Category Archives: health

Movement Cards

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Movement Cards Print a set of cards and you have an instant variety of fun activities! There are some sets to download (see the do it yourself section at the end of this post). You can play these cards in a variety of ways- from just drawing one card at a time and doing the activity, to having a race to see how many cards you can complete in a given amount of time, to setting the cards in a circle and doing the activities as you walk around…. there are many more!

Supplies Needed-– a set of cards (see below to download)

Downloads: There are 3 different sets of movement cards. One is a very simple set I made for my daughter when she was about 1. The second set came about when I read this great blog post on the ABC’s of movement- we worked together and came up with a set of movement cards. Anyway you choose to go, these movement cards will keep your tots busy!
Set One
Set Two

Happy Teaching!

Yoga for Kids

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Yoga
 Don’t be intimidated by the word- your toddler CAN do yoga! And more than likely he/she will enjoy doing the different poses! Just pick two or three at first- not to be too overwhelming. Go through each of the steps of the poses- modeling it for your tot- and be sure to not get frustrated if your tot has their own yoga technique. Remember that the goal of yoga is to relax and energize your mind and body- not leave you stressed out! I recommend purchasing a yoga for kids program to help simplify the pose steps and make this a FUN activity as well- I use the Yoga Pretzel cards and LOVE them!! My wiggly daughter loves the rock pose- who knew she would want to be so still!

Supplies Needed-
 – yoga mat or towel to perform the different poses on
– a knowledge of yoga or a learning tool (book, video, activity cards)

Happy Teaching!

Play Catch

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Play Catch!
 This is a simple game that requires nothing more than a willing toddler and a soft ball! Your tot might not be able to catch the ball mid-air, but will have tons of fun grabbing the ball and throwing it back to you! This game is also fun with balloons (my daughter preferred that method to balls- they came down slower so she had time to grab the balloon before it fell to the ground)

Supplies Needed-
 – soft ball or balloon

Working on our Healthy Menu

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I searched and searched for a good nutritious toddler menu that would require little cooking! I was happy to come across this site that offered a very simple meal idea.

For breakfast:

  • 1/3 cup cooked cereal

  • 1/2 banana

  • 1/2 slice toast with 1/2 teaspoon butter

  • 4 ounces whole milk

For a morning snack:

  • 2 graham crackers

  • 4 ounces fruit juice

For lunch:

  • 1/2 peanut butter and jelly sandwich

  • 2 tablespoons cooked broccoli

  • 1/4 cup melon

  • 4 ounces whole milk

For an afternoon snack:

  • 1/2 cup yogurt

  • 1/4 muffin

For dinner:

  • 1-1/2 ounces chopped chicken

  • 2 tablespoons peas

  • 2 tablespoons baked potato with 2 teaspoons butter

  • 1/2 slice whole wheat bread

  • 4 ounces whole milk

For a snack:

  • 1/2 cup canned fruit

  • 1/2 ounce cheese

  • 2 or 3 whole grain crackers

We tried it out yesterday and today (as best as we could spending the day at a campsite with family) and I am very pleased with it! It is simple, something I could tweak here and there, but it gives me that meal planning framework. My daughter won’t eat ALL of that food yet- but I am offering it to her and have already noticed a small increase in how much she is eating at the scheduled times and I am not being begged for crackers all day. I know she appreciates the wider variety of foods she gets during meal time. I want to write a weekly schedule similar to this one that offers that variety and yet can give me a shopping list every week!
Let’s hope this plan lasts! šŸ™‚
Happy Teaching!

Crib Sheet Parachute

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ACTIVITY TAKEN FROM TODDLERTODDLER.COM
 Crib Sheet Parachute Fun!
“You know the fun games that you played with that big parachute in gym class!! Here’s a chance to have some fun with your toddler and a simple fitted crib sheet. Let your toddler hold one side and you hold the other. Now flap the sheet in the air, and both of you go under it. Or have your toddler hold on while you raise it “up” in the air and “down” to the floor. Teach him “up” and “down”! You can go around in circles or in and out. Your toddler may have some ideas of what to do also!! Laugh a lot and have some real fun.

Supplies Needed:
– fitted crib sheet”

This was a fun (short lived though) activity for my Boo. It was easy since I was changing her sheets anyway! If I were to do it again I think I would add some soft balls to the center of the sheet while flapping it in the air…. it would have been easier, too if there were more people. Important thing is that my little one had a great 5 minutes of fun playing with her Momma!

Happy Playing!

Cell Phone Hide and Seek

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ACTIVITY TAKEN FROM TODDLERTODDLER.COM
Cell Phone Hide-&-Seek!
 “Do you have a cell phone with a fun ringer? Hide your cell phone under a pillow and then call it from your home phone. Let your toddler find the ringing cell phone! You can even put it in a different room! Each time you play, change the ringer. It’s a fun way to teach your toddler to listen and follow a sound! (Just be sure to put the keyguard on so that your toddler doesn’t make any calls!) This is also a great activity if you are somewhere waiting and you have two cell phones!

