The Village

After 2 1/2 years....

2011-09-05T10:50:00.000-07:00

The Village is calling it quits.

Due to lack of interest from readers and the crazy lives of the panelists we have mutually decided to close up shop. We've had a good run, but the time has come to end regular posting on The Village. We will leave the blog up so that you can access previous posts - hopefully the blog will still be here if you need something. Thanks for reading and commenting, we hope that we've helped you in your journey as a mother.

Special thanks also to Delia Randall who originally came up with the idea for the blog and to all other previous panelists who have made The Village great.

Tannie Datwyler
Megan Izatt
Laura Wampler
Alyssa Harper
Lisa Mortensen

How to Take Your Own Photos: Part II

2011-09-02T15:22:00.000-07:00

For a great intro into basic, portrait taking tips, click HERE for our previous Village discussion.

Okay, now let's talk Photoshop. Last time I got some great questions about photo editing. We all know the pros do it, and great post-process editing sprinkles that little bit of magic on your photos to take them from good to holy-cow-phenominal. The most common feedback I get from friends without Photoshop is, "it's too expensive." Granted there is free photo editing software out there. Gimp. Picasa. They're all good for basic edits, (I would try out one of them before paying for licensed software) but I still like Photoshop best. It's the cream of the crop. Love it for all-purpose editing.

There are two types of Photoshop:

Photoshop CS series (most recent is CS5) which is the full-on, everything included, beefed up version of Photoshop that has everything a professional photographer would ever want to use (relatively speaking) to edit the most minor details.
Photoshop Elements (most recent edition is Elements 9) is a slimmed down version of the CS series. It still has absolutely everything an amateur photographer would need. It's wonderful. I recommend it. You can get Elements 7 on Ebay for about $45.

Moving on.

The most common question I get from people WITH Photoshop is, "I have it, but I don't even know where to start." Touche, my friends. There are A LOT of bells and whistles in Photoshop. Here's a breakdown for my basic, home-photo edits. It's two steps. Seriously.

EXPOSURE: If you have stinkin' amazing equipment and perfect models that sit still, maybe you can get perfect shots with perfect exposures, but if you're like me and shoot in AUTO a lot of the time (because I'm chasing toddlers around with my camera) your camera will make mistakes now and then. You can fix exposure somewhat in Photoshop. Go to Image>Adjustments>Exposure and fiddle with the bars.

ACTIONS: These save my life. Not even kidding. They are so fast. So convenient. So amazing. Actions are pre-recorded edits. Tens, hundreds, thousands of repetitive edits can be saved in "Actions." You just hit the play button, and Photoshop runs every step in the Action automatically. Awesome! You can make your own, but I recommend downloading other people's Actions. Here's a good little video to wet your feet in...(click HERE to go straight to youtube).

My absolute favorite action creator is MCP Actions. Jodi Friedman, creator, put together all these Action products that are absolutely jaw-dropping awesome. A good selection of them are free too.

Here's a picture I took of my boy just this morning. He had his cereal bowl on the floor, because eating at the table is SO YESTERDAY, MOM. *eye roll* Toddlers, seriously. Anyway, I ran a quick Action on it (MCP Mini Fusion Set is FREE from the MCP action site, click HERE to download).

That's it. One click Action. So easy. Just what a busy mother needs.

MCP also has Actions you can pay for. They're SO worth it. To date, I've never taken my kids to a studio to have their monthly milestone pictures taken. I take them all myself and do my own edits. Saves so much money, and I actually get around to DOING milestone pictures. Never would, if I had to leave the house. I'm that lazy.

My favorite Action set from MCP is their Fusion Mix (not to be confused with the free MINI fusion set). It is absolutely phenomenal. A little pricey, but totally worth every penny it in my mind. These pictures took all of 5 minutes to edit. Time saving is HUGE for me, especially with the bulk of pictures I take.

So, I'm totally curious. How many of our awesome readers edit their photos using some sort of software (both free and licensed)? Have you heard of editing via Actions before? If you have a favorite website to download actions from, PLEASE SHARE! (There are a lot of them out there.) During our last discussion, one of our readers suggested the The Coffee Shop for a great set of free actions. And as always, if you have any questions, shoot us a comment! I or any of our fabulous readers will make sure to answer them!

-Alyssa

Waste or Want: #15: Baby Bullet (or other similar food processor)

2011-09-01T07:16:00.000-07:00

Description:

An appliance to help make baby food and if you get a regular bullet, or something similar, you can make smoothies, sauces, grate cheese, and a number of other things as well!

Average Cost: Anywhere from $30 to over $130

On the One Hand:

The bullet, or something similar, is great at pureeing, blending, chopping, mixing, and other food prep. Also, the jars are microwave safe, so no having to switch containers when heating things up! It's also smaller than a blender so takes up less counter space.

On the Other Hand:

For baby food, a hand mill works great and is a fraction of the cost. Also, a blender can do quite a few things that a bullet can and you can find a decent one for around $30 or less.

I've been considering getting a bullet for several months. I have a hand mill and while I don't mind using, if I'm going to make several kinds of food it kind of wears my arm out! Also, my blender is wearing out and doesn't puree things as smooth as I want. So, what's your vote?

Magic Bullet (or something similar)

Waste or Want?

(and don't forget to tell us why!)

A Little Plugged Up

2011-08-31T09:51:00.000-07:00

This has to be a picture-less post, because I simply could not find a picture appropriate to this topic...

Fairly explicit post below - so be forewarned if you get squeamish about nursing.

Mastitis and Plugged Milk Ducts - the dreaded duo of nursing mothers.

I have never had Mastitis (yes, I KNOW I'm lucky - I'm sorry if you've ever had it, from what I understand it is dreadful). However, I've had plenty of clogged milk ducts. Especially in the last 3 weeks, and they can be VERY painful.

With all my kids I remain clog free for the first 4-6 months of nursing. Probably due to the fact that they are nursing more frequently and they still nurse through the night. But those plugged ducts always rear their ugly heads. Luckily, they usually ease up and go away around 9 months (at least for me).

This time has been no exception. I started getting my plugged ducts about a month ago. They have escalated BADLY this time to the point where I have been getting them every couple days, and some times on a daily basis. It's ridiculous friends...

This is most likely due to the fact that my baby is now sleeping through the night and I have an inordinate amount of milk at 3:00 or 4:00 AM. I have to get up and pump out a couple of ounces just to ease up the pressure and be able to go back to sleep. I'm hoping I'll stop producing in the night EVENTUALLY. SIGH.

In any case, in my desperation I have found some tricks that have helped me. So here we go...

1 - Make sure your bra/shirts are not too tight. Sometimes when I have a bad clog I'll take my bra off at around 8:00 after we are all winding down. That gives me a few hours at night without it pressing on my clogs and sometimes this is all I need to get it unstuck.

2 - Nurse the sore side FIRST. The baby's suck is stronger when he/she is hungry. If you feel like your baby didn't get all the milk out - put your pump on for just 1-2 minutes to make sure everything is cleared out.

3 - Dangle nurse. This is a weird trick and is new to me this time. The suggestion I read recommended laying your baby on the floor and kneeling over the top so as to use gravity to force the clog out. I found it was just as effective to sit cross legged with the baby on my lap and to lean over. This REALLY helped though. A couple of sessions of dangle nursing are sometimes all it takes to get the clog out.

4 - Apply heat. Take a warm shower and try to massage where it is sore (I know, it hurts). Or heat up a bean bag about 5 minutes before you feed the baby and apply it to the sore side. Then massage for about 30 seconds before you start feeding. This is a life saver.

5 - Garlic. I've read that you should eat a lot of it, though that's not the trick I've tried. My SIL gave me the advice of putting a raw garlic clove in my bra. This works great for me. I find a HUGE garlic clove, peel it and set it right next to the clog. For some reason this works - I swear.

6 - To prevent future clogs take Lecithin. This is a LARGE capsule that you can find in pretty much any store that sells medicine. The bottles aren't too expensive and they come with 100 capsules. Kelly mom recommends taking 3-4 capsules per day until you go a few weeks without clogs, then you can reduce it by one capsule, eventually working down to one. There are no ill effects for babies or nursing mothers.

If I use these tricks I can generally get a plugged milk duct cleared up in under 24 hours, though I've had some nasty ones that lasted for DAYS (maybe even a week).

For other suggestions see the Kelly Mom website.

Now for your input...

What do you do for plugged milk ducts?
What do you do for mastitis?
Share your horror/success stories!
And one more thing... how do I get rid of all the milk I'm making in the night????

Tutorial: How to Make Baby Food!

2011-08-30T08:42:00.000-07:00

Since we got such a positive response to this post last time it was up, and a couple of us on the panel are going to be entering the phase of baby food soon, we thought we would repost this great post on making your own baby food!

One of our readers sent us a complete tutorial on how to make your own baby food. This is something that I've wanted to do for a long time, but was never brave enough to figure it out on my own. Thank you so much! If you have any ideas for tutorials feel free to e-mail us at thevillageformoms@gmail.com

CHECK IT OUT!

I have loved making my own baby food for my two children. When I first thought about making my own food, I thought it would be so complicated and take so much time, but I am here to tell you how simple it really is!

First, here are the reasons I like making my own baby food:

1. The cost! I did my own cost comparison to see how much money I was really saving by making my own. Gerber baby food comes in two packs costing between $0.75 and $1.00, and each container is 2.5oz. This equals $0.15 to $0.20 per ounce. I bought 2 lbs of carrots for $1.55 which made 31 oz pureed. This equals $0.05 per ounce! The peas were also $0.05 per ounce. Green beans were $0.07 per ounce and butternut squash was $0.14 per ounce. Fruit tends to be more expensive but you may be able to find some good deals depending on the season. You can also buy the fruit on sale, puree it, and freeze it for use when your baby is ready to start solids.

2. It gives me peace of mind to know exactly what is in the food my baby eats. There are no fillers or preservatives. I know how fresh the produce is and when it was made. It smells good, and I have no problem tasting it which makes me feel better about feeding it to my baby.

3. It's really simple! I can make all the food my little girl will need pureed in one day. After she eats all the food I have pureed, she will probably be ready to start more table foods.

The Process
I put together a little tutorial so you can see step by step what to do. Hopefully if you are feeling overwhelmed by the thought of making your own food, this will help ease your mind a little! Please pardon my pictures.. I am not a pro photographer :)

I first made pears. Six pears ended up making 23 oz.

1. Cut your pears in half and scoop out the core. ( I thought I could scoop out the core after I cooked them, but I later regretted it.)

2. Place them cut side down in a baking dish. Pour water into the dish to cover about 1/2 inch of the fruit.

3. Bake the pears at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until tender. (Your house will smell delicious!) Don't throw away any left over water just yet!

4. When they are baked the skins will be brown and wrinkly. After they cool, peel the skins off. They should come off pretty easily by pinching the skin. ( I cooked mine a little too long so the skin was very soft and harder to get off.)

5. Place your pears into a pureeing device. I use a magic bullet, but a food processor, blender, immersion blender or even a hand food mill (click to see food mill) will work. If your puree is too thick, add some of the water that you saved from baking them. Adding stock water back is good because you get some of the nutrients back that were baked out. You can also add water or thicken it with rice cereal when you want to feed it to your baby.

6. I use a freezer method, so I pour the puree into ice cube trays. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze. Once they are frozen, you can pop them out and into a freezer bag. I find that one cube (approx. one ounce) is the perfect size to start out with. When my kids get a little older I just warm up two cubes instead of one. I had four trays laying around, but if you don't have any, I have seen packs of two at the dollar store.

Make sure to label the bag with the date and type of food.

When I want to warm up the food, I just place it in the microwave for about 30 seconds, stir it, and place it in for 7 more seconds. Make sure to stir it and check that it's not too hot because microwaves can cause hot spots.

And that's it! I made 6 different purees, and it only took me half a day, not including freezing time.

FAQ's:
Should I use canned, frozen, or fresh produce?
Canned food should never be used. The biggest reason is loss of nutrients. For more information click HERE. Frozen and fresh foods are a both good option. If you use frozen, be sure to read the labels to make sure there is no added salt, sugar, or syrups.

What are different options to cook the food?
1. Baking with water, like the example of the pears. I also bake butternut squash and peaches this way.
2.Baking without water, like baking a sweet potato.
3. Steaming or boiling - this works well with many vegetables like peas, carrots, green beans.

What if I don't have enough trays?
I put the extra purees into containers in the fridge. When the first cubes froze, I popped them out and froze the purees that I had saved in the fridge. This way I could do all the cooking in one day, even though it took longer to actually freeze them.

Is it necessary to strain vegetables?
I strain the vegetables that have outer skins that are harder to digest (like peas and green beans.) After I puree them, I put them into a strainer over a deep bowl and push it through with a spoon. Scrape off the back of the strainer, and all that will be left in the strainer are tiny bits of outer skin. Some people think this may not make a difference for baby, but I found that my son had a hard time digesting peas until he was over a year old.

What about meats?
A note about meats-- I thought that there was no way pureeing meats would work, but it really did! I just boiled the chicken and pureed it, adding a little liquid. See HERE for information on choosing types of meats that are good for baby. Meats were my least favorite thing about jarred food, so I was so glad that pureeing meats worked so well (and actually smelled good!) Try it!

My favorite resource on making baby food is this: wholesomebabyfood.com. It really can answer almost any question and has great ideas for making your own rice cereal, teething biscuits, and toddler food too.

Thank you very much once again. What a perfect tutorial! So......
What questions do you still have?
Have you made homemade baby food? Do you like it? Give us your success stories!
What are other pros/cons of doing homemade food?
What other advice can you offer about homemade food?

In My Cabinet...

2011-08-26T12:20:00.000-07:00

UGH. It's been one of THOSE mornings, ladies. I feel like shoving my head under a pillow and screaming at the injustice of it all. Today, my toddler opened the day by dumping a full glass of chocolate milk on his lap. Not an accident. He watched the liquid pour, and he was smiling. I reprimanded him, and made him clean it up. Not twenty minutes later, he poured a glass of apple juice onto his legs and all over the floor. Icky. Sticky. Apple juice. I made my toddler clean up the mess and stripped him down to his diaper for 10 minutes. "You can't wear clothes if you're just going to get them wet," I said. That was punishment enough. My boy detests going without clothing. He huddled up on the floor and cried big crocodile tears. Meanwhile, I nursed my baby one-handed while crouching down and helping my boy mop up the juice. Inside, I thought, "How did it come to this?"

Now my floor is gross-sticky. No matter how many times I go over it with a wash rag, my feet still stick to the floor. So, now let's head into our main topic of discussion. Kitchen cleaning products. Oh yes. We're goin' for all sorts of excitement today. Half kidding. Half completely serious. I'm all for it on days like today when I'm in a cleaning pinch. So, here we go. Here's my Cleaning Cabinet Top 5...

1. Disinfectant wipes. Usually the Clorox variety. They're so darn useful. As an added plus, they're great for introductory toddler chores. One of my boy's favorite chores is to take a disinfectant wipe and wipe down all the doorknobs. It's something easy, I usually don't get around to doing it, and who cares if he misses a spot? Perfect for toddlers.

2. Bleach. Whenever I'm working with raw food -- veggies, fruits, but especially meat -- I fill the sink with diluted bleach and bomb my kitchen afterwards with it. Let it sit for 10 minutes, then wipe down with hot water. Heat will accelerate the breakdown of hypochlorite in bleach and make bleached surfaces safe to touch as soon as it dries.

Oh, added tip. Remember the last time your kid threw up in the car? No? I try not to remember stuff like that either. But when it happens, strip the cover off (throw in washing machine) and soak the plastic part in the bath tub in a diluted bleach for 10 minutes. Make sure you scrub the shoulder straps. Rinse with hot water. Your baby's car seat will magically smell like nothing ever happened. I speak from experience. I may have sung hallelujah to bleach that day.

3. Distilled white vinegar. Oh, this baby has so many uses. It's cheap. It's powerful. It's chemical free. To deodorize a yucky drain, pour one cup of hot vinegar down the drain, wait five minutes, and rinse. To clean out a chalky dishwasher, throw in a cup of vinegar and run a cycle empty. To clean cloudy glassware, soak a cloth in vinegar and wrap around the dish. To remove odors from a lunchbox or plastic food containers, wipe down with vinegar and leave a rag or piece of bread soaked in vinegar in it overnight. For more ideas, click HERE. Oh, and about that apple juice mess I mentioned above. It can be easily cleaned with a homemade vinegar-based cleaner.

BASIC FLOOR CLEANER: Combine 1 cup white vinegar with 1 gallon warm water. Use on vinyl surfaces.

WOOD FLOOR CLEANER: Combine 1/2 cup white vinegar with 1 gallon warm water. (When cleaning wood floors, make sure you don't saturate the floor, since wood soaks in a lot of moisture. Dampen sponge, wring out into a bucket, then scrub.)

4. Ammonia. I know. I freaked a little about buying and having ammonia in my home at first. "It's not safe!" yelled my brain. Calm down, brain. If you look at the ingredients list of most household cleaners, more often than not, ammonia's already in there. The reason is that very few surfaces can be cleaned and disinfected well without it. Wood. Steel. Kitchen countertops. Refrigerator doors. All clean well with ammonia. Just make sure to mix your cleaners in a well ventilated room and keep it safely stored away from baby hands like you would any store-bought cleaner.

For you curious folk, you probably wondered, what's the difference between bleach and ammonia. They both clean and disinfect, right? Well, yes, but there are subtle differences. Sparing you the details, we'll just say that because of their chemical make-up BLEACH IS A STRONGER DISINFECTANT. Ammonia still kills germs, but not with the gusto of bleach. The benefit of that is that ammonia will clean surfaces without discoloring them. Bleach will sometimes cause discoloration or lightening.

ALL-PURPOSE CLEANER:
2 T ammonia
1 tsp dish detergent
2 cups rubbing alcohol

In a clean, gallon container, combine above ingredients and fill the rest up with hot water. Put in spray bottles to use.

STREAK-FREE WINDOW CLEANER
3 T ammonia
1 T vinegar

Combine above ingredients in a spray bottle and fill the rest up with water. (I can't believe I used to pay so much for Windex.)

