tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64818183686104898292024-03-19T02:32:55.749-07:00Mommy With Selective Memory<title>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.comBlogger262125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-50782792609843044562015-11-03T08:22:00.000-08:002015-11-04T07:54:13.072-08:007 Signs that You Need to Toughen UpI remember the day vividly when I realized I needed to toughen up. I was working full-time and I had two small kids and my husband was working all the time. They both suddenly came down with the stomach flu. I had several light bulbs that needed to be replaced and I hadn't bothered to do it because I needed to get a ladder out of the garage. Suddenly a spider came out of a towel and my daughter yelled, "A bug! Where's Daddy?" It occurred to me then that I needed to take control and toughen up. <br />
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I killed that spider and marched out to the garage for the ladder. It felt wonderful. Then I took some probiotics to ward off the stomach flu decided I just wasn't going to get it. I just couldn't. And I didn't. And from that day forward, I felt like a new woman. <br />
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Now, 5 years later, my daughter comes to me when she finds a scary bug. Or she takes care of it herself, since she's also a mini-scientist and loves to catch and collect all kinds of bugs. When she grows up and is a young Mom, I have no intention of her living in a dark house, filled with spiders the way I did, because there is just no reason to. Of course, I love my husband, and we are a good team, but being tough and independent is one of the most rewarding changes I have ever made in my life.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">Here are 7 signs you need to toughen up:</span><br />
1. You don't change your own bulbs, especially the high-up ones. That's right ladies, don't be afraid to go get a ladder. There's no reason to leave it for your husband. Take charge right when you realize it's burned out.<br />
2. You go to your husband when you find a bug that needs to be killed (or caught and released, depending on your point of view). They're not that scary. In fact, you could help your kids collect disgusting spiders, cicada shells, and preying mantis (see below, every summer we collect these and I find them all over the house in plastic bags). AND you can put the worms on the hook yourself.<br />
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3. You are afraid to take on house-hold projects, even small ones such as adding extra hooks to the swingset or hanging pictures. There is no reason to leave pictures sitting by a wall for weeks on end just because your husband hasn't had time to hang it. We live in the world of HGTV. And, some women are ready good with their hands. I'm not, but some are and if you're a lucky one, you could tackle some paint jobs and help with the bigger jobs like tile or building decks.<br />
4. You hate going places by yourself. You often pull the, "I don't want to drive there by myself," routine, especially if that means a road-trip or an airplane ride with the kids by yourself. Get yourself a DVD player for the kids, and hit the open road. You will survive. If I can do it, you can.<br />
5. You don't take out your own trash. Sometimes husbands have early meetings or just forget. You have strong arms, so putting them to use should be no problem for you.<br />
6. You never take care of yard work. But what happens if your husband forgets to water those baby trees? You can pull weeds, you mow the yard. (Okay, I admit my husband doesn't let me mow the yard because he says it doesn't look terrible when I do it. But I do everything else.)<br />
7. You won't shovel your own snow. Give the kids a shovel and get 'er done!<br />
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Of course, I'm not 100% independent. I still make my husband throw away dead mice and squirrels, but I do my best and I'm proud to show my kids that being fearless is possible.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com78tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-91853432171567728292015-10-29T11:56:00.000-07:002015-10-29T11:56:16.555-07:00Our favorite Halloween tradition - Dry Ice?I wanted to share with you our favorite Halloween traditions. My husband started it when our kids were really small, and honestly at first I thought it was pretty crazy and extreme. But our kids beg for it every year and I know it's something they will remember forever.<br />
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It's pretty simple really. We get some dry ice from our grocery store, then fill our cauldron with Kool-Aid (just follow the directions on the package) and then add the dry ice, one small rectangle at a time. It bubbles and hisses and smokes and they love blowing the smoke around and watching all the craziness! We put it right in the middle of our newspapers while we are carving pumpkins and it adds a lot of fun. Plus, they love the super cold Kool-Aid! Whenever it starts to get too tame, we add another rectangle of dry ice to the cauldron. We re-use the same cauldron every year, it's just a little cheap one we got from Target.<br />
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<i>** Note, dry ice can be dangerous, so watch the kids closely and never let them put their hands inside the bowl. </i><br />
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And tell me, what is your favorite Halloween tradition?<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com24tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-84097962712188201372015-10-26T18:09:00.002-07:002015-10-26T18:09:52.615-07:003 Sure-Fire Ways to Get Better Sleep and Stop SNORING<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv2N-HVWtLpsZ-oRaU4D1MIZwN0ALQl-B2jbFM3xW_Z-0NcPmMpO98yWF7znkHk_I30pOCffYft8f0wTFbV-8a-sdu1GCeb5OLhv54Gfici2ldYJ71I7Sq486LSaXUlEs8Ok7l7sCXiHE/s1600/3+Sure+Fire+Ways+to+Get+Better+Sleep.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Quit Snoring" border="0" height="217" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv2N-HVWtLpsZ-oRaU4D1MIZwN0ALQl-B2jbFM3xW_Z-0NcPmMpO98yWF7znkHk_I30pOCffYft8f0wTFbV-8a-sdu1GCeb5OLhv54Gfici2ldYJ71I7Sq486LSaXUlEs8Ok7l7sCXiHE/s320/3+Sure+Fire+Ways+to+Get+Better+Sleep.jpg" title="3 Sure Fire Ways to Get Better Sleep" width="320" /></a></div>
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My husband has always been a poor sleeper, but lately it's gotten out of control. He is having a lot of stress at work, and this has caused him to start sleep-walking. I don't love the idea of installing top-notch baby gates just for his safety. On top of that, he snores like a man who is lost in the woods and the only hope for survival is to grunt at other animals to communicate. Seriously, sometimes I want to pinch his nostrils, but I fear for his life if I do. <br />
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His sleep issues cause him all kinds of problems, and they worse they get, the more tired and stressed he gets. The poor guy. He even got super expensive and invasive surgery a few years ago, and they called it "the snore-cure". They took out his adenoids and tonsils and snipped his Uvula (the thing that hangs down in the back of the throat). He was snoring again within a few months and actually it's worse than ever. We've tried snore spray, we've tried sleep pillows, we got a fancy, expensive bed, and nothing seems to work. So, imagine my surprise when I found something that actually works.<br />
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Here's what happened. One night my husband was snoring so loudly it was shaking the bed and I turned to him so I could get him situated to his side, which usually solves the problem for awhile. To my surprise, HE WAS ALREADY ON HIS SIDE! Now I had no recourse left and decided I needed to try something drastic. My friend has been telling me about these <a href="https://www.youngliving.com/en_US" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Essential Oils</a> for a long time, how she uses them to ward off colds, uses them to make a natural eye cream, and much more. She told me there is an oil called Valor II that is specifically designed for snoring and sleeping issues in general. I really don't usually buy into this kind of thing, but if he was going to snore on his side and walk around the room all night, what choice did I really have? <a href="https://www.youngliving.com/vo/#/signup/start?sponsorid=3252918&enrollerid=3252918&type=member" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">I ordered her starter oil kit, along with a few other oils she recommended for me.</a> My friend then told me to put a drop of oil on each of his big toes right before bedtime. You should have heard my husband, "What kind of voo-doo are we doing? You want to put SMELLY OIL on my TOE?"<br />
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He succumbed anyway and in the morning I asked him how he slept. He smiled sheepishly and said, "Well, I have to admit that's the first time I have slept through until 5:45 without waking up in as long as I can remember. I guess your voo-doo worked."<br />
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It's been a few weeks now and he is still sleeping great. I have noticed he is hardly snoring at all anymore, even when I wake up in the middle of the night to deal with one of the kids.<br />
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I am sleeping better too, especially when combined with a few other tricks I tried:<br />
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1. Drink lots of water early in the day. I find that if I'm dehydrated, I don't sleep well, but if I drink water late in the day, then I'm up all night peeing (am I the only one whose bladder never fully recovered from those pesky pregnancies?)<br />
2. Get the temperature right in the room. <a href="http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/cant-sleep-adjust-the-temperature" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Scientifically, it has been shown that air temperature can greatly affect the quality of sleep,</a> and not everyone has the same magic number. We have experimented and found we need a high fan and/or a temperature of 65 degrees or less for optimal sleep.<br />
3. Experiment with Essential Oils. My husband used Valor II to help with his snoring, but I find that a different one, Cedarwood, works better for me. I never thought I would be recommending something like this, but truly, it has made such a difference for us!<br />
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Feel free to get in touch with me if you have any questions about these oils. I am still learning a lot, but I have a lot of resources at my fingertips and can help you find what you need. You can reach me at katiefnorris (at) yahoo.com.<br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: x-small;">Disclaimer: I have been blogging for over four years and in that time I have never directly sold any type of product. However, I have finally found one that I am passionate about, so I have decided to become a direct distributor. I do receive a commission on any oil that is sold through my webpage, but all opinions on the oil and their effectiveness are completely my own. I d<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">o not claim to be a medical practitioner. I do not diagnose, treat or prescribe any medical treatment or advice. You should always discuss treatment of medical conditions with your medical practitioner before using any alternative therapies, natural supplements, or vitamins. The following safety precautions are guidelines only. You should consult with an aromatherapist about essential oil usage and always inform your primary care physician what you are using as they may not be conducive with his/her prescribed therapy and medications. </span></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com28tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-47639915421145021432015-10-22T08:09:00.000-07:002015-10-22T08:09:14.951-07:00I’m not a Work-Out Mom, I’m not a Career Mom, so what kind of Mom am I?<span id="goog_394631435"></span><span id="goog_394631436"></span><br />
