The Battle of Brushing

I can admit it: I didn't start brushing my son's teeth as early as I should have. I regularly wiped his gums down with a rag before he had teeth. After his teeth came in, I sometimes gave him the banana brush to chew on, but until he was about 18 months, I didn't brush every day. And from 18 months until about 22.5 months (today marks 23 months) it has been a battle. Almost every night. And the nights it hasn't been a battle, I haven't had it in me to fight the good fight. I've "forgotten" to brush his teeth. Most mornings it is a battle too, but after sleeping and only having mama milk at night, I didn't feel as strongly about a thorough brushing in the morning. His meager brush chewing and sucking off the toothpaste has satisfied my morning demands.
I tried everything I could think of. One night, I literally heard myself say "There will be no chocolate tomorrow if you don't brush your teeth tonight." Ridiculous. Absolutely absurd. An empty threat and a pathetic one at that. He even knew I was balking. (And of course, at this point, has no ability to benefit at all from a consequence that is inflicted later.) But oh man, in the moment, I meant it. I probably would have threatened no chocolate ever again for the rest of his life, but he lives with his grandpa and I knew this out of my control.
We picked out new toothbrushes together, two of them. A car one and a cookie monster one so he could choose which one to brush with thinking this would be enough of a chance to exert his power of choice. He still chose not to cooperate with brushing. I tried singing goofy songs and doing silly dances.When you wake up in the morning at a quarter to one and all you wanna do is have some fun, you brush your teeth!  I tried reasoning with him. Your teeth with get boo boos if you don't brush and you don't want that! I tried begging. First with my mom-Will you please brush his teeth!!!!! and then with him--Come on, Zav. Please. I just need you to brush your teeth! I dreaded this part in our day. No matter how amazing our time had been, this is how we ended our day.

This one we staged and just pretended,  but it actually looked a lot like this!

Yes, I tried holding him upside down while I brushed. He thought it was fun to go upside down, until he saw the tooth brush heading his way.

Then, Mama Suerte took a deep breath (and a jar of peanut butter) and spent a good 45 minutes just reflecting on what hasn't work thus far in my parenting journey and why. Threats weren't working and they just aren't me. They aren't how I operate. We do goofy all day long so being goofy wasn't doing the teeth trick. Begging defeats the purpose. Even if it worksed, which it didn't, my goal was to teach him to brush his teeth and take care of his oral health as part of our successful bedtime routine. Then, I had the idea to try teaching him. He loves learning. He loves books that tell him facts and loves to recall these facts later. I decided to give it a try. I spent another twenty minutes researching his favorite topics.
The next morning (our more successful time--always a good time to introduce a kid to something new), I said "Oh buddy, as you brush today, I wanted to tell you something I learned about trucks!" I shared three facts about dump trucks slowly, as I brushed and re-brushed the surface of his teeth. That night? Concrete mixers. Again, a success. There's no fighting and no arguing. He just opens his mouth and lets me go to down. When he pulls away, I take out the brush and listen to what he wants to share, often something he knows about the topic, and then start again, overly excited to share the next fact.
So now, a few weeks later, I can tell you anything you want to know about fire trucks, dump trucks, bridges, New York City, his daddy, and firefighters. I'm researching new facts all the time.  Do you know that the driver of the biggest dump truck has to climb 14 steps to get in the driver's seat? I do. And so does Z-man.

Baby Shower by Mail

We have a new baby in the family! Welcome Baby! You are so loved already!

Before Newest Addition arrived, I knew I wanted to do something special for Mommy and Daddy-to-Be. There is so much to do to prepare for a baby and every bit helps. Plus, a new baby is a great reason to celebrate!

Why not just throw a baby shower? Well, they live in Missouri and they have family and friends throughout the US and in England. A traditional baby shower was kind of out of the question. I thought on this for a while and then decided to try throwing a baby shower by mail. 