Supplies Needed-
 – cell phone
– another phone”

My daughter had SO much fun with this activity. We played it at least 15 times and would have played more if we had more time! Best part of the activity- it is easy and yet very engaging because the phone is not always in the same place. Definately a must try game for all you moms and dads of tots!

Happy Playing!

August Curriculum Calendar (I’m A Fit Kid)

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Here it is… the calendar for our now busy month of August. It actually looks a lot more busy than it will be… with some simple work on nutrition throughout the week, daily movement activities, and some simple tidying up (mostly on my end) I think this month will be a lot of fun! Don’t let the calendar overwhelm you!!I can’t even tell you how excited I am to incorporate more physical fitness and nutrition into our lives… And I know that the physical activities will be SO much fun for my Boo! šŸ™‚ So let’s put those chips and french fries down and have some good healthy fun during August!!
Happy Playing!

Don’t forget to check out some of these great nutrition links:
wiki
gerber nutrition
nutrition exploration
BAM!

Creating a healthy menu links:
wholesome foods toddler weekly menu
baby chaser weekly toddler menu
keep kids healthy
sample toddler menu

Decluttering links:
18 5-minute decluttering tips
top 20 decluttering and organizing posts
how to declutter

I’m a Fit Kid

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So our healthy adventures begin today! I have a few goals I would like to accomplish during our month of fitness:

  1. MISSION NUTRITION come up with a weekly meal plan that INCLUDES healthy snacks, lots of H2O, and is properly balanced.
  2. GROOVE & MOVE do a different movement activity every day for at least 30 minutes- this is to expose my Boo to a variety of fun activities as well as teach her some large motor skills
  3. TIDY UP! declutter, organize, schedule,…. clean up our routine as well as our home! i plan on implementing a basic chore system as well

In honor of our FIT KID month- check out this song available for download at dole5aday.com:
I’m a Fit Kid

Meal Inspired by Muffin Tin Mondays

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I came across a blog that suggests having a meal at least once in week in a muffin tin! From what I have read on other blogs and in parenting books, these are a great way to get your kiddo excited about eating a variety of foods. (green peas never looked better when complimented by red raspberries and luscious blueberries!)
So here it is, our first muffin tin meal! And it’s not in a muffin tin!! I had this egg tray that came with my cupcake carrier and held onto it knowing there would be some use for it in the future (it’s the teacher pack rat in me). The small, egg shaped depressions worked well for my little one’s tiny fingers and allowed me a little creativity in the placement of our food!

red raspberries, orange cubed carrots, pieces of pear, yellow corn, green peas, and blueberries- so there’s 3 fruits and 3 veggies
each food item is used three times

As you can see, my daughter LOVED her lunch and ate every single bite happily. Hooray for healthy eating! šŸ™‚

The Nutritional Needs of a Toddler (my most recent grief!)

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What are the nutritional requirements of a 12-24 month old? This has been my most recent plaguing question. It is very important for my to feed my daughter a healthy diet- and since she is extremely active, I know it is important for her to fill up her tank in a healthy manner before play. So what exactly does a toddler need to eat? I found a great website for the 2+ year old child… but since my sweetie is almost 17 months I wanted something more fitting for her age group. (some of those daily menus for toddlers/ preschoolers are quite frightening! I think I would have to spend most of the day in the kitchen preparing food! And since that is really not my forte, I will wait until my daughter is 2 before attempting such a hearty daily food schedule!)
After googling toddler nutrition, I found this website that broke down what an average 1-2 year old dietary needs.

Milk/Dairy: Servings: 16-20 ounces of milk per day. Whole milk, soy or rice milk are recommended. Other equivalents: 1/2-3/4 ounce of cheese = 4 ounces of milk. 1/4 cup of yogurt = 2 ounces of milk.

Fruits and veggies: Servings: 5 or more per day. Serving size: 1-2 tablespoons – Pureed, mashed, or cubed.

Grains: Servings: 3-4 per day. Serving sizes: 1/2 slice of bread, 1/4 cup of cooked cereal, 1/4 cup of dry cereal. 1/4 cup of pasta, 2-3 saltine crackers, or 1/2 tortilla.

Non-dairy Proteins (meat, fish, beans, eggs): Servings: 2 per day. Serving sizes: 1/2 egg, 2-3 tablespoons beans (i.e. black, pinto, edamame, etc…), 1 tablespoon peanut butter, or 1 ounce of fish, lean beef, pork or chicken.

So now that I know this information, what am I going to do with it? Thoughts are spinning through my mind of creating a really cute magnetic menu board with clipart graphics of fruits, veggies, and other food items and let Jacs help me create our daily meals…. but instead I am going to take a deep breathe, realize I can’t do everything, and secretly wish for a live in cook.

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