Last year we made the decision to tell our oldest child the truth about Santa.

He had been asking a lot of questions about how Santa delivers gifts to everyone and noticing little things, like how the Santas at stores and parties looked slightly different from each other. He was 7 1/2 years-old, and we decided it was probably time.

I wrote him a letter to read on his own, and then we sat down together and had a little chat. He cried a little bit, and it took him a few days to process, but then he was on board and excited about becoming part of “Team Santa” for his little sister and brother.

Making the decision and knowing how to tell your child the truth about Santa is big. Not every child is ready at the same time, and not every child will take it the same way.

With that in mind, I want to share some tips to help other parents know how to tell your child the truth about Santa, including when to know when your child is ready, and how to actually tell them the truth.

How to Tell Your Child the Truth About Santa

When do you know they’re ready?

Every child is different when it comes to being ready to know the truth. Some kids get told by friends at school or older cousins while playing together. Some kids are more mature than others, and some are more skeptical and realistic.

We told our son last year when he was seven, and this year our daughter is seven, but she is absolutely not ready to know the truth. Every child is different.

If your child has been pestering you with questions about Santa, his operation, how reindeer can’t fly, or what Santa does for kids who don’t have chimneys, it might be time.

It’s also important to consider if your child will be able to keep the truth a secret. Will they blab to little brothers or sisters? Will they immediately tell everyone at church? They need to be mature enough to trust not to tell people who aren’t ready to hear the truth.

When you tell your child, make sure that nobody can interrupt and little siblings won’t overhear. Do it somewhere they are comfortable and somewhere you can give them your full attention. I know I’m sort of being dramatic, but it’s a big deal and you don’t want the memory of telling them you’ve been lying for years to scar them for life.

How do I tell them? What do I say? What comes next?

Now that you know when to spill the beans, it’s important to know how to tell your child the truth about Santa.

First, you need to decide if you’re going to say yes or no to the question “Is Santa real?”. I know that sounds like an obvious question, but there are two ways of looking at it.

You could tell your child that no, Santa is not real, and that parents buy presents and pretend that Santa brought them. Or you could do what we did, and says yes, Santa is real, but Santa isn’t a jolly, bearded man in a big red coat. We told our son that Santa is not one single person, but a team of people who work together to make Christmas magical. Specifically, we said “Santa is lots and lots of people who keep the spirit of Christmas alive. He lives in our hearts—not at the North Pole. Santa is the magic and love and spirit of giving to others.”

Next, you need to explain why you’ve lied to them for years of their life. Emphasize that it wasn’t to trick them or be mean, but believing in Santa teaches them about the magic of Christmas, giving to others, and believing in something they cannot see or touch. It’s just a fun way to celebrate, and a way to make the season more special.

Answer any questions your child has, and prepare for tears and to give them time to process the truth. Our son sat on the sofa in shock for a while, and then it wasn’t until the next day that he realized what it truly meant, and that’s when the tears flowed. It also helps to make sure you and your spouse are on the same side, so you can tell them together and comfort them during this truth bomb (because honestly, that’s what it’s going to feel like to your child).

The biggest thing that helped our son adjust when we told him that we and many other people play the part of Santa is to welcome him to the Santa “team” and let him help make Christmas magical for his younger siblings and friends. Our son loves helping hide our Elf on the Shelf, and when we go see Santa at the store, he plays along. He even writes a letter to Santa, and helps his little sister and brother with theirs. After the initial shock of finding out the truth about Santa, playing along for his siblings and joining “Team Santa” has helped him understand the why behind Santa.

Sample letter to help you tell your child the truth about Santa

Before I wrote our letter to our son, I read a few different ones other people had written. I took some ideas from other letters and then added a few of my own. I thought it might be helpful for you all to see what my letter said.

Here’s what I wrote in our son’s letter:

Dear J,

You’ve asked us a few times if Santa is real, or if it’s just Mom and Dad. We know you want to know the truth, and we had to give it careful thought to know just what to say.

The answer is yes, Santa is real, but he is not just one single person. 

Mom and Dad are the ones who fill your stockings and choose and wrap the presents under the tree—just as our parents did for us, their parents did for them, and you will do for your kids someday.

This could never make any of us Santa, though. Santa is lots and lots of people who keep the spirit of Christmas alive. He lives in our hearts—not at the North Pole. Santa is the magic and love and spirit of giving to others. What he does is teach children to believe in something they can’t see and touch. You need to be able to believe in things you can’t measure or hold in your hands.

