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When Should Your Kids Do Their Own Laundry?

September 26, 2021 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

If you’re asking yourself when you should start having your kids do their own laundry, I’m here to give you some suggestions based on what’s worked well for our family.

First, let’s answer the question of IF your kids should do their own laundry. (Spoiler: YES.)

Why kids should do their own laundry

  1. Because your kid wears clothes and use towels
  2. Because all household work should not all fall on just one or two household members
  3. Because after your kid grows up and moves away, he/she will need to know how to do laundry
  4. Because it’s an easy and natural way to teach your kid how to be responsible

When kids can start doing their own laundry

At our house, even the littlest ones get involved with helping me with laundry. Toddlers on up can put their dirty clothes in the hamper and help me fill the washer. Pre-schoolers on up can help fold and put away washrags and kitchen towels. They can also put away their clothes after they’ve been folded. (Try not to cringe when the clothes you just folded get dropped and unfolded on their way to the drawers. This is life. This teaches our kids skills. Crumpled clothing is fine. It’s fine. We don’t even care…)

But then, as your kid gets a little older, he/she can start to do all of their own laundry from start to finish:

  1. When they are able to reach the buttons and work them properly
  2. When they are old enough to understand how to properly measure and put in detergent
  3. When they are old enough and able to ask, “Hey, where is my favorite shirt?? Is my uniform clean?”
  4. When they are old enough to learn to be responsible for keeping up with their own clothes

At our house, this usually happens around fourth grade.

As soon as my kids have become capable, I turn their laundry pile over to them. They wash a load or two for themselves each week, from start to finish – washing, drying, folding (maybe?!) and putting away (sometimes in a pile on their floor in front of their dresser. I JUST CLOSE THE DOOR AND WALK AWAY).

Every family is different. Every kid is different. Some kids have very busy schedules, which makes it difficult for them to find time for laundry. So…

We also work together

I’m currently doing laundry for Matt and me, plus six littles. Often I’ll throw a load in and an hour later, I’ll holler at Malachi (our high schooler) to please transfer it to the dryer for me. In turn, sometimes Malachi may have a load of his clothes in the washer. As he’s running out the door for a college class, he may ask me, “Mom, if you have a chance, can you put my clothes in the dryer when it’s done?” This is all part of teamwork in a family.

The main thing, though, is that I let my big kids be in charge of taking care of their own laundry. I have plenty of chores and diapers to take care of all day long. Laundry is an easy thing to offload to the Bigs. Though, even before our second set of Littles came along, I still found it necessary and worthwhile to have my Bigs do their own laundry.

If the child is capable, the job becomes theirs.

This goes for laundry, cooking help, dishes, cleaning bathrooms, sweeping, vacuuming, trash, dusting – any and all household chores and needs.

Never should parents take on the full load of household work while their kids sit around on their phones, not learning valuable skills or learning to take responsibility for family needs.

BONUS TIP

I have this lovely laundry sorter and it has come in super handy. Littles put their dirty clothes in the two hampers on the left. Bigs have their designated hampers on the right.

This keeps our dirty laundry separate but all in one place, which is much nicer than having dirty laundry piles all over the house. (But who am I kidding? I still have dirty laundry piles all over the house, because…babies.) :)

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School Morning Routine – One Way I CHEAT!

August 4, 2021 by Laura 10 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

I’m about to tell you a big way that I cheat on our school morning routine. Think you can handle this truth I’m about to share?

I’m new at this “send your kids to school” thing. We homeschooled our kids for 17+ years. But now here I am, getting kids up and out the door for school every morning.

Early. After being up with a baby at night for feedings.

If you’d like, I can keep giving you more reasons to justify this lovely way I cheat in order to get my kids out the door to meet the bus on time. But none of us really needs reasons and excuses, right? Because getting kids ready for school on time IS A THING, am I right?

Or is it just me?

Are my kids the only ones who stare with dull eyes at the sink when I say, “Please hurry and get those teeth brushed!”

Blank. Stare. 

“Please hurry and go get your shoes on!”

Walks. Slowly. Tooooo. Theeeee. Shooooooooes.

What in the actual world?

Why do I even use the word hurry? WHY?

I try not to say the word “hurry” anymore when giving instructions to my kids because it seems so pointless. But shucks if I don’t find myself saying it every time anyway. I am holding onto a nugget of hope that maybe one day it will work? They’ll be like, “OH!!! I was going to freeze myself by this closet door and not get out the backpack I obviously get out every single morning. But Mom told me to hurry! So I’d better go fast!!”

Hurry is not a word that helps the children find speed. Mom sheds a tear.

Perhaps your kids get up early, dress themselves, eat a full breakfast, fix their hair, brush their teeth, gather their school belongings, and have so much time to spare that they read a book until it’s time to go. If so, please know how happy I am for you. The rest of us are over here just trying to help our kids remember that their shoes are right where they left them last night and that said shoes are to be put onto their actual feet.

School Morning Routine – One Way I CHEAT!

Yes, we put shoes and backpacks by the door each night. Yes, we eat a simple breakfast. Yes, coats and jackets and teacher notes and homework is all taken care of before we go to bed the night before. So what else is there?

This:

My children sleep in their school clothes.

Allow me to explain.

My school children are currently 5 and 7 years old. They are slow to get dressed, which makes me appreciate dealing with this need at night before bed instead of in the morning when the bus is almost here and the word HURRY isn’t helpful.

They don’t wear fancy clothes. My children and their clothes are always clean and fresh. Nothing is wrinkled in the morning when the kids roll out of bed because my 5 and 7-year-olds wear non-wrinkly clothes like joggers or leggings and pullover shirts.

At night while we brush teeth, potty, make sure shoes and backpacks are ready by the door – we also choose and put on our “tomorrow clothes.” This includes clean underwear, and the entire process also often includes a bath. So they are nice and clean, they put on clean underwear and clothes, then we finish our bedtime routine and head to bed. Wearing tomorrow’s clothes.

The Next Morning

I wake up the kids and would you look at that?? They are already dressed for the day!

This is a beautiful thing because instead of telling my kids to hurry and get dressed, I can say hurry and do all the other things because we aren’t spending a solid ten minutes staring at the tags in our shirts instead of putting them over our heads – for the love of my sanity.


Keith is wearing jammies as we get ready for bed.
This is because he doesn’t have to leave tomorrow morning.
Brayden though. See how he’s wearing tomorrow’s shirt?
Though I just noticed that it’s on backward. Here’s hoping we fixed that.

Have you ever done this?

Do you think I’m a weirdo? I mean, well, yeah. But I mean about this new weird thing I just told you about.

