Busy Bag List

((I started this post a long time ago, seeing as baby is 3 weeks old we're looking at about 2.5-3 months))

Our second baby is due in 8-10 weeks and as I will be nursing I need something for Melodi to do while I take some quiet time with baby.  I think the best way to accomplish this is to make a LARGE collection of Busy Bags or Quiet Bins.  I'm going to start with some Busy Bags and reserve Quiet Bins for when Melodi gives up her nap, but still needs some quiet time to herself.

There is a collection of ideas that I have found on Pinterest for Busy Bags.  I figure that I will need about 4 a day for 5 days during the week, so I need to come up with 20 bags.  I think that some of these may be books, magnet sets, and chunky wooden puzzles kept "put away" for nursing time.  Of course I would like for most of them to be educational or developmental in nature, and NOT messy.

It is going to be a work in progress as I have quite a few pins to sort through.  Luckily I have 2 months to get these together, but I also have a pile of other projects.  Maybe I'll have the planning done and be ready to do the shopping when my mother-in-law is out next month to help me with final baby prep.

Current Idea List

1. Paper, colored pencils/crayons (add stickers when a little older)
2. Lacing cards
3. Pipe cleaners, pony beads
4. Matching Color Shades (a little to young still, so do a Color Matching Wheel)
5. Felt board
1. build your own cupcake
2. tree
3. house
4. doll and clothes
6. Letter magnets (refrigerator, these are better than the premade bright colored ones)
7. Number magnets (refrigerator)
8. Fishing (felt fish with washers inside, pencil fishing pole)
9. Sensory Texture Boards
10. Matching Cards (store bought since we have a couple, or homemade)
11. Button Matching Game (I like the one a little ways down this page better)
12. Quiet Books (also useful for church, meetings, etc)
13. File Folder Games (switch out seasonally)
1. The Easter Story
2. Daniel in the Lions Den (telling time, too young still)
3. Shapes
4. Flowers
5. Counting (octopus, watermelon)
6. Colors
14. Lacing Cards (make with laminated cardstock shapes and a hole punch)
15. Popsicle Stick Puzzles
16. Color Sorting
1. colored pasta into cups
2. craft pompoms onto color cards
17. Flashcards
1. color
2. alphabet
3. animals/sounds
18. Lacing Beads

Some of these will make for good car travel bags for our road trip this summer and future PCS moves.

Button Snake

I was organizing my Pinterest boards earlier this week and later that night I was watching shows on my computer.  My hands needed something to do and I remembered seeing this idea and since I had everything I needed sitting in front of me I figured I had something to work on.  It wasn't on my original list of busy bag projects, but rather quick and easy.  There are several different ideas out there, I did a google search for "button snake" and clicked on one of the images that was listed at the top which took me to Jonah Lisa Land's post.

Not too much to write so here are some pictures.  My supply list and directions are below.  I'll do another button snake using smaller buttons and felt pieces once Melodi has mastered this one.

Supplies:
5/8" grosgrain ribbon (about a yard)
2 buttons (about 1")
Thread
1.5" square felt pieces

Directions:
Sew the buttons onto the ends of the ribbon.
Cut a bunch of felt squares.
Cut a slit into the middle of each square, just big enough for the button.

Introducing... and an Update

Erica Marie!  Our second daughter was born in the afternoon of May 8th.  She was born weighing 7 pounds 13 ounces, and was 20.25 inches long.  It was a wonderful, personalized experience, especially if you consider the stories that you hear about military hospitals.  I may or may not get around to sharing her birth story.

I've been busy the last three weeks with baby and toddler stuff, and my parents left this morning after staying for a week.  There are several projects that I've done that I haven't had a chance to write about, between getting ready for Erica's arrival and getting into some semblance of a routine.  I will try to get some the following projects posted in the next few days (I don't promise that they'll be in order).   Some of these go way back.

