Free Printables: Organization Labels

Now that the holidays are over, guests have said goodbye and decorations have been stored away, I realized there were more things lying around the house than what I started with at the beginning of December.... mostly kid's (tiny) toys.  I like to have a designated spot for the kid's toys, especially the tiny toys... it helps me keep the house organized (and limit the number of times I hear "Mommmmmm, where's Darth Vader's head?").

So, after I (uh, I mean "we") ate the last of the holiday sweets, I had a few food containers leftover.... and empty food containers = tiny toy storage (and the need for cute organization labels!).

To get these containers toy-storage-ready, I first peeled off the packaging labels (these containers are the Archer Farms brand from Target, like this).  Then I used Goo Gone to rub off the leftover paper and stickiness.

Goo Gone took off all the stickiness (and of course I forgot to take a picture of the super clean, clear containers).  After the labels were removed I washed the containers in warm, soapy water and let them dry.  While the containers were drying I created and printed labels, then trimmed the edges.....

After the labels were trimmed, I sprayed the back of each label with Krylon's spray adhesive and placed the labels onto the containers, then put a few on the shelving unit in the playroom.....

.... and one in my son's bedroom for all his little Star Wars men, especially for Darth Vaders head!

Here's printable labels for you!  Click the link below to download the pdf file and print on 8.5/11" paper (preferably white/cream colored), then trim off the white borders and spray an adhesive to the back and place on a container(s).  As a side note, the first few are labeled "Toys" and available in a few colors: black (like mine), orange, gray, green and pink.  The last available download is a Word document, so if you're able to open it then you could change the color and/or update the text to be more specific!

Organization Label - Green
Organization Label - Gray
Organization Label - Orange
Organization Label - Black
Organization Label - Pink

Here's the changeable one I mentioned above... the font I used above is Ostrich Sans by Tyler Finck, available here.

Organization Label - Editable

Have fun labeling and organizing!

Free Printables: 2012 Calendar

We're slowly getting back into our (school) routine after a few weeks of celebrating Christmas, visiting with family, eating delicious food, staying up way too late and relaxing on the couch doing absolutely nothing (so wonderful!).

To start the new year and the month of January, the kids and I created a calendar.  We do this at the end of each month to prepare for the month ahead (we're a little late this month!).  The kids love having their own calendar to decorate and find out some exciting (and sometimes not so exciting) events happening during the month.

To complete the calendar, the kids use scissors to cut out the month, day and year, then they glue each cut-out to the correct spot on the calendar.

Then comes their favorite part.... stickers and drawing!  I get out my calendar and tell them the plans that we have during the month, then they select stickers that relate to the event or draw on the day (sometimes write)....

 

After the calendar is completed, we string yarn through punched holes at the top and hang two in the girl's bedroom and one in my son's room on his nailhead bulletin board).  Then each day, we designate a certain time to go over the calendar.... it prompts us to talk about the days of the week, months of the year, practice counting from 1-30, grasp the concept of yesterday, today, tomorrow, and even more.

On a side note, we're big on putting memorization to song.... it really helps my kids (and me) retain the information we're learning.  For example, when we say the months of the year we sing it to the tune of "Ten Little Indians", for the days of the week I made up a silly little tune and even my two year old can sing them (even if the pronunciation isn't exactly on target).  Songs are like magic!

Here's a free printable calendar for you.... with an option to print in either pink or blue.  As always, my printables are available for personal use from me to you, for FREE!  So, go ahead.... download, print, or just pass along the link... enjoy!!!

Click the arrow above to download the pdf file or click the printer icon above to print.  Print on 8.5/11" paper (preferably white/cream colored card-stock), then trim along the bottom of the calendar and have the kids cut out the month and days of the week to glue and decorate the calendar.  Have fun!

Happy New Year

Wishing you a very creative 2012!

Under Consideration

A Look Back: Favorites of 2011

As 2011 comes to a close, I thought it would be fun to go through the projects that I've worked on this year and post my favorites.  I love looking back and seeing the progress of rooms coming together or projects being completed.... it motivates me to start another (crazy, huh!).  So, here are my favorites of 2011 (click on the titles for details).

