A Room for the Lego Enthusiast

Little plastic bricks of varying shapes and sizes. Red, yellow, green, blue, gray, black, and white. Hair pieces, heads, weapons, legs, and head gear. Wheels and gears, windows and doors.

If you know what I'm talking about then you must have at least one lego enthusiast in your home. I have six, counting my husband and not yet counting our youngest child! Lego has exploded in my home. My children save money to buy lego, they ask for it for gifts, and a visit to a lego store is like stumbling upon the holy grail.



With so many lego enthusiasts, we decided to swap out our guest room for a lego room. About a year and a half ago we made the switch and I have never done a better thing for my sanity. For the most part, we let the kids go wild in there. They rarely clean it, and aside from our board games and a file cabinet, the room is completely devoted to lego. Lego is expected to stay in the lego room. No more vacuuming little pieces, no more death by lego for unsuspecting feet.

We began by putting a large table in our lego room (see pic above). It was our old kitchen table. We figured the kids would be able to use the surface for building and keep most lego off the floor. Wrong! Instead, they all fought over the space on the table. One would start a big project and then the others wouldn't have room for their buildings. We have now moved to a different solution.

We purchased six of these end tables from Ikea for $7.99 each.



To spruce them up a bit, I painted each child's initial on a table. That way we can avoid all the squabbles over who gets to build where. Each child now has their own place to build.



Originally, we had also put up a long shelf in the lego room. This was for those special projects that the kids just weren't ready to tear apart yet. Our kids are really into Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, and The Hobbit. So naturally they have purchased many sets from those movies. Instead of building the sets once and then tearing them apart, we allow them to keep the sets on the shelf and bring them down for play. As they find they don't play with particular sets, they can pull them apart and place the pieces in a labeled ziploc bag. That way each kid knows which sets are theirs and they also keep all the pieces together. As adults they can either bring those lego sets to their own households or they can choose to sell them online. (We also keep the original boxes flattened in storage in case the kids want to sell the sets someday.) We found recently that one shelf was not quite enough, so we added a second.



Now, here's the part that really is up to individual preference. How do you store all the lego?? We used to keep our lego in a giant rolling toolbox. The special pieces went in the top compartments and the rest was in a big jumble. Our kids grew very frustrated wanting to find specific pieces but having to look through such a large mass of lego. In setting up our lego room, we decided to organize by type. We went to Menards and bought this wall system.



Originally we used double sided tape to place a piece of each type on the front of each container so the kids would know where things went. Those pieces have long since fallen off, but the kids still remember where the pieces belong. They have sorted them by size (1x4, 2x1, 4x4, etc) and by type (windows and doors, people, weapons, gears, etc.). It works well for us and is actually the way the professionals sort their lego.



We also have this little set of drawers to keep specialized parts in.



Lastly, we keep binders full of the directions that come with various sets. Without a specific place for these, we found that direction packets would often get trampled underfoot and end up ripped or crumpled. That just results in frustration for everyone!

We love the function of our lego room. And as a mom, I love the creativity that I see in my kids through what they build. If allowed, our kids would spend hours upon hours playing with lego. It has cut down on our kids' desire for video games and other less-healthy play. And it allows their imaginations to run wild.



Do you have specific ways to deal with the lego monster at your house? I'd love to hear about it!

Monthly Grocery Planning

We are a family of 8. We go through at least one gallon of milk a day, two loaves of bread every three days, and a bunch of bananas in one sitting. And we strive to live on a budget. We are a meat and potatoes kind of family. We enjoy all the food groups and don't partake in any fad diets. We simply eat healthy and in moderation. Even so, it's a lot of food!



Our oldest kids are entering the teen years and all six seem to grow non stop. I can't begin to count the number of times a day I hear the words, "I'm hungry". So, how do we keep our kids fed and not bust the budget? I can't give credit to couponing, because I really just don't take the time to do it. While I love the idea of coupons, I find that I end up buying unnecessary items just because I can get them cheap. In reality it doesn't really end up saving me money. Many people can do it well, but not me.

Instead of using coupons, we are careful list makers. We do our big grocery shopping once a month and aside from trips to the store for milk and produce, we agree to live on what we've purchased at the beginning of the month. I'll be honest, this takes a lot of planning and consideration. But you'll also find that it drastically cuts down on eating out and last minute runs to the store where buying just that one needed item is exchanged for a handful of things that look good.

So, to the nitty gritty details:

At the start of the month, I sit down with our family calendar and our meal calendar. Our meal calendar is just a regular 12 month calendar that hangs on our fridge. We write in each square what we plan to eat for dinner that evening. As I plan out our days, I keep our family calendar in front of me so that I can easily see what evenings may be rushed, when we have dinner with friends planned, when I may need to cook for a potluck or large event, etc. Now that our soccer season is starting back up, I am careful to plan crock pot meals on practice days so that my son can have a warm meal after his dinner-time practice. I know that Sundays are a time when my kids come home from church STARVING, so I either plan to have something cooking while we're at church or plan a meal that can be put together quickly once we arrive back home.



