Five Little Snowflakes

Five Little Snowflakes

Five little snowflakes with noting to do.

Along came another and

Then there were two.

Two little snowflakes laughing with me.

Along came another, and

Then there were three.

Three little snowflakes looking for some more.

Along came another, and

Then there were four.

Four little snowflakes dancing a jive.

Along came another, and

Then there were five.

Five little snowflakes having so much fun.

Out came the sun, and

Then there were none!

This is such a cute little song to do with children it teachers counting, number order, and when you do it with the hand movements they are learning coordination and so much more. At the end of this song my daughter and I always say "We're melting" and she laughs and laughs.

Also along with the song we do an art project!! yay. I cutout snowflakes and we decorated these (there are more to come with different way to decorate) these we did dobber art! I got bingo dobbers at the dollar store for her to use. Dobber art is fun for all ages because it helps them with fine motor and they love it!

There are a number of things that you can do with these snowflakes I am going to string mine on fishing line and hang then across a large doorway in my home so that we can sing, point and count the snowflakes as we sing the song. You could put them on your cabinets to decorate, on your walls, in front of your windows, on your windows and so many more places. Children love having their art displayed around the house if you can try to hang some of the art eye level so that they can enjoy their creations too!



Do you believe in Magic?

What makes children so happy? If you ask a psychologist they will tell you that when a child's basic needs are met they are content and therefore are able to be happy. I think children are naive, most often when people hear that word naive they take it as an insult and who knows I suppose when your talking to another adult and you tell them that they are naive it can be an insult but I don't mean it that way...

I think children are happy because their are naive... the very definition in Merriam-Webster says "naive - is marked by unaffected simplicity, lacking understanding and worldly experience..."

Children aren't tainted by the world, they look at everything with fresh new eyes. We are caregivers, whether your mom, dad, grandma, aunt, uncle, sister, brother, whoever... its our job to guide them. If we want to make an event wonderful or miserable that's how the event is going to turn out. We have the ability to control the outcome so we have to stay positive. Okay before I go on and on about being positive I am going to stop myself there and get back to my main point... which was... Magic!

The best part about being a kid is experience the excitement of the unknown, we forget that as adults because its been so long since we were able to experience that excitement that we are to far removed. But its important when you become the parent in the circumstance to let your child experience it. Let them believe in Santa, the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, let them believe in fairy tales of far off lands, and in those intangible things that they can not touch.  When asked how to develop intelligence in young people Albert Einstein said "Read Fairy Tales."!

"What IS this thing called imagination? Imagination is the power of forming a mental image of something not present to the senses or never before wholly perceived in reality. It is a creative ability or mental capacity for experiencing, constructing and manipulating mental images. "

Being a kid is the most important time in a child's life, it forms who they are going to be as adults, their character, their beliefs, their goals and their perspective on life. Having a creative sense of self is important so let them believe in Never Never Land for a little while, let them believe Santa comes through a key hole of chimney to deliver them presents. There is going to come a day when they no longer believe in such things let them have it while they can....Who knows allowing your child to have more of an active imagination they might use that to become a great composer, create a new invention, solve world hunger :)

Lesson Learned - "Let my child be a child... they have their whole life ahead of them to learn life's disappointments they don't need to be little adults now!"

Through a Child's Eyes - Visitor's Poem

by Stacey Deland
(Massachusetts, USA)

Light of day.
Has crawled out to play.
When you're awake.
They come out of the bay.

They skip and jump.
Come out to be seen.
Get you on your feet.
Make your wildest dreams.

It has the courage
To have fun all day
Instead of being boring
And doing work all the way.

It takes over children
Let them dream away
No one's alone
They all stand around to play

No matter who
I can honestly say
That all this happiness
Has hopefully come to stay

Just when you've forgotten
As you go to bed
When you wake up the next morning
It happens all over again

Life Path Number

Tomorrow is 11.11.11! I don't know if you think that's lucky or not but I sure do. Glynis McCants a numerologist says that 11.11.11 is a BIG DEAL! Its a master number in numerology and tomorrow is a launch date. 11.11.11 looks like a doorway so you have 3 different doors to choose!

What's that one thing that you've been thinking about doing in your life but have been putting off for along time? Thinking of getting married, perfect day, thinking of quitting smoking, thinking of babies (wink wink) tomorrow is the day to accomplish ALL your dreams. Glynis McCant says light a white candle and write down what you want to accomplish before the end of the year because its still possible!

Here is how to figure out your life number:

Example: Let's take Leonardo DiCaprio whose birthday happens to be tomorrow!

Leo's birthday is 11.11.1980 so you break that down...
1+1+1+9+8+0 = 20 and 2 + 0 = 2!


