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Monday, April 29, 2013

Month of Mary

May is a couple days away.  Catholics celebrate May as the Month of Mary.  We honor her is various ways as a way to thank her for her sacrifices.  In no way do we worship her, nor does she wish to be worshipped.  Just a quick Catholic tidbit for you. :)  We also make a pilgrimage to a local shrine or Grotto.

Anyway, last year I cut out a large crown from some sturdy paper and each day the kids would colour a small flower and we would glue them on the crown while saying a "Hail Mary" prayer.  As you can see at the end of May, the flowers add up.  That's 31 days and three children (at that time who could colour) each pasting a flower on the crown.



This year I decided to cut out a large moon shape (aka: circle).  I described Mary as the moon.  She reflects the light of the Son (Sun).  We look to her for light in a dark world but we know she's not the source of the light.  Instead of flowers we're going to colour stars. 31 Days, 4 children who can now colour.  That's a lot of stars.



Also, each day we'll say a "Hail Mary" for certain people / situations.  The list is posted to the right of the moon.


Some ideas that you could offer up a "Hail Mary" for are:
-The Pope
-Teachers
-Abortion
-Suicidal
-Grieving
-The sick and those who care for them
-Canada
-Government officials
-Military members
-The homeless
-The hungry and those without clean water
-Safety of children in schools/daycares
-Neighbours
-Family life
-Those who do not truly know the peace and love of Jesus
-Bullies

I'll share with you the result of our Moon in June.

Blessings,
Christina

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Mastering Lists

I am a list taker.   I'd write items on scrap pieces of paper and then lose the papers only to find them later and realize I have the same item written down on a couple papers.  After crossing off some items I would throw the list away 'cause I didn't want to keep a list with only one item left.  I  intended to transfer that lone item to the another flighty loose list, but sometimes didn't.  I ended up forgetting things and on the back of my mind I'd have this "what was I trying to remember?" taunting me.  It was beginning to stress me out.

"Never fear! Take charge!" I say!!!

I needed a place to put all of my lists.  One central location that I can refer to and not lose.  I wanted to be able to carry it with me.  Not it in a bulky book.  I also wanted to add papers and delete them if I wanted.

So I made my own using a vertical duotang, cardstock and labels.  I cut the duotang to a nice size to be able to carry it anywhere.



Not bad.  It worked for a couple days, but the pages were hard to turn and write on. Not pleasing to the eye, either.  I didn't place the tabs evenly and they were crooked.  Blah!

I had this address book.


Cute, but it didn't really work for our contacts.  Sometimes I'd record people under their last name, and some by their first.  I couldn't remember which.  Plus we don't know that many people to have to separate them alphabetically.  So here's the new Address Book. I did a swap.


I now have people filed under categories Family, Friends and Neighbours.

Much better.

And this is what I did with the address book.

First I took out some of the dividers.




Labelled them.



I had to cut my own paper and use a one-hole-puncher to punch the holes.



I added pretty cardstock to cover the "Address Book" label and made my own.



Much better.


The envelope on the left holds paper for confession.  If I try to remember my sins; as soon as I get into the confessional, they're gone.  Which is how it truly is but only after you confess them!

Now all my lists have a home.

To Do: My general to do's that don't fit anywhere else, like -fill out paper work, -complete claim, etc.

House Projects:  All my organizing projects that I have planned.

Sewing Projects: Self explanatory, no?

Blog:  What I want to blog about and the many things I want to learn about running a blog.

Goals:  My bucket list goes here, and personal goals.

To Buy:  Things I need for the kids, such as shoes and sizes, sewing supplies needed and any organizing items I need go here.  I don't know about you , but even if I go in a store even only needing to buy one item; as soon as I go into the store, poof!  It's gone.  Outta my mind, gone. "What did I need to buy again?" This list is such a saver, for time and sanity I might add.

There you have it.

Blessing,
Christina

Monday, April 15, 2013

Magnetic Marble Run

Here's a simple marble run that's sure to entertain, for at least .... 10 min.

I've kept random magnets that come in the mail.  I knew someday they would come in handy and sure enough, today proved to be that day.


All you need is:
- strong magnets
- paper towel tube, or toilet paper tubes
- little cup, milk cap (so you can catch the marble, and to bounce off)
- hot glue

All you do;
-cut the tubes in half
-cut the magnet ot fit the tubes but make sure there's a lot of surface area.  It will make the tubes stick better on the fridge.
-hot glue magnets on the back
-place on fridge in strategic ways and have fun!





Just a note.  The magnets need to be of good quality, otherwise when the marble hits the tube, it will just fall off the fridge.

There you have it.  Practically free entertainment.  Careful with marbles and little ones.

Blessings,
Christina

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Lego Storage on the Cheap

Hello All,

Just a quick post for ya today.  This is how we store our LEGO.




Just some Ziplocs, and a wicker basket and you're all set.  I leave the bags open for a quick and easy drop into the appropriate bag.

Blessings,
Christina