I used to do this with my older boys on Sunday mornings when they were little. They’d bathe on Saturday nights, put on their church clothes, go to bed, then roll out on Sunday mornings with a polo and khakis already on their cute little bodies.

I’m telling you, it’s an amazing time and stress saver if you have little ones to get out the door for school or for anything you need to get out the door for in the mornings.

What are your secrets for getting kids ready on time in the mornings?

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Is Our Family Still Homeschooling?

July 14, 2021 by Laura Leave a Comment

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Today seems like a good day to update you on whether or not our family is still homeschooling…

I’m not great at keeping you updated on life, and for good reason. Here’s a small scrapbook to show you what takes up our time and energy these days:

And oh yeah. Asa’s getting married next month!

When people ask me, “How many kids do you have?” I absurdly stutter around for several awkward seconds like a weird-y weirdo because I honestly don’t know how to answer.

The breakdown:

One of our foster babes went back to live with bio family, but he’s still with us three days a week and we still claim him as our own. We’re adding a daughter-in-law to the mix, and she totally counts as ours. Justus also has a serious girlfriend; she is our girl too. We currently have four foster daughters. We have four bio sons and two adopted sons. And there are at least 2o young adults/college students that come and go from our house regularly for food, laundry, and hugs.

So Laura. How many kids do you have?

I don’t know. 27?? 32?? Eighty-twelve??

Currently, though, I’ll go ahead and land on the number ten. That’s the official number as of today, which includes our bios, adopted, and fosters. Today, we have ten kids.

I guess I still haven’t answered the original question though:

Is our family still homeschooling?

The short answer is yes, we are. But also no, we aren’t. Eh?

I’ll explain.

About a year ago, I shared how God led us to put Brayden (our now 7 year old) in public school to help meet his many academic and emotional needs. Head here to read more about that.

How’s it going?

So, so well. Our public school in York is fantastic and is offering Brayden so much of what he needs right now. We are so thankful!

He will start 2nd grade there in August, and his 5yo sister (our foster daughter) will join him as a kindergartener.

Meanwhile, our 16yo Malachi will be doing a hybrid-type of schooling for his junior year. He’ll take two classes at our public school, which will allow him to participate in extra-curricular activities (soccer, tennis, show choir, one-act, and whatever else our extraverted child decides to become a part of). He’ll also take three college classes per semester this year to knock out as many dual credits as possible. And he’ll finish up any regular homeschool credits he needs to meet high school graduation requirements.

So technically, we’re still homeschooling Malachi. But really, we’re just guiding him through college courses and equipping him for adulthood.

But here’s the big truth about homeschooling:

We. Are. All. Doing. It.

Or at least we’d better all be doing it. Officially or unofficially.

No matter who is the main academic educator of your children, as parents, we are all and should be still teaching our kids. We teach them about loving and following Jesus first. We teach them about loving and serving people. We teach them to work hard and share and care and take turns. We teach them to put others before themselves. We teach them to be responsible and for goodness sake please take your dishes to the sink and your trash to the trash can.

And what else? We turn everything into a teaching opportunity. (Ok, not everything. Sometimes by the end of the day, I cop out with “good question I don’t know go brush your teeth” because my mouth is so very tired of talking to so many people all day long. I admit it.)

But (in the morning after I’ve had coffee) when my kids ask a question about the bug they find on the leaf outside, we have fun finding the answer (because there’s an app for that). When we scoop flour into the mixer, we count out loud. When we realize that every kid got to crack three eggs to help with breakfast, we add them all up to see how many that makes altogether.

I read books to them. They read books to me. They read books to themselves. We talk. We explore. We memorize scripture. We talk about budgets, money management, running a business, running a home, running for office, running a race, running for cover (tornado drill, anyone?).

You don’t have to be a homeschooler to homeschool.

Does this make sense? Call it whatever you want, but know the truth: You are your child’s teacher. You are their best teacher. Their first teacher. Their most important teacher – no matter who teaches them to sound out words or explains the finer points of Algebra (and shall we all now take a moment of silence to appreciate these professionals who pour into our kids so that we can avoid having to hurt our brains trying to understand exponential equations?).

Will our family ever homeschool again?

Again, we are still homeschooling. We’re just currently sending our younger kids to public school, and we are so grateful for this wonderful option for our family right now. ;)

But will we ever homeschool again in the traditional sense?

We’re waiting for God to tell us that answer.

Right now, we feel 100% confident that public school is necessary for our kids and also for me with all I am juggling (four kids ages two and under, court, caseworkers, baby’s medical needs and physical therapy, etc).

However, I also sometimes look at our shelf of books with longing. I look back at our years of homeschooling memories and I miss it.

But I also remember how much work it is. It was good, meaningful, worthwhile work, but it was hard work. And I don’t miss that right now. I don’t have the bandwidth to do it well right now. Our kids need more academically than I am able to give.

We are confident that God will make our kids’ educational needs clear in the coming months and years. So while we’re gratefully turning their academics over to the public school teachers, we’re still teaching them at home as God leads us to.

We hope you are too. No matter what educational route you’ve chosen for your family. :)

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How Can a Mom Take Care of Herself?

February 28, 2021 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

This is the question I’ve been asking myself for the past thirty-twelve years. With all her other responsibilities, how can a mom take care of herself?

Here’s what I know to do to take care of myself:

  • Eat nourishing food
  • Drink water
  • Exercise
  • Take some time alone
  • Go to the chiropractor and/or to get a deep muscle massage as needed
  • Take time with the hubby
  • Get enough sleep every night

But right now, I look at that great self-care list – and then I look at my five kids under seven, my high schooler and his needs and his friends, my two college kids and their needs and their friends, my adult kid and his girl that I don’t see nearly as often as I’d like, my husband who is busier than ever right now with huge work responsibilities – and I launch into that freakish laugh-cry thing moms do when the thing is not at all funny, so it kinda hits you funny, and then you cry because it’s not funny but there you are, still laughing. Bless.

I know what to do so that I can take good care of myself. Yet in reality, I find it very difficult to pull off right now. But awww, would you just look at all these beauties:

Silly but true: sometimes I’m jealous.

How silly that I would ever be jealous of anyone else, seeing as I love my life as mom! But if I’m not careful, I can see what other adults around me are doing – super extravagant things like going to the bathroom alone or reading books without pictures – and I start to feel a tad bit jealous. “Must be nice,” thinks me. After all, I have very few chances to head to the bathroom without toddlers following me to pull down toilet paper and squirt hand soap into their hair while I pee.

They look so innocent when they aren’t in the bathroom with me.

Fun fact: when my husband needs to go to the chiropractor, he simply calls and makes an appointment.

But I’m not jealous of this, of course, because I’m a super sweet wife who is always super sweet. I am truly very happy for him to go to the chiropractor when he needs to go. Because I am super sweet.

