Potty Training: When they don't want to go.

For the first few weeks Girlygirl loved to go to the potty just wasn't sure when she needed to go. Now she knows when she needs to go most the time but she doesn't like to stop what she is doing to go. There are a few things I have done to help her.

1. As I have done from the beginning I keep stickers and a sticker book in the bath room. She doesn't even have to go to get it. If she sits on the potty then she can play with it while she tries to go.
2. I often go in the bathroom with her and read books with her.
3. I have notice that she doesn't want to miss her morning TV. So if after trying to get her to come to the potty she doesn't come I bring her little potty out in front of the TV. I know it maybe bad but it works for us.
4. I give her a choice of using the big potty or little potty.
5. Sometimes I need her to try and she doesn't want to go and crys but that is okay and most the time she still goes and is happy in the end.

You know your child best and if you have to just stop for a week or two and then come back that is fine too. Making potty training work for both you and your child is the only rule there is if you ask me.

Toddler and Discipline

I tell everyone who says that Girlygirl is too good "It is because I am a mean mom." I say it jokingly but it is kind of true in today world. I don't think that Girlygirl should always be happy. I have thought that a child should listen to what I say at every age. The number one way to do this is to make them no matter what. If Girlygirl crys because she doesn't want to pick up what she just threw I make here by taking her hand and help her do it. If she takes her hair bow out I put back it in. If she crys in the car I i stop and have her sit until she is done. I sometime take her out off the car others i get out. Both work. She has learned that I mean what I say. It is not the easy way today but it will pay off big time later.

A family needs team work

Well, we may not really be a family but after having 5 kids all summer I learn a few things. Mom can't do it all. We all have to work together as a team. The silly thing is I knew that but by the end of the Big Kids 6 weeks here I was trying to do it all. Let me tell you I was not very happy nor was I very nice. At the time I didn't see why but now looking at pictures from the first weeks I remember why. A family needs team work. Those first weeks where great this kids work together and got a long. The less I started to expect from them the worse all 5 got. A family needs team work.

Preschool: Learning Colors

I have been trying to teach Girlygirl her colors. I don't homeschool with her yet but we work on learning. Today I have been teaching the color purple. I never sat her down and said let's learn about purple. I just made it purple day. When she painted this morning she used purple paint; also she made purple with red and blue. I have these bath fizzy things. They change the color of the water. We had a purple bath. With lunch we had purple cabbage and grape juice. Girlygirl wear purple clothing. We looked for everything we could find that was purple. I look forward to sharing all our color days with you.

Top 5 Bath Toys for Toddlers

Girlygirl's favorite bath toys are not all really bath toys. Here is our top five favorite bath toys.

1. a used sprinkle jar
2. a sand bucket
3. cups the more the better
4. bubbles
5. bath crayons

If you have not yet tried these with your little one you may want to add them to your next bath time. What are your child's favorite bath time toys? update: We have add one more toy to our bath a doll.

A Block Can be anything

With a little imagination a block can become anything you want it to be. From simple rolling on the ground and saying vrom vrom it has become a car. With the same block it your can make a train "Choo Choo!" Stand to blocks up and make them talk to each other "Hi Sally how are you?" says the first. "Good thank you!" says the second. As your child child is ready for more add other toys to make block time more fun. We have lots of animals which are great with the blocks to make a farm or zoo. Blocks make great fences and trees. Your little one love his cars add blocks to the make a town with roads and all. Do you have little people your child doesn't touch add them with the blocks and teach your child to make a home, a store or what ever they can think of. The possibility are endless. Remember your child may need to been shown that a block can be more than a block. Once they see they will think of more things than you and I.

Potty Training

We have went to underwater with Girlygirl. We have been using the potty when she wanted for about year now. I like to start let them try when the are young. She wanted to use underwear about 6 months ago but she wasn't ready. Now I say it is time. We will see how it goes. Here are a few potty training tips:

• Start by just letting the get use to the potty. (I do this at 9-12 months) Nothing big just sit on the potty when you do or before the bath. Do this until you ready to train.
• I like to go right to underwear when out. Use rubber pants and bring extra clothing. It is life go with it. I don't like Training Pants because kids know they are diapers. There are time you may want to use them
• I can't stay home all the time so we do go on like normal. Like I said i just bring a change of clothing for when we are out. Make sure to go potty at every stop and more than one time for long stops.
• If you are like me you will forget to bring your child potty when you are home. I use the kitchen timer. We don't always use the the same time. In the morning Girlygirl can go for over 30 min. but after nap it may be every 10 min. Just go with what you think your child needs.
• Find something that makes your child like it. For Girlygirl most the time I can just sing the potty song. "Pee pee in the potty. Pee pee in the potty. Who went pee pee in the potty? Girlygirl went pee pee in the potty. Yepee!!!"
• When she doesn't want to sit we read, sing or she plays with stickers.
• Remember to make it your own. You know your child best and you too. Do what works best for both of you.

