Saturday, February 20, 2010

Text messages to help new mothers

New mothers don't always know what to do during their first pregnancy and the first year of their baby's life. Text4baby offers a free mobile information service to anyone who needs it. They send you facts, information, and guidelines via your mobile phone regarding your pregnancy. All you have to do is text BABY to 511411 and specify how many months you are and the predicted date of birth. From there, text4baby will send you 6 text messages during the first week, and after that 3 weekly tips timed to their due date or baby's month of birth.

These tips will cover a variety of topics including:
-Immunization
-Nutrition
-Seasonal Flu
-Mental Health
-Smoking & Alcohol
-Oral Health
-Safe Sleep

Information about child birth and prenatal care is provided by National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition with support from Centers for Disease Control & Prevention and the Health Resources and Services Administration. Following message development, they underwent a review process by several government organizations.

Research shows that 90% of mothers have cell phones. Allowing this important information to be at such easy access will save the lives of babies and mothers everywhere. Just knowing the right information will decrease the number of premature births, birth defects, and birth fatalities in the country, all of which are associated with lack of prenatal care.

This service will offer not only tips, but services that are available to mothers. They will send them information about prenatal care options around their neighborhood, and ways to be proactive about guiding a healthy lifestyle for them and their baby.

Mothers who sign up for text4baby are more likely to sign up for prenatal care. Prenatal care can help save money on health insurance. Premature births, which can result from lack of prenatal care cost a lot more money in hospital bills and health insurance than a healthy baby. Tips such as what to eat, when to exercise, smoking and alcohol texts will also ensure that their baby will be healthy.

This service will continue for a year after the birth. It will provide mothers with all of the essential information during their baby's first year of life.

This service is easy to activate just by texting BABY to 511411
Mothers can update their due date by texting UPDATE to 511411
And, if they would no longer like to receive these texts, they can stop them by texting STOP to 511411

I am the mom of 4 wonderful kids, 3 boys and 1 girl. Looking at them, you know I have had many years working with and enriching the lives of children. I have an Associates (Magna Cum Laude) in Business Management, and a Bachelors in Early childhood Development and Education with a concentration in Child Psychology. I have almost 20 years in the Early Childhood field, and loving every minute of it! You can visit my site here

Infant & Toddler Activity: Interesting Words and Textures

Help your youngest learners explore the world of texture through their skin - the body's largest organ! Stimulate their sense of touch and introduce new words to their vocabulary.

Here's what you'll need for infants and younger toddlers!Materials:A basket filled with items that are safe and have an interesting and different textures. For example:

Cotton gloves
Leather gloves
Plastic dishwashing gloves (only for the teacher to wear)
Craft feathers (only for the teacher to hold)
Cotton balls (only for the teacher to hold)
Real flowers (such as carnations or roses)
Salt (only for the teacher to use)
Balls with different textures that are larger than 3 in. (fuzzy tennis, dimpled golf, etc.)

Here's How:

Prior to the activity, check each child's information to make sure they are not allergic to any of the materials chosen. Gather all materials and place them in a basket. Set the basket on a shelf or table near a comfortable area of the floor that is clearly out of the reach of children but easy for a care teacher to reach.

Sit on the floor with the children and loosen their socks or shoes so they can finish pulling them off. Push up their sleeves or long pants so you can touch different places on their skin with a variety of textures.

With infants, take one of the items from the basket and name the texture. Gently roll, touch or move it along each of the child's feet and legs. Say a phrase to describe the object, texture and the body part. For example: "fluttery flowers on your feet," or "soft feather on your toes." Use this as a game to use new and interesting words. Repeat the simple touch game with each infant in your care.

Choose a new item from the basket and say the name of the texture. Gently roll, touch or move it to touch the child's cheeks and neck. Again say a simple phrase that describes the object, texture and the body part. For example: "smooth rubber on your cheek" or "dimpled golf ball on your neck."

Finally say the name of the texture and next move it to touch the child's hands and arms. The child will likely try to grab the object now, closely supervise each child as he/she touches the item -but do not let him/her put it into his/her mouth.

Play this game on different days with the different objects; be sure to name each texture before you touch it to the infant's skin or body. After you play this game many different times, you may notice how the child begins to anticipate what each texture will feels like.

