Family
Family and toddler life
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Deciding on the “Right” Preschool
I am an indecisive person and am an over thinker who care A LOT so deciding on what preschool (or school) program to send my children is a task. I sometimes wish I was a mother who just picked one place based on the most important personal criteria and went with it…but no, not me, I have to interview all the options and then debate between them all. Y’all I do not make life easy ha! But I pray through my relentless determination to find the “right” school for my children, I make the correct choice! Our personal preschool journey, when we first moved to this area, I asked around…
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Hosting the Best Baby Shower for Teacher
It is hard to believe that there is only a semester left of school! The beginning of the school year, we found out that Reid’s teacher was expecting her second child. While it was very exciting for her growing family and such a joyous announcement, it leaves parents a little uneasy and disappointed knowing that the teacher their children have grown to love will be leaving before the end of the school year. Luckily for Reid, the teacher who is subbing is extremely nice and experienced which will make the transition (hopefully) smoother for his class! In order to celebrate his beloved teacher, we threw a class baby shower for…
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Holding Child Back in Kindergarten: Reflections After a Year
It is hard to believe that it is already 2023, am I right?! The past couple of years have been a roller coaster ride in terms of education and what the correct decision is for our boys. Two years ago, it was brought to our attention by our 4 year old’s teacher that he may benefit from enrolling in a Young-Fives program instead of going ahead to kindergarten. Reid is our first born and while we initially had no intention of holding him back from kindergarten, we took his teachers opinion seriously and after lots of discussion and prayer, we ultimately decided to hold him back and enroll him in…
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Best Educational Shows for Young Children that are Entertaining
Truth be told, I am not a fan of screen time. As a child, I watched too much TV (imo) and therefore, as an adult have a complex against watching tv or being on tablets. Its a bummer for my kids, ha! That being said, I worked hard to get passed this complex and compromised with educational television shows where my boys actually learn something rather than just mindless television. Here is a list of some of our top shows that my boys like to watch and that are secretly educational too! Don’t get me wrong, they also watch Paw Patrol, Grizzly and the Lemurs and other semi-educational shows that…
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Big Changes From 3 Year Old to 4 Year Old
Time passes so quickly when you have multiple children, especially with the younger ones! It seems like it was only a year ago that I had a baby and now I have a full grown little boy!! Every birthday is bittersweet. I am grateful for another healthy and happy year with my children, but it is so sad seeing how quickly they grow up and knowing that they aren’t going to stay little for much longer. I truly love these days (collectively ;)) and treasure all the time I get to spend with them when they are young. Walker turned 4 this week and it truly feels like he grew…
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A Mother’s Prayer for First Child Starting Kindergarten
Tomorrow, my oldest starts kindergarten. It is hard to believe how quickly time passes by and how we have already reached this spot where he is going to be off to the “real world.” I am sure I will feel the same way when he enters middle school, high school and college. I have been truly blessed to stay at home with him throughout his life. I have been there for every bump, bruise, scratch, laugh, cry, silly story and everything in between. Following advice of others, we started preschool a couple days a week for a couple hours when he was 2. He went a little more each year…
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Life of a Stay at Home Mom in the Summer
Summer time is flying by and it is hard to believe in just a couple short weeks, my baby will be starting kindergarten. I am having all the feels over here, I know he is ready and excited–but a big part of me still thinks of him as that newborn I first brought home from the hospital. He is growing more independent, but still loves to cuddle at night, runs to me when he gets hurt, wants to play with me and his brother and is little in some ways but growing up in many others. We have done our best to soak up all the summer time together and…
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Three Full Days in Outer Banks, North Carolina
We just got back from our beach vacation for the summer. It was so nice to be back in Pine Knoll Shores visiting Drew’s aunt and uncle again. It truly is one of my favorite places and their view from their dock is breathtaking. We have experimented with leaving at different times to tackle the 9 hour road trip, ultimately we decided that leaving first thing in the morning works best for our family. We hit the road right at 7am to miss Atlanta traffic and after making a few rest stops and giving the kids incentive bags; we arrived with smiles on our faces around 4 in the afternoon.…
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Fun-Filled Long Weekend Staycation in Atlanta
Happy Summer!! Memorial Day Weekend is always a fun time as it kicks off the start of summer. Our anniversary sometimes falls on the weekend making it even an even more special time. This year, we had original plans to head to a parents getaway in Helen, GA but plans changed and we ended up having a wonderful weekend at home exploring our town! Friday evening, we went to the Atlanta Braves game. Y’all I cannot tell you how much fun it is to enjoy watching your kids watch America’s sport. The boys loved running in the play area, snacking on hotdogs, chips, popcorn and ice cream! Pretty sure their…
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Myths and Insight on Holding Back Kindergartener
It has been a year since we made the much debated decision to hold back or “redshirt” our 5 year old. I had so many concerns regarding his age and him feeling like he was held back and not advancing like his peers…but you know what? NONE of my concerns came true. Y’all holding Reid back for one extra year to gain maturity was the best parenting decision we have made. Take this with a grain of salt, as we haven’t entered kindergarten yet, but seeing the amount that he has grown and matured this year, I feel confident that he will succeed in kindergarten in the fall. I posted…
