Archive for the ‘Physical Development’ Category

The other day I picked up a Highlights High Five magazine to see how Sammi would like it. She loved it! We read it through twice and then we cut out the little book at the end and folded it together. Then we had to run to the store to buy cheap paper plates to do the flower garden craft.

I made a template and cut it out. Then we folded a bunch of plates and traced the template. Sammi had fun cutting out the centers, but decided the petals were not for her.

Then we cut strips of paper. She even identified them as rectangles, totally unprompted! She helped me pick out the papers and then we worked together to cut them with the paper cutter.

She loves tape and had so much fun taping the beginning and end of each strip. She also loved threading the paper through the middle hole as we wrapped each strip around the flower.

One is for Sammi and one is for Daddy. Not only are they flowers, but they also act as crowns and bracelets. Such creativity!

I wanted a flower poem to go along with our craft, but I couldn’t think of one. So I made one up and the girls loved it. We did it ten times and they both got the actions down.

Five Little Flowers
by Amber Passey *

Five little flowers, sitting in the yard,
The first one says, Growing tall is very hard.
The second one says, I just want to see some rain.
The third one says, I want the sun again.
The fourth one says, I am ready to bloom!
The fifth one says, I just need some wiggle room.

So clap went the thunder and down came the drops.
Then the sun comes out and all the rain stops.

Line 1: Show five fingers
Line 2: stretch up tall on tiptoes
Line 3: have fingers rain down
Line 4: circle arms overhead for sun
Line 5: put fists by face and then pop open fingers on “bloom”
Line 6: wiggle like crazy
Line 7: clap hands then rain fingers down
Line 8: circle arms overhead for sun then on “stops” hold both hands in front like you’re stopping traffic

*Poem is original. You’re more than welcome to share it, but please give credit to Because Babies Grow Up. Thanks!

Sammi’s taken a lot of pictures some with pretty amazing compositions, but this is by far my favorite to this point.

This post is linked up with 5 Minutes for Mom, and Seven Clown Circus. Check out other amazing pictures through those links.

Sammi started going through “craft project withdrawals” while at my dad’s house. I had my suspicions that this was the case, but I knew for sure when she brought me two empty toilet paper rolls and said, “Let’s make something with these!” There was an almost pleading sound in her voice and I knew we need a great project and fast!

I remembered No Time For Flash Cards‘ post on toilet paper flowers and decided we could do that with the resources we had at Grandpa’s. I cut one toilet paper roll in half then snipped about halfway down several times around to make petals. Then I folded them out and gave them to Sammi. She colored and added stickers for a minute. I was thinking about the best way to make them into a garden when Sammi held the two flowers up to her eyes.

I just knew we had to make glasses.

We taped two petals together while I tried to think of a way to make the sides to fit around her ears. I asked my dad if he had any bendy straws. He said no. I said, “So that probably means pipe cleaners are out of the question?” He replied, “Amber, our days of kids crafts are so far past I don’t think we have anything hanging around anymore.” Just then I remembered the big container of Q-tips in the closet upstairs. I ran up and got several. It took two and a half for each side to be long enough to reach Sammi’s ears.

Another impromptu craft we did used paper and some Easter stickers I picked up for $2 at Target. I found yellow scrap paper {again, we were at my dad’s and I had to search to find some paper to use!} and used a pen to draw baskets filled with eggs. Then I set out crayons and gave them each some stickers. This was a fun, easy craft because it was relevant to an upcoming holiday, didn’t take very much prep work or time and kept them entertained while I jumped in the shower. I think if I had sat with them while they did it, the activity would have lasted longer and they probably would have decorated all the eggs and the basket. But for an independent project, I think it turned out great!

Creative Crafting

It doesn’t take a lot of resources. It doesn’t take a lot of time or money. But with a little bit of creativity, you and your little ones can make some pretty creative crafts. If it weren’t for the forced need for creativity, I never would have drawn an Easter basket or used Q-tips to make flower glasses. I loved the challenge, though, and the outcome was fabulous!

I’d love to hear about your resourceful craft projects! Have you been creative in the materials you used in a craft project with your little ones?

