Category Archives: Mommy Approved

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Let’s Get Cookin’ and Have a Barbecue!

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It’s that time of the year when people are firing up their grills and barbecuing everything from hotdogs to hamburgers to chicken to ribs. My daughter is no exception. For the past few days she’s been asking to play with her barbecue set she received last year for her birthday from one of our lovely friends. The other day we were in her playroom, and I had to quickly get our food from the oven for lunch while my daughter was still playing. Upon my return, she had a little picnic area and barbecue set up and said, “Welcome to the cookout, Mommy! I cooked you a hotdog, burger and corn too. Have a seat please. Do you want mustard and ketchup?” I was impressed with her arrangement and enjoyed our private cookout together.

This Little Tikes Cook and Grill set comes with hotdogs and hamburgers along with the buns, corn, fish, ketchup and mustard. It even has some small red and white picnic cloths and the utensils to prepare the food on the grill then eat it.  It is a wonderful toy, and I’m glad Quinn received it because it not only promotes imaginative play but encourages my three year old to share and think of others and to use her manners. As a bonus, she doesn’t have to endure the heat that comes along with barbecuing on a real grill with the sun beaming down like her mommy does.

All the best,

Tanya

Sunny Days Sweeping the Clouds Away!

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This past Friday, my daughter and I went to Sesame Place and had a wonderful time. It truly was a sunny day that swept the clouds away, as the Sesame Street song goes. Actually we already went a couple of weeks prior, but we have season passes, and I want to make sure we get our money’s worth. Of course, there were no complaints from my little girl who enjoyed getting on rides, watching shows and taking pictures with more of her Sesame Street friends, like Grover and Oscar the Grouch. She, of course, asked when we would come back to visit them again. It warms my heart to see her little face light up when she interacts with them and gives them big hugs. It’s as though they are all rock stars. It looks like visiting Sesame Place will be on our short list of things to do as the spring and summer get into full swing and now that I’m officially on break from teaching. They’ll probably know our faces and consider us neighbors of Sesame Place before the end of the season.

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Let’s Pop the Pig!

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“Mommy, I want Pop the Pig for my birthday, please,” my daughter requested. I never heard of pop the pig, nor had I seen any commercials, so I responded with the typical parent phrase, “We’ll see, honey.” After looking it up online, I discovered that it is quite the educational game. So I went back to Target and got it for her. The premise of the game is to feed the pig burgers and to press his chef hat corresponding with the number on the bottom of the burger until his belly pops causing his arms to fly up and his shirt to pop open.

The burgers have a number one, two, three or four on them and come in red, green, purple and yellow. This game engages a child to count, select colors and even strategize.  For instance, when my little girl and I were playing the game the other day, she she rolled the die, which is used to determine what color burger the player will select, and purposely wanted the color green because she knew that was the only set of burgers with the number four remaining. She exclaimed, “I need a number four, not a one, Mommy! The more times I press then I’ll win and pop the pig!” Something some parents will like about this game is that it is fast moving. It takes well under ten minutes to play it. Even though it is a quick moving game, however, that doesn’t stop Quinn from wanting to play it a few times a day since she got it for her birthday a couple of weeks ago. It’s exciting seeing her so interested in playing games and developing her critical thinking skills.

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: There’s No Place Like Home, Especially an Eco-Friendly One!

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“Okay, Mommy! I’ll see you later! I’m going to my house, and you can go to yours,” my daughter informs me. She then proceeded to go into her house in our front yard and closed her little door. My little girl loves playing outdoors and the idea of having a place to call her very own. So for her third birthday, just two weeks ago, my husband and I got her a little play house. Selecting the right house can be just as intense as looking on the market to purchase a real house. What features should it have? Should there be a sitting area? Should it have enough room for multiple children? What color would Quinn like it to be? Though I wanted the house to be a surprise, I thought it was only fair to have her be a part of the selection process since she would be the main one playing inside of the house.

