The Sunday Bags are finished!!!!!!! And even better? They worked! Each kid was pleasantly occupied with activities from their own bag -- there was no arguing over who got the crayons, whose snack was being eaten by whom, or whose turn it was with the whatever and ever....
The girls were even so excited they carried their bags to and from church! They loved having a bag that had their own name on it and enjoyed the activities inside. Neither of them made it through the entire bag. And here's the clincher -- Brigham never even ate his snack! Wow. Success defined in my book!
What's that? You want to see pictures of this amazing invention? You want to know the details of my craftiness? You want one of your own? I can make all of that happen! Stick with me to the end of the post!
Personalized -- no worries about whose is whose. I simply appliqued their names (traced from a print out from Word in poornut font at 400 pt.) and embellished them with ribbons and buttons. I got the bags at Hobby Lobby for about $1.50 each! I am absolutely stunned at how successful these little buggers were! Amazing.
Contents of Chloe and Lily's bags: A decorated clipboard, -- perfect hard surface for coloring printed clip art from the internet (the kids all loved these today). A crayon roll (tutorial here), easy way to keep the crayons from disappearing in the benches. An "I Spy" bag (find the pattern here), and a small toy. A set of magnetic dress-up dolls (I downloaded and altered the dolls on this site, then printed them on magnetic paper -- they're stored in a metal tin so they have their own magnetic home). A small snack container and a sippy cup. Finally, a photo album filled with pictures of cousins, grandparents, aunts and uncles, church pictures, and, of course, them!
Contents of Brigham's bag: Same as above, without the magnetic dress-up dolls. Also, his included a wooden cut-out of a truck and a miniature John Deere tractor. Ooh, and I almost forgot, everyone's bag had some sheets of stickers!Now, I do realize the novelty of these bags is going to wear off one of these weeks. But isn't an hour and ten minutes of sanity worth a little effort? Believe me when I say that this was totally worth the time and effort. It wasn't totally expensive to pull off, either. I know I could have found a better deal on the magnet paper. Even considering the cost of that, I'd say these came in at under $15, bags included. I was so surprised I could come up with something so diverse and entertaining for that little.
So, if you'd like step by steps, or better details about a few of the projects, please email me -- stanton underscore julie at msn dot com.
And even better? How about I give one away! This will be my very first giveaway EVER and I'm really excited!
Here's are the details:
* Leave a comment here on this post.
* Tell me what you do to keep your kids entertained and quiet at church, oil change places, doctor's offices, etc. If you don't have kids, tell me something you do to pass the time at these places.
* Tell me IF and HOW MUCH you would pay for something like this.
* An extra entry if you can tell me where the title of this post originated.
* An extra entry if you can tell me where the title of this post originated.
*Another extra entry if you post about this on your blog!
The giveaway will be open from now till Sunday, July 20th at 10:00 pm. I'll draw the winner Monday morning and announce it here.
If you win, you will receive:
* One customized quiet bag (your family's last name, a child, grandchild, niece or nephew's name, girl, boy, or gender neutral)
* A personalized clip board with coloring pages from the internet
* A crayon roll with 16 crayons inside
* An "I Spy" Bag
* A magnetic paper doll set (you get to cut out the figures) and metal tin
* A small toy (car, polly pocket, etc.)
* A small snack container and sippy cup (both new!)
* A photo album
* A $5 gift certificate to Snapfish.com or online photo shop of your choice (so you can fill up your photo album, of course)!
That's a lot of stuff, right? So, get commenting! Tell your friends to come enter. If you're a sibling, a relative, a lurker, a whatever, you're eligible -- but you've got to comment! Remember, I want to hear details -- would you purchase a bag like this? How much would you pay for it? What do you do to keep your kids busy at church, doctor's offices, etc?
Good luck and happy commenting! And I think I may have gone a little overboard on exclamation points in this post! I mean post.
The giveaway will be open from now till Sunday, July 20th at 10:00 pm. I'll draw the winner Monday morning and announce it here.
If you win, you will receive:
* One customized quiet bag (your family's last name, a child, grandchild, niece or nephew's name, girl, boy, or gender neutral)
* A personalized clip board with coloring pages from the internet
* A crayon roll with 16 crayons inside
* An "I Spy" Bag
* A magnetic paper doll set (you get to cut out the figures) and metal tin
* A small toy (car, polly pocket, etc.)
* A small snack container and sippy cup (both new!)
* A photo album
* A $5 gift certificate to Snapfish.com or online photo shop of your choice (so you can fill up your photo album, of course)!
That's a lot of stuff, right? So, get commenting! Tell your friends to come enter. If you're a sibling, a relative, a lurker, a whatever, you're eligible -- but you've got to comment! Remember, I want to hear details -- would you purchase a bag like this? How much would you pay for it? What do you do to keep your kids busy at church, doctor's offices, etc?
Good luck and happy commenting! And I think I may have gone a little overboard on exclamation points in this post! I mean post.
84 comments:
Julie, those bags are great! I'm so impressed, and I'm betting that they will keep your kids occupied for more than just a few weeks.
I take books for the kids to look at during church, and I try to rotate them through pretty regularly. Other places, it is suckers, fruit snacks or something.
Julie I also am so impressed...not only was that a lot of work, but you put a lot of thought into individualizing the bags. I'd pay at least $30 for a bag like that until I saw my kids name on the front and then I'm sure I'd go $35. They are too cute.
