Merida Madness! Memories, games, recipes, and crafts!

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One of the highlights of our trip to Disney World for the girls was meeting Merida.  It has become Merida madness around here!

Before we ever left, I was doing some Disney blog stalking and found a post with pictures containing the Merida collection.  Little Princess chose a doll first from the pictures, and that was the first thing she wanted to do when we got there:  meet Merida and buy her doll.

If you are heading to meet Merida, a hint for you.  Go at rope drop!  She started meeting people at 9:30, so we went straight and got in line.  The line was always long when we were there, the week before the movie released.  Probably longer now.  The only thing about this time, as you can see from the first picture, is that the shadows from the trees make for not so great pictures!

They were promoting the movie rather heavily while we were at WDW, of course.  We came home with a few fun FREE souvenirs, like badges and postcards.

In Epcot, they had an area set up called Highland Games.  The girls got to practice their archery again, toss some "logs" and
 haggis, and do some flipping of something or other. The logs were foam covered in brown fabric, haggis was cornhole!  Easily translated to party games!  We really had a lot of fun.  There was also a playground nearby, canopies set up, and comfy chairs.  Dear Husband was quite willing to let the girls play to their hearts content while he rested in the shade!

The archery part actually warmed my heart.  My dear Daddy was a huge archer, and it was something he would have loved to have seen.  Big Princess came home and wanted to try out his bows and arrows.  Once my big brother comes in, I'll let him show her the ropes.  It's a connection that made me teary eyed!

Why do we love Merida and Brave?
1. There is a spirit in her that we all appreciate.

2.  It's very realistic about mother/daughter relationships.  Big Princess will be 13 in 2 months, and we could have had some of those same conversations.

3.  Since she loved Hunger Games, the archery aspect pulled Big Princess in.  Plus, she could identify with Merida's big old messy hair.  They had a conversation about controlling the frizz in the Florida humidity!

4.  The music was GREAT!

5.  Little Princess loved it.  Just because.

6.  This was the first movie my mom ever went with us to see.

I will also admit that the movie was fairly graphic a few times.  Enough so that I was uncomfortable.  We're not big on violence.  I found that to mostly be the beginning, once we got past it, it was GREAT!




So now, the Merida madness continues.  Little Princess will be sporting this Brave backpack and lunch box in Kindergarten this year.  I love that packing her lunch will bring back memories of a wonderful trip!  By the way, the backpack is on sale right now for $15.00 on Disney Store. com.  I have no affiliation with them, other than the fact it's my favorite place to shop! :)





To keep the fun going, here is a roundup of activities, printables, recipes, and crafts!

I was too excited to find this pin from skip to my lou about making a PVC bow and arrow.  I think hubby might be commissioned to do this.  The girls would love it.

 

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And I just found this sensory tub from Counting Coconuts.  I love her blog.  LOVE. her. blog. And I cannot wait to put this together!

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Views from the Ville has some great printables and cut outs.  I see a game of coin archery in my future!

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Thinking about having a Brave party?  You have GOT to check out Printabelle.  FREE stationary, cupcake toppers, water bottle labels, and much, much more!  I am thinking lunch box notes and encouragement notes for the princesses!

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Have you seen Disneybound's clothing ideas?  AMAZING.  Contemporary looks that emulate characters.  LOVE this Merida look.  I can see Big Princess rocking this!

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Want some BRAVE inspired foods?  

Disney family  has a Scottish sweet roll recipe.  You know, what those pesky brothers kept eating?  While you are there, check out all the other GREAT BRAVE printables, activities, and recipes, like Chocolate Bear Paws.  Crowns, cutouts, you name it.  Here is there Top ten .

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If you are incorporating a study of Scotland into your life, or if you are really BRAVE, you can try out some of the Scottish recipes from Cooking Channel TV.

I

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I could really see a BRAVE themed party being a big hit with the boys and girls.  And if you are like me with a fairly big age split in your kiddos, you could have a Hunger Games/BRAVE party and incorporate teens and tots!