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We moved across the country this summer, and this meant my kids would be the new kids at school, so I began to have a one track mind on getting them assimilated quickly. I made playdates with neighbors, I signed them up for soccer and Girl Scouts, but at Back to School night something funny happened. When we walked into the school, I realized this was also about us as parents, and more specifically, about me. I needed to meet the Moms too. Now I felt like the new kid myself and something struck me. There were Moms dressed in their fancy career clothes, there were Moms dressed in work-out clothes (at 7pm), and there were the PTA Moms. The problem was, I didn't fit into any of those categories. <br />
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I work out a little, but I don't love it. I used to be a big career Mom, <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2015/05/year-one-as-stay-home-mom-was-much.html" target="_blank">but I quit when we moved to Colorado</a>, since we were only going to be there for a year, so while I still remember vividly what it was like to be a working Mom, as far as everyone else is concerned, I am a stay at home Mom. I'm not a trendy Mom either, or a shopping Mom. Suddenly I felt panicked. Where would I fit? What kind of Mom was I going to be? Would I go back to work? Would I get super involved in school? Would I join a gym?<br />
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I shared my insecurities with my Mom and my husband. They pretty much thought I was a crazy person. Why did I care where I fit in? <br />
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I tried to get over it by telling myself I was being silly. I just needed to be myself and all would be well. But I did care. I went out and bought a fancy tennis skirt. Then toyed with the idea of going back to work. I joined the PTA. I was sure something would feel normal soon.<br />
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Then one day my kids came home from school and for about the fifth day in a row, they were all upset about something that happened on the bus. The bus company kept changing drivers, and changing pick-up times, and seating arrangements, and I realized this bus situation was causing them a tremendous amount of stress. They <b><u>said</u></b> they loved the bus and truly there were a lot of advantages. Everyone in the neighborhood takes the bus so they get to socialize a lot. They got to trade Pokemon cards, which they loved. Even I loved the bus because they looked so cute getting on and off and plus then I didn't have to fight the car line every day, but I knew it wasn't working. I made an impulsive decision and decided to pull them off the bus. They were sad about it at first, and I could tell everyone thought I was a bit crazy about the whole thing, but I decided to give it two weeks. <br />
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Two weeks later, I was amazed. They never complained about school anymore. They were happier. There were no more tears at night. The bus truly had been causing all the angst, they just didn't know it. That's when it hit me: I'm not Gym Mom, I'm not Soccer Mom, I'm not Career Mom. I'm Flexible Mom. <br />
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Since I'm not working I can change our schedule if we need to. I can babysit my nephew if my sister in law needs a break. I can get my husbands tire fixed for him on a whim. I can go with my Mom on a crazy two hour drive to look at a horse she wants to buy, because I am flexible. <br />
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It's good to have an identity. I think that's why Stay at Home Moms struggle so much, because sometimes just being a stay at home Mom isn't enough of an identity for us. But for now, I'm content to be Flexible Mom. Because someday, I might find something I'm really passionate about, and I can be flexible enough to jump on it. And in the meantime, I'll just keep trying my best to be a good Mom, and I'll keep trying to live in the moment and savor every moment of my flexible life.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com39tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-81680079191942664842015-10-01T18:36:00.002-07:002015-10-07T03:55:53.414-07:0010 Retorts to the Question, "The Kids are in School all Day, What do you do all Day?"I quit working over a year ago and it was a bit of a rough transition. I went through every emotion under the sun and I have categorized my transition into 5 phases:<br />
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<li><b>The honeymoon Phase</b> - I was so delighted to be able to go to the pool anytime we wanted and not have to deal with needy customers on a daily basis. This phase lasted for approximately two weeks.</li>
<li><b>The "This is really my new life?"</b> <b>Phase</b> - Once I got over the lure of the pool, I realized how hard this was going to be. Since it was summer, I had to drag the kids with me anytime I went to Target or the drugstore. They always complained about going, and I found that Amazon Prime became my new friend. Suddenly, there was nothing new to look forward to. There were no big deals that would close soon (and bring a big commission check with it). This phase lasted for about 1 month. I began taking a lot of naps during this phase because it helped me cope with my new life.</li>
<li><b>The "I've got to find something to do" Phase</b>. - During this phase, I started doing freelance work at a frenzied pace. I began yearning to have conference calls and I wanted a paycheck. I even did work for free sometimes, just to have something to do. I NEEDED to use my brain. This phase lasted for about 6 months.</li>
<li><b>The "Okay, my kids really are fun" Phase </b>- This is where things really got fun. I began to really appreciate staying home with the kids and my freelance gigs didn't seem as appealing anymore. I learned to cook. I began to realize how fun life could be when home with the kids. This phase lasted about 3 months.</li>
<li><b>The "I can rock this job the way I rocked my other job" Phase.</b> This is where I am now. I began to really think about what I could do to make my husband's life better. I could keep the house as clean as possible, I could cook super yummy meals, I could make as many memories as possible. This is when life really started to get amazing. Unfortunately for me, the kids also both started full time school, and I became incredibly sad that my special time with them was over. </li>
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That being said, I began to document all the things I do during the day that makes my family stronger, happier, and less stressed. I wouldn't be able to do these things if I were working full-time. And that makes me feel wonderful. So, when someone asks what I do all day, here are some things I can say:</div>
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<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can read to the kids in the mornings while they're eating breakfast because I’m
not rushing off to get ready for work at the same time and I can clean up the kitchen after they leave. This makes nights easier because the pressure if off for reading to them for the required twenty minutes.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can take the time to work out and make my body
healthy and as de-stressed as possible so I can treat everyone as nicely as possible.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can run errands during the week so I don't have to drag the kids with me on the weekends and I can focus on family time.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can make healthy meals from scratch while they
are at school and have them ready to put in the oven when they get home. Plus they're yummy, which make my husband happy after a long stressful day at work.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can make our home look nice and I have time to get it as organized as possible.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can be the one who is responsible for paying
the bills and keeping the house running so my husband doesn’t have to worry
about it at all. We divide and conquer. He makes the money, I make the house run perfectly (well, okay, it's not perfect. Sometimes we have ants and sometimes I forget to turn on the oven. I'm only human)</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can take naps so that when everyone gets home
I have plenty of energy to listen to all their troubles, put everyone to bed
without being impatient, and I can help my husband navigate his stressful day
and have the energy to listen effectively (something I couldn’t do when I was
working).</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can get caught up on the non-urgent but very
important things like keeping up to date with our photo albums so that as they
grow up they can easily look at memories and find photos for school projects.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can be attentive to the kids when they are
home sick and not just put them in front of the TV while I am on the phone all
day on conference calls.</span></li>
<li><span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">I can make the most of days off and early
release days so we can make memories even though they're in school most of the time. </span></li>
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I know that one day, probably soon, I will get back to work. But for now, I am thriving and taking pride in every single thing I do for my family. It's important. My family is important.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com45tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-43836156354350662422015-07-14T07:38:00.000-07:002015-07-14T07:38:00.411-07:005 Things Efficient (and Happy) Moms Do Every Day: Part 1<center style="text-align: left;">
There is no reason that Moms can't run their households like a very efficient workplace. They are very similar. Both at home and at work we must prioritize our time, plan for the future, and check things of our to-do list. I find that the more efficient I am the more free time I have, both for me and for my kids. Not only that, I'm much happier. With this in mind, I have worked hard to come up with ways to save myself time at home, just as I did when I was working at a Fortune 500 company, and you can do it too!</center>
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<b>Get an Email Organization System</b></center>