So now you know the secret of how he gets down all of those chimneys on Christmas Eve. He has help from all of the people whose hearts he has filled with joy.

With full hearts, Mommy and Daddy take our turns helping Santa do a job that would otherwise be impossible. We are not Santa, but no one person is. Santa is love and magic and happiness. We are on his team, and now you are, too. It’s important to keep this magic alive. Now that you understand, it’s up to you to give the gift of believing in Santa to your little sister and brother, friends, and one day, your own kids.

We love you so much, and we’re excited to have you on the Santa team.

Love, Mom and Dad

I hand wrote the letter and saved it in his memory journal so he can look back at it one day when he’s grown up. Plus, writing it out made it feel more heartfelt than if I had typed it. But that’s just me. You are absolutely allowed to type it out and give it to your child (whatever is best for your family!).

It can be scary and anxiety-inducing to tell your child the truth about Santa. They may be mad at you for a while, but they’ll adjust and be just fine. And honestly, when your child helps keep the magic alive for friends and siblings, it can be even more special than them thinking Santa comes down their chimney on Christmas Eve.

Good luck, mamas!

The post How to Tell Your Child the Truth About Santa appeared first on Life With My Littles.

This post is sponsored by Cricut and contains affiliate links.

After a long year of homeschooling last year, I am beyond thrilled that my kids are going back to in-person learning at the local elementary school in a few weeks.

For my son, that means starting third grade and getting back into the routine of learning at school. He did his first two years of elementary school at school, so he knows what to expect and he’s familiar with the concept of “going to school.”

For my daughter, who did kindergarten at home last year, “back-to-school” means something entirely different. She did two years of preschool before kindergarten, but it was only half-day, a few days a week. She didn’t get a true kindergarten experience last year, and I’m excited and nervous for her to spend her days in a classroom with other students and a teacher who isn’t me.

I know she’s feeling a little nervous herself, so I wanted to do something extra special for their first day of school breakfast. My kids loved the Valentine’s charcuterie board I made for them earlier this year, and I thought it would be fun to throw together a back-to-school-themed breakfast charcuterie board for their first day!

I wanted to make some school-themed labels for the board, and I knew that using my Cricut Explore Air 2 to make chalkboard labels would be perfect! I also wanted to make them as simple as possible so I could put them together quickly, and I was thrilled to see that Cricut came out with a sticker-backed Smart Paper cardstock for their larger machines that works without a cutting mat and doesn’t need any messy glue! Can’t get much faster or easier than that!

Besides the amazing Smart Paper Sticker Cardstock, I also grabbed a set of Metallic Pens to write on the cardstock so the labels looks like mini chalkboards, and a Scoring Stylus to make folding the labels easy and more precise.

After deciding I wanted to do a mix of proteins, carbs, and fruit on my breakfast charcuterie board, I opened up Cricut Design Space and got to work designing.

I made chalkboard-style labels that could be folded in half and stuck on toothpicks (thank you, Sticker Cardstock!). You can get the free cut file here.

Once you have all your labels designed and ready to go, it’s time to write, score, and cut! Design Space will tell you which pens to use and when to insert the scoring stylus. Just make sure you have a sharp Premium Fine Point Blade in your machine before you start, so you get crisp clean edges.

When your Cricut machine is done doing the hard work, unload your Sticker Cardstock, and one at a time, peel your labels off the sheet. You’re going to put a toothpick in the middle so your labels can go stick in your food, so make sure you have those ready.

After you peel a label off, gently fold along the score line, line the toothpick up inside, and press the label in half. Repeat for each label, and voila! You have breakfast charcuterie board chalkboard labels!

All that’s left to do now is assemble your charcuterie board and add the labels. When I make my boards, I do anything in bowls first (syrup and jam, then eggs and yogurt), followed by bigger items (sausage, waffles, bacon, croissants), one at a time, and then little things (fruit) to fill in any extra spaces.

Last, add your labels. If you have bowls and can’t stick the labels into what’s in them, try taping them to the side. Anything else, just stab with a label.

I love the way our back-to-school breakfast charcuterie board turned out, and my kids loved it, too. Serving this special breakfast is the perfect way to start the first day of school off right!

Back-to-School Breakfast Charcuterie Board

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 10 minutes

Serving a breakfast charcuterie board is such a fun way to celebrate your child's first day of school! And with these cute school-themed DIY labels that you can make in a few minutes with a Cricut machine, the first day of school will get off to a great start!