So you must be wondering…can I actually not go to the chiropractor? Can I not read a big girl book? Is everyone around me living their lives in total freedom while I, the mom, languish at home alone – though never, ever actually alone – need I remind you of all who accompany me to the bathroom?

The truth is that I can do any of the things I need to do to take care of myself. But I sometimes feel like I have to move a mountain or three to make them happen…

This seems like the right time to talk about the cookies.

Do you know why a usually reasonable and rational mom might sometimes grab cookies or chips instead of eating the salad she knows she should eat? I think the reasons are two-fold:

1) Because cookies and chips are faster than salad. Faster food is important while striving to keep toddlers from emptying glitter bottles into their mouths or smearing oatmeal all over themselves. And…

2) Because the days can feel long and hard and a mom may feel a little bit deprived. This may lead her to think that a cookie will help her to feel better. Maybe it will bring a little joy in the form of a chocolate chip, you know?

It’s a temporary fix, and as we all know, chocolate doesn’t actually bring true joy. “Only Jesus brings joy, amen,” says the healthy mom. But shucks if she doesn’t try again tomorrow to let the fulfillment come from a Dorito.

You thought I was kidding about the oatmeal…

…and the glitter.

I love my life!

There’s nothing I want to do on earth more than to be these kids’ mom, to be my husband’s wife, to be my friends’ friend, and to live this full, abundant life God gave me. So I’m not complaining – not even a little bit. I’m just sharing a little bit of my current motherhood reality. Basically, I need to make a chiropractor appointment, and I can’t figure out how. That is all. Thanks for listening.

So How Can a Mom Take Care of Herself?

Beats me.

Just kidding.

Heh.

Twenty-three plus years into this gig, I’ve learned that motherhood-self-care takes some doing. It doesn’t just happen. It really does seem easier to reach for a cookie than to get out the carrots and hummus. But this leads to a mama feeling sluggish and depleted, so don’t get sucked in to thinking that the chocolate chips will help. (Now, coffee on the other hand…)

Advocate for yo-self, sista

I’ve found that I have to recognize where I’m lacking. Where I’m feeling depleted. And I have to advocate for myself.

Why does a mom have to advocate for herself? Is it because no one respects her or cares about her needs? Nope. I think it’s the opposite! I think we are highly respected by all! And I think moms are really good at momming! In fact, we’re so good at it that it’s possible that our husbands or friends (or even our very own selves) don’t always realize that we might be one toddler-filled pee-break away from a freakish laugh-cry break-down.

On the outside, I can look like I’m doing great. The kids are clean(ish). The house is – well, it hasn’t quite fallen down around us. There’s food on (but also under) the table. I always smile hugely and beautifully when hubby comes home at the end of the day. (He thinks I’m just happy to see him. Well, sure I am. But the truth is that I AM SO HAPPY TO SEE HIM!!!!! Because he brought his arms home with him and now he can also hold one or two of the children.)

So moms? We have to advocate for ourselves. We have to recognize what we need and go ahead and move those mountains to make them happen.

Sometimes I don’t even know how to do this and therefore find it hard to reach out for help. This is not because I don’t like asking for help (being served by others is glorious!). But I’ve found that asking for help also takes effort. Effort that seems hard to come by when keeping everyone safe and happy until bedtime seems difficult enough each day.

But one or two texts sent out to friends? We can make that happen, right? We can say something like, “Hey, are you free to stay with the kids while I head to the chiro tomorrow morning?” See, that wasn’t so hard.

I think I may try this. I’ll let you know how it goes.

And how about you? Are you working to take care of yourself – even though it’s legitimately hard – though not impossible – to do?

When it comes to nourishment, you can do what I do and drink a salad every day. It goes down fast and easy and can be enjoyed even while children are hanging on your legs. They may even want to drink some too.

I don’t have much time to exercise right now (and winter doesn’t help) but I do run up and down the stairs carrying children or laundry baskets multiple times a day and I try to do some yoga-type stretches in the living room a few times each week. As soon as the weather is nice again, we’ll be doing what I call The-Best-Mom-Fitness-Program: loading kids up in strollers and bikes and taking long strolls which is super good for all the reasons – exercise, fresh air, sunshine, good conversation. But the best reason of all: IT WEARS THE KIDS OUT SO THEY TAKE BETTER AFTERNOON NAPS. This is for their own good. This is all I care about. The good of the kids. ;)

Let’s review and let’s do this!

  1. Moms, we need to take care of ourselves, on purpose, for a purpose, because we are fantastic and wonderful and so very loved by so very many.
  2. And speaking of love, I haven’t even mentioned God yet. Oh dear one, God loves us all so much. He wants so much good for us. He’s right there, daily providing for our every need, every minute.
  3. Ask for help. There is no “Way to go, you did it all alone!” trophy. Who would even want one of those? I’d rather have a daily “You made it through the day because of your awesome community!” sticker. Sign me up. I want this. I have this, praise God.
  4. Rest when you can. We really won’t be tired forever. I promise, because…
  5. This season will turn into a different season. I’ve done this before so I know that it’s true. Eventually, everyone will be able to wipe his or her own bottom – true story. Eventually, the kids can unload the dishwasher and do their own laundry and STAY HOME ALONE WHILE MOM GOES TO THE CHIROPRACTOR. I am so serious. This season is temporary and so very precious.
  6. See the good. I will never be that mom who says “enjoy them while they’re young because they grow up so fast yada yada blah blah” because I’ve been there and done that and I’m doing it again. WE MOMS ARE ENJOYING THEM WHILE THEY ARE YOUNG but we are also tired and covered in spit-up. Much of the day is hard, but much of the day is also oh-so-good. The sweet cheeks and squishy kisses, the way they say words wrong, the times they share with their sibling and giggle and have fun, the way they let us dress them in adorable outfits and don’t have opinions about their attire. I could go on and on. There is so much good in every day. God sees to that. Our job is to see what He sees to. <— Read that again. We can easily see all the good He provides when we are looking for it. It’s constant because He is God and He is good.

Motherhood-self-care looks different through the seasons. Eventually, it will actually be easier to do what we need to do for ourselves each day. But for today, let’s do what we can. Let’s drink the salad. Let’s make the stress-free simple meals. Let’s enjoy the fun books with pictures. Let’s take walks in the sunshine while pushing the stroller. Let’s have Jesus-discussions with our babes and be made aware all over again why Jesus called the children to him and told us to have hearts like them.

Let’s learn and grow from the place where we are. God provides. Always.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

P.S. I finished writing this article (thanks to babysitters, woohoo!), moved a few mountains (texted friends and asked for help), and I’m happy to report that I will be going to the chiropractor on Tuesday at 11:45.

