Beating the Winter Blues

I've been getting a few requests for lists of projects that are easy to do on an 'inside day' so I decided to do a post on crafts to stay stocked on and simple projects to keep your little ones entertained!

My craft box has essentials so that on any random day, I can pull it out and make something. When I am thinking of a specific project that calls for more, I go and get that. Whenever we go to WalMart or Target, I cruise through the clearance aisles to see what I can score for super cheap that can be used for crafts. We have a wall in the apartment that has been designated for all the art to hang. It's great! Benny points to previous projects and asks to repeat them. Or he tells me about how we made them. He really loves it! The other day, while coloring, he goes, "Oh gy gosh! (his version of oh my gosh) I love projects Mommy!!" Sigh. Love.

Anyway, here's what I keep in my box:

Different types of papers - construction paper, foam paper, felt paper

Pom-poms, fuzzy straws (pipe-cleaners), popsicle sticks, wooden letters, I have googly eyes somewhere but I couldn't find them for some reason 

Different adhesives - tacky glue (craft glue) (I prefer the quick dry in clear), school glue, glue stick, wood glue, packing tape, and I also have a hot glue gun (always good to have a large bag of glue refills) 

Different mediums of color - washable finger paints (I use plastic shotglasses to give Benny a bit from each color), acrylic paints, colored pencils, crayons (not pictured) 

I like to keep scissors, pens, pencils and permanent markers in a separate container for my use. 

Every roll of toilet paper or paper towel that gets finished goes straight to the craft box.

Sometimes I find craft kits in the clearance aisle or just super affordable. We have a sun-catcher kit that comes with supplies for 8, picked it up for $5 at WalMart. We also found a felt puppet-making kit at Hobby Lobby, priced at $4.75, with an additional 40% off! 

On quiet days, I browse through different crafting sites for ideas - Oriental Trading, Rhode Island Novelty, etc. I keep a list in my box. When we have a hankering for a project, I just look through my list and pull out the supplies!

Even though it's not quite Chanukah yet, my father got Benny an early present (amazing sales call for early gifts!). We got him a Step2 Train Table that doubles as a craft table! We roll this out for the bigger projects. His little picnic table just wasn't cutting it anymore! I really want to get a roll of white butcher paper for large projects, keeping my eye out for good deals still.

Alright, here are some quick ideas. Feel free to ask questions!
Let's start with some Thanksgiving crafts:
** Paper plate turkey - Paint a large paper plate and small paper brown. Glue foam feathers to the back of the large plate, and two foam arms to the front. Make a face on the small plate with eyes, a beak, and a gullet. Attach foam feet to the large plate so they hang off the bottom.
** Pine cone turkey - Cut out feathers from different colored foam papers. Glue them to the pines. Using a pipe cleaner, make feet and glue to the bottom of the pine cone. Make a beak out of pipe cleaner as well. Make a gullet out of foam and attach to 'beak', along with googly eyes. Attach beak to the pine cone.

** Hats - There are so many cute ways to enjoy the meal itself. Different hats are a great way to get everyone at the table involved and give your kids a little feel for what the history of the holiday involves. You can make Pilgrim hats, turkey headbands, Indian headbands. Another cute thing to do is make turkey beaks with a gullet hanging down, attached to a large popsicle stick, that can be held up to your nose.


Some other non-holiday crafts here:
** Hand creations - Easiest and one of Benny's favorites. I trace his hands on construction paper and then outline them with permanent marker. Give him some crayons or paint and see what he can create!
** Apple prints - This one calls for paints. (I prefer to use the washable finger paints unless I'm working with wood.) Slice an apple in half. Paint it and use it as a stamp on paper.
** Fish aquarium - Decorate blue construction paper/cellophane with fish and other marine regulars. Create a frame for the tank out of popsicle sticks. Use a pipe cleaner to make a handle on the top so it can be hung up.
**Egg carton school bus - Paint one side of an egg carton yellow (or red, if your kid loves fire trucks!). In the dips, glue pictures of friends and family members who would be riding along with you!