As a side note, I don't often plan out the sides for our meals unless it's a side I rarely make or if I'm hosting guests or planning a holiday feast. We keep lots of canned and frozen veggies and fruit on hand from our summer garden. I simply use these to supplement our meals.

Once my meal plan is complete, I begin a list of the basics we'll need. This usually means that I write down the various types of meats, noodles, canned goods, breads, etc. that we'll need and then count up how many of each I need for the meals planned that month. This is the most important stage of the process. Careful list making is necessary so that you are sure to have the ingredients on hand when you make meals throughout the month.



After I've made a list of the basics, my husband and I go through the freezer and pantry together. We take into account the things that we already have in on hand. Last month we found a great sale on chicken breasts so we purchased MANY and didn't have to buy any for this month's meals. If we find something during this process that needs to be used in the near future, I may adjust a meal on the calendar to fit it in. Better to adjust and use the things you already have than to waste the money and have it go bad.

We typically do our household goods shopping at the same time as our grocery shopping. So I also take the time to go through our bathrooms, kitchen, and storage areas to check on things like paper towels, detergent, toilet paper, napkins, dish soap, shampoo, etc. These things all come out of our grocery budget so it's important to plan for these items as well.

Aside from the actual shopping, the job is nearly done. I make one more neat list to take to the store. This one is laid out by department - produce, meat, dairy, frozen, etc. It makes it simpler to find the things I need in the store and to make sure they get crossed off my list. Especially if we are shopping at several stores in one day.

I know this leaves some questions unanswered. I'll do my best to answer the ones I can think of:

Where do you shop?
We shop in several places. We have a Sams membership and buy a lot of bulk items there. (Buying in bulk is definitely cost effective if you'll use the items in a timely way and can store it in your house.) We also like Aldi's. They actually have really good bread, yogurt, cheeses, and produce. I can't vouch for the meat, although I've heard some say that it's great. We just haven't tried it yet. We purchase our milk, oj, bananas, onions, and potatoes at Kwik Trip (gas station). They have milk and oj in a bag - which is so much cheaper and more convenient to store - and a rewards card so that you save quite a bit of money. We have our own chickens, so we never need to purchase eggs. We also buy several things at the Bent and Dent (Amish run store) nearby. If you have a Bent and Dent, check it out! I wouldn't recommend things like pasta or mixes that are not kept in a sealed plastic bag. However for cereal, medicines, canned goods, etc. it is an invaluable source! We can buy a large box of Cheerios there for $1.50 and a box of flavored oatmeal for $.75. That's a great deal!

How do you store all this stuff?
We've allotted a few shelves in our basement as grocery shelves. It's also where we keep our canned goods from the garden. One of our kids loves to organize, so he keeps it all sorted for us.

Isn't it a pain to be locked into your meal plan each day of the month?
I wouldn't say we're locked in. We do try to use the plan we have, but if I find we're not in the mood for something or if we need to change things around it's not a big deal. Once you've purchased what you need for the month, you just defrost or pull out what you need for any of the meals on the list. You only want to be careful that you're not stuck with tacos three times in the last week because you've switched things around so much.

How much do you spend?
The amount we spend varies each month. It really depends on how much we already have in store before the month begins (like with the chicken) and where we shop. Depending on where we purchase various items our bottom line looks different each month. (That may not be a satisfying answer, but the answer to this question will vary for each family. Just because one person can shop for a family of four on $60 per week doesn't mean every family of four can.)

How do you keep from overspending?
This is probably a whole blog post in and of itself! We use cash. At the beginning of the month we allot a specific amount to groceries. If we run out, then we make do with what we have. If we have extra it's exciting to put it towards our savings at the end of the month.

Would this work for a small family?
Absolutely! This kind of meal planning is great because you can tailor it to your family and your calendar. And it's great for a home with two working parents. It allows you to avoid the evening squabble over dinner plans and the financial strain of eating out frequently.


Happy planning! If you have tips on grocery shopping and meal planning, I'd love to hear them!

Large Family Car Travel Tips: Keeping Kids Occupied

Often when I research things about large families, I come up with tips for families that have only 2-4 children. We are a family of 8 (soon). These travel posts are to help bigger families figure out how to survive days of road travel with minimal tension, whining, and stress. Hope it helps, and happy travels!

Other travel posts in this series:
Snacks
Suitcase Organization
Keeping the Car Organized
Special Tips You May Not Know



Let's be honest. Keeping kids happy means keeping your sanity. Our most recent trip included days upon days of driving. So I spent weeks upon weeks working to prepare for it. I spent way more time preparing things to keep the kids busy than I did wondering what to pack or even looking forward to our vacation time. To save you the same amount of preparation, here are some of the tried and true activities that helped us pass the time in busy peace. Our kids all pack their own backpacks with toys and activities, but it's good for mom and dad to have a few surprises waiting.