With young toddlers, follow the same steps but ask the toddler to say the descriptive phrase with you. Soon the toddlers will say the phrase when you hold up different items. To change the activity, encourage the toddlers to hold the items and gently touch your arms or cheeks with it.

Babies and young toddlers will love the arousal on their skin while learning their body parts!

Friday, February 19, 2010

Toddlers...and how to survive them

Listen to what your child says when she expresses her feelings, such as "I'm not going in there because there is a monster there!!" or "I don't want to go there because she never wants to play with me" or"Mama, what can I do to show you that I love you so much?" All these things show that your child is confident in expressing her likes and dislikes. Some children clam up and do things they don't like quietly. Some show their dissatisfaction but do not know how to verbalise them thus you end up guessing what the problem is. Watch your child. Which one is she?

Children pleasure in who they are and what they can do so give them the praise and attention and KNOW who they are and what they can do. Ask your child lots of questions to really get to know them. Ask them what their favourite food is. Ask them what they think they are good at. Ask them what their favourite colour, toy, book, person etc is. Ask them if they would like to try out new things like roller blading or diving, why and why not. If you were to make a list of your child's traits, both good and bad, can you make a list of fifty characteristics?

Observe how your child shows her feelings towards other people. Is she shy? Or is she confident when speaking to people? Does she take time to warm up? Or does she treat different people differently? Watch how she responds to other people's questions. Does she nod and shake her head or does she just glare back in silence? Does she respond with proper answers? This will give you a clue as to how confident your child is.

Teach your child about the different people around her, their cultures, their likes and dislikes, for her to understand that everyone is different. Then observe how your child uses this information in her day to day life. Does she pass it on?

Children are a blessing from God. They are not ours, just temporarily for us to take care of. So care for them with the best of your ability.

Discovery Bottles

What are Discovery Bottles?
Discovery Bottles are plastic water or pop bottles filled with different colorful materials.

Purpose of Discovery Bottles: To encourage observation skills, scientific concept

Discovery Bottle Ideas:

Wave Bottle: Turn this bottle on its side and watch as "waves" roll.
To Make: Fill 1/2 the bottle with cooking oil ( you can also use baby oil). The add water until the bottle is full. Add blue food coloring and hot glue the cap shut and you're finished!

Glitter Bottle: Shake the bottle and watch the pretty glitter move through out the bottle.
To Make: Fill the bottle with water. Add food coloring (your choice of color). Then add glitter. Hot Glue the cap shut.

Autumn Bottle: fall inspired bottle
To Make:Fill bottle with fall nature items (acorns, leaves, pumpkin seeds). Hot Glue cap to seal.
.
Calm Bottle: Watching the glitter slowly float in the bottle.
To Make: Add glitter then fill the bottle about 1/2 full with clear corn syrup. Hot glue cap to seal.

Estimation Bottle: Child has to estimate how many items are in the bottle.
To Make: Fill bottle with several items (such as rocks, or sea shells) Be sure to count how many of the item you add so you can tell your child how close their estimation was.

Place the finished bottle on a low shelf so your child can observe the bottles as they wish.

