Showing posts with label Kids. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kids. Show all posts
Easter Basket Ideas for Babies & Toddlers
Easter is coming upon us much faster than I expected. I am in full whirlwind trying to get my new site ready for you that I have completely dropped the ball on decorations, Easter goodies and anything related to Easter. At least I have some good content for next year??
I was going to split these Easter basket ideas into two categories, but I am finding that most of what the Easter Bunny gave my daughter last year, "she" will be repeating for her this year, just older :)
I was going to split these Easter basket ideas into two categories, but I am finding that most of what the Easter Bunny gave my daughter last year, "she" will be repeating for her this year, just older :)
The Perfect Pairing for Little Girls - Tutu & Fairy Wand Giveaway
When I found out {by accident} that I was having a little girl, all of my dreams of playing dress up, doing hair, getting cute bows and shoes were all I could think of for weeks. I couldn't wait to meet my little girl.
For her birthday, I wanted to see if she would wear a tutu. The only problem was that I didn't have time to make one. Just one week before my daughter's birthday, my friend Victoria started her company Pixie Tales Creations. She has made several tutu's for her daughter and she loved doing it so much, she wanted to make tutus for everyone! I was over the moon when she told me we could have one completed and shipped in less than a week!
My daughter LOVED the tutu! It was the only girly thing so far that she can't get enough of.
My daughter LOVED the tutu! It was the only girly thing so far that she can't get enough of.
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Now it's your turn!
We are teaming up with the Blogging Mamas Network, Lindsey Blogs and Viva Veltoro for the 3rd annual Handmade from the Heart Giveaway Hop. This Hop has been such a success in the past that they brought it back for round 3 because it seems everyone loves beautiful handmade items!
Pixie Tales Creations is giving away a handmade tutu and fairy wand to your little girl!
If you purchase a tutu and/or fairy wand from Pixie Tales Creations {enter that option below} and if you win, you will have the option of getting another tutu and fairy wand or be refunded for your purchase.
Each blogger in this Event has a handmade giveaway worth at least $25, so be sure to hop around and celebrate Handmade from the Heart! And you definitely do not want to miss the fantastic handmade goodness of the Grand Prize… a $200 Etsy Gift Card!
Disclosure: I have received this tutu & fairy wand at no charge. This review is my honest and unbiased opinion. Giveaways are supplied by Pixie Tales Creations. See full disclosure statement here.
Valentine's Card - From our 1 Year Old to Daddy
I am sharing the Valentine's Card that I made with my daughter for her daddy. It didn't turn out exactly how I imagined, not like the Tissue Paper Heart, but it turned out the way she wanted it done, none the less.
My original vision for this card was placing the heart stickers on the front, drawing in strings and saying "I love you like I love balloons." {She loves balloons with an extreme passion btw.} However, she decided to stick most of them on herself, and place the others randomly on the page before she asked for Mickey. Sigh...daddy will still love it!
In the beginning of the day, I got out the red, washable paint and I tried to get her handprints. Well, this was the first time she touched paint, and she loved it! She wanted to smear it all over! So this was actually take two {I always have backup pieces of paper} and it was the best I could get.
#Tip - Do this in the morning. It will give the paper time to dry so that it was nice and neatly folded for when we placed the stickers on the top.
This was so easy to do and I know her daddy will love the effort put in by
Suggestions for modification:
Infants - Skip the stickers and use edible paint to just paint the whole card. You can place a contact paper heart on the front and after the child uses the paints, remove the heart. You will have a paint silhouette.
Toddlers - See above. If your child will listen to instruction, maybe they will place them where you want them! Also, my suggestion is play with paint before you try to get a handprint.
Preschool -
- Have them try to stick the stickers so that the point is down so you can draw lines to make it a balloon.
- Encourage them to practice writing their name on the inside with crayons or a chunky pencil.
- Have them try fold the paper to practice with fine motor skills.
School Age -
- Have them arrange stickers in the shape of a heart. Or allow them to chose the design, but still using stickers - this encourages fine motor skills.
- Encourage them to practice writing by writing the whole card out.
Your baby eats what?! - One Year Later Series
When she was itty bitty and we were sleep training her with the Baby Whisper's technique, I spent a lot of time in the quiet room with her watching her "sleep" just in case she woke up. I got bored after the first day, so I downloaded some audio-books from our local library.
One of the books I really wanted to listen to was French Kids Eat Everything. I had to wait a day but once I did, I abandoned all other books and got to it. I loved hearing about how they start the kids off early on all types of foods, not just baby cereal. I loved how their eating habits were reinforced at home, school and at friend's houses. I also loved how the government encouraged healthy and varied eating - not something we get here.
So my husband and I decided that we would not start our daughter on the typical baby cereal to start. Even though this is what my "old school" pediatrician wanted us to do at her 4 month well visit. {I am in no way recommending to go against doctor's directions. If you have food allergies please abide by doctors directions or move forward with extreme caution. I am NOT an expert} But even before that, we decided that we did not have to introduce anything to her until we felt she was ready. Even the AAP said to wait until around 6 months. Admittedly, we didn't wait that long, but it was closer than at her 4 month appointment.
