I know my dear friends have been asking when I would be coming back to blogging. Let me tell you I missed it. A day didn’t go by that it didn’t cross my mind. And each activity I did with my boys made me think of how much I wanted to share it with my readers. I LOVE coming up with creative teaching ideas for my boys…and I love helping others do the same. That’s what my blog is all about. So here I am again 🙂
A quick explanation on why I took such an abrupt break: God. I really had gotten away from worshipping Him properly. My life should reflect the precious sacrifice His son made on the cross for me. I should be living with intention on serving Him…but I wasn’t. And in all honesty- I am STILL working my way through this. I’m still going to church and Bible studies, but what was missing was my personal fellowship with Him. I wasn’t taking the time to read His word or pray with a sincere heart. I was not serving my husband in a God honoring way either (I was kind of a bum for a while- neglecting housework and such). So I took a break to get my priorities back in order. I am so thankful I did because my days are less stressful and result in more peace and joy. So thank you to my God who has given me (what feels like) more time in my day. For getting my priorities right and continuing to guide me.
Now onto a very quick activity that I did with Cannon a few days ago.
If you’ve been around my blog for a while, you know I’m a frugal mama that tries to use whatever I have on hand to make activities for my boys. They typically cost me no money and offer many (novel) learning opportunities. Toddlers (well, at least my toddler) can easily grow tired of the same materials and toys (that’s why so many parents rotate toys in their home). The same is true about learning materials. If Cannon has seen it and used it several times in the last month, he won’t be interested in the activity I have to offer. But I don’t have a ton of money to be spending on new materials every month, so I use what’s on hand around the house. This activity came from some packaging (Styrofoam) and toothpicks form my kitchen.
Once he was familiar with the materials, I started color matching them saying aloud “I’m matching the blue toothpick with the blue circle.” I could tell he wasn’t quite ready for that step, but I continued dialoging and modeling anyways because one day he will be ready and setting the example for ordering/sorting now lays a great foundation for when that day comes. (I am setting the pathways in his brain for order- theoretically making the pathways easier to access later because there is already a foundation for them being built now).
Another important part of my dialogue is to make connections to things he does know (because emotional attachments create strong memories). Since I know how much Cannon loves daddy’s “blue truck ” (that’s what he calls it), I ask him if the blue toothpick reminds him of daddy’s blue truck. My son also has a special affinity for bananas (what toddler doesn’t??) So for the yellow toothpick I reminded him that his favorite snack (bananas) are also yellow.
We didn’t spend too much time on this activity. Just 10 minutes or so. Forcing my toddler to “work” an activity longer than he’d like is counter productive to my goal of having him enjoy learning! When he started breaking up the Styrofoam into small pieces, I knew he was done and moving onto a new activity 🙂
If you’re just starting out on creating activities for your munchkins, don’t feel bad if it only keeps their interest for a few minutes. For a toddlers/infants, every minute counts! (Cannon sleeps for a total of 12-14 hours a day…so if I do only 6 ten minute activities a day with him, that represents 1/10th of his total time awake!)
I have so many more activities to share form the time I was on blogging hiatus. And new ones are popping into my mind all the time! I hope you’ll come back soon and discover more ways to entertain and educate your munchkins 🙂 While you’re at it, feel free to “subscribe” and “follow” me so you can be updated every time I post a new activity 🙂
Thanks for visiting!