Preschool Activity Ideas | Toddler Activity Ideas

Thursday, December 29, 2011

How to Get 20 minutes of Free Time With This Fine Motor Activity

How to Improve Fine Motor Skills in Your Preschoolers and Get 20 Minutes of Free Time!

Sometimes we Moms just need 20 minutes of peace to do the dishes without someone climbing on the dishwasher door and/or pulling out clean steak knives. I have devoted myself to finding activities that my kids can do that will keep them busy for awhile. In the spirit of sharing my ideas, I have put together a video tutorial on one of my favorite indoor activities and also included some written instructions below. This project is absolutely perfect for enhancing fine motor skills and even working on colors so the next time you need some free time, don't turn on the TV or the iPad, try this instead. The video will tell you everything you need for this project, but you probably already have most of the supplies at home. I will be featuring other projects in the future, but keep in mind this particular project is probably best for children aged three to three and half since there are sharp pins involved. Here's to peaceful (and safe) dishwashing!

First you will start with a standard pin cushion, normally used for sewing and some long push pins with a large head:

easy game for kids, push pins, fine motor for preschoolers

Next you will need either a Parmesan shaker, or if you can't find one of those, get creative. I couldn't find one, so I bought a strainer at the dollar store and used the Cheerios cup:

Then you will give your young child the pin cushion and show her what to do. The first time we played this game, she emptied out all the pins three different times for a total of over 30 minutes!

If you enjoyed this post, you will love our book! Susan and I teamed up and released The Happy Mommy Handbook: The Ultimate How-to Guide on Keeping Your Toddlers and Preschoolers Busy, Out of Trouble, and Motivated to Learn in July, 2012. If you have ever tried to cook dinner while your kid clings to your leg and cries, this is the book for you! As we did above, we give you a Mom's point of view and a teacher's point of view, so that you can do activities that not only keep the kids busy, but also keep them motivated to learn and develop their natural curiosity. Kids behave better when they are given challenging projects to work on, which will in turn give you more free time to do the things you really need to do, like washing dishes, paying bills, and relaxing so that you can be a better Mom!

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Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Holiday Stomach Flu can actually come FROM Poor Food Handling

Facebook is a fun way to get updates on all things Christmas. This year was painful though because I swear every third post was about the stomach flu. The real blow came when my cousins started posting the day after Christmas (my birthday) about how they were sick with stomach flu. Why was this so upsetting? Because we spent Christmas night with my cousins. Wonderful. Now every time my stomach rumbles I can't help but think...Tick Tock, Tick Tock. When will we get it???

This really got me to thinking about stomach flu during Christmas. When I was growing up, we often woke up Christmas morning sick with the "stomach flu". It's just one day of the year, why would it be so common for stomach flu to hit on this particular day?

Even when it's not Christmas, I'm a bit of a freak about stomach flu. Okay, I'm a little crazy actually. Sometimes I have to physically restrain myself from interrogating our playmates with questions like, Have you or your kids been sick recently? Have you been AROUND anyone who was sick? No? Well then by all means, welcome to my home! As you can imagine, it's not a great way to make friends so I do my best to restrain myself.

I've been doing some research and I've found that stomach flu at Christmas time probably isn't a coincidence. It turns out that "stomach flu" is often masked for food poisoning. In fact, 1 out of every 3 cases of "stomach flu" is actually food poisoning and cases of food-bourne illness go up drastically during the Holiday Season because we amateurs don't know the rules of food preparation. We leave food sitting out while we wait for everyone to arrive. We have a party that lasts for several hours and we far exceed the two hour rule, which is how long food experts recommend food can stay unrefrigerated.