Keeping kids quiet...ya I have 4 under 8. I always take extras of whatever my sunbeams are doing that day. That seams to be a novelty right now, they like to think they are making something important. Books, coloring books( I copy the pages from the books that come with Living Scripture so they all have the same), and of course snacks. We are regulars at the doctors office,it sounds like you are too. I hope everything ends up going perfectly for your little Brig. Know that he will be in our prayers. Our little Tanner had heart surgery when he was 3 days old and only weighed 2 pounds. He did great and the Lord got us through it because we could not have done it alone. He'll be with you too. For all those doctors visits I always take a little box of crayons or stickers and let them decorate the white paper on the table. I've never had a doctor complain and my kids love it. I always make sure I have a book to see me through the visit. Hey and check my blog for a link to your give away.
Hey Julie,
This is Becca Rammell. I found your blog through Jill's. I too hope everything goes well with your little Brig. You are in our thoughts and prayers.
I love the bags too! My kids are still pretty little, but Adam is distracted fairly easily just by everything around him. Church, however, is getting more difficult. He does ok looking at the Friend, but as soon as the treats are gone he's ready to be done. We also have an ABC quiet book with "gospel" words and pictures. That really is more of a noisy book because he wants to comment on every page. I would definately pay for a bag like that-probably around fifteen cause I now know that's what you did yours for! :) (I'm cheap) Anyway, very cute! I enjoy reading your blog-it's so fun to keep up on everybody!
Julie, I have been dying to see these! I want to win one, but more than that I would pay at least $30 for one. I think if you broke down the crayon holder, magnets, and the I-spy bags, you could sell them each for $5 plus, in addition to the other items and your time.
I have a hard time entertaining Emery at church, and Chani has started turning into a pill. I'm really looking forward to Clint being able to sit with me in a few weeks. One thing that I have been firm with is that there are no toys or snacks until after the sacrament is over. We take books and crayons and coloring books as well as cars and snacks.
"And now for something completely different" is from Monty Python and I will be posting this on my blog. I so hope to win! If not, I will have a great project to start on after the move.
I want one and will pay $30 too! And, yeah! You could make the bag like $26 and the crayon holder like $8 and the other stuff other amounts...and then offer the whole thing at a lower, set price--
Okay, what do we do with Audrey? Crayons, Cheerios, Cars (except then you get "vroom vroom")...and I have a little bag in my purse that has wallets of people she knows. She LOVES these. Maybe you could make a little wallet holder book. Then there's books to read and color...and usually a doll or something.
Man, thinking about it-- it's probably worth even more than $30!
And I will totally post this on my own blog for others-- and like I said to Jill, get the book Mommy Millionaire and patent this guy!!
Sarah Wright
You're a genius! I think the clincher is that they each have their own little bag of wonders!
My almost 3 year old stays the most entertained with her little board books. If I could carry 100 books into sacrament meeting, I'd be set. But right now I bring about 10 and then have a color book and crayons. That seems to do the trick. My older three who are 11, 8 and 6 seem to be content with a regular ol' spiral notebook and pen. They play games or draw or write letters.
Now when you asked how much I would pay for something like this, do you mean just the bag or the bag with all of the contents?
Darnit, I didn't know where the title came from. My first thought was Rocky & Bullwinkle, but that was "And now here's something we hope you'll really like". Ah well.
And I'd be happy to link here without the promise of an extra entry even! (Don't take that as me volunteering to forfeit my extra entry, though.)
No wonder you're not outside anymore... you're indoors working away on these AMAZING "quiet bags"! I love them and would definitely purchase one. Price? Probably up to $35 or $40... if I could keep my boys from wanting what the other one has during church it would be worth EVERY PENNY! And I will definitely put this on my blog for others to see! (I agree with one of the other comments about patenting thing this... you never know what could happen)
As for what we do to keep the kids quiet - many times it's snacks. Not that is always quiet since they like to smack their food sometimes (UGH), Trevor really likes looking at books - even the hymnals that don't have any pictures in them are entertaining some days. But with Trevor naming objects more and more, books aren't always the quietest activity anymore. Ethan likes to look at books too and listen for the "next song" that gets played by the piano.
Thanks for showing us your new creation - I love them! And you're right that an hour of quiet can be worth something that took so much effort.
Oh yeah... and the title. I believe it did come from the Monty Python movies. I've never seen it, but it's the title of one of the movies.
You could definately sell these for more than $30. I keep my kids quiet during church by bringing the Friend magazine or download the activities pages from the Friend, The one that lasted the whole sacrament meeting was one where you colored the different numbers different colors and it turned into a beautiful color. Know what I mean?
The only other things we bring are small photo albums and spiral notebooks with crayons.
You are amazing! Those bags are sheer genius. For all the stuff you listed, I'd pay $45 (do I win for bidding the highest?). They totally rock.
As for keeping my kids quiet and still during sacrament I keep a roll of duct tape and a stapler in my bag, just kidding.
Truthfully, We sit in front of the Stake Primary President, she is always pulling new tricks out of her bag. The boys love her. I do pack a few I spy books, coloring books and crayons and a few snacks. With 1-4pm church on the horizon for the next 2 years, I think I need to start packing them dinner. And get moving making them their own church bags.
I know my boys would love the magnetic paper dolls, too.
At other appointments where sitting is required, I bring out the DS's. Even the baby enjoys pretending he's playing a game.