I showed her a few. One had a sliding board attached. Another had a little bench, but the one she actually liked the most was the Little Tikes Go Green Eco-friendly Learning Playhouse. Now, of course, my three year old did not say, “I want the eco-friendly one,” but she did like that it came with a sink, has an outdoor and indoor light, collects rain water and has an area to plant a little garden. I love that it is teaching her the importance of protecting the environment, saving resources and energy. The sink recycles the water, there is a drain to catch all of the rain water that can be used for watering the flowers in her garden along with the flowers and plants in our yard. There are two areas for recycling, and the house has a green roof feature and solar power for the lights. This is the wave of the future, and I’m excited that my daughter is learning about it at a young age.

Last week, the weather was chilly, and it rained just about everyday, so Quinn did not get to fully enjoy her house, but her container did catch quite a bit of rain which was awesome because we were able to use it when we did the green roof this week. I think it’s fair to say that Quinn will be spending a lot of time in her house throughout the course of the spring and summer.  We’re both looking forward to seeing the grass grow on her green roof and flowers grow in her flower bed on the side of her house.

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Learning About Cash Can Register at a Young Age

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2016-03-07 10.19.53“That’ll be five dollars, Mommy!” my daughter informs me as she presses the number five on her toy cash register. My-soon-to-be three year old loves shopping at Target and really enjoys pretending to be a cashier at home. When she was about a year and a half, I purchased her a little “Let’ Go Shopping Cash Register” from Lakeshore Learning. It comes with milk, juice, little fruits and vegetables, an area for weighing the fruit and a little basket, an even a scanner to ring up items. There’s a few coins and a little toy credit card she swipes to open the register drawer.

Cash RegisterWhat I love about this cash register is that it has multiple settings. One is for basic play, one that allows the child to add, divide, subtract and multiply, another presents questions, asking, “How many milks do you have?” or “How many strawberries are you purchasing.” It is a great toy to enhance Quinn’s vocabulary and to help her further understand the importance of a dollar. I wish I had a toy cash register this advanced when I was younger. Watching my daughter make decisions while “play” shopping and counting her change is awesome because I believe one is never too young to understand the concept of money and all that it encompasses.

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Not Too Puzzling for My Little Girl Has It Under Her Spell

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As an educator and lifelong learner, I can’t help but want my daughter to have some educational toys that stimulate her cognitive development. What’s wonderful is when she has fun and embraces learning too. I stumbled upon the perfect puzzle that does just that at Five Below. It comes with picture puzzles that spell words. What makes this a great resources is that it not only promotes spelling but critical thinking by having just one letter on each puzzle piece with a portion of the picture. Though the box says for children four and up, my soon to be three year old has been enjoying doing these puzzles shortly after she turned two. Now, with little to no assistance from me, she is often able to complete the puzzle and will use the picture to determine what the word spells. I love observing her say, “C-a-r spells car! I spelled car Mommy!”

Some people may frown upon the idea of a child Quinn’s age learning to spell, but as long as she is interested I will encourage it and applaud her efforts as the proud mommy and teacher. I’m so grateful that my little girl will actually request to play with this puzzle and many others that are similar.

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Boy, Oh Boy! Race That Car Girl

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“Dolls are for little girls, not toy soldiers” “You can get a mountain bike; dirt bikes are for boys.” Many children, including me, have heard phrases like this growing up.”So called boy toys” were off limits based on my father’s rules; luckily, my mother was more open-minded. I vowed that when I became a parent my child would be able to play with whatever toy he or she wants, regardless of what gender it is typically identified with.

Since before my soon-to-be-three year old was walking and talking, she developed a love for cars. So for her first Christmas, one of the gifts she received was a Vtech Go Go Smart Wheels race car set. Two years later, and she still loves playing with it. The cars can talk and sing little songs. She has a race car, taxi, fire engine and police car. The set is almost as tall as she is, and there’s even a pit stop to pretend to wash and repair cars and a fun loop that the cars can circle.

