work/life balance
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Tips for a Disney Road Trip
Our family always does road trips when we vacation, and over the years I’ve come across a huge variety of tips (some hits, and some misses) for road-tripping with very young children. I’ve shared a lot of my favorites in these posts: Kids Road Trip Activities Road Trip Organization Hacks Travel Products for Kids Tips for Traveling with Preschoolers Every time that we’ve taken a trip I’ve tried something a little different and that’s true for our upcoming Disney Cruise trip too. We’re driving to the port, it’ll be the longest road trip that we’ve taken so far, so I wanted to make sure that my daughter stays entertained on…
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Disney Cruise Door Magnets
As soon as I knew that we were taking this trip I started to DIY. One of the first projects I tackled was door decorations because Disney Cruise Line is known for guests going above and beyond on their door decor – and why wouldn’t you?! Any excuse to bring a little more Disney magic is always a must. I designed all of our magnets myself, but there are so many options on Etsy. My daughter is a HUGE Frozen fan, so it was a given that we would go that route. I also made a little suitcase with icons for each stop on our itinerary – I’m hoping to…
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Packing Hacks and Travel Must-Haves
I’ve mentioned a couple of times that we’re going on a Disney Cruise over spring break, and right now I’m in packing heaven! I’m one of those people who loves to plan a trip and pack for it just as much as I love going on the actual trip. I know that not everyone is like that, so I thought I’d share some of my favorite travel must-haves. I also admit that I’m the kind of person who packs for every possible outcome – trying to find a store when you realize that you forgot something is not my idea of a relaxing vacation, so I’m fully aware that I’m…
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Practical Easter Baskets for Kids
As a mom, my goal for this year is to incorporate more gifts that are practical or that meet multiple needs. For Easter, that means the bunny is bringing things that can be used this spring and summer. I’m really trying to stay away from the little trinkets that get played with one time and then lay around the house, but I still want my girl to be excited about what she finds in her Easter basket. Here’s what I’ve picked out for her this year (all affiliate links) We usually keep our Easter baskets pretty small, which means they fill up fast (smart parenting hack right there). If you’re…
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Eclipse Supplies for Teachers
March is going to fly by – with St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, and spring break – so the eclipse on April 8th will be here before we know it! I’m already getting excited, and planning for the big day is definitely building that anticipation. Our area is in the path of totality, so all of our local schools are closed the day of the eclipse because we’re anticipating travel and communication challenges due to the large influx of eclipse tourists. That means that the week before the eclipse is the prime time for talking about it in the classroom. I’m also gearing up to keep my daughter busy with eclipse…
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Celebrate Valentine’s Day with me!
Happy Valentine’s Day! I thought I’d try something a little different today and give you a full picture of what my day looks like. Here’s how I’m celebrating the holiday all day long: We started the morning early because my girl was EXCITED. She’s old enough to remember past Valentine’s day celebrations and she knows that I always have some special gifts for her, and once she woke up there was no holding her back! We use these felt heart envelopes for Valentine gifts – ours are a few years old from the Target Dollar spot, but these are similar and available on Amazon (affiliate link). I love having this…
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Making teacher tasks easier and more efficient
It feels kind of laughable to share efficiency tips at the moment because I’m definitely still trying to get back in the swing of things after an extended holiday break – I feel anything but organized and efficient! That being said, there are definitely some tools that I use to help make life easier even when I’m not feeling like I’ve got it all together. I consider myself to be a very organized person, so these resources are things that I’ve created to make my planning process a little more streamlined and to help save time. These are all available in my TPT store, so make sure to click the…
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Bring on Fall!
I don’t know what it was about this weekend, but now that it’s over I’m fully ready for fall. This happens every year, but this year I’m really longing for cozy days and crisp fall air. We won’t get there too soon – it’s supposed to be in the mid-90’s this week – but I can definitely daydream! When I think about the perfect fall days, this image is what it looks like. Here are all of the links to these excellent pieces so that you can create your own fall perfection (these are all affiliate links). Chunky Color Block Cardigan – I can’t do life without cardigans, and fall…
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Making the most of your last summer days
We’re down to our last couple of weeks of summer and I’m trying to be really intentional about soaking up summer. This time of year seems to fly by, so slowing down a bit to really lean into our last summer days feels like a gift. Here’s what we’ve been doing to make that happen: I’m also planning a special celebration for the last day of summer – as kind of a send off – so check back for those plans later this week!
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Expectations for the first week of school
TPT shared this image on their instagram this week and it really stuck with me – probably because it’s exactly the kind of reminder that I always need during the first week. There’s so much pressure to jump back into a full-on routine and do all the things, but that’s not healthy for us as adults, and it can create a lot of stress for our students. Setting realistic expectations for the first week of school makes such a difference! I’m a planner, you know that, so for me this looks like getting out my calendar and really assessing what each day will look like and what I can actually…