5. Baking soda. Baking soda has scrubbing power but won't scratch surfaces (use in place of Comet). You know those hard-to-clean grease spots above the stove? Baking soda will take care of it, no problem.

SCRUBBING CLEANSER:
1/4 cup baking soda
1 T liquid detergent.

Combine above ingredients. Add white vinegar until creamy texture and use to scrub kitchen stains or clean the oven.

Finally, because this post somehow morphed into a homemade cleaner article, take a gander HERE for a recipe to make your own baby wipes. I would just add a few drops of baby lotion for moisturizing properties and a splash of rubbing alcohol (about a teaspoon) to keep mold from growing and give your wipes a bit of disinfecting power. Other than that, I could show you how myself, but this gal already did a great job and...well...I've still got sticky apple juice that needs to be scrubbed off the kitchen floor...

In the meantime, the discussion's open. Homemade or not? How do you get your cleaners? Why? If you've never tried making homemade cleaners, did this post compel you to give it a try? Let's hear it! And in the meantime, happy cleaning. I keep telling myself that to kid myself into liking it.

-Alyssa

SPECIAL NOTE: Never, EVER mix bleach with any acid, like ammonia or vinegar. In fact, play it safe and never mix bleach with anything besides water. Chemical reactions that result from mixing could be very dangerous.

REFERENCED: www.thefamilyhomestead.com/homemadehouseholdcleaners.htm

Can't Fall Asleep

2011-08-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here's the scenario:

8 o'clock comes so we start our bedtime routine. We change into jammies and a pullup, brush our teeth, say prayers and read a story. Usually all of this takes about a half hour and my husband and I are out of Lucas' bedroom by 8:30. We head to the living room to hang out and spend some time together before we go to bed. However, 9 o'clock rolls around and Lucas is still awake talking to himself, no big deal. 9:30 comes and Lucas is still awake, 10:00 and he is still awake; sometimes this can go on until 11 o'clock at night or later!

This doesn't happen every night, but it happens a couple of times a week. So, I tried to cut out his afternoon nap thinking that would help, it didn't. We were still have two to three nights a week where he was awake very late and then he was just grumpy to boot for not getting his nap. During the summer I wasn't too concerned with one or two nights of this happening, but now it is school time. I don't want him staying up really late because there are at least two days a week where he won't be able to take an afternoon nap due to preschool. However, I'm at a lost as to what to do. I've tried several more things besides doing away with the nap and nothing has worked.

What do you do for your kids when they can't seem to fall asleep?

-Megan-

Choosing a Preschool

2011-08-24T06:30:00.000-07:00

My little girl is FINALLY old enough for preschool. She is now "pre-kindergarten" age. Technically I could have put her in last year, but I didn't really see the need. She's been dying to go to school for ages though, so she is positively excited.

Choosing a school was much harder than I had anticipated. This is my first time sending a child to school, so it was new for me.

I picked up some tips through this last week of dilemma. I hope they help you and that you have some to offer if you've already sent one of your children to preschool.

1 - If you can avoid it, don't wait until the last minute. I didn't have much of a choice.... we just moved to our new house a week ago (and it's in an entirely new state), and school starts in just 2 weeks. I had to work FAST. As a result I felt pressured to choose. There aren't many spots left open in preschools at this time of year. Explore your options early so you can feel confident about your choice.

2 - Ask for suggestions. This one goes without saying... but it's important. I searched out 3 preschools and all of them came off of referrals from ladies in my ward. I had to be bold and ask FAST since I had just met them, but it was worth it.

3 - Go meet the teacher/see the preschool in person! Don't just make a judgement call based on what others have said or over a phone conversation. You might have different tastes/needs for your child than your friend. I had preconceived notations about the schools I was looking into and ended up choosing the one I didn't think I would after I had met the teacher and seen the school. I really liked one teacher over the phone AND in person. The other teacher I didn't really like when I talked to her over the phone, but upon meeting her in person I discovered that she's awesome, and just doesn't do well on the phone.

4 - Take your child with you to see the schools and meet the teachers. Let him/her be part of the process and if possible let your child give input. In the end I had narrowed it down to 2 schools that I really liked and I couldn't choose. There were pros and cons for both. It was a HARD choice. I asked my daughter SEVERAL times which one she liked better and every time she said the same one. Since she liked it so much I picked her preference.

5 - If price is a concern you can POSSIBLY get someone to lower their prices. At one point I had settled on one school and called the other teacher to let her know I had chosen somewhere else. When she asked if it was because of the price difference and I said yes, she offered to match the price of the other school! WOW! (I think it helped that school starts in 2 weeks and she wants to fill up.)

6 - Choose a school that fits the needs of your child. If I was concerned about my daughter academically I would have chosen preschool with very few children in it (there was one I looked at that would have had only had 8 kids in the class with my daughter). However, I was looking for a great social experience, so I ended up choosing the school with 16 students and 2 teachers so she would get more of a feel for what kindergarten will be like. This school is an actual building instead of a basement which really appealed to my daughter. I also picked the school that only had pre-kindergarten age children in the class, instead of one with 3 year olds in it as well.

7 - Pray about it. After we'd made the choice I told my daughter that we should pray about it to make sure our choice was good. What a wonderful opportunity to teach your little one about making big decisions WITH Heavenly Father.

8 - If it works for you and you don't have the money, do preschool at home or do a JOY school with other mothers in your area. I can promise you that your child will be academically sound for kindergarten if he/she knows the basics (shapes, numbers, colors, letters, sounds). If you are worried about it, contact a kindergarten teacher in your area and find out what your child needs to know before kindergarten.

I hope this helps!! What other tips do you have for choosing a preschool for your child?

~Tannie

Don't forget to check out Megan's post below about tips for starting school. Although I taught elementary for 3 years, I've never been on the other end of the spectrum. I too would love some advice on getting kids ready for school.

DryErase ABC Book

2011-08-22T16:30:00.000-07:00

I am always looking for new ways to introduce my kids to the alphabet, numbers and other topics. Awhile ago I read about using a photo album to create a picture book. I thought it sounded like a nice way to create a toy/activity for my kids that could be personalized to them or to a concept I wanted to teach.

I decided to make more than just a picture book. I figured why not make a reusable coloring ABC book. So that is what I did.

Materials Needed:

photo album (I got mine at the dollar store)

scissors

Crayola DryErase crayons

ABC printables

* I made these printables myself. Feel free to use them or just use them as a sample and make your own. I promise I won't be offended.

This is so simple to make. If you use the printables it will only take about 20 minutes - enough time to cut out the pictures and put them in the book.

Step 1:

Cut out the pictures.

Step 2:

Insert pictures into the photo album

Optional:

Insert cover

Step 3:

Hand book and crayons (dryerase markers can also be used) to your child and let them color away.

I told you this would be an easy project. My son LOVES this book. We talk about the letters and their sounds as he colors. I am also hoping that he will learn some new vocabulary words - like octopus and quail.

I like that it is small enough to fit into the diaper bag. I plan on using when we are out on errands that require a lot of waiting (doctor visits, anything to a government office).

I hope you like this idea. It is a really inexpensive way to introduce the ABCs and have fun with your kids.

Let us know if you have any fun teaching ideas or projects for kids.

I am always on the hunt for new ideas!

~Lisa~

Bring On The Play Dates

2011-08-19T08:29:00.000-07:00

It's never too early to arrange play dates. I love them. Play dates are fun for me, my child gains valuable social skills, and spending time with other human beings make those long hours before my husband gets home fly like nothing else. There's only so many conversations I can have with my toddler before I start itching to hear complete sentences. But remember, play dates are more than scheduling a time, date, and a place on your little sweetum's social calendar...there's etiquette, inevitable problems, and all sorts of things to consider.

THINGS TO CONSIDER:

Age: In the beginning, play dates may be more for the society-deprieved young mother than a small baby, but it's never too early to start. Babies are fascinated by other babies. I remember my child progressed through milestones leaps and bounds faster after watching other kids roll, crawl, and walk around him. If your toddler is one of those that prefer playing alone, never fear. They'll still value the time spent in another kid's company. Co-playing will come easier as they get older, usually between ages 3-5.

Gender: Doesn't really matter with young toddlers. If anything, play dates are an excellent opportunity to spend time with a child of the other gender. My two year old son's temperament is super mellow, so he actually plays better with girls than he does with most rough-housing boys. When gender DOES start to matter, your child will let you know.

Frequency: I have a three month old baby as well as a toddler, so once a week is about all I care to pack up the kids for. Other mothers with more mobile kids seem to reach a general consensus that twice a week is a good number for planning social times as well as keeping the general routine of the house in-tact. On the other hand, especially busy mothers are hard-pressed to make a play date work once every couple weeks. The important thing is to cater it to your schedule. Whatever works for you and your family and doesn't stress you out.

Location: Because my toddler is two and a half and prone to meltdowns in confined spaces, location is a big issue for me. My friend and I discovered just last week that the library is NOT a good place to take toddler friends. They just wanted to run around, yell, jump on kiddy-size furniture, and be toddlers in general. Since then, we've stuck to parks, playcenters, and each other's houses. Full-on excursions will have to wait for when the kids are older.

Length: Two hours is about the point of no return for my kiddos. Anything too far beyond that makes for overtired, overstressed, overplayed children that are a BEAST to put down for a nap later on. And I mean that with all the motherly love I've got in me. I've found that play dates work best when we semi-structure out different activities. Play time. Snack. Activity. Play time. Pack up. Leave. Switching up what the kids are doing will help keep them from getting bored and frustrated with each other.

Reciprocate: If one mom hosts a play date at her house, make sure you do the same for her. It's just the right thing to do.

COMMON PROBLEMS:

Now, all that said, play dates don't come without problems. One common one is SHARING...(oh the never ending battle) toys, food, mommies, babies, you name it...if a playmate has it, the other kid wants it. Sometimes it helps to narrate the situation. Get your child used to the idea of someone coming over to play by giving him a heads up before Johnny comes over. Once Johnny gets there, physically take and hand the toys between the toddlers (at good transition points) and explain that both of them get to play with it when it's their turn.

Another problem is SHY children. You go through all the trouble of arranging a play date, but your little angel sticks to you like glue. Sigh. Is the play date even worth it? Yes! Keep at it. Ask your mother-friends for help and explain the situation. As much as possible, you want your toddler to practice getting used to other people with the comforting feeling that mommy's close by. Try to be there without getting in the middle of it. Let your child explore their own creativity. The last thing you want to do is avoid play dates altogether. Let's just say...avoiding social time is going to make preschool REALLY shocking for your child.

So, I turn the time over to you ladies. How often do you schedule play dates? What do you usually do (for what ages)? And how do you deal with the problems listed above? My boy is one that's a little shy around other kids...especially if there's A LOT of other kids, like at a play center. Please share your fabulous advice! I appreciate your feedback. Thanks, gals!

-Alyssa

It's that Time Again

2011-08-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

Back to school! Since this is the first time I will be sending a child to school, well preschool, I'm wondering what I need to do to help my little guy be ready to go. We've talked about how next week he will get to meet his teachers and then start school. Luckily he is pretty comfortable with one of his teachers as she is in our ward and he plays with her 3 year old. But I'm wondering if there is anything else I should talk to him about or prepare him for, any suggestions from you smart moms?

-Megan-

Somedays I Just Need a Reminder

2011-08-15T17:03:00.000-07:00

"The noblest calling in the world is motherhood.

True motherhood is the most beautiful of all arts, the greatest of all professions.

She who can paint a masterpiece, or who can write a book that will influence millions, deserves the admiration and plaudits of mankind;

but she who rears successfully a family of healthy, beautiful sons and daughters, whose immortal souls will exert an influence throughout the ages long after paintings shall have faded, and books and statues shall have decayed or have been destroyed, deserves the highest honor that man can give, and the choicest blessings of God."

~David O. McKay

"Chapter 16: The Noble Calling of Parents," Teachings of Presidents of the Church: DavidO. McKay, (2003)

Book Sale Announcement in Logan, UT

2011-08-13T01:00:00.000-07:00

A great follow-up to our fabulous discussion POST about children's books...

Not all, but a good chunk of our readers live around or near Logan, UT, so I just wanted to give a shout-out to this sale. For years upon years, a wonderful woman, called "The Book Lady" by many, traveled across the country, collecting notable children's titles in bulk and selling them from her home to eager parents at her cost. What a great lady. Now, luckily for us, her daughter is continuing the legacy.

These sales come around a couple times a year. Back when I lived in Logan, I would go to every single one and stock up on great, new and classic children's books at an insanely affordable price. She always has a fantastic selection. There's always a table full of board books, cases of classic books for toddlers and young children, easy readers for young beginners, and entire book shelves of young adult novels (I've picked up a lot of my Harry Potters there). All her books are new and in perfect condition and always at low, low prices. If you live close, I'd definitely drop by. Go! You won't regret it.

NEXT SALE:

August 16-20th

1612 East 1220 North

9:00 am - 12:00 noon

For more information, visit her website at www.thebookladysdaughter.com.

-Alyssa

To Share a Room, Or Not Share a Room...

2011-08-12T08:31:00.000-07:00

That's the big question at my house this month. Reasons for room sharing are vast, but most center largely on two factors, (a) necessity, there just aren't enough rooms in the house and (b) the parents want siblings co-exist in the same room to build better relationships. Which is better? Well, it depends. Here are some pros and cons to consider.

THE UP SIDE

The most obvious benefit is that kids learn to live with someone else. They learn to negotiate decorating a room together and cleaning when one child is messier than the other (ehem, good practice for marriage, perhaps). Good behavior can also rub off on the other child, like seeing a sibling reading, or drawing, or investigating sciency-stuff in their room. And finally, parents of room-sharing kids often say that the biggest plus is that at night time, when dark shadows and overactive imaginations bring out worry in some kids and they don't like to be alone, having another sibling close by quells some of the night time fear.

THE DOWNSIDE

On the other hand, I shared a room with my sister growing up, and I can attest that with regards to room maintenance, bad behavior rubbed off more than good. You would think that one of us would be cleaner than the other, but we seemed to augment each other's hurricane of clothes, books, toys, and trinkets on the floor until seeing the carpet was nigh near impossible. My dad would have to threaten to throw all our stuff in the dumpster to jump start our bi-monthly room cleaning extravaganza.

Other parents complain of children waking and keeping each other up during the night. Some kids spur competition, ("I want a drink." "Me too!" "I need to go potty." "ME TOO!") making bed time practically impossible. This not-so-good bed time behavior is clearly not constructive or helpful in relieving bed time headaches.

As kids get older, the biggest drawback may be privacy. If y'all remember growing up, having an ALONE space to go to was sometimes very necessary.

SO, WHAT TO DO

None of the downsides have to keep your kids from sharing a room. If space is limited...well, there's not much logical reasoning that can do anything about that. Room sharing will have to happen, but bringing all the variables into the decision may change subtle nuiances of how you go about doing it.. Experts do advise though with older children, if room-sharing and single rooms are both an option, to bring the kids in on the decision making process. Kids know best whether or not their sibling friendship can stand the test of sharing a room. You might want to try a weekend sleepover to see if it works!

MY REAL-LIFE SITUATION

My kids are NOT in the rational, "older" kids category to have a discussion with. My boy is two. My baby's 3 months. We don't have room for them NOT to share a room, and I want my baby out of my room. Neither of us is getting good sleep with things as they are. My kids will have to share a room.
I'm just not sure how to get things rolling.

So, what are your thoughts? What do you remember (pros and cons) of sharing a room with your sibling? For those of you with kids, what kept you from putting them in the same room? At the same time, for parents who have kids sharing a room, how did you do it? I need help. I don't see how it'll work. My toddler will SO wake my baby up any chance he gets. Not good. I really appreciate your comments. Thanks much!

-Alyssa

Scaredy Cat!!

2011-08-11T07:25:00.000-07:00

Friday night we went up to my in-laws for dinner. This spring they decided to try raising chickens and the chickens are left out to roam the yard. Well, one of their roosters attacked Lucas. He had a couple of scrapes on his shoulder but was other wise all right. However, because family from out of town is visiting we were back up there again on Sunday and Lucas is now afraid of the chickens. Whenever one gets close to him, he runs in the other direction or to the closest adult. I understand his fear, I was attacked by a rooster when I was around his age and didn't like chickens for a long time either, but I don't want him to be afraid of them because then he doesn't want to be out in grandma and grandpa's yard. We can't put the chickens in a pen because they are free ranging chickens and are only locked up at night. So, any suggestions on helping a child scared of an animal?

- Megan -

Picture Schedules

2011-08-09T15:04:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has ever worked in preschool settings or with kids with disabilities have seen or used picture schedules. My personal background comes from the angle of working with kids with autism - severe and high functioning/aspergers. I have used picture schedules for a multitude of tasks. Let me say..

I Love Them!

Picture Schedules use picture cards to show the sequence of events for a given time period or detail the steps of a specific task (ie morning/bedtime routine, brushing teeth, chores).

While typically used for kids with disabilities, I think they have great benefits for kids of any age and ability. I especially like them for introducing new routines or skills.

Benefits of a Schedule:

Kids can visually see what is coming up next. There is no guessing for the parent or the kid.
Kids see how many steps are left until they are done.
If a reward or treat is associated with the task, the kids know what they have to do in order to earn the reward.

This one was really useful for me when I taught my son to brush his teeth. He earned a sticker when he was done. Once he saw what he had to do before he got the sticker, he was much more cooperative with the process.

Here is how I make a picture schedule...

Step 1: Figure out the sequence of event in your schedule.

The schedule I made last was for our bedtime routine.

The steps:

brush teeth

pajamas

read 3 books

read scriptures

prayer

in bed with lights out

Step 2: Find a picture to represent each step.

I just google images. You can also take pictures of your own kids doing each step. Some kids really like seeing pictures of themselves on the schedule.

Step 3: Make your board or folder where you will display your schedule.

I used a white posterboard. You can also use a manila folder, cardstock or anything surface really that will fit your needs. (The manila folder works well for traveling).

The line down the middle separates the "To Do" from "Done." When a step has been completed, either you or the child moves the picture from the left side to the right side to show that that step is done and it is time to move on to the next step.

Step 4: Laminate pieces

I use contact paper. For other laminating options, read Alyssa's great post from a couple of weeks ago.

Step 5: Velcro!

