Hot Dog Train - Creative Alternative for Your Toddler

"Mommy, could I have something to eat?" (my 3-yr-old daughter)


"Sure, what would you like?"


"A hot dog train."


I pause a moment..."A hot dog train?"


"Yes, a hot dog train."


I pause for another moment and a light bulb went off in my head! "You want a hot dog train? OK, I'll give you a hot dog train."


My "little" as I call her went to grab her stool so she could get a good view of my culinary skills.


I got a hot dog out of the refrigerator and cooked it in the microwave (about 30 sec), then I sliced it lengthwise 3 times and cut those pieces into 3 chunky pieces.


Next, I cut small blocks of cheddar cheese to put in between my hot dog "cars."


My "little's" face begins to brighten.


Last come the wheels and the whistle on top...CARROTS! Cut some baby carrots into little "wheels" and place 2 each underneath the cars, then cut another in half and place on the front car to make the whistle.


VOILA - you have yourself a hot dog train.


My daughter thinks I'm a genious!


Let's let her think that at least for a little while :)

No Babysitter = Chaos in our Household

That's right, my sitter is away this week. She had a family emergency and had to go out of town.

I've been wandering around all week trying to figure out how to get my work done, do the laundry, clean the house and entertain my 3 yr old.

We are SUCH creatures of habit! I'm used to having my routine of getting up, doing about an hour's worth of work, grabbing a shower, getting the kids off to school and the sitter and having a 5 or 6 hour chunk of time during the day that I get all of my work done. Then, when the kids come home, I take care of the housework (of course, with their help) and cook dinner. Since, my sitter has been away, I am lost without my routine!

So, after much deliberation (and feeling worthless because I am having trouble with this simple change), I decided not to fight city hall and: let my daily blog turn into an every 3 day blog; get only the work done that absolutely HAS to be done during nap time and the early morning hours; let a little bit of laundry slip (we can all wear those shorts ONE more time before they need washed, right?); and PLAY with my little girl.

Hopefully, things will be back to normal next week, but if they aren't - I'm not going to sweat it!

9 Great Tips for Teaching Your Toddler to Share

Toddlers are, by nature, self-centered. Everything has been taken care of for her since you brought her home from the hospital as an infant.

When your child becomes a toddler and can begin to communicate, this is the perfect time to teach them the importance of sharing with others. It may take some time, but with continuity and positive reinforcement, your child will become very adept at playing with others!

Here are some tips to get you started:

1. If your toddler doesn’t want to share, explain why it’s an important thing.
2. Tell your toddler that not sharing may mean his friends will not want to share with him either.
3. Take the toys in question away. If your toddler doesn’t want to share – then no one will play with the toys.
4. Never yell at the toddler, but be firm in your reprimands.
5. If other toddlers are invited over, ask your toddler to pick out some toys to put away. But also remind him the toys left out can be shared with everyone.
6. If your toddler screams and carries on, give the toddler a time out.
7. Teach by example. Show your child how you are willing to share something you own.
8. Thank your toddler for sharing his toys with others.
9. Teach your toddler to think of others.

If all else fails remember this is probably a stage your toddler will outgrow. However, it is important to instill in your child that sharing and giving is important. Try not to give in to everything your toddler wants or buy your toddler a present every time you give another child or their sibling a present. Even though she is still very young, your toddler needs to understand the importance of the basic skill of sharing.

Freebie - Coloring Pages

I always like to pass along the freebies to you...

Mom's Niche has just updated the website with coloring pages. These are all FREE for you to use for your daycare or preschool classes, homeschooling, Mommy and Me groups or just for your own personal use!

Now available:
Animals
Art History
Dinosaurs
Flowers
People

We are updating frequently, so make sure to come back again soon!

Check them out...print them out...use them however you please!

Enjoy!

Is Your Toddler Biting? Here Are Some Tips to Help You Deal

It can upset and alarm you when your toddler bites. Some experts say that toddlers resort to extreme measures like biting when they become frustrated and have not yet learned how to express themselves with words.

Biting can become a dangerous problem if it isn’t properly handled. It is extremely important for parents to learn how to deal with this and meet it head-on. The following tips will show you how to cope with your biting toddler:

• Get to the Core of Your Toddler’s Anger – If your toddler bites in anger, ask yourself what might be causing this change of mood in your toddler. Have there been any changes in your toddler’s life lately? Is your toddler reacting in anger? If your toddler hasn’t been socialized with his children his age, this could be another cause of anger.
• Stay Calm – If you are already dealing with a biting problem and have lost your cool with your toddler, don’t feel bad. Parents commonly overreact to toddler biting. However, shouting or spanking your child probably will not help the situation. Model the behavior you expect from your child. Take a deep breath and count to ten. When you are calm, you are better able to handle a bite incident.
• Warn Her of the Dangers of Biting – Even though toddlers are just learning to talk, they are old enough to understand pain. They are also old enough to understand cause and effect. In a calm, but firm voice, explain to your toddler why she shouldn’t bite. Let her know that biting hurts and she shouldn’t do it.
• Teach Him To Use His Words – Some toddlers start talking earlier than others. As your toddler grows and learns how to talk, teach him to use special words to express his feelings. “Tommy mad,” or “Suzie sad,” are just a couple of examples. If your toddler is biting but is still too young to speak, try using baby sign language instead. You can make up your own signs for pain, hurt, no, bad, etc...
• Set Her Up for Success – If your toddler seems to have trouble socializing in certain situations, don’t place her in that situation. Give your toddler the best chance of success by placing her in a situation where there is no opportunity for trouble. By setting your child up for success, you can show her that she can play and socialize with other children without biting. As you see your toddler’s behavior improving, gradually introduce her to more challenging situations.
• Praise Your Toddler – Calling attention to negative behavior and its consequences is important. Don’t forget to praise your toddler when he does well, though. Pointing out and rewarding positive actions will help your toddler to remember the desired behavior and reaction.

