tands's Profile

Use a shoe organizer to hold everything. I saw this idea on Pinterest. I thought it was brilliant!
http://www.icanteachmychild.com/2011/08/our-new-schoolcraft-supply-organization/

@ashlee0703 Did you get the critter pack or a different one? I am looking for a back pack for my soon to be kindergartener--thinking I will go with LL Bean since I can monogram it and they have a fantastic warrenty. I just don't know if I should go with a junior size or regular. Is your daughter's pack big enough to fit books and a lunch box? Would it last her a while, or do you think she will outgrow the size at say, 7? I don't want to have to replace it quickly.

My 2 kids (3 and 5) both have a Yubo lunchbox. Containers made for the box make packing easy, and they are easy to open. I love it.

Nope. No thanks. Agree with most everyone else- sticks can be a fun creative tool (build houses, pretend they are candles on cakes, etc) but should not be used as a sword. My friend's little boy almost lost his eye because a child at the playground was playing with a stick and poked him. A dad at our local playground is adamant about no sticks when his daughter is around because her cornea was scratched by one. Not a good idea.

Our IKEA carts are one seaters that you can't use upstairs. Not very convenient.
My kids love IKEA, but I still prefer to go without them. With kids I'm looking at at least an hour. Yesterday I went solo and I was in and out in 30.
I wish I could drop them off at the daycare but ball pits gross me out.

To keep things really cold I would suggest mixing dry ice with your ice. We went camping in the desert this past weekend and did this. Came home with a cooler filled with ice! It does get cold enough to freeze so this isn't good for canned beverages, but for things that can be defrosted this works great.
As for food- we made breakfast burritos, pasta, cereal, sandwiches, oatmeal, precooked mango and chicken sausages...
I have learned, I have a 3 and 5 year old, that being creative is not always best. Simple and easy is best right now (learned this the hard way).

@Kristen Leah- Alton Brown's Instant Pancakes are by far my favorite. I make a big batch of the instant mix and make pancakes every weekend. I add vanilla to the mix, lemon zest, nutmeg, pumpkin- basically anything that I may be in the mood for and they always turn out fantastic.
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/instant-pancake-mix-recipe/index.html

When I was little there was a show on Nickelodeon called Mr. Wizard's World. It was such a great show for this budding science nerd- I watched it every chance I could get. I actually learned loads of things that I still use today (baking soda + aluminum foil + water= polished silver!). On one episode he did the banana trick- I thought it was sooo cool but could never remember how he did it. No idea why I haven't Googled it- but now I don't have to! I know what I will be putting in my kid's lunches! Thanks Ohdeedoh!

I'll do this with my son, who loves rainbows!
I love all these rainbow themed St. Patrick's Day stuff- so many ideas to do with him- keep them coming please!

We don't have a lot of room either, but we hosted my son's birthdays the last two years. The best tip- loads of organized activities. We started with the kids making their own playdough (we made a big batch of plain dough then everyone tinted their own). I had bought to go soup cups at Smart and Final and decorated them- that was part of their goody bag. Then a dance circle (Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes, Hokey Pokey, Shake Your Silly's Out), Fishing Game (have kids fish over a sheet for treats and games), pin the tail on the donkey, tint your own slime (laundry starch and glue mixed together- kids LOVED it)...Just super fun games and activities that kept everyone busy and together. If you give a little free time, your house will be over run by preschoolers! I had activities planned in 15 minute increments- worked great for us.
A fun thing that I did at his birthday this year was buy 2 rolls of bubble wrap at Staples and tape them to the floor. The kids then went in and jumped all over the room to pop the wrap. Big hit- was great after cupcakes to get the sugar out!