10 Low or no cost resources for preschool teachers

Books. Visit your local library when it is having a book sale. You can usually buy books for just a few dollars. Some branches sell books all the time; others sell books only on occasion. This is a way to add to your classroom collection without worrying about due dates or fines.
Online Videos. Whether you and the children want to watch pandas at the National Zoo (http://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/giantpandas/default.cfm) or you are looking for ideas for teaching science (www.exploritorium.edu/webcasts/index.php), take a few moments to watch something new.
Digital library of teacher resources. Access reading materials and multimedia resources through the PBS Digital Learning Library (www.pbs.org/teachers/dll).
Freecycle. Everything available through www.freecycle.org is free! Check the site to see if there is a group in your area. You need to join to view listings of available items or to post a listing, but joining is also free. Members offer lightly used items of all kinds-clothing, books, furniture, and so on. The purpose is to reduce waste while sharing resources in the community. You will have to pick up items you want. More information is available online.
Traveling materials. The National Park Service offers traveling trunks of items connected to different national parks throughout the country. (see www.nps.gov/learn/trunks.htm). Museums frequently have materials related to their collections that they will lend to programs.
Music. Use a free, online radio web site like Pandora, to play different types of music. You can create your own channels based on artists or genres and easily switch among them. For classical music, check out the children's web page for the Dallas (www.dsokids.com) or San Francisco )www.sfskids.com) symphony.
Discounts. Several national chains offer discounts to teachers. They include A.C. Moore, Apple, Barnes and Noble, Books-A-Million, Borders, Half Price Books, Jo-Ann, Lakeshore Learning, OfficeMax, and Staples. NAEYC members receive a 20% discount on hundreds of books, videos, brochures, and posters int he NAEYC catalog and reduced subscription fees for Highlights High Five, a magazine for preschoolers.
Paper. Ask local print shops for scraps, which they often give away at a very low price. Contact community businesses to see if they can donate outdated letterhead or envelopes for the children to use.
Art Materials. By March, stores are looking to get rid of calendars for the current year. You can find ones You can find ones with animal or nature photographs or fanciful illustrations. Cut off the month portion and paste the illustration or photos in the classroom. Or offer these materials for use in art projects.
Donations. Local businesses or associations, like Delta Kappa Gamma, give money or other resources to educators an schools. Sometimes a local restaurant, like a pizzeria, or other family friendly business will help you raise funds. For example, they may pledge a percentage of one day's proceeds to your program. Ask families to spread the word in the neighborhood and to patronize the business that day. This is an easy way to raise funds and to form partnerships in the community.

Published in Teaching Young Children, a NAEYC publication.

Thursday, February 18, 2010

A Basic Montessori list of supplies for Preschoolers

If you are just starting out in Montessori you may be overwhelmed by the cost of supplies. Here is a list of the essentials to get you by while you build your Preschool Montessori supply closet (some you may already have):

Sand Paper Letters and Numbers
Pink Tower
Wooden puzzles
Lacing cards
Play dishes- perfect for practical life activities- pouring, setting tables etc..
Baskets of nature items (rocks, sea shells) for classifying
Sensory Touch boards (satin, wool, cotton, wood)

Start with these basics as you continue to add to your Montessori shelves.

Beautiful poem every mother should read!

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,

Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,

Hang out the washing, make up the bed,

Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?

She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,

Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.

Dishes are waiting and bills are past due

Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo

The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew

And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo

But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo

Look! Aren’t his eyes the most wonderful hue?

Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow

But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!

I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

Happy 7th birthday to my Princess!!!

Happy 7th birthday to my sweet girl! I can not believe she is already 7 years old!!!!!!!! It seems like yesterday I brought her home form the hospital. She has made us SO proud...she does great in school, has a lot of friends, and is on the honor roll. She LOVES being in school and always has a smile on her face. (except when she is having a tantrum, but hey with 3 brothers, a girl has to make herself heard!)

My baby girl has gone from this

To this

In so little time! It does not seem possible that she is so big! She amazes us every day with what she can do! She also loves to dance, and is trying to find out what style she likes the best...I am sure she ould excel at all of them!

Happy birthday princess! We love you!!!

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

RECALLS

NEWS from CPSC
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Office of Information and Public Affairs
Washington, DC 20207

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 17, 2010
Release # 10-139

Firm's Recall Hotline: (866) 695-3551
CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772
CPSC Media Contact: (301) 504-7908

Allreds Design Recalls Baby Bracelets and Pacifier Clips Due to Risk of Lead Exposure

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

Name of Product: Allreds Design Baby Bracelets and Pacifier Clips

Units: About 900

Manufacturer: Allreds Design (doing business as Hidden Hollow Beads), of Fort Duchesne, Utah

Hazard: The recalled bracelets and pacifier clip clasps contain high levels of lead. Lead is toxic if ingested by young children and can cause adverse health effects.

Incidents/Injuries: Allreds Design received one report of a 10-month-old child who was treated by a physician for elevated lead levels.

Description: This recall includes Allreds Design brand baby bracelets and pacifier clips. The bracelets are sold in sizes 0-6 months, 1-4 years, and 4-8 years of age. The baby bracelets and pacifier clips have crystal and plastic beads in various colors with a metal clasp.

Sold by: Resale stores and other consignment retailers nationwide from June 2008 through December 2008 for about $5.

