Picture Book for Baby

Tomorrow I am taking my 8 month old baby to Arkansas.  Between the drives to and from airports, a lay over in Texas, and the two flights, it's going to be at least 8 hours of travel time.

I've got to admit, I'm a tiny bit terrified.

See, my baby has just gotten to the point where she is extremely proficient at crawling and has realized that she can go where ever she wants if she climbs enough.  I've been spending the last few days searching all over for something to keep her from turning the plane into a jungle-gym (or to keep her from turning into a banshee when she realizes that we won't let her!)

My first idea was to get her a couple of new little toys that we can get out during all our traveling, so we bought a couple of things to keep in my diaper bag, but I'm just not sure that will last long enough.  Then, yesterday I noticed that my daughter loves turning pages.  She has a hard time with board books because they stick and she has a hard time getting the pages apart with her little fingers most of the time.  We have given her (sacrificed) a couple of regular paper books to let her "read" and she likes catalogs, but they always end up thrashed in a matter of minutes.  What I noticed yesterday, was that she spent almost 30 minutes flipping through the pages of our family scrapbook (it probably would have been more if I hadn't gotten tired of trying to rescue all my pictures!).  So, the brilliant idea struck me, why not make her own "scrapbook"?  So that is how this project was born.

This is great for babies who are working on their fine motor skills, also for younger babies who just want to look at pretty pictures while you turn the pages.  If you have an older child, this is a great creative process for them to be a part of as they make their very own picture book!

What you'll need:

• A cheap binder and sheet protectors

OR

•  A small photo book, this is great for a more travel friendly version (you can sometimes get these at the dollar store)
• Card stock (you can use white, or different colors for some variety)
• A couple of magazines, ads, or other pictures. I like to use family oriented magazines, since they have the most kid friendly pictures, but you can find interesting things everywhere!
• Scissors
• double sided tape or a glue stick

How to assemble:

• First step, go through your magazines and ads and pull out all the pictures you want.  If you have an older child they can choose their own pictures and even help cut them out (if you trust them with scissors!).
• Next, you can trim all the pictures down so they look nicer (or if your child is making her own, let her cut the pictures however she wants!)
• Once I have all my pictures cut out (I honestly just find any and all pictures that look interesting) I like to arrange them all on my pages before I start securing them with glue or tape, but that's just my creative process ;)
• Use your double sided tape or glue stick to fix your pictures to the pages to make some awesome collages!
• When your pages are done, simply slip them into the sheet protectors and assemble your binder!
• Just an extra step, if you'd like, you can either print a page with your child's name on it (you can get pretty fancy with this), or even just make a special collage to go right on the front!

Here are some of my incredibly creative and exciting pages:

Enjoy!!!

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Los Pollitos (The Little Chicks)

Let's face it, there are really only so many times you can sing "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider" and "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" before mommy gets bored...  So today we're going to broaden your lullaby repertoire! This song is just so very cute; it's in Spanish, so it may be a little bit of a challenge at first, but I know you're up for it!!


This video has both the lyrics in Spanish and also the English translation too :)  Listen a few times and try singing along!

 

Los Pollitos

Los pollitos dicen "pío, pío, pío",

(The baby chicks say "peep, peep, peep")

cuando tienen hambre,

(when they are hungry)

cuando tienen frío.

(when they are cold)

La gallina busca

(The mother hen looks)

el maíz y el trigo,

(for wheat and corn,)

les da la comida,

(she gives them food,)

y les presta abrigo.

(and she gives them shelter)

Bajo sus dos alas

(Under her two wings)

acurrucaditos

(tucked in and snuggled tight)

hasta el otro día

(until the next day)

duermen los pollitos.

(they sleep all through the night.)

(These lyrics are slightly different from the version in the video, but this is the version that I like the best)

Try it out with your little one, you could even have your child make pictures or create your own hand motions to go with the song! 

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Pioneer Taffy

Pioneer Day is tomorrow!! Here is a tasty pioneer treat that you can make with your little ones!

