All posts tagged Malissa McClintock

Museum Led Learning: A Summer Evolution of Homeschooling

June 4, 2013 by   Malissa

By Malissa McClintock, Contributing Writer

After a Spring that just couldn’t decide to be spring, summer is right around the corner. With Baby Boy growing quickly and things warming up, I’ve decided to take the traditional break from “school” for the summer. However, we aren’t taking a break from learning. Instead, we are integrating what I am calling Museum Led Learning.

As a former teacher and Museum education, I like the idea of working backwards in a learning process – starting from the museum experience and then taking the insights back to the “classroom” to nurture and develop into lessons and focused study. I also like the idea of getting some field trip type outing with the kids that is fun and educational without it seeming like “school.” Here’s a brief guide to forming your own Museum Led Learning experience.

Pick A Museum

LOCATION: Begin by looking for Museums or experiences that are either close to you geographically or are located along your travel/vacation route. I limit my travel time to about 2 hours (one way) from our house. The trip to a Museum in the morning can be time for discussion about our destination, general family talks, or a time to listen to music, watch a movie – whatever you and your vehicle allow. Two hours is also a good nap window on a return trip for young children who are tired from a day of fun and activity and need a gentle but necessary time of rest. Travel time longer than this exhausts everyone and can make the experience seem unpleasant overall.

FACILITY: Look for a Museum that is child and family friendly. Call ahead to see if they allow items such as strollers or if they have them available for use. Determine if there are areas for eating a packed lunch, to purchase a lunch or snack, or if you need to make other arrangements for eating during your trip. It’s aslo helpful to find out if the Museum has a dedicated children’s area available, outdoor exhibits,  or a family guide to help guide you and provide points of discussion during your visit.

FOCUS: For our family, I choose destinations based on current interests the kids are expressing or by a particular exhibition that will ignite a desire to learn. Two of our favorite outing have been to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in Richmond to see the Butterfiles LIVE! exhibit and our very recent trip to the Virginia Aquarium and Marine Science Center. Each of these Museums meets my criteria: family friendly, children’s area, hands-on exhibits, outdoor areas and trails, and within a reasonable travel distance from home. The also each have a magical quality to them that will give small children a sense of excitement and wonder to ignite a desire to learn.

 Get in There!

  •  Take Your Time – Allow them time to really look at the exhibits that are there and what they contain.

Moo taking it all in.

  • Going to an aquarium means the potential for hands on activities — take advantage of that luxury! If there is a touch tank — let them use it. If there are exhibits that they can manipulate or interact with, encourage them to do so.
  • Seek out the children’s play area and let them play – their little brains can become saturated easily and allowing time to play and unwind will help them focus as you move on.

Roo playing with a grasshopper.

  • Look for structured events - such as the Shark Feeding – that you can attend and experience together. Sitting down with them at their level to learn with them will also help them focus and want to continue their visit. (Children thrive on adult interaction- particularly in places where they see you are learning WITH them.)
  • Slow down when they ask you to – it isn’t a race to see how quickly you can see everything. It’s more about seeing what THEY want to see. Don’t be afraid to skip any parts that don’t interest them – we skipped the jellyfish this time. It isn’t going to ruin their experience and they may become interested in it in the future.

Moo enjoying the tanks.

  • GET OUTSIDE IF YOU CAN. A change of venue is great for kids. Remember recess when you were in school? There was a reason for that! Take the trail that connects the buildings. Walk to the aviary. Stroll through the rose gardens. Get some air and some Vitamin D — you’ll be glad you did.

Trails around the Aquarium.

Take the Museum Home

Books the day after.

The day after our trip, we went to the library and got books about various creatures we had seen. We also got a “Mommy book” on the Chesapeake Bay. Getting books for them and for me shows them that they can learn with me and that I don’t know it all. We all need to keep learning as we grow and each step they will continue to learn something new. We began working with these books two days after our visit. We read them. We discussed pictures. We talked about how things looked similar or different to what we had seen.

We also discussed some crafts that we want to make. We are going to make sharks with big teeth. I suggested we make Jellyfish because we didn’t see them on our visit and we could use our imagination. We also will just color and draw thing that we remember seeing. We will also take a trip later in the week to the pet store — not only to get food for our animals but to visit the tanks there and consider how they are the same or different.

Go Again!