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Get a system for your emails. I recommend using Outlook (if you need help setting that up, <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2014/06/4-tips-on-making-your-email-life-waaaay.html" target="_blank">check out this old post I did with lots of great information</a>). The trick is setting up folders and filing away things you have done so that you can use the in-box as a to-do list. Then spend 15 minutes per day organizing and going through emails. You can even set up rules within Outlook so that all those annoying emails from Gymboree go straight into the "Coupon" folder so you don't have to see them in your in-box but they are there if you need them for your next trip to the mall. Here is an example of my folders (notice how many coupons I have accumulated! That's over 5,000 emails that I never had to sort. They just went straight to that folder for future reference)</center>
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<b>Get a blue-tooth Headset</b></center>
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Purchase a head-set for multi-tasking. You can fold laundry, work on dinner, organize files, clean out your purse, all while you wait on hold for the cable company or catch up with your Mom! I use mine every single day, and it is so much better than using the speakerphone. Here is the one I use.</center>
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<b>Wake up Early</b></center>
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At a minimum, wake up thirty minutes before the kids do, so you can get your day organized, wake up in the peace and quiet, and take a shower. If you can even wake up early enough to get a little bit of exercise, even better! You will feel so amazing if you give your body a little time to get some endorphins first thing in the morning. Buy a cheap treadmill from someone on Craiglist for the basement and the kids will never even know you're awake. Then take a few extra minutes to sort your emails so you have a fresh slate for the day.</center>
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<b>Review your budget</b></center>
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Moms should run the budget for a couple of reasons. First, we won't overspend if we know what our goal is. Second, we are the ones who make a lot of the decisions on what to get for birthday parties, clothing, etc., so again, it makes sense for us to take control of the budget. The trick is looking at it every day. I like to use Mint.com. It's free, and easy to set up. You can set up monthly budgets and then link to your credit card and bank accounts so you can make sure you are sticking to your budget each month.</center>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG9PN0qKNurPqjea1CnH51EdhtH0jw8FV36PAK6AmeNs89DD1vL8R6OPOQf5xwu4woauEGCC_QW8TazkPnVj2CeG3eZqjuMr002123WdMqM3lRZFijABcKi2HOKAJt32X3_O66_gng3Mg/s1600/mint+screen+shot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="356" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgG9PN0qKNurPqjea1CnH51EdhtH0jw8FV36PAK6AmeNs89DD1vL8R6OPOQf5xwu4woauEGCC_QW8TazkPnVj2CeG3eZqjuMr002123WdMqM3lRZFijABcKi2HOKAJt32X3_O66_gng3Mg/s640/mint+screen+shot.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b>Use your Phone for Notes</b></center>
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Make lists on your phone like books you want to read, music you want to download, birthday ideas for kids, etc. I like to use the "Notes" feature on my iPhone, that way it's always handy.</center>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGHwxNL04P2PXUJQnbByEbzCtFNkGIxjFdANyqBdgwyYrV_eQU8rDfJlcvBS7Qq8VJmF4fN9gNv-xrdlnvnNefAUrYa0EPNZjukMtAGoHnnsKGpib1KyVErEevAqxGMzTxSqiouYTx5I8/s1600/birthday+list+screen+shot.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGHwxNL04P2PXUJQnbByEbzCtFNkGIxjFdANyqBdgwyYrV_eQU8rDfJlcvBS7Qq8VJmF4fN9gNv-xrdlnvnNefAUrYa0EPNZjukMtAGoHnnsKGpib1KyVErEevAqxGMzTxSqiouYTx5I8/s400/birthday+list+screen+shot.PNG" width="225" /></a></div>
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Helping Moms stay organized and efficient is a passion of mine! I will be continuing this train of thought with a 2nd post about 5 more ways to make the most out of your days. I will also begin consulting with Moms on getting organized, so if you're feeling overwhelmed with budgeting or emails or anything else, let me know! I can help!</center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-16867940576754163932015-07-07T10:48:00.000-07:002015-07-07T10:48:00.038-07:0015 Fun Ways to Work on Letters and Sight Words<br />
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My daughter finished Kindergarten this Spring and her teacher advised us to work on sight words every day this summer so she doesn't forget everything. We prefer to spend our time outdoors playing in the sunshine, so this seems a little daunting. However, I know it's important, especially since we will be moving to a new school next Fall, so I made a list of all the fun ways we have worked on letters in the past. I hope this will help you this summer too! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqp70B24n711c7ZF_hQDGZ4g0j8wGWbEDMcuzWgKQojSlxDxkcedYc-iF5dzbIM0s35-yU0x0Q-3TL-bO5Tb2CoD9bHf3r4nbNe7KI9YTwVmNiSqsART0G5PETEibMph4Kx0y-oHG4p4w/s1600/15+Fun+and+Easy+Ways+to+Work+on+Sight+Words.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqp70B24n711c7ZF_hQDGZ4g0j8wGWbEDMcuzWgKQojSlxDxkcedYc-iF5dzbIM0s35-yU0x0Q-3TL-bO5Tb2CoD9bHf3r4nbNe7KI9YTwVmNiSqsART0G5PETEibMph4Kx0y-oHG4p4w/s320/15+Fun+and+Easy+Ways+to+Work+on+Sight+Words.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2015/05/sight-word-fun-with-easter-egg-hunt.html" target="_blank">Egg Hunt for Letters and Sight Words</a> - Write words or letters on small pieces of paper and leave place them in eggs for a fun hunt!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcOkjEPIR0gH8vJ6iOk6txni4gNyVefIR5x71mWOhTrkXk8Au7tKmEZ0k6NLaWjjwGyYjwGD5sBtnL6FetwGDYlznvrCj51e4aeUSvPUj8KRqrXP_HeUhaDhaKlonTgg2EGLHu-oRhHs4/s1600/Sight+word+4.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcOkjEPIR0gH8vJ6iOk6txni4gNyVefIR5x71mWOhTrkXk8Au7tKmEZ0k6NLaWjjwGyYjwGD5sBtnL6FetwGDYlznvrCj51e4aeUSvPUj8KRqrXP_HeUhaDhaKlonTgg2EGLHu-oRhHs4/s640/Sight+word+4.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2015/04/easy-home-made-play-do-recipe.html" target="_blank">Make Letters with this Easy Home-made Play-Dough </a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2014/05/4-great-lessons-learned-from-pen-pals.html" target="_blank">Write letters to friends or family or create a Pen-Pal</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2014/02/im-back-and-ive-got-new-reading-game.html" target="_blank">Matching Game</a> - Write letters on several different sheets of paper. Use Play-Dough to create shapes and then ask your child to match each shape to the correct letter. Such as matching "Star" to "S". Have your child physically place each shape on the correct letter.</li>
<li><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4f4IV_S8KCOG1gyH9D9NMRu9xkH_SdjDGTydZbgQzpQuQtBpoBw__FJzO_mlwRA9beiioTMFeMyi53g6qoWWZFens1SaZrmrLt7_2njYzxrwPtTOs-wAs424V7nrm_lWe09NLNVbKNhQ/s1600/finished+playdough+game.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4f4IV_S8KCOG1gyH9D9NMRu9xkH_SdjDGTydZbgQzpQuQtBpoBw__FJzO_mlwRA9beiioTMFeMyi53g6qoWWZFens1SaZrmrLt7_2njYzxrwPtTOs-wAs424V7nrm_lWe09NLNVbKNhQ/s640/finished+playdough+game.jpg" width="640" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/09/abc-activity-using-dot-makers.html" target="_blank">ABC Activity Using Dot Markers</a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzEjiUfCWx7b-XH7stp5H4Rz2TgMeQjRfFSF790sz4YbNcYLvSOVOmelFaZledjU8-XWgskR92j9y-rKDsWxtWQldjNlngWKi_qBsrD7ZKTFrWoLUaZE-tw5Z9KmqdCpQdGU3GYpwYYI/s1600/preschooler+using+dotter+to+make+letters.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzEjiUfCWx7b-XH7stp5H4Rz2TgMeQjRfFSF790sz4YbNcYLvSOVOmelFaZledjU8-XWgskR92j9y-rKDsWxtWQldjNlngWKi_qBsrD7ZKTFrWoLUaZE-tw5Z9KmqdCpQdGU3GYpwYYI/s640/preschooler+using+dotter+to+make+letters.JPG" width="640" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/08/learning-letters-using-rocks.html" target="_blank">Rock Letters</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL_3HGRXDTXisCY2j_BLW0QPEmZ0Ns1mrJqm_TWonBP-RbLGEMGOcrn6jeq3VxGN3qh7x7A-3WP2eY7DyPSI1EWYI-7irdPUv9nAylNL_RBPRerkYWN1Kan4Ofe1u1TsR97HZ2UkzE7Y/s1600/rock+letters+with+letter+K.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQL_3HGRXDTXisCY2j_BLW0QPEmZ0Ns1mrJqm_TWonBP-RbLGEMGOcrn6jeq3VxGN3qh7x7A-3WP2eY7DyPSI1EWYI-7irdPUv9nAylNL_RBPRerkYWN1Kan4Ofe1u1TsR97HZ2UkzE7Y/s640/rock+letters+with+letter+K.JPG" width="640" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/08/using-sand-to-learn-letters-for-sensory.html" target="_blank">Hunting in sand for letters</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHazJPh_egSMQYvE1xl8Zi4cEg45gNtmY9mA3KGOX79LBLsLBGZmUowCHw3__7W5REIJIaKu1Wtye9D3XNTuAYgyGCEyb52z4vh-WMJvMq5bHUlNDGOA3CJeSy2s7TFrRP8_PJN_C46fQ/s1600/sand+letters.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="370" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHazJPh_egSMQYvE1xl8Zi4cEg45gNtmY9mA3KGOX79LBLsLBGZmUowCHw3__7W5REIJIaKu1Wtye9D3XNTuAYgyGCEyb52z4vh-WMJvMq5bHUlNDGOA3CJeSy2s7TFrRP8_PJN_C46fQ/s640/sand+letters.jpg" width="640" /></a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/07/fun-abc-activity-for-your-preschooler.html" target="_blank">Using glue and Christmas sprinkles for fun sensory letters and words</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/03/learning-letters-with-puff-paint.html" target="_blank">Letters with Home-Made Puff Paint</a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/03/learning-letters-with-puff-paint.html" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gip6ygsUgwOZgxtygJUnopJz5PCI1HwMywkBF-skE5UOJuECl6fxDicS40UvoD-j7ceQmMuuJiPaEdJ6HdEDp8ErCJUhfIy1nylDxgFuVmPtVqMgKUlVGSvvuPqWrgrY1bEP4Y99UKg/s1600/preschooler+writing+name+with+squeeze+paint.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="430" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_gip6ygsUgwOZgxtygJUnopJz5PCI1HwMywkBF-skE5UOJuECl6fxDicS40UvoD-j7ceQmMuuJiPaEdJ6HdEDp8ErCJUhfIy1nylDxgFuVmPtVqMgKUlVGSvvuPqWrgrY1bEP4Y99UKg/s640/preschooler+writing+name+with+squeeze+paint.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
</li>
<li>Play <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006ICAY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00006ICAY&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=OAWVTXKG4SI3DWD3%22%3EAlphabet%20Bingo%20Games%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00006ICAY%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E" target="_blank">Bingo</a>, either by making your own, or buy this cheap one from Amazon!</li>
<li><a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Ca%20href=%22http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NQQTXU8/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00NQQTXU8&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=RIUFMWOTAG24O6E4%22%3EScrabble%20Junior%20Game%3C/a%3E%3Cimg%20src=%22http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00NQQTXU8%22%20width=%221%22%20height=%221%22%20border=%220%22%20alt=%22%22%20style=%22border:none%20!important;%20margin:0px%20!important;%22%20/%3E" target="_blank">Play Scrabble Junior</a> - It's a lot more fun than than we thought it would be!</li>
<li>Do "Homework". Make letters on a page and have them circle each letter as you say it (This works especially well if kids have an older sibling and you can tell them they are doing "homework")<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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</li>
<li>Cut out objects from a magazine and spread them on the table. Tell your child to pick out every object that start with "s", and so on.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjephXTHXjyC01Pp7vwqelXjKxcty7S-Wkz7Dqg7CPCcboICM9_GrOPRqn9xxMs_RtqMGkOK_Y7uGo1m_twAO36QXsu0-TZ06ftqBwTbz649md4iD7K3IcX25RlR1tv_stbm2pb8A-Z1Rk/s1600/magazine+clippings.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjephXTHXjyC01Pp7vwqelXjKxcty7S-Wkz7Dqg7CPCcboICM9_GrOPRqn9xxMs_RtqMGkOK_Y7uGo1m_twAO36QXsu0-TZ06ftqBwTbz649md4iD7K3IcX25RlR1tv_stbm2pb8A-Z1Rk/s640/magazine+clippings.JPG" width="640" /></a></li>
