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JDaniel4s Mom

growing & learning with him

Deirdre Smith writes/owns JDaniel4’s Mom. After twenty years as a elementary school and technology resource teacher in Northern Virginia, she became a stay at home mom in upstate South Carolina. Her blog features ways she and her 5 year old are exploring learning, crafting, creating healthy meals and living life to its fullest. Deirdre can also be found on twitter as @jdaniel4smom and on her blog's FB page. You can also check her out on Google+.

Enjoy Being You!

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My friend Cathy just sent me this awesome quote. It really makes me think about the need to enjoy being you!

‘May today there be peace within. May you trust that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith in yourself and others.. May you use the gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content with yourself just the way you are… Let this knowledge settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us..’

With all that is going on with my family this week this quote reminds me that your life is important each and everyday.

Muffin Tin Monday- Orange You Glad It’s An Orange Lunch!

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Muffin Tin Monday -Orange Lunch

Today’s theme for Muffin Tin Muffin is Orange. JDaniel had carrots, two muffin cups of turkey wrapped in orange cheese, gold fish, left over beets from last week doctored up to look and taste better, and corn chips. He loved this meal!

Alison over at As is suggested adding applesauce to the beets to make them sweeter. What a great idea! It went over so well. I added food coloring to make it look orange and JDaniel had no idea that he was having beets.

We also listened to Ross King’s Words That Rhyme With Orange CD. I love his music. Here is a link to the review I wrote for the CD.

 

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My Son Changed His Name To You

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For a very long time, JDaniel called himself Me. Everything was about a little boy named Me. A few weeks ago he changed his name to You. It was very confusing at first.

 

I would say, “ What would you like for lunch?”
He would say, “You cheese, bagel, gapes.”

 

I would say, “I would eat them. How about you?”
He would say, “You! You!” Then he would point to himself.

 

I would say, “You would like them for lunch?”
He would say again, “ You! You! (This time frantically pointing to himself.)

 

I would finally say, “ JDaniel would like cheese, bagel, and gapes.”
Finally, he would say, “Yes!” with an exasperated sigh.

 

How did I get into this mess? It started with my saying:
Are you ready to go upstairs?

 

Would you like to go to the park?

 

Are you the most beautiful toddler in the world?

 

You did a wonderful job.

 

You can play with bubbles.

 

I guess he decided that his name was now You.

 

At playgroup yesterday I found out that two of the other children in the group have changed their names too. They are also now named You.

 

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Seeing Red!

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Seeing Red Activity
JDaniel has decided that everything is blue or orange. I decided that we would work on exploring the color red this week. We used the great red bag I was sent by Pam from Country Mouse, City Mouse to look for red things around the house. There were a few items that JDaniel selected that weren’t really red, but for the most part he did a great job gathering a collection of red items. Not everything he found fit in the bag.

 

We will also be looking for red spots I am going to hide around the house, coloring a page of red objects, and looking for pictures of red things in magazines this week.

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Muffin Tin Monday- Red Tin Part Two

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I made JDaniel a tin filled with heart-shaped foods along with foods that were red or pink this week. He has a homemade pizza made with my sister’s homemade tomato sauce, tomatoes, ham, beets, and heart-shaped bread with strawberry cream cheese.

 

JDaniel loved the cream cheese! He barely touched the beets even though I told him that his grandmother loves beets. The homemade pizza was his favorite. He asked for it at every meal this weekend.

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We Got Snow! JDaniel Was So Happy!

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About three inches of snow fell here in South Carolina during the night! We had a wonderful time playing in it this morning. The last time we got snow JDaniel was just about to turn one. This was the first time he was able to walk around it and talk about it.

My Favorite Valentine’s Crafts and Ideas from Other Sites

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Here are some wonderful Valentine’s Day related blog entries and a cool website I found around the web.

Zillions of Valentine’s Day crafts and cookie projects are on Skip to My Lou. I have pictured my favorite one below.

Out of the Office has an amazing idea for a photo card with lollipop that jumps off of the page.

Activity Mom has Three Quick and Easy Heart Activities. JDaniel and I are going to do the heart hunt.

Make your own message on a graphic candy heart . You could spend hours creating these.

24/7 Moms have 14 Valentines Day Traditions and Celebrations For Families. I love their hot chocolate bar activity.

Our Country Road has a great sensory bucket activity for Valentine’s Day. This idea could be used in for any holiday or unit of study. If you like her idea, you may be able use it for St. Patrick’s Day or Easter.

Have fun checking them out. If you have an activity posted you would like me to take a look at, please leave the link for it in a comment. I will stop by and check it out.

