Parenting

Teddy Bear Rhyme: I Love You Ritual

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I love you rituals are fun rhymes, songs, and touch play activities to stay connected to your child.  These rituals are done through songs and games because play is our childrens world.  They learn, discover, and develop through playing.  They feel safe and are attentive while doing it.  So, by having fun, you can keep your child’s attention while showering them with love and adoration.

Goals of these rituals

  • Optimize your child’s brain for success at school and in life.
  • Increase your child’s learning potential and effectiveness through touch.
  • Create loving rituals that hold families together even through the rough times.
  • Strengthen the bond between adults and children that insulates children from drugs, violence, and peer pressure.. laying a foundation for mental and emotional health.

These rituals are perfect in our hectic life.  They don’t take a lot of time, but give you special moments with your children.

Teddy Bear Rhyme

Round and round the garden, like a Teddy Bear.
(gently trace finger in a circle around child’s palm)

One step, two step
(walk your fingers up child’s arm)

Tickle you under there!
(tickle under chin, under arm, or tummy)

Tips for using praise, encouragement rewards

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Help build your child’s self-esteem and encourage good behavior with these tips

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When you feel good about your child, say so.  See if you can give your child some words of encouragement every day.  The small things you say can build up over time to have a big effect on your child.

Try to praise more than you criticize.  As a guide, try to praise your child six times for every one time you say something negative.

Look for little changes and successes.  Rather than waiting until your child has done something perfectly to give a compliment, try to praise any effort or improvement.

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Accept that everyone’s different.  Praise your child for her unique strengths and encourage her to develop and feel excited about her particular interests.  This will help her develop a sense of pride and confidence.

Surprise your child with a reward for good behavior.  For example, “Thanks for picking up the toys- let’s go to the park to celebrate”

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Praise effort as well as achievement.  Recognize and praise how hard your child is trying – for example, “You worked really hard on that essay” or “Thank you for remembering to hang your coat on the hook.”

Try to make your praise dependent on your child’s behavior, rather than your feelings.  You might find that the more you look for good behavior to praise, the more positive you’ll feel (and the more good behavior you will see).

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Tear-rifying Jackolanterns

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Here is a fun Halloween craft we did to practice tearing.

Tearing paper is a great way to strengthen bilateral coordination, cognitive skills, fine motor skills, strength, visual motor integration, and visual perceptual skills!  

I printed off pumpkin pictures from the computer.    The girls then covered the pumpkin with glue, and torn pieces of paper.   We used colored streamers  – orange for the pumpkin,  and black for the eyes and mouth.  Different types of paper will change the difficulty when you do tearing crafts.

We made several pumpkins — and hung them in our hallway.   Our own little pumpkin patch. 🙂

How to Help Your Child Eat Healther

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The kinds of food your children eats and drinks is important for their health.  Fruits, vegetables, grains, protein, and dairy foods provide the nutrients that their bodies need.  Keep an eye on the amount of added sugars, sodium, and saturated (solid) fat your children are eating.

Some Food For Thought

  • Fruits:  Let your child enjoy a variety of whole or bite-sized fruits such as apples, bananas, mandarin oranges, etc.  Serve 100% fruit juice in small amounts and less often.
  • Vegetables:  Prepare red, orange, and dark-green vegetables like tomatoes, sweet potatoes, and broccoli as part of your child’s meals and snacks.
  • Grains:  Make at least half of their grains whole grains by offering 100% whole-grain cereals, breads, and pasta.
  • Protein:  Choose a variety of protein foods such as seefood, beans, and small portions of meat or poultry.
  • Dairy:  Give them low-fat milk, yogurt, and cheese to provide much needed calcium.
  • Encourage water instead of fruit juice or sugary drinks.  Too much of these things can add more calories than your child needs.
  • Check out the salt (sodium) in canned food, bread, and frozen meals.  Read your labels, and find food with lower numbers.
  • Watch the amount of saturated fats in foods.  Cakes, cookies, icecream, pizza, cheese, sausages, and hotdogs are okay sometimes, but not everyday.

Snack time 🍎🍎🥜🥜🍇🍇 #healthysnack #apple

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Another great tip — model healthy eating habits for your children!  Your children look to you! — Apple nachos is one of our favorite healthy snacks in our home!  What is yours?

An App that encourages healthy eating!

I know that I’m not the only parent who thinks getting my kids to eat healthier is a challenge.  This is why I’m in love with this new app called HuePets by HueTrition.

This new app turns daily eating into a fun game for young children.  The pets are what YOU eat – and the HuePets App makes it fun for kids to eat healthy and try new foods!

 

Using the app, kids scan their real-life meals to feed their pets, unlocking prizes and raising their pets from little eggs to HueMasters.

You can track your child’s eating, and can get personalized recommendations on what to serve.  Who doesn’t need ideas for healthy eating!?!  I know as my children have played with the app, their love for trying new foods and healthy eating has grown!  Especially their love for new fruits and veggies.

Get it on the App Store

Get it on Google Play

I would love to hear some ideas on how you get your kids to eat healthier!  What are some of your favorite healthy foods? Tips/Tricks?  Drop me a comment!  🙂

How to Develop a Back to School Bedtime Routine

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One of the hardest things for me to do as a single mom is getting my two girls ready for school!  I am not kidding —  fighting to get them out of bed, fighting them to get dressed,  yelling at them to stay focused, and to quit fighting over clothes!  This is why this year I decided to come up with a PLAN to make things easier – a back to school bedtime routine. #kidgoals

It’s a well know fact that children need routine in their daily lives – they thrive in a structured environment.  Giving a child a routine to follow actually teaches them how to be in control of their emotions and their environment.  A good routine helps children feel secure – and a great bedtime routine is a great way to start (at any age).

