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Making Birthday Memories
These past few weeks have been busy ones. You see, in our house we move straight from Christmas celebration to birthday celebrations. Three of our four children have birthdays during the first week of January. However, we do things a little differently around here. We do not have birthday parties (besides some cake with family). No, we are not punishing our children. No, they don’t revolt. Instead of parties and gifts, we give experiences. This all started about 7 years ago when our younger two children joined our family through adoption. The trauma they experienced made parties and gifts hard to take in. Extreme excitement. Unregulated emotions. Feelings of shame…
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How I met my husband (with the help of my Mom)
I thought I should let you all know a little more about myself and after thinking about it for a while, I feel the story of how my mom helped me meet my husband is a pretty darn good story. The reason it’s an interesting story is because my mom passed away a year before I even met my husband and yet she was the reason I met him. I know, sounds creepy and far-fetched. I promise, she did NOT show up to me as a ghost or anything so just hold tight. I guess I should start from the beginning. As a young girl, I remember my mom casually…
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Sensory Related Gifts
It’s the holiday season! And that means figuring out what gifts to get everyone on your list. I have always tried to get our children unique items that may not be found in the average toy store. My goal is to also make it do double duty….a magnetic game that also works great on long car rides, an outfit that will work for a holiday gathering…you get the idea. Whether you’ve got a kid that has some extra sensory needs or maybe just has LOTS OF ENERGY and needs a little extra help calming their bodies, it’s sometimes hard to find a gift that will help with regulation AND be…
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4 Ways to Toddler Independence
When my twins were little, I was introduced to the Montessori method of teaching through their little preschool held at the vocational high school near us. I liked the concept so much I ended up teaching several years of preschool at a Montessori school. Montessori allows students to be more independent in their learning and lets their curiosity guide them in their learning. It helps foster a love of learning. However, if you want your toddler to be more independent at home, you don’t necessarily have to enroll your children in a Montessori school (although I would totally support that plan!). Here’s a few ideas on how to foster independence…
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My Success Defined
This past year has really changed me. I’ve gone from questioning my worth on this planet to feeling confident in how much I bring to the table. If you had asked me a year ago what I have done with the past 13 years, my answer would be that I cooked, cleaned and was a taxi service for my 4 children.