Back to School with Lands’ End

Jenny’s kids are headed back to school today (in their adorable Lands’ End uniforms), and even though mine have another couple weeks at home (or rather, at Disney World), we are it total back-to-school mode at our house, and Lands’ End helped us out with a few outfits to get them ready.

Kate’s going into third grade, and she’s been dying for a more “grown up” messenger-style book bag. She’s thrilled with her new ClassMate bag!

This bag is the same outstanding quality I’d expect from a Lands’ End backpack, and I’m confident it will last Kate for years. I love the durability and practical design (a water-repellent finish, for example), and she loves the colors and the look.

She’s also got a new lunch box – the Kids’ Large Check MadBox 2-piece lunch box.

This lunch box is different than the ones she’s had in the past, in that it’s got an adjustable ice pack that divides the stuff that needs to stay cold from what doesn’t. It’s tested to keep lunches cold for 5 hours. I’m hopeful that this year Kate won’t come home and tell me about the warm turkey sandwich she had for lunch that day! It’s got plenty of room for her sandwich box, water bottle, and anything else she needs. Well, except for a mom who is good at packing school lunches. Not sure where she’s going to find that.

Of course, back to school is not complete without new clothes! Kate is all set for her first day with this cute outfit.

She’s wearing the Girls’ Denim Patchwork Skirt, the Girls’ Long Sleeve Knit Pintuck Henley Shirt, and the Girls’ Crochet Beret.

Kate is suuuuuuper picky about clothes – both about the way they look AND the way they feel. I must admit that when she picked out the denim skirt, I was a little nervous because she doesn’t like anything that’s tight or constricting, and sometimes denim can be both. However, this denim is really soft, and the adjustable waistband makes it comfortable for her. She loves it (in case you couldn’t tell by her cheesin’ in that picture!). The Knit Pintuck Henley is a hit as well. It’s Cotton Modal, just like my very favorite shirts in the world, which means it’s silky-soft. This is a great shirt for Kate to wear at school, too, because it’s long-sleeved but fairly light weight, which will be nice in the winter because her school building gets really hot. The cute Crochet Beret is the perfect way to make the outfit just a little more “Kate.”

Kate also tried out the Long Sleeve Eyelet Trim Friendship Graphic T-Shirt and the classic Lands’ End Sweat Pants.

I think I’m going to get Kate four more shirts and four more pairs of sweat pants just like this and call her wardrobe complete. They’re both so soft and comfortable, yet well-made and detailed so she looks put together. Andy and I have both decided we need a pair of those sweat pants too!

Ok, Kate’s all set for third grade – now let’s move on to Sam! He’s getting ready for his final year of Pre-K. He’s had the summer off with his dad, but he is excited to go back to school and see all his friends again. I am excited to dress him up in his new school clothes!

Just as an aside, I hear people say all the time that boys’ clothes aren’t any fun to pick out, girls’ clothes are so much cuter, etc. I must say – I could not disagree more! Maybe it’s because I’m not into ruffles and glitter, but I absolutely love picking out clothes for Sam.

Seriously – what could be cuter than this?

Sam’s wearing the Boys’ Long Sleeve Painted Stripe Rugby, the Classic Fit Iron Knee Jeans, and the Boys’ Alpine Trekker Boots. He is so cute I just want to eat him up. I love a good rugby, and this one is fantastic. It’s almost indestructible, as it’s made of heavyweight 100% cotton jersey, and has reinforced shoulder seams, a finished neck seam and rubber buttons. Perfect for a crazy boy like mine!

The Iron Knee Pants are awesome – Sam also has the Cadet Pants. The best part about these is that the reinforced knee is invisible – the patch is on the inside. Check them out:

Sam also needed a new back pack, so after looking at the sizing information on the Lands’ End website, I decided to go with the My First Gadgets Print Backpack.

Yes, it comes with an Ugly Doll! This back pack will be perfect for toting the things he needs for preschool this year, and because it’s made to the same exact standards as the other Lands’ End back packs, I know it’ll still be going strong for kindergarten next year.