Here are some facts to keep you awake at night:

1. Purrell doesn't kill stomach flu. Hand-washing can get rid of it and wash it down the drain but doesn't totally kill it. I know what you're thinking because I thought the same thing. Why don't you just rain on my parade? Every time I take the kids to the mall I douse them in Purrell and call it good. That's not enough?
2. Stomach flu is frequently CAUSED by poor food preparation. Poor food handling can cause the norovirus, which presents as stomach flu. Unfortunately, the norovirus is contagious and incidents of this virus sharply increase during summer picnics and Winter Holiday Season, due to POOR FOOD PREPARATION. It's not a coincidence.
3. Someone who had the stomach flu is contagious up to three days after they start feeling better . You can't send kids back to school or daycare the same day they stop throwing up. They will get everyone sick.

However I was actually a bit relieved by these finding because at least we can actively work to prevent stomach flu during the Holidays. For example, my Aunt makes an amazing beef tenderloin on Christmas Eve. Luckily she has worked in restaurants for years and she literally uses a plastic glove to prepare the meat. This would probably seem odd to most people and I doubt this is a common practice in most family meals, but I'm so glad she does! We can prevent the norovirus (stomach flu) and that's very good news to a freak like me!

So, I make a plea on behalf of everyone who hates to vomit, which is probably the entire civilized world. Let's make a pact. If your know your family is sick, don't take your kids anywhere. Don't take them to school. Don't take them to Mother's Day Out. Don't take them to the mall the second they start feeling better. Stay home and get well and disinfect. I know it's tempting, believe me. When your kid is cranky sometimes getting them out of the house is pure luxury, but please don't. It's just not worth it.

PS...In defense of my cousins, they didn't know they had stomach flu on Christmas and it turns out they got it from another family, not from food. Much to my relief we all made it through the night without any symptoms so hopefully we're in the clear since it's already December 28th. Fingers crossed!!

Monday, December 26, 2011

How to Get Crayon Out of the Dryer: The Winner of the Blue Ribbon Blog Contest

Merry Christmas to everyone! First things first, I want to announce the winner of the Blue Ribbon Blog Contest for the Winter 2011. Competition was pretty fierce and I was impressed again by how many people participated and the quality of the posts that were sent in. The criteria called for posts that really shared something helpful and informative and I selected the winner...She is Melanie from Adventures in Frugalness She taught me about getting crayon out of the dryer and that is something EVERY mom will need to know at some point, so I suggest we all pin this on Pinterest!! The runner-up is Tessa from The Diary of a Working Mother. Her post is about feeding her little guy and it's something I hope every parent will read at some point because it really makes you think. I look forward to the next contest in the Spring. Until then, Happy Blogging Everyone!!

Melanie's Bio
Hey there everyone.

I am so happy to be featured here at A Mommy With A Selective Memory, and honored to be the recipient of her awesome Blue Ribbon Blog Award.

My name is Melanie.

I am the co-creator or 4 rambunctious boys, a SAHM (to those aforementioned boys), a long-winded author of way too many blogs...one of which is named Adventures in Frugalness (he he he), and a plethora of many other things.

I started Testosterone Overload, just over four years ago, as a way to keep in touch with family and post pictures of my boys (only 3 then). Besides the addition of one more XY, Testosterone Overload has definitely evolved from where it started.

I've learned through the years that in order to keep up with my "brood of manliness" I have to A. keep the pantry shelves stocked at all times (I "coupon"...well, sometimes) B. know how to repair anything (especially clothing) with, and sometimes without, duct tape and C. find ways to save money on just about every other aspect of "in-home engineering" you can think of, in order to keep a roof over our heads.

I have lovingly dub these money (and/or life) saving ideas, my "Adventures in Frugalness". It just so happens that the post I submitted for the MWASM's Blue Ribbon Blog Contest just happened to be one of them. It may not have saved me money...or saved my life...but hopefully, because of my research, it can do both for you (if you ever find yourself in a similar situation).

So, without further ado...