Favorite Room Makeover

Kid's Playroom

Favorite Project

Nailhead Bulletin Board

Favorite Child-Inspired Gallery Wall

Living Room

Favorite DIY Wall Art

Family Hand Portrait

Favorite New-Found Product

Washi Tape (on the entry wall)

Favorite Quick Update for Curtains

A Band of Ribbon

Favorite Question

Boy and Girl's Shared Bedroom

Favorite Party

Gingerbread House Making Party

Favorite Easy Dessert Recipe

Brownie Strawberry Trifle

Favorite Free Printable

Smile

Well, those are my favorites of 2011.  I'm excited to begin a few new projects in 2012 and share them with you along the way!  Happy New Year!!!

Merry Christmas

I wish you a very merry Christmas and a wonderful weekend as we celebrate the birth of our Savior.

Row House 14 via Etsy

Cookie Box Gifts

This week we're doing A LOT of last minute errands, cleaning and baking in preparation for family coming in town to celebrate Christmas with us..... as hectic as it seems right now, I LOVE this time of year!  Today, we passed out a few boxes of cookies to our neighbors to say Merry Christmas!

To get the boxes ready, we baked, frosted and of course ate a few cookies.  Then to package the boxes, I first cut parchment paper in tiny squares using pinking shears to separate the different types of cookies in the box....

I added the first layer... parchment paper cut to size (4" x 4")....

Then added shortbread cookies....

.... another sheet of cut parchment paper, then peanut butter balls....

On top of the peanut butter balls I added another sheet of parchment paper, a few more cookies, then closed the box, added a tag (cut using a square scallop punch) and red and white baker's twine to hold it all together.

The baker's twine was wrapped around the box a few times, then tied in a bow.

The cookie boxes were delivered to a few friends on the street..... and now I think it's time to eat a peanut butter ball, then clean the kitchen!  Happy Christmas..... only four days until the big day!

Gingerbread House Party (and Recipe)

This past week we hosted a gingerbread house making party for the kids (listed on our advent calendar)..... it was such a great party, so much freedom to get creative with candy (what more could a kid ask for!)...

It's always fun to decorate for a kid's party and use lots of colors.... I rolled kraft paper down the middle of the table, then added red patterned washi tape in different directions and hung red and white polka dot balloons from the ceiling.  The colored plates and candy cane striped napkins were from the holiday section at Walmart.

I decided to make the gingerbread houses rather than buy a box for each guest.... I followed the structural recipe from here (it's not actually gingerbread, but looks identical).

Gingerbread House Recipe (detailed instructions at About)
2 cups light corn syrup (or dark corn syrup for a darker house)
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar (or dark brown sugar for a darker house)
1 1/4 cups margarine (I used butter and it worked perfectly fine)
9 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt

• Heat corn syrup, brown sugar and margarine together until smooth.
• In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt.
• Add the melted butter mixture to the flour mixture and stir/squish together until combined.
• Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Lightly flour a working space, roll out dough to 1/4" thick.
• Cut out house shapes.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes until pieces are firm.  Let cool.

In the past, I've used store bought gingerbread kits and by day two or three they usually start to lean and eventually fall over.  So, this year I decided to use a box (4x4" cupcake handle kraft box) to help support the house.  I used my glue gun to attach the sides into a roof to form a triangle top, then clipped off the excess handles....

Of course gingerbread houses are only complete with tons of candy and frosting.  I piled candy in striped cups from Shop Sweet Lulu.  And I followed the recipe for Royal Icing from Wilton (perfect for the houses..... creamy enough to pipe and spread, but dries hard enough to secure the pieces).

Ideas for Gingerbread House decorations:  Gumdrops, Dots, Twizzlers, Licorice, Marshmallows, M&Ms, Chocolate chips (large and small), White sprinkles (looks like snow), Jellybeans, Candy Canes, Peppermints (red and green)

To start, we frosted the backside of a gingerbread piece, stuck it to one side of the house, then continued around to complete all sides.

Then we added the roof and piped frosting along all sides to help it hold together.....

And finally, the decorating (and sneaking a few bites of candy) began.....

It was a lot of fun to see the kid's creations.  And if they finished their house and still wanted more to decorate, I had cut out angels (using the same dough recipe) to use as tree ornaments.  The kids frosted the angels with royal icing and poured white sprinkles on the top, then strung twine through the hole (just like our salt dough ornaments).

We chose to have the party in the late afternoon so the kids could decorate and eat a pizza dinner while the parents talked (and ate a few goodies, like peanut butter balls- speaking of those, I accidentally typed the wrong amount of powdered sugar in the recipe I posted yesterday... it should be 4 1/2 cups.  I changed it in the post, hope I didn't mess anybody's batch) and drank from fun colored striped straws....

I hope you're enjoying the last week until we celebrate Christmas.