We've all seen the seek and find jars. These were super easy to make and the kids loved them. I made two that were identical. Just fill a jar with rice (plastic jars are better than glass in case little hands drop them), take pictures of little things found around the house, and place those items in the jar. Then you can print out a card with all the pictures of what the kids need to find, hot glue it to the lid of the jar, and hot glue the lid onto the jar. Be sure to glue the lid. Unless you want rice all over your car.

While we're on the subject of seek and find, if your kids are like mine seek and find books or Where's Waldo books can occupy them for hours. Seriously, hours. Well worth the price of the books.



Those of you with little ones know how excited they get about pictures of family members or things they love. My little one is particularly fascinated with fluffy animals. I purchased 2 little flip photo albums from the dollar store and filled them with pictures printed from my computer. One was all pictures of animals and the other had various items he would recognize from daily life. Things like toys, balls, toes, and foods. He loved them! And since I didn't allow him to play with them before the trip, they were completely new and exciting for him. (On a side note, it helps to actually tape the pictures inside the photo protectors so that little hands can't pull them out.)



Other cheap activities use pipe cleaners and aluminum foil. Pipe cleaners can be bent and re-bent into dozens of different things. If you give kids a variety of colors, they can stay busy for quite some time. Aluminum foil is also great for creativity. Rip off several sections of aluminum foil for each child and let them sculpt the foil into little armies, animals or other fun things. Just be sure they understand the expectation that at the end of the day the sculptures head to the trash. Otherwise you'll have aluminum foil "masterpieces" throughout your vehicle for a long time.



Traveling at nighttime can be tough. The driver needs to keep the lights off inside the vehicle, but it's hard for kids to stay occupied in the dark. The dollar store has little mini clip lights that kids can use for reading or drawing.

And I have yet to meet a kid who will object to having a few glow sticks to play with. Depending on what your kids like, you can get the sticks, the necklaces, the bracelets, or any other assortment of glowing fun. These can also be found at the dollar store for a much cheaper price than places like WalMart or Target. Besides, if you end up at a hotel without a pool, you can always throw a couple of glow sticks into the bathtub for some swimming fun in your room.



Another terrific idea for our toddler was to bring a cookie sheet and some magnetic cars. You can see by the picture how much he loved it! Some car seats have arm rests that include a space between the bottom of the arm rest and the rest of the chair. In such cases, attaching the cookie sheet to the car seat is a piece of cake. Our car seat doesn't have arm "handles" so we ended up drilling holes in the tray and then created a long strap to go around the back of his car seat. We left the cookie sheet hooked to the strap on one side (which also allowed it to hang down against the side of the car when not in use) and just hooked it to the other side of the strap when ready to use it. I picked up a few strong, round magnets at the hardware store and stuck them on the bottom of a few matchbox cars.



Be sure the bottom of the car is flat or else you'll have trouble getting the magnets to stick.



We also used other cookie sheets for our older kids. Our first grader was given a metal tin full of magnetic numbers and letters and he enjoyed spelling out various words. For older kids you can cut out pictures of facial features from magazines and laminate them. Stick magnets on the back and kids have a great time making all sorts of silly faces on their cookie sheets.



In years past, one of the frustrations while driving has been when our kids drop their pencils and crayons. Of course, we want them to stay in their seatbelts, but it can create a long and whiny wait when they can't reach their writing tools until the next rest stop. We've tried tying pencils on to clipboards in the past, and that has worked well, but when space is an issue even a clipboard per child can feel like a space hog. And many clipboards are either too small for a regular sized piece of paper or too large to fit in a child's backpack. For this trip, I used a small zippered bag for each child. In these bags they received two mechanical pencils (so the leads didn't break and leave them useless) of a specific color, a box of new crayons, one dry erase marker, their book light for nighttime, and a small travel pack of tissues. The marker and tissues came in handy for use with their binders (explained below), and the crayons, pencils, and light eliminated the bickering caused by having to share. Plus, by giving each child a specific pencil color I knew who was missing theirs each time we unpacked the van.



The travel binders I made for the kids were tremendously helpful! Each child had a three ring binder filled with various activities and fun papers. Some papers were reusable because they were placed in page protectors and the kids were able to use their dry erase markers to write and a tissue to clean it off. This allowed them to play tic tac toe and travel bingo again and again. Other papers had coloring activities printed from the internet or copied from our own coloring books. And others were given to inspire creativity.



These papers had them creating silly faces, designing cars to get us to our destination faster, imagining what they would do with a thousand dollars, etc. I packed an extra set of papers for each binder to replace the used ones for our trip home. That way, the binders would once again be fresh and new. My favorite paper asked them to draw or write about the best part of the trip. Those papers are great for putting in the scrapbook once you return home!