There are so many things you can do with random things at home. Just be creative and think outside the box! Hopefully this is a good start for everyone! Enjoy!

He Needs To Know

Been feeling pretty 'blah' these past few days. I'm going to Des Moines for a project date with the Feeley boys today and I'm pretty excited to be getting out!

Originally, Shuky and I decided to keep Benny on a need-to-know basis about the pregnancy. Judging by the way Benny behaved with Baby Essie (Slater) and his level of rough-housing with me (specifically my midsection!), we decided it was time to start talking baby with Benny. So, we all sat down together to discuss it. We told him that there's a baby in Mommy's tummy. His response was: "Baby Moshe (Feeley) in your belly button!?!?!?!"
"No, Benny. It's not Baby Moshe!"
"Baby Essie in there???"
"Nope, kid. Not Baby Essie either! It's our OWN baby!"
"Oh."
Apparently, he was a lot more excited at the prospect of getting a Baby Moshe or Baby Essie. Was very cute!

The following day, without talking about it, I pointed to my stomach and asked if he remembered what was in there. He did. :) He started rubbing my tummy, saying, "Hi baby! How are you today?" The next day he came to sing the ABC's to the baby. Of course, like his father, he believes that my belly button is the intercom system so he talks directly into it!

When he gets too wild and I remind him, he 'makes nice' to my stomach, accompanied with, "I sorry baby!"

It's Hot, Then It's Cold

Today, my A/C is running. Benny went out without a coat or a hat. Shuky went out in short sleeves. This weather is really weird but, hey, I'm not going to complain about gorgeous weather in November!

Friday is my 25th birthday. I feel old. Imagine how the generation above me must feel!! ;)

Not much to report on the home front. We had a great shabbos with our guests from Postville (come back soon Slater family!) and the apartment is mostly back to the way it should be. I decided to keep the extra bed in Benny's room for now, makes bedtime a bit easier, giving us our own bed to lay on instead of curling into his! He actually loves it, "You go on the smiley face bed Tatty, I go on my bed!" Don't let that fool you into thinking night time is going smoothly. He just has something to be excited about until he realizes it's time to go to sleep!

Being that one can never travel often enough, we are getting ready for our upcoming Thanksgiving vacation. Almost a week in Miami. Sigh. I'm ready! Bring out the shorts and sandals, the bathing suits, the lack of homework for Shuky. Add a side of fries and a milk shake. We're talking perfection in the making!

In the meantime, I'm working on plans for winter break. As of now, everything keeps falling through. It may be a quiet vacation at home, as sad as that sounds! Not that this comes as a surprise to me, but planning trips without any money just doesn't have a way of working out. We finally rounded up enough mileage to make California the winning ticket and they bounced the flight costs up to double because of the holiday season. So now, my three tickets just became one and a half. Better than none, but still leaves me with a bill. No can do!

Oh, and I'm still below my pre-pregnancy weight. As I'm nearing my halfway mark, I'm really hoping this grossness is going to fade out sooner rather than later!

My show is fully buffered, it's back to Gossip Girl I go!

I'm That Neighbor!

Our upstairs neighbors (cute, single college girls) have a tendency of really enjoying their weekends. Normally it's just music, it usually ends around two in the morning, at the latest! Nothing that keeps me up at night.

Last night, they had at least 30 people in their apartment, running around, screaming, drunkenly throwing/dropping things. Until 3:45. In the morning. I was up the whole time, as was Benny. At around 11, Shuky went up there and asked them nicely to tone it down. They, of course, profusely apologized and promised to be quieter. Obviously, they only got louder!

Aside from the music and noise of their movement, this group of people must have all had bad bladders. Literally every ten seconds the toilet was being flushed. And, for some reason, any time they flush their toilet, it sounds like a hurricane in our bedroom!

Shuky had to stop me from going up there. I was not feeling like a nice person and it would not have been a friendly visit.

