Saturday, July 10, 2010
Updates
After browsing some excellent home school blogs, I got the idea to use nicknames for my kids rather than their initials. They don't really have "nicknames" but all mothers have little pet names for their babies that we use when we are rocking or comforting, so that's what I'll be using to refer to my kids from now on.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Quiet Time
All the kids are in Quiet Time, meaning Mommy gets quiet time, too! I've been perusing free ebooks and free audiobooks online, and came across this volume of Poems Every Child Should Know.
I just had to share two poems that I came across in the first few pages of the Gutenberg text. For some reason, I am completely struck by the fact that these poems were written so long ago. I'll bet the authors never could have imagined that a woman in the 21st Century would be reading their works over the internet, yet the theme of each poem still rings true today.
Let Dogs Delight to Bark and Bite
I just had to share two poems that I came across in the first few pages of the Gutenberg text. For some reason, I am completely struck by the fact that these poems were written so long ago. I'll bet the authors never could have imagined that a woman in the 21st Century would be reading their works over the internet, yet the theme of each poem still rings true today.
Let Dogs Delight to Bark and Bite
Let dogs delight to bark and bite,
For God hath made them so;
Let bears and lions growl and fight,
For 'tis their nature too.
But, children, you should never let
Such angry passions rise;
Your little hands were never made
To tear each other's eyes.
ISAAC WATTS (1674-1748).LITTLE THINGS.
Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand,
Make the mighty ocean
And the pleasant land.
Thus the little minutes,
Humble though they be,
Make the mighty ages
Of eternity.
EBENEZER COBHAM BREWER (1810-1897).Life: 7-6-10
E tried to pull up in his crib today. He managed to get up onto his knees. This means he'll be pulling all the way up very soon, and then *gasp* walking. By the third child, you know what this really means: commence chaos in 5-4-3-2.....
E is also trying to crawl, and he clapped his hands for the first time about a week ago. I forgot how wonderful this stage is. It seems like every day he learns something new!
I used felt to cut out shapes in various colors (each shape in several colors) and the girls and I now make up games using these felt pieces. I don't have a felt board, so I just used clothespins to clip a sheet of black felt to our easel. They cannot get enough of the games! After just three days, M is already doing better with colors and shapes! Sometimes, I put up all different shapes and ask them to pick out a certain color. Sometimes, I put up different shapes in the same color and ask them to pick out specific shapes. For R, who has known these things for at least two years (but still has to be included in everything M does) I'll put up all the squares and one circle and ask her which one is different. We spent at least an hour this afternoon just making up games as we went. I also made up a new song to signal that they need to be quiet. Sung in a whisper to the tune of Where is Thumbkin
Let's be quiet
Let's be quiet
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Le-et's all be quiet
Le-et's all be quiet
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
I had read that the quickest way to get the attention of a toddler/preschooler is to start singing a song, and it worked like a charm!
I have two recipes that I need to write about (like my search for a "real food" mac n' cheese recipe), but there always seem to be too much to do and too little time....
E is also trying to crawl, and he clapped his hands for the first time about a week ago. I forgot how wonderful this stage is. It seems like every day he learns something new!
I used felt to cut out shapes in various colors (each shape in several colors) and the girls and I now make up games using these felt pieces. I don't have a felt board, so I just used clothespins to clip a sheet of black felt to our easel. They cannot get enough of the games! After just three days, M is already doing better with colors and shapes! Sometimes, I put up all different shapes and ask them to pick out a certain color. Sometimes, I put up different shapes in the same color and ask them to pick out specific shapes. For R, who has known these things for at least two years (but still has to be included in everything M does) I'll put up all the squares and one circle and ask her which one is different. We spent at least an hour this afternoon just making up games as we went. I also made up a new song to signal that they need to be quiet. Sung in a whisper to the tune of Where is Thumbkin
Let's be quiet
Let's be quiet
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Le-et's all be quiet
Le-et's all be quiet
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
Ssh! Ssh! Ssh!