• HELPING: In late February or early March Melodi decided that it was time to really start helping with stuff around the house, especially in the kitchen.
• BUSY BAGS: I finished up enough busy bags for Melodi to have a good variety of activities for when I need her out of my hair to nurse or otherwise.
• CLEAN FINGER PAINTING: Melodi got to do some clean finger painting when we were trying to do some housework before Erica arrived.
• OSW MOTHERS DAY CARDS: I got one set of cards made for Mothers Day.  They got sent out late, but they've been sent.  I also used some from this set for birthdays.
• NEWBORN PHOTOS: We had Erica's newborn photos done by DanetteKayPhotography and love how they turned out.  For the sneak peek visit Danette's blog.
• GRADUATIONS & ECLIPSE: We've attended two graduation parties, with Erica in tow, and with that comes more cards.  These were really cute!  We even got to see the eclipse after one of them.
• GRANDMAS' BRAG BOOKS: I put together the bones for brag books so our moms and grandmas can carry Erica's pictures with them.  Considering how much time I put in to making scrapbook pages together I had my mom pick out the individual page embellishments for hers while she was here.
• MOZZARELLA: My mom is a huge influence on my desire to try new recipes and we have fun doing it together.  I told her about a homemade-microwave mozzarella recipe I found so we tried it a couple times.  Then hubby had to find something to do with the leftover whey so he made ricotta cheese.
• FAT QUARTER SKIRTS: Back in February I bought some fat quarters to make Melodi some skirts.  They finally got dug out and at least started.  Mom helped a lot and I learned some new sewing techniques.  We used this pattern, but finished all internal seams completely.

Insane Goals: April Update

I found the idea of an "Insane Goals" list on Simply Rebekah and decided to join in the fun.  Check out the progress that others are making in their insane goals at the Simply Rebekah's April Update.

Accomplishments

1. Food & Supply Preparations
• I got freezer/pantry meals put together or stocked.  In the freezer there are 7 containers of soups (potato soup and black bean soup), and two meals each of a cheesy chicken casserole, tater tot casserole, and vegi loaded meatloaf.  My pantry meals consist of enchiladas (store bought frozen burritos and enchilada sauce), chili and cornbread/pon de lote, and soup over rice.  That's a total of 21! meals which is more than I was planning on, but it'll be great to have so many.  Added some spaghetti sauce and a bag of frozen meatballs to use with spaghetti already in the pantry, so we're over 21 meals now.
• I started purging and organizing my pantry right before my mother-in-law came to visit, so the project was put on hold for a few days.  But I did get my garage storage organized while she was here.  I needed to do this so that I didn't buy stuff I already had for my freezer/pantry meals.  The pantry got finished after she left though!
2. Baby Themed Goals
• Transferred my shopping list into my baby registries.  This is a tip I would pass on to any mom who will not have a shower, or any mom in general:  Make a registry, even if it's just a shopping list for yourself, in order to get the completion coupon.  Be sure to set the date early enough so you can go get your stuff!
• My mother-in-law flew in for a couple days to help me get all the baby stuff ready.  All the clothing got washed, the baby gear got cleaned, the crib and bassinet are up, and it gave me the chance to get the freezer meals done.
3. Melodi Themed Goals
• Done working on the busy bags for Melodi.  I still have some ideas that I'll get around to eventually.
• We also got Melodi's room finished up.  Getting her new bed in doubled as determining where we will keep the stuffed animals.
4. Labor & Delivery Goals
• The bags are all packed and ready.  No baby yet though.
5. Home Goal
• Another benefit to having my mother-in-law visit is that it only took 30 minutes to make 4 phone calls to get stuff set up for the house.  We had my puppy fixed, the carpets/upholstery/air ducts cleaned, and the lawn done.  I also got some questions answered about paperwork sitting on my to-do pile. 
• While I didn't do a full Spring Cleaning I definitely got a lot of stuff done around the house.  The list is ever evolving and I got to some of it, but there are projects that just haven't been done yet.

Disappointment

1. Labor & Delivery Goals
• So I found the books and have looked at them a little, not as much as I would like to though.  I did mark a page for hubby to refer to when I get to the point of potentially requesting meds.
2. Crafting
• I haven't had the time or energy or drive to get crafting stuff done.  Some stamping got done and some paper cutting got done, but that's about it.
3. Blog!
• I've started a few posts but need to take and add pictures so I'm definitely behind on my goal of two posts each week.