Today, I went up there (not at 7 like I wanted to...) to talk to them. After I had coffee, needless to say. I was nice and explained the frustration we were feeling. We talked. They were extremely grateful that we hadn't chosen to call the police on them (I'm assuming that has happened with previous neighbors), or the building management. I told them I really didn't want it to get to the point where I would feel that was a necessary move!

Keep your fingers and toes crossed that this has some sort of effect on tonight!!! I really would like a good night's sleep, for me and for our guests!!

A Service Unto Others, Part Duex

Back in February, I put out a list of the regular mama sites I visit to find great products at even greater prices. My day usually starts with checking this list!


Some require membership (always free, never join a site that has a sign-up fee), some don't. Both types are worth checking!


I hope this is as helpful to everyone out there as it is to me!!
(I pulled some of this list right off my old post, after double checking that each link is still a functioning site!)
My advice to you, though, is to check shipping rates before getting too excited. Sometimes, they really hike up those rates and at the end of the day, you're better off scouring Amazon or the likes!


These are daily deal sites. Every day brings you a new treat!
www.kids.woot.com - updated every night at midnight EST
www.babysteals.com - updated daily at 9 am MST
www.kidsteals.com - same deal as above, sister sites!
(www.scrapbooksteals.com - another site of theirs for any crafty folk!)
www.ecobabybuys.com - updated daily at 9 am EST
www.greenbabybargains.com - updated at 12 pm EST, Monday through Fri

www.dailydeals.target.com -not always baby products but they have great stuff with great prices!! They tend to have up to five items listed daily! Updated daily at midnight PST

www.mamabargains.com - updated as soon as each product sells out!

The following are flash sale sites, not daily deals. They usually have weekly schedules to show the round up. If you are watchful, you can find great swag at unbeatable prices. 

www.onekingslane.com - more household items but they do have kids products sometimes (let me know if you want an invite to the site!)

http://www.ruelala.com/invite/cmeyer774 - a handful of everything, from home to mom/dad/baby

https://www.theminisocial.com/myaccount.php?invitation=73642 - This flash site is for 'mom, baby, and child'

http://www.hautelook.com/invite/CMeyer741 -Has a bar across the top to help you choose which department you want to see sales from. They have great weekend blowout sales, easy to score major deals on gorgeous clothing!
http://www.gilt.com/invite/itzybtzychani - my personal favorite flash sale site, a little bit of everything for everyone: mom, dad, kids, home, even traveling! Very often puts up amazing stroller deals. Definitely the best site to check on an EXTREMELY regular basis! If you're a traveler with not such a limited budget, they have a section of their site called Jetsetter where they offer extravagant hotel deals around the world.

http://www.totsy.com/join/itzybtzychani - BTrendie recently was bought out by them and is now a part of their site. Credits on either account should have been merged. Baby and toddler products with the occasional mom deal.

http://www.zulily.com/invite/cmeyer501 - Same as above, mostly baby and toddler deals with the occasional mom deal. I have noticed stroller companies like Inglesina and I'Coo frequent this site! 

Now, if you're an online shopper, as I usually prefer to be. There are ways to save money on regular sites. I personally use Ebates, for cash back on each purchase! Browse through their available stores (most are on there!) and click through their site to get a percentage back on your purchase. I recently did some winter online shopping. Old Navy was offering 8% and Famous Footwear was offering 9%. It worked out very well! 

Well, there it is. My list of scrimping and saving. My way of surviving as a 'college wife'. I hope this is as helpful for you as it is for me!

And, just a reminder to all my friends out there, I do baby product consultations. If there's something you're looking for, I'll help you figure out the right thing for you in your price range! And luckily for you guys, I'm still not charging yet! Hop on the train before I start!! :)

Sleepless in Ames

With my previous pregnancy, I didn't really have many cravings. I ate things that I would not normally be crazy about, but I can't remember a whole lot of 'I need it now!' The only one I can remember was sending Shuky down to the kitchen at two in the morning to make me a peanut butter and chocolate spread sandwich. And, to be honest, I would eat that while not pregnant as well.

