IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED....

Of course..I pick CHEESECAKE..YUM

Being a Mom is a piece of cake-right.

Eh...not so much. 

It ain't easy. 

There are good days...and bad ones. 

There are moments you will hold onto forever and some you'd like to chuck in "that" good old EFF it bucket!

There are days you are looking all over for the nonexistent manual that tells you what to do ... or what comes next, only to find out, IT DOESN'T EVEN EXIST. 

There is that morning when no one wants to get out of bed...not even YOU...but you suck it up, put your best foot forward and become the Drill Sargent with a mission to get kids out the door by eight a.m. or else! 

Weekends don't even offer a break. 

Those same kids who DID NOT want to get up yesterday...on Friday...seem to be up at the ASS CRACK OF DAWN...seriously! 

What is up with that anyways?  

It's six o'clock and one of those sweet, angelic children are yelling.. "Mom...the sun's up...time for us to be up."

Damn you Spring Forward!

Remember those days when you were up all night..rocking, perhaps...that crying, whining child...do you remember those days?  

Don't forget them. 

They go fast...then you left with children who: 

a) no longer need you to do ANYTHING for them...

hey, so what if they missed a button and there shirt is totally crooked, or if their undies are completely backwards- they did it themselves and are SUPER PROUD..who am I to judge?  

or 

b) they are so DEPENDENT on you they all of a sudden can't sleep without you- 

which makes NO sense because I have found that once we cuddle up..

the only one sleeping is ME! 

Some night...said child, who is now Pre-K...wakes up SCREAMING HYSTERICALLY and has forgotten to use her words. AHH.. Trying to calm her down is like pulling teeth because she is screaming like YOU should be calling an AMBULANCE!

Being a Mom is cake!  Said NO MOM EVER!!!

Don't get me started on the reward system... SEE this...yes, THIS...this JAR here filled to the brim with CANDY. It was supposed to be a GOOD BEHAVIOR jar..if you check off all your boxes on your chart you get a piece of candy.  

HMM... well, it ain't going so smooth..considering this candy is from EASTER...

I think I am going to make a chart for myself...

I get candy for each day I don't have a Mommy Moment....Oh..and don't sit there and act like you have no idea what I am talking about...You KNOW these Moments...these "I can't do this anymore" freak out "I am the INCREDIBLE HULK" moments. 

I declare my frustration by saying "Grrr..I am so frustrated right now." (hey, I AM using my words!) and then...I walk away.  (I take a Mommy Time Out and breathe!) 

Why? 

Because kids don't care. I think they LOVE it when they get you THAT frustrated...

If you are a working Mom, you know... one of those Moms who has MOM GUILT because not only do you Cook/Clean/Do Laundry/Take care of Kids/Hubby and House...you ACTUALLY WORK in a real live place away from those things TOO.  And you feel like you are missing things...or your KIDS miss you.  

Well... I can't speak for ALL children..but chances are they DON'T.  They don't even realize you do anything else but what is going on in this moment.  

"Mom, I am thirsty."  "Mom, I am hungry."  "Honey..where is [fill in the blank}"

It never ends. Moms are the GLUE.  We hold it ALL  together..  somehow...someway- it is all US. 

That is the best way to look at it. 

We hug, we kiss, we fight, we scream, we yell, we laugh, we smile, we joke, we fix, we break, we hide, we seek, we find, we clean, we cook, we shop, we pack lunches, we worry about dinner (weeks in advanced), we complain about this and that, we deal...and this is just with HUBBY! 

Look back to your childhood...what did you want to be when you grew up? 

Have you ever sat and thought about it? 

Some days are good...great even.  Hold onto those ones!  

When they are bad..find the good.  Find the ice to break.  Find the fun and if all else fails...DANCE and SING- I promise...YES, I PROMISE..it will make it all BETTER. 

Hold onto the treasures that are children and savor the moments...yes, ALL of them, preferably...because in a blink of an eye that baby is walking...that walker is talking...that talker is sassing and YOU GET MY DRIFT! 

The best job I ever had was...at 9-1-1.. wait...no...the BEST JOB I have ever had is being a MOM (you can see why I was confused...there are kind of the same thing- screaming, yelling, panick, heavy breathing, loud bangs in the background) 

Nothing will ever pay as much, nothing will ever leave my heart swollen with so much LOVE I have no idea WHAT to do with it all and nothing...NOTHING will ever FRUSTRATE me MORE than my kids....  and my HUBBY... (Love you!) 

So, if at first you don't succeed....

DANCE and SING!

(duh!) 

Be the BEST MOM you can be...be YOU!  

Power your child's love of words: With FUN Games

 

Summer Reading

Has its Rewards

I am a big nerd about reading...as you all know after reading/searching my blog!  Well, I gave this "bug" of reading...this LOVE of words...to my oldest daughter. She is six now, and just learned how to really put words together through her Kindergarten year and to say that she is eager, enthusiastic would be an understatement! 

 

 Play Matchmaker: Early readers will get a kick out of recognizing words.  Toss a bunch of household items-your kid's plastic dino, a seashell, a pencil-into a bucket.  Write the corresponding words on note cards.  Your child's mission: Match each item with its written description. 

