Book Review Tuesday!

For today's book review I wanted to scale back a bit and focus on the babies. I feel that since Thomas has grown up so much lately we have entered a different tier of books. Every once and awhile we break out one of his baby books but he usually shakes his head "NO" when I pull an "immature" book off of his shelf! Sheesh! ;)

In this summer's theme of KEEPING THINGS SIMPLE, I decided to go with ..... 

Image found off of Amazon

This is one of my favorite books and authors for my really little ones!! Sandra Boynton does a wonderful job in her writing and rhyming. This is such a simple board book. The illustrations are colorful, fun and a great size! Always enough to capture the attention of your baby! There is a great connection to the six early literacy skills. Phonological awareness, narrative skills and vocabulary to name a few. The rhyming is SO MUCH FUN! "A cow says, MOOOOO!, a sheep says, BAAAAA!, three little pigs say, LA LA LAAA!" This book is just filled with serious amounts of silliness! The animals are all whimsical. If you choose to introduce this book to your baby they will know all of their farm animals very quickly! I know this is what helped Thomas to learn at a fast pace!

Both images found from apple.

As mentioned above, I HIGHLY recommend this book for its phonological awareness! Its ability to help your child start and build up their vocabulary skills and help to develop some interpersonal skills as well! 

Please feel free to share some of your favorite board books and reading moments below! Whether you are a Mommy, Daddy, Caregiver, Teacher or friend we love to hear from you!

XOXO,

-D

Monday Ramblings

I feel like the weeks are just flying by and I can never get everything done that I have planned! My to-do list is getting longer and longer. I spent the other day organizing Makenna's closet and trying to make room for baby #2's stuff. The access to the attic is unfortunately through that closet. So I wanted to make sure that before I blocked it with a shelf, I got out all the stuff in there that baby would need for at least her first three months. Which meant we still had bins sitting all over our hallway a week later. I am not the most organized person in the world… which drives my husband CRAZY. When I do try to organize I am OCD about it and it takes an entire day to get it done, but the rest of the house suffers as a result. I keep seeing "cleaning schedules" on Pinterest. I really need to check some of them out. With another baby on the way I need to get more organized. Anyone use a cleaning schedule?? Feel free to share it with me, please! I am lucky that my husband is the total opposite of me. He does most all of the vacuuming, laundry and general house de-cluttering. 

Makenna is at such a fun age! She'll be three this September and I'm trying to soak up as much of this time as I can. The stuff that comes out of her mouth sometimes is absolutely hilarious. Most days she refers to us as Mommy Pig and Daddy Pig, but she likes to call me random words all the time: your majesty, superhero, tree, rock or whatever she is looking at. I thought I would share some of the funnier comments with you all…

She leans over and smells a marker, "oooohh it smells like poo poo and marshmallows!"   

Playing doctor, "I feel like you are going to have a heart attack. Let me check you out." She turns around and puts the stethoscope on my butt.

"Mommy, you understand?" after everything she says.

Drops something in the sink. "It's gone for the ages."

The kids were screaming and I kept telling them to stop. They didn't listen so they both got a time out. I hear Makenna say to Matthew, "It's ok Bubba. My mommy will get better after we take her to the doctor."

"I love goldfish! They are so….friendly!" 

The Doctor says to her, "Do you know what your mommy is having?"

Makenna: "Yes, she is having a Gummy Bear."

I took her to the bathroom at a restaurant. The toilets were really low to the ground and small. She looks at me and says, "You better not sit on this. Your butt is way to big."

What are some funny things your kids have said? I love hearing about the things kids say! They are usually hilarious and brutally honest. We will be back with a book review tomorrow! We also have a fun craft, another product review and a great recipe lined up this week! 

My family is going on vacation soon, so I will also be talking about traveling with kids. 

Someone is VERY excited for vacation!

Hope you all have a great week!

- K   

Muffins, Muffins & More Muffins!

