2.20.2011

Sunday Snippets & Announcements

A few bits of announcements today that I think you may be interested in:

First up.... My friend Michelle from A Little Tipsy is celebrating her second blogiversary with a big music video.  Guess what??  About 20 bloggers are strutting their stuff in this video including me.  It's definitely worth a good laugh.   So come and check it out!  I made a complete fool of myself and had a lot of fun doing it!

Also, I have been receiving A LOT of e-mails and questions about Mommy School.  The big dreaded question was, "Are you going to continue Mommy School?"
The answer is a definite "YES!"  I just didn't know when I would be ready to dive in again!

If you are new to Oopsey Daisy, I started a simple at-home preschool program to help Little Man learn letters, colors, numbers, shapes, and themes.  However... I was spending upwards of 14 hours preparing printable packets to share.  Unfortunately, I feel that something's gotta give.  After moving in to a new home, celebrating the holidays, etc, I finally feel ready to start up Mommy School again with Little Man.  I desperately want to share our weekly learning fun with you.  I am just not sure the best format for sharing my ideas.  Perhaps I will just show pictures, a simple lesson plan, or a much slimmer packet of ideas. 

I want to keep it real here on this blog, so let me be honest with you about a few things.  The large packets I prepared require A TON of work and a lot of late nights, but I wanted to share them with you because my attitude is I made this for my family, and now I want to share with you.  Too many people have taken advantage of my willingness to share what I have created.  The negative feedback and the work required to deal with negative comments and demands can quickly become overwhelming.  My family must come first.  I want to continue creating printables for the readers who stop to say, "Thank you."  Isn't it amazing how those two words can brighten someone's day?!  

With business out of the way, let's move on to the good stuff!  Here are a few little rays of sunshine... some of my happy snippets during this week:

Let's start out with this handsome man.  After letting me sleep in on Valentine's Day, I woke up to see Mr. Daisy cleaning house!  I don't know if he has ever looked quite so handsome to me!  

What do you think of my Valentine's Day roses??  Not bad, eh?  Little Man helped his Daddy select these roses from Costco.  It was meant to be a surprise, but Little Man spilled the beans!  He loves Costco too much to keep it a secret!

We went out for lunch on V-Day, too.  (Have I mentioned that I have the best hubby ever?!)  Little Man was chowing down on a pickle, his new favorite food!

After a long week of being out of town, some father & son time was in order. They did a little reading..

They quickly moved outdoors, where Daddy was launching Little Man into the air!  Of course he loved every minute of it!

He was flying through the air!

While Daddy was trying to melt the snow by spraying it with a hose, Little Man was looking on from his play house.  He is so interested in everything his Daddy does!

What were the best moments of your week this week?
I am very excited about this week on Oopsey Daisy, so stay tuned!

26 comments:

  1. I can't believe you got negative comments about your packets. I loved them, and we definitely had fun with them in our house. I even (finally) bought a laminator so that I could re-use some of the things I printed--they were so adorable!

    On another note, your pictures are great. Thanks for sharing these little snippets of your life.

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  2. I'm so happy you're going to be continuing "mommy school!" I have 2 little ones who have benefited greatly from your packets! (my 2 year old mostly!) It is a LOT of work to put together educational items that keep their attention! I've been doing it since you stopped posting your mommy school ideas, and it's made me SO thankful for the effort you do put into them! One thing you may try (in addition to posting pictures or whatever you decide to do) is to have a "link party" every so often and invite your readers to find their favorite educational lesson/activity/song/rhyme/craft/book/website having to do with a specific letter, number, holiday, theme, or color. That would take a lot of stress off of you, and it would put many more options out there for those "negative" readers! Just a thought! I just wanted to say thanks again for all of the work you put into your blog. I thoroughly enjoy it!

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  3. Alison thank you so much for sharing all your hard work. I am getting ready to have my first baby and I love your "mommy school" ideas and can't wait until my little girl is old enough to actually learn from them. I am surprised as well that you were getting negative comments. Keep up the great work!!!!

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  4. I am so excited to hear you are going to continue mommy school. I came across your blog a while ago and I really liked the idea. In January I started Mommy school with my two year old and he has really been enjoying it. We don't do much but I try to do a little something everyday. And it really helps him to not get so bored with mommy and little 4 month old brother. Plus it has helped me direct some of our play in a structured way. The packets you put together are wonderful. But I can see how they could be a bear to make. And I can completley understand cutting things to make time for family. I do however enjoy reading the summary of what you did for mommy school. And I love looking at your pictures they are beautiful. Thanks again for all you do. What you do does make a difference.

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  5. Thank you so much for continuing mommy school! As a former teacher I know how much time and energy goes into all of that and it's so hard when it's not appreciated by everyone. I am soooooo appreciative of the hard work you put into all of it and you do make such a difference :) keep up the great work and don't let those negative comments get you down! Your little man is so lucky to have a creative mom like you :) Have a wonderful Sunday and a great week!

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  6. My own Little Man turns 2 next month, so I definitely related to your Mommy School ideas since they were perfectly geared to this age.

    Why not stick to the 1-page lesson plans that you started sharing at the beginning of Mommy School adventures? Between your detailed posts and the 1-page lesson plan, I felt like I knew how to implement the ideas in my own home. No reason to make packets that take away from your family time if you don't want to...

