Money saving tips: Oatmeal

My daughter LOVES oatmeal she could eat it everyday for breakfast and 2-3 packs of it. (I use the instant flavored oatmeal) I am not big on giving her to much sugars and junk food so I came up with this and it really works. I take 1 instant packs of oatmeal her favorite is apple cinnamon and add some quick cook oats (the large container you usually use for making cookies) and mix it in. So she only gets one packet of flavor and the rest plain oats. She doesn't even know the flavor is different, it cuts down on the sugars and you save money cause your not using a box every couple of days. It can stretch out for a week or so.

A is for Apple wedges

This is a really fun snack idea for kids! H is 27 months and loved it, you can modify the snack by cutting it into smaller pieces for smaller kids. All you need is an apple, peanut butter, and chex mix. We used cinnamon flavor. cut apples into wedges, spread some peanut butter on and dip in crushed chex. Yumm!

Wordless Wednesday

Muffin tin Monday

I have been looking for new things to use for Muffin Tin Monday and I found these cool sticks that I did cheese and olives on at Target by the paper plates and stuf and the pick in the beans at Hobby Lobby. they have some neat stuff in their cake decorating department and also by party stuff.

Sink or Float?

Today we did a science experiment on Sink or Float. I made a chart and had her predict what she thought would happen then we experimented with the objects. She even tried to hold them under the water to get them to sink. I was really surprised at how many she got right. She went on to experiment with rocks, leaves, her shoe, shovels, and pretty much anything she could get her hands on in the yard.

Toilet paper holder necklace

I have a business making tutus and the tulle comes on rolls like a toilet paper roll so cut it into pieces and let her paint and glitter it then we put them on a yarn to make a necklace. Of course she painted herself a little and but then started to make finger and hand prints on the tubes.

Painting with the letter A stamps

We have been talking about the letter A this week. So I went through my cookie cutters and of course the only letter that we are missing is, you guessed it, A. So I went digging in my scrapbook stuff and found these stamps. When I think of art it is not about the outcome it is about the experience and joy that comes from it. Yes I know there is only one visible A on the page but the idea is about H experiencing the art and not my satisfaction that she "made" something. I loved the way the colors mixed and the joy on her face as she made it. The whole time she painted she was talking about the letter and things that started with it and how it sounded and of course a little about Nemo lol.

helping in the kitchen

H loves to be involved in all things that has to do with the kitchen weather it be dishes, sweeping or cooking she is right there. I try to find ways to include her in most of the daily activities and meals. Today we had banana pancakes for breakfast and grill cheese for lunch and apple slices for lunch. She helped mash the over ripe bananas, and stirred the pancake mix , added the walnuts to the pancakes in the pan and made sure I knew the bubbles where on the pancakes so I could flip them. For lunch so help hold the apple slicer to slice the apples an buttered some of the bread she was not thrilled about that part but loved sampling the cheese as she added it to the bread.

Finding the Letter A

My daughter is know a lot of her letters but for some reason or another she for gets about A. She knows its sound and A is for apple and alligator but she can't always recognize it. So I decided to play a game with her with the letter A. I got an old magazine and let her find the letter A and I cut it out, then she put it in an envelop. After we found a couple dozen I drew a big letter A on a piece of paper and let her glue the scraps of paper from the magazine on the paper. As she glued them one we talked about the sound and different things that started with A. She looked so engaged and excited about it.

Wordless Wendnesday......weeeeeeeeee

Muffin tin Monday

This week we had Spaghetti and meatballs, garlic bread, Mickey Mouse shaped cheese, carrots with ranch, strawberries, and applesauce.

Watermelon Seed Counting File Folder Game

File Folder games are so simple to make, and really easy to store. You just take any object and glue it to a manila folder and have it laminated. The pieces for matching are glued to a manila folder or cardboard and then cut out before laminating. This one is a Math game of Matching. The object is to count the seeds on the watermelon and match. I was surprise how fast H caught on to it and was matching them with easily. (and yes my daughter is dressed up like barney lol.)

Number matching

My daughter is 27 months and we are starting to talk about numbers. She does really well counting to 12 and she points as she is counting with is pretty good for her age but I am now working on recognizing the numbers, so I made these felt bean bags. This is the first set. Since we are just starting I made them color matching. Once she learns the numbers I am going to make a new set in all black and white so she really has to know the right answer rather than match colors.

Pizza

I love making homemade pizza I have used everything from dough, english muffins to bagels. I found this new all natural garlic tandoori naan from the deli at Walmart. It is a classic Indian flatbread made with roasted garlic and cilantro. Wow was it tasty as a pizza!! I let H make it and she of course she spread the pizza sauce and added the cheese, to make a simple fast lunch. We added some chopped strawberries and lunch was served.

Transferring beans with spoon

This is another transferring activity. It is great for improving fine motor skills and concentration. I amazes me how long a simple activity like this can keep her interest. She is really learning she can do things on her own and taking self pride in it. How ever she realized after moving the beans from one bowl to the next with the spoon it was much faster to just pick the bowl up and pour it. Another great skill to prefect.

More trail mix

I love letting H make her own trail mix it keeps it new and interesting. She picked out all the ingredient for it,so it is not the healthiest this time. But yummy none the less. H used: goldfish, raisins, 3 star marshmallows, "cookie bears" teddy grahams, cheerios and fruit loops. The only problem was when she was done she wanted to eat it with a spoon, no problem, then she wanted milk. well I wouldn't let her put milk in it to eat it like cereal because of the goldfish and teddy grahams. I tried to get her milk on the side or to take the goldfish, and bears out but we had a huge tantrum. I just love 2 year old's. Needless to say there was snack all over from her fit and snack was over. but it was a good idea. next time I will be a little more selective of what she can have to avoid this problem. I guess I could have just let her have the milk in it but I am a firm believer in not backing down once I said no

Transferring Pom Poms

I have been doing a lot of research lately on different things I can do with H, and came upon this. I set out a bowl of pom poms, thongs and recycled the insides of packing tape tube. She is suppose to pick the pom poms up with the tongs and transfer them into the tubes. This activity helps promote fine motor control, and after watching H transfer the pom pom balls I will add concentration. She was so focused and played way longer than I had anticipated. She really enjoyed this activity and I will be looking for different ways to do this activity in the future.



At first she was picking up a lot of the pom poms at a time, then she finally started to do them two then one at a time.

Pillow case dress

I made H a new pillow case dress the other day. I am pretty proud of it. I know my way around a sewing machine but I am getting more adventurous lately. My daughter loves it and calls it her "pretty dress" and wants to wear it all the time which makes the whole experience totally worth it. I am going to have to make more of them. The summers are really hot here and it is great to stay cool

Wordless Wednesday

Sorting Blocks in Muffin Tin

I decided to start working on Math skills with my daughter today. I just took a muffin tin and wooden bead blocks and had her sort them by color, and shape, then me moved on to patterns and building. Sorting is a basic step in Math. Sorting and classifying objects helps children begin to notice how items are alike and different, and creates an awareness that is vital for math learning. You can do this same activity with anything really, even toddler socks rolled into little balls, different colors beans, or some of there smaller toys.


Sort by shape

Sort by color

Make a pattern

any build a tower and have fun