Category Archives: Baby Musings

A Chip Out the Big Bowl: Toddlers, Parties and Healthy Foods Don’t Mix!

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2015-03-21 19.39.07Getting a toddler to eat healthy foods is so tricky, especially when attending a party. Yesterday, my family attended my aunt’s 60th birthday celebration dinner, and my daughter could not resist reaching for a cupcake and then reaching for the bowl of chips, pretzels or any other goodies on the table. What’s interesting is that she has only had cake three times in her 22 months of life, once for her birthday, once at a birthday party and then for my birthday. Also, she’s only had veggie chips but somehow knew that she’d like the less healthier Herr’s original option. How is it that children naturally have not just a sweet tooth but a hankering for junk food? Yes, I’m one of those, “It’s got to be healthy; are there any nutrients!” or “It’s got to be organic” moms, and it is getting tougher and tougher to keep Quinn on board. My family thought it was absolutely hilarious when Quinn just kept sneakily coming back to the table to grab chips and pretzels or even reach for another cupcake. This was one battle I just was not going to win. I’m just hoping she’ll still be willing to eat her veggie chips now that she’s gotten a taste of what she probably considers to be the good stuff!

All the best,

Tanya

PS. My sister suggested that I write about this incident on my blog as she, my cousins, aunts and uncles laughed as Quinn went back for chip after chip, so here it is!

Toddler Adventures: Casting a Fun Shadow

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Quinn's Swing Shadow

Quinn’s Pointing to the Tree Shadow

There are so many wonderful experiences involved with having a toddler. One of them is the ability to experience somewhat of a second childhood through them . As adults, we tend to get so caught up in the “important” tasks of life and just don’t have time to truly appreciate our surroundings or take  the daily occurrences of life for granted. Thankfully, my little girl slows me down, helps me to reminisce and take pleasure in those childhood moments of wonderment. Since she was about sixteen months or so, Quinn has become fascinated with her shadow. Her face will light up as she points to it and says, “Shadow!.” She’ll jump around, giggle and run to see if it is moving with her. Last week, we had a lovely March day, and she was able to go outside and get in the swing. She then noticed her shadow was much larger than usual and that the tree had a shadow too. My little girl became so excited, pointed to it saying, “Tree shadow!” I just had to take her picture as I recalled how I loved looking at my shadow and the shadows of other objects to see how big or small they would get throughout the course of the day. I can’t wait to do shadow puppets and animals with her.  Even one of my favorite poems that I teach in my Children’s Literature class is called “My Shadow” by Robert Louis Stevenson. I hope it will be one of hers too. Here’s the poem below:

My Shadow

Robert Louis Stevenson, 1850 – 1894
I have a little shadow that goes in and out with me,
And what can be the use of him is more than I can see.
He is very, very like me from the heels up to the head;
And I see him jump before me, when I jump into my bed.
The funniest thing about him is the way he likes to grow—
Not at all like proper children, which is always very slow;
For he sometimes shoots up taller like an india-rubber ball,
And he sometimes gets so little that there’s none of him at all.
He hasn’t got a notion of how children ought to play,
And can only make a fool of me in every sort of way.
He stays so close beside me, he’s a coward you can see;
I’d think shame to stick to nursie as that shadow sticks to me!
One morning, very early, before the sun was up,
I rose and found the shining dew on every buttercup;
But my lazy little shadow, like an arrant sleepy-head,
Had stayed at home behind me and was fast asleep in bed.

Source: The Golden Book of Poetry (1947)

All the best,

Tanya

My Little Girl Can Count!

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2015-02-09 09.57.272015-02-09 09.56.45With just a little under two more months to go before my little girl is two, she’s been showing more and more of an interest in numbers. A few months ago, I was blown away with Quinn’s ability to recognize numbers one through ten. Lately, she has been not just reciting her numbers but using her fingers which is an indication that she is already beginning to grasp the concept of counting. Since Quinn is being educated at home, I’ve been using countless resources to help with her intellectual development. Out of the many resources, one that my daughter really loves is the items in a can that I purchased from Amazon: Learning Resources One to Ten Counting Cans.

At the start of each week, she knows we will be opening up a new can and will jump up and down with excitement as I grab it from the shelf. Before she opens the can, she’ll look at the number on the can and shout it out. Then she can barely contain herself as she pops open the lid and empties out the contents. Usually, she will observe me as I count and will repeat after me, but a few days ago she starting counting the pineapples, which look so realistic, all by herself (Of course when I began to film her, she got camera shy). I highly recommend this resource not just for parents of stay-at-home children but for any parent looking for a fun and engaging way to help their toddler learn numbers and how to count.

