jeannegonzalves – 5 Kids Later…

Jackets and backpacks

When 3 of the kids started grade school, I thought I’d repurpose toy bins for their school catch all.

It worked a little too well, and those bins filled up fast.

So I went to Pinterest for ideas and fell in love with the idea of hooks by the door. My kids and hubby loved it too. It was meant to be the one jacket you use ALL the time but sooner or later most coats left the coat closet and became a giant mash of jackets on 6 little hooks and backpacks on the floor.

I wish I lived in an area where mud rooms are the norm but I do not so it doesn’t exist. My dream was for the mudroom to be the ultimate drop off zone for shoes backpacks and jackets.

So I’m happy to say inspiration hit again when I was staring at my semi empty coat closet that was just filled with stuff we didn’t use. It is a perfect space for all this gear plus behind closed doors to prevent visual clutter.

It took me 2 weekends. One to empty the closet and sort / purge. As standard under-the-stairs coat closets go, there was a bar up front and you had to wade through it to get to the back. That was the first to go.

The next weekend I installed hooks and set up shoe racks.

I was able to create a more usable coat closet with 12 hooks this time, a shoe rack, and even a tiny step stool ottoman for the little ones to hang up their coats. I was lucky to find a 6 hook rack with the hooks spaced far enough apart and the whole width just wide enough to fit the length of my walls.

I moved shoe racks that were being used to stack more useless stuff into the closet so there were 7 levels to.hold everyday shoes – one for each of us!

I found battery operated motion detection lights that only came in when it was dark and stuck it on the ceiling.

Now the kids enjoy walking in the closet to out away their shoes and backpacks without fear of being stuck in the dark.

I think it turned out pretty well!

If you want to give this a try just follow these 5 steps.

Empty the closet and find homes for everything but jackets and shoes going back in.
Measure walls and plan where hooks and shoe racks will go.
Remove clothes bar.
Install hooks.
Set up shoe rack.

Done!

Purse or Diaper Bag?

Almost 9 years later, I am still in search of the perfect solution to this question. I actually wrote this headline almost 2 years ago. Today as I started to share my latest pursuit for a solution, I found a draft of this post with just the headline. I guess I had no answer until now. Skip on to the end if you can’t wait to know how I solved this problem.

For moms out there that are struggling to juggle a diaper bag and a purse, or have moved on from packing everything but the kitchen sink for your little one to a mommy purse or mommy tote – here are a few suggestions that has worked for me. At the time I write this, the kids are ages 3,3, 7, 8 1/2, 8 1/2.

If you still need a diaper bag, consider a clutch or wristlet big enough to hold your essentials like credit cards, ID, cash, lipstick, hand sanitizer, and tissues but small enough to tuck into your diaper bag. Move the rest to a tote or bag you can access in emergency like in the trunk of your car, or a carryon suitcase if you’re traveling.
If you’ve graduated to toddlers, consider carrying only the number of diapers and wipes you need for your outing, only one set of extra clothes, and a smaller portion of snacks. Use another tote or bag with the “extras” you think you’ll need. You can still keep it close by to replenish your diaper bag but at least you won’t be carrying around another 20 pounds of gear you “might” need. A cooler in the car can store additional juice or water. Use this in conjunction with a clutch or wristlet or an “insert” bag described below for your essentials.
A larger purse or tote can replace your diaper bag when you’ve graduated from diapers and moved on to potty training. My diapers were replaced with a pack of toilet seat covers just in case we needed it while traveling. A clutch or wristlet with your essentials can easily be used by itself when you run into a store so you can leave the larger purse or tote in the car.

So what about all the other things you need to carry around with you but won’t fit in your clutch or wristlet? For me these are eyeglasses, a portable phone charger and cable, and feminine products at that time of the month. I keep this in a separate pouch – you can use a make up bag, pencil pouch, travel organizer or whatever you have on hand. I find the less structured ones are easier to squeeze in to my tote or purse. This pouch can be left in the car or kept in your purse or tote if you have room.

The final grievance I have as a mom is that I also need to carry my laptop back and forth to work or when I travel. I occasionally also bring my lunch or walking shoes to work. This is yet another bag to carry around when it’s time to go to work.

Another problem? Purses and totes are not that convenient when you need your hands free to hold your child.

I’m sure I’m not the only one that hates moving my wallet, phone, glasses, makeup etc from purse to diaper bag to work bag. There are a number of purse organizers that I have tried but none lasted.