Now that we are reviewing our visit, Moo can’t wait to go again and to take Daddy to see our adventure. Letting the museum serve as the start of your lesson provides the opportunity to create many lessons with the same focus but different outcomes. This trip Moo and Roo were interested in what creatures we saw and what they do. As we discuss it now in the days following, I can see the thoughts forming in Moo’s mind about how fish live together if sharks eat fish. A lesson on ecosystems and food chain is starting to form without my intervention. Going BACK with questions in her mind means a different experience with new outcomes. 

We are going to attempt a museum trip weekly as part of our summer fun. It is my hope that we’ll open all sorts of doors to learning that we previously had ignored by staying home and trying learn subjects rather than letting the subjects teach us. Planning trips in advance will aslo help me to see if we can lead from one thought to another- seeing marine ecosystems is very different than seeing a land dwelling mamal such as a lion or seeing how different colors in a painting up close look completely different when you back up 10 steps and then 20 more. Each expereince teaches something new and creates lessons that I couldn’t think of on my own. Letting the learning led you can often be the best curriculum you never have to buy.

Do you take trips to museums with your children? Do you let the learning led you to your next learning adventure?

**This post has been entered into Tuesday’s Treasures #137, Anti-Procrastination Tuesday, Titus 2sday, and Teach Me Tuesday.**

Like what you've read? Subscribe so you never miss a post! You can also follow us on Facebook or Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

Tagged categories: Blog

Comments: 2 | Post a Comment

DIY Wooden Photo Puzzle

April 3, 2013 by   Malissa

By Malissa McClintock, Contributing Writer

In the summer of 2011, a good friend’s Little Man turned one. We had been co-teachers together for several years and shared a love of early childhood education, so I knew that I wanted to make something for Little Man that was personal, educational, and classic. I looked around the web for ideas that I could modify and came across a personalized puzzle. (Sadly, I can’t find the original blog that I read now :( ) Here is the puzzle that I came up with and plan to continue to may in similar editions for friends and family.

The Puzzle

I LOVE Melissa and Doug puzzles. They are great for little hands, study, wooden, and classic looking. I wanted to do shapes as the form of the puzzle in order to foster the learning of a one year old mind. I also wanted a knob handle so the handles were removable and best for smaller hands.

I found this puzzle on Amazon and grabbed it up.

Melissa and Doug Wooden Shapes Puzzle

There weren’t any local consignment shows at the time and my local consignment store didn’t have any wooden puzzle like I specifically wanted to use. It was also a gift, so I thought a new puzzle might be a better idea. For my kids, I would totally find a gently loved puzzle to modify or use one we have when they tire of it.

 

The Supplies

  • Puzzle and puzzle pieces
  • paper to recover the puzzle shapes
  • photos for under the pieces
  • screwdriver for removing and reattaching the knobs
  • fine point pen or pencil for tracing
  • paintbrush
  • Glossy Mod Podge
  • sharp scissors

 

The Process

I chose to recover the shapes as well as place photos under the shapes to make it as personalized as possible. Little Man’s party was a farm theme so I purchased some farm scrapbooking paper at Hobby Lobby. I then began the personalization process.

1. Trace the removable shape pieces around the photos that you are using under then. Cut them with very sharp scissors to get then as close to that size and shape as possible. Test them to be sure they have a good fit. Once you are satisfied, place a very think layer of Mod Podge in the puzzle base and glue the photos in place. Miss Moo was 20 months old at the time, so this was a perfect way to involve her in the gift making process as well as give her a little fine motor practice.

Moo applying Mod Podge.

 

2. Allow the photos to dry 30 -45 minutes to be sure that they are securely in place.  (Moo went on to bed and I continued on.) To protect the photos from wear and tear during play, cover each one with two additional layers of Mod Podge- allowing each to dry 30-45 minutes in between. You could certainly do more layers but I wouldn’t do any less.

Two top layers of Mod Podge applied over the photos.

 

3. Next, trace the shapes onto the paper that you are using to recover them. I placed them all on the sheet to find the best fit before cutting. Afterwards, I realized tracing and cutting on the white side of the paper would have been MUCH easier.

Shapes ready for tracing and cutting.

4. Cut the shapes out with you sharp tipped scissors. Check your completed shapes to be sure they cover the pieces well and accurately.

Shapes cut and trimmed.

5. Remove the wooden knobs from each puzzle piece using a screwdriver. Set the knob and screw aside and check your shape again. Once you are satisfied, repeat the gluing process used to attach the photos into the puzzle base.