I chose a ducky theme, because its super cute and because I remember feeling like I would never have all my ducks in a row when I was getting ready to have Z-man. I put together packets all decorated in ducks for twenty-five or so close female family and friends. Each packet included several activities with instructions to mail the completed parts back to me and to select a present and mail it directly to the Midwest.
The activities I included were:
-A card with wishes for Baby on it. I designed my own. Even though its not amazing design work, I'm proud of it and it included exactly the things I wanted it to. (Here is a downloadable version of it. It doesn't look so hot in the preview but looks normal once it is downloaded.)
-A card with advice for Mama-to-Be. Instead of re-inventing the wheel, I ordered this one. 
-Either a onesie or a bib to decorate.
-Envelopes for each participant to write their address on for easy thank you note-sending. One clever mama of four sent her envelope back sans an address, marking it "Do not send me a thank you card. You already have enough to do!" How true!
I also included a little goody bag like an actual shower- a ducky keychain with tiny duck candies, tagged "Thank you!"
After I received the completed packets, I laminated the baby wishes and complied them into a book. The mama advice cards went on a key ring for easy referencing. I stamped the envelopes and slipped a thank you card under the flap. Each onesie or bib was pinned with a duck that said "Made with love by _______"

I put all the parts inside the biggest box I could find, filled the box with confetti, ribbons, and balloons, stuck duck stickers all over the outside and the inside of the box, and taped a pink ribbon for Mama to wear while she opened it all right inside the flap.

The balloons were pretty flat by the time it arrived, but Mom and Dad loved it. She even video taped it so we could be part of her "shower."  I loved being part of helping them prepare for Baby and having a first hand glimpse at how loved and supported they are-even from a distance.

The Best of Community Helpers

As I prepare for March, Weather Month in my classroom, I packed up my teaching props and books about Community Helpers and returned all the various trucks to Z-man's collection. Some days in our classroom were so fun, I just had to share. Here are some of my favorite activities about Community Helpers (aside from the one I already shared):

-Sanitation Workers: We read Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman and David Clemesha (new favorite authors of Z-man's with their catchy versed-writing style and truck themes). The kids played with trash truck toys borrowed from my house, Lincoln Logs, and a mesh-style pencil holder that I picked up at the dollar bin. We filled sandwich bags with torn paper and knotted them to look like trash bags. I wish I had a good picture of this play, but all of my pictures have my students' faces in them. This was the "best of the best" according to 4 of ten students, a pretty high rating!

-Military: I incorporated a day about military last year when my brother joined the Marine Corps and now I can't imagine not including this. (Ooorah!) My kids painted our easel with green and brown paint, then rubbed paper over top of the paint to blend the colors and make a print. Camouflaged paintings! We cut ours to look like combat boots and laced them up with black string.

 

-Doctors: For doctors, we made a hospital like the fire house and they LOVED playing with toy ambulances and people figures in this hospital. We also made these health care collages that I found on Pinterest. As they made them, we talked about the tools that doctors used and discussed what they are used for. The students really enjoyed making these 3-D collages and becoming comfortable with some basic items that doctors use.

-Construction workers: We read Road Work by Sally Sutton and acted the book out with Z-man's trucks in this under the bed storage container filled with dirt. We added some water to make the dirt muddy and talked about the differences between dirt and mud.  

 

I also pre-cut shapes from foam to represent these cardboard blocks and worked one-on-one with the students to make building plans. Then, we worked together to follow the plans to construct the different structures. This was my favorite activity I have done thus far as a teacher. The learning opportunities were endless and they were so proud of their plans and their structures! 

 

My Little Yogi

Z-man and I have started a new routine...YOGA! I'm so excited. I've been wanting to incorporate some morning or evening yoga into our daily routine. Maybe this will help us connect more, be a fun bonding activity, and will provide him with some coping skills that I can remind him (and myself) of during stressful, angry, sad, or grumpy times. I figure the more tools I can give my kid to handle life's stress, the better.
I came across a pin for a website that has a handful of easy yoga poses with kid-friendly names and clear descriptions. I wrote down the ones I wanted to introduce to Z-man. I have been to less than five yoga classes in my life, so I'm learning along side my guy.
We started on a Saturday morning when Z's dad was in town and he participated, too. First, I asked Z if he wanted to do yoga. To my surprise, he said yes and started showing me some moves of his own. He put his feet high in the air and balanced on his bottom-a valiant attempt at the boat pose.

Ignore the constipated look; I swear he was actually having fun!

Our first time doing yoga, I modeled the poses I had written down, encouraging Z and his dad to join in. He loves the Donkey. We "hee-haw" as we hold this pose, which makes it so much more fun.

Our pjs are pretty cute, huh?

