Making Spontaneous Adjustments

October 2, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

My idea of the perfect outing is where the day goes according to my plan. Yes, I plan outings because I like to know where we are going, what we will do, and when we will leave.

The structure defines how long we can stay, and what activities we can do. Making spontaneous adjustments gets me over obstacles, but I prefer to have all the possibilities covered. Quirky? Absolutely! 🙂

Arranging our schedule

This past Saturday, I had the day planned. With the free Smithsonian Museum Live event and soccer games previously scheduled, I decided to pack everything just in case we didn’t have time to come home to change.

After a big breakfast, we headed out in the rain to our chosen Children’s Museum. Upon quickly finding parking and no lines, we proceeded to the admission desk. As I presented our vouchers, our request was met with confusion. The agent informed us that they were not participating.

An Abrupt Halt in our Schedule

Stunned, but not surprised by this museum’s choice, we moved out to the lobby. Having blocked off the morning for our museum trip, we had a choice to make. Deciding to leave, we made a quick stop by Paul’s parents’ house and chose to enjoy a leisurely family lunch.

Adjusting our Schedule

Bringing along two Groupon vouchers where I paid $15 for $30 worth of food, we headed toward the restaurant. After selecting 5 meals, I used the Groupons and paid $1.24 (in cash) to complete our transaction. After a nice lunch, we discovered that my son’s practice shirt was packed, not his uniform shirt. We zipped by our house to let him change and then headed out to the ball fields.

Though our day did not follow my schedule (How dare it? ;-)), the result of making spontaneous adjustments proved that family fun is where our family is. By knowing what on our schedule can change and keeping coupons, daily deal vouchers, and gift cards nearby, we enjoyed our family time together.

As you plan your next outing, party, or event and those plans come to a halt, enjoy the ride of making spontaneous adjustments. Your outing may fare better with a little creativity while using time wisely. Happy planning with spontaneous adjustments!

Question: How do you roll when your plans change?

2012: My Upcoming Family Events

September 25, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

When I shared my upcoming 2012-2013 events last week, I failed to mention my upcoming family events. As I wrote the other post, I was in the midst of planning, searching, and nailing down vendors and acts for our Fall Festival. With school projects on my mind, I only shared the school-related events.

On Monday afternoon, my toddler kept asking for “her cookie.” Figuring she wanted a cookie, I offered her one. But she didn’t want that cookie, she wanted “her cookie.” Really confused, I asked if she could show me. To which she trotted off to get the weekly ad from the Sunday paper. Then, I realized the miscommunication.

Toddler’s Birthday Party

Over the weekend when I went through the newspaper, I found the advertisement with all the birthday decorations. With my toddler close by, I asked her what kind of birthday party she wanted. She worked her way through the sales flyer naming the characters until she chose Mickey Mouse.

Though her birthday is not until the winter months, my toddler is ready for her Mickey Mouse birthday party and “her cookie.” The cookie part is because brother and sister each got a large chocolate chip cookie to share on their birthdays.

With a one-track mind, I think I need a distraction less my toddler remembers every day for the next few months. 😉

Halloween Bash

In skipping our annual Halloween Bash last year due to illness after the Fall Festival, I return to planning this year’s Halloween party. While shopping with my older children on Saturday, we found some cute Halloween crafts in the Target $1 Spot section as well as a Halloween game.

For accountability, I mentioned our party to a friend to put on her radar around Halloween. I still have a few details to work out, but I usually keep the same schedule to make planning simple and the party predictable. My kids love knowing the plan and repeating the games.

In using time wisely, my toddler’s birthday party and our Halloween bash comprise my upcoming family events. Thankfully, I have hosted both of these themes in the past, so recreating or tweaking these ideas will save me money, energy, and time. Happy planning ahead!

Question: What events are on your calendar or radar this fall and winter?

My Upcoming 2012-2013 Events

September 18, 2012 by Tracy

Photograph Credit: Microsoft Images

This school year seemed to take off like a rocket. In whizzing past opportunities, I have chosen to limit my event planning this year. Last year, I took on too much. Though the events went really well, I was worn out, tired, and sick after each event.

Though I am still very active at my children’s school with chaperoning on field trips, organizing lunch pickups, and assisting teachers with daily tasks, I am not directing any of the school programs this year. I enjoy directing, but I lighten my load. In using time wisely, these are my upcoming 2012 -2013 events:

Fall Festival

Our school’s primary fundraiser is our Fall Festival in November. In the midst of our building project, all proceeds from the Fall Festival will benefit our growing student body.

These Fall Festival preparations are in the works, and I have been working to nail down commitments. Creating a safe, fun environment with lots of activities and shows is my goal in coordinating KidZone. I’ll keep you updated as our event takes form.

Lunch Coordinator

As our school is growing, I volunteered to help our new school office manager at lunch time. In past years, the students only had the option to purchase pizza on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Each child is responsible to bring their own lunch to school as there is not a school cafeteria. To assist parents with at least one lunch option a day, I researched, visited establishments, negotiated deals, and created an order form for weekly lunches. The new system takes effect next week. Stay tuned for more details on the good, the bad, and the ugly. 😉

Forensics Coach

My new adventure this year is coaching one student in the NFL (National Forensics League). Though I have entered speech contests, directed productions, completed two speech degrees, taught Fundamentals in Speech, and judged numerous speech contests, I have never coached one-on-one.

