Rusty old metal cabinet / locker turned mudroom shoe storage

$20 vintage locker repurposed for the sunporch / mudroom

Antique stores have the best finds! I scored a gorgeous old metal locker / metal cabinet at my local antique shop last week. I wasn’t sure exactly what I was going to do with but after seeing it’s $20 price tag I knew it had to come home with me.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

I took the tag inside, paid for it, then loaded it up in our brand new to us fancy minivan (literally the nicest car we’ve ever owned and I still can’t believe it’s ours!!). Thank goodness I had just put this cargo liner blanket thing in there so it kept my van from getting gross stuff all over it or scratched up. Three of the four daughters were excited about our new find but one of them…not so much lol!

A week after bringing it home I finally had time to do something with it. I decided I was going to turn it into a muddy boot/shoe holder for our sunporch / mudroom. Oh my goodness it turned out so freaking cute!

I have seen others paint their metal cabinets / lockers that look like this but honestly I loved everything about this piece as is. I didn’t want to scrape off any of the old paint or add anything to it. I thought it was perfect just the way it was. The only thing I did to it was remove the door and clean it up a bit.

It was full of crunchy old leaves, spiderwebs, and lots of dirt, rust, and chipped paint. I used my vacuum to get all of that out of there. I didn’t see a need to wipe it down with any spray cleaning agent. I mean, after all it will be holding shoes that have just stomped through a chicken coop.

With just a light cleaning this metal cabinet looked a million times better. I did vacuum off the big chipped paint spots. I figured those will end up falling off anyway soon from putting shoes in there.

The legs on this piece were in pretty good shape but because our sunporch slants down for drainage the cabinet sat lopsided. To fix that I put a small piece of scrap wood under two of the feet. That worked great!

On one of the shelves I added a bucket to store bug spray and sunscreen. It took me forever to find a piece of chalk so I could write sunscreen & bug spray on the front of that lol! Oh the mom life, gotta love it! Next to that I put a wire basket and filled it with the bubbles and jump ropes that the girls got for Easter. If you need a cheap Easter craft for your rustic home decor check out this adorable moss bunny sign I made this year.

I don’t think I could have found a more perfect shoe holder for this space. It’s unique and beautifully imperfect just like our family.

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

Dollar Tree mini St. Patrick's Day sign makeover + FREE SVG

I’ve been working on this little cozy space my girls have claimed in our new home, well it’s actually 100+ year old home but it’s new to us. It’s their play/reading area/hangout zone but I really wanted this space to look like it had more purpose than that. I wanted to create a space that screamed (in a super sweet polite kind of way ;)) “you are loved, you are beautiful, and your heart is amazing, daughter” kind of vibe.

While I’m creating this darling daughter you are loved space I want to share with you not just how I DIY-ed it all but I also want to share with you the same exact cut files and printables I used so you can use them too if you want. You can find all of my freebies in my FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Total transparency here… AFTER I wrote this post (meaning I had already finished the sign, took all the pictures, uploaded everything, pushed publish on the post and posted it to social media) I realized a big UH OH moment! I had added the word to too many times to the “it’s ok to have a bad day” quote. HUGE facepalm to myself. But I have since fixed my error, and honestly though how fitting of a mistake for this project. It really is ok to have a bad day ;)!

Since I’m a frugal kind of momma I extra love how affordable this sign was to make. While I love using my power tools I didn’t use any to make this sign. I actually bought an already made sign from the Dollar Tree and gave that a little makeover. I spent less than $2 to make this small free standing sign using my Cricut and I want to show you how you can make your own without power tools too.

DIY FREE STANDING SIGN + FREE SVG

See the picture below…I wasn’t going to completely retake every single photo so you see my mistake, it’s ok to to have a bad day lol!!

Here’s what I used

• Dollar Tree free standing sign

• sanding sponge

• white acrylic paint

• paint brush

• paint tray

• black matte finish vinyl (I used StarCraft bc it’s what I had on hand but I would recommend Oracal 651 instead)

• clear transfer tape

• vinyl squeegee

• it’s ok to have a bad day FREE SVG

• Cricut cutting machine

• green cutting mat

• Cricut Design Space

• drop cloth to protect your surface

1. CUT & WEED THE DECAL

I used my Cricut to cut out my vinyl decal. I used StarCraft vinyl in matte black but honestly it’s not my favorite. I highly recommend ORACAL 651 (or 631 if you have it since this project is for indoor use). I bought the StarCraft thinking I would love it as much as 651 but sadly I don’t.

Grab the SVG for FREE here.

2. SAND

A drop cloth is a must for this if you don’t want glitter everywhere. I usually always lay down a drop cloth when I crafting. It doesn’t make for a super gorgeous backdrop for my tutorials BUT it keeps my surface clean AND I can throw it in the washer when I’m done.

I used a sanding sponge to remove all of the glitter from the Dollar Tree sign first. This surprisingly comes off easily. Then I wiped it down with a paper towel to get all to the sanded stuff off of my sign.

This is what my sign looked like once I sanded it down. I could have sanded more but this much was good enough:)! You mainly want to get all of the glitter off because paint won’t cover over glitter smoothly.

3. PAINT

Then I painted my little sign. This took quite a few coats, 3 actually. I did thin layers so that they would dry smooth and fast. Acrylic paint is what I used but if you want better coverage with less coats chalk paint is a great option too. Be sure to let your paint dry fully between coats.

Here’s what my sign base looked like after the first coat of white acrylic paint.

And this is what it looked like after I painted the 3rd coat of white acrylic paint.

4. APPLY THE DECAL

I let my sign base dry overnight before applying my vinyl decal. You just want to be sure your sign is completely dry, vinyl will NOT stick to wet paint. It will peel up and the paint will be stuck to the backside of the vinyl and it will be a mess to fix…trust me I’ve been there and it’s not fun.

I used my favorite clear transfer tape to apply my decal on to my dollar store base.

After I was happy with the placement I pressed it down using my trusty blue vinyl squeegee then slowly rolled the transfer tape off of my decal. Be sure when you do this to go VERY SLOW. It’s really easy to go too fast and rip your vinyl. A vinyl squeegee isn’t a must but it does make the job easier. If you don’t have one you an use a library or rewards card.

Then found the perfect spot for it on this industrial ladder tiered shelf I scored off of Amazon. BTW this one is SUPER easy to put together if you’re looking for an easy to assemble tiered shelf. I have bought some DIY shelfs before that were total nightmares…this one was a dream to assemble!

I hope you enjoyed this DIY craft tutorial. If you have any questions please let me know in the comments below. Happy Crafting!

Check out more Cricut craft projects below

family water tracker + FREE PRINTABLE

FAMILY WATER TRACKER + FREE EDIT FRIENDLY PRINTABLE

Do you struggle with getting your kiddos to drink water throughout the day? Yes, same momma! I am right there with ya. I feel like a broken record always reminding my girls to drink more water on a daily basis.

So much so that I created a printable {that I’m giving to you for FREE;) } so that my girls can start tracking their own water intake. I’m hopeful that this works and that it makes us all more aware of how important it is to keep our bodies properly hydrated.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

I made my custom water tracker in Canva. If you’ve never used that site before you are missing out. The version I use is totally free but if you want to upgrade to their paid for version you can do that too.