Craft stores have velcro dots you can use for easy application. I just cut pieces off of the long strips of velcro. Just make sure you buy the velcro with the sticky back.

Step 6: Set up the schedule

Step 7: Teach your child how to use the schedule

This is by far the most important step. For all your hard work to pay off, you need to teach your child what each picture means and teach them how to use the schedule.

We taught our bedtime routine as part of Family Home Evening last night. I let the kids play with pictures for a few minutes while we talked about what each picture meant. Then we walked through the schedule together.

Learning how to move the pictures when done with a step.

These kinds of schedules can be used to almost anything. Just have fun with them. You can use as many or as few steps as you need to help your child understand what is going on. You can also change the length of the activity depending on how much time you have. (For example, if we have a late night we might only read scriptures. I would show the change by just leaving the books off.)

Do you have any ideas for teaching new skills or routines? Or, do you have a skill you want to teach and have questions on how to do it? Leave a comment and we will see if we can help.

~Lisa~

Best Books to Read to Toddlers

2011-08-05T01:00:00.000-07:00

Reading to your children is one of those foundation activities that every parent should do. I'm usually a bit cautious making grand statements like this, but in this case, every expert on the planet will agree it's absolutely true. Why?

A parent reading to her child introduces vital language skills. If mommy reads, then children are drawn to the idea that letters and words work together to make something important to pay attention to. We've all been through years of school and life, and we all know, being able to read can make or break you in this world. Our job as parents is to prepare our kids for adult life, and let's be honest; reading skills are a vital part of that.
Reading can open new worlds. Cheesy? Maybe, but it's absolutely true. Reading is a sure-fire way to introduce new ideas, encourage learning more advanced vocabulary, and foster a curiousity for learning that just doesn't come up in a normal, home atmosphere without books.
Reading time is precious social time with mommy and daddy. We're busy. We all know that. I feel like I'm going a hundred miles an hour all day, but taking time to slow down, relax, and read to your children will make special memories that'll mean the world to them. Your small sacrifice of 15 to 30 minutes a day will be paid back a hundred-fold. I promise. I still remember hearing my father's voice as he read to me all those years ago.

Now, I'm not even going to pretend to start an all-exhaustive list, but there are a few books that ALWAYS come up in my boy's "must read" pile during his pre-bed and pre-nap reading times. (Keep in mind, he's two and half.)

"Cook-A-Doodle-Doo!" is a to-die-for adorable book about the Little Red Hen's great-grandson who decides he's sick of eating chicken feed and wants to try out cooking like his great granny. The story is clever. The writing introduces simple cooking terminology in a GENIUS and incredibly fun way. The dialogue between the characters made my husband burst out laughing. And the art is absolutely gorgeous. (If you know me, I'm a sucker for great illustrations.) I didn't have this one growing up, but I completely adore it now.

This is one I grew up with. "The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear," (besides having the longest title ever) is one of the funnest books to read to toddlers. The story is about a little mouse who, after picking a strawberry, goes about different methods of hiding it from the bear. The writing is, again, genius. My boy can hardly stand the suspense of what's going to happen to the poor strawberry (even after the hundreth reading). And once again, the illustrations are gorgeous.

A classic, am I right? "Each Peach Pear Plum" makes a fantastic I-spy game out of beloved nursery characters all while subtly introducing words the rhyme.

"There's a Wocket in my Pocket" is one of Dr. Seuss's many gems. I love this one, because it's simply written (some of Seuss's books can get a little wordy for a toddler) and is a great introduction to rhyming. My boy likes it because all the wacky Suess-animals are in familiar settings he recognizes, like under the table, on the ceiling, on the couch, etc. Being able to recognize stuff is exciting for a two year old who is just getting a grasp on language.

Oh, another classic. My boy ADORES this book. It's an absolutely fantastic way to drill colors without your kid knowing what you're up to. :) Meanwhile, all the familiar animals make my child excited to keep turning pages.

My boy loves the entire series by Laura Numeroff. Again, it's the recognition thing. He loves being able to point out things he recognizes, like pancakes, taking a bath, and dancing that all happen in this book. He gets so excited, and I can totally use that recognition to my advantage. "Look, the pig is taking a bath! What letter does bath start with?" I ask him. "B!" he yells, jumping up and down. Using familiar words to drill letters is a great way to get todders interested in reading.

Short and sweet. This is the first book I ever bought for my child. In just a handful of pages, "The Little Engine That Could" by Piper Watty tells a wonderful story about how anything is possible if you believe in yourself. What a great lesson to teach your children.

And these are just the tip of the iceberg. There are SO many good books out there. What are your favorites? Why are they so good (aka what lessons do they brilliantly teach)? I'd love to hear some excellent tips for new books to try out. I bet with all of us, we can come up with a pretty fantastic list. :)

-Alyssa

When a calling is hard....

2011-08-03T08:41:00.000-07:00

*I was ward chorister and ward choir director (hence the picture) for 2 years in a previous ward several years ago. One of those callings I LOVED and would totally do again.

Sometimes you LOVE the callings you get.

Sometimes you are overwhelmed by a calling, but you learn so much and are grateful for the challenge and growth.

Sometimes you tolerate a calling, not really disliking or liking it.

Sometimes you dread your calling!

Please tell me I'm not the only one.

I would say I've had my fair share of each of these types of callings. In fact, in the last 2 years I've gone through all 4 of these feelings. :)

I've been serving in my ward in the same calling for the past year. It has been a very hard calling for me. There is only one other time that I can remember dreading a calling as much as this one. This calling was not only taxing and overwhelming, but I never got to the point where I actually liked it. That's hard!

I did my best with the calling and prayed a lot for guidance and help. I was very positive outwardly and only complained to a few of my friends and family. :) But still, I think if I'd had a better attitude it might have gone more smoothly. Either way, I made it through and I do feel like I did the best I could at the calling in light of the craziness that has been my life for the last 6 months.

Now that we are moving I will have another opportunity for a new calling - for which I'm very excited! I want to make it a better experience - despite whatever it turns out to be.

Here are some things I plan to do this time (and have done in the past).

Pray (of course this is number one).
Delegate IF the calling allows for it (I got really good at delegating due to my past two callings).
Try not to stress out if things don't always go according to plan.
Read more on LDS.org or the Ensign for ideas on how to improve.
Be super positive.

So, what do YOU do when a calling is hard?

~Tannie~

Benefits of a Birthing Class

2011-08-01T21:16:00.000-07:00

Before I married my husband I knew I was interested in trying natural childbirth. When I got pregnant shortly after getting married, I knew that I wanted us to take birthing class together.
My husband was very reluctant. He didn't see the need to take a class on something as fundamental as giving birth. He was also enrolled in a maternity nursing class at the time and figured that a childbirth class would just be repeat of his college course. He even said it would be silly to pay for the same class twice.

After much persuading and explaining what I saw the benefits to be. he agreed to go to the first class.

We went to the first class where we sat in the instructor's living room on the floor with seven other couples. We sat for two hours listening to the instructor, asking questions and sharing experiences. I loved it! But I wasn't sure what my husband thought.

I nervously asked him, on our way back to the car, what he thought of the class. His response was simple, "Why didn't you tell me that this class was all about husband coached childbirth!" He was very excited to hear that this class was just as much, if not more, for him than me. He was excited to go to class with me every week after that for all 12 weeks.

Our birthing classes (yes, we have taken more than one class) prepared for the deliveries of our two children, helped us learn how to work together and has shaped, in a small part, to how we parent.

Let me explain. I will share the three main benefits, as I see them, of taking a birthing class.

#1 - To learn how to cope with the pain.
It is easy to read about and learn about relaxation techniques on your own, but come show time it is really hard to remember them. The more practice you get, with someone to guide you, the more likely you are to remember them. Remember: Dads need practice too! As moms-to-be we often read all the information out there on pregnancy and delivery, but not many dads I know do the same thing. A birthing class is a time for them to focus just on the upcoming labor and delivery without any distractions. They get a chance to learn what is coming and how to help you.

In class, you also learn how to deal with different scenarios. Coping with a long labor looks very different than coping with a fast labor. The mom has different needs and it helps dad to have an idea what to do to support the mom. Also, there are some techniques that can help lessen the pain if a mom is going through back labor.

Of course, you can learn techniques during labor from nurses, but wouldn't it be nice if you knew them beforehand so you could have them in your arsenal. The more tools you have at your disposal, the more prepared you will be for the expected and unexpected.

#2 - Birthing classes open a dialogue between you and your husband about your views on childbirth and parenting issues.
I loved taking classes with my husband because we were able to go to class together each week (our class was a 12 week course). My favorite part of the class was our car ride home. We discussed what had been covered in class. The class brought up topics that we had never thought to discuss, but because of the class we were able to talk about them and come to a consensus.

When I went into labor we were confident about our desires and knew how to communicate with each other because we had done so much preparation before.

Parenting issues (breastfeeding, co-sleeping, babywearing, vaccines, etc.) were also discussed in our different classes. I know that the topics we covered in our birthing classes have helped to shape our views on parenting. Not necessarily because the class told us what to do, but because the class provided a forum for those kinds of discussions.

#3 - Learning was is "normal" for labor and delivery empowers you and your husband to be advocates for you and your baby.
This is, to me, the most important benefit of a childbirthing class. If you know what is norml for labor and delivery, you are better able to play an active role in any decision making. YOU know your body better than anyone else. Labor is a natural process, but it helps to know what that natural process is supposed to look like. The more you know, the better able you are to make decisions.

In the end, this is YOUR baby and YOUR delivery. YOU need to be an active and informed participant in all decisions. Labor and delivery nurses do this day in and day out, but the day you deliver a baby is special to you. Please don't let them treat you like you are just a routine patient and they know better. No one knows better than you what is important to you.

I believe that childbirth classes are important for every couple. Even if you have kids, you can still learn. I learned more in our second class during our second pregnancy than I did in our first because I had a better idea of what to expect.

An article I read recently summed up the benefits that come from a quality childbirth class.

Is birth actually something you can "prepare" for? A really good class will help give you the knowledge you need to make informed decisions, help you keep an open mind, prepare for the unpredictable, and give you a number of tools to pull out depending on how you feel at the time. Because what you need more than anything, going into your birth, is permission to react to the situation in the way you, personally, see fit at the time — not what Dr. Lamaze, Dr. Bradley, your yoga teacher, the Church of Scientology, the lady down the street or any other childbirth instructor believes is best.

Labor and delivery can be scary. It is hard work. But, I truly, truly believe in the scripture that says

"If ye are prepared ye shall not fear." (D&C 38:30)

~Lisa~

Losing That Baby Weight

2011-07-29T01:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, fine. I'm pretty sure the model above has never had to lose baby weight her young, stretch-mark-free existence, but for the rest of us who have given birth and are raising kids, shedding those extra pounds can be torture. Weight brought on during the mommy-ing process seems to stick like glue. Seriously. Especially when the number of kids starts adding up and taking time to go work out becomes more and more difficult.

Now, back when I was doing my undergrad, I went through a spell of wanting to be a dietician. Studied it for about a year, then quit for personal reasons, but I've always loved food and nutrition. I actually taught a supplemental class for Basic Nutrition on campus. So, I'm by no means a health professional, but my teaching spree gave a good grounding in basic nutrition.

So how to loose that unwanted weight? A couple, simple tips.

- Burn more calories than you eat. Simple enough, right? I wouldn't go all crazy with calorie counting, but keep a rough, running estimate in mind, or download one of those cool calorie apps on your smartphone. How many calories should you be eating? Well, that depends. First, calculate your BMR (basal metabolic rate, for an easy calculator, click HERE), then rate your activity level and use the info below to estimate your needed calories:

Sedentary (little or no exercise) = BMR x 1.2
Lightly active (light exercise 1-3 days per week) = BMR x 1.375
Moderately active (moderate exercise 3-5 days per week) = BMR x 1.55
Very active (hard exercise 6-7 days per week) = BMR x 1.755
Extra active (very hard exercise 6-7 days per week) = BMR x 1.9

For example, say my BMR is about 1426. If I were moderately active, the number of calories I should be consuming (to keep the calorie burn and consumption relatively equal) is approximately 1426 x 1.55 = 2210.3. If I wanted to lose weight, I would eat less than that.

(NOTE: It takes eating about 1600 extra calories to gain a pound, and burning about 1900 extra calories to lose a pound. So, pound for pound, you're going to have to work harder to shed the weight. And the difference (300 calories) equals roughly 30 minutes of moderate jogging. It helps me to remember that before snacking with my toddler. Most times, I end up deciding having to exercise off the extra snack just isn't worth it.)

- Recognize the difference of when you're really hungry and when you've just got the munchies. One way to differentiate is choosing a fruit or vegetable you don't particularly love or hate and running a simple test. For me, it's celery. Whenever I feel like eating something, I offer myself celery first. If I don't want to eat it, I'm not really hungry. (True hunger means your body is telling you to refuel and you'll want to eat just about anything.)

-Recognize the difference of when you're hungry, or just thirsty. I would say 80 percent of the time when I feel like eating something, I drink a glass of water, and then I don't feel hungry anymore. It's so crazy. Seriously try it. Your body may just be trying to tell you its dehydrated.

-Eat smaller portions. Think about how much you want to put on your plate, and end up serving up about half of that. A serving of meat or poultry is about the size of a deck of cards. A serving of ice cream is usually just a 1/2 a cup. A serving of margarine or butter is about the size of a dice. And, get this, a typical bagel has 2 servings in it, which means you should be eating about a half a bagel. It seems like nothing, right? But I'm completely serious. Eat appropriate portions. You can eat wonderfully delicious food, but in smaller portions. If you're still hungry, fill the rest of the tummy space up by drinking water. I guarantee, you will not starve.

-Make sure your diet is balanced over the WEEK. It's unreasonable to think everyone will have the perfect diet EVERY DAY. Plus, I don't want to eat rabbit food day-in and day-out for the rest of my life. So, balance your meals weekly. When I plan dinners and make a heavier meal one day (because my husband likes stuff like that), I'll balance it out with lighter meals for the rest of the week.

-If your family has a tradition of dessert after dinner, change it. Point blank. Having dessert more than 2-3 nights a week is not necessary, and certainly not a healthy habit for you or your children. I'm not saying sweets are bad, (I adore them) but having them every night is a bit much. Cut back. Save dessert for special occasions, like FHE. Or serve fresh fruit instead of sugary sweets. Your kids might complain at first, but they'll get used to it and start to enjoy the natural sweetness and yumminess of no-sugar added fruits.

-And finally, work out. This isn't something you do to be a uber health nut. Thirty minutes of moderate exercising a day is absolutely necessary to maintain MINIMUM levels of health...to decrease your chances of developing cancer, diabetes, stroke, high blood pressure, heart, liver and lung problems, and a whole host of medical issues we want to avoid. Moderate exercise is stuff like fast walking, heavier housework, jogging and swimming...anything that causes your heart rate to increase, your body to work hard enough to sweat, and your breathing to quicken. The most common argument against exercise I hear is that, "Well, I'm doing relatively okay without it. I'm not super in-shape, but I'm not sick." Har. This is serious, people. If you do not exercise consistently, it WILL catch up with you as you age. Work out. 30 minutes a day. Your 50, 60, and 70 year old self will thank you for it.

So, what do you think...is this doable, ladies? I think it's totally within our realm of reach. Now I'd like some inspiration from you. What sort of tips do you have for getting a good work out in when finding "alone" time is hard? How do you keep from mindlessly snacking all throughout the day? We'd love some awesome tips! Thanks much, friends!

-Alyssa

He's Gone, Gone, Gone

2011-07-28T07:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, my husband travels a lot lately with his job. It's nothing compared to how much he traveled before we had kids, but usually it's at least 1 week a month. I'm fine with him traveling and I usually handle it pretty well when he's gone and I usually can keep my cool with my 3 year old when there is no one to hand him off too, but lately it seems like Lucas knows all my buttons to push and knocks me over the edge more than he used too. I need ideas on how to keep my sanity and to stop losing my cool with Lucas. How do women whose husbands are gone more than mine handle it? I feel like I'm on a roller coaster and can't get break. HELP! What do you do to handle the stress when your husband is gone and you get no breaks from your kids?

-Megan-

Settling In

2011-07-27T08:48:00.000-07:00

Last week my post focused on HOW to move from our current place.

Now I need advice on settling into a new house and town. I'm not too worried about myself - I can adjust, but I am worried about my 3 kids.

I know many of you have moved, so I would LOVE some advice on how to make the transition as easy as possible for my little ones.

We will be leaving the only home they've known and moving to another state and into a rather large house. We will also be too far from grandparents to visit on a regular basis (though thank goodness, not too far). I know it will take time for me to figure out the new area, so we might not be going out as much as we used to either. Overall, I'm just worried about their reactions.

Any other advice about settling into a new place would be much appreciated as well. IE - things I should do to settle in (getting a new driver's license, unpacking, finding new doctors, etc.....)

~Tannie~

Congratulations!

2011-07-27T08:26:00.000-07:00

Laura and her husband welcomed a new baby boy into their family this morning!

He weighed in at 8 pounds 3 ounces and measured 22 inches long.

Both mom and baby are doing well.

Congratulations Laura!

Family Home Evening: Gratitude

2011-07-25T14:47:00.000-07:00

With all of the help that my family has been receiving from our ward during my difficult pregnancy, I have an ever growing list of thank you notes to write.

While most of the help is for my benefit, everyone in the family is better off.

I decided that it would be a fun idea to involve everyone writing thank you cards.

From that desire came an idea for our Family Home Evening last week.

Opening Song: Heavenly Father Loves Me (I like to choose a familiar song for our opening.)

Prayer

Practice Song: Thank Thee for Everything

(We do practice songs mostly for me and my husband. We don't get to go to primary to learn new songs, so this is our chance. I also think it is good to learn new songs because primary songs and hymns have a lot of good lessons that can add to the tone of family night.)

Scripture: Doctrine and Covenants 46:32 "And ye must give thanks unto God in the Spirit for whatsoever blessings ye are blessed with."

Activity: Personalizing thank you cards

I had some blank cards and envelopes left over from our wedding, so after we talked about saying thank you to people when they help us we all sat down to the table to decorate our thank you cards.

We even got the markers out for the special occasion!