Of course there are so many other things you can do. One of our children has a kindle and enjoyed several hours playing games and reading on that. A friend lent us a few leap pads and the kids were quietest when playing on those. However, with electronics, it's good to limit the amount of time the kids spend on them each day. Not only can they strain their eyes, but extended use of electronics can also contribute to motion sickness and sore necks. Electronics for toddlers are a little harder to come by, but a friend let us borrow a personal dvd player. About once a day, we'd turn on a Thomas the Tank Engine video and our 18 month old would happily pass through his fussy time of day.

Another life saver in the car was having the sense to bring a few blankets along and to keep the kids' pillows within reach. If anyone was tired enough to nap, they could do so comfortably. And the blankets were great for moderating the temperature in the car with several differing opinions being heard from the backseat.



Having a deck of cards on hand, a few travel games, and a couple of dollar store surprises keeps even a long ride manageable. With a little prep and creativity you can easily pass the hours and days peacefully ... and hopefully happily!

Large Family Car Travel Tips: Snacks

Often when I research things about large families, I come up with tips for families that have only 2-4 children. We are a family of 8 (soon). These travel posts are to help bigger families figure out how to survive days of road travel with minimal tension, whining, and stress. Hope it helps, and happy travels!


Other posts in this travel series:
Suitcase Organization
Special Tips You May Not Know
Keeping the Car Organized
Keeping Kids Occupied


Okay, let's be honest. One of the toughest things about traveling is keeping the kids well fed and happy in the car, but not having to stop every 10 minutes for someone to use the potty. My kids drink a lot. A LOT. They are always thirsty - especially if they're bored in the car. We also have at least one child with an incredibly small bladder. We've been training our kids for quite some time now that when they first feel the urge to go, they actually have about a half hour before they really have to go. That knowledge does help when traveling. Especially in states like Nebraska or New Mexico. There's really nothing for miles and miles and miles ...

However, much as we'd like to postpone potty breaks until they are convenient, we also don't want to deprive our children of fluids. So, we have small water bottles with their names on them. These are metal and have a top that won't spill much even if dumped while open. We fill these in the morning or whenever needed and let the kids have them in the car where they sit. I know some people have the policy of no food or drink in the car, but really, water can't do too much damage. The kids are allowed to drink whenever they want so long as they understand the concept of possibly having to wait up to a half hour to find a restroom. And whenever we do find a restroom, everyone tries to go. Even mom and dad. Otherwise, someone will have to go five minutes after you get on the road again.



Not only do we allow drinks in the car, we also allow snacks. Most of our kids are old enough to clean up after themselves and those that aren't are fed by hand from one of the older kids. We try not to pack really messy snacks and always make sure we have trash recepticles on hand. And it's important to remember to empty the trash every time you stop at a gas station - especially if you have fresh fruit leftovers in the trash!

So here are some ideas for snacks:
Fresh fruit: oranges, grapes, bananas, apples, raisins, craisins ... I'd suggest keeping the grapes in a plastic container with a paper towel on the bottom. Be sure to wash them first! And with the oranges, you'll want to wait and peel them on the day you plan to eat them.



Veggies: carrot sticks, broccoli trees, cherry tomatoes. This all really just depends on what your kids are willing to eat. Celery sticks with peanut butter are also great! And peanut butter now can be bought in little individual packets! Genius!

Snacky stuff: Fruit snacks (gummies in our house), animal crackers, granola bars, cheese or pb filled crackers, pretzels - which are also great for car sickness, mini bagels, goldfish, teddy grahams or graham crackers.

Homemade goodies: Muffins, cookies, homemade granola, trail mix, energy bites.

Spoon foods: pudding, applesauce, jello, yogurt.


One of the favorite things we've done on a long trip is bring special treat bags for each new state we encounter on the way there and the way back. As soon as we cross a state, we all cheer and then everyone gets a treat. It helps to break up the trip and recognize little milestones along the way. These bags have the only candy we allow in the car. Things like smarties, reeses cups, gum (great for states with high elevations), fruit roll ups, etc. Find treats that your kids rarely get and they'll be so excited about each step of the journey.

Large Family Car Travel Tips: Suitcase Organization

Often when I research things about large families, I come across tips for families that have only 2-4 children. We are a family of 8 (soon). These travel posts are to help bigger families figure out how to survive days of road travel with minimal tension, whining, and stress. Hope it helps, and happy travels!

Other travel posts in this series:
Special Tips You May Not Know
Keeping the Car Organized
Snacks
Keeping Kids Occupied



If your family is planning a trip that will have you on the road for several days at a time, it really pays to be organized in your packing. Our most recent trip included up to 8 days on the road at a time - with 7 family members and no laundry service. My husband didn't want to haul in every suitcase to each hotel, so I devised a system that allowed us to stay organized and be sure to have adequate clothing for everyone.