This water tracking printable is completely EDITABLE! Click here to get access to the link in my FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY.

After you open the link it will take you to editable version in Canva. There you can completely customize this print to fit the needs for you own household. I just used letters for my girls but you can add your kiddo’s names, and change up the size of the font too.

When you are all done click the download button to save it to your computer, open the document then send it to your printer. If you need to adjust the size of yours you can do that there. I printed mine at 83% on my print settings. I used a simple HP printer and regular copy paper to print out my family water tracker.

I trimmed my printout down using this paper trimmer. I LOVE this handy tool. I didn’t realize how often I actually would use it till I bought it.

I placed it in a picture frame I picked up on clearance at Walmart. I have a dry erase marker by it, one with a felted cap eraser, sitting by it so the girls can mark off the glasses they drink daily.

I’m so hopeful this helps all of us make better choices to keep our bodies hydrated and I hope that I can keep some of my sanity by not reminding my girls to drink water instead of chocolate milk or tea on a daily basis.

I hope you enjoy this free printable. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

DIY bible tabs + FREE printable

Printable bible tabs

Make your own easy diy bible tabs at home. Print them from any home printer see how to make them yourself.

Need a free bible tab printable? I was looking all over Pinterest for DIY bible tabs and didn’t really find exactly what I was looking for with my budget. Then it hit me ‘Megan, why don’t you just make your own?!’ And so I did.

These are permanent bible tabs, so if you want something you can change out you can still use my bible tab printable you’ll just want to attach it using a different technique.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Of course my main goal for these bible tabs is functional but I also wanted them to be pretty. I went for a more minimal theme with them. I used muted colors on the tabs with varied cursive fonts, simple florals and accent lines. Some of the tabs I’ve seen are gorgeous but they are a little hard to read with the busy prints that are on them.

Most of the DIY bible tabs I’ve come across were going to cost me more money than I wanted to spend. I wanted to use materials I already had at home. I have already spent more money than I realized on new bibles, covers, and bible friendly markers for me and my girls so buying bible tab labels just seemed a little overload when it was something I could do myself.

MAKE YOUR OWN BIBLE TAB LABLES

Here’s what you need

• printer

• printer paper

• free bible tab printable

• scissors

• paper cutter (this isn’t a must but it sure is great to have)

• tape

This free download comes in two parts: pages 1&2 and page 3. Because the file is print quality it is larger than normal files that I upload and the fact that it’s three pages and not one. So be sure you click to download all three pages.

I used Canva.com to create my labels in. Then I printed them off on my simple hp home printer. I also used these same tools create and print this FREE PROVERBS 31 PRINTABLE to put in my girl’s lounge area.

After I had all three pages of tabs printed off I used my Swingline paper cutter to cut and separate all the little tabs. Having this inexpensive tool has made my life so much easier! I never realized how often I needed to cut straight lines till I had this office tool.

{side note…don’t mind my paint stained sweatshirt. I had been painting earlier that day and I always try to wear old paint clothes because as you can see I tend to be slightly messy sometimes when I paint}

I made muted colored squares to go around each of the labels so that they are much easier to cut.

To make it easier to find my printed bible tabs I put them in alphabetical order…well kinda, I grouped them in order. Then I started in Genesis and worked my way to the end of the bible adding tabs. You can certainly do yours differently but I wanted to easily find things and know the order in which to find them so I thought this was the best way to do that for me.

These tabs are double sided. To apply them the easiest way fold the tab in half first then open it back up. This way you will have a crease already on the tab making it easier to fold over once it’s on your bible.

I used packaging tape but you can use whatever tape you prefer. I know this tape isn’t ideal but it’s what I had on hand and it acts as a laminator so the tabs won’t rip off easily. I took a piece of tape then placed my unfolded tab face down on the sticky side.

Then I trimmed off the extra excess tape around my bible tab. I left just enough so I could attach it to my bible page.

This part was a little tricky and honestly I probably should have taken more time to get these on there so they were precise. But then again I’m not really a precise, perfect kind of girl so this process fit me perfectly! I eyeballed my tabs and stuck them on their coordinating book of the bible. I placed them on the backside of the page first.

Then I pressed the bible tab over so that the page was sandwiched in between.

I placed all of my tabs on the right side of the books of the bible. So if a book started on the left side I still placed the bible tab on the right hand side. You don’t have to do this but I did so that I wasn’t having to flip to find which side of the tab the book started on. Just a little way to keep myself slightly organized.

I am so glad I took the time to add these DIY tabs to my bible. This will make it so much easier when I’m in the word at church and at home. I’ve been doing a weekly bible study using this prayer journal for women. Not only is it gorgeous but there was a lot of thought put into the content.

I hope this affordable bible tab option works for your needs. If you have any questions let me know in the comments below.

Happy Crafting!

FREE Printable- PROVERBS 31:10 + Ross CLEARANCE picture frame revamp

PROVERBS 31:10 PRINTABLE - freebie

Need a Proverbs 31 printable? Use this one, it’s FREE!

My girls have this weird hallway/lounge area space in between their bedrooms upstairs. For the last 6 months, that’s when we bought our home, that space was just a play area. Now that the holidays are over I am making time to revamp this space for them.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

The one thing I was absolutely certain was that this space NEEDED to be filled with affirmations, sisterly love, and God. When they are in this space I want them to see God’s truths about them. Pictures of all 4 girls together. And words of love.

I love the Bible verse:

she is far more precious than jewels

proverbs 31:10

So I made a printable in Canva.com to print off and put in the frame.

Canva has SO MANY great free templates, images, and fonts to use. I use it a lot in my business to do photo mock ups, printables like this Proverbs print, and images for my blog. This website has been a wonderful tool to use.

If you’d like the FREE PROVERBS PRINTABLE you can get it from my free resource library. CLICK HERE.

I saved this document as an A4 but after you’ve downloaded the pdf you can adjust the size to fit your needs. Before you hit the print button, if you want to adjust the size of your printable, select more on your printer settings and it will give you lots of sizes to choose from. I adjusted mine to a 5x8 to fit inside of my picture frame. Be sure if you change the size of your Proverbs printable that you also check the tab circle thing for the FIT TO SIZE so that it prints the whole printable and not just a portion.

Since I’m a frugal momma I actually found a frame that I loved at Ross on the clearance shelf. Even though I didn’t love the print that was inside the frame I snagged it up because it was just a few dollars and I knew I could easily change the print out.

Here’s what the frame looked like when I bought it. It’s one of those double glass picture frames, your print gets sandwiched between the two pieces.

I used my simple hp all-in-one printer, nothing fancy at all, to print my printable on regular office printer paper.

This little portable Swingline paper cutter has been a dream to have! It doesn’t take up much space and it cuts paper so much straighter than my shakey when I’m concentrating hand and a pair of scissors lol!

When you’re done reading this Ross frugal clearance find be sure to check out my Hobby Lobby wooden frame makeover —->click here<—-

I cleaned my frame with rubbing alcohol to get all the finger prints and stickers off of it. This is super inexpensive but works great!