The Final Product (a small sample)

With my children being 2 and 1 years old, we only decorated the cards. The card writing stills falls on me.

Older kids could write their own thank you cards or tell you what they want to say. We could all do a little more to show our gratitude.

We had a great time with this activity. The great thing is is that you can personalize this activity to fit your family and the different ages of your kids. Just have fun!

Happy Family Home Evening!

~Lisa~

Laminating 101

2011-07-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

I had an epiphany. Actually, my friend is the one who had the really superb idea, and it sparked my interest too. It stemmed from laminating. I've been meaning to laminate a bunch of stuff for a while, like my kid's worksheets, chore charts, etc. Laminated paper is so darn useful, because it's reusable, and therein lies its awesomeness.

I always thought I had to go somewhere and pay to get stuff laminated in a professional laminating machine. (Silly me.) That's just how my mom, my friends' moms, and everyone I knew did it growing up. But, driving somewhere to get stuff laminated is a drag. Packing up the kids to run little errands like LAMINATING is just...well, ugh. So, smart people created do-it-yourself stuff called laminating sheets. A lot of it is self-adhesive, some is an iron-on variety. Basically just put two sheets on either side of a piece of paper and press together. Trim off the sides, and viola! Instant laminating. The best part is that you can do it at home after the kids have gone to bed, which (as we all know) is SO much more convenient than the mid-day errand method.

Then someone decided that paying $15-30 for a box of laminating sheets can get pricey, and discovered that for someone doing a lot of laminating (like home schooling moms), regular old contact paper (you know, the stuff found in the kitchen aisle and Lowe's or Home Depot (about $5 a roll) to line the insides of drawers with) does basically the same thing. Peel off the sticker and press together.

My friend looked at me, alarmed that I'd never heard of DIY laminating before. Meh. So I'm behind the times. I'll catch up eventually. Anyway, armed with this awesome info, now I need stuff to laminate. This is where you come in ladies. What are you favorite websites to print out preschool and toddler friendly activities and worksheets? (Obviously focus on stuff than can be laminated, given the topic of this post.) Do you have fun job charts and other ideas that you've come up with yourself? Let's pool our knowledge! This isn't limited to kid stuff. I think I might even take my to-do list and meal planning charts off the refrigerator and laminate the tar out of em', because I can. Because laminated stuff is reusable, and (as we all know) therein lies its awesomeness, right?

-Alyssa

Not so Good

2011-07-21T07:18:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the park and had a fun time until the very end. I was packing everything up to take to the car and then walking to the other end of the park to get Lucas when I noticed a woman walking him towards me. I was a little concerned because I hadn't seen Lucas do anything naughty and then he got within hearing distance of me and was saying something I have never heard from his mouth before, a swear word (thank you family member that I will not name!). This woman, I don't know if she had kids or not because me and a friend could only see our kids, glared at me like I was the most horrible mother in the world! I quickly stopped Lucas from saying what he was and apologized to her and had Lucas apologize also. She didn't say anything so I walked away. So I have a couple questions for this situation to ask you smart moms out there.

First, what discipline do you use when your children use not so nice language?

How do you deal with the situation so it doesn't happen again?

Have you approached the person they learned the language from and discussed it with them?

Besides apologizing to the woman, was there anything else I should have said?

-Megan-

Moving DAY

2011-07-20T09:19:00.000-07:00

I'm moving in less than 3 weeks. Kind of freaks me out a bit... Ladies, I don't even know where the devil to start.

I've been married for 8 years and all those years we've only moved once and it was after only 2 years of being married. We moved less than 2 blocks away and we had no kids at the time. I now have 3 kids and we've lived here much longer which means we've had a chance to REALLY fill it up. We are BURSTING at the seams. We are going to have to dig into the woodwork to find all our junk. Add to that the fact that we are moving to another state (just Idaho, but STILL) thus requiring a moving truck.

I need some advice. I honestly have NO experience with a move of this magnitude.

When should I start packing?
Where should I get boxes?
What boxes did you like?
How should I pack all my dang books?
How do I keep my kids (and myself) from going insane as the house is in total chaos?

Give me your wisdom!! I seriously need help.

~Tannie~

Let's not even talk about unpacking... that's a WHOLE different post. :)

Early Anatomy Lessons...

2011-07-19T07:40:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned last week, my baby boy is due next week. The catch here: I have two girls. Now we're having a boy. This brings a concern to my mind...

I have an incredibly talkative and curious three-year-old. She has to tell everyone everything she thinks at any given moment. I am quite certain it will only take a diaper change or two for her to notice a major difference between herself and her new brother, and I'm sure she'll have to discuss it with anyone we come across!

So, my questions for today...

How do you teach very young children the difference between boys and girls?

How do you help maintain a healthy curiosity while also teaching what's appropriate to talk about with others (mostly outside of the family)?

Any tips on something I haven't thought of yet,
since we haven't actually had the baby?

I'm sure my daughter will surprise and embarrass me at some point along the way, probably more than once. Any tricks I can have up my sleeve will be helpful!

~Laura~

Miracle of Miracles. The Baby's Asleep.

2011-07-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you, but sometimes, putting my young babies to sleep is pure torture. What? You too? Ah, I'm glad I'm not alone. For the most part, my baby is pretty good about going down for a nap. But there are those times (you know what I'm talkin' about) when my baby girl fights going to sleep, and it's pure misery for everyone involved.

With both my kids, they took to miracle products that aren't on any baby registry to help get them to sleep. With my first baby, it was a HAIR DRYER. Yep, you got it. White noise at it's finest. Picked one up at Ross, because I didn't want to burn through my own. The theory behind it is that when the baby's in the womb, the sounds in there are fairly loud. Some experts believe that the mother's blood rushing and other internal happenings can make it so the baby's in a constant sea of sound about as loud as a vacuum cleaner. I'd heard people say they turned on vacuum cleaners or hair dryers for their babies, so I gave it a try. Miraculous. My boy would stop crying in mid-scream and drift gently off to sleep.

Now, I know there's new-fangled thang's called white noise machines out there. For some babies, they work wonders, but they just didn't work with my boy. Not loud enough, I think...or maybe he knew the sounds were fake.

With my girl, the hair dryer was completely ineffective, but she does like an EXERCISE BALL. Bouncing on it while I hold her, to be exact. It's the only, sure fire way to get her to stop crying instantaneously. Seriously, it's like magic. The theory behind this one is the almost constant movement while baby's in the womb. She's used to falling asleep with the bounce-bounce-bounce of my daily activities (mostly chasing my toddler from one end of the house to the other).

She's also a fan of a FAN. Pun intended. Again, the white noise machines don't work on her, but the gentle whirring of an old-school fan is just the right mix of white noise to send off of to dreamland. Works every time, and I give prayers of thanks every time I put her down.

So, ladies...please don't tell me that my kids are the only ones with odd attachments to household items as sleep aids. Did you have any special tricks up your sleeves to get your babies to sleep? What worked best, and why? I'm insanely curious.

-Alyssa

Hard Questions

2011-07-13T18:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, like the other ladies on the panel I am LDS and we strongly believe in not smoking and drinking. My in-laws are not LDS and they both smoke and drink (don't get me wrong, I love my in-laws and they are wonderful people!). However, lately it's been very hard to explain to Lucas, in terms he understands, how we don't smoke and drink but we still love grandma and grandpa no matter what.

So, I'm wondering how do you answer those hard questions about people that do things you don't believe in (whether it's smoking, drinking, swearing, etc.) for your little ones?

-Megan-

All my bags are packed...

2011-07-12T16:57:00.000-07:00

I'm *this close* to having my third baby--my little boy is due in only two weeks. My past pregnancies show that I don't have a tendency to go early, but I want to be prepared just in case. I've mostly packed my bags, with the exception of those things I use on a daily basis.

Being as this is my third time, I have a pretty good feel for what I will and won't use while I'm in the hospital. Here are a few of my must-haves for the postpartum hospital stay:

~Ear Plugs and Sleeping Mask~

With all the monitors, lights, buttons, and hallway activity, sleep can be pretty hard to come by, even if you send the baby to the nursery. Ear plugs and a sleeping mask can be invaluable for catching at least a couple hours of real sleep. And don't worry--if you keep baby in the room, you will still easily be able to hear any cries with ear plugs in.

~Depends~

Yes, I'm talking about those huge grown-up diapers that we generally associate with the older/oldest generations. But really? Mesh underwear? Um, not comfortable, and I honestly have no faith in them staying where they need to be and thus I am afraid to move too much. That doesn't really make for the most pleasant recovery time, and can even disrupt bonding time with baby at times. With Depends, they stay exactly where they are supposed to without fear of, well, messiness. I highly recommend them for early postpartum.

~Entertainment~

This is a fairly general category that will vary widely based on your own personal taste. I personally like to bring a laptop (with charger), a book or two, and a maybe a couple of movies. This is the one area where I always feel like I'm packing too much and end up coming home with things I didn't use, but I would much rather have options in the hospital than be stuck with something I don't want to watch or read. You never know what kind of mood you might be in and having even just two choices can make all the difference in your relaxation level.

~Slippers~

I may be in the minority, I'm not sure, but I kind of hate the rubber slipper sock things they give you in the hospital. Why? I can't take them off! My feet get way, way too hot if I wear them in bed, and if I get up to walk around, it hurts my midsection (not surprisingly) to bend over to get them on and off. I do much better if I bring my own slippers that I can easily slip on and off when I get out of bed and keep myself either barefoot in bed or wear my own lighter-weight socks from home.

What are your must haves for your postpartum hospital stay?

And a secondary question...

As I mentioned, this is my third child. That means I have two other kiddos who will be camping out at Grandma's house for a while until baby and I are ready to settle back in at home.

What should I make sure to pack for them to help with their time away from home?

Any quick tips on helping the transition into having a new sibling?

As always, your input is greatly appreciated!

~Laura~

I'm Gonna Wash that Dirt Right Out of Your Hair

2011-07-11T15:11:00.000-07:00

Bath time in our house starts out as a very exciting time. When the kids hear the bath water running, they themselves come running. They have even tried to climb into the tub with all their clothes on.

We start off by playing with bath toys. Foam letters and cups are our staple bath toys.

We have tried homemade bath paints from here. My two year old loved the paints. My one year tried to eat the paint. I decided to save tub painting for another day.

For all that I do to try to make bath time a fun experience, there is always one thing that brings the fun to a halt.

Washing hair

I wish my kids looked this content with shampoo in their hair. Instead, as soon as they feel any water on their hair, they begin to scream and try to climb out of the tub - NOT safe and really NOT very fun.

At this point, bath time goes from a fun activity to a wrestling match.

I am stumped!

I have tried to be gentle. I have tried to be quick and just get it done as fast as possible. I have sang, explained and begged, but to no avail. Any attempt to wash my kids hair ends in a chorus of cries.

What tricks have you brilliant moms out there come up with to make hair washing a less terrifying experience?

Do you use any nifty contraptions to limit eye-water contact?

Or, is hair washing just something that moms and kids have to endure?

Thanks for your help.

~Lisa~

Teaching Your Child The Alphabet

2011-07-08T09:52:00.000-07:00

I felt pressured to be the BEST mom. There's just so much mothers need to teach their kids. As a first time mother, I felt overwhelmed. For starters, how on earth was I supposed to start teaching my boy his alphabet? I didn't even know where to start.

I knew that on the developmental track, being able to recognize a handful of letters by age 2-3 and most of the alphabet by age 4-5 was within the realm of normal, so I didn't necessarily HAVE to force alphabet learning on my two year old son. By all accounts, he seemed completely uninterested, and I knew it might be better just to back off for a while*. But still, I felt pressure to try out different teaching methods. I mean, maybe I just hadn't hit upon his learning style yet, right?

There are a lot fun ways to introduce the alphabet:

Sign his name onto EVERYTHING. His bed. His sippy. His artwork. The door to his room. Sound it out for him and point out the letters. Eventually he'll get the idea that those letters work together to make a word.
Help him play with alphabet puzzles or refrigerator magnets.
Keep reading to him! And point out specific letters for him. Focus on a few letters per week.
Once he starts recognizing letters, play word games like "What words begin with B? Ball, boy, baby..." or if he's especially attached to the letters in his name (like my child), use those letters as a starting point. "Your name has a special letter M in it? Can you think of any other M words?" You can also make simple letter-word matching games on flashcards (Letter M matches to a picture of Mommy, the letter P matches to a picture of pancakes, etc.)

I tried a bunch of different method, but kids have a funny way of being perfectly unique. My son was incredibly active, uninterested in listening to me "talk" at him about letters, and had the attention span of a chipmunk...unless he was watching PBS television shows. THEN he would sit still for a whole 15-30 min while the episode flashed across the screen.

And then we stumbled upon a learning dvd, The Letter Factory, by Leap Frog. If your child is one that will sit still for TV, it can be a powerful learning tool. The Letter Factory is formatted well so that even if your child won't sit still for the whole 35 minute movie, each segment on each letter is relatively stand-alone, so he doesn't have to finish the movie to get the learning going. My son learned ALL the alphabet, upper and lowercase, and ALL of their sounds in two weeks. I was astounded. The Letter Factory has gotten rave reviews across the board ever since it came out a decade ago. If you haven't tried it, I'd recommend borrowing it from a friend and giving it a go. See how your child takes to it.

So, the DVD worked magic on my child, but he's the type of kid that would rather watch "things" (like TV or battery-powered toys) than people. Remember, every kid has a different learning method. I imagine if my boy was more of a social type, he would have enjoyed discussing letters with mommy a little more. So, what kind of methods have you used? What has been effective? What was ineffective? For those of you with more than one child, have you noticed a difference in how each of your kids took to learning the alphabet? Make sure you describe your child's personality as well, so other moms have a starting point to get ideas for their own kids alphabet learning!

Thanks y'all!

-Alyssa

*Special Note: This is an idea forum...not a guilt trip generator. If your child is under age 4 and shows no interest in letters, don't worry. Child development experts say that there's little correlation between early alphabet learning and super advanced reading skills later on, so if your child is still young and uninterested, it might be best to let it go for a while. We all know kids are geniuses, and there's just a lot for a toddler to learn. He might be trying to figure out something else right now.

TV Time

2011-07-07T09:08:00.000-07:00

My 3 year old is increasingly interested in watching more TV all the time! Sometimes when I tell him it's time to turn the TV off and go play he throws a fit and putting him in time out only works part of the time. He is only allowed to watch 3 PBS cartoons or 1 movie a day. I try really hard to make sure he doesn't spend too much time in front of the TV as I don't feel it is a very productive thing to do, but sometimes I need that time to get things done that he can't help me with (like a shower!). So, what are the rules regarding TV time in your house? What are your kids allowed to watch and how to you stem the fits when you tell them it's time to turn the TV off?

- Megan -

Feeling a little overweight....

2011-07-06T07:30:00.001-07:00

Lately I've been feeling depressed about my weight. It's not that I think that I am HUGE or anything, it's just that I weigh 20 lbs more than I did a year ago.

My baby girl was born just 4 months ago, so OF COURSE I don't expect to be back down to my normal size and weight yet. This is my third baby and it seems like it gets harder to lose weight the more children you have. With my first all the weight came off by the time my baby was 6 weeks old, with NO effort on my part. With my second I carried around 10 lbs for a year and a half before I finally did some dieting and got it off.

This time around I accepted the fact that I would most likely have extra weight for a while. I had 15 lbs to lose when my baby was 2 months old. I didn't worry too much though because I had started working out and I knew that worse-case scenario I could diet after I weaned my baby at a year.

Then A LOT happened all at once. I first lost my milk supply (due most likely to working out TOO hard) thus ending my short lived work-out spree. I have decided not to work out until my baby is weaned because I don't want to go through losing my milk supply again. Although I was able to build it back up... things still aren't the same - I still battle with a dysfunctional let-down.

A few days after I lost my milk supply I got very ill. Extremely ill. I developed some type of low blood sugar issue which makes me feel like I have to eat every couple of hours. If I don't, I feel so weak and sick. I now find myself eating A LOT - and as a result I've gained 5 more pounds. I am feeling a bit better, but still have to eat a lot.

My health condition and the fact that I'm nursing make it impossible to work out or diet right now. I'm hopeful that with time my hunger spree will end and when my baby is weaned I can get back to normal, but that's a long time in the future.

So, my question is not how do I lose weight (I know how to do that) my question is, how do I deal with the fact that I simply cannot have the body I want right now? I find myself feeling very depressed about it. I know 20 lbs isn't a lot, but it is hard because my clothes don't fit and I don't like the way I look right now. I don't have money for a new wardrobe either, so that makes it even more depressing to get dressed every day.

We've all had babies and suffered from having more weight that we want at some point. So give me your pointers. I just need some way to feel okay about this while it's out of my control.

~Tannie

Top 10 List for a Summer Baby

2011-07-01T09:07:00.000-07:00

I won't pretend I have the end-all list here, but these products make MY TOP 10 LIST for stuff that's absolutely essential for a summer baby.

1. Super cute onesies. Six days out of the week, my summer baby lives in onesies. Onesies are relatively inexpensive and are SO much easier than full outfits to change out when baby makes a mess all over it. And whoever decided that onesies should come in white are crazy. White stains WAAAAY too easily. I'm totally a fan of colored, stylish onesies.

2. An AWESOME, muslin swaddling blanket.

One of my favorite parts of having a baby is bundling her. Look at that cute little bundle! Plus, my sister-in-law gave me this magical, muslin swaddling blanket. I am in love. The lightweight fabric seriously keeps wrapping and wrapping forever. Plus, it's thin material, which is just TOO PERFECT for a summer baby! (Click HERE for a link. You get 4 in a pack, so it's totally kosher to buy one and share with a friend...I did). With my first baby, I thought I could do without frills like this, but (a) he was a winter baby and (b) this ain't no frill. After having this gauzy, wonderful, muslin blanket for my second child, I'll HAVE to get another pack o'these if I have another summer baby. Love.

3. Hand sanitizer. Especially because we spend so much time outside AND I have a toddler that touches EVERYTHING AND THE BABY, hand sanitizer is god-send so I don't have to run and wash his and my hands every time I've been out and about and need to pick up my baby. And for my toddler, well, at least it makes the dirt on his hands sanitary, right?

