Tot School: Colors

I am not sure that you'll ever be able to take the "teacher" out of me.  Ever since I can remember, I have played school, loved pens, books, paper, and this back to school time of year. I used to make my little sisters play schools with me, which I think my mom loved for many reasons.  Now that I have my own kids, I am super excited to instill the love of learning in them.

Brooke is a little over 2.5 years old and I was on the fence about whether or not to send her off to "pre-school" but after discussing with Joe, we decided to hold off another year.  She will have to be 5 1/2 to even start Kindergarten, so she has plenty of time.  I was searching around online, instagram etc. and I stumbled upon "Tot School" on insta.  She has come up with 52 weeks of themes etc. for toddlers!  Now, I am not sure I will do every week nor will I follow each and every theme, but it was a perfect place to start!

She begins 8/31 and there is plenty of time to get situated.  Check out her blog here: Let's Tot School

I hit up the dollar section in Target and found a few silly songs on you tube.  I also just grabbed a bin and went around the house collecting toys, books and anything to put into this category.  She knows her colors fairly well, but I thought it'd be a good way to start "School".  She even picked out an Olaf Frozen binder that she was really excited about. I figured we'll keep some paper in there and try to use it as we go.



Color Songs/videos:

The hardest part for me is that there is SO much out there and I was having trouble deciding where to start.  I also have trouble simplifying "School" since I taught 7th grade and above, English.  This is waaaay different and at 2, it's more about hands on playing and learning at the same time.  I think it's kind of cool that Bradley will be exposed to everything as well.  He loves colorful things and he's always with us, so win/win!  I will try to modify some things so he can do some sensory things too, but as we know at 7 months, EVERYTHING goes in the mouth.

I also found this Minnie Domino game she loves and a floor puzzle.

Are you doing anything "school related" with your toddlers?

Random Tuesdays!

Towards the end of long days when Joe works until 8 (9) I am exhausted.  I may be popping on the Hallmark Christmas movies and watching little miss run around with reindeer antlers.

We have been going through our "Christmas bucket list" quite nicely!  Maybe not exactly on the correct date, but it is very handy to have all my activities listed so when she starts getting antsy, I can go to our craft bins and pull.  These were from Hobby Lobby and super easy!

I made sure to do it on the day we had swimming so I knew the marker would wash right off her fingers!

Daddy was running late at work, so we got into play-doh too!

She loves to swim! She just doesn't like having to do what the rest of the class is doing…

Baby girl is very much into tutus and skirts--I am having trouble finding them now that she loves them! She only has this one, and of course it's a terrible picture because she's always on the move.  Where have you seen affordable skirts for 3/4T??

This may very well be her favorite "Sensory Bin" yet.  She always asks for it and just loves pouring the rice out into the cup.  She insisted on taking Santa out of it yesterday too, and she now knows "C".  Pretty cool stuff!

I do love our ghetto fabulous tree.  More pics to come, I pinky promise.  Brooke has been very good with "no touch" and so far, so good with all of our trees/ornaments. Yay!

I was excited to see birds enjoy this suet treat; however, the only friend so far has been this fat squirrel.

I am still trying to kick this cold. I made some chicken soup on Friday and I do believe it has healing powers. [fresh herbs, homemade broth, garlic, onion] Soothing and tasty on a cold day.  So simple!

Pretty much sums up our latest grocery trip.  We have a potential N'oreaster coming our way and I think people got the memo and were stocking up…so it was kinda crazy at the store and we waited in line a little longer than we normally have to.

Annnnnnd can we just touch base on the mere 5 weeks away from having two kids?!  I can feel him move all the time and I swear it feels different than it did with Brooke.  He is so big feeling and definitely kinda hurts!! This visual was kind of cool to me, to see what he looks like all scrunched up in there.  Running outta room little man…soon enough you'll be in arms!

Today we have the "Gingerbread House" on our to do list…but I may save that for tomorrow or Thursday when we're snowed in.  I am almost done with my shopping, but we still have a few more people to buy for and EVERYONE needs to be wrapped. My back hurts just thinking about it haha!  Now that my Coffeecino has sunk in, I must tackle the dishes.  

Have a lovely day friends!

Playdate and a Holiday Open House

Yesterday I hosted my first "homeschool" playdate at our house.  I will admit, I didn't really do a whole lot of "teaching" last week on our stay cation.  We were off our schedule/routines and kind of just went with the flow.  I decided to post on meet up.com for a weekly sesh,  I had two mamas interested, but one was unsure she could come because her due date for baby #4 was yesterday! Needless to say, she didn't make it, but I hope once our babies are here, we can meet up!

Our craft: washable finger paint.

We had our first real snow fall, that sort of stuck.  The girls were excited to get outside, but nervous once we got out there!

Our new friends.

How cute are they?? Brooke loved jumping in the puddles.

We didn't really have a structured "homeschool" day, as I didn't have access to the files etc. quite yet, so we just kind of had a play date.  I hope to start establishing somewhat of a routine with songs and lessons.    Regardless, they had fun and it was nice to chat with another mama.

