Another Giveaway! Aromatic Health

I just popped on over to Over 30 Mommy who has a fabulous giveaway for a product from Aromatic Health.  Be sure to check it out.  Have a great weekend, Shonda

(Mostly) Free and Fun Friday!

 

So I found at my local zoo that once a month they have a FREE day at the zoo!

Shrade and I had a lot of fun together exploring the zoo and ended our time with a ride on the carousel.  Yay!

Love and Logic chp 6

Back again!  Here's some highlights from chapter 6:

Use empathy rather than anger.  It not only preserves your relationship with your child, but it also teaches respect.  It's usually not our first "natural" response, but it will be received better than anger.

So if your child is younger than three years, it's very simple.  When your child misbehaves, use empathy, and let your actions speak louder than words (change child's location or remove object).

 I've been saying, "uh,oh," with my son a lot and it's been better than me getting angry and saying "NO!"

So, give empathy a try!

Great website! Raising Playful Tots

I was just visiting one of my favorite websites (Books by Tara) and came across one her reviewer blogs.  Raising Playful Tots is adorable!  I signed up for the newsletter and I got a fabulous FREE ebook with tons of great ideas for extending play for children.  I encourage you to check into this!

Giveaway! Little Duck Organics

Here's another fun giveaway!  I love great organic for food for my little guy.  Head to Over 30 Mommy to enter this giveaway for Little Duck Organics.

Learning Activity: Noah's Ark Animals

For Shrade's birthday, my mother in law got this cute little Noah's Ark animal pocket toy.  I love it because it is quiet!  Shrade really loves the pink elephants.  You can do fun activities like matching, colors and identifying animals.  Choose any kind of toy that has similar features and have fun!

What's coming up?

Hey, mamas!  I have some exciting news!  I will be reviewing a fabulous new book by Books By Tara next week and I will be having a giveaway!  Invite your friends and don't miss it.  Thanks!  :)

Giveaway! Eco-friendly Lunch/Snack bags

Look at these adorable eco friendly lunch/snack bags made by Cottage Belle's.  Head over to JDaniel4's Mom to enter to win a set of these bags!

Love and Logic chp 4 & 5

Here a few highlights from chapter 4 and 5:

*Discipline without frustration and anger is key!

*Set the limit once and follow through.  For little ones say "uh, oh," and take action.

My son likes to throw his milk bottle on the floor when he's in his high chair.  If he throws the bottle I say "uh,oh, all done, it's time to get down."  Another tactic which I learned in a parent/infant class I am currently taking is to tell the child what you want to see.  So when I give my son is his bottle I say, "hold the bottle with your hands."

Of course, the best thing is to notice good behavior and give lots of attention to that!  "Thank you for holding your milk bottle in your hand!  Good job!"

So, set the limit, reduce anger and take action today!

Giveaway: Home Grown Families

In honor of Earth Day tomorrow, check out this Eco Friendly giveaway sponsored by Home Grown Families for a product from the Red Apple Supply Company.

What's on our Bookshelf? Mrs. Wishy-Washy

 

Since my son was born, I've been reading him books.  I heard about this book at a teaching seminar I went to a long time ago.  Right before I had my son, I found this book online and bought it.  I didn't know how hard it was to find.  As you can see Shrade was very interested in this book even at 3 months old.  Now, as I read it, I add a lot of animal sounds and movement!  It's a great book.   If you can find it, get it!

Reading tip: Let your child see you read.  (From 50 Simple Things you can do to Raise a Child who loves to Read)

Learning Activity: Magnet Letters

I was privileged to be given this magnet board from a retired teacher.  I used it many years in my classroom.  Recently one of my friends gave me these magnet letters.  Shrade mostly likes to chew on them, but I will be using them to teach letters.  He had more fun taking them off the magnet board.  I also did some color grouping with these.  Endless possibilities.  One activity that I did with my class was putting a mixed up word (like their name) and have them put it in order.

Have fun with your "Milk N' Honey" today!

Activity Bags!

Hi friends-  I'm at it again, looking for great ideas.  This week on Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers, I found a blog that used Activity Bags for some ways to get preschoolers learning.  So I checked out the website and after I filled out a short survey I was emailed a FREE ebook with lots of fun activity bag ideas. 
 
Check out Activity Bags for yourself and have fun planning for teaching your little ones.

(Mostly) Free and Fun Friday!

I love to scour around the internet and local publications for (mostly) free activities.  Last Friday my son and I went to library story time and then after we browsed in the children's section of the library.  We discovered puppets and a huge magnet board featuring a farm.  Afterward, we went outside to play at the playground.  We spent about an hour just hanging out and enjoying playing together.