    Thanks for sharing your ideas!

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  7. The video is too cute! I can't believe how many of my favorite bloggy girls were in it! :)

    Thank you does mean so much! ...and I personally feel like if someone has the time to download a fantastic printable, they have the time to leave a little thankful comment. :) Just sayin'...

    Looks like your Valentine's Day was superb! So love the pics of your little man flying through the air! :)

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  8. Keep up the mommy school! With all the work that you put into them, you should charge a little something. I'd gladly pay. I'm planning on starting mommy school with my little guy as soon as we are moved into our new place. Keep up the unbelievable good work.

    Also, I LOVE the pics of Little Man flying through the air. Phenomenal! You have mad skills girlfriend!

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  9. Alison -I'm pretty sure I first found your blog because of a Mommy School post... your work is fantastic and is a GREAT service to MANY families! I can't imagine why you'd be receiving negative feedback; but please know that your efforts are appreciated! :)

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  10. ...me again :) I just watched the video - oh my word - how fun!

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  11. I think this is my first time stopping by your blog. Totally love it! Adding you to my blog list. :) xoxo

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  12. Alison, Thank you so so much for your great ideas with mommy school. I have loved using them and my little boy gets so excited every time I say were going to do mommy school. I just love seeing all your creative ideas with how to teach younger children. Thanks for the kits as well. They have been amazing!!!

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  13. So glad to hear you are going to start up mommy school again. I love what you do and have enjoyed your packets - i always felt quilty about "taking" your ideas so I have worked to try and search out things myself or use the links you gave to various sites to find similiar ideas BUT I do not know how to created the documents that you do! They are so fantastic. I will be grateful for anything you post - even links to various sites/ideas that you use. I can't believe anyone would give neg. comments . .. that just isn't right.

    Love the pictures too!!

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  14. I just came across your blog a couple months ago and have loved everything so far. Then when you talked about Mommy school I went back and got all of your stuff. I have really been wanting to do something with my little man but haven't quite known where to start. This was so perfect and I can't wait to start. Thank you so much for going to the effort to share with us! I am an ELED major and know how much work it is just to get lesson plans together let alone those wonderful packets. I just want to thank you for a start to helping my little one at home! I will for sure be looking forward to more ideas! Thanks again!!!!

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  15. Great photos, Alison!! You are becoming a pro with the camera. :) And I LOVED the video. TOO FUNNY! And such a brilliant idea for a blogiversary!

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  16. Alison--I love those photos! Especially the "flying" ones--wow!

    Thanks for all you do--your blog is amazing and I am so appreciative of all of the stuff you share!

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  17. you got negative comments about your mommy school? that really is quite sad considering all of the time you put into those packets...then decided to share FOR FREE. just know that for all of those negative comments, there are about 10-20 more positive ones coming each time. we appreciate what you do, but we understand the need to spend time with family as well. do what is best for you and them.
    p.s. did you attend byu? did you used to teach in the nebo school distric? you look oddly familiar.

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  18. I have to admit...I have been checking daily to see if you were going to continue "mommy School". I LOVE your ideas and it is cute to see how happy your little man is, he is lucky to have such a fun, creative mom! I have two little ones and really appreciate your packets. Your family should definitely come first and I even really liked what you did before the packets when you just had a few ideas and the pictures of what you did. That made it easy for me to copy and visualize the activities. Love your blog! Thanks so much!!!

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  19. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your mommy school packets and have all of the previous ones saved. I have been bombing out on doing ANYTHING - even using the work others have so wonderfully and generously prepared. Sometimes we all need a break. Please know that you do fantastic work and it is very appreciated. I also made a word document of all of the book advent posts you made this past Christmas for future reference.
    Your Valentine's day recap was so cute, too. Thanks!

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  20. I've never said thank you either for your mommy school posts, but I Love them!! I'm a pre-mommy teacher also and it does take a lot of work. I loved your huge packets, but I love just looking at your pictures and simple one page lesson plan too. I think by getting an idea started people can think of other ideas themselves too. I can't remember if you already did letter R, but if not I did in Jan. and we did some fun activities. Email me if you would like some ideas! maughank@gmail.com Thanks again!

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  21. You were such a star in the movie!! Thanks again for taking part! I love your packets. People are lame-o. You my dear are fantastico and should promptly ignore rudeness! I totally feel you on things taking for-ev-er! I say do what is best for you and your cute fam. We love the things you share!!

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  22. Please oh please don't stop sharing your packets. I love them and am always checking your blog for more! I could never come up with all the creative things you put together. I can't believe people leave you negative comments about them. I love them and TOTALLY appreciate all the time and effort you put into them. THank you.

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  23. I can't believe you got such great shots of your Little Man in the air...fantastic. Also, I loved your Mommy School ideas, but I loved it before you shared your huge packets. The cute photos of your Little Man in action gave me lots of good ideas for my own little guys. Thanks again for sharing!

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  24. It looks like your Valentines day was amazing! Good for you! Cherish every moment you have with your two men!

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  25. That's so sad that you got negative feedback! I think you are incredible and love all of your ideas! A friend of mine let me know about your blog and I'm a huge fan! Thank you so much for taking the time to share all your fantastic ideas with us!

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