Pioneer Taffy  

www.jamiecooksitup.blogspot.com
Yield: 12 pieces
Time: 40 min. cooking + 10 min. cooling + 10 minutes pulling
Recipe from The Lion House Cookbook

2 C sugar
1 1/2 C water
1 C white corn syrup
1 t salt
2 t glycerin (found at the pharmacy)
1 t vanilla
2 T butter

1. Place all ingredients but the vanilla and butter into a heavy sauce pan. You can find glycerin at most pharmacies. It is a very important ingredient. The taffy will not turn out well with out it.
2. Bring your taffy to a boil over medium high heat. Let it keep on a boiling until your candy thermometer reaches 258 degrees. This should take about 35-40 minutes.
3. Check the temperature of the taffy by dipping a spoon into the pan and then running cold water from the tap over the top of it. See how the taffy is kind of stiff looking?  That means it is ready to go. If you cook it much past this stage you it will be really hard when you pull it. If you under cook it...you may have a sticky mess. This water trick really helps. However, you can rely on your candy thermometer as well.
4. When your taffy is cooked take it off the heat and pour in your vanilla.
5. Add your butter to the pot and give the bubbling beauty a good round of stirring. Stir until the butter is all melted.
6. Butter a large cookie sheet.
7. Pour the taffy onto the sheet.
8. Let the taffy cool for about 5 minutes, or until it is cool enough to handle. The edges will start to set up a bit faster than the middle.
9. Pinch the taffy into 12 separate pieces.
10. When the taffy is cool enough to pick up, hand out a piece to each lucky participant. Then you can start to pull the taffy. The trick is the stretch it out......
.....and then fold it back together. Stretch and fold, stretch and fold.....
......until your taffy turns a beautiful white color. Or if some of your pullers are 3 years old, until they get tired of pulling. It still tastes mighty good, even if you don't pull it long enough for it to turn white.
11. Stretch the taffy into a long rope shape and set on a piece of wax paper. You can break the taffy into pieces by holding it in the palm of your hand and tapping it with the handle of a butter knife.

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Pioneer Day Events!!

Get out your bonnets and cowboy hats, it's time to celebrate Utah's pioneer heritage!  There are lots of activities around the state to keep your family busy and get you into the pioneer spirit!!

 

Spanish Fork Fiesta Days
July
Spanish Fork City
There are celebrations all during the month of July for Spanish Fork's Fiesta Days!  On July 24th there will be a craft fair, parade, carnival, outdoor quilt show, rodeo, entertainment, and fireworks at 10:15 pm!  There is so much going on, you're sure to find something that tickles your fancy!  For more information on events, times, and locations, click HERE!

Mapleton Pioneer Days
July 24
Mapleton City Park
35 East Maple Street, Mapleton
This is a free event. There will be local entertainment (including poets, and music and singing), an awesome firework show (it's supposed to be their biggest ever!), games, and a parade!  If you're near Mapleton, come check it out!! Click HERE for more info!

Provo Pioneer Day Extravaganza
July 24 from 9am to 2pm
North Park 
500 North 500 West, Provo
Come check out the museum and see real pioneer buildings! On top of that, there will be craft and food vendors, an antique car show, live entertainment, a Native American village, and mountain man encampment.  Come see Native American dancing and go inside a real tipi.  There will be tons of free games and crafts for the kiddos! If you haven't come to this event before, you're missing out, don't miss it this year! Click HERE for more info!

Days of 47 KSL Parade
July 24 at 9am
Salt Lake City, Route starts at South Temple and State Street running east to 200 East, turns south to 900 South, then turns east to Liberty Park at 600 East
Who doesn't love to celebrate with a parade?  Come see the one of the largest, oldest parades in the USA!  There will be awesome floats, bands, clowns, horses, and more, all to celebrate our state holiday.  Lots of people camp out on the streets the night before to get a good seat for the parade, but if you don't want to venture out in the crowds, you can snuggle up on your couch at home and watch it on KSL!  This is a great way to start your Pioneer Day celebrations!  Click HERE for the details!


Have a happy Pioneer Day with your kiddos!!

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Speech Development

Learning to talk is a difficult process! There are a lot of sounds that are a challenge to figure out, and sometimes we really don't give our kids credit for the hard work they are doing. As parents we are very eager for our children to speak well and clearly, and it makes us anxious when it takes too long for them to learn new sounds. Does your 4 year old say "pot" instead of "spot"?  Are you worried about his speech development?  Well here is a nice chart that can help you know what's normal, and when to worry!

Speech Sound Developmental Norms

Below is a chart reflecting speech sound acquisition. The upper range indicates when 90% of children have learned that sound. For example, 90% of children have acquired the “n” sound by the time they are 4 years old; 90% of children have learned the “s” sound by the time they are 7 years old.

