Nursing: A Love/Hate Relationship

Say Your Prayers

For the last couple of months, I have been working in the two-year-old nursery at our church. I bring Gracie with me and love to watch her learn and interact with the other children. I've enjoyed knowing what goes on in our nursery, and being able to make connections at home. For example, they use antibacterial hand wash before snack time and today we were at a petting zoo. After petting the animals, I gave Gracie a drop of hand wash and asked her to rub it in "just like we do at church." We also have conversational prayer before snack each week in the nursery. A couple of weeks ago I decided to start praying with her before bed. A few days later, she asked Daddy to join us for our nightly prayer. Last week, Daddy was praying for us when she interrupted to thank God for "Grandma. Grandpa. Mama. Thank you God. Amen." Since then, she has been in charge of our evening prayer, with a few prompts from Mom and Dad. I recorded it tonight. She was a little camera shy, but this is essentially what we do before bed each night.

Kid's Hallway

I rearranged our hallway today to fit all of Gracie's fun activities on the walls. She now has a drawing wall...

Her clothesline, AquaDoodle Mat, and her paintings all in one play area!

Mirror, Mirror

I thought this was a wonderful idea for a baby activity for Bee. My first thought was that it would be a lot of fun to put a floor length mirror on it's side so that when she starts crawling she can watch herself. I don't have a floor length mirror, but I did pull the mirror off of the wall for her to play with for a while. She loved it!

Of course, Gracie had to join in the fun. Her presence just made the activity much more fun for Brianna. They interacted with each other in person and in reflection!

Redecorating

I blogged in the past about Gracie painting with "Shiny Paint." Her paintings have been taped to our wall since they dried. . . a month ago! I have been considering how to preserve them. I didn't want to use EnviroTex like her other art projects because that would cover up how cool the paint is, with it's shiny texture and I figured that a regular frame would do the same. When I found this post on Dollar Store Crafts, I had my answer! I had never considered using a frame without the glass. What a simple solution to my conundrum! I had a bunch of frames laying around, with no home so I put them to good use! Now Gracie's paintings are framed and hung around the apartment, and she is a proud little artist! When I hung the first one up she puffed out her little chest and exclaimed "Mine! My painting!" in the most excited voice I have heard.

Super Speller

This toy is actually a TAG toy from Leapfrog. Although we don't have a TAG, I thought for $2 it would still be a fun way for Gracie to practice phonics and letter recognition. It may not last all that long, as it's just thick cardboard and right now they fit in pretty tightly. I can see it easily getting worn from pulling the pieces out at the same spot all the time. It'll be fun until then, and the price was right!

Learning

I have started making some PowerPoints for Gracie to use. She is always so interested in my computer, and I figured it would be better to support her interest in a productive way than to try and keep her away from something that she will eventually need to understand anyway. I got the idea from 1+1+1=1. If you have a little one and are interested in doing educational activities with him/her this is an excellent blog to follow. She is fantastic.

I have only completed one PP so far. It covers Aa, red, and two. I finished it late last night, and this evening Gracie went through it several times. She loves being allowed to push the button on her own, and making things appear on the screen. She squeals in delight when she recognizes what has come up and best of all, is learning every step of the way!

Sensory Bottles

Since learning about sensory bottles a few days ago, I have had a lot of fun researching different ideas and thinking of some of my own. I have made a few more for Bee. Two of them have colorful wire, one has them crumpled almost like a bird's nest and for the other I twisted the wire around a pencil to make corkscrews. I added a few beads to both of them so she can make noise and try to find the beads visually when she shakes them. I've also put Mylar confetti into a bottle, intending to add oil so they will float around, but both girls love it with just the confetti in there.

I also made one that is more for Gracie at this point. I put some seashells in an old racquetball container, added some sand from the playground, and hot glued it shut. She has had fun shaking it and trying to find the shells. I still plan to make some more, including one with metal objects in rice. I'll give Gracie a magnetic wand and see if she can find some of the hidden objects. For more information on sensory bottles, check my "Baby Activities" and "Toddler Activities" links at the top of the page or Google.