Title; Has to be Monty Python
Julie --
I just saw this post regarding your items on "The Reading Family Blog" who I got from another family blog and until oh...10 minutes ago, had never known your family existed!! :-) Boy am I glad that I do now!! I have no idea what I'd pay for bag like that but it's a purchase that would probably make me us a credit card because who can put a price tag on a CONTENT TODDLER IN BIG CHURCH??? Not me! I just pray that he'll stay in the pre-school or fall asleep on my lap!!!! We aren't too adventurous in BIG CHURCH b/c my Luke is three and the pastor might search us out in sanctuary and have us escorted out!! Can you get in trouble in church for TRASHING bulletins, sermon notes & tithe envelopes? Oh I hope not!!
All I know is that those bags are too darn cute and in a couple months I'm gonna have TWO GuateTots to keep quiet in church. One of which is almost 2 and doesn't understand ENGLISH!!!
PLEASE PICK ME PICK ME PICK ME!! I'll happily buy the 2nd bag!!! Of course I could buy one for my 13 year old but I think he'd die from embarassment first!!
I'm heading over to blog about you on my own blog now.....you can follow up on it if you wish. Another pretty please....PICK ME!!! :-)
Much love and GREAT work!!!
Bamagirl
Oh I want one, I want one!! I usually bring a couple puzzles and a sticker book to keep Boogers occupied. Plus some snacks...She does pretty well in church considering. But that's not to say I don't need one of these bags with her name on it! :)
Oh and $30 bucks sounds about right!
I will pack a bag with books, snakcs, and travel Etch-O-Sketch like things when we go somewhere that we are going to have to wait.
I love these bags and I think that $30.00 sounds very reasonable also :)
The title of this post is definitely from Monty Python!
Thank you so much for the giveaway!
This is brilliant and absolutely adorable! I am so making one of my own for my son, who is 4 months old (I have time!). If you sell them, I'd say they are worth at least $50.
When I was little my grandma would buy kids meals at fast food restaurants (she wasn't a woman of large appetites)and save the toys to give to us during church or when we were out somewhere. My son is too young, but I like to pass the time while in waiting rooms by meditating, just following my breathing in and out.
Thanks so much for the giveaway and even more thanks for this great idea! Don't worry, I won't be selling them, just making one for my little guy. Good luck with making some money from them!
How did I go an entire day without seeing this??
Oh, yeah. I turned of Google Reader for the day. Never again!!
What do I do to keep the kiddies entertained at church?
7yr old girl: Pencil/pen and paper and she's good to go.
5 yr old girl: pencil/pen and paper, a magnadoodle, and a board book.
3 yr old boy: one or two matchbox cars, books, paper, magnadoodles
17 month old boy: food, water, books, magnadoodles, cars, hallway with dad.
I would pay at least 20 bucks for something like this!
I posted about this on my blog, but I can't remember where your title was from. :(
I blame mommy-brain. Which would be cured if I could win a bag like this for my #3! He needs this. Bad. So, pick me! Pick me! (as if typing that has ever worked.)
Ok, you dont know me but I found the link to this post on Melanie Gunnells blog (extra entry for that right?) and as far as what I do to keep mine entertained...well, lets just say that your wonderful, $40 at least, church bags are so far out of my league of things that keep my kids entertained at church that Im not going to tell you what I do, mostly because its comprised of dirty looks and threats. :) Bad mom, I know.....
I know this won't count as another entry, but I had to add. I have come up with a choice. Mine do well with choices.
They can either sit quiet and still at church or at home, on their bed after church. I tally up the minutes after the second reminder that they spend it being loud and wiggly and they go to 'time out' at home for the same number of minutes. It kind of works. They're better at getting back to where they're supposed to be, before I give my warnings.
Aunt Meggie and Uncle Jake come over on Sunday afternoons. The boys do not want to waste a single second in time out.
ps- I posted about this on my blog too
This is such a great idea-we try to keep my son occupied with a Magna Doodle and a coloring book-this would be great and I think lots of people would pay for it!!
I am one of those Moms that may not have the finacial resources to purchase something like this, but would see someone at church and fall completely in love with it and try to copy everything I saw. I love that you added the links to everything you made. I will definately be making one or two for my busy bodies at church. I love getting great ideas from Moms who are in the same situation that I am. Thank you for that. Oh, I saw this on Mel Gunnell's blog. I can't emphasize how wonderful of an idea this is. Thanks again!
I use an I-spy bag, a sippy, books, cheerios, cars, paper and pencil, hand games (well I can only think of (this is the church... and this is the steeple... etc) I also "pull a string" out of his hand. (This may sound gross, but you hold his hand at the wrist and "drain" all of the blood - by squeezing the hand. When the hand turns white, touch each of their fingers and go to the middle. When you pull up (like pulling a string out) you let go slowly from the wrist. It gives the illusion of a string coming out. Have Stanton try it on you first... it only works with someone who's hands are bigger and can fit around the wrist.)
For a full, completed bag, I'd pay between 10-14.
Monty Python, for sure! Pre-Spam-a-lot.
Julie,
Just wanted to post a comment and nominate my sister-in-law Mel for this drawing (she's too modest to really say why she deserves this)... My brother is in the bishopric which leaves Mel three little busy boys to get dressed, fed and cleaned up for their 9am (?) meeting plus herself. My mom just spent a weekend with her and noted that Mel even makes her bed before church. My three little nephews are 4, 2 1/2. and barely 1, plus Mel just announced a bun in the oven. I can only imagine what she does to keep these three little boys occupied and reverent during sacrament while Dad is up on the stand. But I know she does an amazing job and her boys are developing their little testimonies so well. So if nothing else... this is just a shout-out to Mel and the wonderful mother that she is! Love you Mel!
PS. And just for kicks... I clean out my purse to keep myself occupied.... or read the hymnal... or make faces at the kids in front of me... obviously I don't have kids just yet...