Piece ready to be covered.

6. Once all the pieces have been glued and sealed with coats of Mod Podge, reattach the knobs to them. They are all interchangeable so this should be very simple and quick to complete.

Knobs ready to be reattached.

 

The Product

The Finished Puzzle

That’s it! Your puzzle is ready for tons of play and love. I love this process because it can be applied to any similar style puzzle, and updated in any way –  seasonal changes, learning words, doing math equations – the sky is the limit! Find an old puzzle and try it out. You never know where your imagination can take you!

 

Do you enjoy making simple toys into personalized gifts? Would you appreciate receiving something like this puzzle for your child?

 

Like what you've read? Subscribe so you never miss a post! You can also follow us on Facebook or Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

Tagged categories: Blog

Comments: 1 | Post a Comment

Simple Ways to Play at Home

March 6, 2013 by   Malissa

 

By Malissa McClintock, Contributing Writer

I can hardly believe that when I look at the calendar the word March stares back at me. March means spring is coming, and with it even crazier weather than the winter brought. With two very active little girls and the impending birth of a little boy, I am compiling a list of ways to entertain my girls in the house. I am trying to create simple ideas that we can enjoy without buying anything extra or expensive. I’m also trying to prevent creating any extra work for myself — I’ll have plenty with the kids.  So here’s a small list of what we are planning on doing as I grow bigger, the spring rains fall, and a little boy is born.

“Gymnastics”

Moo at her weekly class.

Both girls attend a simple gymnastics class once a week. Their classes are a great introduction to skills, listening skills, following direction from other means of authority  and a physical energy outlet. They love doing their climbing and tumbles and try to do them at home. Santa capitalized on this at Christmas by bringing them a small tumble mat as their big gift. I have moved their little yard slide in from the garage and cleaned it up. We have gathered together all the extra bed pillows from around the house that are no longer good for sleeping but are great as padding. Our upstairs hall is just the right size past the steps towards our bedroom to make a little gymnastics course. They can tumble. They can balance. They can slide then do a forward roll. They can get their pent up energy OUT! And they are in a small contained space that allows me to watch them easily and at one time. So grab some pillows, cushions, towels and blankets, and foster some little gymnasts.

Boxes

Since we’re talking pillows and blankets, let’s talk forts and boxes. All this baby stuff that I’m sorting through has left us with tons of boxes of various sizes. Enter the fort. The girls LOVE to climb in and out of the boxes and pretend to be all kinds of critters — from bears, to dragons, to puppies. They pull out their playsilks to make rainbows over their fort. They turn the boxes into examination tables for all their doctor check ups to their clinics. They have even attempted to use them as blocks to build a giant house. Boxes (and forts) are great fun, occupy their minds and their time, and are readily available.

Art Time

My girls will sit at the table with crayons, paper, and stickers for hours. So, I’ve been attempting to stack our supplies with glue sticks, magazines, catalogs, newspaper left overs, and general paper scraps to give them a deeper supply list. We are also planning on doing some treasure hunting to gather Fairy supplies to make some treasures from those as well.

One of my favorite books, Scribble Art by MaryAnn F. Kohl, was a great resource for me as a preschool teacher and Museum educator. It taught me to teach the process, not the product. Watercoloring is more about learning the medium rather than making a masterpiece. I also have added some less than traditional supplies to our art center — cotton balls, Q-Tips, cars, huge paper, Model Magic and paints. Giving them more time to explore through more mediums gives us a longer run at the art table. Sure, it might be messy, but they’re only little once. A controlled , supervised mess is much more welcome than a mess created when left to their own devices.

Moo painting for a bit before lunch.

On warm days, we grab our easels and head outside. Even if for 30 minutes, so chalk, paint, and fresh air will do us all a world of good.

Seasonal Table

Mod Podge leaves from our Fall table.

This fall we used mod podge to preserve some leaves for our fall table. As the spring leaves emerge, Miss Moo will use her handy, dandy camera to take photos for us to use on our nature table. We will also try our hand at drying some flowers and herbs from around our house to adorn our table. Last spring we made leaf prints with our Getting OUTSIDE on the days that we can for walks, adventures, and even picnics will be a welcome break in the newness of a Baby Brother while still giving me the comforts of home. Moo also enjoys bird watching which we can do on nature walks and treasure hunts for our seasonal table.