Our daughter loved watching us eat. She looked on with almost a longing and tried to reach out her hand. One night we were having tacos, she was about 5 1/2 months old, and I had cut up some avocado for us to put on our tacos. She, again, was reaching out. So I suggested that we try and give her some. My husband agreed. We smashed some up really well and put some on the top of a spoon. After she tasted it {and we got it all on video} she kept pointing for more. It was official, we opened Pandora's box.
I started keeping track of what food she tried and if she liked it or not. I created a sheet so that I could hang it on the fridge for easy access. It also helped us keep track of how many days she tried it to make sure there were not allergies or reactions. I wanted to do this so we could start to introduce some of the combination foods, while knowing she didn't have a reaction at least one of the ingredients. I am sharing that with you today!
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| Click here to download Baby's First Foods Printable |
When she was ready, we started giving her the Plum Organics and Ella's Organic pouches. We wanted to stick with organics since there are more and more fruits and veggies that are GMO and who-knows-what in the pesticides. According to the research that I did, I liked the way that both companies operated and I loved the food combinations. So did our daughter. We would pour some out into a bowl, mixed in her probiotic and spoon-fed it to her. She still eats them today. She just eats them much faster and right out of the pouch!
At 9 months, when we introduced a third meal of the day, was the first time she had baby cereal. And she hated it! I had to mix in applesauce, and lots of cinnamon. Only then did she give it another try and ate it. I still occasionally give it to her the same way. We will eat about a 1/2 cup then she says all done and its off to the next food.
We started giving her some of the food we were eating. This started with hummus...Garlic Lovers Hummus. My husband is a huge lover of garlic, so I bought this hummus especially for him. As we were eating our chips and hummus, she had just finished her lunch and we decided to give her a taste. We took some on a chip, transferred it her spoon and gave it to her. I have never heard her "mmmmm" so much as when she took that first bite!
We have encouraged her to try everything. There is not one thing that we have told her no to {that wasn't a choking hazard}. Everything we eat, we have her try. I heard somewhere {I think it was French Kids Eat Everything, but don't quote me on that} it takes between 10-15 times of tasting and trying before a child will start to like something they may not have liked before. So we continue.
Don't get me wrong, there are some things she doesn't like. She is not big into butternut squash anymore..but she tries it anyway. She doesn't really like beets...but tries it anyway. She didn't like mushrooms, but they are a staple here in this house..she tried them anyway and now she likes them cooked most ways.
Now at 13 months, she is becoming a more independent eater. She doesn't like when we feed her, she wants to do it herself. So we let her. We are finding that she is more willing to eat almost anything if she is feeding it to herself. For example, the other night we had Lemony Shrimp Scampi Pasta and she was not a fan of spaghetti the last time she had it. I don't know if it was the texture or the strands. Either way, she was looking longingly at our plate and asked for some, even saying please. So I put some on a plate for her, cut up the spaghetti and shrimp and let her try and spoon it to herself. She ended up just finger feeding herself but she ate almost all of the food I put on her plate. I would never have guessed that she would have eaten any of it let alone that much. So let your kids feed it to themselves. You may be surprised that they will like more and more if you let them experiment on their own.
Again, this is all from our experience. This is how we handled eating habits and food introduction in our house. We are still trying to get it right, but we are finding that now it is easy to feed her..she eats what we do. We are adventurous eaters, so I have no doubt she will be too. It may be different in your house. You may not like all of these foods, so you may not introduce them to your children. All of this is ok. As long as a child is fed, happy and healthy that is all that matters.
Enjoy your food adventures with your little ones.
What are some interesting foods that your child eats?
*This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase from Amazon, I get a small advertising fee that is of no additional cost to you and helps me support this blog. You can view my full disclosure here. Thank you for your support*
Tissue Paper Valentine Heart
I love this age with my daughter. She is really starting to understand me and the world around her. I love playing with her and talking to her. One thing I am struggling with is finding ways to help her learn and grow - aside from just everyday activities and classes.
Having a teaching background, I feel like I want to be teaching her. But when I taught, I was used to Kindergarten and up. Even when I taught first grade, I felt like I was still lost as to what the students were capable of.
So I decided with my fresh start, I don't care what I think she is capable of. I am going to do tons of activities with her - no matter what I think she can do. I am going to push her limits and start doing more activities with her. {You benefit - think of all of the awesome posts!}
One thing I know she LOVES to do is tear apart tissue and tissue paper. So I found a way to let her go to town.
Materials Needed:
- Tissue Paper - I used leftover red and white from Christmas, then found some pink and purple when I cleaned my craft closet.
- Card stock - any color you would like
- Glue Stick
- Scissors
First I gave her strips of the tissue paper to tear up. She loved this. She was all over tearing the paper to shreds. {I was following behind cleaning up the paper to use} She saw me putting the pieces into the container, and she started to help - she really does love to clean {I often wonder who's child she is..}. I had to tear some of the tissue paper into smaller shreds but most of them I left alone.