I had read that the quickest way to get the attention of a toddler/preschooler is to start singing a song, and it worked like a charm!
I have two recipes that I need to write about (like my search for a "real food" mac n' cheese recipe), but there always seem to be too much to do and too little time....
Monday, July 5, 2010
Free Coloring Pages
Mommies of young children (or "kid-at-heart" adults), check out Coloring-Book.info for free pages to print and color. It has pictures from tons of animated kid movies and tv shows, including more obscure shows. All the classic Disney and Pixar films are represented, plus Curious George, Peter Rabbit, Winnie the Pooh and tons of shows I didn't even recognize (I don't let my kids watch live TV-- just pre-approved DVDs because I hate commercials marketed to kids). It's well worth checking out!
And for the preschooler who needs a challenge, check out Color Me Masterpiece. Print out coloring sheets of famous masterpieces for you child to color, and teach them about art at the same time!
"And in Circle Time today, kids, we're going to learn about Raphael's Madonna and Child."
And for the preschooler who needs a challenge, check out Color Me Masterpiece. Print out coloring sheets of famous masterpieces for you child to color, and teach them about art at the same time!
"And in Circle Time today, kids, we're going to learn about Raphael's Madonna and Child."
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Random Favorites for Kids
Just wanted to share some favorites things old and new.
First, head over to Great Hall Productions to find fantastic audio recordings of children's books and fairytales. I bought a few MP3 Downloads of Jim Weiss' from iTunes. It's great for the car! We really like the "Just So Stories" by Rudyard Kipling (author of The Jungle Book).
And while you're browsing iTunes, check out the MP3 recordings of the classic Lux Radio Theatre productions. During the glory days of Hollywood, some of the most famous films and musicals were adapted for the radio and performed by the original stars. Hear the original cast perform! I bought The Wizard of Oz and Meet Me in St. Louis, both featuring the amazing Judy Garland. There are a lot of films that I recognize, but not very many are musicals. Still, great to introduce my kids to these two classics while battling boredom in the car!
If you have toddlers or pre-schoolers, head over to The Letter of the Week to find a full, free pre-school curriculum to use. Full of print outs, themes, fingerplays, poems, songs, and just plain great ideas for little ones, plus links to even more great resources.
If you're looking for more great ideas for pre-schoolers, check out YouTube page of Cullen's ABCs and KinderArt. More fantastic ideas for projects, crafts, songs, and more to keep your little ones busy!
And just because I have friends ask me a lot, some of our favorites authors of children's books are:
Paul Galdon-- retold fairytales you can trust. We especially love The Little Gingerbread Boy and The Three Billy Goats Gruff.
Robert McCloskey- Make Way for Ducklings, Blueberries for Sal, Homer Price, One Morning in Maine are just a couple of his wonderful children's books. Lovely illustrations.
Virginia Lee Burton- My absolute favorite is The Little House, but we also love Maybelle the Cable Car, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, and Katy and the Big Snow.
Marjorie Flack- Ask Mr. Bear and The Story About Ping are two classics, among others.
Those are just a few of the classic, well-known authors of great children's literature. Enjoy!
First, head over to Great Hall Productions to find fantastic audio recordings of children's books and fairytales. I bought a few MP3 Downloads of Jim Weiss' from iTunes. It's great for the car! We really like the "Just So Stories" by Rudyard Kipling (author of The Jungle Book).
And while you're browsing iTunes, check out the MP3 recordings of the classic Lux Radio Theatre productions. During the glory days of Hollywood, some of the most famous films and musicals were adapted for the radio and performed by the original stars. Hear the original cast perform! I bought The Wizard of Oz and Meet Me in St. Louis, both featuring the amazing Judy Garland. There are a lot of films that I recognize, but not very many are musicals. Still, great to introduce my kids to these two classics while battling boredom in the car!
If you have toddlers or pre-schoolers, head over to The Letter of the Week to find a full, free pre-school curriculum to use. Full of print outs, themes, fingerplays, poems, songs, and just plain great ideas for little ones, plus links to even more great resources.