2 years	3 years	4 years	5 years	6 years	7 years	8 years
p
m
w
n
	b
	k
	g
	t
	d
	ng
	f
		r
		l
		s
		ch
		sh
		z
			j
			v
				th (thumb)
				th (that)
				zh (measure)

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One Smart Baby!

There is a lot of pressure on parents to "make" their babies smarter; there are infomercials, toy aisles, and internet sites all devoted to selling us expensive products to help stimulate baby's brain!  Many parents worry that they aren't doing enough for their little one because they can't afford to buy many fancy toys or DVDs, or even just because they don't know any structured learning activities to do with baby.  

Well, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: you can help your child's development and learning without buying a thing!  The loving interactions you're probably already having with your child are helping him learn and grow day by day!  So, what exactly should you be doing to encourage your baby to be a smarty-pants?  Here are a few things to try throwing into your daily routine:

• Baby Talk.  Forget the fancy DVDs and just talk to your baby (in fact, this is probably better for baby anyway)!  This is one a lot of people have a hard time with, especially in the beginning when baby doesn't really respond, but talking to your baby is so important to his cognitive and language development... and on the plus side, it's free!  Try describing the things around your baby, tell him about the colors, shapes, and textures in the room.  When you do an activity like diaper changing or bath time, talk to baby about what's happening. Recite nursery rhymes and poems.  If you get tired of that, try thinking out loud and just say whatever pops into your head!  If you need to read something (anything from textbooks to cereal boxes), read out loud to your baby.  He loves to hear your voice, and it will help him learn about language!  It takes a while, but eventually you'll get the hang of it, and you'll be so good at "talking to yourself" that people will be giving you funny looks in the grocery store ;) 
•  Go for a Walk.  Put baby in the stroller or carrier and head outside.  There are new and exciting things to see, hear, touch, and explore, and you can burn a few calories while you're at it!  The movement and sights are stimulating, it gives you more things to talk about to your child, and the fresh air and exercise are good for you too.
• Sing-a-long. Ever want to be a Broadway star? Well here's your chance!  Or maybe you can't stay on key to save your life, and that's perfect too! Lucky for you, your baby won't judge ;)  Sing your favorite children's songs and nursery rhymes (Itsy-Bitsy Spider, Mary had a Little Lamb), or just sing a long with your favorite songs on the radio, either way your baby will love it.
• Imitation. Did you know that even your newborn can imitate you?  If baby sticks his tongue out, stick your tongue out too, copy the sounds that your baby is making, and make crazy faces, before you know it your baby will be copying you too!
• Snuggles and Massages.  Human beings in general need physical touch, but for babies especially, touch is an important way that they experience the world around them, and how they bond with their caregivers!   Infant massage is great for your baby, and there are a lot of books and websites to show you how to do it.  Even if you just improvise and gently rub your baby's back, it can be helpful to have that touch.  You can also designate some skin to skin snuggle time with baby, especially in the first couple of months.  Just hold and snuggle that cute little baby every change chance you get!
• Read a book.  Your baby may only be a month old, but even from the very beginning you can both still appreciate reading together.  It's great for your baby to be held close, hear your voice, and see the pictures.  Lots of helpful stimulation in one easy activity!  In the beginning, read what interests you, and as baby gets older, you can read books that have lots colors and pictures (and are made for chewing!).  No matter how old your baby is, reading is a great way to help him learn and grow!

Info taken from: Heading Home With Your Newborn, 2nd Edition (Copyright © 2010 American Academy of Pediatrics) 

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*~4th of July~*

This week we are celebrating the birth of our country!  Here are some cute crafts and activities you can try with your little one to get into the patriotic spirit of the holiday! 

Painter's Tape American Flag

What you'll need:

White construction paper

Painters tape (the blue tape)

Red paint

Paint brush

Blue construction paper square

4th if July star confetti or star stickers

Directions:

Place painters tape strips horizontally on the construction paper (these will be your white stripes when you remove them!). Squirt the red paint down the center and let your little one paint the paper red.  Make sure your child is wearing an old T-shirt or something to cover their clothes, this can be a messy project!!  Let the paint dry completely and then you can remove the tape to reveal your flag's red and white stripes!