All the best,

Tanya

50 Shades: The Complexities of Learning Colors Toddler Style 

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Quinn Pointing at the Black Bear

Quinn Pointing at the Black Bear

In life, everything is not black and white; there are different shades of gray. Who hasn’t heard that cliche statement or some variation of it? Even a toddler who is eager to learn and explore her surroundings quickly becomes aware of what this means, even is she cannot articulate it, when familiarizing herself with the concept of colors. My little girl, who will be 22 months in two days, does not go day care but has daily number, alphabet, color and critical thinking lessons taught by her father or me, which she enjoys. While learning her numbers and even counting to ten and knowing all of her letters and some shapes too are some skills she mastered months ago, the colors, those countless shades of colors, are taking a bit longer.

Initially, I was concerned that she only recognized about four colors consistently, the primary colors (red, yellow and blue) and purple (we’ve been working a lot with purple). Then it occurred to me (and after doing a little research) that most children do not master the basic colors until around age three. Also, the intricacies involving the many shades of colors can be quite overwhelming. While I try to use items that are “true or basic colors,” we come across so many different shades of the same color in our day to day activities that make learning colors one convoluted task. Why must there be so many shades of the same color? Yes, this comes in handy when picking that “perfect” shade of paint for a living space. But try explaining to a toddler that blue is not just blue. There is light blue, sky blue, royal blue, navy blue, etc. What about those colors that are a cross between two? My daughter has a bath time toy that is a fuchsia shade, which is a cross between purple and pink. How can a toddler, let alone an adult, grasp the concept of colors when there are so many different shades and mixtures?

Presently, we do a color of the week. Quinn and I will wear the color throughout the course of the week. We will have a treasure hunt and find objects around the house in that particular color and sing silly songs about the color. Some of the activities will involve making and playing with play dough in the color of the week and coloring pictures with the color of the week.

While I drive my self nuts trying to make this learning process fun and less confusing for my daughter, I find that I just might be making it more overwhelming than it needs to be for me. Then I must remind myself that a benefit my daughter has is that her brain is absorbing far more and building many more new connections than my adult brain is today. She’ll master those many shades of colors in no time! If you have any suggestions or activities that have helped your child learn colors, please feel free to share.

All the best,

Tanya

 

I’m a Mommyholic: Help Me Help My Toddler

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Quinn feeding herself with no help from Mommy

Quinn feeding herself with no help from Mommy

Hello, my name is Tanya, and I am a mommyholic. With each passing day, more of my world revolves around my adventurous and inquisitive 21 month old little girl, and as each day passes, I wonder if I am doing what is in the best interest of my daughter and her development.  For the past few months, I have been grappling with my latest transgression: overly helping my little girl, who expresses her independence in countless ways, do tasks without giving her a chance to show me what she may already be capable of doing. Of course, all children are not the same, but I am wondering how most parents are able to take a step back and let their young toddlers experiment, learn, maybe even be unsuccessful at a task but try again.

For instance, when Quinn is doing a puzzle, I cannot resist wanting to direct her or even turn a piece around or point out where it goes. Now, she wants to feed herself all the time with a fork or spoon, which is great, but there are instances when she gets nothing on the fork or spoon, and I have the urge to help her, which she is not always happy about. Sometimes, she’ll give me the “let me do it myself mommy!” look, and I feel so bad that I did not give her enough time to try on her own.

Maybe it is that I teach professionally, and it is my natural inclination to help. Perhaps I just do not like seeing the frustration on my daughter’s face if she cannot figure something out. Something new I’ve been doing is actually counting in my head to make sure I am giving her adequate time and even asking her if she needs help. This works sometimes, but she’s at that age where she will sometimes ask for help but not always. How do I know when she needs my help or needs me to back off? I have a feeling that this is a question that will resurface over and over throughout Quinn’s childhood and even into adulthood. If you have any techniques, please feel free to share.

All the best,

Tanya

Blue is the New Red: Move Over Elmo! It’s Super Grover to the Rescue!

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2014-12-25 14.58.52

Quinn with Her Best Friend Grover

Who’s red, furry and loves you? Elmo, that’s who! What toddler or preschooler who has watched or is familiar with Sesame Street does not know who Elmo is? When I was a little girl, Elmo was not a member of Sesame Street. My favorite characters were Big Bird, Ernie and Bert, Cookie Monster and Oscar the Grouch. Now, most of these characters have been pushed aside while Elmo has stolen the limelight. Since my little girl started watching Sesame Street and even visited Sesame Place a few times, I figured I’d have to face reality; my little girl would follow the masses and prefer Elmo too.