So Leo's life number is a 2! There are numbers ranging from 1-9.

I am a 9, so it says that I have a strong sense of compassion and generosity. You tend to be quite sensitive, as you see the world with much feeling. The number 9's very deep understanding of life is sometimes manifested in the artistic and literary fields. If drama and acting is not your forte, it will surely be an area of great interest and potential. Likewise, you may be able to express your deep emotional feelings through painting, writing, music, or other art forms.
The purpose of life for those with a 9 life path is often of a philosophical nature. Judges, spiritual leaders, healers and educators frequently have much 9 energy. The number is less inclined to the competitive business environment and may find this a struggle.

For the most part I think this hit it pretty on mark for me.

To view your life number and the full explanation of all of the numbers go to:
http://www.astrology-numerology.com/num-lifepath.html

Its kind of interesting to see how well your number fits you and its fun to do it for your children to see what their life number is and how many of the characteristics you can already see of it in them!
Have fun and share your numbers!!

Sohpia Grace on Ellen

This litlte girl is amazing... and my daughter loves to watch it sooo cute!

A Tree of Thanks...

I think it is very important for our children to learn to be thankful for everything they have. Children often think of things they have as being toys, books, games and things that they can touch rather than the more important things that are there but they can't see.

A great way to help children visualize things they are thankful for is to make A Tree of Thanks!

Every night at dinner time we get out a new leaf and start to think of what are are thankful for either that day, or overall in our lives. My daughter is a bit young so her dad and I contribute most of the ideas. But when we are done writing we take her over to the tree and say "Thank You"and she looks at the tree puts the new leaf on and says "Thank You." With older children it will be a great way to start conversations are the dinner table to connect with each other.

Family dinner at the table, with all electronics turned off is so important. With all of lives activities of work, school, after school activities there are many reasons why family dinners are important part of healthy living. The two most important ones in my opinion are:

1.Children and adults each better when sitted at the table together

2. Creating an atmosphere around the dinner table where you are giving your full attention to your children allows them to feel like they are important and they will be more willing to share their ideas, thoughts, feelings and concerns with you.

If your schedule is really busy and your thinking I would love to do this but there just isn't enough time in the day, set some realistic goals for yourself. Maybe two times a week might it a priority to get together with the family, keep it simple kids don't care if its a four coarse meal or not. Most important make it enjoyable! Save the serious discussions for another time.

Even if you don't have kids this can be important time for you and your partner to connect. I know that I like doing the tree of thanks and family dinner with my husband because it gives us time to sit without distractions and tell each other about our days, about our thoughts and feelings and just to re-connect with each other!

What are you most thankful for in your life?

All because two people fell in Love!

I wanted to take some time to back it up a little and tell you all about my journey becoming a mother... Boy was this road bumpy. My husband and I have been together for 12 years, we are high school sweet hearts, married 9 of those years. We always knew that after college and buying a house that we wanted a family, a big family. I am the eldest of 5 and he is an only child, so we decided that someplace in the middle is where we wanted to be.
We didn't actually start thinking and preparing for a family until about 5 years ago, I am currently 27 so around 22 I started seriously being like OK!!! its time! After trying on our own for along time we decided that perhaps it was time to see someone to figure out what was not happening. I was told that I have polysistic ovarian syndrome, basically it makes my mental cycle all blah so I don't ovulate or I do at weird times. At 22 I basically took this as okay well we'll see what happens I guess. Than as the years were progressing and nothing was happening I started to get kind of frustrated thinking that maybe we were going to need to go a step further and think about seeing a fertility doctor.
Than in December of 2008 I knew something was different and on January 7, 2009 I had a home pregnancy test... I took about 10 tests, because I knew my body before the test would become positive, than I took 2 home pregnancy tests because I was for sure thinking it was a false negative... than I went to the doctor and made him to a test and sure enough my little peanut was in there!

I definitely think of my daughter as a miracle, for someone who was told that I would probably not be able to have kids on my own this was such a wonderful surprise and blessing. Everything in my pregnancy was going great, I loved being pregnant, I loved feeling the flutters and the eventual kicking. I talked to her everyday (actually I was convinced she was a boy at the beginning) but none the less I talked and played music, started buying baby things, started picking out names. We started working on the baby's room pretty early on because I wanted everything to be perfect (there's that word again, if you've read any of my previous blogs you'll see I got over this ideal or perfect or I'm trying to).

At 33 weeks I started to have a really bad cough, we actually went on vacation to Niagara Falls on July 12 and I was feeling terrible by the end of the trip. Mind you camping at 33 weeks pregnant was a BAD idea! Any who, when we came home from camping, I went to see the doctor because I literally thought I was going to cough my baby up because it was soo bad. He said everything was fine.........