Sensory Bottles

A friend of mine sent me this link to an activity for Bee. Since I have been feeling like I've been one of those moms lately-you know, the ones that shower their firstborn with attention and neglect their littler ones-it was perfect timing! I could only find one empty plastic bottle around the apartment, but I also found a travel toothbrush holder-which is the perfect size for Bee to be able to hold in one hand! I plan on heading to the dollar store tomorrow to see if they have some clear holders that I can put other, colorful things in for her. So far, she is enjoying the two I've made:

"Ocean in a Bottle" Half oil and half water, five drops of blue food coloring. The only oil I had on hand was veg oil, so it's yellow instead of clear but still works.

I put popcorn Kernals in the toothbrush holder, glued it closed and added packaging tape around the joint just in case.

Regret

You know that feeling when you start a project and realize it's much, much bigger than your realized and you wish you'd never started? Yeah, me too...

I was going to sort all the kids' clothes by size and type and rebox it all, condensing it and repacking it into storage. I gave up and just pulled out the new sizes I need and packed up the stuff the kids have outgrown. I must admit, I was a little sad that the clothes I'm pulling out for B to start wearing are the clothes I just packed up that Gracie just outgrew a few months ago!

Little Helper

Gracie decided Bee was hungry.

REALLY hungry!

Finger Foods

Gracie loves the little finger foods that melt in your mouth. I haven't bought them for a long time, because she can eat the whole can in one sitting. I decided that Brianna is ready for them now though, so I got a can. Gracie dug in, but we were able to salvage a few for the little one.

She loved them. She kept opening her mouth like a little baby bird asking for more.

Preserving the Memories

Have you ever heard of EnviroTex? I hadn't either, until a parent of one of my students used it for a classroom project for our art show. It is a high gloss varnish that is poured onto whatever is being sealed and leaves it looking like it has about 50 layers of varnish on it. No kidding, the art seriously looks like it's floating in crystal clear gloss. The parent uses it on foamcore board and makes placemats out of them. They were adorable, and I had to try it for myself!

I went to Michael's and looked at foamcore board, planning on using that and just adding some string on the back to hang the finished project. However, a full sheet of foamcore board was $5.99 and I could not bring myself to pay that much. After wandering around I found myself in their fine arts section and looked at prestretched canvases. They had two packs for $9.99 and I figured that was a little better-at least it would be professional looking for the price. Then I looked down. And saw a little sign that said "Buy One, Get One Free." SOLD. I got four two packs for this project.

I started with the Spin Paintings because although I love them, they were made by Gracie & friends, not just Gracie. If my idea flopped I wouldn't be as upset as I would be if I ruined her very first fingerpaintings. I cut them out, mounted them on black cardstock, and glued them to one of the canvases that I had painted a bright blue. I painted on two layers of Elmer's glue to seal the paper so the varnish wouldn't get to it (although, it did in a couple places, but still looks good).

When the glue was dry, I nervously mixed the EnviroTex. The stuff isn't cheap and I was afraid I would screw it up and waste all that time and money. The directions recommended that I mix a little more than needed (yeah, you'd like that, wouldn't you?). I thought I had mixed extra-and it's a good thing because it ended up being the exact amount I needed! I put plastic and wax paper under the project and elevated it on coffee cups (we don't drink coffee anyway). After pouring the mixture on, I used a spatula to spread it around on the canvas, and over the edges. I had to stay and continuously scrape the edges until it was thick enough not to drip.

These are two pictures of the finished project. It's hard to get a good enough picture to truly capture how cool they are. Although you can see the glare of varnish, I can't show how thick and bright it all looks in person.

I like it so much, I've started working on the next one! Next is her first fingerpainting!

Goop

I think it's safe to say. . .

Someone's a little too used to being messy!

Product Recall

Many children's medicines have been recalled. Check here to see if yours is on the list-mine was.

Marble Painting Made Easy(ier)

Daddy graciously cleaned the apartment this afternoon while the girls were asleep so when Gracie asked to marble paint I couldn't find the paper plates I use as pallets (which I later found exactly where I left them. Figures.). After digging in the cabinets, I found one of her toddler plates with little sections divided out-perfect!