{No pictures - her arms were moving too fast for my camera!! But you could see her little fingers working hard.}
Then, I put the card stock on the table and we {her hand first, mine on top} spread the glue all over the middle of the paper. I told her to take the paper out and put it here. She did! In handfuls!
Then she tried to put it back in but I showed her that most of them were stuck. We pressed down on the tissue paper and then shook off the pieces that didn't stick.
I then cut out a heart from the middle of the page. She wanted to do more so we ended up doing three {that is all the paper I had out} and then she was off to play with her Little People.
Suggestions for modification:
- Use contact paper for the tissue and cut the heart. Hang in the window for a sun catcher.
- Glue onto a card for a special Valentine
- Attach string and hang from the ceiling or make a mobile with multiple.
Infants - Make it the sun catcher or a mobile yourself and let them observe. The colors will help stimulate their little brains. Older infants could drop pieces of tissue paper onto the glue.
Toddlers - See above. Make sure that you are naming the colors to reinforce them. We will also use them daily to reinforce color names {at least of pink, purple, red and white}
Preschool - Have them still do the tissue paper tear and glue. Then draw a line for the heart and allow them to try and cut along the line using safety scissors.
School Age -
- Allow them independence to choose colors, glue and cut on their own.
- Have them cut squares of the tissue paper and encourage them to make a pattern on the paper.
For more Valentine fun, follow my Valentine's Day board on Pinterest.
Top 10 Items for Baby's First Year - One Year Later
As a first time mom, I had no idea what would work and not work for my baby. I went with Babies-R-Us and Buy Buy Baby's recommended items list and it was so overwhelming.
So to make things easier for you, I have put together a list of the Top 10 Baby Items for the First Year. These are the items we used most or because our "must have" items. Several items that are on this list were items recommended or gifted to me by other moms.
Rock n Play - Our rock-n-play was recommended to us from a friend. This allows the baby to sleep next to your bed like a bassinet but it is easily moved to anywhere in your house. Our daughter napped in this in her own room and even slept a couple nights in it in her room before we transitioned her to her crib. If our daughter woke in the middle of the night, I was known to just reach down and start rocking to try and calm her - worked half of the time.
We almost didn't even use this product because we were gifted a co-sleeper. However, our daughter had a lot of mucous from being born via c-section and was having trouble sleeping flat. The first night we switched her to this and she slept great {in combination with the Miracle Blanket - see below}
Some concerns that were brought to my attention with this product - 1) Baby will get a flat head because the plastic piece is hard. Our baby did not get a flat head. She was in this for all naps and bedtime. We held or wore her in a wrap the rest of the time. Most babies develop flat heads because they are laid down most of the time. Just as a precaution, we did add a hand towel folded up under the flap of the bunny as extra padding, just in the beginning when she wasn't moving much in her sleep. 2) Baby will have a hard time transitioning to a flat bed. We transitioned slowly. We gave our daughter a nap in the crib for a couple days. Then added a nap each time until it was time for her to sleep overnight. She did great.
Burt's Bees Multipurpose Ointment - This was not a product previously recommended to us. I was looking on the EWG for a product that we could understand what was in it and that had a good score. This product scored a 3 on the EWG scale. There are now some others that are higher rated, but we used this all the time. We slathered it on before her nighttime diaper and after almost every diaper change when she was dirtying her diapers a lot. We had ZERO diaper rashes. It is easily wiped off and easily applied.
Backpack Diaper Bag - This was a purchase my husband requested for when he took our baby out. We ended up getting this Fisher Price one but by friend got the Ju-Ju-Bee Back Pack for Mother's Day which I loved and wanted to buy {but restrained myself}. I usually use my coach bag as you will see in my "How to Pack a Diaper Bag" post, but we use this when we are out or when I carried her in the Ergo {almost made the list but may get it's own spotlight :)} . The Fisher Price one even comes with some labeled pockets for diapers, wipes {with a handy pop out container}, and pacifier. It is nice and spacious and is still prefect for outings like the aquarium, out for a walk or when my husband is with me. Best part - no hands needed :)
Nuby Teether - This teether came from a mom friend who tried so many teethers for her daughter. She gifted this one to me and it quickly became one of our daughter's favorite ones. I bought 3 more. I love that it comes with a protective case you can store it in. I tend to keep one in the freezer too. This is one teether that I always gift to new moms now.
Infant Probiotic - After 3 weeks of my baby girl crying in pain due to colic/gas, we were willing to do almost anything to make her feel better. We used a product called Tummy Calm {which we still do use when she has an upset tummy} and it worked wonders, but nothing compared to probiotics. We went and purchased the Gerber one at our local Walgreens and gave it a shot. We added the drops to some pumped milk once a day. After 3 days, our happy, curious and calm baby was back. We still give her probiotic but due to the price on the Gerber, we switched to a powder that we now mix into her food.