…An indoor play area NOT part of a fast food restaurant.

I’ve noticed a trend in blog posts, Facebook status updates and conversations during these long winter months. That topic? How to keep from going crazy couped up inside when it’s too cold to play outside. Fast food has not been an acceptable option for me when it comes to feeding my girls. Even as recent as last month I turned down a lunch invite to McDonald’s because I didn’t want to buy that food for my girls. But, one late nap and a very wired three year old had me singing a very different tune.

When trying to find ways for Sammi to get some physical play when she woke up from a nap at 6 pm I was in a bit of a dilemma. How on earth was I supposed to get her tired enough to go to bed when it was already dark and it was very cold and snowy? I finally caved and we went to Old McDonald’s(as she calls it) so she could climb, slide and crawl to her heart’s content. Since that fateful day, we have gone to McDonald’s four or five more times. It kills me! I just want a place to play without the obligation to purchase food.

Another option is the play areas at the mall. We’re fortunate enough that the malls that are close to us all have pretty fun play areas. They provide opportunities for climbing and sliding and, as an added bonus, a bit of imaginative play. But the closest mall to us is 45 minutes away, not exactly a viable option for an evening outing. And not all malls have play areas. I was shocked when a mall in Utah removed its wonderful play area because of lack of funding to maintain it. Seriously?

So, I propose a community indoor play area that is not associated with food, that is not associated shopping, that is just a place focused on play. I want it to be on neutral ground where any family would feel comfortable using the indoor play area.  Just as they would to play at the city park.

What do you want for every community?

While at Blissdom last week I picked up a few of ice cream bowls from Blue Bunny, one of the sponsors. The bowls change colors when they get cold. They turn blue, of course! Well, I had some ice cream last night and left my bowl on the table. When I woke up this morning, it was still blue! I get I keep the heat pretty low (it’s set at 55 pretty much constantly!)

On a side note, they were handing out samples of Double Strawberry Aspen® Frozen Yogurt Granola Bars. They were so yummy and the girls gobbled their up in a flash. I think I’ll get more of these with the coupon they gave us!

40 Amazing Facts About Babies

I wanted to share an article with you that I found to be rather interesting. 40 Truly Amazing Facts About Babies contains all kinds of nuggets about babies’ amazing bodies. Here are a few of the facts included in the list:

No Kneecaps : On birth, babies do not have kneecaps. Rather they have a structure of cartilage that resembles kneecaps. They usually don’t develop them fully until after six months. Most seen on babies who “army crawl” instead of doing it on all fours.

What A Load : The heaviest baby ever born was a boy who weighed 22 pounds, eight ounces. He was born in Italy in 1955. To summarize, it isn’t highly unusual for a one year old baby to weigh 22 pounds.

Triple Take : At the end of the first year, your baby’s weight will have tripled. That means if they were born at ten pounds, at their first year they will weight around 30, give or take.

Motherhood Makes You Smarter : Pregnancy can take a toll on a woman’s body, but it can also help. A Pulitzer Prize winning reporter discusses her findings on how women improve perception, efficiency, resiliency, motivation, and emotional intelligence. The detailed article has more.

What amazes you most about your little one?

We talked about making a snowman and other ways to enjoy the snow on Wednesday so I thought today we could bring that inside and make some snow-themed crafts. The snowflake craft is loosely based on a craft idea I saw in an Oriental Trading Company catalog. The snowman craft evolved from some snowman foam stickers we bought around Christmas time.

Snowflake Craft

I was trying to think of a way to help Sammi make a snowflake. The two problems I saw were 1)the paper couldn’t be folded too many times or she couldn’t cut through it and 2)the design couldn’t be very complicated. So, I folded the square just two times and then I drew some straight lines with a pink marker for her to follow. I was impressed that she actually stayed pretty close to the lines and in the end, it looked like a snowflake!

Then we traced her hands on pink paper with a pink marker, of course it had to be pink! Then I sprayed the back of the snowflake and hands with spray adhesive. I positioned the snowflake and hands on the blue paper myself, but these are things an older toddler or preschooler would love to do. Then I copied this poem onto the hands.