Establish a set bedtime.   The amount of sleep a child needs depends on several factors,  including age of the child.  Sleep is important for their developing brains and bodies –> so here is a handy reference chart to go by.

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This chart was first posted by Wilson Elementary School of Kenosha, WI.

Give a bedtime warning to start the wind down process.  I know my girls do well when I give them a warning that bedtime is approaching.  I always let them know an hour before hand, so they can start their bedtime routine.

Turn off the technology.  Studies have shown that by turning off electronics an hour before bedtime helps you fall asleep easier and faster.

Use books and music to help relax children before bed.  Using books and music before bed can help your children relax.  This is also a wonderful bonding time for parents and children.  It can also help strengthen their reading and other learning skills as well.  Bonus.  Check out our kid book reviews for some book suggestions.

Create a tasks checklist for children to use.  We created this laminated task list together.  The girls can consult this chart before bedtime, and cross off things as they complete them.   I think it’s a wonderful way to help the girls take initiative and help in the bedtime process.

Take baths at night.  I prefer giving my girls their baths at night.  I have found that it not only saves time in the mornings, but it helps relax them before bed.  It also gives them a last minute “play session”.  I always have lavender bubble bath, lotion, or bath fizzes on hand for the nights they are especially wound up!  Check out our other bath time posts for fun ideas.

Lay out your clothes and bags the night before.  Save yourself some time and effort in the morning by having the kids pick out their outfits for the next day.  I also check the weather at this time.

One of my favorite stores to find the perfect school clothes is Gymboree.  They provide quality, coordinated outfits for every occasion – including the first day of school.  I love how their clothes are super comfy, and mix and match perfectly.  This is a plus on my list because the girls wear the same size, so this keeps them from fighting over clothes.  Everything just mixes and matches perfectly!

Are you ready to get a back to school bedtime routine established? Give these tips a try and see how they can help your child get their best sleep – and start this school year off right!

On Cordelia  – Heather Grey Twofer Dress | Sparkle Navy Cardigan | Navy Sequin Strip Leggings | Rainbow Glitter Sparkle Star Clips | Star Ankle Socks | Silver Sparkle Boots | On Althea – Heather Grey Peplum Tunic | Girls Rocket Pink Eyelash Leggings | Sparkle Navy Cardigan| Slim Bow Headband | Silver Leopard Sparkle Socks | Silver Glitter High Tops


What are some of your goals, or your kids goals for the upcoming school year?  What are some of your favorite outfits on the Gymboree website? 

Gymboree was gracious enough to offer a giveaway of a $50 giftcard to one lucky winner.

Click Here to Enter

The giveaway ends September 1st, 2017 at 11:59 p.m. CST.  The giveaway is open to US residents, age 18+, only.  You will contacted by email,  and have 48 hours to respond before a new winner is chosen.  Good Luck!

… and come check out our OTHER giveaways HERE

This post was Sponsored by Gymboree.  All opinions about the clothing are my own.  It was a pleasure working with such a great company, thank you!  Stay up to date with Janie and Jack’s newest products and sales on Facebook , Instagram, and Twitter!

Why chalk is an amazing toy!

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Drawing with chalk offers many benefits for children – inside or outside!

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Chalk can be used on many surfaces — chalk boards, sidewalk, brick, concrete, stones, paper, etc.

 

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Chalk is also easy to clean up.  It dissolves in water — which makes it the ideal art supply for this mom!

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I love how chalk allows my children to think outside the box — and get away from their tv/tablets.  Creative play is so important for children. 🙂

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Chalk also gives us an opportunity to go outdoors and play.  This is beneficial for children’s minds, bodies and spirits.

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Enjoy some chalk time with your kids today!

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Gelli & Slime Baff Review

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We were recently given the opportunity to try some products from Zimpli Kids.  The girls loved every product that we tried!  We are in love with this company!

 

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The first product we tried was a Gelli Baff. It was the girls favorite!  You add powder to your bath, and it creates a thick pink goo.  It reminded me of small water beads, and gave the water a jello type texture.  It wasn’t as slippery as the slime, which I will talk about next, and was thicker.

Gelli baff, review on blog

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When the kids are done taking their bath, you add a “dissolver” power, and the goo turns back into water, and drains away easily.

 

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The slime baff was the next product we tried.  You add powder to the water… and it turns it into a slimey, gooey, oozy bath.  It was thinner than the gelli (tip: use less water for thicker slime).   It reminded me of snot… and I kept thinking of a hit TV show from my childhood in which the contestants where “SLIMED.”  My girls liked it, but not as much as the Gelli.  They enjoyed “sliming” their toys and the shower wall.

Slime baff, review on blog

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When the kids are done with their bath, the slime safely drains away, and cleanup is easy.

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We also got to try a new product called, SnoBall Battle Pack.  The girls really had fun with the snow.  You simply add water to power, and it creates snow to be enjoyed all year long.

Snoball battle pack, review on blog

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We had a snowball fight in our back yard!  The girls were full of giggles, and really had a blast!

 

Thank you so much Zimpli Kids for letting us try your products, we had a blast!