Infant Monitor with a Camera - We have been spoiled. We love, love, love being able to see our little angel sleeping in her crib. We love that we can see when she is crying if we have to go in, we watched her roll over for the first time in the crib and I watch her play with her stuffed animals in the morning, We use a Foscam Security Camera and our iPhones with an app to watch her. Won't people be able to break into my Foscam and wake up my baby - like that one article I saw? We keep our Foscam on our secure, in-home network wi-fi. The probability of someone actually choosing you to do this is probably low, but just in case, we have not opened the network up to outside viewing. So my husband cannot login at work and watch us. {Plus it would be a bit creepy to know someone can just login and watch your child sleep/you nurse - even if it's you or your husband}
Miracle Blanket - I was gifted this from my husband's cousin who has three kids herself. Honestly, when we got it, I thought, "There is no way that I would use this. Our baby will be sleeping great because I am going to do XYZ and I learned the perfect swaddle." Boy was I wrong. Our baby girl was a great sleeper...the best when she was in a swaddle, but she learned early on in the hospital how to break out of that swaddle. One night in a desperate attempt to get her to sleep, we pulled out this miracle blanket. It worked!!! She fought it at first {and every night/nap we put her in it} but within minutes she was sleeping and slept longer. 8 hours the first night in it! This is another gift I tend to give to mommies to be :)
*If you purchase this on the Miracle Blanket website, they usually have a buy more than 1 deal - I recommend at least 2, in case you need one in the middle of the night...we ended up with 4*
Jumperoo - We did register and recieve a different jumper but when it came to using it, it wasn't making the cut. It had a plate at the bottom and it was up to the child to make it push down. She was so tiny, she just sat there. Our daughter would jump on our knees so we knew she would do well in a jumper. We purchased this Rain Forest one and were so glad for Prime free 2-day shipping. As soon as we put her in it, there was joy on her face. This was by far her favorite activity for the longest time. Her first baby sign was jump. Even when she started cruising, she would crawl over to this and walk around it playing with the toys {but never wanted to get back in}.
Travel High Chair - I love having this travel high chair. It has come in handy so many times. We used it when we went out to lunch/dinner and our daughter was too young to sit in the restaurant high chairs. I have brought it to friend's/family's houses. I even brought it with me to a baby shower {the mom-to-be went out and purchased one too}. I have even used it in my house when little friends come to visit. It has even come in handy when I have needed a toddler seat for a friend, the tray is removable, We were gifted this one at my shower from one brilliant mom, but I am fully impressed with the one I featured. I love that it folds up for ease of storage/travel. The one we have is a bit bulky but it does the job.
Boppy - This was a wonder product for us. I know there are several kinds out there, so choose your weapon of choice. We used the boppy for every nursing session starting in the hospital {best thing I packed in my hospital bag} and continued when we got home until she no longer fit on it while nursing, around 4 months. It lived around me. She would fall asleep nursing and I would lay her down on it and have tow hands free. This is how I was able to complete the mobile for her room. When she got too big to use it for nursing, we would prop her up to practice sitting. I have even seen moms use it for tummy time when their kids didn't like it. She still loves to curl up in it and lay her little head down. I plan on keeping it around for a floor pillow for her when she gets older and wants to read on the floor.
Looking back on all of this makes me tear up a bit. It seems like only yesterday that we were fumbling around trying to use all of this for the first time. I hope this helps all of you first time moms.
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So to make things easier for you, I have put together a list of the Top 10 Baby Items for the First Year. These are the items we used most or because our "must have" items. Several items that are on this list were items recommended or gifted to me by other moms.
*Below links are Amazon Affiliate links. By clicking on the links and purchasing through Amazon, I will get a commission to not additional cost to you. See my full disclosure here. Thank you for supporting this blog.*
Rock n Play - Our rock-n-play was recommended to us from a friend. This allows the baby to sleep next to your bed like a bassinet but it is easily moved to anywhere in your house. Our daughter napped in this in her own room and even slept a couple nights in it in her room before we transitioned her to her crib. If our daughter woke in the middle of the night, I was known to just reach down and start rocking to try and calm her - worked half of the time.
We almost didn't even use this product because we were gifted a co-sleeper. However, our daughter had a lot of mucous from being born via c-section and was having trouble sleeping flat. The first night we switched her to this and she slept great {in combination with the Miracle Blanket - see below}
Some concerns that were brought to my attention with this product - 1) Baby will get a flat head because the plastic piece is hard. Our baby did not get a flat head. She was in this for all naps and bedtime. We held or wore her in a wrap the rest of the time. Most babies develop flat heads because they are laid down most of the time. Just as a precaution, we did add a hand towel folded up under the flap of the bunny as extra padding, just in the beginning when she wasn't moving much in her sleep. 2) Baby will have a hard time transitioning to a flat bed. We transitioned slowly. We gave our daughter a nap in the crib for a couple days. Then added a nap each time until it was time for her to sleep overnight. She did great.