If you're looking for more great ideas for pre-schoolers, check out YouTube page of Cullen's ABCs and KinderArt. More fantastic ideas for projects, crafts, songs, and more to keep your little ones busy!
And just because I have friends ask me a lot, some of our favorites authors of children's books are:
Paul Galdon-- retold fairytales you can trust. We especially love The Little Gingerbread Boy and The Three Billy Goats Gruff.
Robert McCloskey- Make Way for Ducklings, Blueberries for Sal, Homer Price, One Morning in Maine are just a couple of his wonderful children's books. Lovely illustrations.
Virginia Lee Burton- My absolute favorite is The Little House, but we also love Maybelle the Cable Car, Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, and Katy and the Big Snow.
Marjorie Flack- Ask Mr. Bear and The Story About Ping are two classics, among others.
Those are just a few of the classic, well-known authors of great children's literature. Enjoy!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Life: 7-1-10
E learned how to clap today! He has been trying for a few days and today he was surprised when he actually put his hands together. He gave me one of those big, wide-mouthed grins. What a honey. He's now seven months old and can roll over (I think it looks like an alligator "death roll"), sit up, wave, laugh, scoot, and pick things up with his hands to put them in his mouth.
M is going through a phase where she will not eat anything but oatmeal. There are worse things! Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if you ask her what she would like to eat, she'll say, "Yong-yong" which is how she says oatmeal.
R is in a big coloring phase right now. She has learned to color in the lines and is now highly upset if she messes up and gets out of the lines. I keep telling her that it's okay-- everybody gets out of the lines sometimes. I guess this perfectionism is going to be part of her personality.
M is going through a phase where she will not eat anything but oatmeal. There are worse things! Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, if you ask her what she would like to eat, she'll say, "Yong-yong" which is how she says oatmeal.
R is in a big coloring phase right now. She has learned to color in the lines and is now highly upset if she messes up and gets out of the lines. I keep telling her that it's okay-- everybody gets out of the lines sometimes. I guess this perfectionism is going to be part of her personality.
Easy Recipes
I'm looking for easy recipes. The kind that require few ingredients, don't use processed or prepared foods such as condensed soups, and don't take much prep work, yet are satisfying and delicious and won't cause battles with my two-year-old. Oh, and that dirty up as few dishes as possible. I mean, really, that's not much to ask, is it?
Needless to say, I haven't found much. I'm loving the idea of the slow-cooker--I love the "dump it in and leave it" approach. The fact that I can get it going before the kids get up and have a delicious dinner ready when I need it-- even if time gets away from me-- is VERY appealing. In fact, I've got some soup going in the slow-cooker as I'm writing this. And that got me thinking: can you cook a whole chicken in the slow-cooker instead of the oven? Can you make lasagna in the slow-cooker? How about fajitas? Casseroles? I intend to find out!
(update: the soup turned out pretty good!)
Other benefits of the slow-cooker that I did not think about before:
-costs far less to run than the oven, because it uses less electricity
-doesn't heat up your whole house (which is good because it's been sweltering)
-usually portions are big enough to freeze half for later, making you doubly efficient!
Needless to say, I haven't found much. I'm loving the idea of the slow-cooker--I love the "dump it in and leave it" approach. The fact that I can get it going before the kids get up and have a delicious dinner ready when I need it-- even if time gets away from me-- is VERY appealing. In fact, I've got some soup going in the slow-cooker as I'm writing this. And that got me thinking: can you cook a whole chicken in the slow-cooker instead of the oven? Can you make lasagna in the slow-cooker? How about fajitas? Casseroles? I intend to find out!
(update: the soup turned out pretty good!)
Other benefits of the slow-cooker that I did not think about before:
-costs far less to run than the oven, because it uses less electricity
-doesn't heat up your whole house (which is good because it's been sweltering)
-usually portions are big enough to freeze half for later, making you doubly efficient!
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)