Now you all know what I look like when I get up in the morning.  Ahhhhh!  But at least I’m practicing what I preach and doing some good ole Family Recreation!  I am guessing your life of “Missing Momma” in pictures is probably the same as mine, so….in honor of May and Mother’s Day let’s capture a little bit of motherhood….

The Challenge:

With phones, ipads and cameras all around us, there are plenty of opportunities to snap a quick picture of our children every day.

How many times are YOU in the photo?

The goal is to get in the photo, post on your blog and Facebook OR share on Instagram or Twitter and hash tag your photo with #CapturingMotherhood!

Create. Play. Get in the moment, create the memory, capture and share!

Life is short. Enjoy it, show & share it especially with our little ones.

A Big Thanks to Shannon over at Bella Bean Photography for letting us join in on the fun she started on Instagram. Every Mom should be captured a little more!

Brought To You By:

The Family Network

Play With Your Family

Serene…It’s my name, not my life!

LDS Parenting

True Aim Education

Fun On a Dime

My plan was to only take a few weeks off from blogging.  For the first few weeks we were soaking in everything about our little love, trying to keep “kisses gone wild” under control with our two year old, and totally being spoiled by our family and friends.

(See what I’m talking about!  Love it though!)

Then, week three hit and wham…a little thing called COLIC!  It has been sooooo HARD.  Anyone who has a baby with colic, I FEEL FOR YOU!   My poor sweet guy is amazing, sweet, cuddly, wonderful, but he cries all the time.  Most of the time it seems to be gas, burps and other things (which are the usual symptoms of a colicky baby) but sometimes we wonder if he actually just inherited his mother’s high maintenance gene.  Ahhhh!  Mixed with trying to tackle a little boy in his terrific twos ….let’s just say that there were a few days that all three of us were sitting and crying in time out.  So I needed to take a few more weeks off and we are still fighting the colic but it’s a lot easier.  Sweet baby smiles and is more interactive now, which makes us all happier.  He is super happy when you talk to him and most of the time loves being snuggled, but there is still a lot of crying.  Pretty much we’ve just all realized that crying is just apart of our day now, but I know he’ll grow out of it.  Oh and did I mention we also bought a house and moved into it last month.  Yes, we truly are crazy!

Anyways, I wanted to share with you some thing that has been my saving grace since having sweet baby #2….drum roll….

The Big Brother Box!

This sweet little box has been a lifesaver!  Before #2 was born I put together everything I would need for activities that #1 could do pretty much by himself.  Little did I know what a necessity this would be!!!  Each activity is in it’s own plastic baggy, so whenever I need to nurse or just want to feel like a fun mom, I let him pick out a bag and there he is, having a blast with very little effor ton my part!  (Genius if I do say so myself…..haha)

Most of the activities he can do himself, but some are for both of us.  Either way, it’s nice to have a list of fun things to do and not have to come up with something on a sleepless brain!

Here is the list of activities that I printed out and taped to the inside of the box:

• Freeze toys in a big ice cube and let him chip away at it with a hammer or screw driver.

• 

• Put up streamers and let him climb/break through.

• Cutting practice.

• Make goo. (Shaving cream and cornstarch.)

• Cardboard shape puzzle

• Popsicle stick puzzle

• Water Color Painting

• Colored shaving cream in the bathtub.

• Bubbles

• Paper Bag Puppets

• Sock puppets

• Bird house

• Finger pudding painting

• Toilet paper roll trail

• Plastic cup phones

• Marble race track

• Stickers

• Color Wheel (print a color wheel and pin clothespins with corresponding colors.)

• Pom pom container (Cut a hole in a plastic container and let them push the poms through.)

• Poke pipe cleaners through holes in a plastic container.

• Pool noodle stringing. (yarn and a pool noodle)

• Lacing boards (poke holes in cardboard and let them string)

• Masking tape obstacle course. (jump over, follow the line, summer-sault through)

• 

• Pasta necklace

• Make a volcano explosion (baking soda and vinegar)

• Band aids

• Paint a wooden toy

• glow in the dark bath

• hoola hoop fort

• fly swatter painting

• write notes and hide them around the house for dad

• clothespin hide and seek

• bounce balls in a bowl

• counting practice

• beading

We have done almost every activity already and tons of them are things he wants to do over again.  (Sorry I don’t have more pictures, I blame everything on COLIC!)  This has been a lifesaver and would also work as a great baby shower gift for someone having #2!  All you have to do is throw the materials in a box.

What have you done to help siblings get used to new babies in the family?