At last – what has worked for me is the bag-in-bag approach. I really wish I thought of this before. Here’s how it works

The first bag I will call the “insert” is a canvas backpack I found for $20 online. It’s plain, black, but durable and most importantly washable. In this bag I have my wallet, eyeglass case, electronics pouch and on occasion the pouch for feminine essentials. I do not carry my makeup with me – it stays home or goes in the car if I need to touch up.
The 2nd bag I will call the “shell” is what the first bag or “insert” goes into. Depending on the occasion, this is a more stylish purse, a structured tote for work, a tote for shopping or running errands. I can throw my insert into the shell and still have my essentials with me, but change the style of my shell as I like. I usually will carry my water bottle in this bag too.
On the weekends, I will usually carry my purse and place the insert bag inside. If I need to look more ‘acceptable’ , I carry the purse, but if I’m just taking the kids to the park, I ditch the purse in the trunk and use the insert which is a backpack. From time to time, I bring a larger tote as the “shell” vs a purse when I know I’ll need a shopping bag or library book bag instead.
On workdays, my purse doubles as a work tote for my laptop. I have a laptop sleeve to protect it, then in goes my backpack “insert” with everything else. This makes it easy for me to leave the laptop at home on the weekends and just toss it back in on Monday. An “insert” makes it easier to switch from weekend purse to workday tote if you keep them separate.

I wish I could say I am a genius for thinking of this bag-in-bag approach but there is actually a start-up company that has designed a (rather large and expensive) tote with interchangeable shells and standard insert. I’m happy enough to have someone validate my idea 🙂

Here are some tips if you want to try this approach

Choose a bag you use for your insert that is flexible vs structured, and has enough style that you’ll be happy to carry on its own. Mine is canvas and a backpack.
Choose purses that can pull dual duty as a work tote, laptop bag, or diaper bag. I tend to choose larger purses, so yes you can be stylish and not carry a diaper bag.
Minimize what is in your insert. If you’re not sure you can survive an outing without everything you have packed in your diaper bag or tote or gym bag now, separate them into pouches or whatever bags you already have, then try leaving them in the trunk. Eventually you’ll know what you always have to go back for vs what you can leave behind and retrieve only in emergencies.
As you switch to this new “system” resist the temptation to buy the “perfect” organizer. I found an unused luxury brand name coin purse I was not using that I now use as my electronics pouch, a fashionable pencil case for my other essentials, and an unused luxury brand name wristlet that I was able to use as my wallet. These all go in my insert bag. The reason I chose them is they don’t add much bulk or weight but helps organize what goes into the insert.

Moms – go forth and rejoice! The purse vs diaper bag dillemma is solved!

A Mom’s Evernote Tips

If you know me well then you know I’m a big advocate of Evernote. Over the years I went from checking it out, to sort of using it to can’t live without it.

Here are some tips for moms on how to use Evernote and stop using your wallet as a file cabinet 🙂 Yeah you know who you are.