We packed our clothing in smaller suitcases. This allowed us to fit exactly two days worth of clothes in each suitcase. The second day's clothes were packed on the bottom of the suitcase like so:



On top of the suitcase divider, we packed the first day's clothes. When repacking the suitcase the next day, I took everything out and put the dirties on the bottom and the clean clothes on the top. It worked beautifully!

Another vital trick was to label each suitcase by day. I simply used laminated index cards with the name of the days listed on the card. These were tied to each suitcase and it was a sinch for hubby to pull out the right suitcase each night as we unloaded the van.



It would have been impossible for us to fit two days of 7 sets of clothes PLUS PJs in each suitcase. Instead, I used a separate bag for all PJs. My kids tend to get things dirty quickly, so I packed 1 pair of PJs for every two days. For the baby, I packed a few extras just in case. Mom and Dad needed less, but we were still able to fit all PJs in one bag to be brought in each night. As the PJs became dirty, we simply shifted them to the bottom of the bag and put fresh ones on top for the next night. And yes, go ahead and label the bag "PJs" so that you know exactly which bag to bring in each night.

We were also planning on attending church while on the road. We used another bag to only hold fancy clothes. Of course, they needed ironing the night before use, but it was easy to find them. Our last labeled bag of clothing was for seasonal items. Because we were going from winter weather to summer and back again, we had to pack sweatshirts AND shorts. These items went in a separate bag so we knew where to find them when needed, but they didn't have to be pulled out of the van at every stop.

It is important absolutely necessary to keep a separate bag of one change of clean clothes for everyone somewhere accessible in the van. These should not be counted as actual travel clothes, but rather an extra set for emergencies. Having dealt with throw up, pee, and lot of spills I can tell you that this bag is essential to happy travel!! Pack extras for babies who may have a blow out and for toddlers who are more likely to spill. Even if you are a parent with a stomach of steel, you never know when you'll get gross while traveling with kids. It's important to keep a change of clothes for yourself in this bag as well.

If you're headed to a destination where you can swim (which would include most hotels), you'll want to keep your swim stuff separate so you can grab it quickly and bring it into the hotel. We love using the Large Utility Tote from Thirty One for our swim stuff. In fact, our suits and towels stay in it year round and whenever we're off to have some water fun, we simply grab the bag and know that everything we need is there. If you fold your towels carefully, you can fit up to ten stacked on one side of the bag. In the leftover space, fold the swimsuits and coverups, pack some swim diapers, and don't forget the sunscreen. Thirty One even sells covers for these bags now, so you don't have to worry about stuff falling out. Win win!

(In the top picture, our swim bag is the one on the bottom right with the big flowers.)



The last item you'll need is not a suitcase, but may be even more important than the clothes you pack. Keep a throw up bucket on hand in the car. Be sure it's within reach of Mom and Dad and pack it with a roll of paper towels, some wet wipes, a water bottle and trash bags. The trash bags are essential to have for clean up. And you'll want more than one bag. You may need one for clothes and one for trash. You can either buy a little bucket to be used for this purpose or turn a gallon milk jug into one. Cut around the mouth of the milk jug and halfway down the front, leaving the handle in tact. These are the buckets I grew up traveling with. Free, disposable, and handy.

I can't promise that following these tips will make everything easy on your trip, but it will make packing, unpacking, and repacking each day sooo much easier. Happy travels!

Large Family Car Travel Tips: Keeping the Car Organized

Often when I research things about large families, I come up with tips for families that have only 2-4 children. We are a family of 8 (soon). These travel posts are to help bigger families figure out how to survive days of road travel with minimal tension, whining, and stress. Hope it helps, and happy travels!


Other travel posts in this series:
Special Tips You May Not Know
Suitcase Organization
Snacks
Keeping Kids Occupied

Trash cans
You'll want to have trash cans within reach of everyone. With younger children this will minimize the mess of passing items forward or back in the van. It also keeps mom and dad from being needed constantly whenever food is being consumed - which in turn allows you to focus on driving. And it helps the kids take responsibility for the vehicle's cleanliness. We used square utility totes from Thirty One lined with plastic bags, but even just a small trash can would do.

Utilize under the seat storage!
With a big family, you need every spare inch of space! Don't forget about the storage under seats. Even if your seats are low to the floor, you can still find small things that will fit underneath. If your van is like ours, you can fit larger items underneath your seats. This is a great area to store things you won't need to access frequently but still need for the trip. And underneath the front passenger seat is a perfect place to put that first aid kit that you'll invariably need.