]]> http://www.playwithyourfamily.com/2013/04/the-big-brother-box/feed/ 0 http://www.playwithyourfamily.com/2013/04/power-of-spring-growth-and-new-life/ http://www.playwithyourfamily.com/2013/04/power-of-spring-growth-and-new-life/#comments Tue, 02 Apr 2013 02:50:04 +0000 Sarah http://www.playwithyourfamily.com/?p=3236 Read More »]]> Spring = Hope

Spring feeds my soul.  Its rain cleans the stains and mud of the last year.  Its wind carries away worry, doubt and fear.  Its flowers deliver optimism, smiles,and love.   Its bird’s put a song on all of our lips. Its sunshine pulls my body to do cartwheels and toe touches. The blossoms on the trees and the green hint in the grass mean play and memories are on their way.  Birth of chicks and bunnies reminds us all of the precious gift of life.   Easter reminds us all that none of this is possible without Christ.

All of these emotions and feelings can be explained to a child by watching a plant grow.  By taking an insignificant little seed, putting it in plain dirty dirt and watching something beautiful, almost magical  and full of life emerge.

Challenge:  Plant something new with your kids.  Care for it, take to it, check up on it.  Bring the magic of growth into your family.

Here are a few articles that I enjoyed that discuss good kid friendly plant and ideas:

Green Thumbs In Training sheknows.com

how to plant seeds with kids nuturestore.com

How To Garden With Kids kidsactivitiesblog.com

Choosing What To Plant communityplaythings.com

My mom compiled scriptures, pictures and thoughts for each day of the last week of Christ’s life.  It simply lays out what we know and understand that Christ did in His last week of ministry.  It is beautiful.  I love to read it day by day building up to Easter.  It brings such a gratitude, understanding and spirit into our home.

While my 3-year-old and baby do not understand the depth of the Atonement, Crucifixion, and Resurrection they listen as we read and discuss and then hang the correlating picture (that I pull out of gospel art ) on the wall for us to think about this week.

Easter is my favorite holiday because of its depth.  There is not a greater thing to celebrate than the life of Jesus Christ.  I hope we can feel closer to Him each Easter season as we teach our families about the miracle of the Atonement and Resurrection.  This knowledge has given me peace and comfort throughout my life and it is my biggest desire to share that with my children.

Print this out and put it in a notebook for next week to easily read with your family at dinner or before bed:

Last Week Of The Savior’s Life

I just heard about this!  It took me a while to believe that people, lots of people, really do this with their left over Easter Eggs.  I always thought the only thing to do with all those boiled eggs was make a huge batch of egg salad.  But I love this much more exciting and active alternative.  It is even on Wikipedia.  How did I not know about this?

Take your family up to the top of a big hill and have an egg race.  Simple roll your decorated boiled eggs down the hill.  My friend told me that they race their eggs down the gutter of their neighborhood.  And the White House races their eggs with be wooden spoons. However you choose to do it, just get out and be active with your family.

Ok now that I got that out, lets look at the bright side.  Not only have we been able to go hookie bobbing, sledding, make snow men that have stayed, make snow angels and drink a lot of hot chocolate, but now we get to make ice cream with all of this snow too!  Lets face it I will take ice cream any day, no matter how cold it is.  In fact my mother and I went to get ice cream twice on those single digit days.

I am so excited to make snow ice cream with my little girl because every time we walk outside she takes a big handful of snow and stuffs it in her mouth.  She will love to make this!

Make SNOW ICE CREAM!! 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cups sugar
• CLEAN Snow

Preparation:

Go outside and get 4 – 5 cups of fresh, clean snow. Don’t pack the snow! Bring it in the house and set it in the freezer until you need it.Mix together the milk, vanilla, and the sugar. Stir this mixture until the sugar is dissolved. Slowly add the snow to your mixture, stirring constantly, until it is as thick as ice cream! Eat up!

Regardless of whether is was a big holiday like Christmas, or a little one like St.Patrick’s Day, it was something special.

The walls would be covered in cute holiday decorations, the table was set up and decorated complete with special paper plates, cups, and napkins. There was usually a special meal and little goodies for everyone.

Valentin’s Day 2010

Even last Valentine’s Day was saved by my mom after I totally dropped the ball, being the totally awesome parent that I am. Eh hem…..

Good thing I don’t have any of it recorded so my kids won’t remember me eating all their chocolate.

Wait….

Anyway, as I was contemplating what this month’s “Play With Your Family” challenge should be, especially in light of it being “the month of love”, my mind automatically jumped to all the cute family crafts or treats that could be made together.

Valentine’s Day 2012

Then something completely different came to mind.