While you're waiting for the paint to dry, have your child use a glue stick to put the confetti on the blue square, or place his stickers.  After everything is dry and you take off the painters tape, let your child glue the blue square onto the flag, and as soon as it dries, your flag is done!

Red, White, and Blue Sensory Bin 

Sensory bins are a great way to help your child's development, and this one has a very patriotic theme!

What you'll need:

Rice (how ever much you need to fill your chosen bin)
Food coloring

4th of July Confetti/sequins
Other patriotic themed items
Plastic storage bin 
Ziploc Baggies

Directions: 
Divide your rice equally into three different ziploc baggies.  Put blue food coloring in one, red in another, and in the third one, leave it white but add your confetti.  Mix and knead the bags thoroughly to get the color well blended!  After your rice is nice and colorful, spread it out on some wax paper to dry.  Once it is all dry, mix it all in your plastic bin.  If you have any other 4th of July themed objects (age appropriate, of course!) that you want to add, throw them in too.  Let you child play and explore this new texture!

Patriotic Play-dough!

 

What you'll need:
1 cup water
1 cup salt
1 cup flour
1 TBSP oil
Food coloring (you can also use sugar free jell-o for color!)
Glitter (optional)

Directions:
Stir all the ingredients until smooth, then cook on medium heat until it pulls away from the
pan. Let the dough cool down a little, then knead it 'til it's smooth!  You can add glitter to your plain "white" dough after cooking to make it a little more exciting! 
  

Thanks to No Time for Flash Cards for the awesome ideas, they have great activities to help little ones learn and play!  Have a fun 4th of July!!!

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Take a Tour with Baby :)

Just like adults, babies can get bored of their surroundings.  You don't always like sitting in the same place all the time, doing the same things, and looking at the same things, and neither does baby!  So if baby seems fussy and the usual suspects aren't the culprit, try giving baby a change of scenery!

 

You can try giving baby a new point of view by holding her at your eye level and taking a tour of the house; just being up off the floor can give baby a whole new perspective on rooms she sees on a regular basis!  Try also visiting rooms you don't spend a lot of time in.  Take baby in the bathroom and let her touch the bath towels and look at herself in the mirror.  Take your baby into the kitchen and let her run her hands under warm and cold water (make sure it's not hot first!) and let baby touch cold things from the refrigerator.  Let her touch books on shelves, light switches, and wall hangings (ones that aren't going to fall and hurt her!).  Go outside and try finding some new (safe) textures for baby to touch and explore.  Grass can be fun and new for little toes and fingers!  Every time you touch or see something new, be sure to tell baby all about it!  When she touches something, tell her the name, describe what she's feeling with words like "soft", or "cold".  When baby looks at objects, name them, and describe what she's seeing with words like "big" or "red".

Have fun exploring and re-discovering your home through your little-one's eyes!!

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Baby Teeth: Dental Care for Little Ones

Parents sometimes think that baby teeth aren't that important (they're just going to fall out anyway, right?), but cavities and tooth decay in baby teeth can have negative affects on permanent teeth and cause your child future problems if not taken care of!

As soon as those cute little teeth come in it's time to start your child's oral hygiene routine!  At first, you can simply use a soft cloth or gauze to (very gently!) wipe off baby's teeth after eating or a couple of times a day.  Also, don't put your baby or child to be with a bottle or sippy cup of milk, juice, or formula.  The sugars in these drinks can cause tooth decay when they sit on your baby's teeth!  Try to feed your baby before bedtime and wipe down or brush her teeth before she goes to sleep.  Breastfeeding baby before bed is, however, okay.

As your child gets older, use a soft bristled tooth brush to clean her teeth a couple of times a day.  Fluoride can be toxic and cause spots on teeth in large amounts, so use a tooth paste that is safe for children, and help your child learn not to swallow the tooth paste.  Until your child is about 3 years old she needs help to clean her teeth well, and then you should still keep an eye on her tooth brushing, to make sure she's getting those teeth nice and clean!  You can try letting your child brush all by herself in the morning, and then have mom or dad do it before bed. If your child tends to focus on the front teeth and misses all the rest, you can try playing "find the hidden teeth!" to get her to clean all her teeth.  You can use "disclosing tablets", which, when chewed show color on any plaque that is left behind after brushing.  This can be a fun way to help your child understand why she needs to brush and get everywhere!

As soon as your child's teeth begin to touch, it's time to start flossing!  Using plastic flossing tools can be very helpful when flossing with a little one.