Do you have a Free and Fun activity to share?

Love and Logic chapter 3

The first 2 years of life is so important in meeting your child's basic needs. Bonding with eye contact, smiles, hugs, holding and touch has tremendous health benefits.

My favorite time of the day is right before nap and bedtime.  I spend about 15 minutes reading and then when my son is relaxed he can enjoy my singing.  Along with singing several special favorites, I stroke his arms and legs and give lots of kisses.  Also, many times during the day I take advantage of the times when Shrade runs into my arms for quick mama hugs.  I cherish these!

So your "Milk N' Honey" for today is to bond with your little one! Go for it, mama!

I can't wait to share more from this book!

Large Motor Activity: Climbing Pillows!

Shrade actually stood up and kept a good balance. He also crawled up on the couch where I had taken off the pillows. He learned how to climb up and get down. Lots of large motor activity and problem solving going on.

Giveaway: Baby Basket

I just found this super cute blog that is giving away an adorable Baby Basket.  Go to Spit Happens and see all the details.

Ultimate Blog Party: Introduction

Hi my name is Shonda and I'm so glad you stopped by Milk N' Honey Learn and Grow.  I just started this blog to share teaching ideas.  I was a Kindergarten teacher for 12 years and now I am privileged to be a SAHM.  I am looking forward to homeschooling and am already starting to have fun with my son.  I will be sharing ideas for activities, recipes, book reviews, giveaways, and anything fun I can find to inspire you in teaching your children!  God's Blessings, Shonda

Prizes I would like to win: US 69 for 18-36 month olds, US 73- gift card to Amazon, US 106- Letter of the Week Curriculum

I also have another blog- Knowlton Nest.  Thanks for visiting!

Love and Logic chapter 2

Chapter 2 was all about starting now in teaching and training your child by setting limits, but also providing choices.

Children who are not yet able to talk can be taught boundaries.

Even just this week I had to set limits with my son when he wanted to touch the open dishwasher. I say "Leave it" and then actually draw an invisible boundary with my hand. He responds well by backing away.

He also likes to get into drawers in the kitchen. When he tries to get into a mommy drawer I tell him to "leave it" and show him the drawer where he can play.

Get it? I hope you can apply this principle early so that when your toddler becomes a teen you will have established a good foundation. This builds trust and responsibility.

Giveaway: Melissa & Doug See and Spell

I love finding out about great learning toys to use with my little guy. I saw this and thought "I would love to have it!" So go on over and visit Home Grown Hearts to enter this great giveaway!

Giveaway: Songs for Saplings

I absolutely love singing with my son and teaching him Bible verses. So I'm starting to think about getting this Christian series called Songs for Saplings that have both singing and verses for me to teach my son! Right now, A Heart for Home is sponsoring a giveaway for a Questions with Answers CD by Songs for Saplings. So head on over there to enter! Have a great day!

Easter Egg learning

So we used the eggs from the Easter egg hunts this past weekend to practice emptying and filling. Shrade sat here for 30 minutes or more doing this.


Later, mama found a fun learning opportunity to match colors of eggs with the bands on these Magic Bullet cups that Shrade has in his play drawer. The color matching was lost on him, but he did put the eggs in the cup that I indicated with my finger.

We also used these eggs for bathtime toys later in the evening. Multi-purpose!

So what are you doing for YOUR Milk N' Honey today?

Easter activities

This week for Easter Shrade and I watched Miss Patty Cake's Easter Egg-stravaganza. Miss Patty Cake used eggs to tell the story of Easter. You can find more about the Resurrection Eggs at Family Life Today. But what I really liked was this song that I memorized and now sing to Shrade called Colors, Numbers, ABC. See video below.

We also are memorizing these verses from 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. He was buried and rose again the third day according to the Scriptures."

Love and Logic chapter 1

I am so glad I found this book called Love and Logic Magic for Early Childhood by Jim and Charles Fay. I just finished chapter 1 and I wanted to share a few thoughts with you.

Here are my thoughts:
For parenting to be a joy both now and later, I must apply some good love and logic to everyday situations with my son. I can build self-concept by being empathetic, understanding and giving unconditional love. I can share the control by giving choices that will make both of us happy. I can learn to give consequence with empathy and let my son learn to think for himself.

I even started doing some of this today. My son climbed up on the couch, but was frustrated on how to get down. So I offered him the choice to ask me for help or let him figure out how he could do it by himself (he's only 16 months). He held his hands out to me indicating that he wanted my help, but I actually showed him how to get down himself. It was a great learning time for both of us.

I look forward to sharing more from this great book!