School's Out for Summer!

 My daughters had their last day of school yesterday.  Tuesday was their promotion ceremonies.  I've been such an emotional wreck....    It's been sooo hectic with all of their celebrations, (I talked about them here and here) and my end of the year stuff for school.  I've yet to come to the realization that it's almost over.  I have 4 more workdays, then PARTY ON!

I had really, really planned to do some of the great things I had pinned for the last day of school...  Didn't happen. Secrets of a Super Mommy has amazing ideas for celebrating the last day of school, like this number/letter themed food, gifts, and signs!  You've got to check it out!

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My Mix of Six also has a great beginning of summer basket!

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Family Fun is also a good source:

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So now I am in summer vacation planning mode!  I really want this to be a summer to remember. Big Princess is going to high school next year, Little Princess is starting K. Last summer, I did nothing but work on courses for my master's degree.  I want this one to be special!

 I am guilty of doing nothing but resting for a week, usually. And truth be told, it's been such a hectic two months, we need that. But, I want to be sure we don't get too lazy.   Plus, we have a great vacation coming up to Disney World and Vero Beach.  Need to start working on Father's Day. I have lots of great activities I want to do.  I want them to keep up with reading and academics.  I want to work on the house.  Crafty projects that need completing. 

I started thinking about a schedule.  My family thrives on them.  The problem is that my girls are night owls, and tend to get into a habit of staying up late and sleeping late, and then wanting a lazy hour when they get up on top of it!  

I had pinned this schedule that I think is a great guide and inspiration:

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 I am not sure that I want to finally go this route, though.  I love the idea.  Don't get me wrong.  I might incorporate it somewhat.  But we tend to get out and go more than this on a typical week, impromptu plans with friends come up, etc.  

I know that on a DAILY basis I want to:

* Have the girls read.  30 minutes a day.  Scholastic has a great reading challenge program.

*Work on writing with the girls.  One idea I pinned was a summer journal.  Might be a great way to end each day!

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*30-60 minutes of physical activity.  Not just moving around cleaning, but true exercise.  Swimming counts, lying in the sun with friends doesn't.  Big Princess and I want to run.  Little Princess would be fine to play on the playground at the park while we do.  However, I can't see her the whole time, so that's an issue I have to resolve.  Some can be fun and not necessarily thought of as "exercise" .  Thinking obstacle courses, running through sprinklers, walking the dogs, nature hikes, etc. 

*Daily household chores, and a focus for the week.  The focus will probably be mostly my job, with the kids helping.  I would love to do an extra project a day, but I'm trying not to be too ambitious!

*Academics - want to keep away the summer slide.  Need to do lots with Little Princess to get her ready for K.  Big Princess needs to work on Math daily!

So adding all that up we are at about 2-3 hours of the day for reading, writing, academics, exercise, and cleaning.  Guarantee my kids would groan at that!  Now I have to figure out how to incorporate the fun. I've seen a lot of bits of random fun.  Summer bucket lists, what to do now jars, etc.  Here are a few:

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,

I love all these fun activities. And with Big Princess having received a smartphone for her elementary graduation, I definitely want to limit the screen time. I love this idea of each child having a set number of technology tickets for the week, and when they are gone, they are gone!:

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And yet, the K teacher in me loves a theme, a unit, a connection.  A way to incorporate all the things I want to do in a meaningful way.  So I thought about theme weeks. I won't go into all the details for each one, this post is getting long enough.  But here's a preview of what's on my mind!

Week 1: Dance Theme.  Little Princess first dance recital is that weekend.  I have 3 workdays, so I won't be home much. I have a lot of cutesy art projects for Little Princess planned that are ballet related. They can play Just Dance, turn on the radio and dance, they love family dance parties with disco ball and strobe lights, we have dance books to read.  Dance theme, but without a lot of fuss! Wrap up event: recital.