Pack music you can all stand
This is sooo important! With younger kids it's easy to pack a bunch of toddler songs. Trust me, you'll go crazy if that's all you listen to for days on end! Likewise, if your teens like a certain genre of music that just grates on your nerves, either get the teen an ipod, or find a compromise by listening to some of their music and some of yours. One of the great things about vehicles these days is that you can set the music to play mostly in the front or back of the car.

For those without ipods, remember that a smart phone can also store music and typically will have a headphone jack. This can allow parents to listen to their own stuff on the phone while having kid music on in the car. And if you want some great kid music that most parents can stand check out Go Fish. Their harmonies are terrific and the music is fun.

Bin for cords
I can't take credit for thinking this one up, but it's a lifesaver. Grab a shoebox sized plastic bin at the dollar store and use it to keep all cords for electronics contained in one place. It's easy to grab as you head into a hotel for the night, and it allows you to find the cord you need quickly and easily.

Label suitcases



We tried this on our recent trip and it was incredibly useful! Before packing I laminated index cards that had days listed on them. I then used ribbon to tie these onto the suitcases so we knew which bags were needed for which nights. It made unpacking the car each night so much easier and massively decreased my husband's frustration at having to bring in unnecessary suitcases.

Keep food organized and dole out snacks by day instead of prepping all before the trip



I'll be honest, this sounds great. But if you're on the road for a long time, it's a little harder to stay motivated. But for our first week, we did really well with this. We brought lots of fruit, veggies, and snacks with us. But instead of peeling all oranges before leaving the house, we just peeled them on the day we planned to eat them. Once peeled, we put them in their own container and then doled them out as needed in the car. Same with the grapes, apples, cheese sticks, goldfish, etc. We had a large bin full of snack items, a bin with bread and other lunch items, one with paper goods and a few knives, and a large cooler filled with drinks and refrigerated items. Instead of trying to access each bin in the middle of a drive, we just prepped things before leaving in the morning and then were set for the day.

Try to keep like items together - clothes, activities, snacks. Certain things must be in reach of the parents, others can hang out in the back
Suitcases just aren't needed while driving. Neither are swim gear, cots, sleeping bags, etc. However, you will need to access toys, activities, food items, trash recepticles, etc. Make sure your throw up bucket is also accessible! Doing whatever you can to have necessary items within reach will greatly decrease the amount of stops you have to make and the frustration level of mom and dad.

Use a grabber to get things to kids in the back



If you have a van, chances are you can't always reach your children. When handing out food, toys, tissues, etc., it's very helpful to have a grabber. These can often be found at toy shops and novelty stores. We've had ours for years and still love it!

Large Family Car Travel Tips: Special Tips You May Not Know

Often when I research things for large families, I come across tips for families that have only 2-4 children. We are a family of 8 (soon). These travel posts are to help bigger families figure out how to survive days of road travel with minimal tension, whining, and stress. Hope it helps, and happy travels!

Other travel posts in this series:
Keeping the Car Organized
Suitcase Organization
Snacks
Keeping Kids Occupied




Expect the unexpected!
From switching hotels because of filth, to driving extra hours in a day, to massive sightseeing plans obliterated by a snowstorm ... you have to be ready to roll with the punches when traveling as a family. We've had so much go wrong over our years of roadtrips, but most of it has created fun and lasting memories. We've had a few ER visits, a cartop carrier fly off the van on the highway, detours that lasted hours, traffic jams, horrible illness, car troubles that had us walking a mile with a baby to the nearest hotel in the middle of the night, and much, much more. When you are able to look at the situation calmly you'll make better decisions and be able to lead your family in a much more gentle way. No trip will go exactly as planned or hoped, so expect to have a few bumps on the road and pray that you can laugh at it in the days to come.

Plan kid activities in chunks
We've found that giving kids chunks of time to do things makes the day go faster. For two hours, have them play with the stuff in their backpacks. Then get out a snack and an activity that will last an hour or so. Next stop for lunch. After that, a movie can take up the next two hours while any babies nap. Continue the day in this way, and you'll find the kids are happier. Not only does it remind you to keep food in their bellies, but it also forces you to stop every few hours to get out new activities. Breaks for stretching and bathroom visits will keep the whole family in a better mood.

Drink those fluids!
Don't allow yourself to become dehydrated so you can avoid bathroom breaks. Your body needs the fluid to keep you going - especially lots of water! Water will even help with those swollen hands and feet that come from salty take out food and long hours of sitting. Bathroom breaks don't have to be long, but they need to happen. Plus, a little fresh air and stretching will help your brain stay alert as you drive.

Laundry in hotels
Personally I haven't had to take advantage of this service. But it's good to know about just in case. When in a pinch, many hotels will allow their guests to use the laundry services for a fee. The fee and policies will vary by hotel, but if you've had a child get sick in the car, this is a great option to avoid a late-night run to the laundromat.