Last night I went to my friend Cathy's for a holiday open house.  She does Tastefully Simple, had a Thirty-One consultant and a Jamberry nails lady…oh and me!  I dropped Brooke off at my in-laws on the way, so that was nice for them to enjoy a few hours with her.  She always has a ball with grandma and grandpa.  Thank you again Mama D!!

I had an absolute ball.  It's hard to explain, but AdvoCare is so different than other companies.  Since it's not a 'quick fix' program, nor is it something most people have heard of, it's not fair for me to compare myself to the other direct sales that were there last night.  So, as I was able to share my story, talk about products, put product in people's bodies and I really tried to get to know people.  I never feel like I am trying to "sell" something, but rather I look at it as a way of trying to educate people on health, wellness, and nutrition. I am very passionate about wanting others to be healthy and have energy, as I know how tired us mamas (or anyone for that matter) can be!  I feel for others when they are unhappy with their weight and are just not feeling great about themselves, because I was there.  That was me!  I also know this business is all about timing, so sometimes it takes awhile after the seeds of wellness are planted, before I can truly help others.  I just feel good about sharing what Advo can do for people.

I had not done a "vendor" event before, and this was the perfect way to ease my way into it.  I loved that it was at a friend's home, so it was very intimate and I could really take the time to talk to people.  It wasn't a mad rush of people, but I enjoyed conversations and really made sure to ask others lots of questions.  Not to mention, it was so nice to get outside of the home and not play "prego mommy" for 2 hours.  I think that is important to have my own thing that I enjoy doing; that teacher in me will always be present!  That said, I stood the whole two hours,  so I am a little tired today haha!  #pregoprobs

So I'm hydrating with some pomegranate water and have a lazy morning planned with Brooke.  We have a messy living room to clean play in and maybe some more turkey crafts to make.

It's really cold outside and not snowing here.  The south/west of us is getting slammed with the snow, but we lucked out and didn't get it.  I may have Christmas Spirit diffusing and am half tempted to start hauling out Christmas decorations…but I have a hubby who is anti-Santa before turkey haha.

Toddler Homeschooling: Thanksgiving Theme

November 3-7

Age: 22 months

Keep in mind, these activities take longer to plan than they take to actually do.  The key is prepping, setting up and getting ready to switch gears when your tot is done.  They have short attention spans, so it makes for quick thinking!

On a side note, I am not planning on homeschooling my children for real. I'm pretty sure we'll send Brooke to pre-school when the time is right and I'll continue to supplement education at home as her education continues.  I just enjoy it and seeing her grow, so that is why I do it.

Tips--

Go.With.The.Flow. Don't have super high expectations; at this age it's all about exploring and playing. She loves to get messy, and it makes me cringe, but soap and water does wonders.  I also like to hang her work up so she can see it and we go over what she did again and again.

Letter:
T

Crafts:
Q-tip paint
Paste leaves activity
Turkey hunt

Books:
The Night before Thanksgiving
Fall is for Friends
Who Loves the Fall?
Ten Fat Turkeys
The First Thanksgiving 
Thanksgiving is for Giving Thanks

Song:
"I'm a Silly Turkey"

We worked on the skill of "dot dot dot" in the circles.

I gave a brush and a pumpkin too since there was more paint left over.

She showed interest in the glue stick the other day, so I just cut some of the square images out and taught her how to paste.

I reserve the books for when mama is beat and not ready to turn on the TV.  I pulled them out and she legit, sat and listened to ALL of these books! I read most of the words, sometimes we just pointed out some objects she knew on the pages.   I cannot explain how much it warmed my heart to have her sit and read with me.  Usually she is up and running, but she really listened to each story.  Warmed my teacher heart I tell ya!!  I was super excited my stepmom had all these books from a kid she used to nanny.  I swear I was probably a little too excited about it, but what can I say.

I <3 reading.

Since she loved these two stories, we've been reading them still.

One of the printables was for "cutting" but I put it in a plastic sleeve and we are working on "tracing" with a dry erase marker.

I laminated some of these words and we say them.  She obviously knows them only by the picture, but the exposure to the printed word can't hurt!

Wednesday we did another painting "T" activity.  Turkey today!

And then I just let her paint some more.

Our new books came in the mail!! We had a ball reading them. She loves flap books. The turkey one is cute and of course, it's important to start instilling thankfulness.

It was nice to read the new books upstairs after her long nap and snack.  She was raring to go!

Thursday:

I got my new shelving today, so I have been trying to organize all of our school stuff!! Really, it was funny because she was just all up in my biz-nass and trying to get into all of it.  So we kept taking breaks.

We broke into the Sensory bin.

She wanted to draw with the expo marker/white board.

She wanted to play with play-doh.

She even played with the box the shelf came in for a bit.

This is what I mean about going with the flow…kids will show you what their interests are, you just have to be open to it.  She also told me "potty" and put her hand on me several times, so we stopped and did that a few times too.  She had already gone in her diaper, but her thought process is getting there!  