INSANE GOALS

Food & Supply Preparations

• Purge & organize freezer
• Purge & organize deep freezer
• Purge & organize pantry
• Create freezer/pantry meal list for approximately 2 weeks worth of dinners
• Fill freezer/pantry with dinners
• Create shopping list for 2 weeks worth of food (take a single trip after return from hospital)
• Create a small stockpile of bath products

Baby Themed Goals

• Decide if we will make a changing station in our room
• Pull out and clean bedding
• Pull out and clean gender neutral clothes
• Pull out and clean diapers
• Clean bouncer
• Clean baby toys
• Clean and install carseat
• Set up crib
• Set up bassinet
• Decide whether to make or buy thank you cards, or use leftovers from Melodi
• Decide where to store baby toys (think we have it figured out just need to implement it)
• Determine what needs purchased for baby
• Make necessary purchases
  

Melodi Themed Goals

• New bed installed
• New dresser installed
• Clothing moved from changing table to new dresser
• Find a way to keep stuffed animals organized
• Reorganize cups in kitchen
• Update Publisher baby book
• Finish second year album
• Make “busy bags”

Labor & Delivery Goals

• Read Homebirth in the Hospital
• Reread Birthing from Within
• Review Spiritual Midwifery
• Pack hospital bags
• Pack Melodi’s bag

Crafting Goals

• Complete hanging blanket for Kaden (got started on it, but haven't figured out the arrangement)
• Stockpile cards through August
• Birthdays (7?)
• Mother’s Day (5) -- (DONE with the exception of stamping/writing/addressing)
• Father’s Day (5)

Blogging Goals

• Finalize blog layout and copy to all blogs
• Reevaluate having the teacher blog at this point in time
• Write twice weekly on each blog

House Goals

• Decide on carpet (clean or replace)
• Get slab jacked up
• Get the garden started
• Get rid of last year’s left over garage sale stuff
• Spring cleaning!

Stay tuned for another check-in come the first week of May, unless baby decides to arrive early!

Insane Goals: March Update

I found the idea of an "Insane Goals" list on Simply Rebekah and decided to join in the fun.  This is the first post that I will ever be participating in a "link-up" with.  Check out the progress that others are making in their insane goals at the Simply Rebekah's March Update.

Accomplishments

1. Food & Supply Preparations
• Both freezers have been purged and organized.  They are now ready for freezer meals to fill them.
• I got my lists made for what meals I want to have in the freezer/pantry.  The grocery list is done for both my freezer meal cooking day and for a trip to the grocery store when we get back from the hospital. 
2. Baby Themed Goals 
• Thank You Cards.  While I would love to make some really adorable thank you card it's not going to happen.  This is a downside to not finding out if we're having a boy or a girl.  I have a starting stash of 22 or 23 cards to use for initial thank you cards.  Depending on if I need more and when that time occurs I will either buy some or make some based on how I am feeling at that time.  I did pull out the cards, and have them stashed in a pencil box with a pen, return labels, and stamps.  As I wrote this I threw in my main mailing list, and a couple blank index cards to track the gifts and thank you notes.  I'll keep the box somewhere it can be easily grabbed when I have time to write some notes. 
• I also have my lists printed for my before baby shopping list and to do list.
3. Melodi Themed Goals
• Hubby got Melodi's dresser stained and installed in her room.  He even put baby proof latches on the drawers and screwed it into the studs.  Melodi's clothing is now in her dresser and the changing table dresser is basically empty.
• After dinner one night I took the time to go through all the kiddo cups and snack traps to get some organizing done.  I got rid of all the lids that didn't have matching straw/valve pieces, but we will be keeping the cups for water/rice/bean table play
• I have completed some Busy Bags for Melodi to play with while I nurse baby.  Three felt board themes are done, but I still need to finish the actual felt board.  There were a few grab, bag, and done projects that I bagged (flash cards x4 sets, stringing pony beads on pipe cleaner, and color sort pompoms on cardstock flashcards).  I also have felt fish cut out for a fishing game and patterned butterflies cut for a file folder matching game that I need to finish up. 
4. Labor & Delivery Goals
• I picked up a new book to read, Homebirth in the Hospital.  It's not quite what I was expecting, but a good read with good insights.  The other books that I own and want to read or review are currently misplaced.  Oops.
5. Crafting Goals
• A set of 10 cards is done for Mothers Day and some of the birthdays.  I used the One Sheet Wonder method which made them easy to power through.
6. Blog!  
• I have decided to maintain a single blog instead of three.  This came about through some of my pinning and looking at the blogs that pins were coming from.  The "Labels" functions have helped me figure it out.  Since I only have one blog the tweeks that will continue to be made should be easier and can be done as time allows.  
• I would love to have a custom blog header and background, that just isn't going to happen right now.  However I did get a signature line figured out after way too much time spent on it.  I also made a header and button (need to figure out the button HTML stuff).
• I like putzing so I doubt that my blog will ever be 100% set up the way I want it.
7. The boxes are gone!  
• Salvation Army just picked up my pile of boxes that needed to just disappear.  When we moved into this house in November 2009 part of the unpacking process was setting a lot of stuff out that we really didn't need anymore. In April 2011 we had a garage sale and the stuff just got piled back into the garage.  It's finally all gone!