P.P.S. Turns out, it wasn’t so hard to move that mountain so I moved a couple more. I’ll be getting my hair trimmed next Thursday at 1:00. And tomorrow afternoon I’m going to go see my therapist for a much-needed session in hopes of turning my currently too-frequent freakish laugh-cries into my more typical I-love-my-kids-so-much-laugh-cries.

P.P.P.S. Decided to send hubs a heart emoji and some words of encouragement because he works so many long, hard hours every day and still comes home with a smile and arms so willing to help his weary wife with the littles (and the bigs).

P.P.P.P.S. Your turn. Go move a mountain. You are so loved. :)

 

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Holidays? Moms Need Help in the Trenches

November 23, 2020 by Tasha Hackett Leave a Comment

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Whatever time of year, I can attest to the fact that moms need help. But during the holidays, we may need help even more and in a different way. Enjoy this gem from Tasha…

Holidays? Moms Need Help in the Trenches

By Tasha Hackett

When moms need help desperately but don’t even know where to start…

Shucks, life is fun, amiright? Those cute baby snuggles, warm apple pie, bright orange leaves in piles, glittering snow, creamy hot-chocolate, sizzling butter and garlic… mmmm. But geez, Moms need help. I need help. We mothers of young people are overwhelmed. The close-knit communities aren’t there anymore. Everyone has their own life and responsibilities. Social media, though originally designed to bring us together, only makes us feel worse. With the holidays upon us, where can I even start to get help? 

“Happiness is a decision,” said the well-meaning, but unhelpful person.

I’m sure you’ve heard that before. Happiness is a decision. For the overwhelmed mom, that is as unhelpful as telling her, “Enjoy them! They grow up so fast.” (Read Laura’s post on what to say instead.) Truthfully, it’s not helpful to say either of those things to the mother who dreads going to sleep at night because she knows the baby is going to wake in 45 minutes and then cry for the next two hours before he sleeps for another 45 … and the mother who dreads the morning because the other three littles are going to want to eat and wear clothes and they’re going to chatter and need love and attention and they’ll play and make messes.

Perhaps that mom is dealing with a cloud of emotional strain and doesn’t even know what she needs because her brain is overwhelmed from the aforementioned sleep deprivation and she forgot to eat food again. (Would it fool anyone if I said these were hypothetical examples? I was there last year.)

To quote Rabbit and Winnie-the-Pooh, “How about Lunch?”

Don’t tell her happiness is a decision, what she needs is (Okay, yes, Jesus. She needs Jesus, but also,) sleep. She needs sleep and she needs food, and she needs to know that she is in a place that won’t last forever. Her people need to support her with prayers for peace from the Holy Spirit in order to fully embrace life at home with littles. What really helps her is an older mom to say, “It’s gonna be okay. And I’ll bring dinner over at 5:00 pm.” And when that is offered, she needs to accept it and say, “Thank you.” If all the real moms will please stand up and support each other, we’ll be okay.

Moms need help. Mmk? We may need lots of help for the Holidays. The sooner we can embrace that, the happier we will be. 

When my firstborn was a few months old, Ben and I had opposite shifts. I worked days, he worked evenings and weekends. Saturdays were LOOOOONG. I was 100% an extravert (still am), trapped at home for 12 hours with a tiny baby that didn’t sleep much and cried when left alone. The emotional strain to be EVERYTHING for this tiny human ate at my core and I was isolated, worn out, drained, and lonely. 

I was (am) an interesting person with a broad skill set and none of that mattered on a twelve-hour workday with an infant. What mattered was giving, and giving, and giving. Spit-up on my pants, milk stains on my shirts, the house falling apart, chores half-done… you know. Foremost priority was loving this child, but it was breaking me in two.

One evening I sucked up my pride and walked myself to the neighbors: “I need help. I feel like I’m falling to pieces. He cries unless I hold him, and I’ve hardly been able to eat and I could really use a shower. Would you be willing to keep him for half an hour?” She said she’d gladly hold him for as long I needed. I showered. Cried. I ate some food. Cried. I pulled myself together and went back to claim my baby. He was happy. The neighbors were happy. And that evening will stick with me forever as the first time I was brave enough to ask for help. 

What does this have to do with moms and help for the holidays?

This season is going to be different. Know your limits and go easy on yourself. Don’t try to make everything perfect. Ask for help. Take time to enjoy this season as best as you can. Have fun. 

As a mother, wife, and homemaker, why do we play the martyr when no one has asked it of us? I’ve been in hard places far too many times the past eight years where the service of my community has kept me from falling apart. 

I’m afraid to share this because you may be astounded, “Tasha sounds depressed! She has anxiety.” What if you read this and think, “I can’t relate to this at all. Tasha needs help…” Um… yes. That’s the whole thing here. I do need help, but listen up, I’ve talked with many other young moms and we are all in the same boat! Some more than others, of course, but the general consensus is that WE DON’T HAVE IT FIGURED OUT. The water is pouring in faster than we can bail it out. We are in desperate need of older women to come alongside and get into the trenches to show us the way out.

Calling all experienced mothers! Moms need help! 

In tears, five years ago I called an older friend, (her youngest was six, oldest in high school,). I was home with a baby and a chatty 3-year-old. I said, “I have to get out. Can you come? I just need 10 minutes.” She said, “I’ll be there in five.” 

No joke. I had my coat on, boots tied, and was pulling on my gloves when she pulled into my driveway. I left the house and took off running. Literally. I’m sure I was a sight. I made it three blocks before I slowed because January-in-Nebraska. Five degrees is too cold to be gulping air. 

I let the wind suck my breath away. Crying, I begged God to bring me peace. What was wrong with me that I couldn’t enjoy my two precious babies? 

Dear mothers of young children, you are not broken. 

Author Johann Hari says to those with depression/anxiety, “You are not broken, you’re not weak, you’re not crazy. You’re not a machine with broken parts, you are a human being whose needs are not being met.” Loneliness, loss of control of your environment, the inability to get outside, feeling your life has no purpose, not feeling valued, emotional needs that are not being met, grief (perhaps the grief of lost freedoms?) are all causes of depression and anxiety. (Watch his TED Talk here.) If you’d like to learn more about this, read Hari’s book Lost Connections. He is not a Christian, but his research is phenomenal and while reading his book, I was astounded at how many things correlated with the overwhelm that is common with stay-at-home moms. 

tasha

Help for the weary (even during the holidays)

God promises rest for the weary and my logical brain argues, “Yea, but… you gave me four kids.” He promises peace and I say, “Yea, but, somebody still has to make food and do dishes.” When he reprimands Martha and nods in approval at Mary sitting at his feet, I say, “Mmmk…. But, I have toddler boys who literally pee all over the toilet and the floor.” 

