Following the Leader

Since we started at the new Kindergarten I have been shuffling the kids in and out of the car a lot to drop off and pick up. I really dislike all of the nagging to get the kids out to the car and in their chairs. Then the other day I decided to give a little leadership responsibility. When it was time to go I announced that Dallin was the leader and that we were going to follow the leader to the car and get in our chairs. All of the sudden Dallin stood up straight and assumed his responsibility. The other kids thought it was way cool to follow him as their leader too. So now I pick the leader and then we sing the "following the leader" song as we march to the car. It works great. The older two get in and buckle up. I still have to buckle the two year old but he is pretty good at getting in his chair, so I just have to drop the baby in his car seat base and we are off. I love it and the kids love it so everyone is happy!

Movie Night

I think having traditions in our family is very important. That is probably the one thing I really absorbed from the class I took about family structure in college. Tradition creates a deep sense of belonging and bonding within the family. So I am always trying to find little things that when our kids grow up they will say, "my family always did this together". No matter how small, a new tradition is welcome in our family. Lately we have been having a movie night each week(another idea from John and Kate). I bought a huge collections of Disney movies on VHS off of Craigslist last summer for less than a dollar each. We have some kind of treat, like popcorn or candy and all sit down together and enjoy a Disney movie together. It is extra special when we pull the couch directly in front of the t.v. This week we ate pizza on a blanket as a "picnic" while we watched. The kids love it, and it is just neat that we are all doing something fun together.