I don’t like it when our plans change, and I’m not good with “going with the flow.” Since I know that it is hard for me to adapt to a change of plans, I know that I need to make an effort to be more flexible. It takes time, as well as a husband [...]

We love all things art. We stop by booths at festivals, attend local mommy and me classes every now, and visit our nearby children’s museum to play with whatever art materials others have to offer. I have experienced two classes of sorts with my daughters, in which the educators spoke of their strong support support [...]

Visiting local places of interest is one of our favorite ways of making connections to our community. Often times, these places are only organized for adult tours, so we make our own plan, a toddler-friendly plan.   Yesterday, we joined a few friends at Mission San Juan Bautista. With the mission’s long history, it’s hard [...]

  I recently attended an educators workshop. The first lecture, titled “Creating Mathematics and Scientific Environments,” was outstanding and inspiring. After a brief lecture the teachers/presenters, Michele and Christina, invited us adults to play with a trove of materials that they had lugged up from their school in southern California.   They invited us to [...]

  Decisions, decisions. This is as much an issue for young children as it is for adults. Will they or won’t they put on their shoes by themselves? Clear their dishes? Try a new food? Ultimately, it’s up to them to decide.   With so many choices that need to be made on a daily [...]

  Late nights. Some nights are later than others. Some nights take more out of me than others. Whenever we face a struggle, and we’ve had our fair share, supportive family and friends often remind us that the behavior we are facing is just a symptom of a phase.   Understandably, the word “phase” is [...]

  Greysen loves to play at the park. She spends about half of her time on the climbing structures and other play equipment, but the appeal of the park is broader than the challenges afforded her by the playground.     We live in a small agricultural community. This community is full of friendly folks, [...]

  When Greysen spends 45 minutes or so playing with cornmeal, cups, and spoons, I revel in her play. Without suggestion, interruption, or lesson, I know she’s learning.   Open-ended play and materials allow for the creativity and engagement that I know provide children with an ideal context for learning. As children age, it’s common [...]

Before bed last night, we read Tough Boris by Mem Fox. Tough Boris has 29 pages of story. Greysen asked 29+ detailed “because why?”  questions about every page. “Because why is he on the beach?” and “Because why is he tough?”  are only some of the questions I field throughout the day with just about [...]

  We are half-way through our Farmer’s Market season, which runs May through September.  At the beginning of the summer, I decided to purchase unfamiliar-to-us foods each week to help add some variety to our diet and maybe even give me some motivation to cook.   While the novelty of cooking unfamiliar foods has eventually [...]