Download an overactive brain…obviously happening now as I write this post. Create a note for anything you don’t want to forget, a checklist for a project, shopping lists, ideas for birthday parties, packing list,
Scan school papers. Stop feeling guilty about not saving them for a scrapbook they’ll never want. You know these are for you, not them. Use the Evernote app on your phone to take a picture or scan the item, tag it with the kid’s name and toss it into recycling. You can also file it into an Evernote notebook named after your child, so you can browse through it later with them. Bonus – share the notebook with family so it’s easier to brag about your kid’s latest art drawing.
Scan coupons, receipts – I used to clip coupons, then dump them in my purse or my wallet or the coupon file that I always forget when I’m actually at the store. Take a picture with the Evernote app camera and tag it as a coupon or file in a coupon notebook. The coupon will be there whenever you’re ready to use it. Be like an Evernote expert and set a reminder for the date/time you’ll use the coupon so it pops up right when you need it (like when you’re at Bed Bath and Beyond).
Share folders. I share a folder named “Kids” with hubby . There’s also a sub-folder or Evernote notebook named after each kid. File notes here to share things like school schedules, extracurricular class schedules, clothing sizes, wish lists, immunization records, notes from doctor visits, prescriptions, etc.
Send out links – I use Evernote to save web clippings. On my desktop, the Evernote browser extension lets me clip a web page to Evernote. On my phone, I use the Dolphin Browser app which lets me share a web page to Evernote. This is saved in my “clips” notebook. Whenever I find myself waiting in line or for my lunch order, I can read the articles offline. If it’s worthy to send/share, I can send share the link to my Evernote note to anyone via text, email, etc…
Wish lists + Amazon. My family is remote so Amazon is a must when it comes to gift giving. To make it easier on our family, we help the kids create wish lists for their birthday or Christmas. The Evernote app makes this easy -at Target for example, I start a new note, click the camera icon and click away at items they want to add to the list. I can also share items from Amazon. I can then merge the notes together or save them to a new notebook that I can share to anyone that asks. I also try to remember to add their current clothing and shoe sizes just in case someone is thinking of those items. The reason I use Evernote vs Amazon is that it’s easier to share the Evernote link and keeps everything in one place
Buy a scanner. With all the papers coming home from school, it was easier to use a scanner. I use the ScanSnap scanner since it’s programmed to send scanned items directly to Evernote and is blazingly fast. The school papers end up in a weekly pile that I try to scan at least once a week, then toss in recycling knowing they’re safely in Evernote.
Tag those notes – in case multiple kids share the note. The benefit of Evernote is that you don’t really need to file anything in a notebook or tag a note. You could just leave it in the default folder. Evernote’s optical recognition (OCR) can scan through all those notes and find matching documents. The only drawback is when you get too many results. Sometimes searching by a tag is more efficient. The second reason you should use tags is when a note applies to more than one notebook or topic. For example – something in the folder “kids” applies to two kids. If you file it under one notebook named under kid #1, then you won’t find it in the notebook named kid #2. If you file it under kids, then tag with with kid #1’s name and kid #2’s name, then you’ll find it with either name.

Suggested Notebooks

Home and Family – Where you family’s reference documents go like house projects, home inventory, pet info, etc.
Kids – to share with hubby and family. Notes that apply to more than one kid go in here. Be sure to tag!
A notebook per kid – to share in the future. Includes current measurements, Wish Lists, Drawings, accomplishments, rewards, medical records, etc
Statements – If you get eStatements or eBills use a service like IFTTT or use automated filtering and email rules to forward to Evernote and delete from your email automatically. Stop pretending you’ll eventually read and file them from your email inbox!
Receipts – this is especially great for online ordering receipts. Like statements, use automated email filters to forward to Evernote. Expert tip – add @Notebook name to the subject line to automatically move it to the Receipts notebook in Evernote. Mom tip – stop losing receipts and forgetting them when you need to return an item. Snap a pic when you clean out your purse. Receipts that rub off the ink from the paper are better saved this way too. Use the Evernote app camera to take a picture of the receipt plus any extended warranty policy so you can keep them together.
ID Cards – use common sense on this. Obviously do not scan your Driver’s license. This is useful though to carry back up copies of insurance cards, library cards, rewards cards, etc.
School Papers for YYYY – scan here to reference during the school year, delete at end of year. See above for more about handling school papers.

And finally my favorite Evernote tip – get rid of those post it notes you stick on top of your phone! Use Evernote to make quick notes. Better yet get a phone that lets you handwrite notes. I am using the Samsung Galaxy Note to create new SNotes that automatically synch with Evernote. It lets me handwrite a note like on paper, but saves a digital copy in Evernote so I never have to dump out my purse looking for the lost receipt I wrote a phone number on the back of.

Officially no longer babies

Oh my goodness. The younger twins are turning 3 this month. I’m so happy and proud of them.

A part of me is sad each time they get better at saying a word, or speaking in a full sentence with no words missing in between.

The older kids are sad too. They want them to stay babies forever. I think only hubby is happy to get past this stage. The boy has said he wished we could have more babies because “these ones are getting big”. Ha ha.

Me and the kids have an agreement to NOT correct the baby talk. They say thanken instead of thank you, but slowly they correct themselves and slowly but surely the little bit of babyness left is gone.

I still go to their beds at night. All grown up now in the bottom bunk beds of their sister’s room. Sleeping all night, on their own, instead of next to me. Sigh. I take a whiff of their hair, kiss their little hands, sniff their little growing baby feet. And thank God they are healthy. All of them. My five little miracles.

Oh shoot. I need to plan their birthday party! Here we go again.

About Us

We have five children including 2 sets of twins. Currently ages 7,7,6,2,2. That’s 2 fraternal twin girls, a single boy, followed by 2 identical twin girls. Life After 5 – kids that is, has definitely changed.