Laura keeps reminding us that Jesus takes over and it’s not her doing it, but him. What does that look like? I think it looks like being able to have fun, being at peace, even while wiping pee off the floor. 

For the older moms: 

Look around your community and find a young mother to adopt.

Pray for the young mothers by name and ask for peace.

For the younger moms: 

  • Know your limits.
  • Use simple meals when time and brain power is limited.
  • Ask for help.
  • Hire help if you can.
  • Set limits for yourself for what you can realistically accomplish.
  • Don’t be a martyr when no one is asking it of you.
  • Reach out to other young moms and get together regularly.
  • Go outside at least once a day.
  • Buy the High Five Recipes Printed Cookbook or Simple Real Food Recipes Cookbook for every adult (especially single adult brothers) on your Christmas list and consider your shopping done.
  • Stop praying for God to take away the trials, instead pray for peace.
  • Stop praying for patience, instead pray for peace.
  • Pray for peace.
  • Start a gratitude journal—it will be a blessing to look over it later.

Isaiah 40:11 “He gently leads those that have young.”

This is a revealing post. Rest assured, I am doing okay. Know why? Because I am continually asking for help. My heart aches for moms whose needs are not being met. I implore you to seek help. Help for moms can come in many different forms. For me, I’ve received it from doctors, counselors, parents, siblings, friends, neighbors, bible class teachers, elders, cousins, college roommates, my fitness coach, my husband, the librarian, and even my best friend from preschool.

Truly, you do not have to do this alone.


Tasha HackettTasha Hackett, friend of Laura, has four chatty children and a wonderfully supportive husband. It’s possible she was born in the wrong century, as she always dreamed of being friends with Laura Ingalls and Anne Shirley. Her debut novel, Bluebird on the Prairie, a historical romance set in 1879 Nebraska, will release Spring 2021. The clumsy antics of the hero, huge misunderstandings, and a humorous brother/sister relationship will keep you smiling, but you may need a tissue as the heroine works through grief. Thankfully, word on the street is the story has a happily ever after.

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Should You Give Kids an Allowance?

March 11, 2020 by Laura Leave a Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Should you give kids an allowance? That’s a great question with many different opinions!

I’m not going to answer with a simple yes or no. But I will share with you what we’ve done!

Why should you listen to my advice? You maybe shouldn’t, simply because every family is different, every kid is different, and there are many ways to handle allowance and teach your kids how to handle money!

My experience spans 22 years of parenting. Our oldest son, the 22-year-old, is a great money manager, as is our 20-year-old, our 18-year-old, and our 15-year-old. Some of them are a little more willing to spend their money on occasional splurges while some of them much prefer more padding in their savings accounts. But what I want to say is this: The way we handled allowance with our kids when they were little and as they became big? It worked.

But ha, there’s more! God blessed us with Bonus Boys!! So we’ll be starting this method all over again with our six-year-old and later when our 1-year-old “comes of age.” Seems it’s a good thing I’m dusting off this old trick so we can use it all over again in a few months!

Should You Give Kids an Allowance?

We did give our kids an allowance – for a time.

When they turned the magic age of 7, we started giving our kids a whopping $4/month, which usually equaled $1/week. (By the way, we tried it when our oldest turned 5 but found he was a bit too young to understand saving and spending concepts we were trying to teach.)

We made this allowance-giving experience kind of a big deal by presenting them with a brand new wallet on their 7th birthday. Then we gave them 4 one-dollar bills to put inside their new wallets – beautiful pieces of green to an eager 7-year-old!

While we’d already started talking about simple money spending and saving concepts long before they turned 7 – this is when we started giving them more responsibility and freedom. Why?

So that they could begin to learn how to manage their very own money.

$4 isn’t very much. But we found it didn’t take much to help them learn some basic healthy money skills.

It is worth noting that we didn’t require them to do chores in order to earn this $4 allowance. It was simply a monthly allowance. The chores?? Oh, they did them! They just didn’t get money for them. And they didn’t even know they were called “chores” ha! (I learned this one day when they were at a friend’s house and they shrugged when their friend asked what chores they did at home. “I don’t know. We don’t have chores.” The friends were so jealous…until I cleared it up that my kids helped around the house all day long, we just never called this kind of family teamwork “doing chores.” But anyway…)

We didn’t set up specific guidelines for how they were to go about using their $4 allowance. We simply offered guidance and talked them through options for how they might enjoy their new money freedom.

  • We let them know that the money they gave at church would now be from their own wallet instead of from ours. Usually, we helped them break one of their dollars into 4 quarters so they could give one quarter each week. They BEAMED when they put their very own quarter in the offering plate!!
  • We helped them recognize more about the cost of items from the store. Our kids already knew by then not to ask for “things” when we shopped. But now we were able to say “you can save your money for that if you’d like to buy it” if they saw something they liked while shopping. Often the desire for said “things” would fade quickly when they realized how long it would take to save for the purchase. So they began to learn more about saving and investing in what truly meant something to them.
  • We emphasized how nice it is to save money for bigger needs or desires. If our kids would have chosen to spend their entire allowance money amount each month (after setting aside some for giving) – we would have let them. But would you believe – not one of them ever did. It took very little time for them to learn the joy of watching the stash of dollar bills grow in their wallets.

Every once in awhile, one of our little allowance-receivers would spend a dollar here or there on a dollar store item. This was fine and fun and good for their learning experience too! We always talked about a purchase before taking the plunge!

But I believe they had learned from our example of being more of a saver than a spender. We don’t buy stuff for the sake of buying stuff. And so their money-saving mindset began.

How long did we give our kids allowance?

We gave our kids an allowance until they started earning money in other ways.

About the time $4/month became a laughably small amount to our sons – around the age of 10 or 11 – we continued the monthly allowance. But as soon as they found ways to earn money, the allowance allotment stopped. They didn’t complain about this because they were now able to earn $10 on one Saturday morning by reffing a youth soccer game or by mowing a lawn – so they were getting much more than a tiny $4 allowance!

In addition, by that time, they had learned the very basics of money management – our very reason for giving our kids an allowance. By the time our boys started to find ways to earn money, they had a strong sense of ownership and the beginning of wisdom when it came to saving, giving, and spending.

So should you give kids an allowance?

I can’t give you a firm yes or no. But I will tell you this: We’re glad we did! And we’ll do it again when Brayden turns 7.

At this point, he and I talk often at the store about how we spend our money and how we make purchasing choices. He’s catching on quickly – and as much as he already loves putting coins from our pockets into the offering jars at church (specifically earmarked for children in Ecuador!) – I can’t wait to see how much he loves using his very own money!