Every once in a while my parents would put a chair in the middle of the living room and one by one we would all take turns sitting in it. While you were in the hot seat, everyone else would say something they liked about that person. It couldn’t be a physical feature (like eyes or hair) it had to be a character trait. It ended with us having to say something about ourselves that we liked.

I believe the idea was for us to notice the good in each other, to make our family bond stronger, while building self esteem in ourselves.

Because let’s face it, the world today can be brutal when it comes to how we see ourselves.

And you know what I’m talking about. There isn’t a single one of us that isn’t beating ourselves up over something we don’t like. And you know it’s true, we are far more comfortable focusing on our weaknesses than our strengths.

Valentine’s Day 2010

THIS MONTH’S FAMILY CHALLENGE is to SAY IT.

Share one thing about each member of your family that you like, including YOURSELF.

• You can do it in a family setting like I described earlier, a perfect Family Home Evening activity.
• If you have younger kids, write it down in a journal.
• If you have kids who don’t live at home anymore, send them a letter.
• If it’s just you and your husband, tell him, then look in the mirror and tell yourself.

Remember, it can not be a physical trait, but a character/personality one.

So, in this ever cheesy “month of love” don’t forget to celebrate the good things about yourself and those in your family.

Share your experience or any family Valentine’s traditions by:

• Commenting on this post.
• Sharing on our Facebook page.

We’re always looking for fun ideas.

Brought to you by:

• Make a Valentines Box- When I was young my dad made me a Valentines Box for all the kids to put their Valentines in at school.  I beamed with pride as my friends admired this not so ordinary Valentines Box.  It was a heart carved of wood with a special lock on the hinged door and specially painted pink.  I still have this box in my collection of precious things.  So make your kid a Valentines Box.  Or better yet do it together!
• Mailbox Chair Cover- I am in the process of making my own version of this which I will post later, but I thought this was a great way to bring love into the home this season.  Leave love notes or treats for each other in their own mailbox.
  

  potterybarnkids.com

• Special Valentines Meals- A friend of mine decorates her table beautifully in the morning for their fancy dinner meal that they all anticipate all day.  Everyone has a place card and something she loves about them.  They bring out the candles, sparkling cider and she fixes them a fancy meal they all enjoy together.
  

  betweennapsontheporch.net

• Conversation Heart Love Notes- I really do not like eating conversation hearts but it is not Valentines without them.  So in our family we like to write love stories to each other with them.
• Sugar Cookies- Sugar cookies really mean, lets spend time together… at least to Grandma
• Homemade Decorations- My little girl had a blast coloring, cutting, and posting hearts all over the house.
• Valentines Tea Party- There is very few things more girly and cutsie then a tea party and as you can see my little girl  is very into it right now.  So, we are going to get all dressed up, make some special treats, decorate the table, invite the grandmas and dollies and have a seriously cute tea party for Valentines Day.
• Heart Attack- Write all the things you love about someone on paper hearts and then stick them all over their door.  While this is season-proof and everyone always loves this genuine surprise, it is just so fitting for Valentines Day too.
• You Are Special Love Pox- So I saw this idea for LovePox and I thought it would be great to read You Are Special to your kids and explain that we all have our gifts and talents but really matters is what God thinks of us… then have fun sticking each other with dots just because.
  

  sassysites.blogspot.com

• Musical Hearts- I loved this idea because it does not involve treats and it involves lots of moving.  Great!
  

  notimeforflashcards.com

• Valentines Worksheets-  It has been fun to work on our fine motor skills and brain development by cutting, pasting, and drawing everything hearts and valentines.  We printed these worksheets, then put them in sheet protectors and used dry erase markers so we can do them again next year.
• Mirror Messages- Take dry erase markers and write a special love note to your kids on Valentines Day morning.  It washes off really easy and is a happy and simple addition to the day.
• Heart On A String Scavenger Hunt- Some of us give our kids a little gift or treat on Valentines Day.  I thought thislooked like a fun way to find your gift.  Especially if you have more than one kid and give each child their own color to follow.
  

  coton-colors.com

• Secret Message Valentine- I love the excitement,  activity, and anticipation in this way of giving your kids a valentine.  Not only do they think it is awesome to have a secret message, but it creates time for you to spend together doing an activity.  I will defiantly try this next week.
  

  bhg.com

Happy Valentines Day to everyone!  I would love to hear what you do with your family on Valentines Day!

It’s silly that I even needed to be reminded of this because my parents were amazing about building us up to others.  I remember listening to my mom’s phone conversations and feeling amazing when she discussed something good I had done or accomplishment in my life.  It made me want to be even better and in some ways created a “parenting self-fulfilling prophecy.”  When my mom focused on her kids being good, I think her kids were even better….WOW.  This could be such a revelation!

