacifiers that doesn't bounce and fly all over the place every time she decides to spit it out or whip it across the room. However, if we are talking about things I can't live without as a mommy, this is a must in our house. She refuses any other type. Be sure to register for a few kinds of pacifiers, some babies are picky! 

2. Fisher Price Rock n Play Sleeper

L-O-V-E! I am in love with this thing. We have definitely got our money's worth! This is something I purchased myself before she was born and we use it everyday! She loved napping in it as a newborn because its slightly raised up and not flat. It folds up to take to Granny's house or anywhere else. I love love love it and I'm not sure if it will even last for another child because we have got so much use out of it!!! I'm sure it will, but I'd be willing to buy a new one too, because its so great!!

Please note: There was a voluntary recall on the product because of mold after washed and not let to dry completely. When you do take it apart to wash it (which you'll have to if your baby uses it as much as Lilly!) just make sure it completely dries before replacing it. I put mine right in the drier, no problem!!!

3. Fisher-Price Ocean Wonders Soothe and Glow Seahorse (pink or blue)

I always call this Lilly's "glow worm". Duh! It's not a glow worm, it's a seahorse. LOL but its LIKE our glows worms as kids, right??? 

Simply said, can't live (or sleep) without this! The first night Lilly was home from hospital, we started using this when she went to bed in her bassinet as part of her bedtime routine (along with Halo Sleepsack). Still, at 6 months, it's mesmerizing to her! If I lay her down sleepy, but still awake, she sees the glow and hears the music, she stares at it and her eyes close within minutes. For us, it's a must have. I had found a blue one at a garage sale in great shape, so I'm sending that one to stay at her Granny's. (in case we ever forget it!!) 

Remember when you register for baby, register for toys too!!! This is something I registered for. Once baby is here and you are busy, you might not be out and about shopping for anything but diapers and wipes!!!!  Also, I find this to always be a good, inexpensive baby shower gift. I like to have those gifts in mind that you can give to new moms that you really know worked for your baby! 

4. Taggies

Lilly loves her taggie blanket. In fact, I need a spare so I can wash it!!

5. Bumbo

I think this is a pretty common baby item these days. I don't know what I'd do without it. It's very helpful all the time. Great to use for feeding baby food when they are still too wobbly for high chair and just great for sitting and watching while you are working in kitchen, etc. 

6. Halo Sleepsack 

This is a must-have. I had registered for other sleep sacks, but our hospital sent us home with a fleece Halo Sleepsack as a gift and we all became addicted to it. Swaddling Lilly up was so easy and she slept great in it. I don't know if it was the combination of "glow worm" and Sleepsack routine or just that I have an angel baby, but she was a great sleeper from the start. However, I never tried a night without those two things to experiment!! I needed my rest! :-) I do remember the day that Lilly outgrew the one the hospital sent home with us, I was on a mission to Target right away to get another one the next size up. Suddenly $30 didn't seem too expensive at all!!! For a perfect sleeper, $30 was a bargain! I also had a Halo one with just the sack part and not the wrap around swaddle panels, which I didn't use at all. Those ones seem to be more just to keep them warm, where the one with the Velcro swaddling panels holds them nice and tight around their tummy.... Perfect for sleeping in my house. :-) Eventually she started sleeping with her arms out, then later when she was rolling, she was comfortable sleeping without the Sleepsack (about 4 months old). The other question you maybe have is how many you need. I only had one. I'd wash it once or twice a week, more often if she happen to spit up on it. Also, I only used at bedtime and took her right out when she got up in the morning. This may have also helped with her understanding "bedtime" and our routine. 

7. Eric Carle Ladybug

The World of Eric Carle: Developmental Ladybug by Kids Preferred

Not too much to say besides that I love these toys and babies do too!!! This particular one has a mirror on the bottom which seems to be a hit with most babies!

8. Onesies 

CAN-NEVER-HAVE-TOO-MANY!!!

Wrapping Up the Week

Well, I'm finishing up my 2nd week of summer break. It's been a busy one. Typical cleaning and laundry. Plus taking the girls to the zoo, Splash Pad, and hanging out in the their kiddie pool.

I spent Friday at a real pool with my wonderful teaching friends. I love the summertime when we have time to catch up in a "non-school related" kind of way! Friday night was date night with my hubby...always enjoyable and doesn't happen often enough! At one point this week, I looked around at my mess-of-a-house and told myself, it must have been a perfect summer day if the house looks like this! The mess meant that we were enjoying the great weather outside and not stuck inside cleaning and picking up toys all day!

 Looking forward to catching up on some things around the house this next week. I will admit...I haven't done much as a TEACHER these last two weeks. Sounds perfect to me! I've worked a little bit on items for our new reading series: Reading Wonders. Also, I'm going backward a bit and creating a spelling packet for 2nd Grade Treasures if anyone is interested. It shouldn't take me too long and I'll have it posted on TpT soon! Loving finding new ideas on Pinterest..that always gets me excited for the new school year!

I'm Back! (Again!?)

Okay, I keep saying that I'm going to keep up with this, but now SUMMER IS HERE, so I have no excuse right!?!?!

Since the last time I blogged, I've had a lot going on....like a new baby! Lilly was born in December and just turned 6 months old.

So I guess you could say that I've been busy. I was away from teaching December through March. I had a little bit of a hard time returning, which I'm sure is understandable, and I feel like I just went back to basically finish up the school year and complete the end of year testing. With that said, I'm VERY excited for a totally new school year, to start over, start fresh, and be there the entire year! :)

I'm only one week into summer, but I do have plans to accomplish a lot! Some plans I have this summer:

• Trying to keep on this blog!
• Find new and fresh teaching ideas for my new school year (Common Core!?)
• Attending an iPad conference in Chicago!
• Preparing for using our new reading series Reading Wonders in my classroom, which means I am creating a lot of new materials for Teachers Pay Teachers. Anyone else using Reading Wonders?
• Spending as much quality time as possibly with my beautiful baby girl!!
• Finishing up some other TPT materials that I have ideas for. I keep adding to my ideas in my TPT journal, they are never ending! :)
• Finding time for the pool! :)
• Gaining some new followers of my blog and Facebook site (Stuckey in Second). The more followers, the more ideas I get for my own classroom and I can add to my excitement for the new year!

I have already completed my resource packet for the first week of Reading Wonders! Reading Wonders, Grade 2, Unit 1, Week 1

 

 

I also finally completed all 6 units of my Treasures Resources (my previous reading series!) When I decided to create the packets, I started with Unit 3 (what I was teaching at the time!), but they were such a big hit and people were requesting all of the units, so after finishing Units 3-6, I then went back and completed Units 1 and 2.

 

Click here for all of the Treasures Resources in my TPT Store:Treasures Resources!

 

 

I have so many more ideas, so stay tuned!!!


Allison Stuckey