Print

Materials

• Smart Paper Sticker Cardstock
• Toothpicks

Tools

• Cricut Explore Air 2
• Metallic Pens
• Scoring Stylus
• Premium Fine Point Blade

Instructions

1. In Cricut Design Space, open the cut file.
2. Press Make It! Connect your Explore machine, load your Smart Paper, and make sure the correct tools are loaded.
3. Press Go on your machine and watch it take care of the hard part. Make sure you stick around and switch out tools when prompted on Design Space.
4. When your Explore is done, unload the Smart Paper.
5. One at a time, peel your labels off the sheet.
6. Gently fold along the score line, line a toothpick up inside, and press the label in half, making sure to seal the toothpick inside.
7. Repeat for each label.
8. Assemble your breakfast charcuterie board.
9. Add labels.
10. Enjoy!

The post Back-to-School Breakfast Charcuterie Board appeared first on Life With My Littles.

After a year of homeschooling, we’ve really been looking forward to the summer. Sleeping in, no schedule, lounging at the pool, and popsicles for days; honestly, I’ve been dreaming about it for weeks.

A few summers ago, I tried doing a weekly schedule so we could have activities and things to do and I wouldn’t have to listen to the kids say “I’m bored” every five minutes. It was fine, but it got to be too much after just a few weeks.

This summer, in an effort to plan a few activities while still being flexible, I thought it’d be fun to put together a giant printable summer bucket list for kids.

Instead of scheduling specific activities throughout the summer, I just put together a list of things I knew the kids wanted to do (like tie-dye), and that I knew we could do at some point during the summer (like going to the beach).

Now that two of my kids can read, I also knew I wanted to display the list and let my kids choose when they want to do different activities. I made a Christmas bucket list for toddlers a few years ago, and my kids loved it. The summer bucket list is the same style, black and white, very minimal!

Although I did decide to let them color it, which they had a blast doing!

Giant Printable Summer Bucket List for Kids

I printed my summer bucket list at Office Depot for $23. Just upload the file to their website and print it as a a 24×36″ poster. It was ready in a few hours.

I can’t wait to see my kids set up their own little lemonade stand! And my older kids both chose their top choices from the list, too! J chose tie-dye, and A chose a beach day!

A few days after coloring our giant printable summer bucket list, we knocked the first thing off our list and went to the zoo. It was a blast, and I think it may have made the kids even more excited for the rest of the things on the list!

I hope this big list of fun summer activities helps prevent your kids from saying “I’m bored,” and helps prevent you from losing your mind!

The post Giant Printable Summer Bucket List for Kids appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Getting the flu shot has been a struggle for our kids in the past. We’re talking running from the room screaming, having to be caught by nurses and brought back to the room level difficult.

But during these “learning experiences,” I’ve picked up a few tips to help make getting the flu shot easier for kids.

With flu season fast approaching, I wanted to start preparing myself, as well as any other mamas out there who may be thinking about getting their kids flu shots. Today I’m going to share how to make getting a flu shot easier for kids before the shot, during the shot, and after the shot!

How to Make Getting a Flu Shot Easier for Kids

Before the Shot

Don’t tell them very far in advance

If your child is prone to anxiety or worrying (like my oldest), don’t tell them days in advance that you’re taking him to get his flu shot. Be smart and don’t just spring it on them, but don’t give them a ton of time to dwell on what’s coming.

Talk about why we get flu shots

Some kids respond to logic better than others, so if explaining why we get flu shots will work for your kid, go for it! Even preschoolers can understand that when we get a flu shot, it helps prevent other people (like grandma and grandpa) from getting sick!

Get the flu shot somewhere they’re already comfortable with

It makes sense that kids would be more comfortable getting their flu shot done somewhere they’re familiar with, rather than some random pharmacy, right? Places like Target, Walmart, or even Costco offer flu shots, too!

Let them bring something, or someone, to help them be brave

That might be a picture of a family member, a favorite stuffed animal, or even Grandma and Grandpa!

Get your flu shot done first so they can see that it’s not scary

The expression “lead by example” definitely applies here. Getting your flu shot first shows your child that it’s not scary and isn’t something to cry about.

During the Shot

Have your child focus on you, not on the shot

When the shot is about to happen, make sure you talk to your child. Have them look in your eyes, not at the shot, and distract them by talking about something else, whether it’s what they want to do later in the day, their favorite movie, or what they are learning in school.