Actually, this is not the case at all. When it is time for a nap or to go to sleep, Quinn will ask for Grover instead of Elmo. Even when we play with the plush Sesame Street characters, she prefers Grover or Cookie Monster. Though she will happily play with Elmo, if Grover is available, she will immediately put Elmo down to grab Grover. Of course, she does not know that Elmo is typically the favorite of most young children, but it puts a smile on my face that she actually prefers the characters who are not as popular. Quinn has some time before she is in grade school; nevertheless, I hope this is an indication of how she will make friends. Instead of automatically wanting to befriend who’s most popular, be friends with those whom she genuinely likes and has built a bond with.

All the best,

Tanya

Mommy’s Little Snow Angel

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It’s that time of the year again: snow, snow and more snow! As a child, I loved the snow: building snowmen, going sledding, making snow angels, having snowball fights…you name it! While most adults complain about the snow and how much of a nuisance it can be, which I completely understand, I am truly looking forward to having fun with my little one in the snow. This past week, we got some snow, and my 20 month old just kept saying, “Snow, snow!” with a big smile on her face. We went outside the shovel the path, and she was eager to be my helper with a shovel that was taller than she is. Initially, she kept taking off her mittens, and I kept putting them back on to keep her hands warm, then it occurred to me that she had never touched snow before, and she probably just wanted the experience. Her little face lit up as she sifted the snow through her fingers yelling out, “Snow!” Though it was cold that day, It truly warmed my heart to know that my little snow angel still has so many more “first moments” to experience.

All the best,

Tanya

Ready for Your Close-up Baby?

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Quinn Ready for Her Close-up

Quinn Ready for Her Close-up

There is a possibility that my 20 month old little girl has had more photos taken of her than the average person does in a lifetime. Yes, I am guilty of being one of those gushing parents who doesn’t want to miss a moment and refuses to let any chance for a photo opportunity pass them by. Actually, for the first year of Quinn’s life, she had an average of five pictures taken a day just to have a record of how quickly she was growing. Within the past couple of months, Quinn has been taking selfies and has become intrigued by the camera. She now likes posing for pictures and will eagerly say, “Cheese!” On some occasions, she will get as close up on the camera as possible to either smile or grab the lens as if she is saying, “No more pictures please!” Is there such a thing as taking too many pictures of the precious little girl you love so much who is constantly growing? I know some people say they do not waste their time taking pictures because they are too busy enjoying the moments, but she’s growing up so quickly, and I just want to capture those moments and enjoy having photos to accompany those fleeting moments which will one day be distant memories.

All the best,

Tanya

“Falling” in Love with My Baby

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Quinn Having Fun in the Leaves

Quinn Having Fun in the Leaves

When I was younger, I loved jumping in the leaves, taking in the beautiful reds, yellows and oranges, listening to the loud crunches as I stumped my feet. Though my fun has now shifted to work as I rake up piles of leaves that surround my home, I have managed to fall in love with autumn all over again through my little girl. Initially, she was seated in her trike, but overtime, she made it very clear that she wanted to get out and enjoy nature. As soon I got her out of her trike, she headed for the leaves and could not resist jumping in them and throwing the leaves everywhere. She was absolutely tickled as she tossed the leaves all around her, as was I.  In that moment, I was not thinking about how she was slowing down my progress with getting all of the leaves to their designated area for the leaf collection or the dirt and other germs that might have been in those leaves. I just smiled and thought about how carefree she is and how grateful I am to have her in my life. Quinn continues to leave me in awe, and I am looking forward to more simple yet memorable moments in the near future. Here’s a brief video below that really captures the fun Quinn was having. If only we all could have this much fun playing in the leaves.

All the best,

Tanya

Not Too Little for Chores Baby!

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Quinn ready to do some sweeping

Quinn ready to do some sweeping

Clothing yanked from drawers and tossed any and everywhere by a giddy little toddler. Food mashed and tossed onto the floor when she decides she’s full or just doesn’t like the menu. She takes pleasure in balling up, ripping or drawing on any and all papers she comes across. Sometimes I think Quinn believes it is her job to add to the list of chores her daddy and I have to do to keep our home orderly and clean. When we straighten up, my little girl laughs hysterically as she pulls the pillows off of the sofa that we just neatly placed. Though it can be a challenge at times, her laughter still puts a smile on my face.

Interestingly, a few months ago while I was sweeping, Quinn showed an interest and kept wanting to grab the broom or dust pan. She actually wanted to sweep! At that moment, I wondered, “Is she too young to have a basic chore or two?” For fun, I did purchase my little 17 month old her very own broom and dust pan (actually when she was 15 months). Though she still prefers to use mine, she will eagerly grab her broom to “help” me sweep the floor. Presently, putting away her toys or helping me put away her clothes after she has decided to toss them out of the drawers with wild laughter or closing the door after I have loaded the laundry are some of her chores. I want to not only teach Quinn how to be responsible, but I want her to not dread chores but look at them as a way to bring us closer together as a family. What chores do you have your little toddler doing? Is 17 months too young?

All the best,

Tanya