Weekend Reads 11.22.14

All the best from my Facebook feed.  Follow me there to catch even more!

Articles:

The Motherhood Days We Don’t Talk About That Much But We Should {Finding Joy}

“When I’m at that point I don’t want to be called supermom.

I just want to be told it’s okay.

It’s okay to feel overwhelmed sometimes. It’s okay to feel super frustrated at your kids. It’s okay to be angry that your life isn’t where you want it. It’s okay to feel worried about money. It’s okay to feel like you’re not getting everything done. It’s okay to feel. It’s okay to feel like you’re doing it all and you’re tired. It’s okay.

It’s okay to be real.“

5 Things I Don’t Say to My Daughter When We’re Out in Nature {Wilder Child}

“Ahhh Mother Nature. She brings out the best and sometimes the paranoia in us. It’s those unconscious fears and thoughts that have a real potential to shape my daughter’s perception about the wild outdoors (no pressure). So for her sake and mine, I’m working hard on embracing both butterfly and worm, dirt and flower. As my wonderful friend Bobby says, “It’s all part of it.”

How Do I Stop My Toddler from Throwing Things?  {Toddler Approved}

This must be a common problem in this community.  It came about as an answer to several reader questions over at Toddler Approved, and had a lot of engagement on the NJC page as well.  Solid advice from an educator, mom, and all-around sharp gal!

Over-Reactive Parents Linked to Negative Emotions and Problem Behavior in Toddlers {Science Daily}

 “Parents’ ability to regulate themselves and to remain firm, confident and not over-react is a key way they can help their children to modify their behavior,” she said. “You set the example as a parent in your own emotions and reactions.”

Activities:

Two Ingredient Sand Foam {Paging Fun Moms}

This looks like an amazing amount of fun, but so simple to make!  This would be awesome in a sensory bin!

Create an Engineering Mystery Bag for Kids {Childhood 101}

I keep thinking it would be awesome to make a few of these and stash them away to keep my boys engaged after school or on slow weekend mornings.  One of these days….. 

Could also be a fun idea for a kids’ table activity for those in charge of entertaining the younger ones during the holiday gatherings!

Winter Activities for Kids: Homemade Pretend Snow Play Ideas {Blog Me Mom}

I loved filling the sensory table with snow after a big snow storm!  If you live somewhere without the white stuff (like we do now) here are several ideas for creating different types of “snow” for some great sensory and pretend play activities.

Enhancing and Practicing Executive Function Skills with Children from Infancy to Adolescence {Center on the Developing Child – Harvard}

OK, so this one doesn’t come with adorable Pinterest-worthy shots, but it’s an activities guide from Harvard with research-based information on how to build a child’s executive function skills.  That sounds pretty awesome to me!

One more thing…

Have you seen Playful Learning’s YouTube Channel lately?   In addition to their paid classes, they have several high-quality video lessons for FREE!  You’ll definitely want to check out this fantastic resource!  Find it here!

Enjoy Your Weekend!