Depending on their age, let your child sit on your lap or hold your hand

My oldest is seven, and honestly, he’s probably going to be getting his flu shot on my lap again this year! Holding your child close, or even just holding their hand, reminds them you’re there with them and helps them feel more comfortable.

After the Shot

Bring a special bandage for when it’s over

Yup, it sounds kind of strange, but it’s helped my kids a lot to bring a bandage from home for after their shots. Pick one that is their favorite color or has their favorite character from a movie or TV show on it. They’ll be more excited to have a special bandage on than just a generic one they didn’t get to pick.

Get a treat

Hard things are always easier when you have a special treat or reward to look forward to when it’s done, right? So pick something, like an ice cream cone or a new book or toy, and let them have it when you’re done.

Getting a flu shot doesn’t have to be scary, and by using these tips, you can make getting a flu shot easier for kids. Help encourage them to be brave, be there by their side, and reward them when they’re done! And together, we can all contribute to a healthier community!

The post How to Make Getting a Flu Shot Easier for Kids appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Over the summer (and honestly, the last few months of the 2019-2020 school year), we didn’t have any sort of routine. We woke up whenever, we got ready whenever, and we left the house whenever. It was exactly how summer should be.

When we made the decision to homeschool this year, I knew that things were going to have to be different. We recently had our first day of school, and I’ve tried to really be purposeful in our mornings before we start school so that our day starts off as good as it can.

It’s hard to focus on school when there are things in the back of my mind that have been left undone! Because of that, there are a few things that we always do in the morning to make sure that we can give 100% to school every day.

7 Things Moms Should Do Before School Each Morning

Breakfast

Obviously, we have to have breakfast before school! Everyone knows it’s the most important meal of the day, and not only do my kids need breakfast, but I do, too! We all function a lot better (and nicer) when we’ve got full tummies!

Brush Teeth

Naturally, after we eat, we have to brush our teeth. I let the kids all brush their own teeth in the morning, to help them learn. After I brush my own teeth, I also use LISTERINE® Gum Therapy Antiseptic Mouthwash. It’s available at Walmart (you can even get it via Walmart Grocery Pickup), so it’s easy to buy a bottle when I order my groceries every week.

I’ve used other mouthwashes before, but this one is by far my favorite. Not only does it freshen my breath, but it helps reverse signs of early gum disease like red, bleeding, and inflamed gums (something my dentist has warned me about). It cleans below the gumline where brushing can’t reach, and LISTERINE® Gum Therapy Antiseptic Mouthwash, which is ADA accepted,  can lead to 4x healthier gums in 3 weeks versus brushing alone.

The older I get, the more I realize that I really need to take care of little things like my gums, so I’m glad I’ve got such an awesome and helpful mouthwash on my side!

Click this photo above to add LISTERINE® Gum Therapy Antiseptic Mouthwash to your Walmart.com cart!

Get Dressed

Last year during distance learning, I noticed a big difference between days that we wore pajamas all day and days that we got dressed. So now that we’re homeschooling, getting dressed every day, even if my kids complain, is a must. They focus a lot better if they are actually dressed and ready for the day!

Get Myself Ready

This mostly just entails doing my hair and makeup, which are both pretty minimal. My hair holds a curl well, so I only have to curl it once or twice a week. And as far as makeup, a little mascara goes a long way!

Make Beds

While I’m upstairs, I make my bed, too. I can’t stand going through the day passing by unmade beds. My kids know they have to make their beds before we start school, too!

Open the Blinds

Our house has a lot of natural light, and I take full advantage of it! Opening the blinds every morning makes such a big difference, and it helps me feel like I’m ready for the day ahead!

Unload the Dishwasher

The last thing I have to do every day is unload the dishwasher. We run it every night, and I feel a lot more focused if the sink isn’t full of dirty dishes when we start school! Sometimes I enlist the help of the kids, but sometimes I just do it myself!

Our days usually start off a lot better when we get all these things done before starting school. We’re all focused and feel like the day has begun. Especially now that we’re homeschooling, we need all the good vibes that we can get!

However school looks like for your family this year, these 7 things moms should do before school are sure to help start you off on the right foot!

The post 7 Things Moms Should Do Before School appeared first on Life With My Littles.

This post contains affiliate links.

Last Christmas we got our son (who was six at the time) a Garmin Vivofit Jr. 2 Kids Fitness Tracker. It’s a little band kids wear that tells the time and keeps track of their activity and steps.

