Browsing Category

Motherhood

Gifts kids Motherhood Shopping

Gifts for the Construction Loving Toddler & Teaching Kids to be Grateful

December 20, 2018
construction toys, toddler boy gift guide, construction toys for boys

1 | 2| 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11

I know everyone is scrambling to fulfill the random gift requests our children ask of us ( I just Amazon primed a whoopie cushion), so I thought I’d share a few gift ideas perfect for the little boy into all things construction. I think we have nearly all of these items, so I can honestly say they are all great gifts a toddler boy will love. These gifts fall more so into the 2-4 age range. Nearly all of these are available on Amazon, so they’ll get here in time for Christmas. Most of the others are at retailers where you can do in-store pick-up or pay a minimal amount for shipping to get here in time for Christmas.

My top 3 picks from the list:

  • If you have a little finicky eater, buy this NOW. It was gift we received last year when Braden was starting his selective eating phase, and it made eating so much fun for him, and he would eat a lot more because of this plate and utensil set. We still use it to this day.
  • This book has been heavy rotation in our house. We’re a big fan of the series, and we have the original, Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site and  the second one in the series, Mighty, Mighty Construction Site as well. I know it’ll be a Christmas book we will read for years to come.
  • We received this crane as a gift when Braden was 2, but he probably was more into it around ages 2.5-3. He still plays with it all the time, and it’s such a well-made piece since it’s made out of wood, and also functions as fun decor for his room.

With all the gift giving this season, I’m sure there might be some parents who are also experiencing a child who seems to have a lot of wants…I know I’m not the only one after talking to a few friends, so I thought I’d also share a note about encouraging kids to be grateful. See below for more details.

Some thoughts on encouraging kids to be grateful

My kids occupy all my time these days so making sure the season is special for them is pretty top-of-mind for me. I’ve tried to manage Braden’s expectations this year, letting him know he will only be getting three gifts from us because Christmas is not really about gift giving but rather spending time with family. Why 3? Because that’s what the three wiseman gave Jesus, and I just don’t want more stuff in our house/playroom.  I know he’ll get other gifts from grandparents and friends, and that’s fine, but  from us, he will be receiving three items. And, I told him our family vacation next month is our big gift for us all.

I’ve found that even at the age of 4, there is a lot of FOMO going on. Braden has come home from school recently telling me that a kid at school has a snowman shirt and he wants one, too…or that someone is going to LEGO land and he wants us to take him. I’ve really made an effort to explain to him that not everyone has the same experiences or gets the same toys. Does anyone else struggle with this? Per the norm, I’ve been googling a lot of articles for tips and came across this one, which includes 10 Ways to Raise a Grateful Kid.

Two weeks ago, I encouraged Braden to draw cards for troops overseas. My chiropractor’s office does care packages to troops, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to try to teach him about giving to others. I’m not perfect, and neither is my child, but it’s important to me to at least try to instill gratitude in him so he doesn’t have a sense of entitlement and is compassionate to others. Braden insisted on coming with me to the chiropractor to drop them off, and he was so proud of what he did and excited to show them to the person at check-in and tell the dr. about them. Sappy mom moment…but it nearly brought me to tears. He’s currently working on making some cards for his school teachers (to include with some gift cards!). We also made some homemade cards for grandparents and mailed them a couple of weeks ago. I’m a big believer in handwritten thank-you notes, so I want him to understand that something like that goes a long way.

So, maybe it’s writing thank you notes, or drawing a card to give to someone else as a gift, but there are some really easy ways to teach kids to give back a little this season.

0 Comments
Loving Lately... Motherhood Thoughts

Pumping Chronicles- Part 1

July 21, 2018

I spend a lot of time reading on my phone while I pump. I mentioned here, but I am pretty much exclusively pumping for Emmaline. If you’ve ever done this, you know how time consuming this can be. My goal is to pump for at least 6 months, which is what I did for Braden. We’ll see though. I am already feeling like a cow since I do it about 5 times per day.

I use the time I pump to catch up on reading news, scrolling through FB or Instagram, or reading what I call “casual reading.” All about the multitasking here. For my whole career, I have always kept a casual reading folder in my email inbox. Working in an agency setting for 10+ years, I received hundreds of emails a day. Casual reading emails were usual educational or light reading emails I would file away to read when I had leisure time or needed a mental break. I often read through them in Fridays, so I thought this would be good Friday or Sat. reading for some. So, this series, which for now I’ll call “The Pumping Chronicles”  is my version of that for the blog, with the hopes that they educate, inspire, or even make you LOL. I will try to make this a weekly series where I share articles I’ve recently stumbled across or other discoveries.

So, let’s kick this off…

1.When we built our house, we had plans of putting in a pool one day. Last summer, we said we’d do it next year. With me being pregnant & Ben traveling for work, I did not want to take it on in 2018. We have been thinking about this a lot more lately, seriously thinking about adding a pool early next year. It is just SO hot in Houston during the summer that a pool feels like a necessity. I know — that sounds a bit like first world problems, but I know it would be something we utilize a lot. That said, pool and water safety is something I am very serious about. I recently came across this article written by a woman whose son drowned. I have a friend who had a traumatic scare with her daughter who almost drowned. I can’t fathom going through this type of situation and how scary that must had been. So, I hope this article inspires you to be safe when it comes to pool and water exposure and to be cautious when your children are near water. Reading articles like this always give me chills.

2. I have total amnesia about what it’s like to have a baby so I am googling info. quite a bit & re-reading this book, which I followed, to sleep train Braden. Emmaline has only been waking 2x at night, so I haven’t started trying to implement a schedule quite yet but plan to soon just because it will help when it comes to  my work schedule and and our family’s overall routine. Also, I downloaded the Wonder Weeks app, which is great for understanding growth spurts.

3. Babies don’t do much but eat, sleep & poop, but I am all about trying to do a few little things that help with development. I came across this site recently that you can put in your baby’s age and it gives you activities to do like little exercises to help with development.  If you’re a new mom or know someone expecting, pass it along!

4. Nordstrom anniversary sale: I have ordered a good amount online in the middle of the night since last week. Perks of being woken up by a tiny human, perhaps. I am evaluating what to keep vs. return right now so I’ll share my selects soon. The sale just opened up to the public (non- Nordstrom card holders) so check often to grab new fall items. I always use this time to stock up on basics like cardigans, booties, designer denim and kids’ clothes. All of my Northface fleeces, boots and booties and lots of Braden’s clothes come from the Nordstrom sale each year. I’ve linked a few of my faves below in the widget.

5. I recently have purchased a a couple of cute items to wear from Target that are affordable & good quality like this dress with ric rac detail or this summery striped dress, which is great for nursing moms like me.

Additionally, I think the most recent additions to the Magnolia Hearth & Hand line are awesome . I added this lamp and this artwork to B’s room. And, I bought this message holder to hang next to my pantry because it’s one of my biggest pet peeves to run out of something and not be told about it. So, this list will help me know we’ve run out of something essential like PB ( always have 2-3 jars of our favorite or it makes me nervous ) or coffee. These things basically keep us alive/sane.

Thanks for reading the first edition.

Stay tuned for more next week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

0 Comments