Cooking Together

The girls love to help me cook. This love will be particular helpful as we make some dishes to freeze for when Baby Boy arrives. I don’t allow them to do anything dangerous when they assist me in the kitchen and I always have my eye on them.  But stirring pots, measuring wet and dry ingredients, and helping me put things into storage containers can be both helpful, educational, and empowering for them. They both want to help me and prepare the house for their brother. Giving them tasks to focus on helps me remain calm during the day and gives them a sense of purpose and accomplishment in household tasks.

And, When All Else Fails…

Roo having some midday tub fun. (And Maybe Mommy and Daddy were, too.)

Throw them in the tub! Bubbles, bowls, and bath water make unending fun for toddler and preschoolers. They can bail water for HOURS. They can swim like mermaids and make bubble cakes for far longer than you think they can. If you have bath crayons and bath paints, you have an even longer window of enjoyment. They don’t need expensive toys to entertain them. Just provide them something they can use with water and let them have at it!

Keeping your kids entertained at home can seem overwhelming. But if you look past the planning and more into the daily doing, simple activities will become those they enjoy the most. All they need is your time and attention. They rest will fall into place.

Do you have to to entertain your kids at home? What tricks do you have for keeping them happy at a low cost?

Like what you've read? Subscribe so you never miss a post! You can also follow us on Facebook or Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

Tagged categories: Blog

Comments: 2 | Post a Comment

Women’s History Month: Homeschool Edition

March 1, 2013 by   Malissa

 

Reading together during school time.

By Malissa McClintock, Contributing Writer

I’m a Women’s Studies junkie. It was one of my three minors as an undergraduate and the emphasis of my Master’s. I love learning about women from the past and the fabulous women around the world who strive daily to make the lives of their mothers, sisters, daughters, friends, and future generations better. I love to see women who are from completely different backgrounds pull together to support one another in the face of adversity and struggle together to overcome obstacles.  I love women who are strong in their careers. I love women who fight for political rights. I love women who stay home to raise their children. Women are amazing.

March Is Women’s History Month

Maybe you knew that, and maybe you didn’t. But now that you know, take a little time to celebrate the women around the globe and in your life that are making your life better than theirs was for them. Being the junkie that I am, my girls are facing a month filled with information and activities about women. I love homeschooling in general, but I particularly love homeschooling because it affords me to the time and ability to focus on things that my daughters wouldn’t be educated on in a public school setting. While Women’s History is slowly creeping into text books, I feel it isn’t nearly present enough. So here’s a little look at how we’ll be addressing it on our home this month.

“Traditional” Women’s Studies

There are countless women from the past and present that I feel my daughters should know by name. My girls are still young, so throwing too much at them won’t lend itself to success. I could start with suffragists ( and we WILL learn those) but my girls learn better when they are educated on areas that peak their interests. Right now our house is filled with a love and passion for doctors (yay science!), Pocahontas, and Laura Ingalls Wilder. So, we’ll start there.

Doctors and Science

Miss Moo giving a check-up.

Miss Moo and Miss Roo love giving anyone and everyone check ups. My first step will be to discuss Virginia Apgar, the woman responsible for develop the Apgar Scoring system for newborns. With a baby brother coming in a few weeks, learning about babies surrounds us daily. We can learn not only about Dr. Apgar and her system, but also how babies are different from little girls and why they need to be treated with care and given help. I’m also hoping to move us along to Jane Goodall — Roo LOVES monkeys and chimpanzees — and her work at the Gombe Stream Reserve. Working with Chimps is different than working with babies and we will discuss how animals need different care and consideration than babies and children.

We’ll also discuss Clara Barton. Nurses are important, too, and that’s something that I want my girls to learn and appreciate. Moo is particularly enamored with strong willed women (pirates and mermaids and the like) and learning about a woman who faced danger on the battlefields in order to help men who were hurt is just the kind of story she will enjoy. It also helps that Clara Barton did a lot of her service in Virginia and we’re living in the middle of the Capital of  the Confederacy — Richmond. I’m hoping to turn a warm day into a field trip while I can!

Pocahontas

One of our many treasure hunts.

I’m ecstatic that Moo shares a love of this Native American Princess in the same way that I do. Her introduction to Pocahontas was purely accidental  – who knew she could work Netflix streaming?!?! But after watching the Disney movie together, she was FULL of questions. We have checked out many books from the library on Pocahontas and Jamestown.