How have you handled allowance at your house?

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Help Your Kids Learn to Obey and Be Kind (Awesome parenting freebie!!)

July 25, 2019 by Laura 1 Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

While we wish it just came naturally, we realize that we have to help kids learn to obey and be kind. Then we have to remind them, and remind them some more.

It’s a battle we all face, right? The battle to overcome selfishness, bad attitudes, and complaining hearts. I find in my own life that I have to rely on the Holy Spirit constantly so that I don’t live in the flesh but by the Spirit. Gently leading our kids to do the same can be quite a challenge.

Long, long ago when our first set of kids looked something like this…

boys_costumes

…Matt and I found that we didn’t want to simply tell our kids to “be nice” or “do what I say.” We wanted our instruction to come from the heart of Jesus so that they learned that we didn’t just want them to “be good” and “do the right thing.” What was the reason? Where does our kindness come from? Why choose to talk nicely?

We found it amazing to discover how many scriptures spoke directly to all of us (parents and kids alike!) when it came to helping our kids learn how to obey and to be kind.

Our older four boys are either teens or adults and now God has blessed us with more boys to train and teach.

This guy is 5, so we’ve been pulling from our old bag of tricks. I’ve gotta say, having some experience under our belts sure has been nice this go ’round. We’re pulling out what we loved and what worked, and here’s our latest (which we are giving to you for free because sweet, obedient children make us happy!).

CCimage

These Character Charts WORK!

We used these for years when our kids were little, using scripture to help them remember to obey, to talk nicely, and to be selfless. It’s amazing how something as simple as “You sure are shining like a star right now. Go put a sticker on your chart!” means to a kid.

We started using this recently with our 5-year old and he actually beams like a star when we tell him to put a sticker on his chart to reward his good behavior. It is so great to not just affirm him but to use scripture while doing it.

 

There are five full sets of printable character charts and cut-out stickers in this collection, each with a Bible lesson you can use as you introduce it to and use with your kids.

  1. Shine Like Stars – from Philippians 2:14-16
  2. Fruit of the Spirit – from Galatians 5:22-25
  3. Walk in the Light – from 1 John 1:7
  4. Be Imitators of God – from Ephesians 5:1-2
  5. Treasures in Your Heart – from Matthew 6:19-21

You can download and use this collection in any way that works best for your family’s character and Biblical training!

My big and tall kids all look back at their beloved Character Chart days with fond memories (which is always fun for me to hear!). The charts use Biblical truth in a very simple and practical way so that God’s truth becomes your child’s truth.

Get your Character Chart package for free below, and check out the bonus offer we’re excited to announce!

Special Offer for You!

While the cut-out “stickers” have worked fine, we really, really wanted to be able to use actual stickers! Cutting these little shapes and gluing them onto a chart is kind of a hassle. Soooo, I asked Char, a dear friend and designer to turn the stickers cut-outs into actual stickers. So she DID!

Using these stickers with Bonus Boy is SO MUCH BETTER than the old way! The pages in this sticker package are loaded with stickers – 540 to be exact. So these will go a long way and make the Character Chart training so much more fun and definitely easier!

You’ll find the entire set of Character Chart Stickers here, and guess what else? She gave us all an $8.00 coupon to click on! That’s a huge discount because she loves us. :) Plus she’s offering free shipping, so hey, now who’s shining like a star and displaying the fruit of the Spirit? I think Char deserves a sticker. ;)

But seriously though, you will want these stickers to go with your charts, and your charts are FREE so all children everywhere are going to be Imi-tators of God before we know it. (Bet you were wondering what those potato stickers were all about. Catch your kid imitating Christ? He or she is an imi-tator, get it? You’re a tator, I’m a tator, wouldn’t you like to be a tator. It brings all sorts of fun to Ephesians 5.)

Get your Character Charts!

[wp_eStore_fancy1 id=26]

Get the stickers to go with them with an $8.00 off coupon (incredible) and free shipping.

Enjoy teaching your kids through scripture and fun!

This freebie offer is good through Friday, August 9. Hurry and get started!

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Summer Activities for Kids: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

July 9, 2019 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

Yum

As I was remembering this fun summer activity idea, I decided it would be much more fun to do if we invited friends over to join us! So we sent out the invitation, got our supplies ready, and had a little Ice Cream Making Party!

By the way, we are SO CLOSE to final adoption day for Bonus Boy that I almost waited to post this so that I could show you his precious face. Soon and very soon he will officially be a Coppinger and then all stickers come off!

This “make ice cream in a bag” idea is one of those we always WANT to do, but never seem to get around to ACTUALLY doing. Somehow inviting friends to do it with us made it much more doable, you know? Afterward, the kids played and the moms visited. Bliss! And also, there was ice cream to eat, so double win!

Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!

5.0 from 1 reviews
Summer Activities for Kids: Make Ice Cream in 10 Minutes!
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Serves: 2 servings
Ingredients
  • 1 cup heavy whipping cream
  • 3 droppers full of liquid stevia, or 3-4 Tablespoons real maple syrup, or 3-4 Tablespoons sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ½ cup rock salt or coarse sea salt
  • Ice
  • quart and gallon sized freezer bags
Instructions
  1. Measure cream, sweetener, and vanilla into a quart-sized freezer bag and seal.
  2. Fill a gallon-sized freezer bag half-full of ice.
  3. Add ½ cup rock salt to the ice.
  4. Place the sealed quart-sized bag filled with ice cream ingredients into the bag of ice and salt. Seal.
  5. Toss the bag back and forth, shaking and tossing for 5 minutes or until the mixture thickens to ice cream.
  6. Remove the quart-sized bag and rinse the salt off.
  7. Open the bag, scoop out the ice cream, and enjoy!
3.5.3229

We moms found that the ice cream shakers needed a little bit of help to get the mixture shaken vigorously enough to turn into ice cream! Also: be sure to do this activity outside!! The bags tend to get drippy. :)

Here are some of our other Simple Ice Cream Recipes.

Use any of these with the above Freezer Bag Toss idea!

  • Low Sugar No-Churn Chocolate Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Vanilla Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Strawberry Ice Cream
  • Low Sugar No-Churn Peanut Butter Ice Cream

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!
  • Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles
  • Go Apple, Berry, or Peach Picking
  • Create Blessings for Father’s Day
  • Find Ways to Serve Together
  • Plan and Host a Party
  • 77 Screen-Free Activities for Kids
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77 Screen-Free Summer Activities for Kids

June 25, 2019 by Laura 1 Comment

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s post includes: 77 Screen-Free Summer Activities for Kids

Huge List of Screen-Free Activitiesfor Summer Fun

List of Screen-Free Activities for Summer Fun

You might remember seeing this list a couple summers ago. It is huge and wonderful, and therefore well worth posting again! Get ready to be inspired as you see all of these great screen-free activity ideas!