Week 2: Beach theme.  Lots of sensory/craft ideas pinned. Several beachy decor crafty things we can make and decorate the house with.  A few beachy snacks.  Trips to the pools, local and grandparents.  Beachy books.  Wrap up:  Backyard Luau

Week 3: Disney theme We'll be packing, planning, etc.  Disney movie/meal a night.  Lots of possibilities!

Week 4: On Vacation!

Week 5:  Camping theme Lots of great ideas pinned for crafts, snacks, backyard campouts, nature hikes, survival skills, obstacle courses, etc. Wrap up: either backyard campout or real camping.

Week 6: God Bless the USA! All about Independence Day.  SOOO many ideas!

Week 7: Movie theme Watch favorite movies, make a movie, go to the movies, Movie/dinner theme a day, maybe go to a drive in.  Wrap up:  Backyard movie showing party!

Week 8:  Art/Mad Scientist Sooo many ideas for each of these, but in our house, they kind of go together.  Total process over product art this week, and a few experiments thrown in for good measure. Wrap up:  art party for girls' friends. 

Week 9: Entrepreneur week  Thinking about each day being a different "at home business"  Pet Grooming - girls help bathe dogs, etc.  Bake shop:  bake all kinds of goodies, deliver to neighbors, freeze, etc.  Restaurant:  Girls mostly in charge of planning, cooking, serving, and cleaning up after dinner.  Free days - girls pick a job/business.  Wrap up: lemonade stand!

Week 10:  Bucket List  This is my last week off. I actually might have to work a few days.  So this will be the cram everything in we didn't get done week. 

STAY TUNED - MORE DETAILS FOR EACH WEEK TO COME!

Quest for the cape - FAIL!

Oh boy, did I fail this week.  Instead of superhero mom, I was villain mom.  It was one of those terrible, horrible, no good, very bad school weeks.  I felt so down Saturday morning, I just wanted to curl into a cocoon and hope to come out on the other side a butterfly.  I wasn't even going to continue this series, who was I to talk about the quest to become a supermom?

When I was looking for a specific quote I had pinned for a project, I saw this one; it immediately lifted me up and gave me a new perspective.

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SO here is my "kindsight" for the week.

Monday - My wonderful mom got the girls from school for me so I could work on some home projects (cleaning, moving furniture).  She should have a gold-dusted, diamond encrusted cape!  I didn't pick them up until late. But, I did sit and listen to the girls each talk about their days, what's up in their lives when we got home for a bit.  It wasn't a big huge deal, but I bet it was to them.
Hero worthy action:  Making my children feel special by listening.  Not listening while I was cooking, cleaning, folding, working.  But face to face listening.

Tuesday - I was in pain from moving furniture, and couldn't get going.  Note to self:  despite your quest for the cape, your superhero skills will not include moving heavy furniture alone.  I had a thousand things on my mind to do at work.  I am so ready for the end of the year, my to do lists have to do lists.  I realized that if I all thought about was getting to day X, when I could breathe again, I would miss all the wonderful things this day had.  This was my motto for the day when we left the house.

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Well, it kinda worked.  Due to rain, evening activities were cancelled, so we came home and were lazy.  Really lazy.  Just laid around, watching tv, everybody kinda doing their own things.  Not really connecting, just being.  It was okay.
Hero worthy action: I get so wrapped up in what has to be done, and what I want to get done, that I forget to just let them be sometimes.  I don't want every moment of my life dictated to me, even if it is fun.  Downtime is good for everyone. 


Wednesday:
Hump day is supposed to be great, right?  Well.  Not so much.  Little Princess, for whatever reason, was a puddle Wed. afternoon. Blame it on three days of rain. (Anyone singing Milli Vanilli right now?  Blame it on the raaiiiin...) Blame it on being overtired after a busy week at school.  Blame it on my need to study with Big Princess for a state standardized test. Blame it on..    It was soo not pretty.  Everything was a battle.  And after ballet class, we got home and the dog had chewed up her favorite flip flop.  She argued, cried, wailed, hit, blamed, ignored.
Hero worthy action: I didn't walk out the door never to return.