<li>Letter Tree - Make a large tree and make sight words on "leaves". Have your child glue the sight words to the tree and let them hang it in their room so they can see it often.</li>
</ol>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-73954542754940245402015-06-30T07:49:00.000-07:002015-06-30T07:49:00.234-07:00The 10 things my kids say all day (every day)<center style="text-align: left;">
Well, it's 4th of July week and I'm guessing that most of you are off enjoying fireworks, BBQ, and sunshine. In honor of that, I will keep my post short this week, since you have far more important things to do.</center>
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I thought it would be fun to do a round up of the most common phrases I hear all day...I suspect they are similar to what you hear in your own house. Do me a favor, and tell me what are some things your kids say to you all day long too!</center>
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1. Please Mom, can I have just one more chance?</center>
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2. Please Mom, can't you wipe me just this once? I'll do it next time, I promise! </center>
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3. Mom, can you find me the bug jar? I found another roly-poly!</center>
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4. Mommy, I'm hungry! Can I have something to eat?</center>
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5. Please Mom, I PROMISE I won't do it again!</center>
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6. But Mom, he/she started it!</center>
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7. But Mom, why????</center>
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8. Can I play a game on your phone?</center>
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9. Just one more minute?</center>
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10. Mom, do I really have to take a rest today?</center>
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So, Happy 4th of July! I hope you have some wonderful family time! </center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-87882403180876210732015-06-25T05:50:00.000-07:002015-06-25T08:31:51.762-07:00Super Yummy Stuffed ZucchiniAs you might have read, after 10 years of struggling in the kitchen, <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2015/03/how-i-taught-myself-to-be-amazing-cook.html" target="_blank">I have finally turned things around</a>! And here is one of my husband's favorites!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBtBp7VVJhg5u3u5fsVheBmSE0SwNQqUQ8dsjv1AUq5YtgtCsKF2aHgm3A9IcD49Jr46gTcUJdVlg_yo00Un22YfHCdUDNMmSiAxqw4yk2BD92ZmLks7VJ6w4XoQdS6UXCiOtQwmQQpjs/s1600/Stuffed+Zuchini.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBtBp7VVJhg5u3u5fsVheBmSE0SwNQqUQ8dsjv1AUq5YtgtCsKF2aHgm3A9IcD49Jr46gTcUJdVlg_yo00Un22YfHCdUDNMmSiAxqw4yk2BD92ZmLks7VJ6w4XoQdS6UXCiOtQwmQQpjs/s640/Stuffed+Zuchini.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<b><u>Stuffed Zucchini</u></b><br />
2 or 3 Large Zucchini<br />
2 Tbsp butter<br />
1/4 cup chopped yellow onions<br />
4 slices Turkey Bacon (or regular, your choice)<br />
1/2 cup shredded cheese<br />
1/2 cup bread crumbs<br />
Dash of cayenne pepper (optional)<br />
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1. Set oven to 400<br />
2. Cut zucchini in half and scoop out zucchini flesh. I have tried this several ways. I tried using a melon-baller. I tried using a spoon. The best and fastest way is to use a steak knife and carefully cut out the flesh. Every other way is just too slow for me.<br />
3. Cook the bacon (I prefer microwave)<br />
4. Chop the flesh and place the shells into a 9x13 Pyrex, sprayed with Pam<br />
5. Melt the butter and add the zucchini. Cook for 3-5 minutes and add onions.<br />
6. Continue cooking for another few minutes, until tender.<br />
7. Meanwhile, cut up the bacon and tomato<br />
8. Add the bacon and tomato to the pan and cook for 1 minute<br />
9. Pour all ingredients in a bowl, along with bread crumbs, cheese, and a dash of cayenne pepper for a little extra zing (we like things spicy)<br />
10. Fill zucchini shells and cook uncovered for 8-10 minutes<br />
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Active time: 15 minutes<br />
Total time: 25 minutes<br />
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Tip: You can prepare this early in the day and cover with foil until you are ready to cook. I paired this with pork tenderloin and it was a great meal!<br />
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Totally unrelated to cooking, but here is my book! It is written by both a Mom (me) and a Teacher, and we give lots of ideas on ways to stimulate your child's brain with easy, fun activities, which also free you up to do things you need to do, like cooking!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-26724134607479536012015-06-23T08:00:00.000-07:002015-06-23T08:00:08.721-07:00Terrible Twos? It Could be Gut Bacteria!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDsfQpYxi52HpzS7eM9g8EDlI3xnHMQamVCPBz9tDebdC-yC7VvGIeejkYpNqjGzuXjIQwShr380iK3Zeihb9OGW0CmNYaWKISbEyzyiZEzQNOPX23UN-3FbaBKVDTuD9PeryQyI7D7F0/s1600/Terrible+Twos+or+gut+bacteria.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDsfQpYxi52HpzS7eM9g8EDlI3xnHMQamVCPBz9tDebdC-yC7VvGIeejkYpNqjGzuXjIQwShr380iK3Zeihb9OGW0CmNYaWKISbEyzyiZEzQNOPX23UN-3FbaBKVDTuD9PeryQyI7D7F0/s320/Terrible+Twos+or+gut+bacteria.jpg" width="233" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">People never used to believe me when I told them that my son cried all the time, but he really did. And I mean, All. The. Time. One time he wanted to play with one of my shoes. I politely took it away and he began throwing a fit. And he proceeded to throw a fit for 65 minutes. I know because I counted the minutes. He followed me around the house, crying for an entire 65 minutes. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">Several months later we went on a trip and we didn't have access to a refrigerator and in an attempt to save money, I ordered water instead of milk for the kids for several meals. All of a sudden, I noticed a different kid. He didn't cry all the time. He suddenly had normal, non-runny poops, and it began to occur to me that he might be lactose intolerant. My husband thought I was crazy, but when I brought it up with my doctor, he immediately recommended we get him tested and voila! We suddenly had to worry about Lactaid pills, butter-filled desserts, and pizza nights, but the great news was that life was so much better for our entire family! My heart broke for him when I realized how uncomfortable he must have been those first two years of his life. Along with taking away milk products, we started a daily Probiotic treatment and the combination made all the difference.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><br />
</span> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">While lactose intolerance is pretty rare in kids, general stomach discomfort isn't. Some new research just came out from <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/05/150527091438.htm" target="_blank">Ohio State University Center for Clinical and Translational Science</a>, </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">that the microbiome of a toddler's gut may affect his temperament and behavior, particularly in boys. The study carefully points out that there is a communication between bacteria in the gut and the brain, but also urges parents not to change diets just yet since they are continuing their research on the subject. However, based on my experience, if your toddler is going through anything like the "Terrible Two's", I suggest that you strongly consider starting Probiotics. It might make all the difference. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;"><br />
</span></span> <span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 20px;">Here is our favorite Probiotic Brand:</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I hope you will consider checking out my book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1620160102/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1620160102&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=QCDYEEZVOMICXQER">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1620160102" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" />. I give lots of ideas on keeping your toddlers and preschoolers entertained and engaged, so that you can have a stronger bond and even get some work done around the house!</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-49837115052791533102015-06-18T07:21:00.000-07:002015-06-18T07:21:00.058-07:00Confessions of a Mom at the Car WashIt's not my fault that my car looks the way it does. It really isn't. For that, I place full blame on the tiny humans that live in the back of my car.<br />
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We pulled up to the car wash the other day and I decided to give it the full treatment. I dragged out the incredibly powerful hose and began the grueling task that every Mom dreads: cleaning out the car. As I did, I began to fully grasp the seriousness of the situation. Crayons and popcorn were stuck in places that no one expected. I found items long ago forgotten: the portable dog bowl we've been looking for since Christmas, the Easter tie from two years ago. No matter how hard I tried, the dog hair just wouldn't budge. The stickers stayed stuck to the carpet, and I realized what I really needed was a power-washer for the INSIDE of my car.<br />
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Then it happened. I sucked up something and immediately I knew it was bad, just from the new sound coming from the hose, but the ear-piercing screaming is what really got my attention. My daughter was acting like someone had poked a hot syringe in her eyeball.<br />
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"What's wrong?" I asked frantically.<br />
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"My mask! You vacuumed up my Bat-Girl mask!!!"<br />
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The words sunk in and so many things came to my mind. First of all, the vacuum is strong enough to suck up an entire mask? Then why won't it get the rest of this stuff from my car? Second of all, OH NO!!! The beloved Bat-Girl Mask! What does a desperate Mom do, especially when it is clearly her fault?<br />
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I ran to the man behind the curtain and begged him to help. He began to dismantle the vacuum and we waited with baited breath. After several tense minutes he produced a dirty, bedraggled Bat-Girl mask. We were thrilled. I could have kissed him (And probably would have, but he was in high school and I didn't want him to report me to his parents).<br />
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I began to ponder why I even bother cleaning my car, when I know that within a day it's going to look like a homeless person lives there, and then it hit me: the indignity of a Mom in the car wash. There are few things in life as humiliating as cleaning out my car, but it's really not my fault. It's just life. And honestly, my car wasn't that clean before I had kids, but it wasn't this bad. I promise. <br />