Check food policies
Did you know that some hotels don't offer a complimentary breakfast? And some will include a complimentary dinner with your stay! We love staying at the Drury Inn. Not only do they give you a hot breakfast each morning, but they also have a dinner option in the evening. The hotel puts out hot foods - simple fare such has hot dogs, nachos, baked potatoes - and you can feed your family for FREE! (Well, it's really in the hotel cost, but it feels free.) They also have a complimentary drink for each adult and beverages for all hotel guests. And popcorn. Not to mention that we've always found the Drury to have excellent service and cleanliness.

AAA and hotel points
Perhaps you don't have AAA. I would argue that it's worth getting even just for one long road trip. Why? Most hotels and sightseeing places will offer a discount for AAA members. You can also request trip tickets from AAA to help you plan your journey. These are brochures that tell all about the areas you hope to visit. Lastly, God forbid you get stranded on the road! But if you do, AAA will pay for itself by coming to the rescue. We arrived in one city and had no clue what to do. We stopped by the local AAA office and received a bag full of ideas. Sooo helpful!

In regards to the hotel points ... some hotel chains offer credit cards that allow you to book within their company and earn points toward a free hotel stay. We got the Choice Hotels card for our recent trip and looked online to find which hotels in each location were within that company. For the most part we were very happy with the hotels, and the one time we weren't we received a full refund after canceling our reservation. The card also helped us to find some great deals online for hotels in this chain - a must for a family as big as ours which requires two rooms each night.
And after 5-6 nights, we earned a free stay at our next hotel. Totally worth it!

Stop!
Kids just don't handle trips the way adults do. Adults can push through for hours on end in the car. For us, it's easy to rationalize fewer stops by getting to the end goal faster. For kids, it's different. They aren't watching the miles tick by. They are agonizing as the minutes seem to pass slower and slower! Letting them out to run and stretch every couple of hours will actually HELP your travel. When our kids get tired of being in the car, they begin making up reasons to stop: I don't feel well, I need to go potty, my legs are cramping. In the end, we have found that stopping at regular intervals allows us to reach our destination more quickly than if we just power through and end up with lots of made-up excuses toward the end of the trip.

Check the toll road rules.
If driving through Illinois, get an IPass. Otherwise, it'll cost you double if you pay cash at each tollway. The Ipass also works in states that use the EZPass - which seems to be used most in the Midwest and East Coast.

Army cots and sleeping bags
Having a couple of army cots is not only helpful for guests at home and camping in summer, but are also great in hotel rooms. They cost little, take up little space in the car (can usually fit under seats), only require a sleeping bag and pillow, and work beautifully in hotel rooms. If kids tend to argue about bedspace when sharing a bed, these are a life saver! Or if you have a large family like ours. :)

Remember to keep social security numbers on hand
There is a chance you'll run into medical issues while traveling. During our most recent trip, our littlest had a run in with a rusty nail. Because I didn't have his social security number on hand, I was unable to access his records online to see if he needed a tetanus shot. Our doctor's office was closed and it was a huge hassle to figure out whether or not we needed to visit an urgent care facility. Just remember to NOT put names with the numbers. We keep ours written on a small piece of paper in a special spot and have a code to remember which number belongs to which child. Just be careful! If those numbers are ever found and matched with names, it could spell big trouble for you!

Surprise from the Packrats!

To be honest I didn't expect to do any housework today. I had to head out shopping this afternoon and now that I'm entering the 3rd trimester of this pregnancy I'm finding that I really have much less stamina for lots of walking and shopping. Or anything afterwards.

Since I didn't want to clean, I figured I'd have the kids do a little work. (What else do I have little minions for, right?) Thinking I'd get about 15 minutes of productvitiy out of them, I asked all four to head upstairs and begin cleaning their rooms.

Meanwhile, I headed to my own room to fold laundry.

But as I did, I overheard my oldest and youngest working together. The oldest would ask, "Is this to keep or throw away?" And the youngest answered time and again, "I don't want that. Let's throw it away."

Shocking!! My kids are packrats and NEVER. THROW. ANYTHING. AWAY. Never.

I stood in stunned silence listening to the rustle of papers and the sound of said papers hitting the inside of the trashcan. Oh, what bliss!

Now although I had no intention of doing any major cleaning, I couldn't let this moment pass. This sweet and unexpected moment of time when my children were working together to actually declutter our home. Maybe all my work really is rubbing off on them in some way!

So, I did what any sane mother would do. I walked into their room, asked if I could help and began the arduous task of COMPLETELY decluttering their room.

We checked behind and under dressers, we went through bins, we pulled everything out from under the beds, we filled an entire garbage bag with trash - mostly papers and McDonalds type toys - and we sorted, sorted, sorted.

And right now, their room looks awesome. So awesome that I really would like to say they can't play there anymore. But that would be mean.