Thursday: 
Softball game for Big Princess.  Little Princess was still a puddle, but not as bad.  She had fun playing on the playground next to the ball field.  Lots of talking on the way to and from with Big Princess, because she wanted to spend the night with someone Friday night, and was rather consumed with it.  I reminded her a lot of the need to stay focused on school until after testing.
Hero worthy action: Big Princess and I had some conversations that we really needed to have.  Sometimes I feel like I nag all the time, but I really focused on her feelings, consequences of actions, and explaining myself.  I actually felt pretty good about our conversation until Friday.....

Friday:
Oh, it was bad.  This time it was Big Princess' turn to rock the boat.  She made a bad choice, not earth-shatteringly bad, but still bad.  It was directly related to the conversations we had Thursday night.  She lost focus on her math nemesis.  Not a grade, those haven't been good either.  But she gave in to peer pressure and neglected her math.  I was soooo disappointed, I was crying at school when I caught her.  I guess pride goeth before a fall came into play here.  As a result, she was not allowed to spend the night with the friend at the last minute.
Hero worthy action: I stuck to my guns.  I have been known not to dole out a big consequence.  But I followed through.  I couldn't talk to her then, but later, we talked about all the many reasons her choice upset me, and how they led to a much bigger picture with much, much bigger consequences. And I kept my mouth shut when I knew nothing but anger would spew out.

I was so glad I sat down and thought it out in" kindsight".  Because last week seemed like attacks from all sides - everyone was grumpy, snippy. All four of us were short tempered.  Work was horrible, the kids were crazy!  I fell running with them to run off some energy and my knee and elbow still hurt.  I really wanted to crawl under the covers and make the world go away. Everything was a mess, and it seemed like a snowball of hurt feelings, disappointment, temper, disobedience, and calamity.

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I encourage each of you to take some time when things are bad to view it in kindsight.  Those of us in the quest for the cape expect superhero actions of our ourselves at all times. We never get ourselves enough credit.  Sure, I still wish I had handled things better.   

I declared Saturday the beginning of a new week for my family. And it was.... better.

Pre-K and Elementary Graduation Ideas

Yes, I have Little Princess graduating from pre-k, and Big Princess graduating from Elementary School on May 22. 

Being honest, the pre-k celebration isn't that big of a deal.  She's in full day pre-k at our school, will be with the same kids, same school, etc.  It's a big deal in that it's a milestone, for sure.  We'll mention it, celebrate it, she'll have a little graduation ceremony during the school day.

Big Princess.That's a huge deal - we don't have a middle school; she will enter high school as an 8th grader in August.  Also a huge deal since for the first time since she started kindergarten, she won't be in school with me.  :(  I'm a mess!  I'm working with other mom's to organize a party for all the kids, so our home celebration will be simple, just family over after the ceremony. The whole school party is going to be a luau theme.  Since we divided and conquered the tasks, I'm not sure what all the details are. I'll take pictures and post later!

At least the color scheme can be the same for both girls, even if it does look like Halloween - orange and black.   Go Wildcats!

Decorations:

Here's a hint:  if you are doing a graduation party, especially elementary, ask the principal if there are items you can borrow with the school logo.  You won't have to spend as much on decorations! 
 We have pom poms, a stuffed wildcat, and I have some things that have been gifts over the years from PTO and students.  One is a black 31 organizing utility tote with our last name in orange.  I will put that to use, somehow.  Might put all her of elementary yearbooks in it for browsing. Candy dish with school logo (maybe fill with orange candies?) Plastic cups with school logo will hold the "silverware".  We have a school colored wreath in the office I'm going to borrow, maybe a banner from the hall!  Going to do a scavenger hunt of my classroom and my school next week.

Going to get a few orange and black balloons,orange and black plates, cups, napkins.  Saw some polka dots at Walmart, can't remember if they had orange or not.  So we'll be hitting up there or the dollar store.  I have both orange and black patterned washi tape, so I'll add that to the cups for a little pizazz.