Besides the newness in coaching, I have no experience with the NFL, so I’m learning their rules, guidelines, and judging regulations. The first meet might be interesting, but we have to start somewhere. 😉

With my upcoming 2012-2013 events, I look forward to learning new concepts, applying my experiences, and enjoying the process while using time wisely. In preparing for these events, I expect to make mistakes, but in the end, I’ll be better for it. Stepping out of my comfort zone!

Question: What are your plans this school year?

Celebrating Labor Day – Easter-style

September 11, 2012 by Tracy

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade! I love this saying since life is constantly changing. Though I plan and schedule activities, sometimes life happens and those plans fall through. Such was the case during Easter this year, so we changed plans to celebrating Labor Day – Easter-style.

I had great plans for celebrating an unhurried Easter, and then our family caught a spring cold that brought our schedule to an abrupt halt. Our recovery lasted through Easter and into the next week, so our Easter celebration was simple without lots of extra activities.

My children still wanted to complete the Easter activities, so we kept out our decorations. With the busyness of the end-of-the-school year, summer, and family vacation, I finally pulled out the Easter activities on our rainy Labor Day weekend. Yep, 5 months later, we celebrated our Labor Day – Easter-style. 😉

Resurrection Eggs

My favorite Easter activity is reviewing the Easter story through the hands-on opening of the Resurrection eggs.

On Labor Day morning, we setup on the living floor. With their eggs before them, my children opened the eggs in numerical order as I read the Easter story.

I enjoyed hearing my children tell me portions of the Resurrection story using the items found within their eggs.

After finishing the Easter story, I listened as my children used their eggs to re-tell the Easter events. At the conclusion of play, we packed up our Resurrection Eggs for safe-keeping until March or April of 2013. Well, that’s the current plan because you just never know. 😉

Coloring Easter Eggs

After a Labor Day lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches, my son chose to play a game with Paul while the toddler took a nap. My older daughter had begged for months to color Easter eggs, so we created them together.

Upon prepping our work space with newspaper, she chose the coloring kit and plastic colored cups that matched the colored tablets. We measured the water, added the tablets, and watched the water change colors.

We had a blast as my daughter colored 2 dozen eggs. While patiently waiting the 5 minutes between colorings, she drew with a wax crayon on the white eggs.

When she colored those eggs, her writing remained white as the wax prevented the dye from coloring the egg. The Easter egg coloring process took around an hour and was time spent wisely.

Though we did not have an Easter Egg Hunt due to the rain, we opened the Resurrections eggs while reading the Easter story and colored eggs. Our unconventional Easter-style Labor Day offered fun activities and ended with Easter decorations neatly packed and organized for spring activities.

In using time wisely to prepare for holidays and special events, plan well. When your plans fall short, reschedule – even if it’s 5 months later. Plans will change, but when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. Happy planning!

Question: What holiday have you celebrated unconventionally?

2012: First Day of School

September 4, 2012 by Tracy

My toddler watching her siblings.

In my house, planning for the first day of school is more important and time-consuming than planning a birthday party or dinner party.

Beginning in July with all the back-to-school sales, our family shops, gathers, organizes, and plans for our First Day of School.

Last week, I shared our festivities on the First Day of School Eve. Today, I report how that first day commenced.

Morning Send Off

Having prepared the prior night made our morning this productive:

Dressing and grooming took around 10 minutes because clothing was chosen and laid out.
Lunch and snacks packed in prepared bags and notes written during breakfast.
Finished styling the girls’ hair and took pictures.
Arrived at school early to deliver teacher’s gifts and snag those first-day pictures.

All dressed and ready to go.

Back with his friends, my son returned quickly to his routine. On the other hand, my daughter had a slight meltdown in her classroom, but she found a friend and settled down to color. 😉

Whew! A busy morning ran smoothly with a little early planning and preparing for our first day of school.

Afternoon Pickup

Getting the privilege of picking them up at different times, I enjoyed listening to their first day adventures. My daughter eagerly whipped out her folder to show her lessons and request help with her homework. She loves learning and thrives on doing projects like writing, coloring, and crafts.

Though less-talkative than my daughter, my son gave a story or two about the day to appease his Momma. After stops at the grocery stores, we arrived home. Without homework, my son sauntered off to play.

Evening Preparations

With the busy day, we enjoyed a quiet evening at home. After dinner and baths, we desired another smooth-running morning and prepared for our second day of school:

Unloaded, cleaned, and chose lunch and snack options
Chose and laid out clothes

In using time wisely to prepare for the first day of school, we ended our day with success and exhaustion. I was surprised at how tired I was after getting the kids in bed. Though getting back into this routine may take a little time, I will continue preparing the prior night since this routine keeps me calm while using time wisely.

As you continue or start your fall routine, try to plan your morning the prior evening. Getting off to a good start sets the pace for your day. A little preparation can make your morning productive while using time wisely. Happy planning!

Question: If you have school-age children, how did you fare on your family’s first day of school?

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