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I hope you will consider buying my book! It is full of ways to keep your kids busy, out of trouble, and motivated to learn. The reviews on Amazon are great and I think you will love it! <br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-52260003957577402202015-06-15T11:49:00.000-07:002015-06-15T11:49:00.056-07:003 Amazing Novels for Moms to Read This Summer!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjICeqG39ECGO6R1-v1rzSrx_Z-7Q7i5Fx-eqcOPq9uxj-JWBgZYpPad3p9zj1qrADsX3_RdpLevlMT4dCPrclU7aLYaJAkJdNHrXyqLwnNF45XtLxx7nXnAprJOr36nF7oSl1Y9jBMZGQ/s1600/3+Amazing+Novels+for+Mom+to+Read+This+Summer.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjICeqG39ECGO6R1-v1rzSrx_Z-7Q7i5Fx-eqcOPq9uxj-JWBgZYpPad3p9zj1qrADsX3_RdpLevlMT4dCPrclU7aLYaJAkJdNHrXyqLwnNF45XtLxx7nXnAprJOr36nF7oSl1Y9jBMZGQ/s200/3+Amazing+Novels+for+Mom+to+Read+This+Summer.png" width="200" /></a></div>
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Did you know that when your kids see you read, it vastly encourages their love of reading? It is vitally important for kids to see you enjoying books as much as they do. </center>
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But forget my kids. Nothing makes <i>me</i> happier than finding a good book. I want to crave it. I want to wait impatiently for the end of the day so I can climb into bed and read. I want to literally have the urge to neglect my children all day long so I can read my book.</center>
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The problem is that it's really hard to find books that fit that description. Most of them are pretty good. Some are downright boring. So, I'm going to share with you three amazing books that you can read this summer. </center>
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1. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1476703574/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1476703574&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=YPSMDA6KRHVSX57I">The Midnight Rose: A Novel</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1476703574" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Lucinda Riley. </center>
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I pretty much love everything Ms. Riley has written, but this one is by far the best. It is one of those amazing multi-generational books that I love (think Thornbirds) and there is a mystery there as well. It is based mostly in England, but the main character hails from India so there is some amazing imagery as well from India, where the air is warm, the flowers are rich and colorful, and the people are loving. I don't know much about India, so it was fascinating to learn about India in the early 20th century. You will definitely want to stick your kids in front of the TV so you can read this one all day (not that I encourage that behavior, I just want to have the <i>urge</i> to do it).</center>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mommywit00-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=1476703574&asins=1476703574&linkId=TNGRYTLZVQ5HIJFY&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"><br />
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2. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007EECSFA/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007EECSFA&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=RGUDLGYDCIRAMIN5">The Secret Keeper: A Novel</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B007EECSFA" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> by Kate Morton</div>
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Again, I love this all this author's books, but this one is the best. The story takes place in England, before and during WWII. I'm beginning to feel that I don't want any more books about WWII, but this one is so unique that it's worth it. It has such an amazing twist (hence the name, Secret Keeper), that you will finish the book and feel so thrilled about what happened. The story starts out with a young girl witnessing her mother commit a murder. Laurel's mother was never caught. Laurel never tells anyone what she saw and life goes on. We then get to see flashbacks about Laurel's mother and she is such a warm, fun, and amazing Mom that we are puzzled as to how she could have killed anyone. You will love all the characters in this book and love helping Laurel solve the mystery of her mother's heinous crime.</div>
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="//ws-na.amazon-adsystem.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&OneJS=1&Operation=GetAdHtml&MarketPlace=US&source=ss&ref=ss_til&ad_type=product_link&tracking_id=mommywit00-20&marketplace=amazon&region=US&placement=B007EECSFA&asins=B007EECSFA&linkId=RKEY33MCF2T7I4MH&show_border=true&link_opens_in_new_window=true" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe></div>
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3. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FC10Y8/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000FC10Y8&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=HPNDDX5F33WHSEPF">The Bronze Horseman (The Bronze Horseman Trilogy Book 1)</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B000FC10Y8" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
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Did you know that many American families in the early nineteenth century loved the idea of communism? They loved it so much that many CHOSE to move to communist Russia and live in abject poverty, where most of them died. The Bronze Horseman is truly a love story (and an amazing one at that), but I also enjoyed learning all about a piece of Russian and American history that I never knew about before. Again, I craved this book all day long until I turned the last page.</div>
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Hopefully you enjoy these books as much as I do. Please let me know if you read them, and please comment and share what are some of your favorite books so I can look forward to neglecting my children all summer!</center>
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Also, please consider checking out my own book! You will find ideas on engaging your children and keeping them busy, co-written by an amazing Kindergarten Teacher! We give you lots of fun ideas on ways to work on fine motor skills, reading, math, science, and lots more. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008H04ZCY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008H04ZCY&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=42I22YW3UPDKYZDB">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B008H04ZCY" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; text-align: -webkit-center;" width="1" />. </center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-49440613660890656172015-06-11T08:00:00.000-07:002015-06-11T08:00:02.980-07:005 Absurd Things that Make Me Feel Guilty<center>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTPFYvYOHpA3LE_YYD4YxgbsdQpDrVpQHTb4o_P_U03PADTXF_cocd_i8lAi_fFE3fjgcy9-ZlU3kmDNwjsvUSRZB64p5atlU8MI7JDdfZXg4oAeUmx81XaRw9qoHXhIiO9YUGAcmAJA/s1600/5+Totally+Absurd+Things+That+Trigger+Mom+Guilt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfTPFYvYOHpA3LE_YYD4YxgbsdQpDrVpQHTb4o_P_U03PADTXF_cocd_i8lAi_fFE3fjgcy9-ZlU3kmDNwjsvUSRZB64p5atlU8MI7JDdfZXg4oAeUmx81XaRw9qoHXhIiO9YUGAcmAJA/s320/5+Totally+Absurd+Things+That+Trigger+Mom+Guilt.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Mom guilt is real. I thought for sure it would disappear once I quit working. It turns out I was wrong. I still have guilt, but now it's totally irrational. Here are 5 absurd things that make me feel guilty:</div>
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<li style="text-align: left;">Putting the kids to bed on time. I always hear these parents say, "I just couldn't bring myself to put them to bed because we were all having such a great time!" I'm sorry, but I NEVER feel remotely tempted to keep them awake. In fact, the prospect of some alone time with just "big kids" makes me feel giddy. And I feel guilty about that. </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Working on "home stuff". We are moving across the country later this summer and the other day I spent several hours researching moving company reviews on Yelp, Angies List, etc. The kids were perfectly happy with the activities I had given them, and yet I felt guilty for ignoring them for most of the morning. Yet, what is the alternative? I could NOT research moving companies and end up with half our stuff missing or broken during our move. Obviously that would be worse, right?</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Making them do chores. I know it's good for them. I don't want them to end up as entitled little brats, but sometimes when they're playing happily and peacefully together, it makes me feel so mean to interrupt them to do chores. Plus, they look so forlorn when I say they have to clean up their rooms before they can go outside and play. Yet, it's totally silly because of me because of course we need to feed the dog, clean up before Daddy gets home, and clean up rooms. And it has to happen sometime.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Not letting them eat Pop-Tarts and junk food. I got to eat junk food when I was a kid. Not a lot, but definitely more than I let my kids eat. They are 5 and 6 and just got to have the ice cream truck for the first time last week. I know rationally this is healthier for them, but sometimes I feel a little ounce of guilt for not letting them enjoy junk food more often.</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Not letting them go to Chuck-E-Cheese's. They beg me. And beg me. And beg me to go to Chuck-E-Cheese. And I don't let them, mostly because I can't face it. The germs, the noise, the food. I avoid the whole scene, and again, for that I feel guilty. </li>
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What about you? Do you struggle with Mom guilt? What are your triggers?</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-79595719022583251992015-06-09T05:55:00.000-07:002015-06-09T05:55:43.962-07:00How to Deal with (And Prevent) Nightmares<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg37QOGsjFNsI9YWjn2xT1ZtskIjMJjfvMG45lp4ocGD8f2GzSvxMPeqDRdVTLs6G3kulajCrbFcdENPWfjJgATdsUQECJGCWglvX9m98dB492IN4fdoaIqyV0-_jYrv7oTNMRpN-ge3mU/s1600/Struggling+with+Nightmares.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg37QOGsjFNsI9YWjn2xT1ZtskIjMJjfvMG45lp4ocGD8f2GzSvxMPeqDRdVTLs6G3kulajCrbFcdENPWfjJgATdsUQECJGCWglvX9m98dB492IN4fdoaIqyV0-_jYrv7oTNMRpN-ge3mU/s320/Struggling+with+Nightmares.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: 13.5pt;">My daughter used to have this
recurring dream where she was lost in the woods, being chased by someone she couldn't see and couldn't find her family. The poor little thing used to come in to our room, panting, crying, and wild-eyed. It was heartbreaking for her, but it was also heartbreaking for me
to lose sleep night after night. </span></div>
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On top of that, research shows that in kids, poor sleep at night leads to reduced ability
to function, difficulty modulating impulses, and difficulties focusing<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;"><span style="background: white; color: #3c464f; font-size: 13.5pt;">(<em style="box-sizing: border-box;">Seminars
in Pediatric Neurology</em>, Mar 1996). </span><span style="background: white; font-size: 13.5pt;">For my sake and for hers, I was desperate to find a solution.
Then one night, our babysitter came over and put my daughter to bed.