Manufactured in: United States

Remedy: Consumers should immediately take these recalled bracelets and pacifier clips away from children and contact Allreds Design for instructions on how to receive a replacement bracelet or pacifier clip.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, please contact Allreds Design toll-free at (866) 695-3551 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. ET Monday through Friday.

Note: Hidden Hollow Beads was alerted to this hazard by Jefferson County's Health Department in Missouri.

To see this recall on CPSC's web site, including pictures of the recalled products, please go to:
http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml10/10139.html

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CPSC Public Calendar

Vol. XXXVII No. 19
February 17, 2010

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission
Bethesda, Maryland 20814

Commission Agendas

Listed below is an agenda of a Commission Meeting scheduled for the week of February 22, 2010. For a recorded message concerning the latest agenda information call (301) 504-7948.

Commission Meeting
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
2:00-4:00 p.m.
Hearing Room 420

Closed to the Public

Matter to be Discussed

Compliance Weekly / Monthly Report - Commission Briefing

The staff will brief the Commission on various compliance matters.

Meetings Between Commission Staff and Outside Parties

All meetings listed below are open to the public unless otherwise stated. For information on a specific meeting or to attend a meeting, please call the contact person listed for that meeting.

Abbreviations: we use asterisks (*) to identify meetings for the current week which have not appeared before in the printed Public Calendar. If the meeting involves discussion of a "substantial interest matter," defined by CPSC's Meetings Policy, we show the date when we posted notice of the meeting on the Master Calendar. The Master Calendar is in the Office of the Secretary, Room 502, telephone (301) 504-7923. We indicate whether a meeting is of substantial interest by the symbol (S); we use the symbol (N) to indicate non-substantial interest meetings. The Commission offices are located in the Bethesda Towers Building, 4330 East West Highway, Bethesda, Maryland.

Under the Meetings Policy, a staff person holding or attending a substantial interest meeting must file a log of the meeting with the Office of the Secretary within 20 days.

Week of February 22 thru February 28, 2010

Tuesday, February 23

Commissioner Robert Adler and Jason Levine (Special Assistant to Commissioner Adler) and Chairman Inez M. Tenenbaum and Matt Howsare (Special (Legal) Assistant to Chairman Tenenbaum) meeting with Andy Counts, Exec. VP; Bill Perdue, VP-Product Standards & Sustainable Growth, American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA); and Mary Martha McNamara, Counsel to AHFA, to discuss furniture issues in consumer product safety; 10:00 a.m., Bethesda Towers, room 723. The meeting was requested by Mary Martha McNamara. For additional information contact Ophelia McCardell, (301) 504-7731. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 1/28/10. Posted on the Master Calendar 1/28/10. (S)

Tuesday, February 23

*Commissioner Nancy Nord and staff meeting with Andy Counts, Exec. VP; Bill Perdue, VP-Product Standards & Sustainable Growth, American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA); and Mary Martha McNamara, Counsel to AHFA, to discuss furniture issues in consumer product safety; 11:00 a.m., Bethesda Towers, room 722. The meeting was requested by Mary Martha McNamara. For additional information contact Autumn Moore, (301) 504-7901, amoore@cpsc.gov. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (S)

Tuesday, February 23

*Commissioner Anne Northup meeting with Andy Counts, CEO of American Home Furnishings Alliance and Bill Perdue, Director of Environmental and Technical Visits to discuss furniture tip-overs, bunk bed and upholstery issues; 12:00 noon, Bethesda Towers, room 720. The meeting was requested by Mary Martha McNamara. For additional information contact Catherine Gatewood, (301) 504-7780. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (S)

Tuesday, February 23

Commissioner Thomas H. Moore; Pam Weller and Michael Gougisha (Counselors to Commissioner Moore) meeting with Andy Counts and Bill Perdue with the American Home Furnishings Alliance; Mary Martha McNamara, Esq. with McNamara & L'Heureux, P.C. to discuss furniture issues in consumer product safety; 3:00 p.m., Bethesda Towers, room 725. The meeting was requested by Laura S. Genuario. For additional information contact Linda Taylor, (301) 504-7895 or ltaylor@cpsc.gov. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 1/27/10. Posted on the Master Calendar 1/27/10. (S)