Ahhhh it’s so pretty! I love this proverbs printable so much that I almost wanted to keep it downstairs in my living room. With the lighting in there it looked absolutely gorgeous!

But it looks better in their girly lounge space <3!

Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below. Check out more from my crafty frugal momma blog.

Kid's gingerbread house decorating party

Kid friendly gingerbread decorating party using graham crackers

Christmas with kids is always fun. There’s so many traditions you can start with them. Like baking cookies, making Christmas stockings, and decorating gingerbread houses to name a few.

We made graham cracker gingerbread houses last night and it was so much fun! And my stress level was at a ZERO! Yes, a zero. If you are a momma of multiples, especially multiples that are stair steps, you know what I’m talking about. Things like this can stress us out. My secret to a no stress gingerbread making party? Let the kids have fun and don’t worry about any of it being pretty or perfect. That’s it!

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Don’t get me wrong the pictures on Pinterest with the perfectly decorated “kid” made gingerbread houses are absolutely adorable. A picture perfect graham cracker house with a tiny little spill of sprinkles on the table and a dab of out of place frosting is oh so cute…but let’s be honest that’s not likely to happen in most homes with little ones. As a mom of 4 I KNOW this lol! And really, where’s the fun if there’s not a GIANT MESS of sprinkles, crumbs of graham crackers, frosting smeared on their faces and broken candy canes to pick up?

So let’s ditch the vision of perfectly put together Christmas gingerbread houses and embrace that beautiful chaos. Those are the moments you are connecting with kids. Those are the moments your kids are learning. Those are the moments that matter.

GRAHAM CRACKER GINGERBREAD HOUSE YOUR KIDS WILL ENJOY MAKING

Most of the supplies I picked up at my local Dollar Tree. Here’s what we used

• graham crackers

• 2 tubs of cream cheese frosting

• green food coloring

• mini candy canes

• gumdrops

• assorted hard candies

• large spree candies

• twizzlers pull and peel

• red and white round peppermints

• green and white peppermints

• mini & regular sized marshmallows

• jellybeans

• traditional pretzels

• large & mini pretzel sticks

• sprinkles

Other supplies that we used:

• 2 Wilton piping bags

• 2 sandwich bags

• paper plates

• glass condiment bowls

• 4 oz mason jars

• cake stands (these are similar to what I used)

• assorted bowls & dishes

• rubber bands (to tie the frosting bags closed so it doesn’t come out)

To free up space we used cake stands to hold the candies that were in these little glass condiment dishes. I love these little dishes. They are super cheap, only $.25 each! This got them up and off of the table so that the girls would have more space to create.

We used another cake stand to hold the sprinkles and the bags of frosting. The frosting I used, generic cream cheese frosting in a can, wasn’t really the best for this but it works. It doesn’t set up/dry super fast but it works. We also stuck the bags of frosting in the fridge about an hour before we started decorating so that the icing would be more firm to work with.

Each daughter got a paper plate to make their gingerbread house on.

They played around with different designs then started “gluing” their pieces together using the bags of icing.

After their houses set up, the frosting had hardened a bit, they decorated their little hearts out!

I always love seeing their creativity take flight. They kept adding and adding candies thinking of new ways they could use all the different colors and shapes.

My third daughter was the only one to make a snowman out of the marshmallows. He was adorable with his little hard candy hat and twizzler scarf.

I love the doorway my first born daughter made using the marshmallows.

And this super creative door crafted by daughter number 2 made into the shape of a heart using mini peppermint sticks. Adorable!

Last but not least is the masterpiece from daughter number 4. Oh the love that was put into this. It may look like a mess to others but she had THE MOST fun making this. After her original house fell she turned the rubble into a work of gingerbread house art!

Sure our houses weren’t perfect by Pinterest standards but it doesn’t even matter. For a couple of hours our family sat around our kitchen table and had the best time singing random songs, cracking jokes, teasing one another, and making memories. AND there wasn’t an argument one! I know, super rare for a family with 4 kiddos. It was a perfect Christmas themed evening.

Check out more kid friendly crafts below.

Christmas stocking party with the kids

KID MADE CHRISTMAS STOCKINGS

Making Christmas stockings with my girls is one of my most favorite Christmas traditions we do. Every year my four daughters and I sit around the table that is basically a big mess of Christmas craft supplies and make stockings. We break out the glitter, felt, ribbons, fabric markers, bells, buttons… all the things. And I let them create whatever their little hearts want.

Granted they don’t look perfect or match lol but we have so much fun and the memories are priceless. Sometimes I’ll give my momma input as to what might look good but mostly I’m there to help, encourage, and tell them their stockings look amazing.

This year I was browsing Instagram and came across Heide’s post from Everyday Cookies- Heide. She shared a gorgeous pic of her handmade Christmas stockings that she had made from a DROP CLOTH! You guys, my mind was blown!

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

I honestly never thought to use a drop cloth for a Christmas stocking! But it was SO PERFECT. The natural color of the drop cloth was just what I had in mind for making our stockings this year.

The best part is that the drop cloth was cheaper than buying traditional fabric and I have so much left over for LOTS more projects.

Use the same Christmas stocking SVG I used for free —-> CLICK HERE

HOW TO HAVE A CHRISTMAS STOCKING PARTY

Here are some basic supplies you need

• drop cloth

• sewing machine

• white thread

• stocking SVG - free to use in my resource library

• sewing needle

• ribbons

• buttons

• felt

• scissors

• fabric glue

• hot glue gun

• hot glue

• yarn

• assorted mini embellishments

• Cricut cutting machine (I use a Cricut explore)

• Cricut design space

• Cricut cutting mat

• HTV (heat transfer vinyl)

• Cricut mini EasyPress
  
  

1. SEW STOCKINGS

I made a template on my computer then I cut it out on cardstock using my Cricut cutting machine. I didn’t have long enough cardstock so I butted two pieces of 12”x12” cardstock and taped them together. I used this same style when I made this wooden mermaid tale cupcake stand.

I re-sized my stocking template to 10”wide by 18” long in Cricut Design space.

I don’t have a video, or pictures of this but it was pretty simple. You will need to cut out two stockings, one for the front and one for the back. The pin them together and sew around the stocking leaving the top open. Then turn the stocking inside out so that the sewed seam is now on the inside of the stocking. I will get a video of this process up asap.

2. ADD NAMES

I used my Cricut to cut names out of HTV (heat transfer vinyl) prior to the girls decorating their Christmas stockings.

To keep it easy, because I was cutting out 5 names (my four girls plus a friend), I had them agree on a color that all 5 names would be cut from. They chose a gold color.

We used my mini Cricut EasyPress to press the names on the stockings. I let the older girls do this and helped when they needed it. If you don’t have a mini EasyPress I highly recommend getting one if you do a lot of little crafty projects that require HTV. I have used this little handy press more than I actually thought I would. And it’s perfect for my teen & preteen to use because it’s easy to hold and manage.

3. DECORATE

I picked up several packages of mini Christmas embellishments at my local Walmart of snowflakes, candy canes, vintage looking lights, and a few more.

We also pulled out my ribbons, felts, yarns, and buttons. Everything was put on the table in one big beautiful Christmas craft explosion. Sometimes it’s just better to embrace the mess than it is to try and keep all the things organized and tidy. They even brought out a fork to make pom poms (just in case you noticed there was a fork in the picture below lol).