No matter what, you may run into resistance when it comes to teeth brushing, but starting at a young age can help a lot!  Let your child watch you, your partner, or an older child brushing teeth even before baby has teeth.  Babies are very interested in everything you do, so let them see you modelling the behaviors you want them to have!



Info taken from: http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/tc/basic-dental-care-infants-and-children

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Texture Crawl

Looking for something new and fun to do with baby? Sometimes mommy needs a change (let's face it, there's only so much peek-a-boo, and "so big" you can handle in one day!), so here's a fun, super easy activity you can do with baby!!

What you'll need: 

Safe materials with interesting textures, such as a rubber floor mat, carpet samples, silk scarves, chenille rug, bubble wrap, a piece of corduroy, velvet, satin, sticky side of a piece of contact paper, and of course, your baby!

Directions:

Scatter the different materials across the floor and let your baby crawl across them.  Get on the floor with baby and as he moves from one to another, talk to him about what he's feeling.  Use words like "cool", "smooth", "bumpy", or "soft" to describe the different textures.  If you have pre-crawler you can do some tummy time and baby can feel the interesting textures on his tummy, hands and legs, just be sure to never leave baby alone with anything that could hurt him!  You can also help baby to feel the objects with his hands, feet, and face.  If your baby can stand, you can put different objects on a table or couch and let baby feel the textures from that angle. 

Just have fun helping your baby to explore his world!

Read more on FamilyEducation: http://fun.familyeducation.com/games/early-learning/35633.html#ixzz1yVPUSZnp

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Easy or Difficult: Baby Temperaments

Is your baby mellow? Does he fall asleep easily and stay asleep with out much trouble?  Or is he active, driven, and does he wake himself up all the time?

Maybe it should make perfect sense, but parents are often surprised to discover that their brand new little one has a very unique personality, starting even before they are born!  Your baby is an individual right from the start, even your children will vary baby to baby!

Some infants are very mild and quiet, and some are loud and constantly needing attention and stimulation.  Some babies are cuddly and some prefer their space.  If your baby has been around very long, you have probably already observed your baby's personality, and you are on a journey to discover more and more of this new, adorable little person!

If your baby has an "easy" temperament, it's obviously going to be easier and feel more rewarding to be a parent to him.  These babies are generally more even tempered, easier to get on a schedule, and can often sooth themselves well.  Sometimes parents feel like easy babies don't need them.  These babies are often a lot less demanding, and because of that parents tend to forget that they need stimulation too!  These babies still need parental affection and attention, even if they don't ask for it constantly.

If you have a needy baby with a "difficult" temperament it's so easy to wonder what you are doing wrong as a parent and wonder why the people around you seem to be having a more positive parenting experience.  As much as you love your child, it can be draining and discouraging to be a parent to a needy baby, especially if there are a lot of easy babies around you.  It is important to know that it's not your fault and it won't last forever!

These babies are often very active, seem restless, and they may sleep for only short periods of time.  They may react very strongly to discomforts and have a difficult time soothing themselves.  They need a LOT of parental attention.  If your baby is naturally fussy and has difficulty calming down, avoid too much stimulation and learn to recognize when your baby is starting to get over stimulated.  Learn when you need to give your baby alone time, before he gets too fussy.  If your baby is sensitive to changes in routines, make sure that your days are not too busy or filled with lots of changes.  Try to stay calm with your baby; make sure you get a break if you need one!  Ask a family member or another trusted person to take the baby for awhile so you can regain your "calm".

The most important thing to take from all this is that there is no "one-size-fits-all" parenting technique for all babies.  There is no "right way" that is guaranteed to work for every child. No matter what the books say, what your friends think, or what your mother may tell you, your baby is a unique individual and you have the wonderful opportunity to be the expert in your baby's needs!  Take the time to discover your baby's unique needs and traits and figure out what works for your child.  Think about your child's personality when caring for him and keep in mind that your baby's temperament might be very different from your own!

Above all, love your child, let him teach you about his needs, and you will be greatly rewarded!




Info taken from:
http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_INFANT_TEMPERAMENT/?page=2
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/pages/Parenting-Your-Infant.aspx?nfstatus=401&nftoken=00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000&nfstatusdescription=ERROR%3a+No+local+token
Caring for Your Baby and Young Child: Birth to Age 5 (Copyright © 2009 American Academy of Pediatrics)

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