Happy Rotten Sneaker Day!

Today is National Rotten Sneaker Day.

WHOOPEE! EVERY day at my house is Rotten Sneaker Day...and it's not just the boys, mind you...the girls contribute their share too.

We have the best time with the youngest - when she was a baby and I would change her diaper, I would grab her feet, put them to my nose and say "Pee-You!" When she was really young, she would smile...as she got a little bit older, she would giggle...and a little bit older, she would let out a huge guffaw! Now, she is forever taking her socks and shoes off (she comes by that honestly - I love walking around in my bare feet too), she lays down on her back and sticks her feet in the air..."Smell my feet mama!"

What does this lovely little anecdote have to do with Rotten Sneaker Day? She has REALLY SMELLY FEET! No doubt due to her REALLY SMELLY SNEAKERS!

So, as a tribute to this lovely holiday, I will take all of the yucky sneakers in our house and put them in the washing machine. If that doesn't help - I will have to resort to throwing them away in the trash ...I couldn't subject anyone else to the nasty hand-me-downs.

PEE-YOU!

St. Patrick's Day is Coming! Can You Get Your Kids to Eat Their Greens??

Brought to you by Kid Approved Meals

Take time this St. Patrick's Day to get some green foods into your kids (and, no, I'm not talking about cupcakes with green frosting). ;) Create an entire "green" meal for your kids, in honor of the leprechauns.

Here are some ideas:

• Broccoli with Ranch dressing (or Green dressing)
• Sliced Kiwi
• Avocados
• Asparagus
• Green apple slices
• Green grapes
• Cucumber slices
• Peas or Snow Pea Pods
• Green Beans

Have fun with it, come up with some other "green" ideas and forward them on to me...I'd love to add to the list!

Be proud of your kids for trying new foods, especially if they are normally picky eaters.

We hope you enjoy your green meal!
(And, thank you, again, to Kid Approved Meals for giving us the ideas!)

The "Bootie-Shakin' Trash Can"

THIS is what happens when you have a 3-yr old in the same house with a 9 and 11-yr old...

A couple of months ago I was shopping in Costco with my mom-in-law and Little Livvie. We walked down one aisle past a trash can and it opened up by itself. COOL! We sat and looked at it (and played with it) for a few minutes...it was stainless steel and around $40. It was JUST what I needed since the older kids had broken the other stainless steel trash can that cost me $70 about 6 months before.

This is the coolest trash can - it has a sensor (an "eye") that knows when you are approaching and want to throw something away.

We got the trash can home, put the batteries in and began to test. When the older kids came home from school, Livvie just had to show them this new invention that was going to change our world. In fact, we became the talk of the neighborhood with this trash can. We realized that most times when the taller people just walk by, the can opened up. (Side note - my Little Livvie loves to dance around the room to music and shake her BOOTIE.) She began walking up to the trash can, turning around and shaking her bootie. Being 3, she's a little short to reach the sensor, so we would wave our hand in front of it and she thought she was opening up the trash can by herself.

One evening, a couple of nights after purchasing, our neighbor came over to check out what all of the buzz was about. We had to show her this wonderful new addition to our lives. As she was walking out the door...Livvie in all of her 3-yr old wisdom said "Hey Carla, look, it's the Bootie-Shakin' Trash Can."

:)

Potty Training - Open to Suggestions

Potty training...anybody have any good suggestions? You would think since I've been down this road two times before, that I would know what to do...WRONG!

My youngest just turned three last week. She has always been very verbal and able to communicate. We never went through that frustrating time with trying to find words and throwing tantrums when said words couldn't be found. So, I'm thinking..."life has been a breeze with her for the first three years, why would potty training be any different?"

HAHA, was I in for a RUDE AWAKENING!

She has been using Pull-Ups, and pretty successfully, for the last year or so. We've been talking about becoming a "big girl" with this birthday and even got some Dora underwear in the stocking from Santa.

This past Friday, I decided it was time. She was home with me for the day and we would have a 3-day weekend to work on it. We traded in the Pull-Ups for Dora. I quickly became aware that my little angel's halo was slipping and she was going to put me to the test. All of a sudden she became defiant - I would tell her to go sit on the potty..."No, I don't want to" - EVERY time I put her on the potty this happens. We go through a HUGE power struggle and I'm trying like hell not to let her win.

This is the kicker right here...she goes to a private babysitter 3-4 days during the week. This babysitter has been taking care of her since she was about 10 months old. She's awesome. Livvie loves her and everything is hunky dory.

I'm getting to my point...the babysitter tells her to go sit on the potty...AND SHE GOES AND SITS ON THE POTTY. She even pulls her own pants down, does her thing, pulls her pants back up, washes her hands and BOOM, she's successfully gone to the bathroom by herself.

Of course, I'm thinking I'm the biggest failure of a mom who ever lived. This shouldn't be that tough..I'm smart, educated...and for God's sakes - I'm 36 years older than this child!

Okay mommies out there - this is an official cry for help.

I'm looking for some great advice...don't let me down now.

Update: it's now two days later and we've had TWO DRY DAYS!! All day long...even through nap time. Maybe I was wrong...maybe I AM a genius after all :)

Update - 8 days later: Okay - I want to thank everyone for the kind words and advice, but I really think we have this thing licked! She has had 1 accident since this past Saturday. She is still wearing the Pull-Up for nighttime (and she's been dry all night a couple of times), but she's "big girl underwear" all during the daylight hours. WOOHOO!!