Though playing with toys is supposed to be fun, it’s a shame that even in 2016 some little girls are not permitted to play with cars or even dump trucks because they are considered “boy” toys, and some boys are not permitted to play with dolls or in the play kitchen area because they are considered toys for girls. I am, however, glad that both my husband and I agree that Quinn should be able to have fun playing with different toys regardless of the “target gender.” I love watching her explore the world without the constriction of fitting into the societal gender box. She’s got plenty of time for that struggle as she gets older, but my hope is that she will be prepared as a result of us not saying, this toy is “only” for boys.  It also doesn’t hurt that I’ve always loved playing with cars too.

All the best,

Tanya

What Would We Do Without It Wednesdays: Momma Bird Watching Over Her Birdie Nest (Video Chats)

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My Little Girl Waving at Me Through Our Nest Cam

Just this past Monday, I posted a blog entry about missing  my little girl since I’ll be away for many days this week. I didn’t get to kiss her goodnight on Monday and will be away for the next three days. I’ll miss both her and my husband, but it’s great to know that with today’s technology they’re only a Skype, FaceTime or Nest visit away. On Monday, when the event I attended was ending, I quickly checked in on my little girl through our Nest Camera (formally called drop cam), which has been a wonderful resource since Quinn was a little baby, and was able to say goodnight to her from afar. Though she could only hear my voice, I could see her little face light up as she waved goodnight to me with her Christmas pajamas on that she requested her dad let her wear.

This evening, we did a test run with Skype to ensure that it works when I’m away which makes me feel less guilty being away from her and eager to see her face and hear her voice when she’s on my mind. While one can point to the negatives associated with technology and its advancements, I am extremely grateful to be able to connect with my daughter and to see her smiling face. What would we do with out!?

All the best,

Tanya

Terrific Toy Tuesday: Let’s Shape Up and Have a Ball!

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Quinn Getting Ready to Insert Her Shapes into the Shape O Ball

My grandmother ran a daycare in her home, and when I was younger I’d come over often and play with the other children and toys too.  One toy I enjoyed playing with was a red and blue ball with yellow handles on the sides and different yellow shapes. I would challenge myself  and other kids to see who could get all of the shapes inside the ball the fastest, similar to the game “Perfection.”

When my daughter was not quite a year, we were at a “Home Show,” and low and behold, I saw that very ball I played with when I was younger at a Tupperware station. I had to purchase it for  Quinn. Initially, she would chew on the shapes or play around with the ball, but just about two years later, she will announce, “This is a square!” or “Here’s the triangle!” before inserting it into the ball. What really impresses me is that she will count the sides too. “The Octagon has one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight sides!” Then there’s times when she just wants to roll the ball back and forth, then empty the shapes and start naming them and counting the sides all over again.

Even though my little girl loves toys with all of the “bells and whistles,” it’s nice to know that she enjoys a basic toy from my childhood which is helping with her cognitive development.

All the best,

Tanya

PS. This toy is available on Amazon too.

Terrific Toy Tuesday: First You Crawl, Then Walk, Then Run, Then Jump & Then Skate!

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Before you learn to walk, you have to crawl. After walking, comes running and jumping. Now that spring is finally here, my little girl and I can have some outdoor fun with running, jumping, skipping and skating too! One of my favorite activities when I was younger was skating, and now my soon-to-be-three year old is following in my footsteps, or shall I say “skate steps?” What’s interesting is that when I polled my students, many of them abashedly confessed that they don’t know how to skate or have only been once. Quinn loves putting on her unicorn “Radskullz” unicorn helmet, knee guards and Minnie Mouse glitter roller skates to practice around the house. The real test, in the weeks to come, will be going outside. While I’m happy that she loves “toys” that get her up and moving, I have a feeling that I’ll be more nervous than she is.

All the best,

Tanya