Melanie's winning blog post

HOW TO: GET MELTED CRAYON OUT OF CLOTHES First of all...let me say that if you are searching out this topic because you have a similar problem...I am sorry. Very sorry. Now...where to begin. Well...if you recall, last week I was having a peaceful, stress-less morning until I opened up the dryer and found black crayon melted all over an entire extra large load of laundry (see Help! I need you....Crayon vs Dryer). JUST GREAT! A part of me...a very LARGE part of me...wanted to just condemn the clothing and chuck 'em. But...unfortunately, the more logical and frugal side of me won out. I decided to try and clean them. (Boo!) It's not like I have all the time and money in the world. I needed something quick and cheap but also wanted to give you, my readers, a true test of options. So with that in mind, I tried a few different methods (adapted from Crayola.com, this blog, and my own intellect), modifying them as I saw fit, and am here to give you my recommendations/solutions. For cleaning the dryer drum- I put a few rags in the dryer and turned it on for a few minutes to warm the wax back up. I then sprayed it with Pro-Tek (a non-toxic all purpose cleaner--safe for fabric) and wiped every inch of the drum clean (Crayola.com recommends using WD-40...my opinion...see below). I then placed a few clean white rags in the drum and ran it again for a few minutes to test for cleanliness. It worked. Everything came out clean. Also recommended...drying a load of dark clothing (if your crayon was dark) before anything else...."just in case". After the rags I dried a load of old sheets and towels. Worked for me. Whatever you do...just make sure the drum in clean. You don't want MORE crayon in fabric on your hands. I'm confident that almost any cleaner would work for this step. At least any cleaner with any sort of degreasing abilities. For the clothes- I tried a lot of different cleaners and methods. Here's what I recommend. #1 Fill washer tub with HOT water. Add 1 to 1-1/2 cup(s) "Homemade Laundry Detergent" concentrate (or whatever detergent you have on hand) and a capful of Clorox 2. Add clothes. Wash on REGULAR (not casual or delicate) for 3-5 minutes to distribute the soap/color safe bleach throughout. Then stop the washer and let the clothes sit for 20-60 minutes before continuing the wash cycle. Be sure to use the longest wash cycle your machine has (mine is called Super Plus and runs about 12 minutes long). Rinse on WARM. I found that by doing this I was able to eliminate at least 60 % of the stains right away. Sweet!....the less scrubbing the better, right? NOTE: DO NOT PLACE CLOTHING THAT IS STILL STAINED IN THE DRYER TO DRY!!!!!! Hang them to dry if you are not going to work on them right away. #2 Let the scrubbing begin.

Honestly...like I said, I tried a LOT of products.

First, I tried this...

Pro-Tek (a non-toxic all purpose cleaner--safe for laundry) and Clorox 2

This...

Stain Devils-for pen and crayon and Clorox 2

This...

My "homemade laundry soap" concentrate and Clorox 2

and...eventually....I did try this...for the sake of research

Crayola.com's suggested concoction

Wanna know what worked best and was the cheapest? The "Homemade Laundry Detergent" coupled with the Clorox 2. TRUE STORY! The Pro-Tek and the Stain Devils (specifically made for pen and crayon) worked okay. I had to spend just as much time scrubbing the clothing as with the laundry soap (maybe even a tad bit longer). The WD-40....ugh!...did not work any better than anything else I tried. I was very hesitant to use it (even though it came recommended by several different sources) but did so anyway...for the sake of research. It added another step to the whole spray and scrub process because after using it you then have to scrub the WD-40 OUT of the fabric with dish soap. And what did I end up with? More stains...from the oily lubricant. So...I can easily say that I personally would not recommend using WD-40. It was, by far, the most expensive, as well as the most labor intensive process I tried. That's my take. Do with it what you will. So here's what I suggest for remaining stains (after laundering as instructed above): Take a small amount of Homemade Laundry Detergent" concentrate and work it into the fabric using your knuckles, fingernails, a soft scrub brush (not a stiff one...I tried it...not so good on the fabric), or by rubbing the fabric together. Continue scrubbing until stain is completely gone or significantly lighter. Re-launder according to directions above. If stains still remain (I only had two shirts that didn't come completely clean and the stains were very very light)....REMEMBER NOT TO DRY CLOTHES IN THE DRYER...and repeat scrubbing and laundering instructions above until clean. Remember this light blue shirt that was BY FAR the worst of the bunch and I was ready to just throw away?