The article I found was an excerpt from Hidden Messages, by Elizabeth Pantley.  The part that stood out to me was about casual remarks we make about our children:

Unloading a cart full of Cherrios, macaroni and cheese and hot dogs at the grocery store’s check out counter, a harried mother chats animatedly to the cashier.  “…Only one more week ’til summer vacation, then the kids will be home all day.  I can already hear the bickering and whining!  I don’t know how I’ll manage to live through the next few months!  Want to buy two kids, cheap?”  The cashier laughs and shakes her head, ” Oh, no thanks, I have my own!  I know what you mean!  I’m already waiting for next September!”  In their supposedly innocent light-hearted banter, neither one notices the shoppers two children standing right beside her, listening quietly to every hurtful word.  Neither one notices a pair of small eyes cast downward just so, or a nervous little cough.

Consider Amir’s situation as he walks in the door after another grueling day of work.  His joyful, eager children run for Daddy, but Mom spies him coming in just before they have their chance to pounce.  And the daily gripe session begins.  “I am SO glad you’re home.  I need five minutes of peace and quiet.  These kids drove me crazy all day!  Abdi and Sheida have been like wild animals.  They were fighting in the living room and knocked over the potted fern.  Aria has been acting like a two year old-having temper tantrums over every little thing.  The wash machine broke again and I have four stacks of kids’ dirty clothes piled up in the laundry room…”  Quietly and unnoticed, three dispirited children fade into the background of the family room and turn on the TV.

I know many parents who slip into the type of unfortunate conversation of a mother and father who approached me after a recent parenting lecture.  They were anxious to talk with me, bemoaning their three year old’s behavioral problems.  “Molly’s been a good girl until recently.  It’s like we’ve entered the terrible twos a bit late.  She’s just no fun anymore.  She’s constantly yelling “No!” to us and won’t listen to a word we say.  We’ve tried to be patient, but she’s pushed us to the end of our rope!”  I glanced down to see a little three year old (Molly, perhaps?) clinging tightly to her father’s leg,  But she’s only three, she doesn’t understand what they’re saying, this couldn’t possibly hurt her.   Or so we think.

What an awesome article.  Definitely about made me cry thinking about these poor kids, but then I thought how easy it would be to slip into the role of one of these parents without even realizing what we are doing.  I know that what we say really does affect our children so much.  I have been so surprised at how closely my son mimics the things I do or say.  Is he listening?  Oh yes!

So today I am challenging myself and each of you to be more cautious of how we talk about our kids to others.  Focus on the positive and we all might just benefit from the “Parenting Self-Fulfilling Prophecy” of awesome kids!

Brittany

We played this like 5 times over the break and never tired of it.  It even inspired some new funny nick names.

This is how you play:

• Everyone picks a name and writes the name down on a scrap of paper. It could be any name you can think up. We have used the name of a first boyfriend, Will Smith, Cookie Monster, or a play on words like, “Naughty or Nice.” Since someone will be asking you, ” Are you (insert name), ” it is funny to write down names like, “Smelly” because then it becomes, “Are you Smelly?”
• Put all the names unanimously into a hat or bowl. 
• One person will read all of the names out loud once or twice.
• Discard the names.
• Pick someone to start.
• Remembering the names that were just read, that person will randomly ask someone in the group, ” Are you (insert name from list).” 
• If the answer if yes then that person becomes a part of your team. You can then tell the members of your team your name and discuss what they think the other people’s names are.  The more names you guess the larger your team becomes.
• If the answer is no then that person gets a turn to ask someone else. (If the answer is yes then the turn goes to the new leader of the group, if the answer is no then the person that said no gets the turn.)
• This continues while teams form and you discuss with your teammates who is who and decide who to guess next.
• When someone guesses right, they take over the whole team and they are the leader.
• Eventually one team will win.

* Only one person wins:  If you want one winner instead of a whole team all you need to do is have the new leader of the group be the only person that can talk.  The people in your group simply become a number and not a team that you can work with.  This means you need to remember who is who and what all names are all by yourself.  It defiantly makes the game more challenging.

So What?

This is a great ice breaker game for a group that does not know each other well and does not want to get out of their comfort zone too much.  It is non embarrassing but helps you learn about the person and get to know names.  It is easy enough for anyone to ask some who they are, and by directly asking someone a question you now have confidence to talk to that person in a new or more “dangerous” environment.

It is also very fun with a group you know well.  It brings in a new dynamic of, “who would pick that name, ” and leads the group to analyze and get to know each other better.  In a family setting it is quick, easy, encourages working together, and will bring great memories.