It wasn't.. two days later I ended up in the emergency room being told I needed to be transported to a bigger hospital because they were going to be doing an emergency c-section (oh that's right you having your baby NOW) and that I have congestive heart failure.. WHHHHHHHAAAAAATTTT <---that's what was going on in my mind. On Saturday night I spent the night in the local emergency room, Sunday morning I was transported to bigger hospital everything became a blurr from the morning until I was on the table and they were cutting me open, all I remember was that they wouldn't let my husband come in the room which made me hysterical, and there was this anesthesiologist that was so nice he kept rubbing my arm and saying its okay and talking to me the whole time. I remember some tugging and pulling and than they said "the baby is out" and I said "its still a girl right?"

My husband says they showed me the baby and I kissed her, he says I called people and sent out text messages saying that we welcomed our baby girl. But I don't have any memory of any of it. After having my daughter I was put into an induced coma because of the heart failure fluids were backing up into my lungs making it impossible to breath they needed to incubate me so that they could get all the fluid out. A normal heart beats at an EF (ejection fraction) of 60%-65%. After having my daughter mine was at a 5%.

When I woke up from the induced coma a week later, A WEEK! the first WEEK of my babies life!!! I was getting better, still had an EF of 5% but I was able to breath off of the tubes. They brought my daughter to see me once in the ICU (where I was) she was in the NICU but healthy just small and needed the first night to be on a breathing machine. The first time I really remember seeing her was when I got to go to the NICU and I remember thinking she's so small 4lbs! How am I going to take care of this little baby, I cried. Cried because I was meeting her after a week, cried because I didn't know how to take care of her, cried because my husband had the week from hell, overjoyed at becoming a father... grief stricken over watching me in a coma for a week... wondering the halls of the hospital back and forth from her to me. I cried because they said I was going to need a defibrillator. I cried because this joyous time, this most special moment in my life was ripped out of my hands before I even had a chance to touch it.

After 14 days in the hospital, we both came home. I came home 4 days before my daughter I think because they wanted to give me time to settle in. At home my EF was still 5%. I was going to need intensive cardiology care, medication, and prayers. When we brought our baby home it was the best feeling for us all to finally be home under one roof, finally able to start living as the family I had thought we were going to be.
Over the next year my heart got stronger it is now at 60%! I still am on medicine to help it heal and stay strong but it continues to get better. I was diagnosed with postpartum cardiomyopathy, such a mouth full. I can't watch people having babies on TV, I HATE heart commercials, I hate when they show someone from congestive heart failure dying. It makes me cry, I know I'm okay now... but I wasn't than. Its so much to get over, its so much to be able to put a happy face on over such a messed up situation that was suppose to be one of the happiest times of my life. I still feel like everyday I am making up for the week I lost. A lot of people don't understand that, but for me having my baby in the NICU and not being there that first week to foster, nurture and cherish her is forever going to be the most regrettable thing in my life.

The ONLY thing that gets me through is my daughter, she is 2 years old now happy, healthy, strong, and beautiful!

Now 2 years later we are thinking of having another, I've started to speak with the cardiologist and high risk OB. There is no telling with cardiomyopathy if it will come back or not, the only thing I can do is arm myself with the best doctors, stay healthy and pray.

Up, Up, and Away...

When I first came home with my little baby I was let's just say a little over protective! I was definitely the mother that was like wash your hands, don't talk to loud, are we DOING this right!!!! One of my biggest fears was leaving my baby. I didn't want anyone else to watch her when she was a baby, alright, alright if anyone who knows me reads this they are going to be thinking and probably saying to themselves you STILL DON'T.

But let me tell you that in the last two years I've realized that while it is important for me to spend the most time with my daughter, I am after all the person who she learns from, is nurtured by and receives comfort from. No one else is going to kiss booboo's like momma or know by a certain cry what it is exactly that she wants. But a burnt out momma isn't good for mother or child.

I've learned to not feel guilty for the time that I need to spend away from her, it doesn't mean I don't love her it just means that I am still a person, a women besides MOMMY! When children spend time away from their primary care giver it gives them the chance to
1. Bond with other adults and form relations with them
2. Learn that not only mommy can lay down the law they need to listen to other adults as well
3. Gives them a different perspective on learning how people interact with each other, how things are done.
4. Creates an atmosphere where your child can adapt better to people and changes.

I know that one of my biggest fears of leaving my daughter is that no one is going to take care of her like I do, but I need to realize (yes I said need I'm still working on it) is that just because its different doesn't mean its BAD. A lot of families have support systems that allow them to be free with whom they can leave their child with, they have active grandparents, sisters, cousins or such. But what about when that isn't available.