This past week, I have been having a very serious craving. The funny thing is, it's not something I can soothe. I am craving food from Orange Delight & Grill in Sherman Oaks, California. Any hamburger would not suffice. It needs to be theirs. Last night I barely slept. Tossing and turning, thinking about their food. I'm not lying. I'm not exaggerating. I'm ready to get on the plane. If not for my recent New York trip or the fact that we're going to Miami for Thanksgiving week, trust me on this one, there would be tickets booked by the end of the night! Anyone else out there crave anything so specific??

As the nausea slowly lifts, I am eating a little bit better and I think I'm starting to look pregnant as opposed to fat. Which is always a good thing. I found myself telling random people I was pregnant when I thought I looked particularly lumpy lately! So I'm glad it's starting to look like a baby bump!

Recently, I ordered a pair of boots from Famous Footwear. When they came, I absolutely hated them. Aside from the fact that they came dirty (!!!), they were such an unflattering fit! Needless to say, they were going back. So we packed into the car today and headed to Des Moines. I didn't find a new pair but we met up with the Feeleys at the mall and had some fun shopping. I finally used my Groupon for Gap that I got a few months back ($25 for $50 worth of merchandise) on some great things for Benny. Got him an adorable vest, some cute tshirts, and his favorite - a dinosaur winter hat. He wore it out of the store and went clomping around the mall. "I a dinosaur!" When we got home, he wouldn't take it off until I forced it off his head for dinner! He is obsessed with Dinosaur Train (a great show on PBS) so this was to be expected.

Quick rant: Why does my (and probably every) two year old feel the need to figure out all the electronics in the house and constantly make that known? He figures out everything! It's gotten to the point where we have everything on power strips that we can easily switch off when we want things left alone. Argh!!!

I Said BRRR, It's Cold Out There!!

Anyone else feel like this cold weather came out of nowhere??  I'm absolutely freezing! We actually had the heat on in our apartment last night. Having Benny's freezing toes touch me just once was enough for me! Yesterday, I was literally wearing leggings and a scarf. At home.

So, my extreme nausea has been lifting lately and I feel like I'm actually able to eat and possibly keep on weight. It was nice to not have an extra four months of weight gain but it was pretty rough on the body! But, now I'm starting to look more pregnant as opposed to fat. Which is always a good thing! :)

Benny and I have been doing many projects, trying to keep busy indoors with the lovely weather outside! I surfed the online catalogs of companies like Oriental Trading, Rhode Island Novelty, and the likes. Chose a bunch of projects that look really cute and fun to make. Figured out how to make them on my own. Started stocking up our craft box. We've been doing daily projects and hanging them on the wall. I'm assuming we'll cover this one wall, if not more! We also did some sun catchers for the sliding glass doors out to the balcony. Benny LOVES doing the projects and working with the different mediums! We have finger paints, stickers, gluing/scissors projects, acrylic paints, crayons, colored pencils, etc. He goes to the wall and points to the different things and talks about them. Asks to do repeats of 'this one!' Now, I'm trying to plan our Thanksgiving projects. I need pine cones but I'm pretty sure I thought of this too late, may have to go into a craft store and actually buy them. Or come up with something else to make turkeys out of!

Painting the sun catchers, he LOVED this!!!

They look so nice! 

Benny's Aquarium :) 

Our wall of art! 

I'm not going to lie. I enjoy those projects just as much as Benny, if not more! You may notice I try to make one of my own while he makes his! He is actually standing behind me right now, yelling, "I WANT TO DO A PWAJECT (PROJECT) TODAY!!" I guess that's my sign off cue! Maybe we'll make pop-up puppets today! If anyone needs some rainy/snowy day ideas, let me know!

**UPDATE** We made puppets, not pop-ups, but fun nonetheless! Enjoy the pics below!!

Step 1: Create character and backdrop - we're making an all in one puppet show!

 Step 2: Glue to toilet paper roll. Secure with paper clips to make sure it dries properly.

 Attach large, wooden popsicle stick directly below character. I used standard school glue and reinforced with packing tape. 

Step 4: ENJOY!!