My hand is like a snowflake-
Unique in every way.
Please keep it close to your heart,
For I’ll be grown someday.

Here are two patterns you can print out for your little ones to try cutting their own snowflakes:

1. To print, click on the image to enlarge it.
2. Print from the browser’s print option.
3. It should print the width of an 8.5×11 piece of paper.
4. Fold on the dotted lines leaving the pink marking showing for your child to use as guides when cutting.

Snowman Crafts

I made these postcard size, but you could easily leave them as cards so little ones can write a letter on the inside and send them of to someone. All you need is paper, we used cardstock for its thickness and texture for water coloring, water colors (I recommend Crayola because the colors are so bright and it washes out nicely), brushes, spray adhesive, wax or parchment paper.

Snowman Sticker Craft

We had friends over and everyone water colored their own card. This photo is of the water coloring done by a 5 year old. I loved how she made a rainbow! After the paint dried, we added the snowman and snowflake stickers. Easy to do but has depth to it making it look more complex. Very impressive

Snowman Craft Using Wax Paper

For this card, I cut two snowmen out of wax paper. Then I used a temporary spray adhesive on the back and positioned them onto the card. The we water colored over the top of it. Once the paint dried, we removed the wax paper and it was perfectly white underneath. Then I went back and added embellishments with water color.

This post is part of the Winter Wonderland Blog Carnival. You can enter to win prizes donated by the Winter Wonderland sponsors by visit the first post in the carnival here. You can also earn an extra entry by commenting on this post, too!

What winter crafts do you like to do with your little ones?

I love the first snow of winter! I love the first morning we wake up and there is frost covering the grass. The novelty of winter is exciting. But, come January, I’m feeling a little blah with the cold and often inconvenient weather. I’ve noticed, though, that the girls see the snow with new eyes every time. They rarely tire of going out to play. Most of the time I don’t want to hassle with it, but when I embrace their enthusiasm for the outdoors we have a fantastic time. Here are some ideas for outside activities in the snow and when there’s no snow.

Enjoying the Snow

Build a snowman! We get excited about building a snowman by singing Once There Was a Snowman while we gather winter clothes for the snowman. When we lived in Utah and had lots of snow, we would also make chairs out of snow and the girls loved climbing in them.

Make a snow angel! When Sammi was just 7 months old we had a pretty good snowfall. I bundled her up in her pink snow outfit and plopped her in the snow on our back porch. It was THE cutest snow angel to date that I’ve ever seen. The pic doesn’t do justice, but I couldn’t just leave her in the snow to take a picture! (She could have moved and ruined the snow angel!)

Sledding! The first time Brent took Sammi sledding was last year around Christmas. She was hesitant at first, but Brent wrapped her securely in his lap and down a little hill they went. She loved it and wanted to go again and again. Brent’s fondest winter memories are when his mom would drop him and some of his siblings off at the park and they would sled for a couple of hours at a time.

Enjoying the Lack of Snow

Watch your breath! On a cold morning, bundle up and head out. We have been fascinated by seeing our breath. Sammi and Elli both have noticed the cloud of air on a cold morning. We talk about how it comes from inside our mouth or nose and that makes it warm. In the cold winter air, the warm air from us looks like a cloud. Sammi got the idea that she was making the cloud appear. It was a great little science lesson.

Go for a walk! I love to wrap the girls up in blankets in the stroller and walk around the streets surrounding our house. They love being outside and getting the fresh air, but they are still warm under the blankets. I appreciate getting out and moving as much as they do. We usually talk about how things look different in the winter: trees, grass, animals (winter coats), etc.

Relish the sunshine! Even in Utah we had sunny days in the middle of January or February. Here we have them a bit more often. So when it’s sunny, even if it’s still a bit chilly, we dress appropriately and head outside to soak in the sun. We’ve had fun kicking or throwing balls around in the backyard. We’ve also gone to the park and played on any equipment that wasn’t wet or muddy.

No matter what you do, it’s terrific to get outside in the winter. It’s good to experience the cold, briefly, and let little ones understand first hand why gloves, hats, scarves and coats are important. For us, that has reduced a lot of fighting over getting bundled up. We went to the park yesterday. And while it was wet and Elli somehow managed to plant her dirty shoes right on my chest, spending time outside, being active was just what the girls, and I, needed.