I encourage my girls to try using the tools, like my daughter in the pic below hand sewing on an embellishment, before I step in and help. It’s so important for us parents to let our kiddos do things on their own so they can learn.

4. ADD HANGER

Don’t forget to add a hanger. We did this step last and all of the girls came up with something different. One used yarn, two of the girls used a piece of the drop cloth, and the other two used different kinds of ribbon. We tacked these on using a needle and thread then I reinforced them with the hot glue gun.

Didn’t their Christmas stockings turn out SO cute?!

My girls and I enjoy this so much every single year. Mostly because I let them just go to town and create whatever their little hearts want on their Christmas stockings. Let me know if you have any questions in the comments below.

Happy Crafting!

Making leaf art with your kids

MAKING LEAF ART WITH YOUR KIDDOS

Whoa what a school year this has turned out to be for all of our kiddos. I know that virtual learning can be a lot of screen time but it also means that we get to have a lot of creative fun time with our kids too.

While we are learning at home I’m trying to plan fun things to do for the older kids and also things that will keep daughter #4 busy too since we are doing pre-k at home instead of the traditional pre-k we’ve always done. Today we made art. And not just any art, we made people and animals with leaves and other nature items.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

CLICK HERE for more KIDS PROJECTS

And it was SO FUN!

We’ve done something similar before, painting with nature click here to see how fun that turned out. But today we didn’t break out any paints. We just used the colors (and the option for markers for faces) that we found in the things that God gave to our backyard.

The older girls actually enjoyed it way more than my pre-k girl did which completely surprised me. I figured they would think it was “baby-ish” but they fully enjoyed this crafty project.

Making leaf art with your kids

STEP 1

Gather pieces of nature. We took a small basket outside and filled it with all kind of things (I purposefully didn’t take a big basket out there because I knew they would fill it FULL lol! The small one was more than enough materials for them to create with)

• colorful leaves

• twigs

• some pine cone looking things

• blades of grass

• berries

• vines

• and whatever else the kiddos want to grab

STEP 2

Bring it inside and set up a place where the kids can get messy. We used our dining room table and since we weren’t painting I didn’t mess with putting a drop cloth down.

I brought out our metal bin of glues, squeeze glue bottles and glue sticks, washable markers for if they wanted to add faces or anything their imaginations could think of, kid friendly scissors, and copy paper.

STEP 3

I helped my preschooler at first, showing her how we could create a Thanksgiving Day turkey out of the leaves and although she thought that was really cool she just wanted to glue whatever, and most importantly wherever to her piece of paper.

We took a round leaf and glued it down first

Then we took longer more oblong looking leaves and glued them behind the round leaf for the Turkey feathers.

My pre-k girl wanted to use a piece of bark for the head so that’s what we used.

For the gobble we glued a small skinny leaf like thing down and pushed it up so it was under the bark head.

For the legs we just added a second stem from another leaf and glue it in place using a glue stick.

The most important step of all though is to just enjoy this crafty art time with your kids. Let them make a mess. Let them create. Let them make mistakes and not feel like they have to be perfect.

Here are a few finished leaf art pictures my girls made. I LOVE them! They were so creative and really took time to enjoy the whole process of this leaf art project. I can’t wait to do the next just for fun creative activity with them.

If you enjoy this craft with your kiddos be sure to check out this post on painting with nature.

A Christmas gift teens & tweens will LOVE!

DIY SPA KITS FOR TEENS

What does you preteen (tween), or teen want for Christmas? I don’t know about your kiddos but my girls are getting harder and harder to buy for the older they get.

I’m a momma of 4 girls, three of which are all with in 3 years of one another. They are stair steps and I love having them so close in age. One of the benefits is they are all kind of into the same things at the same time. But, this year the older 3 girls had just a few items on their Christmas wish lists, which isn’t a bad thing but it does make for more challenging shopping.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Anyway, I thought long and hard about what to get the girls for Christmas. I just know with 2020 being what it is, that we are going to have a TON of time at home.

So I decided we would gift them things they that would keep them busy over winter. On the list of items bought so far are lots of books, board games, art supplies and….. a SPA KIT! But not just any spa kit, this is like the ULTIMATE SPA KIT for teens!

I looked online and didn’t really find exactly what I was looking for so I thought I’d put together my own. So fitting for a frugal DIY momma.

So, how do you make a DIY SPA KIT you ask?

It might be easier than you think. If you are great at shopping online you can easily put one together too!

I started with this book, Girls' Home Spa Lab: All-Natural Recipes, Healthy Habits, and Feel-Good Activities to Make You Glow

It’s amazing! It has tons of recipes and other good for you activities. And since it’s written and illustrated for teen and tween girls they will extra love it. There’s no old fashioned old lady vibe with this DIY book. It has a fresh and modern look to it that’s super attractive and it makes me want to read all of it and make my own spa products.

Since this was just the book, no ingredients or anything, I read through it and picked out ingredients that were repetitive throughout the book. I didn’t want to buy every single ingredient in the book because that would be expensive and we keep several of the ingredients like olive oil and witch hazel on hand at home. I bought the main ones I kept seeing that we don’t usually have at home.

Here’s what I bought

1. ESSENTIAL OILS

2. ASSORTED DRIED FLOWERS & DRIED LAVENDER

3. COCOA BUTTER

4. BENTONITE CLAY POWDER

5. ARROWROOT POWDER

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Non ingredient items I ordered:

1. MORTAR & PESTLE

2. HANDHELD MIXER

I have a fancy Kitchen Aid stand mixer but I really didn’t want it taken over. I opted for this handheld mixer AND I was sure to get the one that has attached storage for the beaters. That way there’s less chance they will loose them.

3. DOUBLE BOILER

Just like with the mixer I really didn’t want the girls to use my double boiler for bath and body ingredients. I looked on good ole Amazon for double boilers and found this gem! It was exactly what I wanted!

This pot is great because it will fit in any pot we have at home. We have a few different small sauce pans and this double boiler option will work perfectly with all three of them.

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Of course the spa kit wouldn’t be complete without containers to put all their new spa products in. If you search on Amazon there’s a ton of different things to choose from. Here’s what I ordered for my girls. No judgements on the glass containers please ;) if you don’t feel comfortable with yours teens having glass there are other options out there. We typically will always choose glass over plastic, it’s just a personal preference.

4. SMALL PLASTIC CONTAINERS WITH SCREW ON LIDS

5. AMBER GLASS MINI SPRAY BOTTLES

6. 10ml AMBER GLASS ROLL ON CONTAINERS

7. 8OZ CLEAR SPA CONTAINERS

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As I’m writing this it’s early November so I have not packaged any of the gifts yet to put under the Christmas tree.

The girls know that one of their gifts is one big gift to share. So I think I’m going to wrap all the spa ingredients individually then put everything in a big box that will be wrapped too. You know, make it more fun for them to open it.

This gift is going to be amazing for the girls this winter and I can’t wait for them to start experimenting in the kitchen making their own bath and body products.

I’d love to know, is this something your teens/tweens would love? Let me know in the comments.