We originally got it for him because it looked fun and he wanted to be “like Daddy” and track his steps. But after we got it and used it for a few weeks, we realized it’s so much more than a step-tracker. We even got our daughter one for her sixth birthday!

First of all, no, this post isn’t sponsored. We bought our kids’ Vivofit Jr. 2 bands with our own money. But there are so many features and they’ve been so handy to keep track of our kids chores and things they’re working on that I try and share how cool they are with everyone! (Seriously, two of my in-person friends have gotten them for their kids because they’re so great!)

And that leads me to the whole point of this post. For a long time, getting my kids to make their beds, clean up, and brush their teeth was such a struggle. We would tell our kids they needed to work on being kind or keeping their rooms clean, but we didn’t have any good incentive program for them. Chore charts only worked when our kids were little. Allowance has always seemed hard to keep track of, and we never have cash on hand anyway. We needed an alternative to allowance, and with Garmin, we figured it out!

With the kids’ Garmin Vivofit Jr. 2 bands, everything changed. You can link the bands to an app on your phone and not only will the app tell you about your kids’ activity levels, you can also add chores to check off each day, and rewards they can get by cashing in coins from doing chores.

Here’s how we use the Garmin Vivofit Jr. 2 bands as an alternative to allowance:

First, enter chores or things you want your kids to work on into the “chores” section of the app. Assign each chore coins that your kids will receive after they complete the chore.

Then enter rewards into the “rewards” section of the app. You can choose from rewards in the app, or type in your own. Choose how much each reward is going to cost, a picture to represent that reward, and anything else about it (like when it can be redeemed or any other little detail). This way, your child can’t just spend allowance money on whatever they want–you both have to approve the rewards!

Some of our rewards include specific LEGO sets (100 coins for every $10 the set is worth), Happy Meals from McDonald’s, extra TV time, or other things our kids are saving up to earn.

Every night, mark the chores your kids completed. If they controlled their temper, give them a coin. If they made their bed, give them a coin. You get the idea. They also get to play a game if they get at least 60 active minutes that day. That’s my kids’ favorite part.

As your child completes more and more chores every day, they’ll get more coins to spend (obviously). Once they have enough, they can cash them in and get a reward!

It seems super simple, but it’s so much easier than keeping track of chores on a printed calendar or trying to remember how much allowance your child earned each week.

Once our kids master what they’re working on, we take that chore off and add something new. It’s made such a big difference when we can remind them that they’re working on things and trying to earn coins.

This simple system has revolutionized the whole system of “allowance” in our house. It’s such a great alternative to allowance, and is so much easier to keep track of. There are so many features and even additional bands you can buy once your child finishes their “adventure” (or they can just start it all over again).

If you’re struggling to get your kids to willingly do things around the house, if you’re tired of always reminding them to be kind or clean their rooms, or if you just don’t want to give your kids allowance, this system is the answer!

The post Our Alternative to Allowance: How We Encourage Behavior and Manage Rewards appeared first on Life With My Littles.

This at-home color hunt printable is a great way to keep kids busy and having fun while you’re stuck inside! Great for younger and older kids, and it comes in color or black and white!

After the initial desire to make this crazy time of our lives special by planning crafts and games and making new recipes each week wore off, I, like many other moms, felt burned out.

And unfortunately, that was weeks ago.

With the thought in mind that we have no idea how long this is going to last, I decided it was time to whip myself back into shape and make life at home a little more exciting.In an attempt to keep my kids away from screens and other media, I thought it’d be fun to do a color hunt at home! My kids are 3, 5, and 7, so I knew they could all do it at different levels. It was the perfect family activity!

I wanted to make our activity extra special, so I hopped onto Target.com and ordered a box of brand new crayons! We’re kind of crayon snobs over here, so Crayola is the only brand we buy. I picked up a 24 count box of Ultra-Clean Crayola Washable Crayons, along with a bottle of Dial® Kids Peachy Clean Body & Hair Wash for after (because when you have a three-year-old, you always have to wash up after any type of coloring activity!). We used Drive-Up so we could stay in our car and the sales associate brought our bag right out to the car!

When we got home I put together a cute little printable at-home color hunt worksheet and printed out three copies. It turned out so cute, and my kids were super excited to get started!

I wanted to make it work when printed in color and black and white, and I also wanted it to be easy to identify what color each box was, so even my three-year-old could understand what he was supposed to do.