I know that from my own experience, my parents are not active grandparents because of health condistions that wouldn't allow them to be as active as my two year old is. My sisters, while they are great with my daughter have lives of their own and often are not there to be that consistent babysitter that I need. That's where a nanny or a babysitter whatever you want to call them come in, from personal experience as a babysitter/nanny that the bond I have with the children that I care for is special. I am apart of their lives, they generally are excitied to see me and spend time with me and I cherrish that.

That is why my husband and I have decided to find a babysitter who can be there to help out once in awhile, someone my daughter can have a special relationship with so that I can have a special relationship with myself and my husband.

I should mention that the first time I left my daughter was to go to a friends home for their birthday party and have a couple of drinks afterwards, I cried immidiatly after leaving the house, my sister was the babysitter in this case and I think that I texted her every 10 to 15 minuets to ask that everything was okay! Now when I go out I perhaps maybe text only every half hour....

Lesson learned to challenge myself and allow my daughter to foster relationships that are not with me and my husband... How do other parents do with this?

Spooktacular!

Happy Halloween! One of the biggest beliefs as a mother is that holidays should be made special for your children. I'm not saying that everything needs to be over the top but its about small little things that make your child feel special around the the event.  Growing up I didn't always feel special around events, I always felt like they were a lot of work for my parents.
That's why I try to make events feel fun and effortless for my child, even if they are a lot of work, money, time and effort I do it because I want her to have the memories and traditions that she can lok back to her childhood with smiles and good thoughts.

One of the easiest and cheapest ways to make events feel special is do to some cheap decorations.. my daughter and I have been decorating construction paper leaves, pumpkins, trees, apples and scarecrow they are hung up all of our home to showcase her art work and get her into the season fun! There are so many websites that have toddler crafts that are simple and easy to do some of the better ones are enchanted learning and DLTK kids. These specific pumpkins pictured below are 5 little pumpkins, its a huge little rhyme that goes with it..

Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate,
the first one said "Oh my its getting late"
the second one said "There are witches in the air"
the third one said "But we don't care"
the fourth one said "Let's run and run and run"
the fifth one said "I'm ready for some fun"
 OOOhhh went the wind and out went the lights..
and the five little pumpkins rolled out of sight.

There are hand movements to go along with this that teach your child a number of things like counting, sequencing and more. Also there are a number of sites that you can print the book and color it to add to the fun.
My daughter and I also made cupcakes, which I also did to the theme of Five Little Pumpkins because she is absolutely in love with it! There are usually a number of free halloween events that you can find to do with your child. At the local community center, town events, and more. Sometimes if you checkout the Parks and Recreation website for your town you can find a number of them.

The best part of Halloween was seeing my daughter go up to the houses and say in her newly learned phrase "Trick or Treat" and than say Thank You and Bye without prompting. She absolutly loved running around and seeing all of the other kids. Mental Picture added to my library of happy thoughts.

These are such important times for kids, benchmarks if you will. I know bigger things are yet to come like first day of school, plays, graduations, and such but I think that not only these events add to happy childhood memories but also that time when they were a child and dad dressed up like the hulk to go trick or treating with his little girl.

First time mom lesson learned is that putting to much pressure on these events makes them stressful! when your working with kids of any age things are not always going to go by plan, sometiems they won't want to wear that costume, or dress up the way you want them to, sometimes they will have a fit in the middle of the event, sometimes everything will go wrong but if you can learn to laugh at those moments and stay calm the event won't be ruined it'll just go off a little big differently and that's okay, not everything needs to be perfect (I said that for your benefit as much as for my own :) )

Another day in the life of Mommy!

Welcome!!

Welcome to the first post of what I hope to be many of Job Title Mommy! I hope to use this blog to share my story as a mother with you, by no means do I mean to give advice but if someone can take something meaningful from the stories and ideas I share how great would that be.

I am a stay at home mother to a child of one, hopefully to be many some day (smiling). I started my journey as a mother on rocky ground (that's a whole other story which I will share someday). Now, still a beginner I am two years in as a stay at home mother, the hardest job I think a person can have. Not tooting my own horn.

I started out with this ideal of what becoming a mother would be like, the "perfectness" of what my new little family would be like. How I would be the modern day June Clever, and everything about my household and home would be perfect... an idea I quickly abandoned! Not to say that my family isn't perfect, they are perfect to me, but our household isn't always clean, my daughter sometimes eats junk food and watches too many cartoons and I sometimes cook already prepared meals. But along the way I've learned to pick my battles, and not sweat the small stuff.

This is my journey....I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have living it!