Going to pull out the Halloween sprinkles and make these cute little tea lights

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IF I have time, going to make a similar bunting out of orange and black felt

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Food

Going to keep this simple.  Graduation is at 6:30, everyone will have had dinner prior.  We will just have cupcakes and ice cream.  I love these, going to do orange icing, orange tassel, and maybe black sprinkles if I have some left from Halloween!  Love that the Hershey Bar and Reese's Cup are close enough to black to be able to leave alone. 

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I may make these for Little Princess' class while I am making them for cupcakes if I have time.  There are only 18 of them versus 71 graduates for Big Princess:

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I love this preschool graduation cake.  It's adorable.  I would totally do something similar for Little Princess if I didn't have Big Princess to concentrate on! 

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Gifts:

Big Princess: Sometimes, Big Princess stalks my blog.  So I'm not going to reveal her gift from us just yet.  Her big,retail one.  STOP READING BIG GIRL - surprises are great!

I love sentimental gifts.  LOVE THEM.  I have to do something homemade in addition to her retail gift.  Thinking about giving it to her first, because she will be done when she opens the other one.

She will have her yearbook with her friends' signatures and messages.  But there are a lot of things I want to tell her.  Quotes I've collected, and what entering her teen/high school years can/should mean.  How our relationship will change.  What I expect, what I will give in return.  I'm going to buy a pretty journal, and write them in it.  I'm also going to have her Daddy write a letter in there, even if he hates his handwriting and grammar.  What I wouldn't give to have that from my Daddy now.  Also passing on to her grandparents, and aunts and uncles, a few cousins.  We'll all be together this weekend for Mother's Day, so it will be the perfect time. I think this will eventually become very special to her.   

Little Princess:

As I said, not such a big deal,emotionally for me, anyway. She, however, will feel like it is.  I'm sure her amazing pre-k teacher will make them feel like it is!   Still working on just the right "retail" gift for her. She is one of those want everything she sees kind of kids, but we have soo much stuff lying around that I don't want to deal with more junk! She does love jewelry, so I thought about a special pair of earrings or necklace.  Or a gift card to spend at Disney, she tends to keep up with things purchased there. 

 I thought about a journal gift for her, too, so she will feel special. On the first few pages  I will write some things she is always saying or doing to crack us up, some special pre-K memories.  I gave the journals to my family when we were all together for Mother's day, and they all wrote special messages to her in them.  I can't decide if I want this to be her elementary years book, and do the special memories for each year, or let her have the back pages to doodle in, put her stickers, etc.  

"You've got the write stuff, Miss Pre-K graduate"
I am also giving her a personalized dictionary with her journal/scrapbook.  She loves to write, so I thought about writing each family members name in correct handwriting at the top,  and then she would have them to practice; grouping the names by family.  Then, maybe include the alphabet correctly, friends' names, words she can sound out.  Rather than doing traditional writing dictionary alphabetical order pages, I will section it off by theme:  Family, friends, sayings, alphabet, words I know.  Again, this idea literally came to me as I was writing this post.  Love it how that happens.  I'm thinking a binder would be best, so we could add pages.  I would like the portability of a zippered small binder, like a planner, if I could find an empty one at the right price, but the sizes of pages are so odd. Maybe something like a portfolio, so we could store pencils, pens, handwriting paper, whatever kinds of paper we have and don't use.  I might have one already.... hmmm.... So now, at 5:32 on a Saturday morning, I am seriously considering a Wal-Mart trip!  

End of school gifts for children, teachers, and students

I am up to my ears in gifts right now.  I have Teacher Appreciation Week gifts bagged and ready to go with us today, some went earlier in the week.  Mother's Day gifts to Grandmothers from the girls are not ready, because it's been to rainy to spray paint.  And we only have 8.5 days left in school this year! YAHOO!!!!!!

Here's a rundown of all that I have planned, as far as gifts. Celebrations will be in a separate post.   Add in t-ball and softball games, graduation parties, finalizing all my grades and end of school duties, and I am a mess!  Decided to post my plans and projects ahead of time so that anyone who wants to get a head start can.  I know we get out earlier than most, we started on the 10th of August because we usually have 10+ snow days a year.  We had a total of two this year.