Wednesday, February 24

*Allyson Tenney, Directorate for Engineering Sciences, attending ASTM F15.45, Candle Products Fire Safety Task Group meeting; Airport Courtyard by Marriott, Columbus, OH. For additional information contact Allyson Tenney, (301) 504-7567. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (S)

Wednesday, February 24

*Jake Miller and Patty Edwards, Directorate for Engineering Sciences (Mechanical), meeting with Gene Barrow, Bassett Furniture, to discuss manufacturing process of children's furniture specifically wood cribs; 1:00 p.m., 3525 Fairystone Park Hwy., Bassett, VA 24055. The meeting was requested by CPSC staff. For additional information contact Jake Miller, (301) 504-6938. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (N)

Thursday, February 25

*Jake Miller and Patty Edwards, Directorate for Engineering Sciences (Mechanical), meeting with Carlton Craig and Kevin Walker, Stanley Furniture, to discuss manufacturing process of children's furniture specifically wood cribs, including a courtesy plant tour; 8:00 a.m., 1641 Fairystone Park Hwy., Stanleytown, VA 24168. The meeting was requested by CPSC staff. For additional information contact Jake Miller, (301) 504-6938. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (N)

Thursday, February 25

Thomas Caton, Directorate for Engineering Sciences (Mechanical) giving presentation on "Metallurgy and Dissimilar Metals" at the Pennsylvania Amusement Ride Safety Seminar meeting; 11:00 a.m., Holiday Inn Harrisburg/Hershey - Grantville, PA. The meeting was requested by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Ride and Measurement Standards. For additional information contact Thomas Caton, (301) 504-7543. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/12/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/12/10. (N)

Future

Tuesday, March 2

Richard O'Brien, Laurie Hopkins, and Sylvia Chen, Office of International Programs, meeting with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) representatives: Gary Kushnier, Vice President - International Policy, Scott Cooper, Vice President - Government Relations, Elise Owen, Director - International Development, Jessica Hychalk, Program Manager - International Policy, Leslie McDermott, Program Administrator - International Development, to discuss ANSI activities in China; 3:00 p.m., Bethesda Towers, room 410A. The meeting was requested by ANSI. For additional information contact Richard O'Brien, (301) 504-7054. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/12/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/12/10. (N)

Tuesday, March 23

Michael A. Babich, Directorate for Health Sciences, and other CPSC staff meeting with representatives from ExxonMobil, on Cumulative Risk Assessment of Phthalates; 10:00 a.m., Bethesda Towers, room 410 B/C. The meeting was requested by ExxonMobil. For additional information contact Michael Babich, (301) 504-7253. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 1/25/10. Posted on Master Calendar 1/26/10. (S)

Addendum

Meeting notices printed in this section did not reach the Office of the Secretary in time to meet the Tuesday noon deadline for the previously printed Public Calendar. Under the CPSC Meetings Policy, however, staff persons, including Commissioners, can meet the seven-day notice requirement by placing notice of the meeting on the Master Calendar at least seven days before the meeting. The Master Calendar is in the Office of the Secretary, Room 502, Bethesda Towers Building.

In addition, the policy allows the Office of General Counsel to waive the seven-day notice requirements of meetings of the staff personnel, and individual Commissioners can waive the requirements for themselves and their personal staff.

Thursday, February 18

Commissioners Nancy Nord and Anne Northup and staff will meet with Satbir Nayar, Project Manager, XOS, Inc. and Berry Buemer, Vice President of Marketing and Sales of XOS, Inc., and Quin Dodd, Of Counsel, Mintz Levin, PC, XOS, to provide the latest information about the HD XRF technology and the status of the ASTM voluntary committee process to finalize a uniform test method for the use of HD XRF to detect lead in paint; 11:00 a.m., Bethesda Towers, room 722. For additional information contact Autumn Moore, (301) 504- 7901, amoore@cpsc.gov. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/16/10. (S)

Thursday, February 18

Commissioner Robert S. Adler meeting with Satbir Nayar and Berry Buemer of X-Ray Optical Systems, Inc. (XOS), and Quin Dodd, counsel to XOS, to discuss latest information on validation of HD XRF technology and the status of ASTM's Volunteer Committee to finalize a uniform test method for the use of HD XRF to detect lead in paint; 10:00 a.m., Bethesda Towers, room 723. The meeting was requested by Quin Dodd. For additional information contact Ophelia McCardell, (301) 504-7731. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/16/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/17/10. (S)