We have talked about Native Americans and how our state used to look very different. But, we haven’t really discussed the lives of Native Americans in details. I plan to do this with her this month as well as find some fun “projects” that we can do together. Most of those will involve nature hunts and gathering of treasures to make tools and treasure they way Native Americans would have done. I’m surely no expert here, so research and learning will be happening for all of us. I’m also hoping to take us to Jamestown so she can see with her eyes that Pocahontas is a person who lived at a real place — not just an image in a movie or a book.

Laura Ingalls Wilder

What little girl doesn’t love reading of the adventures of Laura in the prairies of our country? Here comes geography! Our other main areas of focus have centered around women and activities here in our state. However, my map loving girls need something more. Learning more about Laura, the prairie, and the settlement of our nation give us the opportunity to look at maps, learn about animals we won’t see here, and to take a step back to simpler times. I’m hoping that learning about the challenges that Laura and her family faced and their ability to be thankful for all their blessings — which were far less materials than modern day blessings — will help our girls appreciate simplicity and the wonders that nature provides around our country and around the world.  I’m also planning on learning about Laura closer to the end of the month when this mama will be too big to travel or do much else. Baking, pretending to have snow storms, and having prairie picnics are a perfect way to keep our education simple and focuses while providing activities and sensory experiences.

Non-Traditional Women’s Studies

Moo and Nana- a true hero.

Where would we all be without our mothers? Grandmothers? Special teachers or family friends? This concept is something else I want to address with our girls this month. While famous women are important, so are the women we encounter every day. Nana is crucial to the girls’ success just as she was to mine. Our close friend LizBet is tremendously influential in helping the girls thrive and gives them countless amounts of encouragement and support to foster their independence and self worth. Having two living great-grandmothers is a blessing that many children don’t have and my girls need to learn about them and their lives from them rather than from me. Thinking outside the box to the women who touch their lives daily but immeasurably is something that we will do together and we will not only discuss and appreciate what these women have done fur us all, but we will thank them even more this month.

Moving Forward

Each year in March we’ll build from what we’ve done the previous year. However, I don’t want March to be the only time we discuss and pursue the knowledge of influential and important women in our lives and in our world. It’s great that we have a month devoted to women, but we should celebrate and educate ourselves daily on the women who have made our world a better place. Taking small steps like this with my girls might give them the momentum to be the change in the lives of women who need guidance, help, and mostly love.

Do you celebrate women in your life and in your world? Do you teach your children about the women who have done so much for them?

Like what you've read? Subscribe so you never miss a post! You can also follow us on Facebook or Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

Tagged categories: Blog

Comments: 1 | Post a Comment

Little Things for Little Ones: Making Your Preschoolers Feel Loved

February 5, 2013 by   Malissa

February is already here and love is in the air! Whether you enjoy the hearts, candy, and greeting cards or you prefer to see the 14th come and go quietly, love is an unavoidable topic this month. As we prepare to meet our newest family member in the next month of two, the topic of love has been recurring in our house. Drew and I are trying our best to make our girls feel special in these last few weeks before their brother is born. Here are a few of the things we do to make our girls feel loved now and as our family grows.

Dates

Having several small children means that your time together is usually that -together. Finding time to give to each of them – what we call Mommy Dates or Daddy Dates – gives them a window of time one on one with each parent. Although the word date usually means spending money, we try to find ways to go on dates that are inexpensive or cost free.

For Miss Moo, she LOVES to go with Daddy to play trains at Barnes and Noble – even though there is a train table in the girls’ room. She also loves solo park and playground trips with Daddy and spending time home alone just playing with him. Occasionally, they might go get breakfast or a hot chocolate, but mostly they spend time together that isn’t about cost and is about togetherness. With me, Moo loves to visit the library  to read books and bring some home, show me how to navigate our list at the grocery store, and have me take her to gymnastics solo so that I can focus on watching just her – not chasing Roo around. Simple things, but by calling them dates she knows it means she has 100% of our attention.

Miss Roo and I on a “date” to Target in December.

Miss Roo LOVES to help me run errands. Most of the time, our Mommy Dates- planned at the same time as Moo’s Daddy dates  - involve her help at the grocery store, craft store, or other errands with lists that she can help complete. Roo also loves going to the park and swinging endlessly for hours, sharing a hot chocolate with me, and reading. She also loves that once a week, she has solo Daddy Date time while they go to gymnastics alone and Moo and I either play here or go do something fun, like Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s — usually her choice!