Last minute end of the season cheerleader gift bags

If you are needing to put together a last minute gift for a squad of cheerleaders, or SUPER last minute in my case, you have come to the right place! I needed to do the same thing last week for my daughter’s cheer team and I only had a few hours to make it happen.

I knew I didn’t want to spend a ton of money, because I’m frugal like that, but I also didn’t want whatever I put together to seem cheap.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

So off to Walmart I went. My youngest daughter and I trolled up and down the aisles of our TINY Walmart, which carries about 1/4 of the variety that a super center does, but we found some goodies that were perfect for cheerleader gift bags.

We went for a pamper yourself theme that the girls loved! And I only spend $60, not counting what I already had at home.

Here’s what I filled the bags with. Each girl got one of the following

• small tin of Nivea lotion (find it on Amazon here)

• clear nail polish

• nail file (purchased in a pk of 12)

• bath bomb

• coiled hair tie

• popcorn bag

• hot cocoa

• 2 mini chocolate bars

Other items I bought to make the gift bags

• roll of yellow ribbon

• roll of blue ribbon

• yellow tissue paper

• blue tissue paper

I already had these materials on hand

• brown paper bags

• vinyl (I used two different brands)

• Cricut cutting machine

• Cricut green mat

• Cricut Design Space

• Cricut Access

• transfer tape

• vinyl squeegee

• clear bags

To keep the bags simple, and because I didn’t know everyone’s name on the cheer squad, I cut out vinyl decals that said ‘ HUSKERS CHEER’ with a megaphone. I used Cricut Design Space and used my Cricut Access for this. Click here to find the link to my project in design space.

I made my decals 5” wide so they would fit perfectly on the gift bags.

I had two different brands of vinyl that I used (Oracal & Starcraft) but any colored vinyl, that’s not HTV, will work. What I had on had were matte and gloss but I would have preferred it all to have been matte.

I used my Cricut Explore and green cutting mat to cut my decals out. You can see how well loved both my machine and mat is lol! If you’re looking for a cart for your cutting machine I HIGHLY recommend the one in this pic. I absolutely LOVE it!

This decal was a little more work than I really wanted to do BUT it was sooooo cute! Each bag had 4 different vinyl pieces to put on the bags. But since they were all the same I was able to get them on the bags pretty quickly.

I used clear transfer tape and a vinyl squeegee to help get them on the bags easier.

I didn’t want to just throw everything inside the brown bags. I thought separating the items out like this made the pampered bags look a lot nicer and fancier. I put the nail polish and file in one bag. The edible treats in another bag. And the lotion, hair tie, and bath bomb in another bag. My cheerleader loved this.

Once I started getting the decals on my older girls and I made an assembly line to fill the bags. We were really pressed for time by this point lol. It worked pretty great. And they learned how to curl package ribbon.

These were so quick to make and had a lot of school spirit to show on the outside with the tissue paper and curled ribbons. The girls loved them!

I hope you enjoyed this quick and easy project.

Happy crafting!

Check out more projects made with my Cricut

How to remove wallpaper, NO chemicals needed just steam

HOW TO EASILY REMOVE WALLPAPER WITHOUT A GIANT MESS OR CHEMICALS

Wallpaper…you either love it or hate it. If you aren’t too hip on wallpaper and need to remove it from your home like we did then you have stumbled on the right post!

My husband and I just bought our very first home! After looking for what felt like forever and getting discouraged when everything we found seemed way out of our budget we finally found our home. Built in 1900 this home has everything we were looking for and more! Seriously so exciting, and we did it without having a credit score! I plan to write a post about the process we went through to help other people just like us but for now I want to share with you how to remove unsightly wallpaper. When we did our initial walk through we noticed the current owner at the time had a bit of an obsession for wallpaper. She had it everywhere! We are talking wallpaper on wallpaper on wallpaper in some cases. Cut outs of wallpaper in random places on the walls, almost like she was decoupaging wallpaper flowers to the wall here and there. And my favorite, well not really lol, is the room that had 6, yes SIX, different patters of wallpaper on the walls! And even wallpaper on the paneling that was on the wall. And it all had to come down.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

For being a super old home it is actually in great shape and only needs cosmetic updates thank goodness! We decided we were going to tackle these updates one room at a time and we took on the 6 wallpaper room as our first overhaul.

I had been thinking about how on earth we were going to take down all the wallpaper throughout the house. Was it going to be a pain in the butt? Were we going to have to spend a ton of money on a bunch of products? I had this theory that maybe if I used my garment steamer that maybe that would help…maybe. To my surprise the second I started taking the floral, brick, and teddy bear printed papers it actually came off the walls so seamlessly! I rarely ran into an issue peeling it off the wall. I don’t know if it was the type of wallpaper or the way the previous owners had applied it but it was almost effortless taking it off of the wall.

I didn’t even use any chemicals just STEAM!

I couldn’t find the exact handheld garment steamer I used but here is one that is pretty similar.

Here is what the wall I used for this tutorial looked like before. I feel like I need to say again, this is how we bought our house with all this lovely wallpaper lol!

And here’s what it looked like once I started steaming the wallpaper off. A million times better! Because the house is so old we did find some issues which honestly we were expecting there to be something hidden behind all that glorious wallpaper. Those walls will be getting a lot more tlc and we ended up taking out two of the walls completely and gutted them back to the studs. Which in 120 year old homes they used REAL 2x4’s unlike the 2x4’s they produce today that don’t actually measure 2”x4”.

Here’s how I removed 6 different wallpaper prints from my 120 year old walls.

1. PREP

When I started removing the hideous wallpaper it was more of a spur of the moment kind of thing. I had just unpacked my handheld garment steamer then ran upstairs to test out if my theory would work. Once I got going on the removal process I didn’t want to stop. So nope, I didn’t prep or cover a darn thing when removing the wallpaper but if you’re worried about your flooring or any furniture I recommend covering it up just to be on the safe side.

2. WARM UP

I filled my inexpensive steamer with water, plugged it in and let it heat up. When the steam starts rolling out of the holes then you know it’s ready to start using.

3. STEAM THE WALL

I stood on my step ladder and started working from a top corner, placed my steamer against the wallpaper and held it there till the wallpaper was wet but not overly wet if that makes sense. The steam loosens the glue on the back of the wallpaper allowing it to release from the wall.

4. PEEL

Once the wallpaper was loosened up I started to peel it off. Then pulled the paper while steaming at the same time working my way down the wall.

5. REFILL

Because my handheld steamer is small it doesn’t hold much water so I did have to refill it often. But honestly I wouldn’t buy a giant steamer just to remove wallpaper in my house. I like that the steamer is the size of an iron so I can put it away easily and it doesn’t take up much space.

If you run into any issues with stubborn spots you can use a putty knife to help remove those areas. Or you can do what I did and use a spatula! Yes, I totally used that on my wall since I couldn’t find a professional tool so the kitchen utensil worked great instead! I placed my steamer over those stubborn areas, made sure the were good and steamed then they peel right off with the spatula.

I hope you found this tutorial helpful in removing old wallpaper in your home. If you have any questions please ask below in the comments.

