Meet a Mom: The Literacy Ladies | Greater Lansing Area Moms

The Literacy Ladies are GLAMom’s Meet a Moms this week!  Katie and Krista both grew up in the Greater Lansing area, have 5 children – Katie has 2 kids and Krista has 3.  And both are teachers, K-12 certified Reading Specialists. 

In 2014 they founded The Literacy Camp!  A place for kids to read, write and learn during school breaks!  They have provided summer literacy programming for incoming 1st-3rd graders in the Greater Lansing area and have virtual options too!

They recently shared they were doing something, “REALLY exciting for SUMMER 2022 that The Literacy Camp has NEVER. DONE. BEFORE.”  You are going to want to follow them on Facebook and Instagram to find out more as summer approaches!  Learn more about The Literacy Ladies, some parenting #momhacks and wise parenting perspectives.  

Wisdom like this:  There isn’t always an answer for everything. One day at a time is sometimes the best and only answer.” 🙂

Welcome to GLAMom’s Katie & Krista 🙂

Krista and Katie, The Literacy Ladies

Please introduce yourself, where are you from, where do you reside now?
Hi, we’re Katie & Krista. We’re The Literacy Ladies. We’re teachers with a passion for helping PARENTS as you help your kids LEARN. We LOVE helping YOU as you help your children LOVE learning & become successful – learning in school or learning at home. We’re also mamas. Best friends who walked through years of infertility on our journeys to motherhood. Moms trying to raise kids who love books, love Jesus & love others. We’re on an epic quest for quality family time, a girl’s night out & a quiet moment for ourselves to just eat our own food in peace. AND … we founded THE LITERACY CAMP. A UNIQUE SUMMER CAMP WHERE KIDS GROW & DEVELOP A LOVE FOR LEARNING! IT’S SUPER MAGICAL!

Krista grew up in Dewitt and lives there with her hubby and 3 kids now. Katie grew up in Grand Ledge and lives there with her hubby and 2 kids now. We’re #teamLansingarea for sure!

What do you think is one of the best parts about being a mom? 
Getting to be a part of our children’s development in such a special way! 2 big parts of that for both of us are helping our children learn about Jesus and instilling a LOVE for learning in them. 

Best piece of advice for someone with younger children that you wish you would have known when your kids were younger?
There isn’t always an answer for everything. One day at a time is sometimes the best and only answer. 🙂

What is a hint to help kids not interested in reading become a bit more so?
READ THINGS THEY ARE INTERESTED IN! That means you might have to read an annoying Paw Patrol book 16 times this week. But associating reading with INTEREST & FUN for kids at an early age is HUGE. 

Describe your business a bit – the who, what, when, where, how!
The Literacy Camp is truly like nothing else! Incoming 1st-3rd graders come to this summer day camp and leave LOVING learning – whether they previously did or not. They beg parents to come back for additional weeks and many times the parents are even surprised by how much their children love “summer school.” 😉 It’s SUPER fun. MAGICAL. GREAT instruction. With a summer camp feel. Half day and full day options in the Lansing area – summer 2022 is going to be EPIC! Stay tuned for a big Literacy Camp announcement for next summer…

What did you do prior to going into business together?
We’ve both been teachers here in the Lansing area for many years prior to focusing more on our children and business. We’re both K-12 certified reading specialists and LOVE helping children learn to read.

Did you stay busy with working during COVID?   And how did it change during COVID?
We launched SEVERAL FREE parent resources during COVID to help support families – including our FREE PARENT GUIDE…9 STEPS TO KEEP KIDS BUSY & LEARNING. It’s been a blessing to MANY families as they look for ways to support their children’s learning. It’s full of our fav #momhacks. We also launched VIRTUAL LITERACY CAMP which will now always be available to bring The Literacy Camp to families everywhere. But we’re pumped about getting back to in-person camps next summer! 

How do you balance work with being a mom?  
We each balance it differently – which is what makes being a mom owned business unique – we’re all doing whatever works best for us and our families. We LOVE being mamas & it’s always our first priority. We also LOVE chasing our Literacy Camp dream together and impacting kids & families everywhere! 

Here are a couple questions to get to know you better 🙂  – 

Can’t live without skincare or makeup products?
Krista: Nars Creamy Concealer 
Katie: ACURE Brightening Facial Scrub

Favorite book of ALL time?
We’re going with KIDS BOOKS!
Krista: Blueberries for Sal
Katie: Jesus Storybook Bible & Owl Moon


If you watch television, your current binge shows?

Krista: Girl Meets Farm! Give me all the food shows!
Katie: Bachelor/Bachelorette #guiltypleasure

Strangest thing in the glovebox of your car right now?
Krista: Diapers!
Katie: hmmm…so messy I don’t even know.

What did you want to be when you grew up?
Krista: Always a teacher! 🙂
Katie: A dancer or a teacher! I’ve been both!

What do you do to enjoy you (me) time?
Krista: Praise music and a good organizing project!
Katie: READING! And morning quiet time. 

Favorite travel destination during summer break?
Krista: Anywhere with my family 🙂
Katie: Higgins Lake! 

How about now that the weather is changing, what is an autumn activity you enjoy?
A pumpkin patch outing with our families! 🙂

Favorite treat for fall?
We both enjoy hot caramel apple cider and pumpkin spice donut. 

Coffee or tea?  Where is your favorite?
Krista: Decaf coffee for me! 
Katie: COFFEE with ALL the delicious almond milk creamer! 

Best piece of advice for a Mom looking to help get her children excited about learning? *We adjusted this question 😉
MODEL for kids what it looks like to be excited about reading. Let them see YOU read. When you take them to the library, check out books for YOU. This example of reading ourselves is MUCH more powerful than we think! 

Mind sharing a mom trick another mom will be happy to learn?
YES! This is our favorite thing to do! Please grab our FREE parent guide with ALL of our best Mom tricks organized in 1 pretty document you can print and hang on the side of your fridge! 

How readers connect with you if they would like more information?
Grab our FREE PARENT GUIDE HERE!
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheLiteracyCamp & https://www.facebook.com/TheLiteracyLadies
FACEBOOK GROUP FOR PARENTS OF ELEMENTARY KIDS: https://www.facebook.com/groups/theliteracyladiesforparents
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/theliteracycamp/
https://www.instagram.com/theliteracyladies/
YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCA09eaAvIZh3AowiZH_PSgQ
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0L5hpdyOqD6VKcKqAdtddQ
Website:
https://theliteracyladies.net

Photo credit: Images provided by the Literacy Ladies

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