Apparently as they were going to bed, my daughter shared with the
babysitter that she was scared to go to sleep because she was afraid of having
her dream. It just so happened that my babysitter had struggled for years
with sleep problems and had a special trick for my daughter. She<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><b><i>changed the dream.</i></b>
She listened patiently while my daughter explained every detail, then the babysitter
changed it. Instead of being chased by someone she couldn't see, my babysitter explained
that she was really being based by a bunch of adorable fairies who were trying
to invite her to their party. They led her through the forest to an
amazing party with cupcakes, bounce houses, flying fairies, and of course, her
loving family waiting for her at the party. The transformation was
astounding. She NEVER had that dream again. I did a little research and there are actually psychologists out there who
maintain that changing dreams <a href="http://www.bettyphillipspsychology.com/id42.html" target="_blank">is a credible and recommended form of sleep therapy</a>.</span></span></div>
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Since then, my daugther is mostly cured of bad dreams, but she still struggle occasionally and now my son has begun to have them as well. Through my own research and trial and error, I have come up with a list of
ways we prevent and deal with bad dreams:</span></span></div>
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1. <b>Cuddle at night right before bedtime.</b> I try to minimize stimulation at this time (i.e. no books or TV). We just sit together calmly, and my daughter fully believes this will prevent bad dreams so she is content to just sit and cuddle. We have noticed that when we don't
do this, bad dreams often occur, so it has become a reliable strategy for us.<br />
2. <b>Changing the dream.</b> As I stated above, this works amazingly well
for us, even in the middle of the night. I try to listen carefully and
then help the kids "change the dream" so it doesn't become a
recurring one.<br />
3. <b>Flush the dream down the toilet.</b> Sometimes we playfully think of
the dream, stand above the toilet and use our pretend magic wand to transfer to
the toilet and flush it down so it won't ever come back.<br />
4. <b>Get more sleep.</b> We have noticed that when we go to bed late and
get up early (such as on a vacation), bad dreams occur more often, so we try to
get the kids in bed by 7:30 at the latest (they are 5 and 6 years old).</span><span style="font-size: 13.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">5. <b>When all else fails, let them sleep on your floor. </b> It isn't ideal, but if nothing is working, I keep some sheets and a blanked by my bed just in case and allow my kids to sleep there if they are really struggling. For me, it's much better than letting them sleep in my bed, because I want to minimize the time out of their bed and allowing them to sleep in my bed will likely make them want to try it again. Since we have perfected the above strategies, we only have to do this a few times per year, which is a big improvement from doing it nightly, which was our reality at one point.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Some kids never struggle with bad dreams and that is lucky for them. For others, like us, it can take over the family dynamic so it's important to get it under control, both for the sake of the kids and the parents.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-size: 13.5pt;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Please share with my any tips that you have for your families sleeping issues!</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 18px;"><span style="font-family: Trebuchet MS, sans-serif;">Also, Please consider checking out my book! We give lots of information for parents on keeping their young children busy with projects that stimulate the mind and keep the children out of trouble! </span></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-46286706996962172852015-06-02T11:00:00.000-07:002015-06-02T11:00:03.681-07:00Sight Word Fun - A Fishing Game!<center style="text-align: left;">
When my daughter was three, we played a really fun game for her birthday party. I fashioned a "fishing pole" out of some things we had around the house and then the kids got to "fish" for prizes. I got the idea from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005RRGB/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00005RRGB&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=4F4FKPTGH7IXVAXN">Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection)</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00005RRGB" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /> if you've ever seen that movie. </center>
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Anyway, I'm always looking for new fun ways to work on sight words, so I thought a fishing game would be just the thing!</center>
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Luckily we had a few fishing poles from the Dollar Store laying around the house, so I tied on a clothes pin, wrote some sight words on notecards and we were in business! My six year old went first, and my five year old was so interested that he ended up being the one to clip the notecards on for her. As an added bonus, this helps him with his finger strength and fine motor skills! Then we switched and my daughter clipped on the notecards for her brother.</center>
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After she clipped them on, he would "catch" the sight word.<br />
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Then he would read the sight word for us, and remove it from the clip and send his pole back in for more. Again, he is working on fine motor strength while he is doing this.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtb0-p1XvHxu810UwR7IFjWyn89T_c0L8nJMWjcGNU-mXo65AYCbE0kEJoc-YFi_J_7hc4khH_1CguV0o01X4NwmI1-OeWgs6iyrn2RBYCWK3tP2jMvam19pVmMwlTHviDzeJCdbEcz8/s1600/fishing+game+for+sight+words+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="472" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTtb0-p1XvHxu810UwR7IFjWyn89T_c0L8nJMWjcGNU-mXo65AYCbE0kEJoc-YFi_J_7hc4khH_1CguV0o01X4NwmI1-OeWgs6iyrn2RBYCWK3tP2jMvam19pVmMwlTHviDzeJCdbEcz8/s640/fishing+game+for+sight+words+3.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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For more ideas on engaging your children and keeping them busy, please consider buying my book, co-written by an amazing Kindergarten Teacher! We give you lots of fun ideas on ways to work on fine motor skills, reading, math, science, and lots more. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008H04ZCY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008H04ZCY&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=42I22YW3UPDKYZDB">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B008H04ZCY" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; text-align: -webkit-center;" width="1" />. </center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-89241866293233960952015-05-29T18:43:00.000-07:002015-05-29T18:43:51.810-07:00e-Book Sale: The Happy Mommy Handbook on Sale for only $0.99<center style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">The Happy Mommy Handbook </i><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">is on sale! </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">$0.99 (Instead of the normal price of $3.99) for 2 days now being offered through May 31. You can purchase the ebook from</span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008H04ZCY/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B008H04ZCY&linkCode=as2&tag=kinder044-20" style="background-color: white; color: #6699cc; line-height: 25px; text-decoration: none;"> Amazon</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">, </span><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-happy-mommy-handbook-katie-norris/1112022448?ean=9781620160107" style="background-color: white; color: #6699cc; line-height: 25px; text-decoration: none;">Barnes & Noble</a> <span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">and </span><a href="http://tinyurl.com/a73lv83" style="background-color: white; color: #6699cc; line-height: 25px; text-decoration: none;">Kobo</a><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 25px;">.</span></span></center>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">f you have been enjoying my blog, you'll love this book. We will inspire you to have more fun with your daily life with your kids. Yes, it's tough to stay patient with little kids, but I teamed up with Kindergarten Teacher, Susan Case, to give you ideas on how to keep your kids busy and also help them learn at the same time! Here are a few book reviews that you can find on Amazon that really explain it all:</span></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #111111; line-height: 19px;"><i>"I love this book and use it every rainy day with my two toddlers and we have so much fun! I also think that this book's activities are putting my two boys ahead of other children there age" ~ </i></span></span><span class="a-color-secondary" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px;">By</span><span class="a-letter-space" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; display: inline-block; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; width: 0.385em;"></span><a class="a-size-base a-link-normal author" href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/pdp/profile/A2AJQ24359T642/ref=cm_cr_pr_pdp?ie=UTF8" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #0066c0; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; outline-offset: -2px; outline: -webkit-focus-ring-color auto 5px; text-decoration: none;">Terri Horton-Vigil</a></center>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; line-height: 20px;"><i><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">"This book seriously saved my sanity. I've read a bunch of parenting books but this is literally the only one that actually gave me real and specific advice and ideas for things to do with my daughter. I'm a stay-at-home mom to a 2-year old and I was at my wits end trying to come up with ideas of fun, easy, creative things to do with her that will keep her busy and occupied and help her learn. I wasn't very good at following through on ideas that I heard about from friends or read in other books or online because they seemed too complicated (aka: messy!) but this book broke it down and made it so simple. I highly recommend it!" ~ by DD</span></i></span></center>
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<span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">I hope you'll check out this book...I would really appreciate your support and don't forget if you've read it, we can really use all the good book reviews we can get on Amazon and B&N! </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-52322257115543027082015-05-26T05:42:00.000-07:002015-05-26T05:42:37.954-07:00New Research: Parents Feel Guilty About Using Phones at PlayGrounds - But Should We?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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When my Mom was a kid, her Mom dropped her off for the entire weekend at the farm where they kept their horses. She was only ten years old. A few interesting facts about this:</center>
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1. The farm was thirty minutes from home</center>
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2. There was no phone at the farm in case of emergencies</center>
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3. There was no adult supervision whatsoever</center>
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4. At least ten other girls were also dropped off for the weekend, so it was basically like a big, dangerous slumber party.</center>
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Times have changed, and Moms would get arrested for this nowadays, but something powerful came out of those weekends at the farm...no one knows how to problem-solve like my Mom does. We call her "The Random Innovator". She is a perfect example of the fact that when we give kids time to explore and learn through play, they become amazing problem-solvers. In fact lately, there has been <a href="http://mobile.nytimes.com/2015/05/17/opinion/sunday/let-the-kids-learn-through-play.html?_r=1" target="_blank">lots of buzz including a recent NY Times article</a> about how kids learn much more through playing than they do through rigorous academics. </center>
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Now, fast-forward to our society, where parents are trapped in a prison of their own guilt. A new study from <a href="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/05/150518160922.htm#.VVyC_0dGUxw.mailto" target="_blank">The University of Washington </a>found that the majority of parents feel they shouldn't even look at their phones while their kids are playing at the park. According to the survey, 44% of parents say they know they shouldn't use their phones, but they can't help themselves and then they feel guilty about it later. Another 28% say they know they shouldn't use their phones and they follow through and keep their phones away. The article implies that these are the "good parents", since they managed to have their eyes locked on their children at all times. But has anyone stopped to wonder what are we teaching kids when we feel we must watch them at all times? We are teaching them that they are the center of the universe and no one else matters. We are teaching them it's not okay for Moms and Dads to have lives outside their children. We are teaching them that we don't trust them to play safely without our supervision. </center>
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Of course it's great that we don't leave our children alone at random farms anymore and it's admirable to try not to be glued to your phone when you're supposed to be spending quality time with your kids, but have we gone too far? The study also reports that many of the parents who used their phones at the park were using it to email photos to Grandma. And yet they felt guilty about it. Why is that such a crime?</center>