How to make your own corsage with faux flowers

DIY YOUR OWN CORSAGE WITH FAKE FLOWERS

Real corsages are gorgeous! But they can be a little pricey, especially for being a small part of the fancy attire. Our small town held a father daughter dance and I really wanted my girls to feel extra special and wear a corsage. Since my husband was taking three of our four daughters I figured it would be more cost effective if I ordered them from a big chain grocery florist. I looked online and they were $20+ per corsage plus $20 for my husbands boutonniere. A total of $80 for accent flowers…that was not in the budget. What I did instead was take a trip to our local Walmart and picked out some inexpensive flowers, hair ties, and floral tape. I spent a total of $13 and everyone got a beautiful corsage/boutonniere to wear to the fancy daddy daughter dance.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional. This is just a way I can help add to our family finances to raise our four daughters. Please know I would never recommend a product or service I do not totally stand behind.

I’ll be honest, I tried to make one for the oldest of the four daughters when she was in the first grade and it turned out awful! I used a real flower that was WAY too big and it seriously looked like a Pinterest fail! This time around I extra crossed my fingers they would turn out as a win and thank goodness they did! The girls got SO MANY C0MPLIMENTS on them at the dance.

DIY FLOWER CORSAGE

Here’s what I used

• faux round roses

• faux babies breath

• faux spring flower bunch

• green floral tape

• felt

• scissors

• wire cutters

• black hair tie (pony tail holder)

• hot glue gun

• gorilla glue hot glue sticks

Make this DIY even more inexpensive by visiting your local DOLLAR TREE. They have a great floral selection depending on the season.

I found everything I needed at Walmart. I already had the glue, glue gun, and felt on hand so I didn’t need to pick those up. I also had a ton of supplies left over. I used some in their hair for little accents and then still had some left over. I couldn’t believe it cost around $3 per corsage to make. That beats $20/ wrist corsage any day!

1. I cut a rectangle that was smaller than the width of one of my daughter’s wrist. This is what I glued my flowers to. Then, I cut a second rectangle that was a little smaller than the first rectangle.

2. I picked out 2 main flowers for the corsages. I used these gorgeous round roses I found at my local Walmart that were about $3 per stem. I used 2 per corsage and 1 for my husband’s boutonniere. I made these round roses the focal point and added the other flowers as accents. I pulled the round rose flower heads off of their stems then I cut them flush at the bottom of the flower so that the bottom side of the flower was flat.

3. I started layering the flowers that surrounded the main flowers. This took me a little while to get the flowers where I wanted them to go. I used a combination of baby’s breath, lavender, and a spring flower bunch. I had to trim them up here and there, so don’t be afraid to do that too. This will keep your corsage from being gigantic. See the picture below, I had to trim down the lavender stems so that they wouldn’t be so long. I did this carefully making sure I wasn’t removing too much.

4. I attached the accent flower stems together. Basically I made double ended floral stems. I tried to make them somewhat similar in size in both length and width so that the corsage wasn’t lopsided. I didn’t make them identical, I used different accent flowers on each end but was sure to incorporate baby’s breath on each end. Then I wrapped the middle of the double ended floral stem in green floral tape to keep them together.

5. I placed them on the bigger rectangle to see where exactly I wanted to place them before I started gluing anything down. This is the time to trim your felt down if you need to.

6. Then I used my glue gun to glue everything down to the felt. I first glued down the double ended floral stem I made. Let that dry so that it gets secure. Then I glued down the main focal point flowers, the round roses.

7. Fill in the gaps. After I got the roses glued down and the glue dried I added in more accent flowers where I thought the corsage was bare. I even cut off single leaves, this spring bunch I picked up had the most beautiful soft lambs ear like leaves. I added in several of those leaves where I thought they would look good. I attached some to the sides of the roses. I also did this with the baby’s breath. Before I glued them down I was sure to double check I liked that placement. A tiny dab of glue is all you need for these little pieces.

8. Once I was happy with how it look and the glue was dry I flipped it over and added a thick hair tie. While recording this tutorial I actually attached my hair tie the wrong way. For the most comfort I suggest gluing on the hair tie so that the corsage lays vertically against the wrist. So you would want to attach your hair tie so that it would sit on the rectangle horizontally. Once that glue dries glue the second rectangle on top of the hair tie so that the hair tie is sandwiched in-between the two pieces of felt. This will make it really secure and will be difficult for the elastic to come off.

I hope you enjoyed this inexpensive tutorial. Like with all of my posts, if you have any questions at all please don’t hesitate to ask.

Happy crafting!

DIY Dollar Tree work for hire chore chart

Easy work for hire board

I don’t know about you but in my house we don’t do allowance. Well, not the traditional allowance anyway. Instead, we have a work for hire board. And I so wish I would have made this sooner. For years my girls have been asking “what needs to be done” for them to earn money for the not so everyday chores around the house. Of course they would ask at the times when my brain was on anything but that and I would have to stop and think hard about what needs to be done and how much to pay for that chore.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Now my brain doesn’t have that extra stress (yes, it’s a stress when your sweet daughter is asking to do work around the house so she can make some cash and your brain just draws a blank :(! ) Having this work for hire board is WONDERFUL! I clip the money to the chore that needs to be done. Then they do the chore and take their earnings. This gives them so much independence and instills a good work ethic that they will carry with them through adulthood. Everyone is happy! They get paid and I didn’t have to wash the windows lol!

Now, I don’t pay the girls to do everyday things like washing dishes, picking up the living room, washing their clothes. Those are everyday kind of chores. The chores on the work for hire board are more like washing the windows, wiping down the baseboards, deep cleaning the bathroom, organizing the stockpile, etc.

And to make it even better was that I picked up the metal tin I used for the work for hire boar from the Dollar Tree! All together this DIY cost less than $5 for everything. See more of my DIY Dollar Tree crafts.

FREE PRINTABLE- 36 work for hire chore ideas for you to print off. Click the photo below to get the password for instant access to my free resource library.

How to make a kid’s work for hire board

Here’s what you’ll need

• round metal pizza pan, I got mine from the Dollar Tree

• small magnets

• chalk paint

• acrylic paint

• clothes pins

• paint brush

• oracal vinyl (this is where I got mine)

• transfer tape

• vinyl squeegee

• clear finishing spray

• wide ribbon

• work for hire svg

• E6000

Helpful tools

• CRICUT (I use an explore)

• CRICUT CUTTING MAT

• CRICUT ACCESS

ONE-

Use chalk paint and paint the entire front of your pizza pan. I painted two coats on mine, letting the first one dry completely before painting the second coat on. To add a little rustic feel I added some cream colored accent markings to mine. I did this while the second coat of paint was still wet and just liberally added in strokes of the cream colored chalk paint. Let your painted pizza pan dry. I let mine day for several days because I had other things to do before I could finish it up. After mine dried I gave it a quick spray with a clear sealant to give it a protective top coat.

TWO-

Paint your clothes pins. I just used two colors, pink and gray. I painted my clothespins with two coats of acrylic paint to get a good coverage on them. Let them dry.