Keri and I were approached by a company that represents Garden Lites. A delicious vegetable company! These muffins are Gluten free too! Which is a HUGE hit in one of the household's that I Nanny for! They were kind enough to send us five boxes of veggie muffins to taste test on our kids! This was our very first opportunity we received the third day our blog launched. Needless to say the word excited was a complete UNDERSTATEMENT!

We received five yummy flavors;

• Zucchini Chocolate
• Zucchini Banana Chocolate Chip
• Veggie Blueberry Oat
• Carrot Berry
• Golden Corn 

Keri and I split up each package of muffins so we could equally divide them amongst the children. Just to give some background on their ages.... Thomas is two years old, Makenna is almost three years old, Matthew is three and a half years old and Michael is six years old. Thomas LOVED the Zucchini Banana Chocolate Chip muffin and the Golden Corn muffin. Makenna and Matthew LOVED the Carrot Berry and Veggie Blueberry Oat muffins. Michael LOVED the Golden Corn muffin and I absolutely LOVED the Zucchini Chocolate muffins. 

Keep in mind the children who are under the age of four years old have not been introduced to chocolate much in their early lives :) All from personal choice. So just because they are not used to it they did not really enjoy the full Zucchini Chocolate muffins. However, myself on the other hand who is extremely into chocolate REALLY enjoyed them!! :) 

In our homes these muffins were a TRUE WINNER!!  They are a great healthy snack and the kids thought they were cupcakes. They got a dose of fruit and veggies without even realizing it! As mentioned above go check out their website  at www.gardenlites.com You can also find these muffins in Wegmans, Whole foods, Target, Stop n Shop and MANY MORE stores! Make sure your go buy a box and try them out for yourself! SUPER YUMMY! 

XOXO,

-D

Book Review Tuesday!

YAYYY! I always get so excited when Tuesday rolls around. Keri and I have received so much wonderful and positive feedback about our book reviews. Without further a due here is my favorite book of choice for this week....

This children's book is amazing for so many reasons. The moral behind Pete the Cat's story is, "No matter what you step in, keep walking along and singing your song... because it's all good." I love how Pete the Cat finds a fun way to say don't sweat the small stuff! Throughout the entire book Pete showcases such a positive attitude. The illustrations are fun, colorful and rustic. Pete the Cat undergoes a couple of shoe transformations. Whether he stepped in mud, strawberries or blueberries Pete keeps the same casual face and just keeps strolling all and singing his song. This book teaches children the art of just being able to chill out. Whether that means that mommy won't be able to refill your sippy cup right away, or you spilled something on your new shirt. No worries, it will all be okay.  

I truly do not want to ruin the book for anyone however this story comes with a CD where all the kids are able to sing along with Pete the Cat. This book is perfect for a story time or circle time. I have talked to teachers who have used this book and they all said it was a winner in their eyes. You can find it in your local library minus the fun CD or you can order it offline CD and all! 

I hope you all enjoy it! 

XOXO,

-D

Simple Summer Activites

Happy Monday! Hope you all had a great 4th of July weekend! 

Danielle and I are slowly adjusting to our summer schedules, so we should be back to our normal five posts a week now. Today I want to share some of the stuff we have been up to lately. It's always hard to find ways to keep the kids entertained without spending a ton of money going places. Here are some free activities that Makenna and Matthew love to do over and over again.

After we pick Matthew up from camp we usually head to the park for a picnic. We pack up lunch, snacks and a blanket to use if there are no picnic tables available. They love to eat outside and watch all the kids play. Bonus, they usually finish all their lunch without any issue because they know they have to eat before they play. When lunch is finished we do all the regular fun park stuff; swings, slides and sand boxes. To keep the kids entertained a little longer, I started making up some other things to do. 

We usually have a ball of some sort or a little train in the car. One of the kids takes the item to the top of the slide and the other stands with a bucket at the end and tries to catch it. Then they switch places. They will do this for an hour non stop. 

