Winner Winner Bento Dinner! Or Lunch.

We have winner!!!  Congratulations to Amy H!

Amy is actually one of our original readers! She has been telling me (Tracey) that I should have a food blog for years. This is quite the compliment coming from someone who actually HAS a food blog.



 

As the mother of four boys, (yes, FOUR BOYS) Amy knows a lot about feeding families.  Go check her out. Maybe we can convince her to do a post on kid's lunches.

I just want to know who is going to luck out and get the Bento Box.  My money is on her husband.

Congratulations Amy!

Disclaimer: This is a non-sponsored post. We bought our own stuff and Amy was chosen by Rafflecopter. We just happen to love her and her blog so we thought we'd share. Now, go try her salsa. 

Back To School Printables

Hey guys! It's been a long time since I went "back to school" and I don't have any kids yet that I need to be sending off, so I don't have much in the way of advice or wisdom on the subject. So my contribution to this week's theme is printables! Back To School printables that you can take and use for yourself, for free! Whaaaa? Free stuff, again? Mmhmm! It's my way of, just maybe, helping you and your youngin's ease back into the world of waking up early, regular schedules, homework, and parent/teacher conferences.

Today we have Binder Covers, Homework Checklists, Morning Checklists, Nametags, Lunch Notecards, and an actual printable that you can frame. The best part is that they are all customizable. Tracey was kind enough to let me use her kids' names as placeholders for now, but to get your kids' names in these, just fill out the information at the bottom of this post in an email to me and I'll customize it for you and send it your way in a timely manner : )

Binder Covers (8.5"x11") — To order, tell me: Which version you want; Your child's name; Your child's grade; Your child's teacher's name

Homework Checklist (8.5"x11"; we thought it would be really fun if you had it printed and then laminated and they could use it as a dry-erase board each week) — To order, tell me: Your child's name

Lunch notecard (6"x4"; maybe a little cheesy, but my favorite part of school lunches growing up was when I got a surprise note from my mom telling me she hoped I was having a good day) — To order, tell me: Your child's name

Morning checklist (8.5"x11"; same idea here with the lamination) — To order, tell me: Your child's name; Any specific morning routine item that you'd like added

Nametag (3"x2.5"; we thought it'd be fun to make these the size of an Avery label and you could stick them on whatever your child needs it on. If you're interested, let me know what size of Avery label you'd be using in your email and I'll resize it to that) — To order, tell me: Your child's name; Your phone number

Printable (5"x7")

If you want the colors on any of these changed, I can do that too. Just let me know what color you want. The easiest way for me to get exactly what color you want is for you to go to this site, find the color you'd like, and then let me know the 3 RGB colors that correspond.

REMINDER: Don't forget to enter our Back To School giveaway! It closes on Monday night. There's still a fighting chance for you; there are only 42 entries so far!

Mom's Ink Stamped Tote

Disclosure: We are very upfront about the fact that we are unqualified. This means we make mistakes. So yes, there is a typo on the bag. Yes, I do know how to spell. Apparently, I just don't know how to weed vinyl. If you don't believe me, check out the graphic pattern. 

When we talked about doing a "Back To School Week" I knew that I wanted to include a fun craft. I decided a tote bag would be the perfect thing.  As a parent, it seems like all you do is carry around stuff for everyone. It seems to get worse when school starts. I think it is because there seem to be so many more activities during the school year. It seems like I am constantly stuffing my purse or diaper bag full of kid gear. So why not make a bag celebrating the fact.

Truth be told, I had a vague idea of what I wanted to do but the plan didn't fully develop until Sam and I were wandering through Hobby Lobby. Then I saw it. A stamp pad for fabric. All of the examples they had on the aisle were super cheesy but I liked the look of the ink on the fabric. Up until this morning, I wasn't even sure it was going to work. In fact, I disclosed to my friend Andrea that this craft might just be a complete disaster.

Luckily, other than the annoying typo, ugh, it turned out pretty well.  Here's how I did it.



What you need:

• Bag


• Ink pad for fabric


• Old cotton towel


• Sponge brush


• Design cut from vinyl

First, I designed the wording in Photoshop.  See? No typo.



Next, I cut I imported the design to my handy dandy Silhouette Cameo and cut a vinyl stencil. Using transfer tape, I applied the vinyl to the bag. I'm lazy and neglected to iron my bag. Learn from my mistakes and iron it. This will help in applying the ink evenly.



Using an old cotton dishcloth, I applied the ink to the bag. I used a "wiping" motion. Try not to dislodge the vinyl in the process. Otherwise you might have a little bit of bleeding. This isn't the worst thing in the world. It just gives it a little character. To give it a slightly ombre appearance, I applied multiple layers of ink at the top and then gradually reduced the amount as I continued down. This takes some practice. I think my next attempt will be even better.

Lightly (very lightly) wet the sponge brush and gently wipe it over the letters, this will help even out the ink. It you use too much water it tends to bleed. Again, not the worst thing in the world.

Once you are done, remove the vinyl and set the ink according to the directions on the ink.  Mine called for medium heat, no steam.



There you have it. A "stamped" bag. As you can see, mine is already full of kid stuff. Welcome to the life of a mother.

A Guide for A Successful Morning - Six Tips for Kids and Back to School

Welcome to day 2 of "Back to School"  week. In case you missed it, Sarah put together a killer giveaway so you are definitely going to want to check that out and enter.  I've included the widget below.