These fridge magnets are great too! Since our letter of the week is "T" I keep pressing it and we'll sing it.  I'm always in the kitchen, so it's pretty easy to remember. I also have the bath foam letters and we always go through those as well.  Like I said, exposure and repetition seems to be key!

Bottom line, I keep reminding myself to HAVE FUN.  Kids know when you're not happy.  Kids will connect and remember whether it is a positive or negative experience. I don't want to EVER associate school with something that we are fighting on.  Sure, when she actually goes off to school we will have tears and frustrations and stress…but not now.  We just are exploring and having fun…and making LOTS of messes in the process.  Sorry Daddy! hehehe  Luckily when I asked if he liked our daycare setup, he said there was no other daycare he'd rather send his daughter off to.  That made me feel good. :)

Any fun toddler tricks you're up to these days?

November Goals

It is a fresh start to a beautiful month!  I am super excited for all of the holiday festivities to get underway!!  While I try to *patiently wait* until baby boy makes his arrival, I decided to take a look at a few areas in my life where I needed to re-visit and work on.

I made some awhile back, but truth be told, we have eaten a lot of them! My goal is to whip up a few more this month.  If I can stash away more than 5, that'd be awesome, but I just love having them in the freezer so I can have an easy and healthy dinner ready for my family.  We really don't go out to eat much and Joe comes home for lunch quite often, so we eat A LOT all the time.

After my last mommy meet up (which was interesting!) I really was inspired to start doing more "schooling" with Brooke. Her attention span is so small, but she really is a sponge and any sort of time I spend creating activities for us to do, she does seem to enjoy, briefly, but still I believe she is learning.

{she is currently 22 months}

My ultimate goal is to host a meet up where I invite other mamas to bring their kiddos (and we can eventually rotate) 2 days a week.  That's how one mama does it.  2 days a week, about 2 hours.  It's very kid-run.  They sing, play, snack, read, do a craft.  It's all about socialization and exposure at this young of an age.  I believe there is power in being around other mommies and kiddos though; I don't want to send Brooke off to a school quite yet, but I want keep exposing her to new experiences.

I'll be perfectly honest, I have no dang clue what I am doing. But, like anything, I get an idea and I run with it…I put my all into it, I become somewhat obsessed and a little cray, but I believe it's because I am so passionate.  I just remember how much I loved loved loved the holidays growing up and obviously I love learning/teaching, which is why I became a teacher.   So I just spent some time on google and starting using our printer, bought some supplies at the dollar tree, and voila.  I now have a dedicated November basket I am filling with teachable ideas.

What's in said basket?  Well, I found some really cute printable packs and glued them to card stock and used contact paper/packing tape to kind of "laminate" the ones  I wanted to make sure we didn't completely ruin or rip. My hope is that I save all of this for next year, and we can build on it.  I can also use it again with Brad!

Just GOOGLE toddler fall activities pack!! Tons of stuff out there mammas!

Here we were talking about BIG and small turkeys.  She is so active, I can place them around and she can hop on them.  We count them.  She makes turkey sounds. Stuff like that.  At this age, everything is play.  I just think she is a bit sick of her toys, and with Christmas and her birthday still to come, I can use these as fillers for our days!

The concepts are small, but still a little tricky for her! Here is a simple "sorting" game.  We talk about the leaves and the apples (both words she knows) and then I build on the colors and we try to group them accordingly.

Since my education background is 7th grade English and up, it's definitely taken some adjusting on my part.  A lot of this seems to be more for me; what can I do to occupy her time and not use the TV as a crutch so much.  I have to "show" her or do things for her…like reading a book. Sometimes she listens, other times she's running around and I am probably just reading to my dog. No really, she's still gaining something from it, I am sure!

I am working on a "lesson plan" each week. Basic ideas I want to cover, but again, it's like very very basic. I don't expect my child to learn to read or be some genius; I just love being creative and seeing her little brain working!

I am hoping to share more as I get more familiar with this homeschooling process; it's very much like a Montesorri pre-school…but I am struggling with adequate space and organization to keep all of this! None of it can be within her reach 24/7 otherwise she'll be into all the time and I will have even bigger messes!

I also created our November sensory bin.  Not gonna lie, I was pretty bummed about the lack of Thanksgiving decor at the Dollar Tree!  Hardly any turkeys! I stocked up on Christmas goodies, but that's not the point.



Another goal for myself is to check my spending.  I think it's very easy to fall into the, "oh that's cute, I need it!" And I end up getting books, scarves, aka junk…stuff I don't need!! So I am really making conscious purchases.  Obviously, if I find Christmas gifts, educational materials for Brooke, food, clothing ---like she still needs a winter coat---stuff for the nursery, but I'm talking about the random stops for a snack out to eat, or things that I can live without.  Like super cute winter leggings, that won't fit me til next year anyway.

I also want to organize my front coat/shoe closet because that is a disaster and frustrates me every time I open it.  

I may also start packing my hospital bag, but we have a good 10 weeks before we need that!

What do you plan on working on this November?  Do you dive into projects like me?  Have you tried homeschooling with toddlers?