Ready to get lots of ideas of ways to spend time with your kids and their friends while staying away from screens? Here we go!

Read, Read Read!

We’ve already talked about all the good books to read! (Did you see this list?) First and foremost, cooling off under the fan with a good book is a perfect screen free option this summer. Look over our list of great book suggestions. Join our Summer Reading Party. Read, read, read!

Have a Board Games Tournament

Huge List of Screen-Free Activitiesfor Summer Fun

Select any of the following, making adjustments depending on your kids’ ages. If your kids are old enough, enjoying any of these games in tournament form could be a blast! Even if your kids are “too old” for little kid games, sometimes it’s fun to pull them out and have a “Throw Back Game Day!”

  1. UNO
  2. Skip Bo
  3. Rummikub
  4. Chutes and Ladders
  5. Farkle
  6. Checkers
  7. Monopoly
  8. Scrabble
  9. Bananagrams
  10. Rummikub
  11. Headbanz

Have Fun With Bubbles

  1. Have Bubble Races – Hold your bubble on your wand and see who can go the farthest.
  2. Set up a Bubble Obstacle Course – Create an obstacle course and try to get through it without your bubble popping.
  3. Hold a Bubble Contest – Compete for who has the biggest bubble, smallest bubble, one that flies the highest, one that lasts the longest…
  4. Make Big Bubbles – Use lids from different sized cottage cheese, yogurt, or sour cream containers to cut into fun bubble rings. Dip the the rings into the tubs of homemade bubbles, made as directed below. This makes great big bubbles!
  5. Check out these Bubble Guns for an extra level of fun!

Need a Homemade Bubble Recipe?

5.0 from 1 reviews
Homemade Bubbles
 
Save Print
Author: Laura
Ingredients
  • 12 cups water
  • 1 cup dish soap
  • 1 cup cornstarch
  • 2 Tablespoons baking powder
Instructions
  1. Mix ingredients in a bucket or tub, stirring gently.
  2. Allow mixture to sit for one hour before having bubble fun!
3.4.3177

Use Sidewalk Chalk in a Fun New Way

  1. Use Water – Dip your sidewalk chalk in water and see how that changes the color and consistency of the art.
  2. Have Sidewalk Chalk Contests – Compete for who can draw the silliest, biggest, smallest, brightest, largest, most accurate, etc.
  3. Use Sidewalk Chalk to Decorate Rocks – It is like dyeing Easter eggs, only with chalk and rocks!
  4. Spread the Love – Write a message of love, encouragement or fun on a neighbor’s sidewalk. Leave a Welcome Home message on a vacationing family’s driveway.

Enjoy Outdoor and Backyard Games

  1. Ladder Ball
  2. Bocce Ball
  3. Kubb
  4. Lawn darts
  5. Soccer
  6. Water Balloons
  7. Hopscotch
  8. Jacks
  9. Four Square
  10. Obstacle course / Outdoor Olympics
  11. Hold jump rope contests, hula-hoop contests, or roller skating contests
  12. Leaf, bug and flower collections or tree identification game
  13. Cloud identification and imagination game

Set up Some Water GamesHuge List of Screen-Free Activitiesfor Summer Fun

  1. Jump on the trampoline with sprinkler underneath
  2. Use a fun sprinkler to add fun to the play
  3. Slip and Slide
  4. Fill a kiddie pool with ice cubes and water

Set up Sand Box Fun

  1. Use the sand to draw pictures
  2. Bury small toys in the sand box and let the kids hunt for them
  3. Add water to build castles and other creations
  4. New sand toys and shovels are always fun
  5. This dump truck won’t rust if left out in the rain
  6. Durable watering can, shovel and rake

Go on New Adventures

  1. Park Hop – Go from one park to another in your town and surrounding areas, take a friend, have a picnic
  2. Have a Progressive Dinner – Start with salad at one house, hors d’oeuvres at a second, main course at another and end up with dessert at a final house
  3. Go Geocaching – With a smart phone and some hiking shoes, you can make this happen. Don’t have a smart phone? Try a handheld GPS.  You will have to scout your locations in advance and bring a list.
  4. Go on a Treasure Hunt or Scavenger Hunt – Create a series of clues and a treasure at the end.
  5. Go a New Way – Have a destination to which you like to bike or walk? Try taking a different route.
  6. Look Online – Use the internet to find new, fun, free things to do in your area
  7. Camp out in the backyard – If you can’t do over night, then pitch the tent in the yard for an instant playhouse/fort/hideaway

Set up Creative Indoor Play

  1. Sensory Bins with Rice, Beans, or Salt – Let kids play in containers of rice, beans or salt. They can draw letters, shapes and pictures.
  2. Play with and draw in Shaving Cream
  3. Make Homemade Playdough (Mix 2 cups baking soda, 1 cup cornstarch and 1.5 cups warm water. Stir all together and bring to a boil over medium heat. Pour into something to cool. Once it is cool, knead it and you can play away. If you want to add color, put food coloring in the water before boiling the mixture.
  4. Paint with Water Colors – Cover the dining room table with large sheets of paper and let the kids paint away
  5. Make a Selfie – Take a large sheet of paper and trace the child’s whole body. Let them decorate and draw the shape to resemble themselves.
  6. Hold a Talent Show – Do Mom and Dad have talent? What about the kids? Show it off! Don’t forget the video camera!
  7. Get out Simple Art Supplies – Use pine cones, pipe cleaners and googly eyes to create a miniature family
  8. Have a Lego Contest
  9. Hold a Coloring Contest

Cook TogetherHuge List of Screen Free Activities

  1. Make Popsicles
  2. Hold a Chili Cook-Off
  3. Make a Picnic
  4. Hold a Cooking Contest (i.e. Who makes the best cookies?)
  5. Take advantage of this time to Teach Your Kids to Cook

Fun Kid Friendly Recipes

  1. Download a FREE Kid-Friendly Snacks page here.
  2. Homemade Tootsie Rolls
  3. Strawberry Cheesecake Parfait
  4. Crustless Pizza Pie
  5. Easy Guacamole
  6. Cream Cheese Salsa Dip
  7. Chewy Granola Bars
  8. Pudding Pops
  9. Peanut Butter Rice Krispie Treats
  10. Cool Pineapple Cream Dessert
  11. 5-Minute Frozen Yogurt Cups
  12. Easy Blue Raspberry Salad

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!
  • Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles
  • Go Apple, Berry, or Peach Picking
  • Create Blessings for Father’s Day
  • Find Ways to Serve Together
  • Plan and Host a Party
Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

Summer Activities with Kids: Plan and Host a Party

June 18, 2019 by Laura 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

Looking for some fun activities to do with your kids this summer? I’ve enjoyed 22 summers with kids (and counting!), so I certainly have a few ideas to share! Stay tuned during the next few weeks as we provide all kinds of suggestions for making your summer with your kids meaningful. (Subscribe here so you won’t miss out!) Today’s idea: Plan and Host a Party!

