How We...FALL!

Happy Wednesday! I'm linking up with a few of my favorite bloggers to share how I fall!

When I saw this prompt, I was so excited. I love fall. I think it's appropriate to decorate for fall on the first day of school. My husband doesn't agree with me, so I keep it in the boxes until Labor Day.

So here are a few ways that I FALL!

-Fall Scents-

While I love fall candle scents, I don't love candles so I enjoy the scent and boost our immune systems with these delicious diffuser blends!

-Fall Style-

Fall style is the best!!! I love the colors and the layers!

Here are some of my favorite fall pieces that I found while browsing the Labor Day sales.

Charcoal Dress // Polka Dot Dress // Pocket Dress // Top

Sweater // Sweatshirt // Booties // Tall Boots // Floral Dress

-Fall Food-

I love comfort food. I really love to bake and be in the kitchen.

I love cooking with pumpkin and I can never get enough pumpkin spice lattes from Starbucks!

-Fall Fun-

-Fall Decorating-

Fall is my favorite to decorate for. I love how cozy it makes our home! Last year I tried to get away from all the orange and use more natural colors...I loved it!

Well, that's my list! I can't wait to see what others share!

I love the weather, all the time with family, and the cozyness that comes with it!

Happy Fall!!!

How we...Motivate our Kids

A method of motivating Colson this summer!

TV is an ongoing issue in our house. Colson would sit in front of the TV all day if we'd let him. I knew this summer was going to be a fight if we didn't find a way to deal with it from the start. I knew I needed to set up a system that would become routine for him. I also knew that "rewarding" him with TV time and money would help.

Cara Carroll  shared what she used with her boys and I knew I wanted to do something similar. Her boys are a lot older than Colson so I made my own charts but we the same intention. 

I knew that I needed a list to make it easy to remember exactly what needed to be done each day/week in order to create habit. I printed Colson's responsibilities and it sit beside his bed on his nightstand. He can't read yet so I help him with this. These are things that he doesn't get paid for.

However, in order to earn money, he has a "work for hire" chart than he can pick chores from. Most of these I have to redo after he's finished but the point is to help him learn how to complete these tasks and have responsibility. Sometimes it's more of a mess than if I would just do it myself but I want to raise my boys to know how to work.

Colson was really looking forward to the Cherry Festival. He loves to play the games and this year he wanted his face painted. So, he earned money to take with him. I let him have freedom to spend it how he wanted. This was motivation to work around the house!

Next...a list of things than need to be done before he can turn the TV on. Again, these are things that I help him with because he can't read. But, by now, he knows what he has to do. Make his bed, eat breakfast, brush his teeth, tidy his room, get dressed, and put his clothes in his hamper. Then, he must do two more activities. I have activities to chose from in a binder, but we have yet to pull the binder out. Most days he plays with legos or goes outside.

Once he's done two activities he can use a tech ticket to watch 30 minutes of TV or play on his iPad. Most days he gets busy and doesn't ask to turn the TV until after lunch. Yes!!! I give him 14 tech tickets a week and he can redeem them whenever he wants. Each ticket is worth 30 minutes but he can only use one at a time.  This has saved me from having to tell him no more TV and then fight about it. I just turn the TV on and then set a timer. He knows that when the timer goes off, so does the TV. No more fighting.

 

I can't believe all the play that has taken place without me asking him to play. Once he gets ready for the day and starts playing, he forgets about the TV.

If you are looking for a way to motivate your kids this summer, I recommend looking at Cara's blog. She has great FREE resources and you could easily make it work for any age.

Happy Wednesday!

How we do goals and resolutions.

Today, I'm linking up with Shay and Erika to share how we do goals and resolutions.

 

 

 

This is their first link-up of the year!

 

This year, I chose INTENTIONAL to be my word. I feel like it can make me a better person is every area of my life. These are ways I plan on implementing that word:

 

FAMILY: I know that the kids will be grown before I know it so I want to make sure I'm intentional with the time that I have with them. That means, putting my cellphone down between 5 and 8 to spend time as a family. I know that I'll still use it to take pictures, but I don't want to carelessly stroll through social media. Also, eating dinner as a family every night. We already do this, but I think it's so important. I love that we all sit at the table and have dinner together.

 

GOD: I need to be more intentional about having daily quiet times. I love waking up and opening my bible first thing in the morning. I know it helps me through out my day. I also started going to a bible study with other women from my church on Tuesday nights. I attended a study several years ago at church and loved it. It holds me accountable, I grow in my relationship with God and other Godly women. I want to be more intentional about attending church on Sundays.

 

FRIENDSHIPS: The older I get, the more I long for healthy relationships. I need to be more intentional about contacting my friends, making it a point to set up coffee dates or play dates, and even sending snail mail. I know it would really brighten my day to open my mailbox to an encouraging note from another mom. This mom thing is hard, we need to encourage one another.

 

SCHOOL: This is a must. I want to start my next semester focus and ready to conquer my classes. I'm nearing the finish line and it feels good. I need to stay on track and when I've set aside time for homework, I need to be better about not getting distracted.

 

HUSBAND: I know he's family...but...I want to make sure that everyday he knows just how much I love and appreciate him. I want to be better about telling him or leaving him notes to assure him that I'm crazy about him!

 

FINANCES: This one will be a challenge. [they all will, but this one!!!] I love to shop. I love to run into the grocery store for one thing, everyday. I will then grab a coffee or 10 other things we don't NEED. I also buy things, thinking I will use them and then they go bad and I have to toss out more food than I care to admit. I want to meal plan so I only need to go to the grocery store once a week. Then, I won't be tempted to buy things I don't need and it will help with the amount of food that goes wasted! And...I really don't need any new clothes in my closet. ;)

 

Those are just some things that I hope to carry out over the new year!