Well the ongoing debate within the medical community is that being exposed to germs is good for children to build up their immunity buuuuutttt then there is the flip side like in the case of a new parent who is nervous about taking their kid out or the parents who are eager for a vacation so they don't want to risk exposure.. The week of our 1st vacation our 1 yr. old came down with her 1st cold so we had to postponse our trip thankfully the hotel let us. Fast forward a year and a half and another kid later and the week before our vacation I was contemplating keeping our kids in a bubble for a week but since I can't do that or we'd all go insane…I did what any nice friend would do and offered to babysit a friends kid, he showed up with a runny nose which is not uncommon for him poor kid and poor mom but then the next day my daughter woke up sick I teased my friend that maybe he got her sick but as the day went onnnnn the symptoms were not the same she threw up poor thing….then I recalled hmm last week she was at the Y daycare and also around some new kids at another friends house….well considering this was her 1st time with a stomach flu we all handled it great and thankfully she's back to normal before we head out for vaca:)
Month: August 2011
The power of the playdate
Today I am babysitting a friends 5 yr. old and it feels like I still only have 2 with me, Zach is so good, has good manners and says please and thank you. So far this morning we've painted, made a card, ate, done yoga, played the memory game, did legos, puzzles and now although my 2 yr. old looks tired she still is fighting the nap but the good thing is I didn't have to supervise every single activity because the 5 yr. old was teaching my 2 yr. old little things she doesn't know and I believe she may have even taught him a thing or two:) So introducing older kids to your toddler is helpful for them to learn things they may learn better from a peer.
Extra love needed
Our youngest daughter has entered the teething/seperation anxiety phase which I remember all to well with our first daughter. When bedtime comes she wails and needs more "baa baa" and does everything in her power to get me back in her room. Well since she is such a low maintenace kid its worked the last 2 nights…I'm a sucker for a shrieking baby what can I say I am no good at the cry out thing but I did give her 10 minutes then I scooped her up and rocked her and it got me thinking about when I was a kid and the fact that once we have kids we kind of nurture the kid inside as well so don't be afraid to rock her a little longer…
Easy Craft
Today I was determined to not let my daughter watch more than 1 Dora after breakfast. Some days while we wait for her sister to wake up I enjoy my coffee and realize how easy it is to let an hour of tv time fly by if your not careful even if it is educational but today I had a plan and a craft in mind for right after breakfast. We made macaroni necklaces. It was so fun and easy, Madalynn is 2 1/2 and did it with ease.
what you'll need:
pasta noodles we used ziti but elbows, ditalini, anything with an opening that you can thread a ribbon thru is fine
food coloring and vinegar
thin ribbon that you can tie and use as a necklace
Thats it! use 2 tbsp. of the vinegar and 10-12 drops of food coloring to dye the noodles place ina zip lock bag for 5 min. then dry. We did about a 1/4 cup of pasta in 4 different dyes
Summer Book Challenge
Pottery Barn Reading List
-This is a great way to keep your child learning all summer long with Caldecott Books as well as Early Learning Approved Books. For every list you complete your child will get a free book when they complete one list.
Positive Rewards for toddlers
I started a calendar recently for my daughter where every day she doesn't have an accident she gets to put a star on the calendar. She gets so excited to see a few stars in a row, I keep telling her once we get to a week with no accidents she gets a small special gift. We also made a calendar to count down to our family vacation to help her grasp the concept of time. Everyday she gets to put an X after dinner to complete the day. It's amazing how she is learning so much at the ripe age of 2 1/2.