Last Minute Bunny Treats - Toddler & Baby Approved

Every year I put together something handmade for our nephews. Usually it's a stuffed animal but given the fact that we have a baby at home now, I don't have nearly as much time to plan. It wouldn't be fair for our favorite nephews to miss out on some Easter treats though, now would it? 

How adorable are those bunnies?
These are a great chocolate-free Easter treat for the little ones! They are also the perfect last minute basket filler. The stuff you'll need can be found just about anywhere and take less than five minutes to assemble!

Start with an extra long Rice Krispies Treat or some Gerber Graduates Puffs

For the Rice Krispies treat:

Wrap it with a piece of white construction paper

Stick on some ears and oval feet

Draw on an adorable bunny face

For the Puffs:

Peel away the label

Tuck felt bunny ears under the lid (leave the canister's safety seal in place)

Draw on a face

Tie with a bow

The finished products are beyond adorable!

Oh, and how cute are those carrots?! They are bubbles from Target! I think our nephews are going to be quite pleased with their goodies tomorrow.

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Cloth Diaper Wash Routine + Free Laundry Printables

It's been two months since we started using cloth diapers and I'm hooked. Having used disposables for the first few weeks (and for years before as a nanny), I can honestly say that I prefer cloth to sposies. The benefits surely outweigh the minimal inconvenience of extra laundry.

Sure it's only been a couple months but our diapers look and smell as good as new. I credit that to the awesome wash routine I'm sharing with you today.

Our Top 3 Cloth Diaper Picks

Convincing my hubby to use cloth diapers was pretty darn easy. Who would have guessed that three months later we would both be fluff fanatics in our house.

Every family has their preferences but we're obsessed with the one-size options from the BumGenius and Flip brands. Only the best on our baby's bum!

Boo-Boo Buddy - Get Well Gift for Kids

Accidents happen. We all get hurt. It's the worse when it's one of the little ones though. Sending a heartfelt card is great, but kiddos (especially those too young to read) might not fully comprehend the gesture. Why not turn their unfortunate situation into one just a tad more tolerable with a little Boo-Boo Buddy to hug and some colorful flowers to brighten their sidetable. 

Bottle Cap Memory Matching Game

Remember when I got my Pick Your Plum grab box way back when and did that awesome video? It took me awhile to decide how to use those decorative bottle caps and I finally came up with a great kid-friendly project. Remember the memory card games from when you were little? Now your kiddos can have this handy-dandy travel-sized bottle cap memory matching game in their stash.

Lunch Note Printables for the Kiddos

Today I'm sharing a little something that pairs some of your babies' favorite stories with words of love and motivation from you. This post was originally shared at Sumo's Sweet Stuff earlier this month, but maybe you missed it. Fear not for the literary lunch notes are here!

Notes for the Teacher {Printable}

I had a very sweet reader send an email asking if I had a printable to give to teachers. While I have one for babysitters and one for parents (from babysitters), I unfortunately did not have what she was looking for. To be honest, it never really crossed my mind either. Because she was so kind to go out of her way to ask, I really wanted to do what I could to accommodate her request and committed myself to making one.

Since the Mr. and I don't have kids (let alone ones that are in school), I wasn't even sure what a parent might notify a teacher about. After a night of trying to figure out exactly what I wanted to include and how I wanted it laid out, I finally ended up with a finished product.

Notes FROM the Babysitter {Printable}

There was such a positive response to my Notes for the Babysitter printable, so THANK YOU! In addition to the dozens of comments, so many lovely ladies emailed to ask if I had a printable for the babysitter to fill in while she was with the kids. Since I generally write notes out on the first piece of scrap paper I find, I didn't have a specific template that I used. After some really sweet encouragement from some very convincing mamas, I put one together.

Here's a free printable for notes FROM the babysitter: While You Were Out!

Have you ever found yourself completely exhausted after a night out with the husband only to forget everything the sitter told you when you got home the night before? Wait, when did she say they went to bed exactly? How many times did the baby have a bm?! How much of their dinner did they actually eat? Well, all of those questions could be answered and reviewed when you're finally sober awake enough to recall the details. 


Download the printable here.


While you could definitely have one per child, I think that's a lot of extra work for a sitter that you want to have focusing on the care of your children. I'd suggest leaving just one copy out on the counter with a pen, showing it to the sitter before you leave, and instructing her to write the name/initials next to each individual note.

If you like what you see, you should consider following Spool and Spoon via email or through Google Friend Connect for other simple ideas that are sure to tickle your fancy. 

I'm linking to:

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Notes for the Babysitter {Printable}

TGIF. You know what that means -- no work, all play for two whole days! For newlyweds like the Mr. and I, we can just drop everything and go out and have a great time. If your nights out require a bit more planning and the help of a sitter, consider making things a lot easier for everyone by putting all of the necessary info in one handy-dandy place: my free "Notes for the Babysitter" printable!