I put the basic colors on the front of the worksheet and then added some colors that might be a little bit more challenging on the back. I also added a bonus question for older kids!

We set off on our hunt through the house for things of each color, and after we found them all, we brought them back downstairs to draw them on the worksheets!

I loved seeing how each of my kids drew and colored each item. My oldest son loves to draw, my daughter loves to color, and my younger son has (mostly) stopped scribbling wildly all over his paper, so it was the perfect activity.

And of course, as I expected, my youngest son ended up coloring on himself. Luckily, we used washable crayons, but we also had our bottle of Dial® Kids Peachy Clean Body + Hair Wash to scrub him off after!

We love Dial® Kids Body + Hair Wash because it’s developed with the help of Pediatric Dermatologists, it’s tear-free, hypoallergenic, pH balanced specifically for kids’ skin, and doesn’t have any artificial dyes. It’s gentle enough for my little ones and I love it! And bonus, right now you can get $1 off one Dial® Body Wash or 10-Bar+ (excludes trial/travel sizes) while supplies last!

We did this two days ago, and my kids are already asking me to print out more copies of the color hunt so they can do it again!

I’ve included printable downloads of our at-home color hunt so you can keep your kids busy while you’re stuck inside, too!

Just click below to download and print your own color hunt. Remember, it’s double-sided, so don’t forget to adjust your settings when you print it!

Printable At-Home Color Hunt in Black & White
Printable At-Home Color Hunt in Color

I hope everyone is staying safe and staying busy while we’re all at home! And until we can get out again, I hope this fun at-home color hunt can keep you busy for a while!

The post Printable At-Home Color Hunt appeared first on Life With My Littles.

These DIY labels for school supplies are so simple to make and apply! You can easily personalize them for your child and they only take a few minutes to make. Such a great way to label supplies for school!

A few weeks ago, we made the big decision to homeschool our kids this year.

It was a very difficult, personal decision that we came to after our school district announced they were starting school with a combination of distance and in-person learning and were likely to switch to just distance learning or just in-person learning throughout the year.

There were a lot of factors that went into our decision to homeschool, but now that we’ve officially decided, I’ve started preparing for the school year. And if I’m being honest, I’m really excited for the upcoming year! My daughter is starting kindergarten and my oldest son is starting second grade, so I think it is going to be really fun!

One thing that we always love doing is buying school supplies, and it’s been even more fun buying supplies for homeschooling because I get to decide what to add to our list!

We’ve gotten new crayons, markers, colored pencils, glue sticks, pencils, paper, folders, and binders. But once I bought all of our homeschool goodies, I had to figure out how to organize them.

Thankfully, my Cricut Explore Air 2 was up to the challenge! It’s so easy to use, no matter what you’re making, and these labels were no exception!

I have two beautiful pen sets from Cricut, the Extra Fine Point Pen Set and the Ultimate Fine Point Pen Set. I love the colors in both, and they’re both compatible with my Explore Air 2.

The only issue I had is that the pens won’t write on regular vinyl.

Luckily, Cricut also makes writable vinyl that’s permanent, but unluckily, right now it’s only available for Cricut Joy. Yes, there are a few Cricut Joy pens that will work on the writable vinyl, but I wanted to use my wide array of colors I already had!

With a simple tweak, I was able to use the writable vinyl that’s made for Cricut Joy with my Cricut Explore Air 2. It was simple and even the most beginner Cricut users can easily replicate what I did.

These adorable labels are perfect for any child’s school supplies, whether they’re going to school or homeschooling. You can even customize them so they have your child’s name on them! And today, I’m sharing the whole process, and the Cricut Design Space file, with you!

First, you need to decide which of the DIY labels for school supplies you want to use, and how big you want them. My supply boxes are 8.8″ long, so I made my labels each 5″ long.

The Design Space file include labels for crayons, thin and thick markers, glue sticks, pencils, colored pencils, and dry erase markers. If you want to create or change your own labels, detach the pieces of a label in the file, change the text, and if you want, change or delete the picture. You can also change the pen colors. Easy peasy.

So let’s get started! Cut a piece of your writable vinyl so it’s 8.3″ long (one of the choices for material size is 5.8×8.3″ long, and since the writable vinyl is 5.5″ wide, it works).

Next, put it on your cutting mat. I like to use my scraper from my Cricut Joy tool set to make sure it’s stuck on there good and flat.