Burt's Bees Multipurpose Ointment - This was not a product previously recommended to us. I was looking on the EWG for a product that we could understand what was in it and that had a good score. This product scored a 3 on the EWG scale. There are now some others that are higher rated, but we used this all the time. We slathered it on before her nighttime diaper and after almost every diaper change when she was dirtying her diapers a lot. We had ZERO diaper rashes. It is easily wiped off and easily applied.
Backpack Diaper Bag - This was a purchase my husband requested for when he took our baby out. We ended up getting this Fisher Price one but by friend got the Ju-Ju-Bee Back Pack for Mother's Day which I loved and wanted to buy {but restrained myself}. I usually use my coach bag as you will see in my "How to Pack a Diaper Bag" post, but we use this when we are out or when I carried her in the Ergo {almost made the list but may get it's own spotlight :)} . The Fisher Price one even comes with some labeled pockets for diapers, wipes {with a handy pop out container}, and pacifier. It is nice and spacious and is still prefect for outings like the aquarium, out for a walk or when my husband is with me. Best part - no hands needed :)
Nuby Teether - This teether came from a mom friend who tried so many teethers for her daughter. She gifted this one to me and it quickly became one of our daughter's favorite ones. I bought 3 more. I love that it comes with a protective case you can store it in. I tend to keep one in the freezer too. This is one teether that I always gift to new moms now.
Infant Probiotic - After 3 weeks of my baby girl crying in pain due to colic/gas, we were willing to do almost anything to make her feel better. We used a product called Tummy Calm {which we still do use when she has an upset tummy} and it worked wonders, but nothing compared to probiotics. We went and purchased the Gerber one at our local Walgreens and gave it a shot. We added the drops to some pumped milk once a day. After 3 days, our happy, curious and calm baby was back. We still give her probiotic but due to the price on the Gerber, we switched to a powder that we now mix into her food.
Infant Monitor with a Camera - We have been spoiled. We love, love, love being able to see our little angel sleeping in her crib. We love that we can see when she is crying if we have to go in, we watched her roll over for the first time in the crib and I watch her play with her stuffed animals in the morning, We use a Foscam Security Camera and our iPhones with an app to watch her. Won't people be able to break into my Foscam and wake up my baby - like that one article I saw? We keep our Foscam on our secure, in-home network wi-fi. The probability of someone actually choosing you to do this is probably low, but just in case, we have not opened the network up to outside viewing. So my husband cannot login at work and watch us. {Plus it would be a bit creepy to know someone can just login and watch your child sleep/you nurse - even if it's you or your husband}
Miracle Blanket - I was gifted this from my husband's cousin who has three kids herself. Honestly, when we got it, I thought, "There is no way that I would use this. Our baby will be sleeping great because I am going to do XYZ and I learned the perfect swaddle." Boy was I wrong. Our baby girl was a great sleeper...the best when she was in a swaddle, but she learned early on in the hospital how to break out of that swaddle. One night in a desperate attempt to get her to sleep, we pulled out this miracle blanket. It worked!!! She fought it at first {and every night/nap we put her in it} but within minutes she was sleeping and slept longer. 8 hours the first night in it! This is another gift I tend to give to mommies to be :)
*If you purchase this on the Miracle Blanket website, they usually have a buy more than 1 deal - I recommend at least 2, in case you need one in the middle of the night...we ended up with 4*
Jumperoo - We did register and recieve a different jumper but when it came to using it, it wasn't making the cut. It had a plate at the bottom and it was up to the child to make it push down. She was so tiny, she just sat there. Our daughter would jump on our knees so we knew she would do well in a jumper. We purchased this Rain Forest one and were so glad for Prime free 2-day shipping. As soon as we put her in it, there was joy on her face. This was by far her favorite activity for the longest time. Her first baby sign was jump. Even when she started cruising, she would crawl over to this and walk around it playing with the toys {but never wanted to get back in}.
Travel High Chair - I love having this travel high chair. It has come in handy so many times. We used it when we went out to lunch/dinner and our daughter was too young to sit in the restaurant high chairs. I have brought it to friend's/family's houses. I even brought it with me to a baby shower {the mom-to-be went out and purchased one too}. I have even used it in my house when little friends come to visit. It has even come in handy when I have needed a toddler seat for a friend, the tray is removable, We were gifted this one at my shower from one brilliant mom, but I am fully impressed with the one I featured. I love that it folds up for ease of storage/travel. The one we have is a bit bulky but it does the job.
Boppy - This was a wonder product for us. I know there are several kinds out there, so choose your weapon of choice. We used the boppy for every nursing session starting in the hospital {best thing I packed in my hospital bag} and continued when we got home until she no longer fit on it while nursing, around 4 months. It lived around me. She would fall asleep nursing and I would lay her down on it and have tow hands free. This is how I was able to complete the mobile for her room. When she got too big to use it for nursing, we would prop her up to practice sitting. I have even seen moms use it for tummy time when their kids didn't like it. She still loves to curl up in it and lay her little head down. I plan on keeping it around for a floor pillow for her when she gets older and wants to read on the floor.