You can download this full-size printable here! Feel free to print it out on one 8.5"x11" page or as a photo with two 5x7s on one sheet.

I have been babysitting for over a decade including two years of being a pre-school teacher and three as a nanny. With that kind of background, I'm just wired to write down notes of what the kids and I did, what they ate, their bathroom habits, etc. I have always appreciated the parents that take the same kind of effort to let me know exactly what their expectations are and to ensure that I feel prepared while they are away.  Using my Notes for the Babysitter template, you can give your sitter all of the info they need without a dozen "oh and don't forget..." moments/texts/calls. 

Sample information:

Update: download the new NOTES FROM THE BABYSITTER PRINTABLE!

If you like what you see, you should consider following Spool and Spoon via email or through Google Friend Connect for other simple ideas that are sure to tickle your fancy.

I'm linking to:

DIY Showoff | S3 | Classy Clutter | A Little Tipsy | I Heart Nap Time | Mine for the Making | Flamingo Toes | Craftomaniac | Shabby Creek Cottage | Somewhat Simple | Saved by Love Creations | My Simple Home Life | My Girlish Whims | Stone Gable | Young and Crafty | Nifty Thrifty Things

Elmo Present {Printable}

Today is our nephew's second birthday party! We got him a sweet techy gadget (if you knew the Mr. you would completely understand). While I'm positive he will absolutely love it once he figures out what it is, it won't have the allure of the Fisher-Price packaging. This is why I thought I might go about doing something a bit more creative with the wrapping.

The baby LOVES Elmo, probably about 10x more than he loves me. His parents put together quite the Sesame Street themed celebration.  What better way to dress up our gift than with Elmo's face? Yeah yeah, I could have just gone and bought some Sesame Street wrapping paper, but I wanted something fun and unique. This was just that.

Materials:

• My FREE Elmo Printable
• 8"x11" white cardstock
• Color printer
• Ink
• Scissors
• Red wrapping paper
• Adhesive: glue stick, glue dots, etc

Instructions:

1. Print out the Elmo face shapes onto white cardstock (it absorbs the saturation of ink better than normal copy paper)
2. Carefully cut around each shape
3. Arrange the face as shown above (Left eye slightly overlaps the right, nose sits between both eyes, and then the mouth in a big smile)
4. Wrap your present using the red wrapping paper
5. Adhere the face shapes to the package in the correct layout
6. Presto finito, you are done!

To be notified of other fun projects, consider following Spool and Spoon via email or through Google Friend Connect.

I'm linking to:

DIY Showoff | S3 | Classy Clutter | A Little Tipsy | I Heart Nap Time | Mine for the Making | Flamingo Toes | Craftomaniac | Shabby Creek Cottage | Somewhat Simple | Saved by Love Creations | My Simple Home Life | My Girlish Whims | Stone Gable

Kid-erview Interview

As I mentioned in my last post, yesterday was Bring Your Daughter (Son/Child) to Work Day. I'm not sure about everyone else in the office, but I had a ball... it must have been the nanny in me coming out. The kids (and my coworkers) gobbled down the Cookie Dough Crispix! I work in a  professional office as a recruiter, so it was nice to have all that silliness around even just for a day. Generally my days are full of sourcing candidates for various positions but I got to put my skills to good use creating resumes and interviewing each of the kids.

Kids really do say the darndest things! Getting together their "work experience" and "educational background" for their resumes was a hoot. The interview portion was even better. We had a business card exchange (they got to decorate their own) and then I sat and asked them age appropriate interview questions. My favorite response for the day from my manager's 6 year old daughter after being asked what she wants to do when she grows up: "I want to be just like Mommy and run this office. Her job is easy peasy - she gets to sit in her office and visit her friends for lunch (our clients). I would like us to work near the beach though if that's okay." Yes, that is definitely okay with me. 

I cannot wait until I have kids and they are old enough to actively participate in this event. It was such a great experience (for the young and for the old!). Whether you're a parent who just wants to do something similar at home every year or maybe a teacher who wants to do an interview at the beginning and end of the year to track changes, I would highly recommend the activity. Just be prepared to chuckle at the little ones and their silly responses.

Kid-erview Interview:

• What's your name sweetie?
• How old are you?
• How old do you think I am?
• What is your favorite color?
• What is your favorite thing about you?
• What would you do with a million dollars?
• What is your favorite subject at school?
• If you had a day off from school, what would you want to do?
• How do you help mommy and daddy at home?
• What do you like to do when you're at home?
• What is your favorite book?
• What is your favorite movie?
• Tell me about Mommy:
• What does she do at work?
• Tell me about Daddy:
• What does he do at work?
• What do you want to be when you grow up?
• If you could live anywhere, where would you live?
• Who is your best friend?
• What is your favorite food?
• If you could ask me anything, what would you ask?

Afterwards, include a snapshot, a signature (scribbles and all), and a hand print.