Summer is almost over? Already?

It’s July. Already. We’ve taken the kids on a road trip and they’ve settled into their new summer routine of sleeping late, and waking up late.

I never did get to book them into any summer camps or classes that I had on my to-do list since January.

I’m halfway through our summer project of switching bedrooms with them so they have more space.

And back to school shopping is already on my mind because we started too late last year that there were no supplies left.

I should beat myself up for not getting more of what I planned to get done but I’m actually enjoying not having the morning school rush, the I’m so tired but we have to do homework nights, and just “hanging” out with the kids. Speaking of which – I think I’ll see what TV show they’re binge watching and grab a beer while I’m at it. Until next time!

About Us

Birthdays

With a large family, you can imagine we have lots of birthdays to celebrate. There’s 7 of us but two sets of twins so really there are only 5 birthday parties I should plan each year.

NOT so.

Somehow we end up planning birthday parties randomly for family coming into town or our nanny or a close friend.

By now I’ve done this so many times and have the formula down that even the toddlers can rattle out my checklist: decorations, balloons, cake, bounce house, prizes!

We celebrate a lot of birthdays at our house and here’s the “usual” list of things to buy and do. As always, this is all done in one note created in Evernote.

Decide on date, time and venue – mostly it’s our house but sometimes at a kids venue.
Create guest list to determine supplies, favors and amount of food to get.
Book the venue
Make and send out invitations
Decide on food – are we cooking, buying, getting a caterer?
Order the food
Reserve equipment – tables, chairs and bounce house depending on what we decide to do
Pick the theme then buy party supplies matching the theme. This is usually the kid’s favorite character at the time.
- Tablecloth
- Paper Plates x 8 or 16 if we have more guests
- Desert plates x 8
- Beverage napkins (the smaller ones) come in 16
- Paper cups x 8
- Some type of wall or ceiling decoration
- Pinata and pinata fillers (maybe)
Check Amazon for party favors matching the theme.
Visit Party City to buy the party supplies and if cheaper buy the party favors.
Order any other favors or party supplies we couldn’t find from Party City.
Plan for 2-3 games to play during the party. Browse the internet for ideas or come up with your own. Party stores also have great games.
Order prizes or grab prizes at Target, hobby stores for the game winner.
Order a cake from Costco.
Buy a toy to decorate the cake from Costco. I’ll post more about how to make this look like a custom cake later.
Amazon packages arrive the week of the party. I hide them all until the day of the party so the kids don’t get to them.
Follow up on RSVPs for day of party
Pick up cake and drinks at Costco the night before the party.
Pick up food the night before the party (if not delivered)
Assemble favors the night (usually late) before the party
Fill the pinata! the night before the party
On day of party, we set up the dining table with the paper goods. We reserve the themed items for the kids and use plain paper plates for the grown ups.
If we have time, get balloons on the day of the party.
Decorate cake on day of the party.
Get food ready on day of party.
Write down the games so older twins can help with the “schedule”.
Get ready to party!

Calendars for large families – take 2

Last year I wrote about my quest to find a calendar system big enough for my large family. You can read about that post here.

The original calendar system worked pretty good. We had a desk calendar on the freezer door held up by magnets and I used color coded sharpies to write in each kids’ calendar item.

The problem was all these flyers, etc were pinned on top of the calendar with other magnets. Also — the sharpie pens were on the other side of the kitchen, and – I had no place to put down the papers I was holding with dates I needed to add to the calendar while I was in front of the refrigerator/freezer that displayed the calendar.

So…I perused Pinterest, then office supply stores and finally by accident, found our new calendar at Hobby Lobby.

It’s one of those white board calendars you have to write in the dates and it had a white wooden frame. I ended up spray painting the frame to a dark bronze color to make it stand out against the light colored wall I ended up putting it on. We happened to have wall space above the counter in the kitchen where I kept the pens and scissors and notepads. It seemed to be waiting for the new calendar to fill its space, so there it went.

I’ve replaced the sharpie pens with colored dry erase markers. At the start of each month my “homework” is to get the calendar updated for the current month from the various papers that come home. We now have one magnet labeled “today” that we move daily to indicate the current day for the kids to keep up. The mess of flyers and invitations, etc are scanned into Evernote if I may want to reference later, then loosely filed in a decorative box below the calendar so we can grab the info when the date arrives and toss it afterwards.