THREE-

Add a vinyl decal to the top that says ‘ work for hire’. You can make your own or grab one similar to the one I used, get it in my FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY. I used gray oracal 651 vinyl for mine. Even though I allowed my painted pizza pan to dry for several days I wasn’t sure if the transfer tape would remove the paint so I applied my decal very gently. I tried not to push the transfer tape down too much and focused on just the decal. Thankfully none of the paint came off of my pizza pan when applying the work for hire decal.

FOUR-

Write the chores on your clothes pins. Ours don’t change too much, they are pretty much the same things that need to be done every month so I used a fine point sharpie to write on mine. When I made mine I wrote on the painted clothespins after I glued the magnets to them…big mistake. It would have been far easier to write on them first, glued magnets second. But now I know for next time AND I know the right way to tell you how to do it so you don’t make the mistake I did.

FIVE-

Use E6000 and glue a magnet to the backside of each of your clothespins. If you’ve never heard of E6000 it’s basically a really strong glue. It does take about 24 hours to fully dry though. Oh, and it does have a bit of a weird smell to it but it is good for crafts lol! Set your clothespins somewhere they won’t be disturbed so they can dry properly.

SIX-

Add a ribbon hanger to the back. Make sure it lines up with the front, you don’t want a lopsided chart hanging up after all this hard work. Use tape to hold the ribbon in place on the backside. Glue to the back side of the pizza pan using E6000. I used the discarded piece of backing from my vinyl to press the ribbon into the glue. I didn’t want all of that on my fingers. That worked great for me! Just like with the clothespins, set the pizza pan in a place it can fully dry without being disturbed.

SEVEN-

After everything is dry hang up and add your clothespins with the money attached to them.

I hope you enjoyed this crafty tutorial and that it helps and inspires you to create your own. As with all of my posts, if you have any questions please feel free to ask.

Happy crafting!

Want instant access to all of my freebies? Fill out the info below and you instantly get the password to get into my FREE RESOURCE LIBRARY. This is where I share all of my printable, files, more to share with anyone that wants them to use for non commercial use.

12 tips to make your trip to the zoo even better and stress free

I love watching my girl’s faces light up when they see all the animals at the zoo. But to tell you the truth, I haven’t always loved actually going. I know all moms everywhere can relate. It can be so much work and STRESS to take your kids places like this by yourself. But it can be fun for you too you just have to change a few things up. For more fun stress free adventures with the kids check out my backyard camping tips.

Here are my top 12 tips to make your zoo trip even better.

1. Go to the zoo when it’s not crazy hot. When I’m hot I get grumpy, which really just means that I’m not enjoyable to be around lol! So we always go on days when this crazy Midwest weather isn’t scorching.

2. If you’re taking multiples have them wear the same color. I have four girls so I bought larger pink shirts from Walmart, so they could grow in to them each year, and those were our zoo shirts. This way it’s super easy to pick them out in the crowd.

3. Take a backpack. this is a must! Anytime we are going to be out walking around for extended periods I ALWAYS wear my backpack. I’m not a fashion forward kind of girl so this does not intrude on my style one bit. Comfort over fashion, that’s how I roll lol!

4. Don’t over pack. I know you’ll want to take everything but the kitchen sink but the truth is you don’t need everything. I used to be that mom and I learned that I don’t need to be prepared for EVERYTHING. The zoo is equipped with Band-Aids if one of my precious girls falls and skins her knee. So keep the load light and if you absolutely need something you didn’t pack it’s not the end of the world, the zoo will likely have what you need.

5. Pack the essentials. I’m talking wet wipes, ibuprofen for both you and the kids, Benadryl for the kids {this is a must with us because we’ve been in situations where we needed it asap for a yellow jacket sting and now I don’t go on trips like this without it}. These items are small and will fit easily and weightlessly in your backpack. Trust me, these are items you don’t want to buy once you get there. Talk about a convenience fee.

6. Pack a lunch. I don’t think we’ve ever bought lunch at the zoo. The prices there are crazy high so we pack one. If you choose to pack a lunch keep it simple. We usually take a sandwich, cut up veggies, chips, and something sweet for everyone. I’ve found if I keep my kids busy they don’t want to snack all day. So keep pointing out those animals and talking about them, they’ll likely not ask for a snack.

7. Take refillable water bottles. We usually take two and I keep them in the side pockets of my backpack. Our zoo has water refill stations everywhere there is a bathroom so we usually refill every time we stop to use the facilities. And with four kids we stop often.

8. Everyone NEEDS to wear comfortable walking shoes. We don’t ever wear sandals or flipflops, always tennis shoes because again, comfort over fashion ;)! Not having your kiddos complain that their feet are hurting from wearing uncomfortable shoes is a glorious thing! You might have to stand your ground before you leave the house but you’ll be SO thankful at the end of the day bc the jelly shoes little Susie wanted to wear won’t be giving her blisters today 🙌!

9. Pack sunscreen. Our family is full of fair skinned faces so we apply this a lot throughout the day. If your sunscreen bottle is a little too big to carry around all day get a small travel sized shampoo bottle from the Dollar Tree and fill that with your sunscreen.

10. Bug spray. If you live in an area with little flying evil blood suckers, in other words mosquitos, you will probably need this. Even on days when it’s not typical prime mosquito weather we’ve still encountered them at the zoo. I always take this just to be on the safe side. For some reason they REALLY love us.

11. Take quarters, enough for all your kiddos, to feed the animals. Our zoo has several areas that kids can feed the animals and sure enough the times when I forget quarters the change machine is down. So take enough for each of your children to get their own to feed for the animals.

12. Don’t feel like you have to see everything. The times when my girls and I have had the most fun at the zoo is when we go in without a plan. These are the days when I’m not stressing over making it in time for them to watch the birds get fed, or rushing through the animals so fast so we can see them all and we end up not really SEEING them because we rushed. Take your time and enjoy it. And if your kids want to stop and play let them play. Granted you’re there to see the animals but you’re also there to enjoy the day with your kids and if stopping for 20 minutes will make them happy, let them play.

As a mom of four this list has helped me tremendously enjoy our trips to the zoo. The important thing to remember is tip #12. It’s all about enjoying the day with those precious little souls.

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Starting a side hustle from home when you're a stay at home momma

SIDE HUSTLE I know so many mommas out there can relate to this. Whether you want to bring in a little income to make ends meet or you simply just want to feel apart of the work force again you are not alone.

Affiliate Disclosure. Some of the links on this website are affiliate links, which means that I may earn a small commission if you click on the link or make a purchase using the link. If you make a purchase you will not be charged anything additional.

Before I get too deep into this I want to clarify I LOVE being a SAHM {stay at home momma}. It fulfills me and makes me a better person. I have never resented the choice to stay home with our four girls and I know I never will but I also enjoy bringing in an income for our family and doing something that makes me feel like I’m apart of the workforce.

So you want to start a side hustle from the convenience of your home while still fully being a SAHM. How the heck do you do that in such a saturated online market space? I’m not going to tell you it’s easy but it IS easier than ever before to make money from home. Even just 11 years ago when we had our very first daughter there was no way we had the resources in our home for me to be in the online space. Heck, my husband and I didn’t even have fancy phones back then we still relied on our home phone to make calls. But now here we are in 2019 and I am not only doing a side hustle in the online space from home I am making a part time income that we use to pay actual bills every single month. As a mom of four this is SO fulfilling! I get to express my creativity, bring in money for our family, and live out my dreams.