Make sure your Cricut Explore is set to “Vinyl” and the right pen is loaded into your machine. Load your mat and press go! The machine does all the work for you. Every time it finishes with a color, it will pause and wait for you to insert a new pen. When it’s done writing, then it uses the blade and cuts out your labels!

I loved watching my designs come to life on my writable vinyl. The machine worked perfectly and the designs came out flawless!

Once my Explore finished its job, I unloaded the vinyl, peeled the stickers off, and placed them onto my supply boxes. I got my supply boxes on Amazon, but you can really get them anywhere as long as they are flat on top.

Make sure you carefully apply the labels so they don’t bubble up or wrinkle. The scraper tool is an easy way to make sure you get the labels on without any bubbles.

Once all your labels are on, fill up your supply boxes with school supplies and you’re done! Yay!

Regardless of if you’re homeschooling, sending your child to school, or distance learning this year, labels for school supplies are a must! You can even go a step further and label your child’s lunch box, notebooks, or backpack. These DIY labels or school supplies are so easy to make, and you can personalize them pretty much however you want.

Now that our school supplies are all ready to go, I can hardly wait to get started with the school year. I hope that wherever you are, whatever your children’s school year looks like, you’re excited, too! Good luck!

The post DIY Labels for School Supplies: Personalize with Cricut for Back-to-School! appeared first on Life With My Littles.

At the end of the school year last year, we were completely done with school. Distance learning did not work well for my son, and we struggled every day to get him to do the assignments set by the teacher. I think I was happier when the school year ended than he was.

For the first month of summer, we were blissfully ignorant of what the 2020-2021 school year might hold. I didn’t want to think about it, probably because deep down, I knew what was going to happen.

As July progressed with no decision about what school was going to look like in the fall, I grew more and more anxious. Our state kept pushing back the date they were going to announce the plan, and by the last week of July, it was all I could think about. Not knowing what school was going to look like turned me into a nervous wreck. I could barely sleep, let alone get anything concrete done around the house.

Finally, on July 30 our state came out with the official guidelines for how school will be starting this year. When they announced that it was up to each school district to decide, I about lost my mind. We had already decided that if our kids’ school did distance learning in any way, we’d homeschool them, but if they got to go to school full time, we’d send them to school. Unfortunately, we had no idea when we were going to get an answer.

The next day, our school district came out and said they were going to use a hybrid model of in-person and distance learning, with the chance of them switching between that, full-time distance learning, and full-time in-person learning. So we officially decided to homeschool our kids.

Making this decision was not an easy one. I prayed a lot, did a lot of thinking (and worrying), talked to lots of mama friends, talked to my sister who is a teacher, and really thought about what was going to be best for my kids. My daughter is going to be starting kindergarten, and I just couldn’t imagine her kindergarten experience being partially (or maybe even fully) online. She has no idea how to use a computer! And as far as my son goes, we already know distance learning didn’t work for him.

I know it’s not the right decision for every family, but homeschooling is the right decision for us right now. We’re lucky that I work from home and I have the time and ability to homeschool them, because I know that’s not even an option for a lot of families.

Homeschooling will give us consistency and we won’t have to worry about switching between the different learning models. We’ll also have flexibility and be able to continue school whether the kids have colds or we travel. One-on-one learning is also pretty important for them at this age, since they need a lot of direction and can’t do school on their own. We’ll be able to learn what they want to learn, and spend more time on things they don’t understand, and less time on things they already know.

Public education is great, and depending on what school looks like next year, I’d be happy to have them go to school in a classroom. But for now, it’s just not what’s best for them.

I am fully confident in my ability to give them a good education this year, and honestly, we’re all kind of excited to get started! We’ve added some things to the kids’ homework room to turn it into their homeschooling room (thank goodness for that triple desk I made!), and we’ve had fun buying and organizing school supplies and curriculum. My son is already asking me if we can start the school year early, even though public school in Minnesota doesn’t start until September 15th this year.

I’m not sharing this because I feel the need to explain myself or because I want to convince other people to homeschool. I just wanted to write out our reasoning for homeschooling because I know it’s a big decision, and one a lot of parents are thinking about right now. Whatever you and your family decides to do, be confident. Only you can make the best decision for your children!

The post Why We Decided to Homeschool This Year appeared first on Life With My Littles.

Before construction even started on our home, I knew that I wanted a homework room for the kids. And the main piece in the room had to be a triple desk.