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I say maybe we find a happy medium. Let's just calmly explain that we are taking a minute to use our phone to email photos to Grandma. The kids will understand. Let's not rush over and get our hands ready to catch them when they start climbing the monkey bars. Let's show them we trust them to learn things by themselves. Let's take time to read books we like and not feel guilty about it. Who knows, maybe they will find a way to amuse themselves. Let's feel free to pay bills for thirty minutes and face the fact that we can't spend every second of every day making Pinterest-worthy crafts with the kids. </center>
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Instead of feeling guilty, let's just smile lovingly when they tell us to watch them for the twentieth time doing the Monkey Bars. Then we can go back to reading our book at the park so that our kids can also learn to become "Random Innovators" without us hovering over them every second of every day.</center>
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Please also check out my book! It is a wonderful resource for Moms, and was co-written with both a teacher and a Mom perspective. Here is a few review that you can find on Amazon:</div>
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<i style="color: #111111; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 19px; text-align: start;">"This book seriously saved my sanity. I've read a bunch of parenting books but this is literally the only one that actually gave me real and specific advice and ideas for things to do with my daughter. I'm a stay-at-home mom to a 2-year old and I was at my wits end trying to come up with ideas of fun, easy, creative things to do with her that will keep her busy and occupied and help her learn. I wasn't very good at following through on ideas that I heard about from friends or read in other books or online because they seemed too complicated (aka: messy!) but this book broke it down and made it so simple. I highly recommend it!"</i></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-34780370550921717922015-05-20T08:15:00.000-07:002015-05-20T13:21:34.674-07:00Finger Strength Activities for Preparing for Kindergarten<center style="text-align: left;">
My little Buddy will be entering Kindergarten next year and with an April birthday, he will be one of the youngest. I've never been a huge fan of drilling them with flashcards, as I believe they learn much more valuable skills through playing, but with Kindergarten around the corner I have decided I need to make sure he at least knows his letters and can hold a pencil correctly.</center>
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When I finally sat down to assess what he knew, I was a bit dismayed to realized that he didn't quite know all his letters and his pencil grip was a little lacking as well. I decided to start working on his finger strength. Kids can't hold the pencil correctly unless their fingers are strong enough.</center>
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First, we used push pins to improve strength. Make sure you supervise this activity, as these pins are sharp, but I find at ages 4 and 5 they are perfectly capable of handling this.</center>
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First, start out with a pin cushion and be sure to place the pins on the left and the cushion on the right to simulate reading and writing from left to right. Then instruct your child to make a pattern with the pins.</center>
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Just look at that great pinching grasp! That's exactly what I've been wanting him to do with his pencil!</center>
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He had a great time with the pins and once we finished that I got out the tweezers and our colored poms. Again, I organized this activity to go from left to right and he had to pinch the tweezers and move all the poms from the left tin to the right one.<br />
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Again that correct pinching motion was at work!<br />
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A few days later, we did a coin drop into a coffee cup. An empty salt container works great for this too.<br />
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I hadn't planned to have him work on writing at that point, but he really wanted to (probably since we were getting ready to go to bed and this was delaying it), so I worked on letters with him for a few minutes and I could already see him grip improving. Still not perfect, but much better!</center>
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For more ideas on working on finger strength and preparing for Kindergarten, please check out my book <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1620160102/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1620160102&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=SGYYPWNMPVE3HWNQ">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=1620160102" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /></center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-55793667377966827832015-05-15T09:57:00.002-07:002015-05-15T14:04:48.265-07:00Year One as a Stay Home Mom Was Much Harder Than I Thought It Would Be<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Some of you may know that about a year ago, I became a full time stay-at-home Mom. I quit my six figure salary job selling multi-million dollar pieces of medical equipment to hospital executives. It has been quite a transition, and I'm sorry I didn't write about it on my blog. The truth is that it was harder than I thought it was going to be and I couldn't bring myself to document what I perceived as my failure. I was failing at being a stay at home Mom. </center>
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The first month I went through a honeymoon period. We went to the pool all the time, and I would sit in the sun and think, "Ahh, I love this! I love not have to answer emails from customers and rush home for conference calls. I love watching them enjoy their day and I love not having massive guilt every time I leave them with the nanny."</center>
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But then we made a cross-country move, away from all friends and family and things started to change. I began to crave time away from the kids during the day. I began to resent doing two loads of laundry every day. I began to feel the steam come out of my ears as they fought over the stupid stuffed dog from Christmas that no one has played with in eight months. I missed my big business deals and the sense of accomplishment that went with them. I even missed getting dressed up for work.</center>
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By mid-year I was full-on depressed. The weather was crummy, the kids were driving me crazy, my husband was working all the time, and I began to fantasize about going back to work. But then something amazing happened. </center>
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I had to drive 8 hours by myself with the kids to visit family, and I happened to turn on the Dr. Laura show. She was having a special on stay at home Moms. Her views on it are pretty severe (she thinks leaving your kids with nannies or daycare is child neglect), but I started to cry when I really let her message set in. Being home with my kids is the most important thing I will ever do in my life. While it's hard, it's SO important to their happiness. I can nurture their self-esteem, I can give them a happy, warm house where they (and their Dad) feel loved. I alone can do this. In fact, it's my job to do this and doing laundry isn't a waste of time. Picking up dog poop in the yard isn't a waste of time. Teaching my kids to do chores and clean up their rooms isn't a waste of time. It's all part of their journey, and mine, to create amazing kids and an amazing life. </center>
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After this, things began to shift again. I embraced cooking so our house could be filled with yummy smells. I embraced getting down on the floor with the kids, even when it was the last thing I wanted to do. Especially when it was the last thing I wanted to do. I made a New Year's Resolution to play more games with my kids. I learned that when they kids are fighting with each other and I want to scream or run out the door, that taking deep breaths and saying, "Thank you God for my healthy children. Thanks for letting them fight and kick each other instead of being in the hospital with leukemia like my cousin was at age 5." That might sound extreme to you, but it really helped me. Once I remembered how lucky I was to have two healthy kids, they didn't seem to irritate me so much.</center>
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I learned that sometimes when you want more alone time, what you really need is less alone time, because you really need to give in to being a Mom. You need to give in to tickling and chasing and singing songs and laughing when they laugh. It helps fill that void because I know I'm doing my job. Every time I laugh at their jokes, I'm contributing to their happiness and self-esteem. Every time I patiently wait while they do something for the first time and allow them to fail, I'm teaching them to survive in a world without me. Every time I cook a yummy meal for my husband, I'm doing my job. Every time I listen to him talk about his day, I'm creating a warm, loving house for him.</center>
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Most of all though, I learned that I was meant to have this time with my kids. I still crave my old job sometimes and I may go back someday, but I know that God led me down this path for a reason. My kids needed me and I needed them. Every day isn't perfect, but I remember to give thanks whenever I am least thankful, and I do my best to remember that and try not to scream every time my daughter shoves my son's face into the carpet and he starts crying. Because that's what moms do. We defy all odds by not putting our children up for adoption when they pester each other to death day in and day out.</center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-11195617538207693272015-05-11T11:32:00.000-07:002015-05-11T11:32:00.496-07:00Sight Word Fun With an Easter Egg Hunt<center style="text-align: left;">
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My daughter's Kindergarten teacher asked that we begin a daily review of the sight words they have learned this year. This seems a bit daunting, seeing as how I can barely get her to read 15 minutes per day. So, I have been brain-storming on ways to make it fun for her. I decided to make an egg hunt out of it! I got out the list the teacher game us and wrote the sight words on about 15 small note cards, then put them inside left-over Easter eggs. I hid them while the kids shut their eyes and then they scurried around looking for the eggs, just like it was Easter morning!<br />
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After every egg she opened, she shouted out the sight word and was so pleased with herself.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_UygNeMg89ib0S9bgP1m4c83eI_bz81pNUyQtmmhB-VHXqhGumEd49m-DL5aYEz2DVAIY5guhxDF9ItOz5L-rlSyWIFjXGB786UbJdnJe3SlN78HMOkcf3r-RXL0FpBwrYhnsQTaucE4/s1600/Sight+word+hunt+1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_UygNeMg89ib0S9bgP1m4c83eI_bz81pNUyQtmmhB-VHXqhGumEd49m-DL5aYEz2DVAIY5guhxDF9ItOz5L-rlSyWIFjXGB786UbJdnJe3SlN78HMOkcf3r-RXL0FpBwrYhnsQTaucE4/s640/Sight+word+hunt+1.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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As a bonus, they had so much fun that afterwards they took turns hiding the empty eggs for each other and this kept them busy for almost an hour. As I have noticed so many times in the past, once I put in 20-30 minutes of quality time with them, they will happily find things to do for at least double that time, leaving me free to cook, clean, or read a favorite book (yeah right, like that ever happens!)<br />
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For more ideas on engaging your children and keeping them busy, please consider buying my book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008H04ZCY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008H04ZCY&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=42I22YW3UPDKYZDB" style="text-align: -webkit-center;">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B008H04ZCY" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; text-align: -webkit-center;" width="1" />. It is full of ideas on entertaining your toddler while also teaching them about math, science, letters, and nurturing their natural curiosity!<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-27520062394472972092015-05-05T08:30:00.000-07:002015-05-05T08:30:00.834-07:00Math Practice with Counting Bears<center style="text-align: left;">
We love our counting bears. We've been using them <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/02/how-to-start-developing-math-skills-in.html" target="_blank">since the kids were only two years old</a>. Back then, we simply sorted them into the cups for math "practice". Now, my son just turned five and will be in Kindergarten next year and my daughter will be in first grade so we have changed how we play with them, but they are still a favorite. </center>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Pre-Kindergarten Math Practice</span></b></center>
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Last night, we all played with the bears together and here is what we did. For my son, we kept things pretty basic. His job was to count the number of bears we had for each color and then write the number. As you can see, he tended to turn the numbers backwards, <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2012/03/learning-letters-with-puff-paint.html" target="_blank">which is very common for his age.</a> When he turned them backward, I had him practice a few extra ones of that particular number. At the end, he even added the colors together:</center>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><b>Kindergarten Math Practice</b></span></center>
