What's Not Working: Family Command Center

Happy Monday!

We had the best weekend: lots of family time, a sweet little party to celebrate our twin boys and then a very lazy Sunday. Pretty perfect, if you ask me!

Back today with one of the many updates we've made recently. I've mentioned before my desire to streamline our routines & organize our space, so we have more time to do the things we love.

Since A started nursery school in September, one thing we needed in our lives was a "command center". A place to display A's artwork, a place for a calendar, and somewhere to keep the temporary paperwork that needed to be signed, or read, for school.

I wrote about how we deal with our mail now here, and have another post ready for how we now handle the never-ending paper piles... but all the school paperwork was a whole new challenge.

While I will never give up my paper planner, the one drawback with it, is that it lives in my purse... and our school schedule needed to be out in the open. Between my parents, C and myself, there are 4 people who need access to important dates. Things like "Orange Day" and "Pajama Day" have to be noted, since whoever is bringing A to school that day needs to know what to dress him in!

This is what I came up with rather quickly:

The side of our fridge was the best "central" location we could find. Using some magnets, a monthly calendar & pen holder, we've managed to streamline all A's school stuff.

Every night, I go through A's bag at the kitchen table. Any newsletter updates get added to the calendar, along with any deadlines for returning forms to school, and those forms get added to the fridge. Artwork gets added as we have room (and no, I haven't figured out good way to store all this artwork for the long-term!). We've also started adding our weekly menu to the calendar, as well as any vacation days that C or I have scheduled.

The family command center has only been in use for 4 weeks, but I can honestly say it's made life a lot easier. C and I don't have to try and remember what we're having for dinner each night, and we all know what events are coming up at school for the month. And I have a feeling as things get a little more crazy (read: 3 little boys under 3), having a place to communicate our schedules will be very helpful!

Five on Friday

Happy Friday, friends! I'm so looking forward to the weekend... don't we always?!

Linking up again with the fabulous ladies from A. Liz Adventures, Carolina Charm, Hello! Happiness and The Good Life Blog for another 5 on Friday!

{ONE}

So happy to have our Holiday cards live on Etsy! I have a few more designs in the works, so stay tuned for one more update this season. And, thank you all for your comments and emails... its so nice to hear positive feedback after many months of tweaking the designs.

And... don't forget, all readers can use the code EOSHOLIDAY13 for 10% off any digital file order!

{TWO}

Our 20-week appointment was excellent (eek - that was already 2 weeks ago!!) and I'm so relieved to have that behind us. There were some concerns about Baby B's heart prior to this appointment, so we were happy to hear that his heart is structurally sound and that both boys are on track & developing as they should be.

And here's a little peek at our pumpkins!

 
{THREE}

A's Halloween costume arrived, and the cuteness is killing me. His latest obsession is "hut hut" - aka football. So when I asked him what he wanted to be for Halloween, he of course, told me "hut-hut".

I ordered this costume from Amazon, and while its a little big, I've never seen a cuter "hut-hut" in all my life.

This Halloween is the first time we've actually gotten to celebrate (and I pray I'm not jinxing it by writing that). Two years ago, we had a freak snowstorm on October 30th, and Halloween was cancelled. Last year? Hurricane Sandy hit the east cost on October 29th, and seeing as our town was without power for 11 days, Halloween was cancelled then, too. I'm already counting the days until we can Trick or Treat!!

 

{FOUR}

My Erin Condren Planner is ending in a few months, so it's almost time to order a new one! I've professed my love for my planner before (yes, because I'm a huge dork), and while checking out some of the covers on Pinterest, I came across the Plum Paper Planners on Etsy. Have you seen these before?

Super cute covers, a layout almost identical to Erin Condren, and oh - its only $30!

{FIVE}

This little boy... my whole heart. He gave us quite a scare when he fell backwards down the stairs from our playroom this weekend. Before you judge me because the gate wasn't closed... A knows how to open and close the gates now, so sometimes I think its silly to close it because he just opens it when he wants. I've taken for granted that he's so comfortable on the stairs, and I had forgotten he could trip while playing and really hurt himself.

Needless to say, he fell down the 8 stairs, flipped feet over head, and landed on his shoulder/neck. There was a lot of blood, a lot of tears, and C and I were besides ourselves with worry. We were pretty certain he didn't have a concussion, but we were worried about a broken nose and any other unseen injuries. Thankfully, A only has a bruise on his nose and a barely noticeable black eye. But I can honestly say, I'm the one that will never ever be the same.

In that instant, I realized how precious and fragile his little life is. How one little mishap - falling down the stairs - could have turned into something much more serious. I would do anything, anything, to keep this little guy from feeling pain in his life. To keep him safe all the time. Last weekend was an eye-opener for me... to not be moving full-speed all the time, to slow down and savor the moments, to remember that he's only 2 and a half... and to remember to close the gate.

Nesting

We've been busy bees around here, trying to make room for our two little boys arriving in January.

Every weekend, another room, or closet or cabinet gets cleaned out ... all to make way for the influx of baby paraphernalia that will soon take over our home.

We never expected to have 3 children in this house...
... or to have 2 at one time! And I know that in order to keep my sanity when they both come home, our home needs order, and everything needs to have a place.

So the last few weeks have been about simplifying, and getting rid of the clutter.

We've had to create a new coat closet, since our guest room closet will now be the twins' closet.
We've had to make room for all of my supplies for Bella Carta, since they used to reside in the guest room.
We've had to clean out every kitchen cabinet to make way for all the bottles, bowls, and bibs.... times TWO.
We've had to clean out & organize all the toys, so that we have space to bring the baby toys back out...
and we've had to find space in order to fit two swings, two rock n' plays, and two more high chairs.

I'll share more about all the changes we've made (and I promise the house doesn't look like this anymore!). It has felt SO great to bring huge donations to Goodwill, sell some stuff on Craigslist & eBay, and throw away the rest.

Holiday Cards... Now on Etsy!

Well friends, today is a happy happy day. Bella Carta's Holiday Cards are live on Etsy!

Here are some of my favorites from this season...
... also featuring some of my favorite bloggers' families!

And back by popular demand... we are now offering 4 options for Instagram Holiday cards!

I think these are wonderful, because not everyone has the opportunity to have professional family pictures taken for their Holiday cards. They offer the opportunity to show pictures from your everyday life, and showcase you & your family in their natural element.

Even more Holiday Cards can be seen in the shop -
Head over and check them out!!

Things are operating a little differently this year, mainly because I am taking a limited number of print orders this season. If you are interested in Bella Carta printing your holiday cards, please make sure to contact me as soon as possible!

You all have been so extremely supportive of my business, and many of you sent in photos of your families to use in these samples. I can't tell you how appreciative I am of this community, and the friendships I've made! So to thank all of you, please use the code EOSHOLIDAY13 for 10% off any digital file order!

Have a wonderful week, friends!

Four Years

Happy Anniversary, to the love of my life.

You make every day sweeter, and I look forward to all the years we have together.

Thank you for being my best friend and the most wonderful father to our three babies. 

I love you more with each passing day.