 

Swap Stories by the Campfire: Pack your kid's FAVORITE (not too) spooky tales and a flashlight, and act out the stories in your best ghostly voice.  Not into Camping?  Well, just head to the backyard after dark and make a great memory!

 

Tell a Zany Story: Preschoolers LOVE to chat (boy do they!), and a DIY mad libs power your child's active imagination while boosting literacy skills.  Brainstorm a list of people, places, things, and actions with your little one.  Write them down onto slips of paper. Place the nouns and verbs into two different bowls.  Ask your child to draw one slip from each, then come up with a story involving the two. She'll be excited to tell you all about a skateboarding dog...equipped with a unique name that only a four year old could imagine!

 

Fish for Sight Words: Beginning readers can recognize some short words-such as "the" and "to" --at a glance.  Help them practice by playing a round of reading-inspired GO FISH.  Write about 20 SIGHT WORDS on note cards (make sure there are two of each word). Then, deal four cards to yourself and your child. Place the remainder between you.  In order to make a pair, your child will need to figure out what words are in her hand, then ask if you've got its match or draw from the deck.

Build some Words: Energize your child's pattern recognition skills by creating word blocks. First, jot down common syllables like at, an, op, and it on sticky notes then affix each to a block. Next, put consonants on another set of stickies and affix those to blocks as well.  Then let your kids stack 'em up to build as many words as they can. 

 

Take it Outside: Grab a pair of walkie-talkies and a couple of your child's favorite books. Then head outside and find separate places in the yard where you can get comfy.  Take turns reading to each other through the walkies and encourage him to spell our words he gets stuck on. (Sound it out!) This actually can also work with larger groups of kids from the whole neighborhood.  Everyone can share what they're reading with each other without even leaving their own backyards and it is so much more fun with a walkie-talkie!

Power Up & Read: The Scholastic Summer Reading Challenge encourages kids to read books, earn rewards, and unlock original stories by favorite authors!  Visit: scholastic.com/summer to take advantage of free Power Up & Read resources including great videos that will help FUEL your own family's reading adventures (Note: Ends September 4th).  You can also visit the Parents section of the Summer Reading Challenge website to get daily TIPS and enter for a chance to WIN BOOKS and other PRIZES!!!

 

 

Summer Learning Fun!

Summer is knocking at our door, literally!  We are on the downward spiral, countdown....to SUMMER VACATION!!!  

Who is ready?

Wait...put the BREAKS ON!  We have spent the past 9 months learning, listening, working on behavior, our manners, and learning how to read...and now we are going to halt all that FUN for the next two months: UGH! 


Parents dread this, losing ground on our kids education. But: keeping your child's brain sharp doesn't require thick packets, boring drills or block walls.  



 


Below are BOREDOM BUSTERS that help offer a great way to work in some skill-building during the exciting Summer Break!!







Hold a YARD SALE!
Kids get a MATH WORKOUT when you have them price items, give change, and calculate the costs of everything sold, by say....3 PM by offering a 25% discount.  For younger ones, they get to learn about the value of a dollar and they will simply LOVE using the Calculator or adding machine.

BONUS: Your child will also be able to discover the value of recycling and hopefully be able to gain a new perspective on shopping when he/she see the toys they put in selling for 75 cents!




Keep 'Em READING!
Check out Scholastics website to discover the Scholastics Summer Reading Challenge (login at Scholastics.com/summer) to get kids reading!  They can also unlock one story out of a series of 12 by authors like R.L. Stine.  Each of the illustrated tales features a read-aloud option. 

BONUS: While your child waits for the next story, they can pick out great reading prizes and win prizes!  You can also introduce the library programs in your area to get them excited to READ!!!















 
 
Work the CAMERA!
Recognizing patterns is a skill that kids need for spelling and math.  Challenge your child to spot images in unexpected places, like faces in tree bark, and SNAP A SHOT!  They can then email the finds to Nana, or turn the pictures into a cool collage!

BONUS: This will allow a child to focus on an object/subject despite other distractions.



Make a MOVIE!
Have your child tell or write a simple script. Then, using LEGOs or Action Figures (Barbies work too!), they can pose the characters and shoot them in sequence. Upload the photos into an app like STOP MOTION STUDIO (iOS, free) or Stop-Motion Lite (Android, free) and there you go! They just created a stop-motion animation!

BONUS: Kids pick up storytelling tricks, which improve their writing skills, too!



Get into GARDENING!
Let your kiddo have a spot in the yard (or a cool Garden Box). Let them pick out what they want to grow. Take them to the library to research how to grow what they pick out, how much space those plants need to grow and how many plants (or seeds) to plant. Get them started and remind them (or put a spot on their charts) to water and tend to their garden daily!

BONUS: This will deepen your childs understanding of where healthy foods come from and they will also have a sense of pride for caring for their plants!




 

Tiny Tid-Bit!
70% of kids ages 6 to 17 look for something that makes them LAUGH when picking out a book. [source: Kids & Family Reading Report: 5th edition, from Scholastic's] 





HERE are some GIGGLE BOOKS to introduce to young readers:



The Pre-Reader: 

  

Llama Llama Sand & Sun by: Anna Dewdney

The Beginning Reader: 

  

Monsters love Underpants by: Claire Freedman

The Independent Reader: 

 

The Tapper Twins Go To War (with Each Other)  by: Geoff Rodkey