Julie-
I am trying to post for the third time now. I put a link on my blog to your site, and I do agree that it's Monty Python (I remember watching that in your basement).
I would LOVE to have a bag like that. Our Sunday's are crazy and usually consist of the crayons and books. I have an ispy bag for her that I bought in Utah. I have noticed the clip boards and think they are adorable!! I am thinking of getting the stuff to make one for her.
I would purchase a bag like this for between $30-40. I love that they are personalized and so FREAKING cute! It sounds like you are pondering selling this and so my suggestion would be to find some bags that have color to them (I know...you got them on a huge deal...remember this is a suggestion).
So...is that enough? I really, really, really, really, really, would love one of those bags!! PLEASE!!!! I asked nice..... :)
PLEASE OH PLEASE pick me! I have 4 kids, 9,7,3 and almost 1. My two oldest are great at church. My 1 year old wants to get down and crawl and my 3 year old is an extremely activ boy who doesn't sit still for any length of time at all! Plus my husband is in the bishopric and its all me! I take books, magna doodle, color wonder books (found out that crayons will color on the benches and wood!). Haven't found anything magic yet!
I would pay upwards of 20-30 for this (would pay more if it would seriously keep him entertained!). Anyway I would LOVE to win this. My email is davencher2000@ yahoo . com. My blog is private, but I will post about it!
what a great idea. I'm always impressed and amazed at how creative some people are. I like your blog. I'm a newcomer to it. I think this bag idea is fabulous. I have a 2 year old. Trying to entertain her at church is so hard. we have Sacrament meeting last, and she's done with church at that point. Mostly, I try the coloring books route, or the quiet book. That worked for about 3 weeks. Her most recent fascination has been with a string. Simple little string... kept her entertained for the whole time. This week, it worked for about 19 minutes. This bag would probably do wonders. I think I'd pay between 20 and 30 dollars for one...
I just realized you are married to Stanton! I went to high school with him. I'm actually James' age. what a great family you married into! Congrats! How great for you!
I didn't see anywhere in the rules that family was excluded. So, I am definately entering this givaway! Unfortunately you know all my quiet tricks. The key for us is changing it up. So, I have the quiet books, marker bags, paper dolls, and a necklace kit (foam shapes and shoelaces). I'm sure like everyone else we have good days and bad.
I would pay $20 for this. But, I'm probably a cheapscape. I can tell you where the post title originated because of cheating and reading everyone elses answers - but you never said I coulnd't :) - anyway it's from Monte Python.
The bags are awesome! Way to go!
Jewels, those are amazing! I am in aww and would LOVE to be your winner. What do I do with my three kids when we are at Church or out and about where they need to behave? Well as you know my children are about as close in age as yours so I think we both know each other's pain. When Lydia was first born and had to go to the orthopedist for her hip we would be there for HOURS because they would take so long so I started bringing their doctor kit. THEY LOVED IT!! They would play dr to the orthopedist when she FINALLY would see Lydia and she was good with them and they thought they were kings! So that is one idea I have done. I used to do the treat thing but have gotten far away from that because I don't like to reward them not behaving with treats. As far as at Church, we have a rule that they have to sit quietly up through Sacrament. I show them pictures of Jesus and things like that to keep them reverent. Then after that, I give them sticker books and I also let them pick books to bring to Church that they want to look at or toys that dont' make noise. I have seen them go from complete disasters at Church to quiet little boys and it has been NICE!! Also, at Church if they are really bad they are taken to the back of the church building and put in the naughty corner on a chair in a dark room and they DO NOT LIKE THAT so they learned quickly that if they're bad they don't just get to run and play in the hall.
I also rely on strollers when we are out at dr's/oil changes/malls/ etc because Jared seems to behave better if he is contained and cannot run and hide which he likes to do.
PICK ME PICK ME!!! ;o)
Again, I LOVE your books. What a great job you did and I cannot believe you did it all while pregnant! GO JEWELS!!!!
J Ro-
Look at you! The next Pioneer Woman! Fantastic. Don't include me in the drawing because I am a lucky person and would win for sure, then all the others would say "her sister-in-law? Come on!"
I am Cerissa Comin, Melanie Gunnell's sister. She has this giveaway posted on her blog. I would pay $30.00 for this without the name on it. I think you could charge a dollar a letter to put the name on. I also think you should sell these on ebay under mormon, lds, activity bags. You could make a fortune. I don't want this bag for me, but for my sister Melanie. If I win, send it to her. My kids are 9, 7 and 4. They draw at church mostly and listen because they are older. I think you could make one of these for older kids with mostly pens and paper for drawing and sell them a little cheaper. Not that you need any help here-you are very creative and talented. Good luck getting these things marketed. I would be glad to post one on e-bay for you if you want to see if they will sell.
1. I have no idea where the quote came from.
2. I'd pay $35, it looks like its worth more but $35 is just some kind of threshold number for me.
3. My kids aren't quiet.
4. I'll try to link to you tomorrow.
I'm really glad you put so much detail into this post so I can try to emulate. But details aside I could flatter you even better by copying one I had in person! I hope I win.
Hey Juj,
I find myself saying this a lot lately- YOU ARE AMAZING!!! The bags are adorable and so creative. I'm still trying to figure out how you and Lori ended up with all the creativity in the family. It's just not right! ha ha. Anyway, as far as what I do to keep kids quiet during church, I just let them pick their noses and tell them this is the only place they can do it. (JUST KIDDING, YUCK) No, really, I have no good ideas; They each pack their own scripture bags with paper, crayons, pics of Jesus, and their scriptures of course. They do okay but we also have help from other ward members now days because of DJ being the Bishop and us having 6 kids. I'm in and out nursing the twins so we generally have people that we sit with so it helps the kids behave. Anyway, the bags are adorable and I'd love to win but it probably wouldn't look good since I'm your sis.
