For those of you who don’t know, those are my babies.  All five of them.  Affectionately referred to as the “Crazy Bunch,” they keep things exciting around here.  Very exciting.  So exciting that sometimes, we think there really must be a hidden camera somewhere because it can’t possibly all be real.

But it is.  And while sometimes all the excitement means complete and utter exhaustion, I wouldn’t trade it for anything.  Not that I wouldn’t like a little peace and quiet once in a while, because believe me, I would.  When I have three kiddos asking me three different questions, one kiddo crying (and, of course, screaming at the top of his or her lungs) over a skinned knee, and one kiddo trying to see how many paper towels it takes to make the toilet overflow, there’s a chance that I may trade that specific moment for a latte.  A chance.  But all in all, there’s nothing like being a mom.  Nothing.

I mentioned the other day that I’m usually a little hesitant to give parenting advice.  After years of getting “the look” every time people find out that we don’t believe in spanking our kids, I tend to just keep my parenting opinions to myself.

But…

There is something that I would like to share today that I don’t think should offend anyone.  Most parents genuinely enjoy spending quality time with their kids, and that’s all I’m going to be writing about.  Just sharing my opinions on what makes time count as “quality” time.  Because just hanging around with your kids doesn’t always cut it.

The last few months, I have spent more time with my kids than I have been able to spend with them in the last eight years.  I’m only taking 10 credits at school, I work primarily from home (except for two days a week), and we are sitting out this year’s dance competition season.  Yeah, the kiddos and I are spending A LOT of time together.  A lot.  But it’s not all quality time.  When I’m typing away on the computer and they are sitting in the same room, but have their eyes glued to the television screen, that’s definitely not quality time.

What do I mean by “quality time”?  I mean time during which you actually connect with your child.  Time during which you have a real conversation or enjoy an activity that both of you fully participate in.  Time during which you make memories.

So, I thought I’d give a few tips on how to spend quality time with your kiddos.

10 Ways to Enjoy More Quality Time

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This year, we have decided to follow the public school schedule, so our school will officially start Aug. 27.  But those of you who have followed the blog for awhile know that I can’t possibly allow my children’s brains to atrophy all summer.  So, sometimes they have to do a little bit of school work.  A bit of poem memorization here, some copywork there…  And almost every time, one of the neighbor kids will knock on the door in the middle of it.  I will tell them the kids can play “later” and sure enough, five minutes later, they are right back knocking on the door.

Not only that, they seem to have a radar that tells them when my kids are in the middle of chores, and sure enough, they’ll come knocking then, as well.

So, when I saw these nifty little signs over at Melancholy Smile, I was thrilled.

Ignore our ghetto banged-up doorknob…

You can download these signs HERE.  Over at Melancholy Smile, she recommends laminating them.  I also recommend this.  However, if your laminator happens to be in storage, know that clear contact paper can work in a pinch.  Not as sturdy, but a good temporary fix.  :)

Today, I made “Mama & Me” journals for the kids.

They will use these journals to write letters to me and then I will write them back.  I’m hoping these journals will help us get through tough questions that are difficult to talk about, as well as provide us with a great keepsake when they are older.  They were super easy to make and turned out really cute.

Our inspiration came from Mama Jenn.

To start, you will need the following materials:

The quantity in the picture is what you need to make five journals…just FYI.  You probably won’t be making five, but you might be, so then this would be helpful.  Anyway.  Basically, you need:

A composition book (on sale for $0.50 at Walmart right now)

A piece of scrapbook paper

Some contact paper (NOT on sale and was almost $6 DOLLARS!)

Printable labels from Mama Jenn:

Girl label

Boy label

Glue stick (I forgot to put this in the picture)

Ruler (optional, but helpful if you want your labels to be straight)

Step 1) Print your label and cut it out.  They don’t have lines for cutting around the label, so the ruler was helpful for me…somewhat.  I think mine are still a bit crooked.  Oh well.  :)

Step 2) Cut out a square of scrapbook paper that is about a half-inch bigger than your label on all sides.  My squares are 5″ x 5 1/2″ (which by definition makes them rectangles, but whatever…you know what I mean) and they were exactly the size I needed.