4. Sunblock = good. I don't need to lecture y'all on it. Especially during the peak sun-times of the day, (around 2-4) sunblock is great to protect that baby skin! Any baby-safe brand will probably do. I use WaterBabies, because Walmart always has those readily accessible in their aisle-bins.

5. Bug repellant. Those bugs better believe they're staying away from my baby. My favorite brand is Burt's Bees. Their all-natural insect repellant is safe to put on those chubby little baby hands and smells good to boot! The only kiiiiiiinda down side is that the bottle pumps out a stream of repellant like a lotion bottle (not like an aerosol spray can), so it takes a little longer to apply, but that can also be a good thing. You don't have wasted product flying into the air or breathed in by your baby. I still love this stuff and so does my husband. Sometimes he sneaks a little of this instead of the repellant we have for adults because it smells so good!

6. A portable bed. Because we go places in the summer, a portable bed is an absolute must. Most parents go with a pack-n-play, but if you haven't bought one already, I'd recommend a Peapod Travel Bed (pictured below). It's a fold-up travel-tent-type bed, which has the benefit of keeping your baby shaded but still well ventilated, CONTAINED (the Peapod Plus is good for toddlers), and in an enclosed space (my baby always liked the sense of security that an enclosed space offered him. Plus, it folds up into a 14"x14" circle and weighs only 2.5 POUNDS. Awesome. The Peapod saved my life last summer when we flew to Japan with my 18-month old boy.

7. A Bath Ring. You know those little blue, plastic pools that parents set up in the backyard and fill with water? Great for toddlers, but with a Bath Ring, baby can have fun too! There's hard, plastic ones or a softer, floatable version. Either way, if your baby can sit up but is still slightly wobbly or can topple over easily (too much for you to want to let go of him), a bath ring is perfect for summer water fun! (NOTE: At best this is a helpful TOOL. Obviously, never leave your baby unattended in a bath ring in the water. We're all smart enough to know that.)

8. A baby carrier...or sling...or wrap...or something. Just something to carry your baby so your arms don't get yucky sweaty and your elbow joints aren't throbbing from holding your baby at the end of a long day out. We've already had ample discussion on this on the Village blog, so I won't go too much into it. Click HERE to refer back to our reader's great comments.

I have a babybjorn carrier like the one shown above. No, the pic isn't OF me...or my baby...or my husband. There's not near enough spit up for this to be my child. Plus, I'm not blonde. Anyway, I love this product. So comfortable to wear. My boy loved it too. Unfortunately, my daughter hates it. So, the moral of this story is that different baby carriers/wraps/slings work for different moms and babies. If at all possible, ALWAYS borrow one from a friend and try it out with your baby before buying one.

9. Cloth diapers. Besides obviously diapering, cloth diapers are good for absolutely everything. They're soft, lightweight, and perfect to throw into my diaper bag when I might need to mop of spit up, toddler messses, whatever. I prefer them to burp cloths. Because they're so lightweight, they dry quickly and are perfect for summer. I like prefolded diapers, because they've got that thicker bit in the middle.

10. Disposable changing pads. I never had a need for these with my first, winter baby. I have a reusable changing pad, and I reused it...a lot, but summer babies are a whole different issue. Summer babies wear less clothes, so when there's a diaper blow out...well, you can imagine. It's not contained by clothing and goes EVERYWHERE. Ugh. Gross. Especially when I'm out and about. I just slap down a disposable pad to do all the disgusting clean up on top of, wad it all up at the end, and toss it in the trash. Don't have to clean the reusable pad, or the floor, or anything else besides the baby and her clothes (which is a big enough chore in and of itself). Love. I never thought I needed disposable pads til' now.

So, wha-d' ya think, dear readers? Is this list up to par with yours? What other summer essentials do you have up your sleeve?

-Alyssa

Lunch Conundrum

2011-06-30T09:18:00.000-07:00

We've kind of hit a rut with our lunch routine lately. Usually it is mac n' cheese, grilled cheese, or peanut butter and jelly with a piece of fruit and a carrots or something like to go with it. I'm trying to break out of the same routine, but so far I'm stumped.

What do you feed your kids for lunch?

-Megan-

Top 5

2011-06-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

These are the top 5 must haves for my diaper bag lately besides diapers and wipes. I always seem to have these five things in my bag no matter where I go!

1. Sunscreen - my kids are pretty fair skinned, and with a 3 month old, sunscreen is always in my bag. I'm currently using banna boat's baby sunscreen (even on me and my hubby), love the smell of sunscreen, it makes me think of summer and water!

2. Extra clothes - this is for both my 3 month old and my 3 year old. Even though we are basically done potty training, we still tend to have an accident once and awhile out and about.

3. Camera - I've been so good lately about taking my camera out and about with us.

4. Baby Sling - I got a free sling from sevenslings.com and am loving it! (If you want one for free, go to sevenslings.com and enter the code HVM or FAMILY2011, they didn't pay me of give me compensation in any way for this shout out.)

5. Granola Bars and a bottle of water - It seems like whenever we go anywhere my 3 year old is hunger (he's a bottomless pit!), so I always pack some granola bars and a bottle of water.

What things are the current it items for bag?

-Megan-

Waste or Want #14: Backyard Sandbox

2011-06-28T12:05:00.000-07:00

Description:

A contained sandbox (size varies) for personal use in your own yard.

Average Cost: $40-$200, depending on size (can be much cheaper if bought used)

On the one hand . . .

A sandbox can be a great way to encourage creativity and imagination. Outdoor, active play!

On the other hand . . .

There are several concerns that I've thought of when considering getting a sandbox. I worry about the mess that my kids could make tracking sand into the house. I wonder about neighborhood cats using it as a litter box. And I've heard some rumors of different kinds of sand not being safe because of some chemical compounds it may contain.

I think sandboxes are great fun, and I fondly remember playing in the sandbox many, many times at my grandparents' house. But, as a mom, I'm worried about some of the safety issues. What are your thoughts??

and now cast your vote!

Backyard Sandbox: Waste or Want?

and don't forget to tell us why!

A Village in Action

2011-06-27T17:08:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it really does take a village to raise a child.

Due to the high risk nature of my current pregnancy (twins) and indicators of possible complications, I have had to be on bedrest for the last week and next couple of weeks.

I am amazed and humbled at all the help my family has received from our ward, neighbors and family.

We have had people come to our house daily to play with our kids.

We have had meals brought to our house and offers of many more meals.

A dear neighbor comes twice a week to pick up our laundry.

I am so grateful that so many people are willing to take time out of their busy lives to spend 4 hours chasing my two kids around. I know that because of their generousity, my health and our baby boys' health is improving.

I don't know how many of you have ever been in a situation where you had to rely on help from others or not, but I am sure that your creative minds can come up with some great answers for my questions.

1. How can I help people who come over to better navigate my house? (Is help needed or do I let them just hunt around for things if I am not available to ask aka napping?)

2. What are some activities to suggest for the kids, so they are not always just playing in the water, going on walks, or playing with cars? My kids love these activities, but sometimes you just need a little variety.

3. What is an appropriate way to say thank you? Are thank you cards enough? This question may seem kind of weird, but it is one I have so I am asking.

I would love to hear any suggestions you have. I have learned just how true the concept of a village really is as I watch it unfold in my life daily.

Thanks for your help!

~Lisa~

Tantrums

2011-06-24T10:03:00.000-07:00

Oh man. It feels SO good to be back after almost a two month hiatus. My baby's doing great. (Thank you). She's absolutely adorable, and I love the stinkin' daylights out of that little ball of baby cuteness. I could (and sometimes do) spend way too much time staring at her newborn face.

The topic of this post, however, is a little less warm and cuddly and a little more frustrating.

Dun

DUN....

Tantrums.

Seriously. My blood pressure went up a couple notches after just reading the word. I used to think, "My angel baby will never throw a tantrum," and got a little ticked when mothers of older kids would tell me, "Just you wait." But now I know better. EVERY child throws tantrums. Some sooner or later than others, but there isn't a mother alive who's gotten out of dealing with their little precious throwing a fit on the ground.

Now, experts say that a child really doesn't get the concept of "THIS action results in THIS consequence" until age 3. Starting to realize that other people besides themselves have feelings (and are affected by these tantrums) may come even later than that. My boy's two and a half. So far, I'm agreeing with the experts. No matter how many times I dish out the same consequence, the tantrums continue at about the same frequency and intensity. Urg.

The standards responses are:

(1) Get down at eye level and attempt to understand what's frustrating him. This sometimes works, but when he wants something that he can't have, this doesn't usually quell the cries.

(2) Ignore it. No emotional reward, no behavior, right? Ha. I'm not seeing this one work so much, but maybe it will when he starts putting actions and consequences together

So, moms of younger kids...what are your views of tantrums? What sort of good stuff have you read in parenting books on how to deal with it?

And moms of older kids...how do you deal with tantrums without losing your mind? (Sometimes, I seriously have to put my crying boy in his room to get away from the ear-splitting screaming.) What has worked for you?

Let's hear it moms! Your genius advice is officially requested!

-Alyssa

It Comes with the Territory

2011-06-23T08:54:00.000-07:00

Okay, I know we have talked about potty training several times but one aspect that I haven't seen addressed in our previous posts was constipation. I know this isn't a fun topic, but we are currently combating this issue at my house and having several problems with it. I've talked to our pediatrician and all the non-medication remedies that he suggested haven't worked. Before I start putting my child on miralax, I wanted to ask all you smart moms out there who have dealt with this issue what you have done!

We tried the prune juice, increasing his water intake, changing up his diet to include more fiber, and decreasing the amount of dairy products he eats and nothing has worked so far! We still end up with the same result of messed underwear. So, if you have any other ideas for what we could try please leave a comment!

- Megan -

A few tricks I've picked up...

2011-06-21T14:45:00.000-07:00

Every now and again, I come across a food-saving tip that sticks out in my head. Better even is when those tricks really work! Here are a few food preservation techniques I've learned since I've run my own kitchen:

Put a slice of bread in the bag with freshly-baked cookies.

The bread will harden, but the cookies will remain soft.

When storing potatoes, place an apple in the bag.

The apple will delay the growth of eyes on the potatoes.

When preparing avocados or guacamole, leave the pit in the mixture and add lime or lemon juice (to taste).

These two things (especially the juice) will keep the avocado green much longer. Be sure to refrigerate as well.

Do you have any food saving tips from your kitchen?

~Laura~

When Things Don't Go As Planned

2011-06-20T21:44:00.000-07:00

I seem to have spent the last six weeks feeling out of control.

Six weeks ago, I found out I was pregnant with twins.

Three weeks ago, I was told what possible complications I might face during the pregnancy.

Last week, I was told that the babies were showing signs of serious complication that is treated by doing surgery on the babies while still in utero.

Today, I was told that surgery will probably not be needed, but that I need to be prepared to possible deliver my babies at only 24 weeks along or run the risk of losing both babies.

I am not telling you this to get sympathy. I already have plenty of that coming my way.

I am writing this because I am pretty sure we have all faced times as a mother when things do not go the way we planned.

Sicknesses come, to parents or children, that don't have a straightforward remedy.

Children are diagnosed with special needs which come with a whole new set of adventures.

Pregnancies end up being much more complicated than you thought they could be.

And let's be honest, sometimes just having small children in the house is enough to make a mom feel overwhelmed.

What do you do when you find yourself on a path you never thought you walk down?

I have spent many hours over the course of the last weeks pondering the plan of salvation and my role as a mother in that plan.

I have felt the calm assurance that Heavenly Father is aware of our situation.

However, even though I know about the plan of salvation and have a testimony of the gospel, I still feel out of control.

What have you done when you find yourself feeling out of control that helps you find the peace and strength necessary to make it through?

~Lisa~

When Daddy Gets Us Dressed

2011-06-17T10:47:00.000-07:00

My husband has been super great these past few weeks. He is patient with me when I am having a rough time getting started for the day.

He makes breakfast for everyone.

He does the laundry.

He straightens up around the house.

He takes care of the kids.

The other day, on a particulary difficult morning for me, he got the kids dressed. D got to keep wearing his pajamas. N was totally decked out in floral with just a splash of polka dots for contrast.

Cute no matter what they wear!

With Father's Day coming up this Sunday, I'm sure we are all thinking of the important men in our lives. What are you planning to let your husband know how special he is to your family?

Waste or Want #13: Video Baby Monitor

2011-06-14T15:36:00.000-07:00

Description:

A baby monitor that includes both a camera and a video screen, allowing the parent to see the baby from another room, in addition to hearing them.

Average Cost: $90-$300+

On the one hand . . .

Every parent wants to give their children the best possible care, and sleeping time can be one of the hardest times to do that. We want to make sure our baby is safe and sound, but we don't want to disturb them so much they wake up! A video monitor allows you to actually see your child while they are sleeping without needing to physically enter the room and risk waking them up. This can bring great peace of mind when it's so easy to check on baby, especially in the early months when risk of SIDS is so much higher.

There is a lot of flexibility with video monitors, including being able to set up more than one camera (from different angles or from multiple rooms if you have more than one child) and having more than one viewing screen.

On the other hand . . .

Video monitors are expensive, at least in my realm of baby supply purchasing, especially if you start adding on any extras like multiple cameras. It can also be argued that you will know as much as you need from listening to a simpler audio monitor, without the complication of a video monitor.

and now cast your vote!

Video Baby Monitor: Waste or Want?

and don't forget to tell us why!

Living the Gospel: Enduring to the End

2011-06-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

"Wherefore if ye shall be obedient to the commandments, and endure to the end, ye shall be saved at the last day." ~1 Nephi 22:31

Normally when I hear about enduring to the end, it comes in the context of enduring through a big trial such as sickness or unemployment.

Does that make sense? Of course it does.

But I think that there is more to enduring than just enduring hard times.

My favorite definition for enduring to the end is this:

Enduring to the end means learning to do the small things in every stage of your life.

"The small things" include scripture study, personal prayer, family home evening, going to church.

I don't know about you, but when I got married I had to learn again how to read my scriptures. Hunkering down in my bed at night to read just didn't work anymore because someone else was there!

Then, when my son was born, my schedule was no longer determined by me. Again I had to find new time to study my scriptures.

I also think that expectations have to be adjusted. I loved going to church meetings and taking notes of thoughts or teachings that stood out to me. Now, with two very young kids, I still try to take notes but am lucky to get just two thoughts written down during the three hour block.

"...by small and simple things are great things brought to pass; and small means in many instances doth confound the wise.
And the Lord God doth work by means to bring about his great and eternal purposes; and by small means the Lord doth confound the wise and bring about the salvation of many souls."
~Alma 37: 6-7

Enduring to the end really is only made up of making small choices each day.

The choice to read the scriptures - even if you only have five minutes before the kids wake up from nap time.

The choice to have family home evening - even if it only lasts ten minutes because the two year old is having a meltdown.

The choice to say daily prayers - whenever you find a spare two minutes.

I know that my days go so much better if I take just a few minutes to do the small things I am asked to do. (Of course, I have more time I definitely take advantage of it!)

When we are in the habit of doing the small daily tasks that keep us close to the Spirit, when big trials come along we already have those tasks built into our routine. We are already close to Spirit and know how to listen to and follow those promptings.

When we learn to do the small things, we are better prepared for the big, unexpected trials that may, and will, come our way.

~Lisa~

Traveling with Kids

2011-06-08T13:43:00.000-07:00

At some point this summer we will be taking a trip that involves being in the car for at least 8 hours with two kids under the age of 4, yeah not something I'm looking forward especially since one will still be nursing. So I've been looking around for tips for traveling with little kids and came across a site called Delicious Baby. This is a wonderful site done by Debbie, a mother of three kids under the age of 6. She goes everywhere with her kids! They've been to Europe, including Turkey, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. I love her tips for traveling with little kids and she also gives great tips for traveling while pregnant and nursing. And while she doesn't talk about traveling with kids in cars really, she does give just some great over all advice on how to baby proof your hotel room, great travel products for kids, and easy to travel with toys.

Go check out her site, http://www.deliciousbaby.com/!

-Megan-

A Lionness in the Home

2011-06-06T12:07:00.000-07:00

I love to listen to and read talks by Sister Julie B. Beck. Whenever I hear or read her words I feel ennobled by my calling as a woman and a mother. I feel humbled by the responsibility to raise my children in righteousness and uplift those around me. Most importantly I feel inspired to do better and be a better mother, wife, neighbor and disciple of Christ.

Not to long ago I came across a talk she gave in the opening session of the 2010 BYU Women's Conference. To read the whole talk you can go here.

In this talk she stated that

"women are like the lionesses at the gate of the home."

What an interesting comparison. I had never thought of myself as a lioness. I am not particularly fierce. (At least not if I have gotten an adequate amount of sleep.)

So, what does it mean to be a lioness at the gate of your home?

Sister Beck goes on to explain.

"Whatever happens in that home and family happens because she cares about it and it matters to her. She guards that gate, and things matter to that family if they matter to her.

For example, if the lioness at the gate believes in the law of tithing, tithing will be paid in that family.

If that family has a humble little portion of ten pesos coming in, that lioness will safeguard the one peso if tithing is important to her.

If that lioness at the gate knows about renewing her baptismal covenants with God, she will be in sacrament meeting on Sunday, and she will prepare her children to be there. They will be washed, cleaned, combed, and taught about that meeting and what happens there. It isn’t a casual event, but it is serious to her, and it will be serious to them.

The lioness at the gate ensures that temple worship is taken care of in the family. She encourages that participation. She cares about seeking after her ancestors.

If the lioness at the gate knows about and understands missions, missionaries, and the mission of the house of Israel, she will prepare future missionaries to go out from that home. It is very difficult to get a lion cub away from a lioness who doesn’t believe in missions, but if the lioness believes in a mission, she will devote her life to preparing the cub to go out and serve the Lord. That’s how important she is.

Service happens if she cares about it."

That is kind of a long quote, but very powerful. I have spent many days pondering what it means to be a lioness in my home and how I could do a better job.

I would love to know what your thoughts are on this topic.

What does it mean to you be a "lioness at the gate of your home"?

Do you think the comparison adequately describes our roles as mothers?
How can we be the kind of lionnesses that Sister Beck describes?

~Lisa~

Friday Funnies

2011-06-03T08:19:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I am lucky and snap a picture at just the right moment. This picture was one of those times.