End of year testing gift
We are finishing up our standardized testing.  Big Princess has had two, and we studied and prepared but not overly stressed on those, she has 96-98 averages in those classes.  But Math - I want to tell you to solve your own problems, Mr. Algebra, I am not your therapist.  Math was my weakest subject, and is hers, too.  We're working hard, as is her teacher,  to get her ready.  For her math standardized test day, I'm making her a couple of goodies. 

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This one is designed for the first day of school, but I am going to make it for test day.  Changing it to "You're one Smart Cookie.  You've got this!"

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This one is cute, too, but a little too primary for my 7th grader:

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 On-going project for the end of the year:
This is one that I am super excited about.  I fell in LOVE with this idea from Lisa's Workshop.  I ordered each of the girls a copy of Oh, the Places You'll go  by Dr. Seuss from Amazon. 
  

I am going to sneak it to their teachers and have them sign it, leave a message if they desire. I wish I had known about this when Big Princess was in kindergarten, one of her teachers has passed away, and a couple are no longer at our school.  But I am going to get whom I can for her, and will have Little Princess's pre-k teachers sign her book.  There is copy you can add in your note to the teachers explaining this on Lisa's site.  I will do this each year, and then give them to the girls when they graduate from high school.  One of my high school English teachers gave me this when I graduated, I babysat for her, and I cherish it!  The challenge will be keeping them hidden, and yet being able to find them each year! 

End of year teacher gift
Since we just did teacher appreciation, I won't do other gifts this year.  Next year, if we actually get snow so there is a little time span there,  and Little Princess only has 1 teacher, I will do this, because I think it rocks!  Beach towel, sunscreen, magazine, candies.  I would add a can of Off bug spray, with a note saying Relax and Enjoy your time Off:  

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End of year gift for students or classmates:

This is what I am making to give my students.  Budget's tight and has to be spread around all these gifts, so it's not much.  Would be a cute classmate gift, also.  Our tag is going to read :Kindergarten has been Krazy!  Have a Kool summer.  Totally incorrect for spelling, but we believe in alliteration. :)

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Quest for the cape - The Power of Words

Yesterday, I posted about my guilt in not spending the quality time with my daughters, the "do it all mom" saga.   The last line of the post, I mentioned looking for my cape. You know, the superhero cape that will allow me to be the perfect working mom.

Well, I thought about that ALL day yesterday.  It's up to ME to put on my cape, consciously, daily, moment by moment.  Every word and action can be a donning of the cape. Being a supermom isn't all about scaling tall buildings in a single leap, or the dramatic tower rescue.  It's about building that support scaffolding to get there, one nail at a time. Sometimes, carrying your children on your strong back.  Sometimes holding their hands and building together.  Sometimes, letting them lead, being there to support and catch them if they fall.

Putting on my cape yesterday with Big Princess meant saying "I'll be right there to look, honey" instead of "I'm busy right now."  It means the same thing, but the message comes across sooo differently. Busy = putting something else first. Be right there = you are important to me.

Putting on my cape yesterday with Little Princess meant reading the bedtime story, even if we were late getting to bed and I was exhausted. It took 5 minutes, and we ended the night sweetly rather than with tears if I had said it was too late, and the tears would have lasted more than 5 minutes.

Today, we're going to do some purging of items in the girls' rooms.  It could be emotional for us all.  Little Princess is a hoarder, and hates to get rid of anything.  Big Princess hates cleaning and organizing.  The end result (which I have NO misconception that will be accomplished in one day) will be worth it.  Putting on my cape today will mean patience and understanding.  It will also mean compromise, some creative problem solving.  And a lot of energy.


Thinking about all that gets back into leaping tall buildings with a single bound thoughts, and they aren't good for this superhero mom.  So I am going to think about my words today.  Just. my. words.  I love this list of 19 things to say to children .   More on the power of words:

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