Looking back on all of this makes me tear up a bit. It seems like only yesterday that we were fumbling around trying to use all of this for the first time. I hope this helps all of you first time moms.
Help the first time moms, what would you add to this list?
Follow my Parenting Tips & Tricks Pinterest Board for more resources and ideas.
Follow my Parenting Tips & Tricks Pinterest Board for more resources and ideas.
One Year Later Series
I cannot believe that I have a 1 year old toddler. This time last year was so different. New Years 2014: Rocking a newborn and watching the Mummers on mute. New Years 2015: Watching the Mummers, in between playing with Little People, telling my daughter to look at the animals on the screen and watching her dance along.
In case you missed the series, here are the stories you missed: Feel free to take a look and get some insight that I wish I had one year ago!
Top 10 Items for Baby's First Year
Breastfeeding: Myths, Tips & Resources
Creating a healthy, adventurous eater
In case you missed the series, here are the stories you missed: Feel free to take a look and get some insight that I wish I had one year ago!
Top 10 Items for Baby's First Year
Breastfeeding: Myths, Tips & Resources
Creating a healthy, adventurous eater
Crock Pot Applesauce
I know I already started with the Christmas stuff, but yesterday was WAY too cold here in Pennsylvania, so I'm taking it back to fall!
I love apples year round, but in the fall I love the colors, the crisp sound and taste when you bite into an apple and I especially love homemade applesauce.
I had a friend who's mom used to make it from scratch. It was so delicious and I'm sure to her it was worth the hours it took to peel, core, steam, stir, flavor, press and can. I don't have time for that! This is where the crock pot comes in.
I start with an 8 lb bag of apples. I peel and core all of the apples. Here is my tip for peeling apples: You heard of the Rachael Ray "trash bowl" right? Well, I take that to another level. Loved the idea, hated washing another bowl. I place the bag that the apples {or any produce that I am peeling} came in inside the bowl. This way, all of the mess ends up in the bag, you were throwing away the bag anyway, and no bowl to wash!
There are two ways to core an apple we have found: a) my husband does it with an apple corer b) I can never get it right so I quarter and slice on a diagonal to take out the core.
Chop the apples up and place in the crock pot with a stick of cinnamon, 2 lemon peels {less if you do less apples} and juice of a lemon {again, less if you do less apples}. Stir up and set crock pot for 6 hours on low.
When it's done, you can either whisk it up {for chunky applesauce}, use an emmersion blender {I find they never blend it as well}, or put in a blender.
I whisk the batch up for my husband to have and take about half and add to the blender. I blend this for my daughter, for her oatmeal in the morning, and freeze in an ice cube tray.
The applesauce lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge in an airtight container. {Bad blogger - don't have after pics - maybe I can add them next time I make it!}
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| {Click here to download recipe} |
Enjoy!
What is in my perfect diaper bag?
With so many of my friends and family that are pregnant and my daughter turning 1 in 1 1/2 months {eek}, I am finding myself reflecting on the last year.
I went to a baby shower for some of our best friends on Saturday and gifted her the diaper bag she had on her registry filled with the essentials. Some she registered for, some she didn't. Here is some of the things I included in her diaper bag:
The essentials that I needed {and I provided for my friend} are
- a change of clothes {I put a hat, socks, onesie, sleeper and bib in a ziplock bag}
- burp cloths
- lots of wipe options: baby wipes, table wipes, face wipes, etc.
- bags for dirty diapers
- teething toys
- mommy hook
- hand sanitizer
I actually had the same diaper bag {and a backpack} stocked with almost everything you see in that picture. I had a full stocked diaper bag. Obviously if you are bottle feeding you will need bottles and formula, breastfeeding, you will need breast pads {I stored these in a ziploc}
But now, I can say that after 11 months of packing a diaper bag, I have it down, and with less stuff.
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In my diaper bag {Coach purse turned diaper bag} This is what you will find:
I always have extra wipes readily available for the quick wipe down of a table or hands.
I store my diapers and wipes in a travel pouch. It is great because it is also quick to grab if I need to run into the bathroom with her or out for a quick errand.
I always have hand sanitizer available for quick access as well as other key essentials. Right now is Boogie Wipes and tissues.
I keep a bag full of toys for Seraphina, these are switched out and cleaned regularly. Here is what it looks like now. Full of rings and teethers.
The bag for diaper changes looks like this. I always carry sunscreen and the white cloths at the top are actually dry wipes with soap on them. All you have to do is run them under water and they are now soap wipes. {I cannot find them anywhere anymore..I think they were discontinued..sorry}
There you have it, my perfect diaper bag. There is even room for my small wallet/purse for my stuff.
I went to a baby shower for some of our best friends on Saturday and gifted her the diaper bag she had on her registry filled with the essentials. Some she registered for, some she didn't. Here is some of the things I included in her diaper bag:
The essentials that I needed {and I provided for my friend} are
- a change of clothes {I put a hat, socks, onesie, sleeper and bib in a ziplock bag}
- burp cloths
- lots of wipe options: baby wipes, table wipes, face wipes, etc.