This system so far has worked well. All I need to update the calendar is in one place. It’s in a prominent spot so hubby, babysitter, kids and I know of anything important for the day. And I don’t need to keep a paper calendar around or buy a new one at the end of the school year. We’ll see if we need a “take 3” for this topic/post in a few months.

About Us

We have five children including 2 sets of twins. Currently ages 7,7,5,2,2. That’s 2 fraternal twin girls, a single boy, followed by 2 identical twin girls. Life After 5 – kids that is, has definitely changed.

The boy turned 6

My one and only boy turned 6.

His dad and I decided to reward him with a “boy only” birthday party at a trampoline place. He is going nuts. I’m still wondering how I missed so much of his first 5 years and why he can’t stay 5 forever.

Well there’s party planning to do so I must end this post early. Maybe I’ll share my last minute birthday party checklist for my next post.

About Us

Benefits of a smaller house, for now.

Some random thoughts as I look back at the day.

The kids are all young enough that they still follow me around. If I’m in the family room, they all gather there. If I start to work on my laptop in the dining room, they eventually make their way over with a question or two, then linger at the table. When I move to the couch, they want to show me something and stay nearby. I make it upstairs and they slowly make their way up, for one reason or another. Always close, always a hug away. I hope to keep it this way for as long as they’ll allow it. One day I know they’ll want to be in the opposite side of the house. This smaller house helps me keep them close.

And then there’s their stuff. EVERYWHERE. It’s sort of contained. But I can’t imagine having more rooms, and bigger rooms to pick up. The smaller rooms force us to pick up, and stay semi-organized.

Finally there’s the cleaning. I’m lucky if I can get the whole house cleaned in a 2 week rotation. And we only have 1750 square feet. At the age the kids are now, they still can’t help clean up as good as I’d like. Plus my mom OCD means no one can clean like me..so the less space to clean the better.

So yeah I’m lovin’ the small house and feeling blessed we have a home at all. God will let us know soon enough when it’s time to move on..

About Us

A smartwatch for moms

Finally! The watch – a mom essential – and my smartphone – combined/synched up in the Samsung Gear S2.

Why did I want a smartwatch?

I charge my phone downstairs. When I put the kids to bed, I miss texts since I’m upstairs. With the watch, I can still stay up to date while my phone is charging away.
I miss calls when my phone is in my purse and I can’t dig it out fast enough to answer the call. I wanted to be able to answer the call from my watch.
I just want to know the time and not have to turn on the phone and unlock it. Or have it be out of battery.
This one actually looks like a watch!

How useful has it been? VERY. Here’s how I’ve used my Samsung Gear S2 and Gear S2 Classic after 2 months:

I get alerted of texts, emails, chats, facebook, twitter, and even google hangouts from work even when my phone is charging downstairs.
I can see who texted me while I’m in a meeting at work without having to peek at my phone and getting “the look” from my co-workers for not paying attention.
No need to get my phone out to check the time.
I can see who is calling and not scramble to get my phone out of my purse when I’m running around or driving. I can answer or reject the call from my watch. (I don’t have the one with speaker though so I can’t actually talk on the phone via the watch)
It lights up ! and I can see the time – all night.
It has a flashlight – a small one but enough for me to not bump into the wall when I go check on the kids at night.
I set the timer when cooking or for whatever I need to restrict the kids time doing something. Also helps for games.
I use the stopwatch to time the kids running or whatever when we’re waiting around.
It buzzes! notifications and alarms are via buzz vs sound since there’s no speaker so it’s less noticeable to others.
It buzzes! and helps wake me up. I no longer wake up via the alarm on my phone so having it buzz on my arm helps.
I set the timer when I don’t want to be late to an important meeting at work
It also buzzes for calendar reminders so I set the reminder to pick up something at the store on my way home from work at the time I’ll be near the store – otherwise I’m on autopilot and walking in the door when I remember what I had to pick up.
I can text someone back with a quick reply, like ok, thanks or see you soon – with just a tap on the screen.
There’s games! I downloaded magic 8 ball and play with the kids when we’re waiting in line or something.
I can call uber without having to use my phone. Crazy

So I guess you can tell I use it A LOT. I use it so much I bought a second one so one is charging while I’m using the other. My Christmas present was the “sporty” one with the silicone band. I prefer that one on the weekends, and after work. I got the “dressy” one – the Gear S2 Classic because I wanted to be able to change watch bands, and it looked a little more professional when I’m at work. Let’s see if I still love them in a few months.

About Us