New Year's Resolution For Kids

With 2012 coming to an end we all like to reflect on the year as a whole and start making our "New Year's" resolution. We think back on the good times and accomplishments as well as the mistakes and regrets and wonder how can we make the next year bigger and better. Well, this is also a great idea for our children. That's is why Mique at www.thirtyhandmadedays.com made these wonderful New Year's resolution printable for kids. This is a great way for your children to look back at what they loved about 2012 and what they are looking forward to in 2013......and a keepsake for us mom's that keep everything. Getting our children to start setting goals and helping them to follow through with those goals will give your children a great feeling of accomplishment and also a wonderful way to get them to learn about responsibility. Download your copy here New Year's Resolution Printable  Enjoy and Happy New Year's from Small Wonders

Living Social Deal.....7 days only!!!

Today is the first day of our Living Social deal!!! You can NOT pass up this deal. $99 for planning for party of 8, custom invitations, decorations, 1 party favor, age appropriate activities/crafts, hosting for 2 hours and face painting......a $365 value! It is valid for one year of purchase date. This deal ends on August 29th so don't miss out on this 'once in a lifetime deal'....well you know what I mean....I'm known to be a bit dramatic;).
Check it out at: http://www.livingsocial.com/deals/409342

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  2-Hour Birthday Party Package: Small Wonders Children's Event Planning

  livingsocial.com

  73% savings: Your little ones never cease to amaze -- from incredible finger-painted masterpieces to entertaining song and dance routines ...

When Life Hands You Lemons...........

When life hands you lemons........you cut em up, squeeze them dry, add sugar and water and sell lemonade to raise money for a cause. In trying to teach my children to give back and be a blessing to others we hosted an Anthem Lemonaid Stand for our local Children's Hospital @ VCU and the Children's Miracle Network. If you don't already know The Children's Miracle Network is a foundation that helps to research and find a cure for childhood cancer as well as cancer treatment. They supplied us with CountryTime lemonade, cups, pitchers, balloons, stickers and the cutest (not to my 15 year old) lemon slice hats. Of course, me being who I am I had to add fresh lemons and sugar to the mix(not to brag but they were coming back for seconds;)). We also cut up lemon slices and made a lemonade stand sign. I loved the idea of a vintage style stand so I had to be just a tiny bit over the top. I originally wanted to get a Snoopy costume and have the kids dress up like Peanuts characters but time did not permit......maybe next year. Our setup location was at Walmart and due to the weather they were kind enough to let us setup inside. But the girls had a great time and luckily my youngest slept through the whole thing. The motto "kids helping kids" was definitely in motion on this day. They pretty much did it all by themselves as I watched; and as my role of momager I had to referee since they were fighting over who would pour, who would take money, and who would get the lemon slice. In four hours we raised $199.31!!! This was a wonderful way to get the kids involved. It was something that was fun, rewarding and lemonade for the soul. It was selfless and they understand how much four hours of their time made a difference. Please get your children involved. If you want to learn more about the Anthem Lemonaid Stand or the Children's Miracle Network please visit www.anthemlemonaid.com.

Elmo Party

I so enjoyed visiting Elmo's World. I mean who in the world doesn't love Sesame Street. When I was told that the theme for this party was going to be Elmo I got so excited. Here are some pictures of what ideas I came up with.

Elmo loves his goldfish....

Elmo and Big Bird were both traced and hand painted


Freehand Elmo's World.....then again a Kindergartener could draw this:)



Elmo's footsteps leading to the party





Elmo sun visors



Rubber ducky your the one......

Small Wonders Website

After months of trying to create the official website......Small Wonders Children's Event Planning is finally up and running!!! Please go check it out. Thanks in advance my wonderful blog followers. Also, go like the Facebook page as well....I will start to have monthly drawings soon.

www.smallwondersevents.com



DIY Hello Kitty Headbands

As promised a few posts back, I am going to show you how to make the cute Hello Kitty headbands and bow ties from Eryn's Kitty party. They were super easy to make and really quick (depending on how many are being made). To begin you will need to buy white and pink craft felt and some headbands. You can get the felt for around 25 cents per sheet and a pack of headbands from the dollar store. You will also need a glue gun and a sewing machine or needle and thread. I want to apologize in advance that I didn't take pictures of each step, but again it's easy peazy.
The first step is to cut out your pieces. The sizes will vary depending on the size of the children that they will be made for. You will need triangles for the ears, large rectangles with rounded edges for the bow and smaller rectangles pieces for the center of the bow(about 1/4th of the large rectangle). Each headband will need 4 triangles, 1 large rectangle and 1 small rectangle. Once you've cut the perfect size use it as a template for the rest.