Friday, February 19

Andrew Trotta and Shivani Mehta, Directorate for Engineering Sciences, attending the Kitchen Fire Prevention Technologies Workshop; 8:30 a.m., (registration starts at 8:00 a.m.) Montpelier Room at the Madison Loews Hotel, 1177 15th Street, NW, Washington D.C. The workshop is being sponsored by Vision 20/20. For additional information contact Andrew Trotta, (301) 504-7578. Transmitted to the Office of the Secretary 2/12/10. Posted on Master Calendar 2/12/10. (S)

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'CPSC 2.0' Launches Product Safety Agency into Social Media -- Learn more at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml09/09346.html

* Visit our new blog, OnSafety at www.cpsc.gov/onsafety

* See our videos on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/uscpsc

* Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/OnSafety

* See our photos on Flickr at http://www.flickr.com/photos/uscpsc

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard. The CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals - contributed significantly to the decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's Hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270. To join a CPSC e-mail subscription list, please go to https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx. Consumers can obtain recall and general safety information by logging on to CPSC's Web site at www.cpsc.gov.

The Ultimate Pancakes

This week is National Pancake Week! What better way to celebrate then with a fresh, homemade plateful?!

You'll need...

3/4 cup milk

2 tablespoons white or cider vinegar

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 tablespoons butter, melted

cooking spray

pats of butter

To make...

Combine milk with vinegar in a medium bowl and set aside for 5 minutes to "sour".

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large mixing bowl. Whisk egg, vanilla and butter into "soured" milk. Pour the flour mixture into the wet ingredients and whisk until most of the lumps are gone-- the mixture will be foamy at this point. Let mixture sit for 20 minutes to thicken.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat, and coat with cooking spray. Add a small bit of butter for flavor. Pour 1/4 cupfuls of batter onto the skillet, and cook until bubbles appear on the surface. Flip with a spatula, and cook until browned on the other side.

Serve with syrup and/or honey-butter!

ENJOY!

4 servings-- Nutritonal values:
Calories: 230| Total Fat: 8.2g | Cholesterol: 72mg

Wordless Wednesday

Brain Growth and Development in Preschool

A peek at the early stages of brain development and how early childhood education encourages brain growth, memory and language development in babies and young preschool children.
At birth, a baby's brain already has 100,000,000,000 cells. This is about the same number of stars in the Milky Way. Unlike the rest of a new baby's body, the brain is not complete at birth. In order to start working, the cells need to communicate with each other. As a baby starts to experience life, connections are made between cells - the more connections there are, the more the brain can do.
A baby's brain develops so fast that by age two a child who is developing normally has the same number of connection as an adult. By age three, a child has TWICE as many brain connections as an adult.
Early milestones in brain growth.
4 months: The infant's brain responds to every sound produced in all the languages of the world.
8 to 9 months: Babies can form specific memories from their experiences, such as how to push a ball to make it roll.
10 months: Babies can now distinguish and even produce the sounds of their own language (such as "da-da") and no longer pay attention to the sounds of language that are foreign.
12 months: Babies whose parents say, for example, "Lookeee at the doggiee," will go to the appropriate picture of a dog in a picture book more often than those babies who are talked to in normal, flatter voices.
12 to 18 months: Babies can keep in memory something that has been hidden and find it again, even if it has been completely covered up. They can also hold memory sequences of simple activities, such as winding up a Jack-in-the-box until the figure pops up.
24 months: Preschool children now have clear pictures in mind of people who are dear to them, and they get upset when separated from these people (even their peers).
30 months: Preschool children can hold in mind a whole sequence of spatial maps and know where things are in their environment.
36 months: A preschool child can now hold two different emotions in his mind at the same time, such as being sad that he spilled ice cream on his clothes but glad that he's at a birthday party.