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For my daughter, who is already in Kindergarten, we got a little more advanced. Her school doesn't give them homework yet, so she welcomed this fun little game with our favorite bears. I gave her a worksheet to complete, but she also had a pile of bears, and if she needed to, she could use the bears to help her complete her worksheet and figure out the problems.</center>
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They both had a great time, and these bears were one of the best purchases I ever made! (Please note I have no affiliation with this company and wasn't paid for this post, I just really do like them!)</center>
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<br />For more ideas on activities to do with your kids, please check out my book! Here is one of the reviews on Amazon:</center>
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'century gothic', arial, verdana; font-size: 16.25px;">"This book seriously saved my sanity. I've read a bunch of parenting books but this is literally the only one that actually gave me real and specific advice and ideas for things to do with my daughter. I'm a stay-at-home mom to a 2-year old and I was at my wits end trying to come up with ideas of fun, easy, creative things to do with her that will keep her busy and occupied and help her learn. I wasn't very good at following through on ideas that I heard about from friends or read in other books or online because they seemed too complicated (aka: messy!) but this book broke it down and made it so simple. I highly recommend it!" </i><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-26861991497947437562015-04-27T12:10:00.000-07:002015-04-27T12:10:38.218-07:00Easy Home-Made Play-Do Recipe<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
This is one of our favorite activities for play-dates or even Saturday mornings with Dad. The kids love picking their Kool-Aid flavor, and the finished product smells super yummy! Enjoy!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-83005181745717952522015-03-11T13:29:00.000-07:002015-06-11T12:55:29.805-07:00How I Taught Myself to Be an Amazing Cook<center style="text-align: left;">
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If you read my previous post, <a href="http://www.mommywithselectivememory.com/2013/09/confessions-of-kitchen-challenged-mommy.html" target="_blank">Confessions of a Kitchen-Challenged Mom</a>, you have seen my struggles in the kitchen. I just couldn't seem to get anything right, no matter how hard I tried. I'm happy to report that things have changed. Big time. </center>
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I became a stay-at-home Mom about a year ago, and I decided that I was going to learn how to cook if it killed me. And I did! My husband says he now truly looks forward to coming home so he can see what we're having for dinner. He brags about my cooking to family and friends. And the kids have proclaimed me to be the best cook in the world! Of course, I still have the disaster here and there. I made pot roast a few weeks ago and my husband almost choked on it and said his gums were sore afterward because it was so hard to chew. But overall, things have improved and here is how I turned things around:</center>
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<li>I scour over every recipe. I read it several times before I attempt it so that I don't realize half-way into it that I should have been marinating something hours ago (this used to be a problem)</li>
<li>I am always on the lookout for good recipes. I click on links people post on FB, I search online forums like AllRecipes, I joined a recipe subscription site called <a href="http://www.thescramble.com/" target="_blank">The Scramble</a>.</li>
<li>I throw out the recipes we didn't like so I don't forget and accidentally try to make them again.</li>
<li>I got the dog out of the kitchen while I'm cooking. I used to trip over her constantly and felt bad locking her up, but now she's not allowed in there and it makes it much more fun to be in the kitchen.</li>
<li>I embraced spices. I used to just leave them out, thinking they didn't matter. They do! And I love the spices from Penzey, they can make the entire difference between a blah meal and an amazing one.</li>
<li>I finally realized the real key is finding things <i><b>I</b></i> want to eat. This sounds simple, but I truly used to find what looked the easiest, the fastest, or what my husband would like. Now I look for ingredients that I enjoy, and even if it takes 15 minutes longer, it's worth it.</li>
<li>I try not to make anything I find online unless I can see reviews for it. If the reviews are so/so, it usually comes out that way. If the reviews are great, it usually is. I also read the comments after any recipe, for tips and tricks on improving it to suit our tastes.</li>
<li>I do preparation before dinner, such as cutting vegetables, putting sauces together, etc., so that my life is easier at mealtimes. That way, I can still enjoy family time but make a great meal too.</li>
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I hope these simple tricks have helped you! Trust me, if I can improve, you can too!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-47589031338252280782015-03-03T15:32:00.001-08:002015-04-29T05:58:33.839-07:005 Great Books to Motivate Kindergarteners to Love Reading<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBM9rs4VWohmCyxcGDr43yy3gDs-6ba1HqW6qQk0cynGHGk7UZV1MlfgGJXHu6TA4-epOmg-_3XV2w3mXTvl7F-3g4FKCZKTVBAPfjXprNDD16Slj4iHgFOZqhmiG_4tRMtoNqoL9ukBw/s1600/5+Chapter+Books+Your+Kindergartener+Will+Love.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBM9rs4VWohmCyxcGDr43yy3gDs-6ba1HqW6qQk0cynGHGk7UZV1MlfgGJXHu6TA4-epOmg-_3XV2w3mXTvl7F-3g4FKCZKTVBAPfjXprNDD16Slj4iHgFOZqhmiG_4tRMtoNqoL9ukBw/s1600/5+Chapter+Books+Your+Kindergartener+Will+Love.jpg" height="320" width="320" /></a></div>
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There are some really good books for kids out there...and there are some really awful ones. We went through a streak where everything we got from the library was just terrible. The kids and I were rapidly losing our enthusiasm for reading until one day it occurred to me that I should read them books that I would actually enjoy. It felt like they weren't quite old enough for chapter books at ages 6 and 4, but I began doing some research and I learned that reading chapter books:<br />
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<li>Enhances vocabulary in an extraordinary way</li>
<li>Models fluency from listening to a proficient reader</li>
<li>Develops listening skills</li>
<li>Enhances bonding</li>
<li>Most of all, chapter books MAKE CHILDREN LOVE READING</li>
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I found the last point to be especially true. My kids are literally begging me to read to them morning, noon and night. They get sad when we finish a book they love, and we have had some incredibly rich conversations as a result of reading. We pull out the globe when the book refers to a different country, we talk about what words mean, and why characters do the things they do. I have tried to read books that also have movies so that we can make a movie night of it after we are finished with the book, which is also fun and motivating to the kids. </div>
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The following is a list of some of our favorite chapter books. It is important to find books that will be interesting to kids, but keep an eye out for books that aren't too advanced or they will lose interest:</div>
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1. This was our first chapter book. There are actually dozens of these books, and they are all written for young children. They often have a bit of a mystery and the kids find them very easy to follow. </div>
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2. This was a very fun book, with a wild and imaginative story. It was also very short, so it is a great pick for a beginner chapter book.<br />
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3. This book has a very fun story and the kids were really rooting for the characters. It gave us lots of rich context to discuss, with the Indian and the Cowboy slant. In addition, it is a fun movie!<br />
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4. This book captivated my kids. In addition, there are some great lessons in morality here that can be discussed, and of course, a it is a great movie for kids as well.<br />
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5. Lastly, Harry Potter is and probably always will be the favorite. We haven't venture to watch the movie yet, as I am afraid of nightmares, but the kids LOVED the book and were so sad when it ended. There are so many characters that it did take awhile for them to get everyone straight, but it was a great lesson in listening skills.<br />
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For more ideas on helping your children love reading, and activities with kids, please check out my book! Here is one Amazon review:<br />
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<i style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'century gothic', arial, verdana; font-size: 16.25px;">"This book seriously saved my sanity. I've read a bunch of parenting books but this is literally the only one that actually gave me real and specific advice and ideas for things to do with my daughter. I'm a stay-at-home mom to a 2-year old and I was at my wits end trying to come up with ideas of fun, easy, creative things to do with her that will keep her busy and occupied and help her learn. I wasn't very good at following through on ideas that I heard about from friends or read in other books or online because they seemed too complicated (aka: messy!) but this book broke it down and made it so simple. I highly recommend it!" </i><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6481818368610489829.post-10438598513680996302014-10-20T14:08:00.002-07:002014-10-20T19:56:50.245-07:00Geocaching and More! 3 Ways to Get the Kids Outside to Enjoy Nature<center style="text-align: left;">
When we first moved to the mountains, I sort of pictured us living in <i><b>The Sound of Music</b></i>. I thought my kids would scamper outside and pick leaves and twigs off the ground while singing a heart-warming tune.</center>
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The reality is that I have to drag the kids on hikes like a couple of teen-agers (even though they're 4 and 6). They get tired, they get hungry, and they get bored. My husband and I, on the other hand, love to hike and be outside, but we have found a few ways to get them to enjoy nature:</center>
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1. Geocaching. Have you ever heard of this? It's basically like a free scavenger hunt, and you can do it anywhere in the world. There are lots of ways to do it, but the best is to download the App from the popular site, <a href="http://www.geocaching.com/">www.geocaching.com</a>. Then on your phone, you can "Find Nearby Geocaches" and it will show you all the treasures that have been hidden close to wherever you are. You just use your phone to find the GPS coordinates and you will find a little box with hidden treasures! The kids absolutely loved this. They got to hold the phone and watch as our dot got closer to our treasure (It's very similar to using GPS for driving directions). We eventually found the box (look where my hand is reaching, you can see a little box hidden inside the logs), and inside is a little notebook where you can record that you were there and found it, to really give the kids a sense of accomplishment. Sometimes there are even little toys in them, so be sure to bring a few cheap pencils or bracelets so you can "get one and give one" to the cache community. The best part about this??? It's free!! (Other than the $10 app)</center>
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2. Scavenger Hunt. I made up a simple page and printed them out for each kid. I gave them clipboards and pens and they had so much fun searching for all the things on the page. I used Microsoft Word Clip Art and found photos of everything for their hunt.</center>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfl7v6P-0nKmbrD_QL1gY5SFzmqz7vRPgdp5Yth45OdTGl8R31fPJ-_I8jIN7cNAxt4HtuzTjdUXy5TqZE2pWCpCg4iF-B_KccPVS0pPE-A0Br-puxU6_akyHPxQheuI8jjApb0Z9D49E/s1600/Scavenger+hunt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfl7v6P-0nKmbrD_QL1gY5SFzmqz7vRPgdp5Yth45OdTGl8R31fPJ-_I8jIN7cNAxt4HtuzTjdUXy5TqZE2pWCpCg4iF-B_KccPVS0pPE-A0Br-puxU6_akyHPxQheuI8jjApb0Z9D49E/s1600/Scavenger+hunt.jpg" height="640" width="480" /></a></div>
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3. Lastly, our latest obsession is Dino Dan. Dinosaurs are fascinating to them, so one hike we livened things up by pretending we were finding dinosaur teeth, bones, etc. Every time they found one, we would exclaim how exciting it was that they found a T-Rex tooth! We let them bring little bags to collect their treasures and it was even a little educational.</center>
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I hope you and your family can enjoy some of these fun outdoor adventures too!</center>
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For more ideas on engaging your children and keeping them busy, please consider buying my book, co-written by an amazing Kindergarten Teacher! <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008H04ZCY/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B008H04ZCY&linkCode=as2&tag=mommywit00-20&linkId=42I22YW3UPDKYZDB" style="text-align: -webkit-center;">The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble and Motivated to Learn</a><img alt="" border="0" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=mommywit00-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B008H04ZCY" height="1" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important; text-align: -webkit-center;" width="1" />. </center>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04352845939412218638noreply@blogger.com2