I love fun Valentines but I hate to buy them because I am so cheap. There's nothing better than making your own Valentines or finding free printable valentines online. That's why I made these free printable nose valentines just for you. Everybody you "nose" will love them. These are just fun but there's a way to make them a little bit sillier and awesome. When you print them there will already be a nose on the valentine. Last minute printing? You're good to go, just sign them and give them away. But if you have time.... you can order nose pencil sharpeners from … [Read more...]
A Few Tips For Preparing for a Hurricane
Hurricane season is showing up early this year, with a storm developing in the Gulf of Mexico while summer is still in full swing. Now more than ever people are looking at how to prepare for a hurricane or storm. It's on everyone's minds, which is a good thing because then they have a better chance of being prepared when a storm is heading toward them. Don't wait to prepare for a hurricane and don't assume that you have enough. One thing we learned after Hurricane Harvey is that we didn't have enough food saved. Preparing for storms could be considered an Olympic sport. It … [Read more...]
Tips for When Children are Throwing Up
The stomach flu is dreaded and most of the time you have no warning before it hits. However the hardest isn't when you are sick but when you have a kid that is sick. So what do you do when a child has the stomach flu? How do you handle a kid that's throwing up? *This post is one of the oldest and most popular on Clumsy Crafter. It came around because of a child we had with stomach issues. During that time, we reached a professional level at handling throw up in our cars and homes. Now after a week of the stomach bug going through our home, I thought I'd take a second to share this with you … [Read more...]
Easy and Yummy Popcorn Bar – The Perfect Movie Night Treat
It's hard to believe that summer is coming to the end. One of the things that I think of every year at this time is that you only get 18 summers with your kids before they're moving on to college. It's easy to get into the huge, extremely detailed summer bucket lists but I knew that the only way to truly wrap up another great summer is by spending one last night cuddled up on the couch, simply enjoying time together. Of course if you're going to watch TV, you have to have great treats right? Yes! That's why we decided to make a truly amazing DIY popcorn bar. The great news is that you can … [Read more...]
Gray Hair & Mother of a Teenager
When I wake up in the morning, I will be the mother of a teenager. Now let's take two seconds and try to be reasonable about this...... First of all, I don't know how I can be the mother of a 13 year old when I'm only 25. Right? Anyone else with me? The math just does not add up there in my favor. Actually I think the math what might have been the clue that led one of my kids to the truth. Second, I feel too young to be the mom of a 13 year old but that ol' mirror is a liar and tries to tell me differently. I used to look at it and see smooth skin with gravity that was in my … [Read more...]
What to do When Kids are Throwing Up – More Tips and Tricks from Readers!
Many years ago I wrote a post titled, "What to do When Kids are Throwing Up" simply because that day my then preschool age daughter was very sick with the stomach bug and I knew that I had some tips and tricks that could help other parents in the same predicament. Fast forward almost 5 years later that that old post is still one of the most popular posts on this blog. The picture is grainy and old as dirt but the advice and comments on that post are worth their weight in gold, especially if you have a sick child. While I still stand by all the advice in that post, if you haven't … [Read more...]
Our First Experience with a Concussion
11 years into this parenting gig and somedays I feel like a legit pro. Then there's times like this weekend when we dealt with our first concussion in one of our children and I was just lost. Sprained ankles I can handle. Strep throat is just another lazy day at home. Throw up? I have a whole post on tips for what to do when your child is throwing up. Scarlet Fever? Been there. Stitches in forehead? Done that. The local ER? 5 minutes from my house. I have a huge supply of tiny bottles of sanitizer with their logo on them. It's all been worrisome at times but … [Read more...]
Plastic Easter Eggs – A Fun Way To Teach Kids How to Read
Easter eggs are fun. Finding hidden treasures in the yard is always fun. Learning to read isn't fun for a lot of kids. But here's a simple tip that can help kids learn their phonic blends - use plastic easter eggs and a marker to help make new words using the basic blends. Plastic eggs are festive and kids love them. What better way to help them relax and let go of that early reading anxiety than to put something into their hands that they love? Making these couldn't be simpler. You need plastic eggs and a permanent marker, that's it! Most easter eggs … [Read more...]
When Your Firstborn Has The Nerve To Grow Up
There's just something about your firstborn. They're like the cutest little guinea pigs that you truly believe God shouldn't have entrusted you with because you're going to break them or mess them up in some way. Firstborns are the science experiment and you're the crazy scientist that's being driven mad by lack of sleep and the new marker art pieces that dot your favorite furniture. You fear germs and sanitize everything, including the bottle of sanitizer because.... first born. As a new parent you baby proof and toddler proof everything, including the toilet that the … [Read more...]
When Sunday Isn’t a Funday
Parenting is hard. The funny thing is that when you're a parent of a baby or toddler you hear non stop the words, "it will get better". So you brace and gird your loins for the day that it will get better. It's basically a huge joke people play on new parents. Let's just face it - it doesn't necessarily get better. Yes, being a parent is amazing and glorious in ways that words can't define. But I'm pretty sure it's also the reason that I'm prematurely grey. I wrestle with the choice to dye or not to dye daily. Let me introduce you to this past Sunday; The dogs … [Read more...]
The Best Gift You Can Give Yourself for Mother’s Day
Mother's Day is this weekend. It's a day where if you have young children you'll be awakened to giggling kids delivering you burnt toast and spilled coffee in bed. You'll get up and clean up the mess and go about your normal mom duties because moms still have to be a mom, no matter the special day. Maybe you'll treat yourself to a frappacino that day or maybe your significant other will send you off for a pedicure. But there's a gift that as a mother of young children, you can give yourself that will top any other gift. For Mother's Day this year, give yourself the gift of … [Read more...]
What Kids Will Teach You About Parenting
1. Throw up isn't gross. There was a time when I was a preschool teacher. One morning a child came in to the class, accompanied his mother, who looked a little green under the gills. As soon as I welcomed him to the class he turned a new shade of green and before I knew what was happening, his mom reached out and caught his throw up in her hand. IN HER HAND. I was ready to swear off parenting at that point. One roto virus with two children aged 2 and under and a carsick prone child later and throw up has lost it's power. Now rather than shriek, freak out and … [Read more...]