- bags for dirty diapers
- teething toys
- mommy hook
- hand sanitizer
I actually had the same diaper bag {and a backpack} stocked with almost everything you see in that picture. I had a full stocked diaper bag. Obviously if you are bottle feeding you will need bottles and formula, breastfeeding, you will need breast pads {I stored these in a ziploc}
But now, I can say that after 11 months of packing a diaper bag, I have it down, and with less stuff.
In my diaper bag {Coach purse turned diaper bag} This is what you will find:
I always have extra wipes readily available for the quick wipe down of a table or hands.
I store my diapers and wipes in a travel pouch. It is great because it is also quick to grab if I need to run into the bathroom with her or out for a quick errand.
I always have hand sanitizer available for quick access as well as other key essentials. Right now is Boogie Wipes and tissues.
I keep a bag full of toys for Seraphina, these are switched out and cleaned regularly. Here is what it looks like now. Full of rings and teethers.
The bag for diaper changes looks like this. I always carry sunscreen and the white cloths at the top are actually dry wipes with soap on them. All you have to do is run them under water and they are now soap wipes. {I cannot find them anywhere anymore..I think they were discontinued..sorry}
There you have it, my perfect diaper bag. There is even room for my small wallet/purse for my stuff.
What would you add for younger children or take away as they get older?
Fall Discovery Box
I love allowing my daughter to explore on her own. I love watching her play and discover how things work on her own. I also like to not give her too many toys at once. Like her books, I like to cycle her toys on a regular basis so she doesn't get 'bored'.
This concept can be modified for any age. For example, when I taught 1st grade, I would have a discovery box and the kids would have to describe what items were in there, compare and contrast the items, or make up a story using those items.
One special item that I keep constantly rotating is a discovery box. In this box, I switch out {for this age}sensory items that she is free to play with. This time of the year there is so many things that she can explore. I was able to put some items in there that are teething/putting in mouth appropriate.
In this fall sensory box I have: 2 gourds from our local orchard, 2 pumpkins of different sizes {the smallest was in her mouth as I took this picture} and 2 artificial ornamental gourds. She has really enjoyed discovering the different textures, different consistencies while she chews on them. She has discovered that the artificial ones she can sink her 4 teeth into - they have been removed.
Right now we are practicing putting objects into other objects, so I will go over and prompt her to put them back into the box. She will place couple inside and I will place the lid on and we will shake it all around {her favorite}. Then she will go back to exploring.
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| We were experimenting with a different bin when I took this picture. It didn't work out. |
Some items that you can include in your sensory/discovery box could be:
- gourds
- pumpkins
- leaves {all the different colors would be great}
- pinecones
- feathers {think turkey}
- pumpkin guts {we had them in there in a bag but it went bad before I could include it in the pictures}
- mum flowers {even fake ones so that they can explore the petals}
- different hard squashes - acorn, butternut, spaghetti, etc.
- hay - if there is no allergy
- corn husk
There are so many ways that you can use this box besides allowing your child to explore independently. Ask them questions, use it to help reinforce something they are learning at school or in our case just have fun! Fun is all a part of the learning.
What fall items does your child enjoy?
"New and Improved" Sick Baby First Aid Kit
My baby girl woke up later than usual on Halloween. I was jumping for joy that I got to enjoy my coffee and breakfast and got some other things done that I needed to do. But when she did wake up, she had a stuffy nose and cranky mood.
OH NO! My baby has a cold! I broke out the sick baby first-aid kit and got to work.
In our normal kit, we keep
Books - Always the comfort item. When she is sick we can read through her entire collection of books.
Boogie Wipes - This helps to avoid her nose from getting dry and chapped when we are wiping it a lot. I have one on each level of our home and keep one in the diaper bag.
Nose Frieda - Works so well when you get over that you are sucking your child's snot. For her first cold, we used the aspirator and she HATED it. We gave in and tried this. It is wonderful! You control how hard or how long the suction is and you can see how much you get out {and dishwasher safe}...TOTALLY recommended.
Humidifier - We use the warm mist humidifier. Many times the cool mist humidifier is recommended because of the chance of bacteria growth. We have never had a problem with it but we do rinse it everyday and soak the base chamber with vinegar once a week to avoid calcification buildup.
Saline Drops/Spray - Our daughter was not a fan of the spray, but it does work better if your child can take it. We do drops a couple times a day and always before we Nose Frieda. It really helps to clear out her nose.
Tylenol - We do check for fever but sometimes even without the fever she just doesn't feel good. We all know the feeling and take something to help take the edge off. We only use this if we need it, but it's nice to have on hand.
Wubbie - The wubbanub pacifiers are fantastic! Our daughter does not suck on a pacifier but chews. She also likes to snuggle with the stuffed animal attached. The giraffe is one of her favorites.