Oh How cute. That is such a smart idea. Katie Lee stays as content as an 11 month old at church with a few books, I made a family photo book from Shutterfly, and a doll. I would pay $20.00 for a bag like this. I'll share it with all my blog friends on my blog.
Melanie Gunnell referred me over here! What a great give away. At church with two boys it is a battle. My eldest 2.5 year old, usually brings alot of trucks/cars, I pack a coloring book, crayons, puzzles and book. Also at least two or three different kind of snacks cause lets face it what works one week seems to not work the next week. And one drink. For Parker my 1 year old, he gets whats left over.
Could you include seat belts? That seems to be my issue lately, no one will sit still and if I leave with the 1 year old Grandma doesnt seem to understand that the 2 year old does not need to run after me during sacrament meeting. I will post about this give away I think I would pay 30 on a normal day and on a frazzle I'm giving up day around 40.
Youre very talented! What a good idea to package it all together so Sunday mornings arent about getting everything packed back up!
Hi, here I am. Yea!!! I love, love, love this bag and would officially like to be the first on your list to make one for. As far as what I do to keep Nico busy, I pack about 50 pounds of stuff every week because I have never thought of a way to condense it down, but you have now done that for me and I am thrilled. The 50 pounds contains books (and Cheerios), puzzles, stickers, crayons, a cup, snacks, a doodle board, lace up beads, cars, trains, ummmm I am sure there is more, can't remember right now though. The photo book idea has me way excited. Can you think of a way to keep him quiet while he looks at pictures of his Grammy and cousins who all sit on the same row :-) About the price, you name it. Wow, risky huh!!! Never, I am so excited I would probably pay you anything right now. It seems as though $30-$40 has been fairly consistent though. About the title, come on, of course I know what it is from, no peeking here. Lastly, I will post about this on my blog shortly.
Toodles..........
Have a great day! It was great to see you last night, and thank you for the heads up about Cold Stone. Nico and I are going for dinner, I mean dessert, tonight!!!
wow these bogs are great. I want one. I would be willing to pay $25. I take a bag with color wonder books and doodle pads. My daughter also likes the magnetic toys and pictures that you can color again and again with water pens. I am going to try to link to you, if I can figure it out, I am very new to blogging.
These bags are wonderful! I just posted a long comment and it didn't post.
I would definitely pay $35 for one with the name Emma on it! And it is a good thing that I don't have to know how to sew or use a glue gun to get into heaven because I would have NO chance!
I don't know what I did to keep my children reverent. The first three just were . . . until they became teenagers! Heavenly Father tricked me into thinking children were easy with the first three and then sent me April. She was such a handful! Into everything, so very chatty and cute. Church was difficult. The older ones took turns taking her out so that I could enjoy the meeting. So I'm no help! I did have an "adopted" teenager that loved to sit with us when we lived in Hyde Park which helped. But you are onto that one!
Please enter me into your contest for the Grandchild. Mindy and Emma would love it!
Also, anyone interested in an Advanced Reader's Copy of "Farworld" by J. Scott Savage, come visit me on my blog. I am having a contest and only have 3 entries so your chances are FABULOUS!
Oh, Julie, I would love this bag for when wiggly little grandchildren come to visit. They are so darling! Please enter me in your drawing and hopefully no one will be upset if your mother gets very lucky and wins! I am amazed at all you accomplish in a day and pregnant t'boot! (As you can see, I love exclamation points too!!!!!!) And by the way, as you know I never could get into Monty Python so I don't have the slightest idea where the blog title came from. Please tell us when the contest is over. Love you!
Very cute, Julie! What a good idea. If you're willing to do the work, I'm willing to enter for free! ;) Ok, soo...
1) To keep my kids quiet at church, I threaten them within an inch of their life. Ok, just kidding! ;) Hmmm...I would say Gabe loves to color while Sammie tries to fix my hair over and over again while ripping out my earrings.
2) I would pay $30-ish dollars for this bag.
3) Title of this post...Saturday Night Live?
4)And I will definitely post this on my own blog--guaranteed!
Ok, thanks for the fun!
Angie
Hi! I'm Melanie G's sis in law. During church I let my 2 1/2 year old look at Friend magazines, a little book about Jesus I made him, and snack on cheerios and milk.
I'd pay $25-30. I know with all the time it would take, it's worth more than that - but if it cost more I would probably try to make it myself first.
I'm the same as 'don and ann anderton' and cheated: Monte Python. But atleast I'm honest! and I put in the effort to research it, right? :)
How cute are those bags. I think I would pay around 25.00-30.00 for a bag full of entertainment. I got the link to your blog thru Leanne Helums. My boys are pretty good in church and other places where they need to be quiet. I use crossword puzzles, coloring books, pen & paper, superhero actions figures, cars, baseball cards and snacks. While not in church, we carry their Gameboys. Thanks for sharing your idea. Monte Python
Thanks for signing up for my swap! We are going to have a blast!
Please count me in for your giveaway! I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE what you have made! What a fabulous idea for the children!!!
I also love your header! What a bunch of cuties you have!:) Lori
Julie- I think that $30 is a fair price, although you could start at $25 as a special promotion. I will definitely post about this on my blog!! Love them! Lori
Julie,
So cute! What a great Idea. I linked to your site from my Nicole's blog. It was great to see your family. Please enter me in your give away.