There are three things that qualify (ha!) me to talk about successful morning prep.

First, I have either been going to school or sending people off to school in the morning for the last 29 years. Ben has either attended school or worked at a university our entire marriage. This is Sam's third year of attending school everyday out our elementary school. Keep in mind, this year he will be in Kindergarten. 

Second, I hate mornings. I am the World's Person Least Likely to Love Mornings and mother of the first runner-up.

Finally, I'm super lazy. Not lazy in the fact that I don't do things, lazy in the fact that I like to do nothing so I like to do things as quickly and efficiently as possible. More time for sleeping people. 

The only way I could be more qualified is if I were a teacher or had 3+ children. Since neither of those things are going to happen anytime in the near future, you'll just have to deal with my (un)qualified opinion.

Prepare and Prevent

I don't function too well in the morning. I just don't fire on all cylinders. I am much more productive at night. If I can have things prepared the night before I prevent a lot of disasters.Before I go to bed, I try to double check backpacks, layout clothes, find library books, sign permission sleeps and prep lunches. This gives me more time in the morning to wrestle my angry noodle son into clothing. Lazy efficiency takes over when it comes to lunches. Juice boxes, Gogurts, and pre-packages snacks are how I handle things. However, I make sandwiches in the morning because I'm not a fan of soggy sandwiches. If you insist on being a better mom than I am by providing you children with more wholesome lunches, you can also cut your fruits and veggies early in the week and have them bagged and ready to go. Or check out the cookbook in our Back to School Giveaway. Fantastic options.

Up and At 'Em

As much as I hate to admit it, getting up a even 20 minutes before my kids makes the morning go better. It is easier to get myself going if I'm not trying to snuggle children into consciousness while I'm doing it. If I'm not planning on exercising in the morning, I realize that this might be the only opportunity I'm going to get to take to shower during the day. For kids, I like to stagger getting them up. Especially when I had a newborn, it was easier to get my son ready without trying to balance feeding and changing a baby. This doesn't always work but it is worth a shot.

Put On A Happy Face

While Ben's peppy early morning nature tends to get on my nerves at time, I've found that it makes a huge difference in how our morning is going to go. Crabby Mom = Crabby Kids. If I can get Sam out of bed sweetly and softly, he has a much better morning. Also, a couple of minutes for a snuggle never hurt anyone.

Unplug Your Morning

If a screen is involved, the morning is guaranteed to be a bigger fight at my house. Our love of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse is detrimental to morning routine. Just forgo it entirely. You can check the news or weather later on your phone.

Grab Your Toolbox

At my house, I keep all of the kid's hair gear and dental hygiene stuff together (But separate. Hair in the toothbrush?  No, thank you.). We just get the bin out and get it done. No more searching for toothbrushes, combs or bows. It is all kept together and mobile just in case someone's "legs are broken" and they are incapable of standing up. It happens more than I would like to admit.

Keep an Eye on the Prize

Morning prep is not time for checking email or Facebook. Don't think you are going to pound out a blog post either. Just as I don't allow the TV to distract the kids, I can't let my stuff keep me from the task at hand. Dishes can wait. Do you really need to reply to that email or can it wait 20 minutes until the kids are gone? By focusing on the task at hand, you encourage a smoother morning and therefore a smoother day. Teachers will thank you. Your kids will thank you when you aren't rushing them out the door like a raving lunatic because Pinterest put you behind. Most of all, you will thank yourself when you are able to focus on your own day without the remnants of school-rush adrenaline.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Back to School Giveaway! {CLOSED}

That's right! School is starting up once again and we here at OUO wanted to ease the bad news (or augment the good?) with a chance to win a handy little prize package. While getting it ready for photographs, I told Tracey that I kind of wanted to keep everything, and she told me that she had felt the same about our last giveaway. Point? We like you guys, and we're very grateful to you for reading! And we back up that gratitude with some sweet loot. Observe:

One bento lunchbox from Bentgo in blue

This bento has two layers that can nest for storage. It's big enough for grown-ups, but a perfect size for little lunches, too! Reusable silverware and an elastic strap are included. Learn more about the Bentgo here.

Fred and Friends Crustache sandwich cutter

Yes, yes, I know mustaches are everywhere, but it's a mustache sandwich cutter. You can simultaneously cut the crusts off of a sandwich and make that sandwich into a disguise. I know. Check it out here.

Good Food to Go by Brenda Bradshaw and Cheryl Mutch, M.D.

A lunchbox is only as good as the food that's in it, and this book keeps the good recipes coming, including Roasted Red Pepper Hummus and Cucumber Pinwheels and Spanakopita. Plus it has nutrition guides, tips on organizing your kitchen for easier lunch prep, and clever ideas like using straws instead of skewers to make school-friendly fruit kabobs. We liked that idea so much, in fact, that we included a package of Bentgo-sized cakepop sticks that you can use instead. See? Thoughtful.

Eager to win this? Because we are! Like, maybe I might have considered entering under a false name...perhaps...just saying. Are there penalties for blog fraud? Anyway, entering is easy! Comment below on what your favorite school lunch was growing up (from home or school), and fill out the Rafflecopter form. The giveaway will run until next Monday, August 19, at 9:00 pm Central Time.  Good luck!