No need to wait for a birthday or other special occasion for an excuse to host a party! Why not host a party just for the fun of it?

But I’m NOT a Party Planner!!

Not a party planning kind of person? ME NEITHER!!!! For me, planning “parties” with my kids has been more about planning fun get-togethers with their friends. When you see the list of ideas we came up with below, I think you’ll get excited about wanting to plan a “party” too!

Today we’re talking about ways to host a party while keeping it super simple! Remember, this is about finding fun ways to spend time with your kids and love others this summer. You can work with your kids to plan a party, but if you do it right, it won’t cost much or be very difficult either!

Here’s an example of something our family did a few years ago:

When Malachi was younger, he LOVED everything Lego! So just for fun, one summer we worked together and hosted a Lego Party with his friends. (It is important to note that his birthday is in December and we hosted this party in July. Because it was just for fun! No gifts, no pressure – just good ol’ Lego fun!)

We spent some time on Pinterest together, looking for fun ideas others had already thought of. We spent just a few dollars to put together some small treats and activities…

We “went all out” and made a Lego-shaped pinata and guess what we filled it with? Well, Legos, of course! (In a ziplock, oy!) Once the pinata had busted open, the boys dumped them out on the living room floor and had fun building together. Cost for this fun party game? Um, practically nothing. We already had the Legos. We covered the box with construction paper. It was so simple!

Just for kicks, if you’d like to learn more about How we Hosted a Lego Party on the Cheap, here are the details!

Another time, our boys decided together to host a Nerf Gun Party. They planned the whole thing themselves, which ultimately meant that they called and invited their friends, then everyone came over and shot nerf bullets at each other. And because my boys were into making cakes back in those sweet days, after the gun war, they fed everyone cake. Ah, the love language of boys. :)

What about Teens?

I really wish I had pictures, but none of us can find them on our phones! Last summer though, Elias decided to have a very belated birthday party – even though he’d turned 16 earlier in January. He invited a bunch of friends and helped me plan what to do and what food to serve.

We got a fire going in our Fire Pit (we have this one – such a fantastic investment, by the way!). The kids made their own brats and smores, they played lawn games, they kicked a soccer ball around. It was a blast and WHY CAN’T I FIND PICTURES??? Ah, I guess the memories will live forever in our hearts.

Inexpensive Summer Party Ideas

What do your kids and their friends love to do? Just like Malachi loved Legos and planned and hosted a Lego Party, select what your kids love and go with it! No need to be fancy. No need to spend money. Just pick a theme, invite your friends, and have some fun!

Here are a few ideas to get you and your kids started on brainstorming for fun party plans!

  1. Water Games and Watermelon Party
  2. Sack Lunch on the Lawn Party (everyone can bring their own packed lunch!)
  3. Sidewalk Chalk Contest
  4. Badminton and Brownies Party
  5. Princess or Super Hero Dress Up Party
  6. Lego Party
  7. Popcorn and a Movie Party
  8. Smores Making Party
  9. Crafts and Snacks Party
  10. Cooking or Baking Party
  11. Cookie or Cupcake Decorating Party
  12. Swimming Party
  13. Book Swap Party
  14. Trampoline and Treats Party
  15. Popsicles and Play Party
  16. Board Game Bonanza
  17. Bike Trail Party (ride bikes together, ending in a special location for a treat!)
  18. Card Game Tournament
  19. Ice Cream Sundae Bar Party
  20. Lawn Games and Snacks Party

If you and your kids start brainstorming, there’s no end to the ideas you’ll come up with! See how easy? See how fun? See how inexpensive?

Need some fun Lawn Game Ideas?

  1. Ultimate Disc Game
  2. Kubb
  3. Lawn Bowling
  4. Yard Dice
  5. Ladder Ball 
  6. Molkky 
  7. Washer Toss
  8. Ring Toss
  9. Frisbee Golf (Disc Golf) Set
  10. Floating Pong

Need some fun Board Game and Card Game Ideas?

  • 5-Second Rule
  • Spot It!
  • The Game of Things
  • Rummikub
  • Settlers of Catan (With extentions, which you’ll need if you have more than 4 players.)
  • Settlers of Catan Cities and Knights (This is an expansion of Settlers of Catan. This is our favorite add on to regular Setters.)
  • Seafarers of Catan (Also an expansion of Settlers.)
  • Ticket to Ride
  • Carcossonne
  • Bohnanza (This one is unique. Great for older kids and adults. We love this one!)
  • Life
  • Risk
  • Manhattan
  • Guestures
  • Taboo
  • Blink (Malachi and I play this quick card game a lot while the older brothers are at basketball practice.)
  • Headbandz
  • Acquire
  • Sequence
  • Clue
  • Apples to Apple Junior (This is probably our favorite group game. We don’t recommend the regular version of this game because the cards are less familiar to the kids.)
  • Scattergories
  • Pictionary
  • Cranium
  • Boggle (This game totally counts as school work, but no one knows they’re learning.)
  • Monopoly
  • Sorry
  • Quelf (I’ve actually decided that I very much dislike this one. The kids like it though.)
  • Racko
  • Balderdash
  • Yahtzee
  • Farkle
  • Pass the Pigs
  • Huskerdu (great for younger kids – still fun for adults)
  • Mastermind
  • Skipbo

Need some fun Party Food Ideas?

  • Brownie Sundae Bar
  • Butterscotch Bars
  • Caramel Apple Dip
  • Cheesecake Brownies
  • Chocolate Chip Brownies
  • Chocolate Whipped Cream on Strawberries or In Your Coffee
  • Death By Chocolate
  • Homemade Ice Cream
  • Ice Cream Sandwiches
  • Monster Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars – no flour!
  • Peanut Butter Brownie Cups
  • Pineapple Cream Dessert – Low Sugar!
  • Pudding Pops

Ready to Plan and Host a Party with your kids this summer?

What food, game, and theme ideas do you have?

Here’s to a great summer of fun with our kids! Here are other ideas we’ve shared so far:

  • Make Donuts!
  • Have a Reading Party!
  • Make Smoothies, Milkshakes, and Popsicles
  • Go Apple, Berry, or Peach Picking
  • Create Blessings for Father’s Day
  • Find Ways to Serve Together

Stay tuned for more fun Summer Kid Activity ideas!

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