And what of my sweet daughter? As I worked with the boys for two hours, she worked on her own room. I haven't yet gotten in there with the vacuum, but I know she did her best. I'm guessing we'll work a bit more on it tomorrow, but I'm so proud of her for trying to tackle it on her own. Thankfully, her room isn't nearly as bad as the room where three boys collect everything from buttons and corks to rocks and every card ever given to them.

So although unplanned, it was a hugely productive day. And just in time too. Grandma's coming on Sunday!

Newspapers to Riches

Surely several of you out there in bloggy land have desks that are unused. Unused not because of their placement or impractical nature, but because they look like this:



Yeah, me too.

By now, you probably think I'm the messiest person alive. But honestly, most of the areas I'm showing you are either closed off (like the inside of my desk) or not as noticeable - which would be why they don't get cleaned as frequently. Well, except for the big project that I'm gathering strength for. That's very visible and is one of the areas I hate most in our house. But that's another day.

Today my big project was to declutter my desk. Actually my project started out with just trying to clean off the TOP of the desk since it looked so hideous.



But really it went so quickly that I felt invigorated and decided to shoot for bigger goals. And now my desk looks like this:



BIG difference! And it's not just the visible parts. I organized all the drawers too. I know ... I'm such an overachiever. (Yeah, right.)

You may wonder what all that clutter was about and what in the world I did with it all. Well aside from a slew of pictures, I have actually sorted through everything and put it away. Imagine that!

Mostly I had a bunch of papers that were ready to be recycled. Things like catalogs I had set there hoping to keep gift ideas close at hand, newspapers that housed articles by Josh or pictures of my kids to cut out, and of course a bunch of random papers that really didn't need to be clogging up my desk.

Oh and $70 in cash! That was nice to find! And it certainly made my hubby pretty excited about my desk cleaning adventure. I guess you never know what you'll find hiding amidst the chaos.

So what are you waiting for ... go clean something! You might get rich doing it.

Operation Declutter: Fridge Top

I'm sure many of you already think I'm nuts. But despite my normal craziness and the chaos of everyday life, I'm just not able to control my organizational and nesting urges!

There's a blog I follow and the author is doing a 31 day challenge to re-decorate her house. I've been reading for awhile now and I can't help but be inspired by the seemingly easy changes she's making. Now, I don't really want to go to the trouble of buying and selling furniture on Craigs List, or redecorating my house. But I WOULD like to declutter my house before the baby arrives.

I'm not delusional enough to think that I can accomplish a decluttering task each day for a month. However given that I have 13 weeks or so before this little guy arrives, I should be able to get several things done. Besides that, my mom has happily stated that she would like to host a garage sale this summer which would give me a great outlet for ridding our house of unwanted junk!

So after much thought and some list making, I decided to tackle my first project yesterday (and part of today).

I knew we had several things going on, so I had hoped to find a short and easy task to boost my confidence in this new venture. I decided to attack the top of our fridge and the cabinet that housed our many, many vases.

Now, you may think that task unworthy. But ... I am ashamed to admit our fridge top looked like this:





And because the front of our fridge looks like this, just about everyone who comes to our house stops at the fridge for several minutes.



And if those guests are any taller than me, they can see the horrid dust and grime that sits atop our fridge.

Now the top of the fridge was pretty simple to clean. Soft scrub, gloves and paper towels make any cleaning job easy.

But remember, I wasn't just tackling the top of the fridge. I also wanted to declutter the cabinet above the fridge. Yup, the one that was filled to the brim with vases to the point that they overflowed onto my countertops.



Simple enough, right? Riiight. As I pulled out vases, I realized that several had the crud inside that comes from icky flower water leaving a film all over the inside of the vase. I'd heard that you should wash that with bleach, so I figured I'd clean the inside of ALL the vases. Smart, Ali.

I bleached every single vase - which by the way does work very, very well. Then, I sorted the vases and decided which ones to keep. I mean, really, how many flowers do I typically have in my house at one time?? So, I kept one of each size of vase (to accommodate different sizes and types of flowers, of course) and boxed up the rest for that garage sale I mentioned.

Oh, and since I'm at the task of decluttering, I just had to stop at a garage sale yesterday that had tons of tupperware and other containers. Makes sense right? Yeah. While I did get a few items to help with some of my decluttering tasks, I also got a few larger tupperware items for the kitchen. Things that I don't have space for, but that I've been wanting for a long time. Like a salad spinner, a cupcake holder and a cake carrier. Seriously, I cringe every time I'm making a salad and have to bruise the leaves to get the water off of them. Really, I do.

So, with this newly cleared space only half filled with vases, I was able to fit my new tupperware items. Yay me! And my fridge is no longer an embarrassment! Well, unless you open it. But that's a project for another day.

Here's a pic of the clean and organized finished product.



I know it's not the biggest accomplishment in the world, but it's a start. And starting is half the battle.