Jumping Tree is my favorite. We hold hands and raise a leg, jumping slightly until he starts to fall. We yell out "TIMBER!" as he falls slowly to the ground.

 The Flying Heart is very calming, though I think we have only successfully held this pose for about five seconds together.

When Z switches poses or moves on to a nearby tractor or drum, I continue with the pose for a few seconds and dramatize what I'm doing to encourage him to join back in. If he doesn't buy in, I move to the next pose- asking him if he wants to do the "falling star!!!!" with lots of excitement.

The coolest thing we have done with our yoga--and I use the term yoga loosely-- is tell a story. We used the wolf pose, child pose (for the pigs),  and deep breaths (in through nose, out through mouth) to act out The Three Little Pigs. This was so much fun. Z-man brought it up several times later in the day, demonstrating his howling wolf and talking about his chin-y chin chin.

Namaste, friends!

Seven Little Minutes a Day

Since I had Z-man, I have not had a normal work out routine. I've made grand plans to do all kinds of exercising, from running (I HATE IT) or Zumba (my fave, but not so kid friendly) to yoga (still working on this) or Wii Fit (by the time I get the Wii up and running, I'm over it). When I work out, I am more balanced, healthier, and less stressed. All good things. The problem is, once I get Z-man in bed, I'm tired. AND I still have a long to-do list! Being motivated to work out has been a challenge.
About two months ago, I was glancing through a magazine in a orthodontist waiting room with the kids I nanny when I came across a blip about the best apps of 2013.  One caught my eye. An app that leads you through a seven minute work out that has been scientifically proven to be effective? EFFECTIVE IN SEVEN SHORT MINUTES? Sign me up! 
The work out is pretty self explanatory and as challenging as you make it. When I'm tired, I run the app once (12 exercises, 30 seconds each, with 10 second rest between each) and give it as much effort has I have left in me. Other days, I run the app a few times and pump it out. When I can't bear the idea of doing side planks or push ups, I switch out the side planks for a similar exercise. I have consistently done this work out at least three times a week for two months now. Some weeks, I have done it every day. Finally, I found a work out that this mama can stick with!

Fire Fighter Fun

My classroom theme is Community Helpers this month. Our school tries to incorporate 3-D art into classroom learning so when I came across this diaper box upcycle, I was inspired. My students painted three diaper boxes, one red (fire house), one blue (police station), and one white (hospital). 

On fire fighter day, the kids drew plans of what the station should look like. I gathered some accessories such as construction paper flames, red ribbons, and white rope "hoses" and followed their plans as best I could. I pulled the Lincoln Logs out of my cabinet and we borrowed fire trucks from my Z-man's collection and from other classes. 

 

This quickly became the most played with toy in the classroom. One student even added a second level for the fire fighters to sleep.  (I was too busy enjoying their creativity to snap a pic.) They pretended that various areas of the room were on fire with paper and ribbon flames and called 911 on play phone in the classroom. The fire trucks raced out of he station to the rescue. Luckily, the rope hoses put out the fires quickly, but this play opened the door for some great fire safety conversations, too!
As an added bonus, Z-man, who plays in my class before and after school, loves this. All week he has been happily entertained with these boxes for about 20 minutes of independent play at a time! That's a goldmine with my 21-month old. Winner all around!

My New Classroom Easel

During a recent trip to NYC, we took Z-man to The Children's Museum of Manhattan. Among their four awesome floors and various rooms to explore is an art area. They have what is basically a light box on the wall with a drip container underneath. Then there are shower squeegees and spray bottles for museum-goers to wipe away their masterpieces after painting. I felt inspired. I found some plexiglass left over from some project my dad started years ago, bought a $17 window planter from Home Depot and a $3 squeegee from IKEA, and created this.

My students love this. They stand in line to take turns. I'm not sure whether they enjoy painting the board or wiping it away more. I love that I don't have dozens of pages with drippy paint drying around the classroom. I love the way they manipulate the spray bottle and test which distance from the plexiglass works best for optimal erasing. I love how the paint slides down like rain once its been sprayed. I just love this.

(I DO NOT love cleaning it. The planter is not as easy to clean as I wish it was. The drain in the planter is not where the watery paint collects when it is hung like I have it. A drill and a new stopper could fix that, I think.)