Disappointment

1. Baby Prep
• This really should be my primary focus, but I've invited my MIL to come visit so that we can spend a couple days really focusing on baby prep.  Everything else is taking priority until she can make it out in a couple weeks.
2. Other Projects.
• So I have this list that really does NEED to get completed before baby comes for the most part.  Sure if some of it ends up sliding then that's what happens.  But I keep deciding to do other projects with finite deadlines that were never in my scope of things to do before baby got here.  Not that these aren't good things to accomplish, but they weren't on the list which takes away from getting the things on the list done.
• Registered Melodi for Jr. Preschool starting in September!
• Had Easter pictures of Melodi taken.  Decorated hat and basket.  Got cards designed, but need to get them ordered.
• Participated in a Baby Die Cut swap on the Cricut board.  I'm almost done with all the cuts.  Need to do some teddy bears and finish the baby girl shoes.

INSANE GOALS

Food & Supply Preparations

• Purge & organize freezer
• Purge & organize deep freezer
• Purge & organize pantry
• Create freezer/pantry meal list for approximately 2 weeks worth of dinners
• Fill freezer/pantry with dinners
• Create shopping list for 2 weeks worth of food (take a single trip after return from hospital)
• Create a small stockpile of bath products

Baby Themed Goals

• Decide if we will make a changing station in our room
• Pull out and clean bedding
• Pull out and clean gender neutral clothes
• Pull out and clean diapers
• Clean bouncer
• Clean baby toys
• Clean and install carseat
• Set up crib
• Set up bassinet
• Decide whether to make or buy thank you cards, or use leftovers from Melodi
• Decide where to store baby toys
• Determine what needs purchased for baby
• Make necessary purchases
  

Melodi Themed Goals

• New bed installed (purchased)
• New dresser installed
• Clothing moved from changing table to new dresser
• Find a way to keep stuffed animals organized
• Reorganize cups in kitchen
• Update Publisher baby book
• Finish second year album
• Make “busy bags”

Labor & Delivery Goals

• Reread Birthing from Within
• Review Spiritual Midwifery
• Pack hospital bags
• Pack Melodi’s bag

Crafting Goals

• Complete hanging blanket for Kaden
• Stockpile cards through August
• Birthdays (7?)
• Mother’s Day (5) -- (DONE with the exception of stamping/writing/addressing)
• Father’s Day (5)

Blogging Goals

• Finalize blog layout and copy to all blogs
• Reevaluate having the teacher blog at this point in time
• Write twice weekly on each blog

House Goals

• Decide on carpet (clean or replace)
• Get slab jacked up
• Get the garden started
• Get rid of last year’s left over garage sale stuff
• Spring cleaning!

Stay tuned for another check-in come the first week of May, unless baby decides to arrive early!