Danielle Kidd
Hi Julie -- GREAT bags!!
I think for the bag alone you could charge $20, and with everything in it, at least $35. Great ideas!!
I do the usual for our kids in church -- books, crayons, goldfish ... nothing too creative. That's why I need to win this bag!!!
I have no idea where the title came from. I bet David would know. He knows ALL quote references like that. Dang, maybe I'll ask him and get back to ya so I can get an extra entry!
i posted on my blog about this too! :)
these are great! I wish I had the time and energy to make one of these for each of my three daughters. Currently, we have been trying to take nothing with us to church to stop the fighting that occurs, so I play finger games with them, whisper stories, and look at the hymn book. We also play I spy.
i would pay for something like this to save me time, around $10. But I would prefer to do it myself if I could. What a great idea :)
Julie - I just got your comment on my post and I decided to check back to your post and see who all has checked it out from looking at my blog. Anyway, my point is, I commented on this post so I could enter and I swear I don't see my comment anywhere! So just for the record, I am entering myself to win - for pure and selfish reasons!
I think these bags are darling and am impressed you found the time to make them with your own kidlets at home (Angie tells me what an amazing mom you are). Anyway, currently, I try to keep my kids occupied with typical church fare like The Friend and crayons but it isn't working so hot and I'm getting frustrated!!
These are fabulous ideas - thanks for sharing all of them. Can't wait to see the outcome of the contest. And yes, we love Rick and Angie and I'm altogether jealous you get to live so close to them. :) They think the world of you guys, too, by the way.
The bags are great. I would say you can sell the bags without contents for 20 and with contents for 30 - 40. They are such a great idea. I keep stickers, crayons, a small pad of paper, and snacks in the diaper bag to keep the kids occupied. Was the title of the post from the Monty Python movie?
Those are so cute!! What a great idea!! I am so gonna make one of those for a birthday we have coming up!! Do I get extra credit for (!!)?
I am not sure how much I would pay for one of these because I would figure I could make my own. I read that someone said about $30 and that sounds reasonable for a buyer, but would it be worth your time??
How do I keep my kids busy or occupied? Dunno, could have used one of these earlier, because I just had a baby 3 months ago and the other kiddos acted like they needed ritalin!!
Please pick me!!
Thank you!!
Elise
What fun bags! I like to take pads of paper and mini gel pens, or those AquaDoodle mini books (pictures activated with water) with me when we're going to be stuck in a "boring" situation. A cookie sheet and some magnetic dolls or shapes is great, too. To be absolutely honest, I probably wouldn't pay for a bag because I'm a cheapskate and know that with some effort I could make it myself. But most Moms I know would pay at least $20 or $25 for something like this. I hope you understand what I mean, your bags are certainly worth $$$, I'm just on a tight budget and am, well, ahem... thrifty. :0) Oh, and the title of the post is from a Monty Python film, right?
ooooohhh! I love those bags!
OK, what I do to keep Abby quiet at public places...well, recently I had a day surgery that required us to be at the hospital for 6 hours. My mom asked me to pack a bag of goodies for Abby ( she's 2) so I packed an aquadoodle ( life saver!) a small bottle of bubbles in a no-spill tumbler, a babydoll with a bottle, her favorite story book, an assortment of healthy no caffine no sugar snacks, and a couple of polly pockets in a a ziplock. She was an angel for six hours!
To tell you the truth, I don't buy a lot of homemade things simply because I usuually try to make them myself...but if I WAS making those and wanted to sell it I think it would go for about 25$ if it included all the stuff inside. I dunno though, I hate to put a price tag on someone elses creation...I ussually put a smaller price tag on things just because I would rather it sold for something rather than sitting around with a big price on it for months.. y know?
ok, I think the title of this post is say "something different" because alot of your previous posts have been about your sons doctors appiontments right? by the way, I will say a little prayer for you all...I cant imagine having to watch my child go through something like that.
thanks for the giveaway!its super cute!
What a Great Idea! I LOVE it. So CUTE too. I have a 5 1/2 month old Boy and would love to WIN this giveaway for the future. I watch kids struggle through Chruch and I think this is a perfect idea! I would pay atleast $35.00. Thanks Again!
I would buy this! So cute and oh so needed at times. I am bad at keeping my church bag exciting. Very cute...and pick me. (Linked through Sew Sara) :-)
Holy cow, those are so cute!! ok. Ahem*...to keep my kids entertained at church: I let my 3 year old play with my jewelry (only lost a few things...), or read a "picture scriptures" or I have a clunky old clipboard with scrap paper on it, and sometimes I can even find a mostly unbroken crayon in the crumby bottom of my bag. Oil change: I get to leave them! with my older kids who are then in charge of entertaining. Doctor's offices: they look through my purse and laugh at my Sam's Club picture. (only lost 1 debit card that way...) Can you tell I NEEEEEEED this bag. I would probably pay $40 for this (not having to do the work is so worth it!) Title of the post originated with Rocky and Bullwinkle!! "And now here's something we think you'll REALLY like!" I think.
Ethan thinks church is a buffet. He's eating snacks all through sacrament meeting. See - I seriously need an alternative. These bags are too cute!!
I think these bags are so cute. I have a 3 yr. old and a 1 yr. old and keeping them occupied through church is a chore. I take lots of snacks, books, and toys, and by the time I get everything I feel like I am going on vacation for a week. These bags would be great, there would be no fighting and they would both have the same things to occupy them. Great idea. I would probably pay around $30. I am always up to trying new things to help kill time quietly.