It is recommended that children of all ages get at least 60 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week. I know this winter has seen a drastic decline in the girls physical activity and I don’t know that we’re hitting that target. A lot of our activities are sedentary: reading books, crafts at the table, cooking meals, etc. I’m so glad for the great music we’ve discovered recently because that has really helped us get moving when we are indoors. Here are some additional ideas (year round) for indoors and outdoors activities to fill that 60 minute goal.

Comments on this post count as extra entries into the Winter Wonderland Carnival’s giveaways: Everyone Loves To Dance by Aaron Nigel Smith, Personalized Gummi Labels by Sippy Stuff, This Is Me Journal and a Dress-Up Cape from BBGU! Make sure you read about all the ways to enter the Winter Wonderland Carnival!

What are some of your favorite winter outside memories either from your life or your children’s lives?

We’ve looked at using music for quiet time and using music to build emergent literacy skills, but today we’re going to look at making music the center of play. Using music to engage your little one in play is the main message of Laptime Songs for Mommies. The energy in an upbeat song is contagious, not just for our little ones, but for us as well!

It’s easy to get up and move around to songs like “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes ” or “Dance All Day” or “See Me Run” or “Here We Go Looby-Loo” because the words to the songs describe the actions we should do. When looking for a surefire hit, you want to make sure the lyrics are easy to understand with a lot of repetition. Bari Koral’s Clap It! Is a great example of this. It repeats the same action to the point where I wonder if it can go on any longer, but what I’ve noticed is it’s about this time that the girls have figured out the action, know that it’s coming again and are actually able to do the action with the song. That kind of timing is magical for little ones!

Another way to incorporate music into play is to use songs to help you teach games to your little ones. We had a fantastic experience this week with this. We listened to Aaron Nigel Smith’s Simon Says. Then we talked about the rules (again) with Sammi. Brent was Simon for a while. Then Sammi had a turn to be Simon. Then I had a turn to be Simon. After playing this for at least 15 minutes, I said, “Freeze!” and Sammi hesitated then said, “You didn’t say ‘Simon says’ so I’m still dancing!” Yep, she finally figured it out. But the song was a great introduction to the game. It provided to reason to play, an example of what the game was like, and some really fun ideas for what Simon could say.

What music do you turn on when it’s time to play? A comment on today’s post is an extra entry in this week’s giveaway!

I was at the health department last month and picked up an information card highlighting milestones of child development for little ones birth through 4 years old. I thought it fitting to share with you as it has great things to look for in your little ones as they change month to month.

The purpose of the CDC’c campaign “Learn the Signs. Act Early.” is to help parents and healthcare providers catch the signs of developmental delays and disorders early so resources and treatments can begin as early as possible thus allowing children the maximum benefit from those resources and treatments.

I’ve been blessed with two healthy little ones so I love this information from a “oh ya, she does that now!” perspective. But my best friend from high school just told me that her second child was recently diagnosed with high functioning autism. A label to the behavior somehow seems to change the whole experience. Sometimes it’s in a good way because now real information and solutions become available. But sometimes it’s in a negative way when there’s denial or an uncooperative attitude from a parent or teacher. I think information is the key to understanding. That coupled with the love we have for our little ones will get us and them far in this life.

I thought I’d get these up yesterday, but Brent has a test this week so I’ve been extra exhausted at the end of each day. Ah, the test is tomorrow and I’m looking forward to a relaxing evening. Back to turkey crafts!

Handprint Turkeys by Sammi and Elli

This turkey handprint craft we made at the library. The template can be downloaded from Family Fun.

Supplies:

• colorful feathers
• googly eyes
• orange beak from foam sheet
• red gobbler from foam sheet
• crayon or marker for tracing child’s hand
• glue dots for quick and easy attachment

Sammi hung her turkey on HER fridge.

The idea for this turkey craft came from Make and Takes Turkey Countdown. We modified the face a bit by using foam sheets for depth and googly eyes for fun. Sammi loves BIG googly eyes! Here’s another one of her posing with her babies by her turkey.