My Little Valentine’s Head Was On Fire

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JDaniel seemed to be over his cold early in the week so; we went to playground and mom’s group events at church on Monday and Tuesday. When I went to get him after his nap on Tuesday, his little head was on fire. I held him of a couple minutes to comfort him and cuddle before using the thermometer on him to see how hot he was. The thermometer read 104 degrees. Despite his pleading to not be placed in the tub, he went into a tub of lukewarm water and had his hair wetted down. The only way he would cooperate was if he could keep his pacifier. Then he got some fever reducing medicine and a cup of water with a little jello mixed in. He drank the whole cup.
We then spent the next several hours reading books and watching a marathon on children’s shows on PBS. His temperature seemed to drop every time I checked it which was every forty five minutes. I was so thankful.
JDaniel didn’t want dinner. He sat in his highchair with his head on his tray while I tried to ply him with him favorite foods. (As many of you know he is always hungry. JDaniel’s lack of interest in food was alarming for my husband and me.) Finally before bedtime he drank some watered down juice.
The next morning his appetite hadn’t totally returned, but he did eat and was interested in playing and not being attached to mom like spider monkey. He did rebound at lunch and ate an almost normal dinner. JDaniel’s desire to run and play hide and seek after dinner was seen as a joyous event.
Today he is fussy and whining a lot, but he was doing that before the fever. I guess he is back to normal.

Valentine’s Day Fingerplays, Songs and Links- Links 4 Moms

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Here are some Valentine’s Day Songs and Fingerplays:

A Hug from you
Sung to: “Mary had a little lamb”
It’s nice to get to a hug from you,
Hug from you, Hug from you.
It’s nice to get a hug from you,
So, let’s give one right now.
(Hug a friend)

If you Love me and you know it
Sung to: “If your happy and you know it”
If you love me and you know it, Clap your hands.
If you love me and you know it, Clap your hands.
If you love me and you know it,
Then your face will surely show it.
If you love me and you know it, Clap your hands.
Other Verses:
Say “I Love you”
Blow me a kiss
Give me a hug

You are my Valentine
Sung to: “You are my Sunshine”
You are my Valentine, My special Valentine,
And I love you, yes I do.
You are my Valentine, My Special Valentine,
Please say you love me, too!

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Here are some links:

Jan Brett’s Valentine Activities

Vickie Blackwell’s Valentine’s Day Links

P.S. I sent this out with a misspelling in the title originally. I accidently clicked Publish before I had proofed it. I try to catch all errors before I send it out. I am so sorry this slipped through.

Valentine’s Day I Spy Bag Giveaway

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Last summer I got JDaniel an I Spy Bag to play with on a long car trip. He was too young to search for the objects on his own at 16 months. I squished an object into view and let him feel it. It really held his attention. As he has gotten older, he has been able to find objects on his own. JDaniel is just getting ready to turn two and he still plays with it on car trips, in doctor’s office, at home. This is a toy that he will play with for years to come.When you are done finding the objects, it is great to toss around or practice catching. Giggle Junction has some on the cutest designs for I Spy Bags you will ever see. Would you love one for someone in your life to enjoy?

Here is what Giggle Junction says about their I Spy Bags:

Giggle Junctions spy bags are made with soft flannel and are secured inside then turned and top stitched with a heavy duty utility stitch for added durability.
There are 30 miniature objects hidden among the non-toxic plastic pellets in the 7 x 7 square.Children hold the bags and use their hands to shift around the pellets to reveal the hidden objects in the spy window.

It’s perfect for children who prefer tactile games and encourages development of fine motor skills.

Instead of a word list of hidden objects, we choose to take the extra step and take a photo of the contents to promote independent play for young children not yet reading or with communication delays. They will easily be able to identify and match items from the card to the spy window.

We use a variety of window sizes for our bags. You will notice that our spy windows do not show everything at once because the purpose of a spy bag is for children to search for items, while larger windows make it less frustrating for younger children to spot multiple items….smaller windows challenge older children.

Here’s how win one:

*Visit Giggle Junction and tell me something that you love that they have for sale.

For extra entries do any or all of the following leaving a separate comment for each entry.

* Tell me who would get this gift. (1 entry)

*Write about this giveaway with a link back to it on Facebook or another social network site. (1 entry)

*Enter another giveaway that I am hosting. (1 entry for each giveaway you enter)
*Leave comment on non-giveaway blog post. (1 entry)

*Follow my blog. Leave me a comment saying that you now follow or that you already do. (1 entry)

* Twitter about this giveaway with a link back, you must also be following me on Twitter. Copy and paste: GiggleJunctionGiveaway@JDaniel4’sMom(1 entry per day)

* Subscribe to my blog. Leave me a comment saying that you have subscribed or that you already do. (1 entry)

*Add me to your blog roll. Please leave a link to your site.(2 entries)
*Add my button to your blog. Please leave a link to your site.(2 entries)

*Buy anything from Giggle Junction and come back and leave a comment saying you did. (10 entries)

That is 12 ways to win. The winner will be chosen by using the random number generator at http://www.random.org/.
This giveaway begins February 9th and ends February 16th. It is open to U.S residents.

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