Pick a letter each week

There are many learning activities that you can do at home with your child. Set aside 10 to 15 min for circle time. In our circle time we sing the alphabet song while I help Nathaniel point to each letter with his magic wand. This helps with letter association and makes it fun. Next, I pick a letter to focus for that week and we talk about that letter and words that begin with that letter. At the same time I work in the sound of the letter which will help with early reading as your child learns to put the sound with the letter. Nathaniel is just starting to talk and over the last few weeks we have talked about the letter A, B, C and we are on D. What was so amazing was that after we talked about B and looked at Balls and made the B sound, he began saying "Ball" for the first time. We did this same thing with the letter C. We talked about how car starts with C and made the c sounds. Then later that week he started saying Car for the first time. What a great way to help expand your child’s vocabulary and encourage talking.

What to do while waiting...

Yesterday, I went to the doctor's for allergy shots. After getting the shot I am required to sit there for 20 min so they can check and make sure I didn't go into any sort of allergic reaction. I know this is for my own good but to sit and wait with a 1 1/2 yr old can be a challenge. We walked around the building, walked up then down the stairs many times. We rode the elevator several times but we needed to go back to the doctor's office for my quick check up. I decided it was time to play tea.

(Pretend play is very important for children of young ages. It allows them to explore and develop their language skills, learn new words and meanings. As they get older they have the opportunity to try on various hats in order to develop their personality and explore careers.)

We pretended that we were British and were having tea and crumpets. We talked about the weather, and what doctor's do and how there are many different types of doctors. We talked about the tea and how we like our tea.

I found that Nathaniel was very interested in this type of pretend play and it made that 15 min go by quickly and it allowed for some time to sit and rest.

When Changing your sheets... play

Every Friday I change the sheets on all the beds. I have made a fun game out of this. Nathaniel and I take the sheets and build forts to crawl in. We enjoy our pretend play while crawling through the sheets. Sometimes we are in a cave exploring bats and sometimes we are on a treasure hunt.

Frozen Popsicles

To ensure that my son get's his needed veggies ... for summer time I created a frozen popsicle recipe. Mix spinach with fresh pears or canned pears if you don't have fresh. Nathaniel enjoys eating these outside while exploring.

My sister had a great idea. She mixed Vanilla yogurt with fresh strawberries and then froze for a berry yummy popsicle.

Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

Hi everyone. I found another recipe the other day from The Pioneer Woman. www.pioneerwoman.com This one could be a vegetarian dish or a side item. I like to pair it with grilled chicken.

Pasta with Tomato Cream Sauce

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1 whole medium onion, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cans (15 ounces each) tomato sauce or marinara sauce (I used tomato sauce)
salt and pepper, to taste
dash of sugar (I read to use 1 teaspoon of sugar per can of tomato sauce, so that's what I did.)
1 cup heavy cream
grated parmesan or romano cheese, to taste
fresh basil, chopped
1.5 pounds fettuccine

Directions:
1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain, reserving 1 cup of pasta water.

2. Heat butter and oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic, and saute for a minute or so. Pour in tomato sauce and add salt, pepper, and sugar to taste. Stir and cook over low heat for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Remove from heat and stir in cream. Add cheese to taste, then check seasonings. Stir in pasta and chopped basil and serve immediately. (Thin with pasta water before adding basil in needed.)

Veggie shake ideas

My little boy’s new found independence has moved into his eating habits. He has figured out that he can choose not to eat the foods that I place in front of him. Over the last year he has been an excellent eater and seems to eat everything and anything but recently he has been refusing foods. In order to ensure he is getting enough vegetables I have been making Veggie shakes.

2 cups Spinach, 1 apple, and several strawberries. Blend together and serve as a shake or make frozen pops with it. Nathaniel loves this one. I have also added one yogurt to this shake and if I don’t have strawberries I add blueberries or any other mixed fruit that I have around.

Another good Idea I got from Staci with Healthy Babies – Healthy Parents Playgroup – First 5 Yuba see link below for more info.

-          1 medium carrot

-          1 medium sweet potato

-          1 apple

I tried this shake and Nathaniel enjoyed it as well.

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/pages/Healthy-Babies-Healthy-Parents-Playgroup-First-5-Yuba/161717207764

Every Day Activities

Quick idea that worked well. I took out those little rainbow pom’s and two cups. Nathaniel and I first worked on putting the pom pom’s into the cup and then we talked about the different colors and worked on sorting them. He then enjoyed pouring all the poms from one cup to the other.