I cannot help but smile everytime I see this picture!

Happy Friday Everyone!

Lisa

Couple Time: It's the Small Things

2011-06-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

Have you ever had a day that started out horribly? That was mine this morning. I was trying to get ready to go to a wedding and none of my clothes fit right because I had a baby two months ago, my baby didn't want to be anywhere but in my arms, and my 3 year old was throwing a fit because he couldn't find his toy! But, my husband walked in the door to pick me up to go and the first words out of his mouth were "You look beautiful." It made my day! It's the small things that help keep me going.

What small things does your spouse do that make your day?

Megan

Waste or Want #12: Wipes Warmer

2011-06-01T07:58:00.001-07:00

Description: Warms wipes so cold wipes aren't used on baby's bum.

Cost: $15 to $40

On the one hand for little boys, it is nice to have a warm wipe to stick over them so they don't pee on you while changing their diaper. Also cold wipes don't seem like then would be fun

On the other hand while it is nice to have warm wipes, you do have to replace the pillow in them to keep the wipes from going brown and it seems like an extra step on the diaper changing process.

and now cast your vote!

Waste or Want?

Don't forget to tell us why!

Why are YOU an Amazing Mother?

2011-05-30T10:22:00.000-07:00

When I was a brand new missionary, one of my leaders gave me a challenge to write a three page essay on why I was an amazing missionary.

My response? Yeah, right! How can I write anything about being an amazing missionary when I'm not!

I could easily think of million reasons why I wasn't an amazing missionary.

I couldn't speak the language (Mandarin Chinese, enough said).

I wasn't getting along with my companion. (She was a native of Taiwan who didn't speak English. As already mentioned, I didn't speak Chinese.)

I had no clue what was going on 90% of the time.

I thought it was a miracle we actually ever found our way home.

My faith was not as strong as I thought it would be.

My task of writing an essay about being amazing was not going to be an easy task. But, I had been given a challenge by a leader. Even if I didn't feel like an amazing missionary, I knew I could be an obedient one.

I cannot remember how long it took me to complete my essay - one week, maybe two. I only had 30 minutes each day during individual gospel study to work on it.

The process of writing the essay was transforming.

I began to look for evidences of what made a missionary amazing. I knew all the things that were commonly given as answers - great faith, exact obedience, love for everyone, etc.

But I also began to look for evidences of what made ME an amazing missionary.

The answer came in the form of a primary saying.

I am a Child of God.

As a child of God, I knew I had godly attributes already in me just waiting to be developed. I didn't have to start from stratch.

As a child of God, I had access to His help and knowledge to do the work I needed to do.

As a child of God, how could I be anything but AMAZING?

So why do I share this story?

I think it is just as easy to fall into the same rut as a mother. The rut where it is infinitely easier to list all the reasons why you are not a good mother.

My list goes something like this right now:

My house if never clean.

Laundry, dirty and clean, are strewn everywhere.

My kids don't have a normal bedtime.

I don't like to cook - ever!

I could go on forever, but that would just be depressing. You all know what that list looks like anyway because I am sure that you all have one of your own that is updated on a regular basis.

When was the last time you made a list of why YOU are an amazing mother?

I challenge each of you to just take some time in the next couple of days to sit down and write down why you are an amazing mother. You can post those comments here or just write them down for yourself in your journal. Write them whereever you are comfortable sharing them.

On my mission, this challenged changed my outlook dramatically. To this day I am impacted by the lessons I learned.

I know that when you take the time to let Heavenly Father show you why you are an amazing mother, you will find strength you didn't know you had and a greater appreciation for the talents you do have.

Lisa

Baby Sling or Wrap

2011-05-25T15:13:00.000-07:00

I'm in the market for a baby sling or wrap. I've read a lot of different things on baby slings, but don't know too much about wraps and I can't decide what one to buy. I also remember a lot of things from last year about newborns suffocating in baby slings and it kind of makes me nervous to take the plunge. So, I'm asking you smart moms about slings or wraps that you own!

What sling/wrap do you own?
Where did you get your sling/wrap from and, if you don't mind saying, how much did you pay for it?
Why did you choose the sling or wrap that you did?

Thanks for the advice!

Megan

Also, please take a look at the poll on the right side about the recipe blog!

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: Family Prayer

2011-05-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

“Pray in your families unto the Father, always in my name, that your wives and your children may be blessed.”
(3 Ne. 18:21)

Family prayer is an important commandment that can lead to many great blessings in our families. It can be quite a challenge, though, with very small children who do not always understand the importance of prayer, who cannot keep their little bodies still for any amount of time, and who may have drastically different sleeping/waking schedules that others in the family. Knowing that family prayer is still so vital to our families, my question today is...

How do you manage family prayer with toddlers in your home? What does it look like? What does it sound like?

How do you teach your children to learn the patterns of prayer?

When do you have family prayer? Morning? Night? Both? Is it part of your regular morning and/or evening routine, or do you fit it in when it works on a day-to-day basis?

If we truly love our families we will constantly pray for them and with them. I know of no single activity that has more potential for unifying our families and bringing more love and divine direction into our homes than consistent, fervent family prayer.

~Elder John H. Groberg

We know it's important, so let's talk about how to do it! Please share what has worked (or what hasn't) in your family.

Friday Funnies in Pink

2011-05-20T07:38:00.001-07:00

We were singing our songs last night as part of our regular bedtime routine. We take turns between Mom or Dad picking a song and my 3-year-old choosing which song she wants. Well, last night, she requested The Pink Song as her final selection. Um...I don't know that one. So she sang it for me:

This is the pink song.
It's my choice to sing it now.
I choose to sing the pink song
because it is my choice.
It is my sacred duty.

I asked her to sing it again so I could learn the words. Her response:

Oh come on, Mom. I was just kidding.

Right. Thanks for letting me know.

Have your kids created any of their own songs?

Couple Time: Let's Ask the Experts!

2011-05-19T05:12:00.000-07:00

I was recently introduced to a website that I think is well worth sharing!

thedatingdivas.com
Strengthening Marriage, One Date at a Time

I know I get stuck in a rut all the time on what to do for a date night. This site provides pages upon pages of wonderful ideas, crossing the span from an all-out expensive night on the town to a cheap, stay at home while the kids are in bed kind of night.

There are many posts to browse, in addition to their regular new updates...categories include:

Date Night
Just the two of us
Four or More
Romantic Rendevous
Adventurous Amore
At Home
Out on the Town

You and Me
Show Him the Love
Show Her the Love
Intimate Moments
Lookin' Good for your Spouse
Anniversary & Birthday Ideas

Special Moments
Marriage 101
Family Fun
Not Your Ordinary Movie

...just to name a few!

The website is created and maintained by 11 women who are all busy mothers--several employed outside the home as well--who are committed to strengthening their relationships with their husbands. Kudos to them for sharing everything they've practiced!

I whole-heartedly agree with a quote they list as their inspiration:

"Marriage is not a noun; it's a verb. It isn't something you get. It's something you do. It's the way you love your partner every day."

-Barbara De Angelis

Check them out! The site is definitely worth even just a few moments of browsing. You'll be hooked!

~Laura~

Reader Requests 2011 - Post 7

2011-05-18T07:22:00.001-07:00

This week we are talking about babysitting. Check out what our reader said...

"I have a 15 month old daughter and we still have yet to find a babysitter. We have family and friends that we can trade off with which is nice, but when trading off with friends and family it makes things hard because we have to drop her off at their house and often when we go out it's almost her bedtime. It would be nice to get a babysitter that we'd pay to come over to our home so we wouldn't have to worry about bedtimes or getting a big diaper bag together when we go out.

I definitely fall in the "worrier" category as a parent so the thought of a teenager watching my child does make me feel a bit uneasy. I also have a child that doesn't eat well (especially for other people) which makes me worry a lot when leaving her with someone, but I really would like to go on more dates with my husband. We live in a ward with very few youth (and most of which are younger youth) so that has made finding a babysitter tough as well.

My questions are:

What have you done to find a babysitter?
How old were your children when you started leaving them with a teenaged babysitter?
What qualities do you look for in a teenaged babysitter?
Are there any ways to help me worry less when leaving her with someone?"

So help her out!! Share your advice about teenage babysitters.

Kid Time: When Mom is Tired

2011-05-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

You may have noticed (or not noticed) that my Kid Time post and Family Home Evening post were absent last week. Well, my husband and I found out last week that we are expecting TWINS!! The news took us by complete surprise.

My sweet husband has adjusted rather quickly to the idea of having four kids. Whereas, I have had a much harder time adjusting to the news. (Keep in mind, I have two other kids ages 2 and 1.) I suppose the news is more difficult for me because I am the one who is pregnant, the one who will deliver two babies, and will be the primary nurturer for four children all ages 3 and under.

Thankfully, right now I just have to worry about being pregnant with twins. My pregnancy so far has been great! I have not been sick at all. I do not have the food aversions I did with my first two pregnancies, nor have I had any strong food cravings. In fact, I have really wanted to eat mostly fruit and vegetables - a nice change from the french fries I craved with my last pregnancy.

Like I said, I have had a pretty easy pregnancy until last week. Last week, I found myself getting exhausted after just a few minutes of any activity. I had one day where I fell asleep every about two hours. If I sat down on the couch between chores, I fell asleep. When I laid my daughter down for her nap, I woke up 30 minutes later next to her on the bed. I have never been this tired before in my life!

So, here is my question...

When you are exhausted (or sick) what do you do to still give your kids attention?

What activities do you do with your kids to keep them learning and active?

I am looking at about six more months of being constantly exhausted (and that is before I bring home two tiny newborns who don't sleep through the night). I obviously cannot just let me kids watch movies for six months. That is just boring!

Please help me out! I know that we have all had those days and weeks when we are tired and/or sick.

How do you meet the needs of your kids when you are having a hard time meeting your own needs?

~Lisa~

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: Applying Gospel Patterns

2011-05-16T19:31:00.000-07:00

Our lesson in Relief Society this week was lesson 34 from the Gospel Principles manual, Developing our Talents. The lesson included six steps for developing our personal talents. As I was listening to the listen, I couldn't help but think that the same pattern would easily apply to many different things we may be working on in our lives as mothers!

The six steps, as listed in the manual:

1. Discover your talents by evaluating yourself to find your strengths and abilities.

2. Be willing to spend the time and effort to develop the talent you are seeking.

3. Have faith that Heavenly Father will help you, and have faith in yourself to accomplish it.

4. Learn the skills necessary to develop the talents.

5. Practice using the talent.

6. Share the talent with others.

I have two examples of how this same pattern can be applied to many aspects of life, if you take the term "talent" and define it loosely. :)

Example One: Potty Training

1. Desired skill: using the toilet! I have this as a goal for my daughter, not myself, but it is most definitely a group endeavor.

2. Time and Effort: We have already had a few unsuccessful attempts in the bathroom department, so I know that we cannot start, with any hope of real success, until both my daughter, my husband, and myself are all ready to seriously put in the time and dedication it's going to take for it to work.

3. Faith: I'm sure many of you can attest that potty training is one of the most stress-inducing parenting times with young children. Even so, it is certainly a very worthwhile life skill. Anything that is important to us is important to Heavenly Father, and He will help us if we just ask! We need faith in Him, faith in myself as the parent, and faith in my daughter and her real ability to learn and succeed.

4. Learn the skills: I have read many books, researched online for suggestions, and asked many other mom friends (including several posts here on the Village!) to have a good base of information from which to pull ideas and plan.

5. Practice: It's not going to work amazingly right away! That's the hard one to learn, I think, for me. While there will be accidents all along the way, that doesn't mean success isn't coming, too.

6. Share with others: While potty training isn't necessarily something that you, ahem, display for the neighbors, I know that Grandma can be just as excited as Mom for a successful potty day! I can let the family in to be excited for what my daughter accomplishes.

Example Two: Monday Management

1. Desired Skill: I would like to have a concrete budget plan to follow with my husband, allowing for us to live within in our means, spending less than we earn and putting the extra into savings.

2. Time and Effort: We can't just spend money at will and hope it works out in the end. We need to put in the effort in the beginning to make the plan so we know where the money needs to go, and then put in the time all along to make sure we are following the plan.

3. Faith: It takes faith to pay tithing. It takes faith to cut back now, in hopes that we will be blessed with greater material comfort later. It takes faith for me to stay home with our children rather than working outside the home so we can have more money to play with.

4. Learn the Skills: My husband and I each had the opportunity to attend family finance classes during college, and we use the principles taught there in managing our money. We also read up often on new techniques that maybe we haven't tried or considered, in hopes that we will find something that might work even better than what we're doing now.

5. Practice: I can easily attest to the fact that the first thing we tried didn't work. And what worked when it was just the two of us as a couple does not work now that we have children. And budgeting changes as jobs and housing change. We have to continually keep in mind what we are wanting to accomplish and working to find the best ways to do it.

6. Share your Talents: When we are managing our money well, we are able to help others more, perhaps through family members or by donating more to fast offerings. We are also able to share our talents with our children by providing them a secure future and passing on our knowledge as they get older, to help them manage their money well in their own families in the future.

See what I mean? While my first thoughts on "developing talents" most often go to playing the piano or learning a new sport or something else along those lines of what we usually think of as talents, I believe that we use the same six steps to help in all kinds of areas, not just performance talents.

And, as always, we will have the best chances of success if we pray and seek the Lord's help. Anything is possible with Him!

~Laura~

Friday Funnies: Mispronunciations

2011-05-13T15:05:00.001-07:00

I LOVE LOVE LOVE to listen to toddlers talk. It seems like from ages 1-5 are the golden years of mispronunciations. Here are a few zingers my kids have used in their time....

Daughter: "Mom, the kids are both drinking water and the 'dolts' are drinking milk."
Me: "Um, I think you mean adults sweetie. " :)
*My husband finds this hilarious that our daughter who is 4 1/2 calls us "dolts."

My favorite mispronunciation by my daughter when she was younger was "hanitizer" for hand sanitizer. She just sounded so sweet saying it.

Dad: "Do you want jam on your roll or butter?"
Son: "Jam it"
*This needs an additional explanation. My son has SUPER bad diction (he's very difficult to understand) and his "j" sound is actually the "d" sound. :) We laughed good and hard over this one.

Another one that I love from my son is "scripurs" for "scriptures." It sound incredibly cute coming out of his 2 1/2 year old mouth.

I do try to correct my children over time as they get older so that they can say things properly and improve in their language, but a part of me is saddened by the loss of their baby words. I need to be better about writing down and remember these!

Share yours!! What are your favorite mispronunciations by your children?

~Tannie

Couple Time: Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work

2011-05-12T17:46:00.000-07:00

When I was engaged, my mom was completing her bachelor's degree (GO MOM!) in Family and Consumer Studies. As part of a class, she was required to read this book:

The Seven Principles for Making Marriage Work
by John M. Gottman

She already had thirty years of marriage under her belt, and she was able to recognize that this book had a lot to offer. As such, she gave it to me to read before and during the beginnings of my own marriage. I still refer to it now and again, after five years, and I believe it is worth sharing. As the title suggests, there are seven basic principles covered, each with several exercises and activities to complete with your spouse. Today, I will introduce just two of those principles.

Principle 1:
Enhance your Love Maps

My husband is a computer engineer, while my professional background is in elementary education. Needless to say, I often do not understand what exactly it is that he does at work all day... I can, however, tell you the title of his main project, the names of his bosses and his team, give a description, albeit brief and basic, of what his major work goals are, and I know to be excited when he comes home and says he actually got to program today. This is what Gottman refers to as a Love Map--a couple's understanding of the intimate details of each other's lives, including the parts that do not necessarily overlap.

From the book: "From knowledge springs not only love by the fortitude to weather marital storms. Couples who have detailed love maps of each other's world are far better prepared to cope with stressful events and conflict. ... There are few gifts a couple can give each other greater than the joy that comes from feeling known and understood."

Exercises:

1. The Love Map 20 Questions Game: Each partner randomly chooses 20 numbers within 1-60. Ask your partner the corresponding question. If he answers correctly, he gets the number of points indicated, and you get one point. If he answers incorrectly, neither of you get any points. Take turns answering questions about each other.

Sample questions:

1 point--Where was I born? What is my favorite color?
2 points--Name my two closest friends. What is my favorite movie? What do I most like to do with my time off?
3 points--Who was my best friend in childhood? Who is my greatest source of support (other than you)?
4 points--What makes me feel most competent? What do I fear most? What are some of the important events coming up in my life and how do I feel about them?
5 points--What is my fondest unrealized dream?

2. Make Your Own Love Maps: You are on a fact-finding mission. Using the questions provided, interview each other. Take turns as listener and speaker. Your goal is to listen and learn about your mate.

Sample topics:

The cast of characters in my partner's life
Recent important events in my partner's life
Upcoming events
Current Stresses & Worries
Hopes and Aspirations

3. Who Am I?: This is a self-searching exercise in which you come to understand yourself better and thus are better able to share with your partner. Each spouse should complete the activity for themselves and then share responses as a couple.

Sample topics:

My triumphs and strivings
My injuries and healings
My emotional world
My mission and legacy
Who I want to become

Principle 2:
Nurture your Fondness and Admiration

From the book: "Fondness and admiration are two of the most crucial elements in a rewarding and long-lasting romance. Although happily married couples may feel driven to distraction at times by their partner's personality flaws, they [should] still feel that the person they married is worthy of honor and respect. ... By simply reminding yourself of your spouse's positive qualities--even as you grapple with each other's flaws--you can prevent a happy marriage from deteriorating."

Exercises:

1. "I appreciate...": A list of 72 characteristics are given. Each partner should select only three that you feel are characteristic of your spouse. Then, share an incident in which that characteristic was displayed.

Sample characteristics:

Loving
Energetic
Considerate
Resourceful
Playful
Expressive
Warm
Relaxed
Lively
A great partner
Understanding

2. The History and Philosophy of Your Marriage: Discussing the happy times from your past together can help refocus your perspective on why you married in the first place. Thirteen questions are given covering The History of Your Relationship and Your Philosophy of Marriage to be discussed at length together.

Sample questions:

Discuss how the two of you met and got together. Was there anything about your spouse that made him or her stand out? What were your first impressions of each other?

