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Lemonade in a Bag
For a language filled experience try this simple lemonade in a bag recipe. When making this with my daughter, I gather all the ingredients and supplies on a tray. All this activity requires is a lemon cut in quarters, sugar, water, and a sandwich bag. It gets pretty sticky, so I like to make it outside. I prepared a recipe to use as a visual that helps sequence the steps as we go (there is a printable PDF at the end of the post). While preparing the lemonade, I give my daughter simple directions while pointing to the pictures in the recipe. I use first/second/then/last and put in. The majority…
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Trying New Foods
Join us on our journey to become a little more adventurous when it comes to eating. Trying new foods expands palates, introduces different cultures through cuisine, and provides opportunity for language development. How new foods can promote language use: Provides opportunity to expand vocabulary Provides opportunity to make a choice Provides opportunity to place an order Provides opportunity to describe what the new food looks like Provides opportunity to describe how the new food smells, feels, and tastes Why it’s important to expose children to new food: If you want your child to eat differently you have to feed her differently Children establish food preferences and dietary habits during the…
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Take a Taste Tuesday with Alison Gutwaks
My name is Alison Gutwaks. I am a mother, wife, daughter, chef, recipe developer, blogger, entrepreneur and love anything made with lamb or waffles! I have a personal chef company in Columbus, OH called AliBabka. I focus on each client, individually. Many clients come to me because they are busy and don’t have time to cook, or do not want to cook. I excel at designing specialized meal plans for individuals with dietary restrictions. Catering on a small scale is another area I enjoy, typically less than 50 individuals. I have been hired to accompany families on their vacations and cater to them as their personal chef. One of my…
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Say-n-Play the Summer Away with Local Adventures
I am one for a big adventures. I love booking trips to far off destinations and then dreaming about the trip for months in anticipation. Sometimes, however, big trips just aren’t possible when juggling the multiple responsibilities of parenthood. Fortunately, there is so much to see and do right here in Columbus. So, to encourage families to find new places and new experiences in town, I am putting together 10 weeks of local adventures this summer. Check-in each week this summer for specific guides for our local adventures and ways to encourage language development while completing them. My hope is that each and every adventure will be different and exciting. Please connect and…
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Toddler Water Safety with Goldfish Swim School
May is “Water Safety Awareness Month.” According to the Centers for Disease Control, drowning is the leading cause of accidental-injury death among children ages 1 to 4. Goldfish Swim School aims to educate families during lessons by teaching steps that can be taken to prevent accidents from occurring. When it comes to water, my daughter is fearless. She jumps right in with the expectation that we will be there to catch her. We talk to her about water safety and pool rules (“use walking feet,” “hold mommy’s hand,” etc.), but she is not yet grasping how powerful water can be and the caution she needs to demonstrate when she is in…
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Take a Taste Tuesday with Megan Pollock
Hello! My name is Megan Pollock, and currently, I have many different identities these days. A wife. A Speech-Language Pathologist. A mother. A dog enthusiast. A feminist. Oh yeah, and a Bobcat. (OU Oh Yeah!) Of all these titles, the mother title is the newest. 11 months new to be exact. Motherhood has been one of the most rewarding and challenging roles I have ever taken, as cliche as it sounds. It amazing how you can have so many different feelings at once in a day when you become a mother. Ranging to utter joy, to doubt, to frustration, to anxiety, to sadness and then back to pure happiness. This…
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Take a Taste Tuesday with Lauren Seitz
Hey there, I’m Lauren! I’m a wife, mom and reading specialist in the Columbus area. My daughter is 19 months old and enjoys being outside, dancing and chasing our dog around the house. I am so happy to be collaborating today and sharing with you one of the ways we have fun in the kitchen! Every night at dinner time, you can find my little one clinging to my legs while I cook or asking to come up so she can “mix, mix, mix”. (She does the cutest little motion with her hands as she says it too!) I try and let her join in when she can and I…
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Take a Taste Tuesday with Angela Chang
Hi! I’m excited to be joining you for Take a Taste Tuesday! My name is Angela Chang, and I am a former Montessori infant and toddler teacher, currently a SAHM to two little girls. I write over at MOMtessoriLife.com, where I share how to be Montessori at home through ideas for activities as well as Montessori parenting philosophy. Including young children in the kitchen has become a passion of mine, although I will admit that I used to hate it – it’s messy, you can’t control everything that happens, and it takes a little longer to get the food prepared. It would be easier to just do it all myself.…
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Take a Taste Tuesday with Lindsay from Find Where You Fit
Hi! I’m Lindsay, a Columbus mom, physical therapist, and author of the blog Find Where You Fit. I like to incorporate our active lifestyles into dining by going on little picnics. The kids and I will go into the kitchen, talk about food groups, and pick some food items from each to bring along on. I find that using this strategy gives them enough rules and enough freedom that we all get what we want. Sometimes we take it to a park, go on a short hike or hit a playground, then eat. Sometimes it’s as simple as eating in the front yard on a blanket. When we have finished…
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Sitting Made Simple
A few weeks ago I was invited to the Sitting Made Simple Headquarters in Merion Village to learn about the Sitting Made Simple journey from CEO Amanda Knapp, current staff/past sitters, and families who are currently using the babysitting service. At this meet-up I learned that there are real people behind the computer who are helping you with your babysitting needs. The staff helps match your family with a quality babysitter. There is no app and no lengthy list of sitters for you to scroll through and pick on a whim based on reviews. Listening to Amanda speak about her company, it is clear that she knows her sitters, is…