Daddy's been eating the new Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers and I have been saving the containers-certain they will be perfect for something, sometime. That's when it hit me-cleaning marbles! I dumped them in, added hot water and shook them for a couple of seconds. The strainer was perfect to aid in quick cleaning. It took about 10 seconds!

Brianna's Dedication

Here is a video of Brianna's dedication. It cuts off a little abruptly because my dad was taking the video, and the family got called up to pray with us.

Laundry

While at the doctor on Monday, I asked her about Gracie's skin. She has an odd sandpapery texture to her belly and sides that comes and goes. As suspected, the doc said she is probably having a minor reaction to the perfumes that are in soaps. So now I am re-washing all of the girls' clothes with All Free. Maybe by next week I'll be out from under this pile-If you don't hear from me in a week seek help.

She also gave me a couple of tips that I though I'd share and save you all the trip to the doc! She said she put baby oil in her kids' bath water and although it is perfumed, their skin was softer when she started doing that. While talking with my MIL about it, she also recommended using Olive Oil, which is completely natural and has no perfumes that could irritate baby's skin. With summer coming, I was concerned about sun screen, and she said nothing in sun screen is proven to irritate the skin, but it should be put on about a half hour before exposure. It takes that long to fully activate. I had no idea!

Random Tips

Lately I have been doing a lot of research for ideas for toddler activities on the Internet. It occurred to me that without the help, ideas, and support of other parents I would have no idea what I'm doing. With that in mind, I have decided to share some ideas that have helped me in the last two years, since my Gracie was born. Some are things I've discovered on my own, but most of them have come from friends, family, and even parenting magazines. Thanks to everyone that has provided advice, or just a listening ear as I have began my adventures into parenthood.

Infants:
~Chamomile tablets are priceless. In addition to being holistic, they simply make baby (or toddler) calm down. Because they aren't medicine, they can be combined with Tylenol and Oragel to make complete teething relief. I also used it with my baby just to calm her at times prior to teething. The best ones I've found are Hyland's Teething Tablets, which can be found at Walgreens, Babies 'R' Us, and Wal-Mart.
~White noise. It will make a baby sleep like nothing else that I've found!
~When baby is learning to crawl and walk, and starts to climb on things teach him/her "feet first." Whenever Gracie was getting off of anything we'd remind her "feet first," and she really understood it and still responds by adjusting her position so she'll land on her feet.
~When baby is really little, and the whole family is adjusting to a newly developing routine let the housework go! Sleep when baby sleeps. Who cares if all the dishes are done if you can't see straight because you haven't slept for 48 hours?! Anyone that visits will understand!

Toddlers:
~For a great healthy-ish frozen treat, freeze the yogurt that comes in a tube. Simply run some warm water on it prior to opening it to loosen it from the plastic. My daughter loves them!
~Two ways to contain the mess of a new painter: either use the bathtub by stripping him/her to their diaper and letting them go crazy, or use a cookie sheet with a rim and tape the paper into the cookie sheet.
~Toys don't have to be fancy or expensive to be educational and hold a toddler's interest. In addition to the links I have on the right, which have many homemade toy/activity ideas, think small. I got a bag of pompoms from a local store, and Gracie and I have endless games with that one small bag! We sort by color or size, find colors, name colors, practice counting and putting them in the bag and taking them out. All for less than two dollars!
~Teach your kid the word "HELP." Gracie learned this a while ago, and whenever she threw a tantrum I'd simply say "Gracie, do you need HELP?" She's caught on to the word and although she still shows her frustration, the tantrums have gotten smaller. I think we avoid a lot of tantrums too, because she knows if she just says HELP, momma or daddy will try to help her. Of course, there are times she goes straight to help without trying by herself, which is an important part of learning. We try to address those moments as they come, encouraging her to keep trying as we slowly come to her aid.
~When tantrums DO happen, we tell her "Use your words." We've explained to her that momma and daddy don't understand if she doesn't use words. Then we wait for the tears to stop and words to start. She gets immediate reactions as soon as she starts using her words, so she knows that it's a better choice.
~Don't be afraid to get down and messy with your toddler! Messes are temporary, the things your child will learn from you and the memories that will come from a childhood shared with his/her parents will be with him/her forever.