PRE-WASH

pictures of clothes with crayons from the dryer

POST LAUNDERING--PRE-SCRUBBING

WELL...look at it now.

POST LAUNDERING-POST SCRUBBING-POST SECOND LAUNDERING

TA-DA!

There are still a few very faint stains. I will probably have to put it through the scrub/laundering process one more time before it is fit to wear but a VAST improvement I must say.

It was Roberto's favorite work shirt. He almost cried when he first saw it (he he he) but now he is just as hopeful as I am that he will be able to wear it again very soon.

I hope this helps...and please take the advise given me by my mother. Work on it slowly...one thing at a time...maybe only one article a day. Don't let it overwhelm you. All is not lost. Happy Laundering y'all!

Tessa's Bio

Tessa is a full-time working (outside-the-home) mother who is learning to integrate "work" and "life" into one seamless operation. She is the mother to Roland, her 21 month old son, married to her high-school sweetheart and is a Program Manager for an IT corporation. Her blog is titled 'The Diary of a Working Mother' and is focused on challenges of working, raising a little one, some lessons learned along her journey of life (The Picky Eater!) and a few recipes.

Tessa's Post

Until today, I was thoroughly confused as to how Roland could be a good eater throughout the day, and yet such a picky eater at dinner time. Dinner time is not pleasant. At all. At least, not pleasant 80% of the time. And thus, I often wonder if we're putting our kiddo to bed hungry...

He loves a wide variety of food including avocados, greek yogurt (referred to as "Yo-Yo"), salmon patties and asparagus (yeah, I know...not the typical foods you would think a 1.5 year old would like). We sat down for dinner tonight hopeful that the left over beef braciole would be a hit, but were not surprised when he pushed it away and said "Noooooo".

As I was preparing his lunch/snacks for tomorrow, I calculated the calories in his favorite daily sandwich - the PB&J. 340 calories between 1tbsp of jelly, 2tbsp of peanut butter and the bread! I started to wonder how many calories he consumes throughout the day. By the time we reach 4:00 PM, he consumes nearly 1100 calories! I did some research on the internet at found out that he should be consuming 1000 calories in a day. (Dietary Guidelines for Americans, Appendix 6) Perhaps he's just not hungry for dinner, and we were interpreting his lack of hunger as a picky 1.5 year old!

That makes sense. The fact that he eats a wide variety of foods throughout the day and doesn't appear to be interested at dinner supports my new found hypothesis. It could also explain why Roland gets up so early in the morning (5:30 am after a 7:30 pm bedtime); it could be that he's hungry! I plan to test my hypothesis throughout the week and will report back next Sunday to see if my new theory holds.

(I am by no means a calorie counter (in fact, if asked today, couldn't even tell you how many calories I should be consuming); I do know how important it is for Roland to get the proper nutrition so that he can grow mentally and physically.)

Friday, December 23, 2011

Confessions of the Fashion-Challenged

Hubby and I always struggle with gifts for each other. The problem is that I can never come up with anything I want and I'm cheap and don't want us spending a lot of money. Hubby on the other hand has all kinds of ideas for himself so he's always pushing me to come up with something, anything that he can get for me.

This year I found it.

I was out shopping and saw a girl with an awesome purse. I don't know about you, but I HATE it when I reach down to pick up a kid and my purse falls off my shoulder, slings the kid right in the face and practically jars my shoulder out of socket.

Thus, I really enjoy over the shoulder bags. For one of the first times in my life, I experienced fashion envy. This girl wore her bag over her shoulder and it looked really comfy but it also was nice and elegant. I texted Hubby and he told me to look up where he could find it.

I rushed home and.....well....it turns out I have expensive taste. It turns out Marc Jacobs is some famous designer. Who knew? I really should have paid more attention in college to the important things, like fashion and handbags.

My frugality will never allow myself to accept a bag for $500 so I'm back to bath salts. But hey, I like bath salts so I'm happy and that's all that matters, right??