I got this information from my cousin Mindy's blog, and I had to check it out on yours.
I found this through Nicole - what a great idea! I LOVE those bags - I'm way impressed. Sooo, I like to keep my son quiet in church by sitting right in front of his much older cousins - they quietly entertain each other and I enjoy church! Was that too honest?? Well, I bring quiet books and coloring things, etc, that we only have out on Sunday, but the real thing that keeps him occupied is his cousins - it's easier to be good when it's NOT for Mom!
AND I love the title to this post as I am a very avid Monty Python fan, from Flying Circuses to Spamalot!
And OF COURSE I'll post this on my blog!
Hi Julie - very nice to meet you. I'm Rick and Angie's neighbor. OK, well I was at one time their neighbor but we're still great friends! Saw a posting on Angie's blog about your bags. They're adorable!!! When I had my first child we got a bad similar in size with monogrammed initials. We took it everywhere and the contents have evolved over time. It started as a toy bag - for those friends and family houses that didn't have kids. Next it was a swim class bag. Then it was for sand toys at the park. I love your idea as I've never thought about using it as an entertainment bag - I usually just stuff everyting in the diaper bag. Now with 2-kids it's just not possible to put everything in there. Your idea is awesome and could carry into many other areas like I've noted above. So - my entertainment choices. For my daugther with excellent fine motor skills even as a little tike - lace and trace cards (shape cut outs with holes around the edge to thread a sting through but also doubles as a tracer for art). I got the idea from someone at church but they had them with religous symbols. of course I gouldn't find those ones though. ANother favorite were strings and big wooden beads (the set we have as a wooden dowel as the threading needle and it mades a colorful snake). COlor Wonder art, magna doodle, tubes of small plastic animals, doll with hair and brush were hits. My son (not much interest in toys) needs his own wallet with fake credit cards to pull out and "destroy". If we're in docs office i always have a small ball with. Someone is alwasying willing to play catch with him. Price - scoop it up in a heart beat for $20. Have to cater to me and all the toys have to interest me to go for $30. LOVE THE IDEA! Go for it!!!
Those bags ROCK. Too cute. I would pay $30 for one, but I don't want it for me, I want it for Bamagirl. I don't know her, but saw a post on Guatadopt and went to her blog. We have mutual blog friends. She has had a tough time and needs a get out of PGN surprise present!
I keep my 3 year old occupied in church in the NURSERY! Actually her class is held at the same time church is.
Don't know much about Monty Python, sorry.
Laurie
Wow--what awesome bags!! I have 5 boys and church can be challenging! I usually just pack a couple of hot wheels, pencil & paper and a small snack for the younger ones. Your bags are WAY better!! I would definetly pay $30 for them. And your title comes from the Monty Python movie. Very fun! I am very impressed with your bags!
I don't have any
children...so I'm not
entering...but I just
wanted to say how
adorable I think these bags
are! Love them! What
a clever idea.
Okay I love your bags, I'm hooked, I want one, I mean four, and I really hope I win! We also have 4 under 8 and things can get pretty hairy at church..especially lately. I have a two year old that likes to dump out the bag and see all it's contents at the same time. I now have decided to let each choose one thing to bring to church that will keep them busy...it worked for the first week or so, then they were fighting over what eachother brought. Maybe I'm anal or something, but I think that my 8 year old should actually LISTEN...am I crazy? What age are kids okay to just sit and be quiet..listening or not? Either way, great idea Julie.
The bag is really cute. I think $30.00 would be a good price. I have a bunch of things I bring to church for the children. Snacks, or course, and some coloring books, some church matching games I made, a church journal, and their scriptures. They seem to work well. But it would be so cute have have it a bag that you made!
thanks- shawna
I love this bag! I have 6 step kides and my own 1 year old. These would DEFINITLEY keep them occupied. I'm seriously always struggling for ways to keep them occupied.
What they've recently started doing, is taking all the hymnbooks in our row (not by our choice) and start building things with them. My youngest son is easily entertained by books, food, books, juice, books, etc. Then, even little things like "string" and playing with "anything" in mom's purse is always fun.
$30 would be a reasonable price for this.
Well, the title: An anthology of Monty Python's best sketches from their 1st & 2nd seasons of their original TV show.
Check my blog out. I'm for sure going to post something on there!
I love your bags. They are way cute. What a great idea. I have all of my kids church stuff condensed down to a folder for each child. I found a heavy duty folder with brads in the middle. I have photocopied activity pages and blank ones in it. I also put a pencil pouch with crayons and stickers. This works really good for the older kids who don't need a whole lot of entertainment. I would pay about $30 for the bags. You are so crafty. Good job!!
Julie its Tia Knox. I found your blog through Sara. I love your bags! I would pay $40ish for one. What a great idea. My son Trae is very easily enterrained we bring colors and paper, his Disney little people figures and a couple of snacks. And he is set at church. But he would think he is in heaven if he had one of these. I may have to break down and make one if I don't win. ;) Great idea.
Hi Julie! I found your blog thru Mindy, Nathan & Our Princess blog earlier today. What a cute idea! My 6 year old is quite the chatterbox, and still learning to keep quiet in places like church, movies, etc.... Usually I have a few crayons shoved into my purse with a small doodle pad-and I give her those to let her creative side take over. I'd pay about $25-30 for it, and expect to pay $5 extra for personalization as well. Thanks for having this giveaway!