Talk to each other about your parents' marriages. Would you say they were very similar to or different from your own marriage?

3. A Seven-Week Course in Fondness and Admiration: The purpose of this activity is to get into the habit of thinking positively about your spouse on a consistent basis. For seven weeks, there is a thought and a task given for the five weekdays. Think of the thought several times throughout the day, and find specific instances when that thought applied to your relationship, even if it isn't the "norm" presently. Be sure to complete the task, even if it might not fit how you are feeling about your partner on that particular day. As the weeks progress, the tasks become more involved and gradually include your partner more directly and more frequently.

Sample week:

Monday
Thought: I am genuinely fond of my partner.
Task: List one characteristic you find endearing or lovable.

Tuesday
Thought: I can easily speak of the good times in our marriage.
Task: Pick one good time and write a sentence about it.

Wednesday
Thought: I can easily remember romantic, special times in our marriage.
Task: Pick one such time and think about it.

Thursday
Thought: I am physically attracted to my partner.
Task: Think of one physical attribute you like.

Friday
Thought: My partner has specific qualities that make me proud.
Task: Write down one characteristic that makes you proud.

From Laura:

It is my belief that good marriages only really happen because serious effort is put in, on a consistent basis and by each partner, to keep that relationship strong and healthy. My purpose in sharing what I have today is to give some tools to help in building up and strengthening your own marriage. I would like some feedback in regards to this and potential future posts for Thursday's Couple Time. Please take a few moments to leave a comment!

What kinds of marriage topics would you be interested in discussing on this blog?

Was this introduction to the seven principles of interest to you? Do you think you will use any of the tips suggested? Would you be interested in reading more about the other principles (or more details on these two shared)?

Thanks for sharing!

Just take a nap....

2011-05-11T06:40:00.000-07:00

Getting a baby to sleep is always on the minds of moms with newborns. I know that with all my children I had different problems that I've needed to solve in the sleep department.

Although she sleeps well at night (only waking once - usually after a 5 or 6 hour stretch) the newest addition to our family has a bit of a problem taking a nap. This can be quite difficult if you are trying to take care of a 4 year old and a 2 year old at the same time as well.

When she first came home from the hospital, she took naps just fine. She slept most of the time with a bit of wakefulness after a feeding. She would even just fall asleep randomly on her own and didn't require rocking - it was great.

When she turned about 1 month old she became more alert and started having issues. We would get her to the point where we thought she was asleep and then put her in bed and 5 minutes later she would wake up. We'd spend nearly 1 1/2 hours or more trying to get her to stay down in her bed. For quite a while the only places she would take naps were in her car seat, in a moby wrap, or cuddled/held by someone.

She is 2 1/2 months old now and has improved somewhat - she will now sleep on her own in her bouncer chair or crib for about 45 minutes before she wakes up. This is better, but still not great since she is usually grumpy when she wakes up - simply because she needs about twice that amount of sleep to be well rested - so I usually "make" her go back to sleep.

I love her SO MUCH and she is the sweetest happiest little when she has slept and been fed, but those in-between times when she won't sleep and I can't get anything done or pay attention to my other children are rough. I have to hold her sometimes when I'd rather be doing something else (I'm quite adept at typing one handed now), and she's almost always in the moby wrap while I cook dinner.

I didn't used to believe people when they said their baby "wouldn't take a nap." Now I regret that thought. :) We all learn our lessons the hard way sometimes.

So give me some advice...

Have you ever had this problem with a newborn?
What are some tricks for getting your baby to nap longer on his/her own?
When did your baby outgrow this?
Did using CIO when they were older help?
Do you think it's okay to let her sleep in a moby wrap or is that compounding the problem?
Any tips you can give me would be extremely valuable.

~Tannie

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: Sharing your Testimony

2011-05-09T07:47:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking about this for a few days now, and it came up several times in our Relief Society yesterday, so I thought I'd put the question to you:

How do you share your testimony with your young children?

While it's important to share our testimony with our children, I don't think it needs to be quite the formal declaration like we might hear in Fast and Testimony Meeting at church. I believe it can and should be a much more natural, conversational thing that can be easily discussed often within our homes. The trick is figuring out how to do that!

In what situations do you share spiritual thoughts with your children?

At what age do you actively start teaching gospel principles?

How do the things you share change as your children get older?

I recognize that this particular topic is rather personal and could vary greatly from family to family, but I think it's worth sharing our ideas! Let us know what you think.

~Laura~

FHE: I am a Child of God

2011-05-08T14:15:00.000-07:00

As I was preparing for Family Home Evening this week, I knew that I would be writing this post. I also knew that it would be Mother's Day right after. I thought about doing a lesson on mothers. But, I thought it felt a little weird for me, the mom, to give a lesson about moms.

I decided, instead, to give a lesson about being a child of God.

I believe that this is one of the most important things I can teach my children.

I like to use the Primary lesson manuals as a starting point for preparing my lessons. I just find it helps me focus my thoughts. Because my kids are 2 years old and 1 year old, I use both the Nursery manual and the Sunbeam manual for ideas. (All church manuals can be found online at lds.org)

Nursery Manual

Sunbeam Manual

For my lesson I decided to take ideas from both of these lessons, but put my own twist on them.

I had two objectives for my lesson.

1) I wanted to help my kids understand that because they are children of Heavenly Father they can grow up to be like Him.

2) I wanted to teach my kids that we are all children of our Heavenly Father.

To teach the first concept, I found pictures of different animals as babies and as adults (i.e. puppy-dog, kitten-cat).

I put these pictures into a powerpoint slideshow.

(The manual said to find pictures in magazines, but I don't have magazines in our house. And, I don't have a flannel board, so flannel board stories were out of the question.)

My powerpoint slideshow was simple (keep in mind the young age of my children), but they loved it! I let them push the buttons to change the slides as we read the captions to each picture.

Here is the slideshow in picture format. You'll get the idea.

I am in NO WAY an expert at powerpoint. I am sure that many of you moms out there will do a much better job than me. That said, I found that using powerpoint was a fun way to show my kids pictures that took relatively little preparation time.

My son liked the pictures so much that he asked to watch the slideshow again and again throughout the week. I took this to be a good sign. It was also another chance to reinforce the lesson.

To finish up the lesson and meet my second goal, I found pictures of everyone in our family and both sets of grandparents. While I played the song "I am a Child of God" in the background, we looked at the pictures and talked about each person is a child of God. (Then, of course, we closed with a prayer.)

Well, there you have it. I know the lesson was short, but it got right to the point. I know that my kids enjoyed it and continue to enjoy the pictures. Hopefully you will be able get some ideas from our humble efforts.

How have you taught your kids the principle of being a child of God?

If you have any ideas for family home evenings we would love to hear them, whether they be about being a child of God or another gospel topic. Please leave a comment or send us at email at thevillageformoms@gmail.com

Lisa

Friday Funnies: Guest Post #2

2011-05-06T07:03:00.000-07:00

Our guest post today comes from a mother of three girls, ages 3 1/2, 2, and 5 months. Busy busy! At least she has her oldest to keep her laughing!

POTATO/ POTAHTO

A few weeks ago we took our girls to an indoor amusement park near our house to try and beat the rainy day blues. My girls were in heaven! Turns out they are major adrenaline junkies! As *Bug was spinning round and round on one of the rides my husband, who was riding with her, said, "Say Yipee Yi Yo Kai-Yay!" Boo immediately shouted "YIPEE! I'M A CUPCAKE!"

TATTLE TALE!

While I'm at work my mom watches my kids for me. One day she came into the kitchen to find that Boo and Bug had helped themselves to two gargantuan bowls of ice cream...
Grandma: "Um... girls, what are you doing?"
Bug: "Eating ice cream."
Grandma: "Why?"
Bug: "We're staaaaaaaaarving!"
Grandma: "Well, did you eat your breakfast this morning?"
Bug: "No. My mom doesn't feed us EVERY day!"
Grandma: "She doesn't feed you every day?"
Bug: "Nope. Well... she did one time, but not the other times."

For the record: I DO feed my children!

DREAM SWEET DREAMS

Bug has a new best friend. It's the dad figurine from a dollhouse I used to have when I was little. She refers to it as her man. You can imagine the strange looks I get in the grocery store when other customers overhear statements from my three year old like, "Mom, my man and I are hungry. We're gonna make Waffles. " or "Mom, have you seen my man? I can't find my man anywhere!"

The other night as Bug was saying her prayers she said, "And please bless that me and my man will sleep well tonight and have good dreams that will nourish and strengthen our bodies."

Couple Time: Money Matters

2011-05-05T09:14:00.000-07:00

When I first got married, my husband was fresh off his mission while I had been living independently, working to pay all my bills myself, for over three years. I determined that I obviously was the most logical choice as financial manager for our new little family. I therefore took it upon myself to track all of our income and expenses, pay all the bills, and even start building up our emergency fund (now that all our savings had been used up on the wedding). I was so sure that I could handle it and my husband would never have to worry his pretty little head about money.

Funny thing, though--he actually wanted to know what was going on with our money. Huh. He didn't want me to just take over and not tell him anything. Go figure.

That launched the next stage. He took over and despite his many attempts to include me, he basically ran the show for the next few years. I would get too annoyed trying to sit down and do anything with him and often it was easier for him to just do it himself than try to do it together and end up fighting.

Sometimes I'm glad we're not newlyweds anymore.

We have improved over time, but we still hit snags now and again when we try to go over finances--particularly when the income doesn't quite match our (my?) desired expenses.

Money and financial issues have often been listed as one of the highest causes of marital conflict and divorce. No one is immune from having to work through these kinds of issues in their own marriage. I am interested to know how you can turn your own marital finances from this:

to this:

aren't google images great?

So...

Who manages the money in your family? Husband? Wife? Or do you do it together?

How do you prevent money from becoming a trouble area, particularly when the budget is tight?

Any tips or tricks for keeping the peace when money is involved?

~Laura~

This post is intended mostly for looking into the relationship side of managing finances. If there is interest, we can certainly do more posts about the nitty-gritty how-to of family money management. Just let us know!

Waste or Want #11: Backyard Swing Set

2011-05-04T07:46:00.001-07:00

Description: A playground set for your very own yard! There are so many types - some with slides, some without, some with rock walls, and some with little clubhouses attached - though most ALL of them have swings. :) Some are made of wood and some are plastic or metal.

Cost: Anywhere from a couple of hundred dollars to a thousand or more (depending on the size, quality, and type)

One one hand: It would be so nice to have a swing set in the backyard - hours of free entertainment! Send the kids out there and let them play. Plus, it's a great place for play-dates in the convenience of your own backyard - invite your mom friends over and watch the kids play while you chat.

On the other hand: There are parks EVERYWHERE - there is probably a park less than a 5 minute walk from your house, so do you really NEED one? Also - they can be dangerous. When there is a swing set in the backyard, mom doesn't always watch the kids play and injuries can be the result. In addition to this, with lots of time on their hands and a playground set they use all the time, children can come up with some pretty ingenious ways to play on their own swing set - again, resulting in injuries.

Now, cast your vote! Is it waste or want? Don't forget to tell us why, and if you have one - what type is it and do you like it?

Kid Time: 1+1+1=1

2011-05-03T19:25:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone! Today for our Kid Time post I wanted to tell you all about a blog I absolutely LOVE for great ideas for kids as young as 10 months all the way up through elementary age.

The blog is: 1plus1plus1equals1.blogspot.com

This blog is written by Carisa, a public school teacher turned homeschooling mom. Through her experiences homeschooling she has come up with some really creative and age appropriate ways to encourage young kids to learn through exploration and mommy-led activities.

Tot School is her name for intentionally playing with her toddler. In other words, Tot School is the when you just focus on your toddler and play with them. You choose toys that you use to teach various concepts such as colors, letters, sorting, etc.

I have loved planning tot school with my son. Some days it is just playing with blocks and sorting them by colors or lining them up and counting them.

My little girl even got in on the action when she was about five months old.

(Really, it was just tummy time, but on a new play mat.)

Other days, our tot school is a little more formal. We might practice cutting, gluing, or pouring. These are activities that I wouldn't normally let my son do, but because it is a structured setting I make an exception. I will admit that these are some of my favorite days.

Lately, we have been using Carisa's Tot School Printables.

Carisa's printables focus on:

letters

beginning sounds

sequencing

concept of left to right

shapes

numbers

Carisa has so much information and so many ideas that it is hard to do her blog and accompanying website justice.

She has created Preschool Pack and Tot School Packs which are kind of like file folder games, but more inclusive.

Here are some examples:

the Toy Story Preschool Pack

Big Machines Tot Pack

Her Preschool Packs cover so many themes, including:

Cars

Princesses

Gardening

Books (like Brown Bear, Brown Bear)

and SO,SO, SO much more.

I promise that if you visit her website you WILL find something that you like. Don't be surprised if you find a ton of things you like.

Most of her printables are totally FREE because she wants to give other moms a chance to use them.

(She does have a Members Only section with even more incredible resources that you can join for a very small price.)

Carisa has done a lot of work in putting together her ideas and organizing them for other moms to use. I love that her ideas all came out of her desire to teach her children. I felt that a great way to say THANK YOU was to pass on her information to all of you.

Check out her blog. You will not be disappointed!

Lisa

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: An Hour Once a Week

2011-05-02T06:54:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, Tannie did a post about when you allow your child to start partaking of the sacrament. I would like to continue on the same vein today with a question of what (else) your child does during sacrament meeting...

Here is a taste of what our family has experienced in the last few Sundays:

Goldfish smashed all over the bench, carpet, and everyone's clothes

Crayons away from the provided paper and into the hymnbook

One child climbing over the bench to sit with the family behind while the other climbs under the bench to head straight for the stand

Screams of "Let Go!" as if sitting still for a prayer is the worst form of torture

...You get the idea. I'm sure you all have many of your own stories you could add! While this is certainly not a new topic, it bears sharing our ideas here on this blog for the benefit of all. So...

What tips and tricks do you have for helping your child(ren) behave reverently during Sacrament meeting?

What kind of toys do you bring for entertainment? How many? What do you avoid?

Food? Do you bring snacks? What kinds?

What is your policy on taking kids out into the hall? What do you do when you're out?

Things get more complicated with each child that is added to your family...how do you deal with the differences in ages between your children?

And this may be asking too much, but how do you maintain the Spirit of the meeting and pay attention to the talks while taking care of your children?

~Laura~

FHE: Honesty for Toddlers

2011-04-30T10:25:00.000-07:00

We have been having some issues with our three-year-old telling lies...often. I know that she doesn't entirely understand what a lie even is, and especially doesn't grasp the idea of why it's wrong. This week, we are going to focus on honesty for Family Home Evening to help her understand the need to tell the truth and what that means.

Prep: Create your smiley and frowny face cards (draw your own or find images online) and/or the pictures for The Lie Monster. You may want to come up with child-specific examples (see below) in advance if you don't want to think of them on the spot.

Song: Keep the Commandments or I Believe in Being Honest

Scriptures: Exodus 20:16, 13th Article of Faith

Lesson: Explain in simple terms that telling the truth means saying things that really happened. Telling a lie means we say something that isn't true or that didn't really happen. Give a few examples of truth and lies and have your child identify which is which. Start with easy ones:

~The sky is purple
~Dad is wearing pants
~I have a cat on my head
~The door is closed

Explain that when we tell the truth, we make ourselves and those around us happy. Most importantly, we make Jesus happy. Choose one of the following activities, depending on which you think would be more appropriate for your child and family.

Option 1: Happy or Sad

Give each person one smiling face and one frowning face card. Share a story that happened during the day, like "We had sandwiches for lunch today" or "We played with our friends today." Each person should hold up the smiling face. Do a few examples of truth, pointing out that telling the truth makes us and others happy.

Next, share a few examples of things that didn't really happen, like "We flew in an airplane today" or "We went to a party today." Each person should hold up the frowning face. Explain that telling a lie, or saying something that is not true, makes us and other people sad. We should tell the truth so we can be happy.

Go through as many examples of truths and lies as you want to help your child understand the difference.

Option 2: The Lie Monster

This activity is from sugardoodle.net. Click here for the story. Read the story aloud and display the pictures as indicated. Discuss why lying makes things harder for Tommy and what he can do to fix it.

Closing

Throughout the week, pay attention to when your child tells the truth and acknowledge it positively. If they do tell a lie, gently remind them that it makes us sad when we tell lies and help them fix it so they can tell the truth.

Friday Funnies: Guest Post #1

2011-04-29T08:01:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Friday Funnies. Today we have our first guest post by a reader. Check out these hilarious things her kids are up to.

Our reader wished to remain anonymous, but just for your information (so the stories make more sense) her little girl is 5 and her little boy is 2.

Hide and Go Seek:
I wish I had a picture of this. The other day, we were playing a memorable game of hide-and-seek. I was counting and my daughter was hiding. I love playing with my daughter AND my son because it makes it so easy to find my daughter. Once I finished counting, I walked down the hall to find my son laying flat on the floor with his head "hidden" under my daughter's bed. BINGO! Any guesses where she was hiding? Yep, right under the bed.

Next it was my daughter's turn to count. She started counting as fast as she could. Usually we count to 20, so I told her she had to slow down so I had time to hide. She informed me she would just count as high as she could. I got into my hiding place and listened to her pass 40, (which is where I thought she would stop) 50, 60 and start into the 70's. This is what I heard in the 70's. "71, 71, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78, 79, . . ." long pause, and finally, "70, 71, 72, 73 . . ." At that point, I called out, "Just come find me!" But I was sure giggling.

Learning to drive:
Last summer, my daughter and I were preparing to do errands. We were loaded into the car and my son smelled pretty rank. So, I left her in the car while I ran in to change the diaper. The car was off, but I left the keys in the ignition and I had it in gear without the emergency brake pulled up. (It's a standard transmission, so holding it in gear while parked keeps it from rolling.) While I was in the house, she decided she wanted to pretend to drive. She climbed into the driver's seat and pulled on the gearshift popping the car into neutral. It started to roll backward and she started to yell. When my daughter is playing she's scared, she screams. But when she's REALLY scared, she yells really, really loud. I heard her and ran outside to find the car rolling into the street. I opened the door and pulled up the emergency brake to stop it. It didn't crash into anything, but we were both pretty shaken up.