Another activity that will keep them entertained for HOURS is water play. Every night when we make dinner, Makenna gets all her buckets, cups, spoons, shells and any random toy and sits on the deck. She loves to play with water and when its time to clean up she never wants to. So simple, but she has so much fun!

What kid doesn't like playing in water on a hot summer day? Another water activity they love is playing carwash. We take the bikes, scooters and play cars outside and set up a little carwash station. We make sure to dirty them up with some chalk if they are looking to clean. Some old rags with a bucket of soapy water and another bucket of clean water to rinse is all you need. Sorry I forgot to take pictures of this one! 

The last activity that the kids are loving this summer is pretend camping. Matthew got a really cool Thomas blow up bed. They pack up some necessities and camp out in the living room floor to watch a movie. We also build tent forts and read books inside.

So that's what we have been up to the last week. What are some fun activities you and the kids have done? Please share below! Danielle will be back tomorrow with a book review. 

-K

Book Review Tuesday!

I am a huge fan of books that help to teach children manners and proper behavior. I especially love to read them the stories when it pertains to them and the different feelings, emotions and stages that they go through. Even though most of my little ones are toddlers they understand everything that is going on around them. They have the ability to identify with the books even when they can't fully communicate with us. I know every child goes through this stage and sometimes Thomas still struggles with this just a little bit ;) ... you know that moment when they look at you and drop their food all over themselves and the floor! WAIT, DON'T YOU EVEN THINK ABOUT IT... NOOOOO! Haha you know we all think it in that moment and most of us even voice it. Thank goodness for the awesome book, "How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?" by, Jane Yolen.

Image found from slcbookboy.

Image found from scholastic.

Image found from Google.

"How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?" just happens to be apart of an amazing series! At the end of this post I will mention some of the other stories in this series. For now, let me rave about this one! When Thomas was heavy into the screaming stage at mealtime and throwing everything you placed in front of him this book was the best thing that ever happened to us. Not only did it keep his attention but all he wanted to do was read it over and over again. The author, Jane Yolen does a wonderful job of starting out this book by teaching proper table manners. In the first half of this book she states all of the things that should NOT be happening at the dinner table. The second half of this story showcases what great table manners should be! One of the best idea's the author had was using Dinosaurs to help get her point and her themes across to children. By using Dinosaurs instead of humans you get these hilarious pictures. They have human parents and bystanders that watch with these horrid looks on their faces. All of the pictures are awesome! It beautifully captures the awful behavior of the dinosaurs and the funny and shocking disapproving looks from their parents. It is honestly hilarious. The book is filled with tons of fun rhymes. "Does he belch, does he burp, or make noises quite rude?" When I read it to Thomas during meal time I usually say all of these rhymes in a funny and quite annoying high pitched voice. I also act some stuff out. He absolutely loves it. I am sure its a scene but anything for the little man ;) Another fun perk of this book is that somewhere on each page the Dinosaurs full name can be found. So if you have an older child you can make a game out of it. More or less an I spy... I spy a name that starts with the letter, "T." If they find it you can proceed to tell them the name and try to have them pronounce it. Your older child can even try to do some research on each Dinosaur to find out what they ate and how they lived. There are so many things you can do to make this book more fun and educational then it already is!

"How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food," is beyond comical and so simple in its approach to teaching children table manners. For Thomas this book was an absolute home run! It never gets old to him and he now loves Dinosaurs. It really has helped him to grow and understand what should and should not be done during mealtime. 

Some of the other awesome books from this series is:

• "How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Room?" 
• "How Do Dinosaurs Say I love You?" 
• "How Do Dinosaurs Go To School?"
• "How Do Dinosaurs Play With Their Friends?"

You can see exactly where the author Jane Yolen has gone with this series. Absolutely GENIUS!! Like I said above, this series is a HOME RUN in Thomas's house!

What are some books that have helped to teach your child some important lessons? Have any suggestions as to what books you would like to see showcased for Book Review Tuesday? Comment below to let us know! 