I’m going to walk you through some things you should be doing if you too are a SAHM and want to start your own side hustle.

You need to decided what you love to do. Starting a side hustle doing something you love and enjoy will be far more successful than something you hate. For instance I love crafting! I’m pretty sure it runs through my blood stream so naturally I went that route. I don’t particularly love taking surveys or doing MLM {multi level marketing, think Mary Kay} although I have tried those types of things, they aren’t for me. If you don’t know what you love I suggest making a list of things you might be interested in. Start researching those topics, see if you can make a side hustle out of them first, then try your hand at whatever it is before you get too heavily deep into your hustle. Sometimes we find that we really like something on the surface but it isn’t till we get our hands in it we don’t actually LOVE doing it.

Research. Research. Research. I can’t tell you how many videos I watched, articles I read, and newsletters I subscribed to until I found the answers I was looking for. And I’m still learning every single day because the online space changes rapidly. I personally was looking into selling on Etsy but selling online was a bit foreign to me. I had never been a customer on Etsy before so I had no idea how that platform worked but I knew it would be a good starting off point for a handmade business from all the things I researched. I learned so much about things I didn’t even know I needed to know. If you do some research and want to open your own Etsy shop you can get 40 FREE listings. {that is an affiliate link where Etsy will give us both 40 listings for free when you open a shop}.

Block time out. This is a must and something I struggle with because I am a momma of four. I have learned over the years I NEED to do this. Multitasking in your business, for instance I would starting painting boards and while they were drying I would do house work. While this may seem logical it really wasn’t. I would move from one chore to the next because the housework needed to get done and before I knew it the day was over and school was letting out. Find a time that works for your family and schedule it. Remember though, you’re a momma so there will be times when your schedule gets all messed up and crazy, that’s life. Just go with it and if you try to make an effort to stick to your schedule the best you can and you will see bigger results in your side hustle.

Take it seriously. If you take your business seriously and don’t care what anyone outside of your immediate family {your husband and your kids} thinks your business will be successful. You can’t let anyone make you feel like what you are doing doesn’t matter or that you won’t go anywhere with it. That negativity is not welcome! If I listened to those vibes then I certainly wouldn’t be sitting here typing this for you to read.

Have a space to work. This is a must. It doesn’t have to be very big but you do need a space. When I first started selling online we were living in a TINY house with just 2 bedrooms for 6 people. Granted we could make that work because our girls were young, newborn-2nd grade, but we were still living on top of one another. I made my space behind our couch. I had a small 4’ table that I had set up that I only took down if we had company coming over for a party or holiday so we could make more room. Was it my dream space? Absolutely not. But it was a space where I could work on orders and I was grateful for that tiny little space.

Don’t give up. If you truly want to make your side hustle work you can’t give up the first time you fall. I have fallen many, MANY times but with each fall I learn something new that I can apply to my life and business. When I first started out we didn’t have internet in our house, no computer, no printer, so I would go to the library to print off my Etsy orders and shipping labels. Do you know how hard it is to take four kids to the library to try and work? But I didn’t give up, I pushed forward and I am SO glad I did. It wasn’t easy but I knew it could be done if I just kept trying day after day.

I hope these small tips help you on your path to finding that side hustle you’re looking for.

6 Easy ways to keep the kids busy in a hotel

Over the years we have done a lot of traveling with our girls. Before our youngest was born we traveled so much that our older three had visited 22 different states in just a few short years! 

Prior to our most recent trip, one of our favorite states to visit was hands down Wisconsin! I know, it sounds crazy to be completely in awe of  Wisconsin...but it's absolutely GORGEOUS! Since our last trip I have to say Florida is in the running for the fave state {outside of Missouri of course ;)!}

We recently took a trip, a 22 hour road trip {that's a whole other post lol} to Florida. We loaded up our four girls plus our niece and hit the road for a little vacay...ok a long vacay, we took two whole weeks off! And boy did we LOVE every second of it! We didn't do the whole Disney thing,  instead we explored everything else Mid-Florida had to offer. We got to see and swim in some AMAZING beaches {if you're ever in Florida you HAVE to stop by Flagler Beach! You won't be disappointed!!}, explored the wildlife conservation areas, roamed with the dinosaurs {ok, not really but we did stop by a really cool dinosaur exhibit that the girls loved}, had a blast at SeaWorld Aquatic, and visited some pretty fun museums. 

Here are some tips and tricks to keeping your sanity in the hotel with the little ones...

SNACKS

Fed kids are happy kids. I know, it kinda goes against parent rules to let your kiddos snack often but when on vacation, those rules don't apply. Have fun, let loose, and let them eat the snacks:)! Trust me, you will thank yourself for this one.

FORTS

Fort building is a MUST when you're in a hotel. Typically we bring our own blankets and pillows when staying in a hotel so there is an abundance of fort making things around the hotel room. Most hotels have little side tables, a chair or two, a night stand, and of course a bed. If you have kiddos you probably have two beds and the space between is a PERFECT space for fort building. Just lay a long blanket or sheet from one bed extending to the next and viola you have built the perfect cave for your kiddos to enjoy! Bring along flashlights and you will be mom of the year in their eyes. This is my absolute most favorite fun activity our girls do to keep themselves busy in a hotel...actually pretty much anywhere! They are fort building machines!

GAMES

Our girls love playing cards. Their favorites are rummy, solitaire, go fish, and trashcan. All can be played with a single regular deck of cards {you can pick up a two pack at the dollar store for a buck!}. If your kiddos aren't into cards or aren't old enough for cards there are lots of quieter board games out there. I suggest bringing games that have very little pieces. Here's a list of board games with few to little pieces.

• Guess Who

• Sorry

• Yahtzee

• Checkers

A list of non-board games you can play

• Pictionary {we use small dry erase board for this}

• charades

• wall puppets with flashlights

• hide and seek in the dark {this is one of our kiddos favorite games}

SWIMMING

Most hotels have swimming pools these day. While we were in Florida our girls practically lived in their swimsuits the whole two weeks! If we weren't at the beach or exploring the town we were in the pool. We bought some inexpensive pool noodles and floaties for the girls and it made swimming even better! Although wearing a swimsuit, and I'll be honest summer in general, isn't really my favorite thing, we had a lot of fun hanging out in the pool. Our oldest daughter mastered her swimming skills and the younger three got even more comfortable with water. By the end of our vacation they were little tadpoles!

OUTSIDE PLAY

If you are lucky enough to strike this hotel GOLD take advantage of it! Our hotel in Florida had an AMAZING grassy oasis that was perfect for the girls to run around and be kids. On nights we'd get back to the room too early for bed my husband and I would sit on the patio enjoying an adult beverage while the girls played and chased tiny lizards {surprisingly they caught several of those quick little guys}.

I will say this is very rare. Out of all the hotels we've stayed in this was one of the few that has had this outdoor area. 

ELECTRONICS

I know you are saying to yourself 'I don't want my kiddos mindlessly in front of the electronics' but like with everything, things are good in moderation. If it's been a crazy day and you really need some quiet time turn on the tv and let the kids enjoy a movie while you catch your breath. You'll be glad you did.