Over the course of the months it took to build our house, I scoured the internet for a triple desk that would work in their homework room. There were tons of double desks, and even rooms where someone had just put three of the same desk together, but no true triple desks.

In the end, I realized that if I wanted a triple desk for my kids that would last for years, I would have to make it myself.

I’m not particularly handy, so I knew if I was going to build this massive desk I was dreaming of, it was going to have to be simple. Simple and minimalist.

The main requirement of my desk (besides being big enough for three kids) was that I wanted the top to be (or at least look like) dark wood. This eliminated a lot of options. Ikea had a long laminate countertop that looked like wood, but with all Ikeas closed for months, I grew impatient and turned to other alternatives.

Enter, the butcher block countertop.

Sturdy, solid, wooden, and GORGEOUS. Not to mention they’re available at most home improvement stores.

In the end, all I had to do to make a beautiful triple desk for the kids’ homework room was sand, stain, and seal the wood, and then screw on legs! Easy peasy!

If you want to make your own triple desk, first you need to choose what length you’re going to do. Butcher block countertops come in a variety of lengths. I used an 8′ countertop, but a 10′ countertop would also work well for a triple desk.

Note: butcher block countertops are SUPER heavy. I recommend bringing someone to the store with you when you get it.

You also want to choose a stain and a sealer. I used Varathane Premium Wood Stain in Black Cherry for my stain and Minwax Fast-Drying Polyurethane in Clear Gloss for my sealer.

First, I set up my workstation. I highly recommend putting a big giant tarp under where you’re sanding, staining, and sealing, because duh, you don’t want to stain your floor. In our garage, I laid out a tarp and then propped up the butcher block on some storage bins. Make sure you have them far enough under the two ends that you can stain the sides.

Next, gently sand the top and sides of your butcher block. I used a random piece of sandpaper left over from a previous project. Since butcher block is pretty smooth to begin with, you won’t have to do much work.

Note: sand with the grain, not against!

After you sand, use some kind of towel or rag to wipe off any excess sawdust you sanded off.

Now comes the fun part! Stain your wood! I did two coats of my Varathane stain and sanded lightly after each coat.

Note: make sure you shake/stir the jar well before you stain. It’s also important to wipe off any excess stain that hasn’t soaked in after brushing it on. And again, stain with the grain!

After you get your desired color of stain, seal that baby! I did two thin coats and sanded lightly after each coat.

Note: let your stain and your sealant sit for 24-48 hours IN BETWEEN COATS. I know it’s hard to wait that long when you’re excited and just wanted to get it done, but I learned the hard way that the stain starts to lift if you don’t wait long enough before starting your sealant.

The hard part is now over! Once your butcher block-turned desktop is stained and sealed, bring it inside to where you plan on keeping it. It’s hard to maneuver such a long piece of wood once it has legs on it, so I recommend assembling it where it’s going to reside.

Flip your desktop upside down and measure where you want your desk legs. My desk legs are hairpin legs from DIY Hairpin Legs and I LOVE them. They were a little pricier than just doing some straight Ikea Adil legs like I had initially planned, but I’m so glad I went with the hairpin legs.

DIY Hairpin Legs had super fast shipping, hairpin legs in all colors, and you can even get different heights. The legs on my triple desk are white, 27″ tall, two rod legs. They also have triple rod, if that’s more your style. (And no this isn’t sponsored, I just genuinely love the hairpin legs I got).

First, screw your four corner legs on. Mine were just about a half inch away from the edge. Line them all up and screw them on!

Now you need to screw on your middle legs. I did two pairs of legs in the middle for stability, because the desktop is pretty heavy. You might be able to get away with only two in the middle and just center them, but that’s obviously not what I did.

If your triple desk is an 8′ one like mine, I’ve made it easy for you and already done the measurements for your middle legs. Eight feet is 96 inches, so each desk section should be 32 inches (96÷3=32). I centered each set of legs at 32″, about 1/4″ from the edge of the desk. Then I screwed them on, too!

Now you can grab a buddy and flip your desk over! This part absolutely has to be done with two people. You can’t just tip it up because you’ll bend your hairpin legs. Trust me.

Voila! You’re done! A beautiful, custom, DIY triple desk, made just by you!

I love our triple desk. My older two kids did some of their distance learning there, and they’ve all enjoyed doing arts and crafts at the table. It’s exactly what I wanted and I’m so glad I decided to go the DIY route!

The post DIY Triple Desk Tutorial appeared first on Life With My Littles.