How Preschool Education Helps

Brain Development**

Morning GreetingWhenever an adult speaks directly and personally to a preschool child, cascades of impulses go through the child's neurons (nerve cells), which are connected to one another by synapses. The repetition of these kinds of positive early interactions actually helps the brain reinforce the existing connections and make new ones.
FingerplayBy a couple of months of age, babies can process the emotional contours of language (prosody), which means they tune in to the emotional variations in your voice. (In fact, toddlers can memorize nursery rhymes because rhymes have prosody!) As the preschool teacher raises her voice an octave and draws out her vowels, the child's brain responds by sending even more chemical and electrical impulses across the synapses.
Story timeEarly childhood teachers are careful to have small groups for story time so that preschool children are able to get involved and process information. Young children need real interactions in order to learn. As she reads, the teacher will use melodic voice tones to ensure children's involvement and learning.
Free play / Work timeDuring free play, preschool children interact with one another. As they communicate, whether through beginning language or more sophisticated use of words, the neurons in their brains are making more connections, critical for reinforcing learning.
Snack Further opportunities for communication lead to the repetition of impulses sent through the brain. The more repetition that goes on, the more the brain grows sure in its understanding. Repetition of language sounds is crucial to brain development.
Circle timeAs the early childhood caregiver focuses her attention on each individual child in the large group activity, the child must think about the topic for the day. The child's brain will be active as he/she retrieves from memory something special in her own personal history that she has learned. Each day children reap the benefits of preschool education.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

My last baby is officially growing up :(

So last night we had a friend over for dinner. As we were telling her about Evan's lack of sleep the night prior, I decided to do a baby gum check...and sure enough, I felt the tip of a tooth! It is not quite out yet, but it is there!

Well, this explains my...I mean his...lack of sleep! But it also means that my last little baby is no longer a little baby anymore!!!! I am not sure I am quite ready for this, but I guess I have to be :)

In the last few weeks he has started to crawl, as well as pull himself up on EVERYTHING! Does he not know that he is my last, and needed to stay a baby just a little longer?! Could he not have waited as long as my oldest and not gotten a tooth until 11 months?!

I know, he IS a baby...but I am just so sad that these are the last "firsts" I will be going through with my own children. They are growing up way too fast!!!!!!

He just does not seem much different now

from when he looked like this

Where did my baby go!?!?!

Oh well, off to take more pictures before that tooth comes through!

Monday, February 15, 2010

Letter of the week activities Monday, February 15: Letter A

Aa
Its Aa week!

1. Tell your address to mom or dad.
2. Be an artist. Create something colorful.
3. Eat an apple for a snack.
4. Cut an apple in half. Find the star.
5. Make the sound of your favorite animal.
6. Sing the alphabet song.
7. Be an acrobat, and do 10 somersaults.
8. Write the letter A a (10 times)
9. Move like your favorite animal.

Sunday, February 14, 2010

When will my baby talk to me?

I am always looking for posts like THIS one over at Mamapedia . We as parents are always worried about out child's development, and if they are up to par with their peers. I have known many parents, usually us moms, of course, who even keep a journal documenting how many words/sentences our child(ren) have at certain points in time. Of course, it does not help that pediatricians (and other parents) tend to make us feel that our children should have a certain amount of words at a certain time, or they may have a speech delay, we are not working with them enough, or that they will never be at the same level as their peers one in school.

All children develop at their own pace. This includes walking, talking, toilet training, reading, and more. One should never use another child as a gauge as to where their own child should be. Most children develop their first word aroung 12 months and by 16 months have approxiamtely 5 words. Most do not start speaking in multiple word sentences until close to 22-24 months. Of course, there will be some below and above this norm. If your child is not using any sounds to communicate by 15 months, then it may be time to look into
speech services, but, if they are using some sounds and at least 5-10 words to let you know what they want, then there is probably nothing at all to worry about.

Some great ways to help your child develop a better vocabulary, is to constantly talk to them, label things around the house and outside, read to them, and even use sign language. Many think that using sign language with hearing children will hinder verbal communication, but in fact, it will do the exact opposite! Research conclusively indicates that babies who sign tend to have a stronger command of verbal language and often begin speaking at an earlier age than babies who do not sign. Countless parents and caregivers have confirmed these findings with their personal experiences and observations. In addition, many Speech-Language professionals, pediatricians, and educators are supporting the use of signs to encourage early language development.

Bottom line, if you feel that your child may have a delay in any area, talk to your doctor!! If you feel that your child is fine, and just needs some time to catch up, work with your child, and encourage them to talk to you!