News (Page 11)

Easter Egg Hunts with Toddlers, Special Outfits, and Big Smiles

Believe it or not, this year was the first we have had an Easter egg hunt. I didnt have the energy to deal with community Easter egg hunts when Emma was younger and I knew bigger kids would be running around grabbing up all the eggs (plus I never know if I can trust that candy). This year we have a nice big yard and the weather was beautiful, though so I planned it and really enjoyed it along with the kids. I bought all the fillings at the dollar store and even found a couple of cute baskets there. (Note to self: Dont wait until the last minute next year so you dont have to fight other last-minute shoppers for the good stuff. 😉 The Easter egg hunt was a last-minute thing, but I had planned for cute Easter photos this year! Isaac wore a sailor outfit I found…

Is it Time to Get Up Yet, Mommy? (Kid’Sleep Sleep Training Clock Review)

A few months ago, I was being repeatedly plagued awakened by my 3-year-old daughter who would come bounding into my bedroom at unholy hours of the morning ready for the day. This of course woke her 1-year-old brother (who still resides in my room at night). Let the weeping and gnashing of teeth begin. Anyone who has had children awaken at night knows that it can be hard to soothe everyone back to sleep my son crying because he was so rudely awakened and my daughter upset because she was all ready for morning and doesnt want to go back to bed. Not fun. I tried explaining to Emma that when it is dark outside its time to sleep (and stay in bed), and when its light she can get up but that brought complications, too. There are times that its light outside but still not time to get up….

A Little Taste of Summer (and a NICE Camera)

A friend of mine let me play around with her VERY nice (drool-worthy) camera yesterday and I got some awesome pics of the kids! It was also a beautiful sunny day (for a change) which made it that much more fun. 🙂 This little taste of summer got me excited about the upcoming warm weather! Tags: 97045

New Easter Books for Children (Perfect for the Easter Basket!)

Lambs Easter Surprise Written by Christine Taylor-Butler Illustrated by Cathy Ann JohnsonSterling Childrens Books Lambs Easter Surprise is a hardcover touch-and-feel story about a group of farm animals who work hard to make Easter special for a little girl. They dye eggs, decorate the barn, and leave a trail of pretty eggs for her to find and lead her to the party (and her little lamb!). We enjoyed this one, and appreciate the fact that the book is hardcover and the pages a thin board. The illustrations are cheerful and bright, and all of the illustrations of the little lamb are fuzzy to the touch something both my children loved. You can buy Lambs Easter Surprise at Amazon.com. Easter Babies: A Springtime Counting Book Written by Joy N. Hulme Illustrated by Dan AndreasenSterling Childrens Books Baby animals and Easter go together so well, dont you think? This board book, Easter…

Cooper’s Pack: Travel Guide Adventures for Kids! (Review)

I love to travel through books both fiction and nonfiction. I was kind of a weird teen I think because when I went to the library, along with the normal fictional reads I checked out travel guides and books on far-away places (always with lots of pictures). Coopers Pack is a series of books for kids that features a cuddly-looking main character, Cooper, who shares his travels in a fun journal-like manner. So far Emma and I have followed Coopers travels through London, Seattle, New York City, and Alaska. There are colorful photos galore, fun facts about people and places, and basically everything you would want to know before you visit. We learned a lot about each place and loved it! The London book is my favorite because I really want to visit England someday: Cooper meets up with a new friend in London and gets an awesome tour! At…

RSV, Premature Infants, and New Baby Etiquette

All of my babies were born weeks after their due date, so I had never really heard about the dangers of RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) before recently. I was still careful to have people wash their hands before touching my baby, of course. But did you know you could unintentionally pass along RSV to a newborn if you arent careful? Full-term newborns can get it as well as premature, but premature babies are more at risk because their lungs and immune systems are underdeveloped. This makes fighting off something as common as a cold difficult. Some quick facts about RSV everyone should know: RSV is a virus that causes symptoms similar to a cold that can lead to a serious lung infection. It is easily spread through touch and can live on surfaces like doorknobs and blankets. It is not treatable, making it very important that you do everything you…

No More Solid-Colored Tees in MY House! (Embellishing Your Clothing Using Stencils & Fabric Paint)

Ive discovered the joys of painting on fabric and there are very few solid t-shirts left in the house as a result. Hm, what else can I stencil? Hand towels? Socks? Sheets? John had better guard his t-shirts with his life because eventually Im going to run out of things to stencil and Im going to be eyeing his dresser. 😉 The How-To: Here are the supplies I gathered: Retro Tulip Soft Fabric Paint Sponge Pouncers Crafters Square 4-Pack Stencils (I grabbed mine at the Dollar Tree and cant find them anywhere online but theselook pretty cute, too!) Paper or cardboard Tape 1. Pre-wash fabric/shirts. 2. Tape your stencil to the area of fabric you want to paint. 3. Place paper or cardboard underneath the area youll be painting so it doesnt bleed through to the back. 4. Using the sponge tip brush, apply paint. The instructions on my paint…

Emma’s Big Girl Bed

I FINALLY got around to taking the railing off of Emmas crib. My good-natured little girl has been climbing in and out of her crib like a monkey for a year now! I put off doing it because I thought we would keep the crib up for Isaac and set up a separate toddler bed for Emma, but it never did work out that way. So yesterday I grabbed the screwdriver and got it done. 🙂 Emma is soooo pleased with her big girl bed. She was so excited about it last night, she actually went to bed early! That really made me laugh. She also had a brand new toddler bed set that someone from church gave us. Its really cute and I loved that the flat sheet had a fitted sheet type bottom so that it cant be pulled out of place (why arent our sheets that way???)….

How Many Flies Can a Little Froggy Eat? (Learning Resources Froggy Feeding Game GIVEAWAY!))

If youre studying frogs this year or just want another non-TV-related activity to do with your child, Learning Resources new preschool-friendly educational game, Froggy Feeding Fun, is for you! This game comes with two frogs, 60 flies, 1 number cube, 1 color cube (the dice), and an activity guide. How cute are these little guys? Even the flies are cute! You start out by setting out the buzzing (okay, not in real life, youll have to help with the sound effects 😉 flies on the table. Then you take turns rolling the dice. In the photo below, Emma rolled a 4 and an orange color, so she picked up 4 orange flies. You take turns, building up your pile until all the flies are gone, then count your flies at the end to see who won. This is a GREAT activity for practicing counting and identifying colors! Emma did have…