There will be some modification needed once Baby Boy is born, but knowing what our girls like to do as well having a routine we hope will help ease the transition to an additional member in our family.

Reasons They Are Special

We also are trying to give them more visual reminders that they are important to us and loved. This year, Drew and I are writing something on a heart daily from February 1st through the end of the month, then placing them on their closet doors for them to see. We want them to see how special they are to each of us, and that we can think of a reason each and every day that we are blessed to have them in our lives. When the month is over, I will take down the hearts, laminate them, and keep them as a book for them. I’m hoping we will remember to do this each year so they will have a collection when they are older.

Dinner Choice Nights

Food and eating are a big deal in our house. While my girls have never been picky, there are meals that they enjoy more than others. Each week, I ask for their input on one dinner. Unreasonable requests are sometimes integrated into what we end up eating. While I won’t fix a dinner of ice cream and fruit, I WILL make local grassfed burgers with cheddar, fresh french fries, peas, fruit, and homemade milkshakes. Dinners that have been requested from them also have been spaghetti, “chicken” nuggets with rice (which is usually catfish instead of chicken), and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

I will also trying to fix something that they as for repeatedly- Moo asks for pancakes, bacon, and eggs almost daily so we have that for dinner once a month. We also really listen to what they say about the food they eat. Moo doesn’t like soups as much as Roo, so on soup or chili nights, she knows there will be a steaming hot, baked potato with cheese, butter, and sour cream waiting for her alongside her small bowl of chili.

Miss Moo with her yummy potato on Chili Night.

Showing the girls that we listen to what the like or focusing on what they want for a meal and family time help them to seem their importance to us and their role as a member of the family.

Special Bedtimes

Drew usually handles bedtime with the girls. It’s the one hour a day that I get guaranteed alone time and that he has time for them to be with just him after he’s worked all day. But, his job requires odd work times and the girls aren’t always ready to fall asleep at the same time each night. Several times a month, Moo ends up awake during his work window or long past Roo falling asleep.

We used to fight, argue, give timeouts — but nothing worked and we fought her. Now, we plan a special bedtime weekly. Most of the time they coincide with Drew’s working late and we cuddle in bed with a book, a movie, or just to chat. Some nights Roo is with us and other nights it is just the two of us. Sometimes, it is even Moo, Drew and I and she LOVES those nights. Staying up past bedtime and getting attention means that she sleeps once she is in bed and rests fully — sometimes even “sleeping in!”

She also knows that Special Bedtimes are a privilege and she can lose them if she doesn’t listen, use her manners, eat her dinner, etc. We have turned the negative attention into some positive time with her and her sister. If she is in here with me and Drew isn’t working, he lays down with Roo so she can have some one on one attention. A simple solution to what was becoming a tearful and painful event. We would much rather she benefit from our time and love rather than be in tears.

Surprising Them

We also try to surprise the girls occasionally with something that they love and we know it. Getting in the van and not telling them where we are going only to end up a a far away but beloved park is always met with squeals of joy. Having the added milkshake on burger night means hugs, thank yous, and grinning faces. Asking Moo or Roo if they’d like to go somewhere with me only to find out the are going with JUST me is always met with smiles and cheers. And giving THEM alone time with special people — like their favorite babysitter or NanaPop – while Daddy and I go have alone time is also important and special to them.

We also surprise them with little gifts on holidays. This February 14th, I plan to make them some holiday hand kites, a fairy wand of love, and a Valentine Fairy- just so they know they are special on special days — but also to show them that making something has move love and meaning than buying candy and flowers from the store. Little surprises mean the most to our girls.

Always Share Praise and Pride

Although you may tell your children how you feel, you can never say it enough. Praising Moo for helping me with the laundry and cooking dinner shows her that I do appreciate what she does in our home as well. Applauding for Roo after she follows a several step instruction lets her know we are proud of her accomplishments. Hearing that we are proud of them reinforces how special they are to us. The most meaningful gifts we give our girls are the ones that are priceless. Remember to love them, hold them, and always tell them what a blessing they are to you and your family.

What do you do to show your love to your children? Are there ways that you make them feel special each day?

Like what you've read? Subscribe so you never miss a post! You can also follow us on Facebook or Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...
Tagged categories: Blog

Comments: 4 | Post a Comment
123
 

Switch to our mobile site