Shew! Now all we need is for school to start!

How are your back-to-school preparations going? I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

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DodgeBathe, yet another sport I suck at

One of the things I’m dying to do one day when all my dreams come true? Is take an uninterrupted shower. Every day when I shower I have Jonah-Jo nearby, toddling around the bathroom and the upstairs hallway.  This little guy has a really good time playing in the hall with all his toys…when he’s not playing his very favorite game, which is of course…

Throw My Toys at Mommy When She’s in the Shower!

So every day, I hurriedly wash and shampoo while constantly on the lookout for Jonah to pull back the curtain and lob a block, puzzle piece, or car at me.  Which he does with great accuracy, I might add.

My latest constant bathing companion?  Is this guy:

Meet Scout.  He’s the LeapFrog dog who sings your name!  And lots of cute songs.  He lights up, and teaches you your ABCs, and he is really Jonah’s best buddy and favorite toy in the entire world.  Plus, he likes to see me n-a-k-e-d!

I guess I should be flattered that Jonah wants to share his #1 pal with me multiple times every time I’m in the shower.  Buuuut, it’s kind of inconvenient.  And, I’m pretty sure it’s bad for his battery pack to get wet, so I always grab him up and fling him into the hallway as quickly as I can, while giving Jonah the “no throw” lecture, and you know, WASHING MY HAIR, but Scout returns to my soapy cell no matter what.  The only solution is to expel him as quickly as possible, wash reaaallly fast, and duck and dodge as other debris flies my way while my little guy claps and giggles.

Sigh.  This game of Dodge Bathe has been going on each day for a couple weeks now, and I’m getting a little weary of it.  Do you know how hard it is to shave your legs and protect your face from flying wooden puzzle pieces at the same time?  I’m going to slash myself in the face someday soon, I know it. It’s only a matter of time!  And you all know how I LOVE my face…

Help!

 

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Spark & Hustle Recap with Intel Small Business Advantage

My friend Rachel speaking at Spark & Hustle. She was amazing!

Last week I had the privilege of attending Tory Johnson’s Spark & Hustle conference for women in small business.  It was a great experience!  I learned so much to apply in a practical way to the business side of this blog (and let me tell you it was SUCH a relief that everything was TRULY practical and applicable! You don’t always get that.), I got to hear from some inspiring women in small business, and I got to spend time with my friends Rachel and Luanne, awesome small business owners themselves!

The lovely Rachel of BacknGroovemom
My BFF Luanne of Lulee's Lollies fame!

My attendance at Spark & Hustle was sponsored by one of my favorite companies to work with, Intel.  They also sent me to the conference with a Lenovo ThinkPad Edge quipped with Intel’s Small Business Advantage tools.  These tools are awesome for those in small business who don’t really have a tech guy at the ready.  When I have tech trouble, my tech guy (aka my husband) is usually at work when I need him and not close by!

 The SBA tools allow your computer to take care of a lot of maintenance issues virtually by itself!  Here are some of my favorite features:

  • Software Monitor – Did you know there are viruses out there that can come in and turn off your anti-virus software?  Eek!  Neither did I!  The software monitor feature lets you know when your anti-virus software has been turned off or compromised so you can take action right away.
  • Data backup & restore- this feature allows you to schedule backups of your data (veeeery important, I have learned! The hard way!) and maintenance to run in the off-business hours so this important step gets done AND doesn’t interfere with your work day.
  • USB Blocker – I LOVE this feature.  It allows you to choose which type of USB devices you’ll allow to be plugged into your computer.  So let’s say you don’t want anyone but yourself to be able to plug in a mass storage device – you can allow that only after the user enters a password.  Meanwhile, other devices like cameras or printers can be plugged in by any user.  A great way to keep your files protected from anyone who might want to remove them.

I’ve loved using Intel’s Small Business Advantage tools and I know they’ll be keeping me and my data in business safely and securely!   Thanks to Intel for sending me to Spark & Hustle and supporting women in small business!

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