First, take two triangle pieces and sew around three sides. Again, I found it quicker to use my sewing machine but you can definitely hand sew it or even try using the glue gun. Then turn it inside out and use your glue gun to glue the bottom ends of the ear to the headband. If you want really full ears you can stuff them with cotton balls, but I didn't find the need to do so. Repeat the other ear.
Next, you want to take your large rectangle and press it together in the center from top to bottom and wrap the small rectangle around it and glue that piece together on the back side. Don't worry about it being neat because the back side will be glued to the ear. You want to glue the bow so that it is on the left ear when worn.
And VOILA!, you're done! For the bow ties you just add a clip so that it can be attached to a shirt. I only did these because there were boys at the party, but they were a hit.

And they look even better on!

These are great as party favors or even a halloween costume.....and oh so cheap affordable. The cost of 9 headbands and 9 bow ties was roughly $4.00....can't beat that.

Enjoy your headbands and bow ties!!!

Reward Those Good Grades with Freebies!!

Congratulations parents for getting your kiddies through the school year! You and your children have done a wonderful job and deserve a reward so pull out those report cards and enjoy!!

1. Krispy Kreme Donuts. Krispy Kreme will give your child a free donut for an “A” up to 6 donuts.
2. Baskin Robbins Get a Free scoop of ice cream for a good report card
3. Blockbuster will give one free movie rental for A’s and B's. The movie must be from the “kids” or “families” category.
4. Chuck E. Cheese  Chuck E. Cheese locations give away free tokens for good grades. Note: You must make a food purchase for this offer.
5. Family Video Through June 30th they give out a free rental in the summer for A’s on a report card. The child must bring their final report into his/her local Family Video store.
6. Pizza Hut THREE A’S PROGRAM Each grading period, any child who has 3 A’s or the equivalent thereof, will receive one Personal Pan Pizza and a small soft drink or carton of milk by presenting his or her report card to the manager. This offer is good for Elementary and Middle School students. Dine-in only. Student must be present and the original report card must be presented. Available at participating locations.
7. Chick-Fil-A Report cards with all A’s and B’s will receive a Free 8 piece chicken nugget (please note that this offer is not available at every location).
8. Noah’s Bagels  Kids in grades 1-8 will receive one free bagel for every A on their report cards.
9. Check with your local credit union. Several people report that their credit union will deposit $ into a child’s account for each A & B!
10. For those of you with kids that are old enough to drive, be sure to check with your insurance company, most offer a discount for good grades.
11. McDonald’s: Students with a straight “A” report card receive: Kindergarten-5th grades – free Happy Meal. 6th-12th grades – free Value Meal. Call your local McDonald’s to see if they will participate.
12. Wendy’s” Students who received A’s and B’s on their report card and bring it into Wendy’s will receive a delicious reward. Not all locations participate.
13. Cold Stone Creamery: Get good grades then bring in your report card each quarter and get free ice cream! Only at participating locations.

Participation may vary in different areas, so it always good to check your local stores.

There's a New Doula in Town!!

As you all should know by reading my profile is that I have been in search of my purpose, my way of doing something that matters and makes a difference in someone's life. And all of you that personally know me  know that I am what you may call a hustler....not a con artist but one that will work her butt off doing two or more jobs at a time. If you've ever heard the saying, "jack of all trades, master of none".....that would probably be me. I can do a little of everything but not yet an expert of any one thing. For example, I can sew but I am far from a seamstress, I can cook but could never call myself a chef, I can take great pictures but I'm no photographer. I can go on and on but I'm sure you get the point. So along with children's event planning I am now one of Richmond's newest birth doulas! For those of you who do not know what a doula is I will give you a brief description. A birth doula is someone who provides labor and birth support and ensures a safe and satisfying birth experience either in a birth center, at home or at a hospital for the family. A doula also provides emotional support, physical comfort as well as assist in communicating with the medical staff to make sure that you have the information needed to make informed decisions. Studies show that the use of a doula reduces the cesarean rate by 45%, reduces length of labor by 25%, reduces use of pitocin by 50%, reduces use of pain medication by 31%, reduces the need for forceps by 34% and reduces the request for epidurals by 10-60%.  Also, several studies show that doula care has multiple long term benefits. Again, this is just a brief, straight to the point description of what a doula is and does and I am so proud and excited to be a part of it all. My doula website, www.smallwondersdoula.com will be up and running shortly so make sure you check it out.

Eryn's 1st Diva Hello Kitty Birthday Party

Even at one Eryn is such a little diva. I just loved planning this diva Hello Kitty party for her because I am such a Hello Kitty lover myself. I really needed to get creative since I had to plan such a fru fru party that still included boys....I know, ewww boys ;0).  But I found out a way to make it a gender neutral party...well as close as I could. For the favor bags I made Hello Kitty and Mr. Kitty chalkboard pales(tutorial to follow), Hello Kitty headbands and bow ties and neutral games like Pin the bow on Hello Kitty, had a bubble dance(can't go wrong with bubbles) and had face painting. Of course, as Murphy's Law should be my middle name, this was supposed to be an outdoor party but do to being rained out we had to take it indoors. Enjoy the pictures.