Fast forward to last week: As we were driving to preschool, my daughter commented how neat it would be if she had her very own car just her size to drive around all by herself. I said, "How would you know how to drive?"

That got her thinking. "I don't know. When did you learn to drive?"

"When I was 15, I went to a special class to learn."

"Oh, well I probably don't need to wait that long. After all, I already know how to back up." She said it so casually and it brought back all the memories of last summer. I couldn't help but laugh.

Better out than in:
I don't know if we eat a lot of fiber or what, but my kids are kind of gassy. When one of them fluffs, we just laugh, act shocked, and then say "excuse me." Sometimes I can't tell if it is my daughter or my son because they are sitting and playing together so I'll say, "Was that you?" to whoever I thought it was. Today, we were in my daughter's room getting dressed and my son let a big one rip. We both stared at him--it was REALLY loud! He looked up with a twinkle in his eye and asked sweetly, "That you?" Then he smiled and said "excuse me." My daughter and I just cracked up. Was that his first attempt at a joke? Not sure, but it sure was funny!

Shopping:
The girls in our family like to shop. It's no secret. My daughter is taking after them. Today she pulled out a store ad magazine our of the recycling box and started looking through it. "Mom! I found something you want to buy me!" She proceeded to show me 5 pages worth of merchandise ranging from jewelry, to purses, to shoes, to toys. Oh, if I had a million dollars, that beautiful girl might just be the most spoiled kid in the world! I guess it's a good thing we don't have two nickels to rub together.

Simply Thrifty: Fabric Softener

2011-04-28T17:14:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are some easy to use tips for homemade and thrifty ways to use fabric softener.

Dryer Sheets

I personally use dryer sheets. I use them because my mom used them and that is what I know. A really simple way to save money on dryer sheets is to....

cut them in half or in thirds.

Simple, right? That is why I love this tip. It is so easy to do and still saves you money. You simply cut the dryer sheet in half or thirds. Then, throw one section in with the load.

You can also make your own resusable dryer sheets with cut up pieces of flannel. Directions can be found here.

Fabric Softener

The most common homemade fabric softener is not really even homemade. It is just plain old vinegar.

Vinegar is the wonder product of homemade cleaning solution. (Cream of Tartar would the other cleaning wonder in my book.) There is a whole website with tips for using vinegar here.

As a fabric softener, you simply add 1/2 cup of vinegar to your rinse cycle. It gets rid of odors and residues. If you need to you can add more until you get the desired results.

Another tip is to use a Downy ball and simply put vinegar in it.

I have used vinegar before with my husbands work clothes. If he has been working on the car or some other smelly project, I always add a little bit of vinegar to the rinse cycle and all the smells go away!

The best part is that vinegar is available everywhere and is much less expensive than any other fabric softener.

If you are partial to brand name fabric softeners.

You can simply dilute the fabric softener using 2 parts water to 1 part fabric softener. Or, just 1/4 to 1/2 of the recommened amount the bottle says.

For a lot more tips (including using hair shampoo and conditioner!) visit this website.

Do you have any simple tips for saving money? If you do we would love to hear about them. Just send us an email at thevillageformoms@gmail.com

Happy Savings Everyone!

Lisa

P.S. Don't forget to stop by our new poll in the side bar! We'd like to better serve our readers, so to allow us to do so, please give us general age ranges of your children to give us an idea of what sort of posts will be important to you and your family. When voting, select as many boxes as you need to. Thanks a million!

Reader Requests 2011 - Post 6

2011-04-27T07:51:00.000-07:00

This week we are talking about when to go to the hospital if you are pregnant. Check out what our reader said....

I'm pregnant. Already had my son two years ago, so this second pregnancy should be completely predictable, right? WRONG!? Am I the only woman obnoxiously paranoid and unsure about when to go to the hospital? Please say no. I have no idea of when I should make the drive. Especially since Braxton Hicks are so much more prevalent and noticeable the second time around. I'm on the extreme-worry bandwagon as well because a) my husband is out of town during weekdays, and b) my hospital is 40 minutes away, and c) I was induced with my first (which I hear is supposed to make labor last all day..haha...yeah right) and he STILL came really quickly...just three hours after breaking my water. And now my doctor tells me this delivery will most likely be even faster. Yikes! We've got our home-teachers on speed dial, but that still doesn't make my deliveries slower or my hospital closer.

I know every woman and every pregnancy's different, so I can't really compare across the board, but what sort of indicators are "out there" that you pay attention to?

I'd appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

-Paranoid And Pregnant

Help her out! And don't be afraid to share your own experiences if it's helpful.

Toddler Learning Activity: EGG-cellent Color Relay

2011-04-26T04:00:00.000-07:00

Wait! Wait! Don't pack up those Easter eggs yet! We've got plans for a game involving everyone's favorite plastic egg for easy, inexpensive, color learning fun!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

Pack of plastic Easter eggs

(about one per kid...get them on sale now if you don't have enough)

Paper to match the color of your eggs

(pick em' out for free in the paint section of Lowe's or Home Depot)

Large bowls or laundry baskets

Timer (optional)

First, lay out your bowls and tape colored paper to the bottom of each. Divide in half. Set Mommy's bowls on one side of the room, and your toddler's bowls on the other. Say, Mommy gets green and pink, while your toddler gets blue and yellow. Dump out the eggs and explain the rules of the game:

(1) Match the eggs to the right color bowl.

(2) Whoever collects three eggs of the right color first, WINS!

This game is a great review of simple counting, as well as color drilling. The first few run-throughs will be trial-and-error. Heck, maybe ALL of them will be. After all the eggs are collected, help your toddler sort through her eggs and reshuffle any eggs that got put in the wrong color bowl. I'm not kidding when I say my boy and I did this, over and over, for AN HOUR. Seriously. What game can hold a toddler's attention for that long? The kind that lets him run around and throw eggs, that's what. The great thing about the materials we're using is that plastic Easter eggs pop open if tossed too hard, so very little damage ever happens in the whole, exciting process.

TIPS/SUGGESTIONS:

For older children, increase the number of eggs that need to be collected. Also, set a timer and perhaps sit out completely, pitting kid against timer in an epic Easter egg color battle.

For younger children, you can try taking out some complexity at first by simplifying the number of colors they're dealing with. Say, one color for Mommy and one color for the toddler. Makes it a lot easier, because blue/purple and pink/peach look pretty similar sometimes.

...And let's be honest, if the game quickly dissolves into something like this...

That's okay! Because play time is learning time, and it can't get much better than this. :)

-Alyssa

-Original idea developed by yours truly and my little boy. Take it, and run with it! Please don't forget to share comments of any variations you come up with on the Village blog!

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: Getting to the Temple

2011-04-25T07:58:00.000-07:00

When my husband and I first got married (8 years ago) we used to attend the temple A LOT! In the first few years of our marriage we went at least twice a month and often, every week.

Then we had one baby, and going to the temple became trickier. We still worked it out though and did a babysitting swap with a couple in our ward. We would switch every other Saturday and that way we still got to go to the temple about 2 times a month.

Then... we had a SECOND baby and things became more difficult. We still had babysitting trades with other couples but instead of twice a month we switched to once a month, and with the help of family we were able to get to the temple twice a month once in a while. We'd average about 15 times a year going to the temple (which seems so little sometimes).

Now days we have 3 children and we don't have anyone to babysit trade with (who wants to watch our 3 kids on a frequent basis, right?) So getting to the temple is becoming increasingly difficult.

I know we are so fortunate to live close to a temple (it's about a 5 minute drive) and I feel guilty for not taking advantage of the temple, especially since we might be moving to another state that will most likely not have temple close by.

So, what are your tips for getting to the temple?

What to you is a reasonable "frequent" attendance? Once a month? Once every other month?

How do you go when you have children? Do you go separately? Do you go with your spouse?

Do you rotate through different ordinances?

How do you keep from feeling guilty about not going as much, but yet feel like you are doing all you can?

What do you do if you live FAR from a temple?

Mostly, how do you find the time when you have young children??

Let us know your thoughts - we NEED your help and advice! Remember, that we are posting 6 days a week now, so there are new posts all the time. We'd love your input - YOU make "the Village" work. Remember that our motto is that it takes a village to raise a child and we want your help and input for our families and readers. Take a look at some of our most recent posts and give us a minute of your time to comment!

Also - don't forget to send us some Reader Requests. We'd also love to feature you on Friday Funnies. Just send an e-mail our way!

Thank you so much for reading. And tell your friends about us!

~Tannie

Resurrection Eggs

2011-04-22T09:00:00.000-07:00

This is our Family Home Evening idea for this week. I'm posting it on Friday so you can have an extra day if you'd like to fit it in during your Easter celebrations this weekend. :)

I would like to make the disclaimer up front that I in no way take credit for this activity. It is on the internet in dozens of places in some form or another--I've even seen it posted in pieces on friends' blogs already this year. However! I still think it's well worth it and my daughter loves it, so I'd like to share it again here. Hope it's helpful to someone out there!

Preparation:

A. Label 12 plastic Easter eggs with the numbers 1-12.

B. Place each item from the following list in the appropriate number egg:

1-leaf (real or plastic)
2-small piece of cloth with perfume on it
3-piece of tortilla or bread smashed flat
4-bandaid
5-three dimes (or six nickels)
6-piece of purple cloth or paper
7-a cross (made of toothpicks, sticks, metal, or paper)
8-nail
9-piece of paper that says THE KING OF THE JEWS
10-a bundle of spices wrapped in a baggie or plastic wrap
11-small rounded stone
12-leave this egg empty

C. If you have the Gospel Art Book (spiral bound), you can reference these pictures during the story: 50, 54, 56, 57, 58, 59, 66

D. (optional) Hide the eggs for your child to find at the beginning of the activity.

Activity:

Open each egg in order by the numbers. Use the objects inside to help tell the Easter story from the New Testament. Corresponding pictures and scripture references are listed after each explanation.

The explanations given here are geared toward a 3- or 4-year-old. Adjust as needed for your family.

1: When Jesus came to Jerusalem, the people in the city waved special branches and cheered. They knew that Jesus was a King. (pic#50, Mark 11:8-9)

2: Jesus had a special dinner with some of his friends. A woman came and poured perfume on him, showing that she knew He was the Savior. (Mark 14:3)

3: Jesus had another special dinner with his apostles. He gave them the bread and water of the sacrament as a way for them to remember Him after He died. (#54, Mark 14:22)

4: Jesus went to a garden to pray to Heavenly Father. It was when we prayed that he suffered for our sins. Because he did this, we can repent and return to live with Heavenly Father again. (#56, D&C 19:16-19)

5: One of Christ's apostles told the soldiers where Jesus was so they could arrest Him. The soldiers paid him thirty pieces of silver. (Mark 14:10-11)

6: After Jesus was arrested, the soldiers were very mean to Him. They put him in a purple robe and put thorns on His head. They didn't believe that He was a king and they were making fun of Him. (Mark 15: 16-18)

7: Jesus was crucified. This means that the soldiers put Him on a cross where He was going to die. (#57, Mark 15:25)

8: The soldiers used nails to put Jesus on the cross. They put nails into His hands and His feet. (D&C 6:37)

9: The soldiers put a sign at the top of Jesus's cross that said THE KING OF THE JEWS. They were making fun of Him again. (Mark 15:26)

10: After Jesus died, His friends put His body into a tomb. Later, some women came to put spices on His body. (#58, Mark 16:1)

11: A large stone was blocking the entrance to the tomb where Jesus's body was laid and the women weren't sure how they would move the stone. When they got to the tomb, they found that the stone was already moved out of the way. (Mark 16:3-4)

12: The tomb was empty! Jesus's body was gone because He was resurrected. Because He has been resurrected, now each person can also be resurrected after we die. (#59, #66, Mark 16:6)

Couple Time: A Question on Tempers

2011-04-21T05:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, so for the last couple weeks, I've tried to be super cutesy and point out the stuff that's really wonderful about marriage and things we can do to make our romantic bliss even more blissful. Because from the bottom of my heart, I'm thoroughly convinced there's a lot to be grateful for.

But I'm also human. A very PREGNANT variety of human. And very pregnant women are (generally) not cutesy, sweet, and romantic all the time. In fact, especially if we've got a lot going on above and beyond pregnancy, there's a good number of days that we're downright ornery. Hugely round and ornery. I feel like if I lose my footing at the top of a hill, I'll seriously ROLL without difficulty the ENTIRE way down. And that's never good for my self-esteem. At my OBGYN appointment last week, my doctor patted me on the back and said that all this was normal, but I don't remember myself being so miserable at the end of my first pregnancy. It's funny what the brain chooses to remember, right?

Anyway, moving on. There IS a point to this post.

As a big, round, ornery, miserably pregnant woman, I often find myself snapping at my poor husband. His sweet attempts to be romantic seem ridiculous. His normal obliviousness to little household chores leaves me steaming. His usual jokes annoy the tar out of me. In hindsight, I know this isn't healthy behavior for me to indulge in...but I feel like whacked-out hormones are getting the better of me...along with my aching back.

Through trial and error, I've stumbled across a few methods that help ease (what seems like) my chronically awful third-trimester temper:

-Reading my patriarchal blessing.
-Sitting down by myself and reading a few pages of my favorite novels...the relaxing ones that I only ever read for fun.
-Taking a long shower (not sure why this works)
-Praying to help me see why my husband is wonderful.
-Talking to my husband, telling him why I feel frustrated.
-Forcing myself to forget about it and going to bed.

But everyone's different, and I'm needing more ideas! Help me, ladies! What things do you do to help keep your temper in check and not nag about the silly little things? Because pregnant or not, there are just those times that we all need to step back and take a breather!

-Alyssa

Is the Easter Bunny coming to your house?

2011-04-20T06:47:00.000-07:00

Like Christmas, my family has always celebrated both the religious and the secular side of Easter. Our celebrations usually look something like this...

Saturday

First thing in the morning, the kids scour the house for our hidden baskets of goodies from the Easter Bunny. We had to look for those baskets as long as I can remember...even in college. Not quite as fun for us then, but I'm sure Mom was entertained.

Our baskets generally contained candy, a small toy or two, a few plastic eggs with or without treats inside, and always the notorious hollow chocolate bunny.

In the afternoon, our extended family would gather for a barbeque and easter egg hunt, when all the younger children are set loose in a yard or field to search for all the scattered candy and eggs.

Egg coloring may come later on Saturday or some day earlier in the week, depending on time schedules.

Sunday

We certainly want to keep the true meaning of this holiday important. With my really young children, I like to keep it simple and help them think more of Christ throughout the day. Beyond dressing extra nice for church that day, I am continuing the tradition of my parents and giving my daughters each their own picture of Christ to take to church with them.

They are small cards that can be purchased at Deseret Book for only 25 or 50 cents. I will write a small note on the back and give the pictures to my girls shortly before we go to church on Easter morning. I still have several of the pictures I was given for Easter while growing up, and I hope that my kids will also be able to appreciate the ones they receive.

But...

That's about all I've got! I'd like some ideas on how to make the holiday more meaningful both for myself and my children.

How do you celebrate Easter with your family?

How do you teach your children about the Savior and what Easter really means?

How do you make the holiday meaningful to yourself?

I will be posting a new Easter activity I've found that focuses on the story of Christ in His last week. We'll switch the Friday Funnies and the FHE post so you can have an extra day to prepare the activity if you'd like to do it on Easter rather than the day after. Look forward to that!

Toddler Learning Activity: Sewing

2011-04-19T05:00:00.000-07:00

Break out those egg cartons. It's Easter Time! And I know we'll all have mountains of those things lying around after eggs are all dyed and tucked into the refrigerator for Easter morning. But then, what do you do with all the cartons? Look no farther, my friends. We've got a lesson in toddler-friendly sewing!

THINGS YOU'LL NEED:

Egg carton

Exacto knife

Ribbon or twine

Paper clip

First, cut off the lid and little edge-piece. You want the bottom part, clutter-free.

Next, cut random holes in the bottom of the carton.

Tie one end of the ribbon to the carton the other end to a paper clip. I eyeballed the length to my toddler's arm-span. Too long will make it difficult to sew. Too short won't leave much ribbon to sew with.

TIP: Use a brightly colored ribbon so your toddler can see what he's doing. I'd actually recommend using a thicker piece of ribbon than what I've shown here, so the "needlework" is more noticeable to your little seamster/seamstress once the sewing project has begun.

And let me tell you, it was a riot...the low-key variety. After all, sewing takes a lot of concentration.

It was fun to see him start to get the concept of threading the ribbon through holes.

TIPS/SUGGESTIONS:

For younger toddlers who may have difficulty grasping the paperclip, try tying the ribbon to a baby spoon instead. Easier to grab. Same general concept.

Let your toddler be creative and experiment with this activity.

Once your toddler is done, set the sewing project aside to show Mommy or Daddy later on, and lavish on that praise!

-Alyssa

-Original idea from www.toddlertoddler.com

Living the Gospel in Latter-Days: Preparing for Sunday

2011-04-18T08:20:00.001-07:00

You're probably singing "Saturday is a special day, it's the day we get ready for Sunday..." That's what I think about when I think about preparing for the Sabbath. But today I want to talk about something different. I want to talk about preparing to participate in Gospel Doctrine and Relief Society.

I think that it's important that we prepare ourselves to participate in class on Sundays. I've taught both Gospel Doctrine and Relief Society before and I always felt that students who had studied the lesson had a lot to add (not that you can't comment if you haven't read it). As the student I also feel that I get more out of a lesson if I'm prepared. Many times I'll learn something in the week from reading and then the teacher will bring up different points I hadn't thought of. This way I get more from the lesson than is possible if I just go and sit and listen.

I know we are all busy mothers! So, how do we have the time to pare ourselves for lessons? My husband and I read the lesson for Gospel Doctrine together - that is part of our companion scripture study and fits easily into our study routine. As for the RS lesson - I read it on my own during my scripture study (which usually happens to be while I eat my breakfast or hold my baby :) The lessons are pretty short and it doesn't take too long to fit it into my study time.

I know that reading lessons in advance has enriched my learning on Sundays. I encourage you to read the lessons, even if you have a calling that prevents you from going to Gospel Doctrine and/or Relief Society.

So, tell us. How do you prepare for lessons on Sunday? Take the poll on the sidebar!!

~Tannie