Homeschool Preschool links

I will just update this as I find stuff. I hope that you can use them as well as I. This is a great blog about montasory preschool. There is not much there but I like what she has

Learning ABC in the Tub!!

Because learning is the must fun when you don't know you are learning. We use the foam bath letters in the tub to help Girlygirl learn her letter and there sounds. I will also write the letter with tub carayons on the tub. Girlygirl will now act like she is writing letters and she the names to letters. It works great with kids who can't sit still. You may not see if for a long time but one day it will hit and all the work will pay off.

Play to Learn: blocks

From the time Girlygirl was first a toddler I gave her blocks to play with. I remember my mom talking about a workshop she went to (she is a preschool teacher). It was all about blocks she told me how great blocks where at teaching. I have now found the info she told me and I want to share some with you. They have so much to teach.

imagination and creativity

self-confidence by allowing a child to be in control and having a feeling of accomplishment

provide opportunities for dramatic play, sharing and cooperative efforts

responsibility for block care and clean-up

involves math and science pre-number skills ie. size, shape, matching and classification, problem solving is inherent in block play

visual discrimination, a pre-reading skill

insight into concepts of inside/outside, open/closed

development of language and vocabulary through discussion and description

mapping skills

color recognition, patterning

develop gross motor skills through lifting, carrying and stacking

develop fine motor skills with smaller blocks

refine eye/hand coordination

Remember the next your child picks up a block to play that they learning. So you can say you are homeschooling. Your child is learning a lot.

Toddler: Starting Table time

Table time is something I learned to do long before I became a mom. I have been a nanny for 3 years and my last Mom/boss had me do it with her girls. The oldest was easy like Girlygirl. I started when she was two and she would sit for over an hour doing whatever you told her to. The younger did not like it much. She started when she was a little over one. I would put her in her high chair with a few toys well I cleaned lunch. It took me 10 min top. For over a month she would cry before the time was up and all the toys would be on the be on the ground. By the age of 2 she could still not do table time for more than 25 min. Just go with your kid and start small and move to more time when you can. Remember you are the boss not your child.

Top 5 Activities For Toddlers

Top 5 Activities For Toddlers

1. Bag things up-it doesn't have to be a bag Girlygirl likes a her toy shopping cart and rolling bag best.
2. Ride in the Laundry Basket-just put them in push or pule them around. Be a bus, a car, or a train to make it even more fun.
3. A big box-to hide in, color, make a house or whatever they can do.
4. Glue-now this one is messy but they love it. You just need per-cut paper and glue. To help Girlygirl but paper in the right place I tell her to hide the glue.
5. Bubbles-no more needs to be said

Homeschool Preschool: The Jar part 2

Here are some pictures of Girlygirl playing with the jar.  She loves the stuff and it make her have to use her imagination.

Homeschool Preschool: Sticker Table time

When I posted last time I said that Grilygirl needs to help with the sticker so I took of the back ground well she no long needs help with it. She has learned to do the stickers all by herself. This is one of Girlygirl's favorite table time active. I give her a notebook or paper stickers and markers or crayons. She will do this for the whole 30 min. It is great when I am hurrying to make dinner.

Homeschool Preschool: The Jar

The Jar is just full of stuff found around my house that I thought Girlygirl could play with.  I got the idea from Guilt Free Homeschooling. Carolyn uses it as a math tool for children to do sorting. Look at her blog for ideas.  Right now Girlygirl really just plays with it at table time. I am sure it will later change as more of a teaching tool. I found a dog treat jar at the Dollar Store.

I filled it with all kinds of fun stuff. Look at the pictures and list for ideas. You  don't need to buy any thing.

In The Jar:

• fake followers
• old caps
• foam letters
• clothes pins
• pompoms
• paper clips
• an few old game pieces
• army men
• baby spoons
• small meal toys
• broken wand top

When making your jar just add things you have in the house if you don't have much to start that is fine things will show up later. I plan to add more and change ours as time goes on.