Step 3) Glue your label in the center of your scrapbook paper square.

Step 4) Glue the label on the composition book.

Step 5) Cover with contact paper.  It’s much easier to do this if you cut diagonal slits at the corners, but you probably already knew that.  So did I…  Jose did NOT have to show me.  :)

Step 6) Write a letter to your child on the first page explaining what the journal is for and telling him/her how excited you are to be pen pals!

I have to confess that I stole my first page letter word-for-word from Mama Jenn.  I’ve written three papers in the last week and my originality is non-existent right now.  But even Mama Jenn confesses that she lifted the letter from another blog, so I don’t think she’ll mind too much.

The letter we used (and that you are also free to use, as well) is as follows:

Dear Bizi (you can write your own kid’s name here…you don’t have to use Bizi…unless your kid is also Bizi…),

Would you like to be my pen pal?  Instead of mailing letters to each other, we can keep them here in this notebook.  Does that sound like fun?

I will write to you and then leave the notebook on your bed.  Then, when you want to write me back, you can begin writing on the next page and leave the notebook on my bed when you are done.

You can write about anything!  It can be funny or serious!  Just write about whatever is on your mind!

I am so excited and I hope that you are excited, too!

Love,

Mom

P.S.  Write back soon!

The other day we decided to make some clay.  The kids asked how we could make clay since clay was naturally found in the earth.  So, I had to acknowledge that we weren’t really making actual clay.  We were making something for which “clay” is a convenient name.  We found the recipe on Busy Bee Kids Crafts.  It seemed almost too simple, but worked out really well for us.

Here goes.

You will need:

2 c. baking soda

1 c. cornstarch

1 1/2 c. water

Then…

Step 1) Combine all your ingredients in a sauce pan or small dutch oven.  Stir thoroughly.

Step 2) Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture is too thick to stir.  It should look something like this:

Step 3) Allow to cool for 15-20 minutes.  Knead for about 5 minutes.  Make sure you keep it wrapped in plastic wrap if you aren’t going to use it right away because it will harden.

Step 4) Let the kiddos (or yourself!) create what they will.  This would be a good time to bust out the cookie cutters, though you can probably guess where ours are.  Yes, storage.  Our kids had to go freehand on this one.  As a result, they were not entirely pleased with their creations, but I find them adorable.

Elie’s Heart:

Bizi’s Snowman:

Ysabel’s Caterpillar:

Bizi’s handprint is missing from these pictures, but you’ll see it soon.  :)

(Of course the teenagers of the house thought they were too mature to make cool little things out of homemade clay…  Teenagers…  Argh.)

Step 5) Allow your creations to dry.  It will take a day or two, possibly more, depending on thickness.  (The thicker they are, the longer it will take.)

Step 6) Once they are dry, it’s time to paint.  I let the kids paint these however they wished and I think they turned out beautifully.

Ysa’s Caterpillar:

Elie’s Heart:

And, finally, Bizi’s Handprint:

Bizi’s snowman isn’t quite finished because, well, because the head fell off.  So, we are waiting on the Krazy Glue to dry before we finish painting that one…

This recipe would be great to use at Christmas time.  You can use the cookie cutters to make neat Christmas shapes, use a straw to make a hole at the top for hanging, and there you go.  You could even provide a little painting instruction if you wanted to, though my favorite presents are the ones the kids do all by themselves.  I think they make better memories.  You can always join in the fun and paint some yourself if you want a green Christmas tree (instead of neon pink and orange).

Anyway.

I have another quick project planned for tomorrow that I think you will like, so check back. Especially if you are a mommy.  It’s a mommy project.  :)