XOXO,

-D

Bringing Your Baby to Sporting Events

Danielle and I were approached by Fanatics, an online retailer where you can get everything and anything sports related - from MLB hats and jerseys to NFL gear, to participate in a series called, "Family Fanatics." I have actually ordered NY Giants and Mets stuff from them many times and was thrilled to be asked. I had planned on writing a blog post about how we take Makenna to sporting events with us, so this was right up my alley. 

The "Family Fanatics" series is about an instance where sports have brought your family together. There are too many instances to count where sports have brought my family together. We are an avid sports loving family. My husband played, and up until recently, coached baseball. We are also season ticket holders for the NY Giants and attend as many Mets games as we can. If we aren't at the games, they are on TV. It's just not limited to those two sports though, my husband will watch any type of sporting event and any team if his aren't playing. 

When I became pregnant with Makenna, I remember my husband making a comment on how we weren't going to be able to go to a lot of games anymore. I said, "Why not? We will just bring her with us!" That is exactly what we have done from the very start. Makenna was exactly a month old when she attended her first Giants game. It was a gorgeous October day! We tailgated and everything. People were amazed she was there with us. The Giants lost the game and Makenna lost all her hair, but we had a blast!

First Giants Game 1 month old 

As Makenna got older we continued to bring her to games with us. We always tailgate, so it can be a LONG day. She is pretty much a pro at attending football games at this point. Now that she is almost 3 and super active, I am a little nervous about bringing her to Giants games. Not because she can't handle going, but because our seats are waaaaay up top and her being up that high freaks me out. She likes to walk around by the seats and talk to everyone. We might have to wait a few years before she can start going with her Daddy again.

One of my favorite pictures of us! 

My husband has passed his love of baseball to Makenna. She asks all the time if we can go watch a baseball game or go see Mr. Met. She doesn't care if it is high school, college or professional baseball. She just loves to go to games. A few months ago we went to watch a county championship HS baseball game. We severely underestimated the amount of people attending and the amount of parking spaces. After driving around and not seeing any spaces we decided to leave. Well, Makenna was NOT having it. She threw such a fit that we actually turned around to go back. Luckily we found a parking spot this time.

Makenna's middle name is Shea, so she was pretty much born a Mets fan. Citi Field, where the Mets play, is like her second home. We also took her to a Yankee playoff game, just because my husband found a good last minute deal on tickets. For someone who is not even 3 years old yet, she has attended more games than most.

Her first Mets game and meeting Mr. Met. They have a love hate relationship :) 

 Lucky kid even got to attend a Mets spring training game in Florida.

I am so glad that we decided from the start to include Makenna in our love of sports. I couldn't imagine leaving her behind every time we wanted to attend a game or deciding to just not go at all. This is something we love to do as a family and it has given me the opportunity of making some of my favorite memories. I can't even imagine all the quality and bonding time we would have missed out on.  

Here are some tips for people wanting to take their small children to sporting events:

1. Pack LOTS of snacks and drinks.
2. A little notepad and crayons helps them stay in their seat when they are getting restless or any little dollar store toy. Even your phone games.
3. If they are getting antsy, take a walk! There are so many kid friendly areas in most sporting venues. 
4. Play I Spy with them. It will help them stay still in their seats for a little bit and they can learn about the stuff around them.   
5. Start young! The younger you take them, the easier it will be. Its like second nature to Makenna.
6. Try to get seats on the end of an aisle. It will be easier than having to ask 20 people to stand and move every time you want to get out. 

I hope this helps anyone who is on the edge about going to a sporting event as a family. When baby #2 comes this september, you can bet she will be right there with us. Makenna has no problem sleeping anytime she needs to, even with 40,000+  fans screaming around her. I swear I think this is why she will sleep through just about anything! If not for any other reason, this is why we need to get baby #2 to a game asap! :)

What are some times sports brought your family closer together? Feel free to share below and make sure you check out Fanatics for all your sporting apparel needs. They have the cutest kid stuff, which is always hard to find! p.s. I am NOT being paid to say that! 

Have a great week!

-K