Warm Bath - When all else fails, there is nothing like a warm bath to make you feel better. We actually fill the tub with the shower so she gets extra steam to help with her nose. My husband also dims the lights and puts on spa music. {How do I get this treatment?}
This time, I added something new. I have been hearing all this great stuff about using essential oils but knew I wouldn't have a chance to go out and get them. I also wanted something edible in case she put it in her mouth {inevitable} so I thought about what I had on hand to make something that could help her stuffy nose.
So I made peppermint {extract} edible playdough.
I followed this recipe for oatmeal playdough, knowing that it was edible and would be ok if she had residue on her hands.
I added 1/8 - 1/4 tsp of peppermint extract to the dough as I was kneading it. I added a little at a time until I could smell the peppermint as I kneaded it.
She had a blast playing with it! At first, she wasn't sure what to do with it. She tasted it once {didn't like it} so it didn't go near her mouth again. Her nose started running like crazy, so obviously it was working to help unclog her stuffy nose. I played with her with it for a while and then she was ready to move on. We cleaned her up and played with some other toys.
Spirits brightened and she was breathing better. This will be added into the sick kid first aid kit for sure!
OH NO! My baby has a cold! I broke out the sick baby first-aid kit and got to work.
In our normal kit, we keep
Books - Always the comfort item. When she is sick we can read through her entire collection of books.
Boogie Wipes - This helps to avoid her nose from getting dry and chapped when we are wiping it a lot. I have one on each level of our home and keep one in the diaper bag.
Nose Frieda - Works so well when you get over that you are sucking your child's snot. For her first cold, we used the aspirator and she HATED it. We gave in and tried this. It is wonderful! You control how hard or how long the suction is and you can see how much you get out {and dishwasher safe}...TOTALLY recommended.
Humidifier - We use the warm mist humidifier. Many times the cool mist humidifier is recommended because of the chance of bacteria growth. We have never had a problem with it but we do rinse it everyday and soak the base chamber with vinegar once a week to avoid calcification buildup.
Saline Drops/Spray - Our daughter was not a fan of the spray, but it does work better if your child can take it. We do drops a couple times a day and always before we Nose Frieda. It really helps to clear out her nose.
Tylenol - We do check for fever but sometimes even without the fever she just doesn't feel good. We all know the feeling and take something to help take the edge off. We only use this if we need it, but it's nice to have on hand.
Wubbie - The wubbanub pacifiers are fantastic! Our daughter does not suck on a pacifier but chews. She also likes to snuggle with the stuffed animal attached. The giraffe is one of her favorites.
Warm Bath - When all else fails, there is nothing like a warm bath to make you feel better. We actually fill the tub with the shower so she gets extra steam to help with her nose. My husband also dims the lights and puts on spa music. {How do I get this treatment?}
This time, I added something new. I have been hearing all this great stuff about using essential oils but knew I wouldn't have a chance to go out and get them. I also wanted something edible in case she put it in her mouth {inevitable} so I thought about what I had on hand to make something that could help her stuffy nose.
So I made peppermint {extract} edible playdough.
I followed this recipe for oatmeal playdough, knowing that it was edible and would be ok if she had residue on her hands.
I added 1/8 - 1/4 tsp of peppermint extract to the dough as I was kneading it. I added a little at a time until I could smell the peppermint as I kneaded it.
She had a blast playing with it! At first, she wasn't sure what to do with it. She tasted it once {didn't like it} so it didn't go near her mouth again. Her nose started running like crazy, so obviously it was working to help unclog her stuffy nose. I played with her with it for a while and then she was ready to move on. We cleaned her up and played with some other toys.
What items can you not live without when your baby or child is sick?
*some links contain affiliate links for your convience
How to Organize Children's Books
We wanted to instill a love of reading from the beginning. So, at 3 months old, we added books into our nighttime routine. Her favorite book was "Peek-a-boo Forest".
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| Purchased from Amazon* |
How do we know this, you ask? We left the book at my parents house after a sleepover. Worst bedtime routine still to this day...
Now, she loves almost any book. She is still not into too many words but she is starting to. She loves books she can feel or flip open flaps. Some of her favorites are these Bug Books.
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| Purchased from Amazon* |
Tackling the first problem: What to do with the books on her windowsill that we read every day and every night? How does she know what books are there and which one she wants to read?
My best solution was a book stand. Like the ones they use in stores or in libraries.
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| via |
So walking through Target that day, I found a solution. A dish rack. They had several options. They even had a Cartwheel discount for one. I chose this one because it was low in the middle so it would be easy for Seraphina to get the books out and I liked the placement and shape of the utensil holder, which made it great for smaller books or other accessories in the future.
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| Purchased from Target |
So far the system is working great! She can lean into the windowsill and choose which book(s) to read. And when I place the rack on the floor, she can easily grab the book(s) that she wants.
I love using ordinary products for something different. This was an affordable and simple option to corral the books.
*affiliate links used for your convenience
What do you do with all of the books your kids read?
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