Hi Julie, I found the info about your bags on Monica and Chris' blog. I would LOVE to be entered into the drawing to win one!!
To entertain my 2 year old at church and other places, I bring SNACKS! Things that I know she really likes and some things I don't give her too often. Also crayons and paper work great b/c she loves to draw. And my new trick is I SPY books, she gets really into them!
I think that I would pay around $25-$30 for one of these bags. They look so great!!!
Great job on it all!! To keep kids entertained I've always had toys, games (ones that don't require too many pieces if any at all), sewing cards (thick chipboard cards with yarn as the thread and plastic tapestry needles to sew with) along with the simple "I Spy" and question games.
I'd probably pay between $30 and $40 for a bag.
The title comes from the Monty Python film, *wink, wink, nudge, nudge*
I'm off to post about this too. I'm enjoying your blog.
*~*~*~*~*
www.melissaburford.typepad.com
These are precious and would be priceless to keep a restless tot occupied in church. One of my most embarassing moments was when my restless tot (neighbor's Guatababy) reached up and proceeded to pick the hairs off of my chin, because she was bored in church! I got this link from Bamagirl's blog.
barbiessister@sbcglobal.net
I love the idea of a quiet bag. My son is 2.5 and there is nothing quiet about him. I have to bring his entourage with us when ever we go anywhere. So, my diaper bag is full of dinosuars, army men, cars and trucks. We are limited to where we go because he is so antsy!!
I would probably pay anywhere from $25-$30 for the bag. Very cute and clever
Great Idea!! We usually bring books and coloring books along. I try to discourage toys at church.
I think about $30.00 is a fair price.
I have no idea about the title and I will post this on my blog.
Have a Wonderful Day!
Sherry
http://ificouldsetmysoulfree.blogspot.com/
Juge,
I'm so proud of you -- you seem to have developed something that has a wide appeal here. As you know, kids are all different and find different things fun and fascinating. For Todd (age 9) I often devise some type of secret code that can be unlocked by completing 30-40 math problems. That entertains him greatly. Lately, though, we've realized that he really should be listening and learning during sacrament meeting, so we've tried to encourage him to get his own copy of the program and take notes, draw pictures, write down impressions, etc. during the meeting. So far, so good. For Kate (age 6) I trace her hand on a plain piece of paper and let her draw and color different funny faces on them. She loves that! Also, she likes to look at the hymn numbers we'll be singing and find them beforehand. It's good practice on her numbers. Jack (age 2) likes to play with my jewelry, so I always try to wear some type of bangled bracelet or interesting necklace. He also likes to drive his cars on roads I draw on a plain notebook. I'm super boring, I know, but I guess my best trick for getting reverence is the EME (Evil Mom Eye). I save it for 'special occassions' and it generally works like a charm! :)
Thanks for the great ideas and for all the work you did. It inspires the rest of us.
As for the title of your blog -- Monty Python (who else could be so pithy?)
Here's one more shot out to my friend Melanie G, who is the best wife and mother I know, and also the source from where I found your website! These bags are darling! I would definately pay $30 for one filled with all of your fun ideas, but I bet with the personalization on the front, they could sell for a lot more at a craft botique or something like that...
As far as what I do to keep my 2 1/2 year old busy at church- I has a bag filled with a doodlepad, small notebooks and crayons and his favorite-stickers. Lots of books and his mini trucks and of course- lots and lots of snacks. One thing I found helpful is that I keep the bag in his closet the rest of the week so that they are "fresh" and "new" for church. I do the same thing for road trips- I pack up a bag of things and keep them away from him for a week or so.
I have a friend Happy who I saw commented on this post and she lives on the other side of the country who found your blog through someone else! You are sure getting your word out!
Once again your bags are so cute and I would LOVE LOVE to win one! Although I think my friend Mel deserves it more if we get to vote! :)
Those are the coolest bags ever! My confession is that I CAN'T keep my kids quiet at church and I need something for them to do! My youngest is good about playing, but she's so darn noisy and talkative while doing it!
My older kids get to read or color, my youngest (2) usually plays with her "girls" or sticker books, etc.
I think I would pay around $30+ for this bag. Such an AWESOME idea! I would LOVE to have one of these! What a lifesaver this could be! :o) (Today was particularly horrible at church.. all the kids were rowdy!)
I'm know I'm at the end of the give-a-way but I'm going to post this on my blog as well.
I know you're drawing soon, and that I'm already entered, but I just wanted to say hi tonight and what a great product you have created. You could be in business full time! Have fun drawing, and I still hope I win!!!
Am I too late? I love those!
Hi Julie, 80 comments! I would die... you know how I freaked out about scripture study. What a fun way to get people to come to your blog and get to know you and your talents. Happy Sunday.
-Janelle
How great is this little bag!! I am in l♥ve with it! I have 5 kids and it's hard at times keeping all quiet during church. So I have done some file folder games and we always bring lots of coloring books and crayons.
:)Rachel
Love your blog it's just too cute!!
I absolutely love these bags. There are a few women in my church who have these and I have been wanting one myself. I wish that I were creative enough to make one myself. I would pay about $30 for one. And I will definitely post this on my blog, so check it out!
These look great. I am DYING for something to keep my 16 month old busy in church. I have stopped bringing things because he wants NOTHING to do with his stuff, he finds someone else's diaper bag and goes thru it for something to play with. I bring snacks and he eats EVERYTHING (probably because he is so board).
I would pay anywhere up to $25 for one probably. AMAZING. Check out my blog and I will TOTALLY link you up.
These bags are so fabulous! You are inspiring! :)
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