TMT Jessica’s Little Ones

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Newest Addition to TMT Family

Hey Mommy Teachers… this is TMT Jessica here.

We are so excited to welcome little one number three to our family….

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Mckenzie Beth

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Big brother and big sister are so excited!

As a Mommy Teacher, a lot has been going through my mind, and I wanted to share some of the teachable moments I have been purposing throughout the week with the NEWest addition:

1)  I have set some clear boundaries for the older two siblings and I am trying to be as consistent as possible with the follow through for my expectations.  They can touch her softly/gently but not on the face.  They can hold her with mommy’s supervision, and I have set other similar physical boundaries.  The kids also have to find something quietly to do while mommy feeds the new baby (typically, they each feed their own baby dolls during this time).  We have also changed the baby dolls diapers EVERY time we have changed Kenzie haha.

2)  They are learning so many great life lessons and teaching each other so many things… Sean Patrick is in charge of “reading” to Mckayla when she wants Mommy to hold her but I am rocking Kenzie to sleep.

reading to sissie
Sean Patrick’s version of the story…”Oooh Ooh a tiger”

3)  We cant get out much right now with a newborn so we are doing LOTS of music and movement (I will write about what we are doing this week) and we are playing in the backyard to get all our energy and wiggles out as well as swimming in the plastic pool, playing backyard sports, singing and dancing, jumping on the trampoline, etc.

4) We are learning about the differences between babies and ourselves (how they eat, sleep, what they can not to that big kids can do like walk, talk, etc.) and we have compared the letters in the kid’s names now that we have a new name to explore  (With play dough letter stencils and bath foam letters mostly).

 

One activity for older kids that I think is SO GREAT and I had to share as an idea for you to keep in your memory bank (or pinterest board) for when someone in your family or a close friend has a new baby is a “Tips for having a new baby” LIST.  My creative niece came up with some humorous tips that I should consider now that I have three young kids.  Her mommy teacher, my sister, supported her in this writing process and they even re-wrote it to make it more presentable – GREAT handwriting practice.   The night she came to visit us, she read it aloud (great presentation for reading, speaking clearly, and practicing “public speaking”).  It was REALLY thoughtful and adorable….It is now on my fridge. Read the tips below and enjoy!

Rough Draft
Here is her Rough Draft

 

Here is the re-written list of parenting tips ... from a 7 year old's point of view!
Here is the re-written list of parenting tips … from a 7 year old’s point of view!

 

The Birthday Party Whirlwind

If you have ever planned a birthday party then you know why it has been so long since Casey and I have posted…. We have been planning birthday parties for our kids 🙂
Well, we survived them and I’d like to share a great resource with you if you need some help planning a party for your little one….
Lauren Haddox Designs Etsy shop and her facebook page will have you in awe of all the beautiful themes and graphic designs that are perfect for all you pinterest peeps.  She has sooo many great packages & files of DIY printables for parties.  I loved her train theme that I used for my 3 year old’s party yesterday and she took some great shots of her design in action.  I want to share and I’m hoping super-mom AkA Casey will share her pics from her party here soon too.
Getting ready for the party was fun too.  Sean Patrick helped me paint cardboard boxes the primary colors which was great teaching him how to paint on something that would be used at his party.  We cut black circles for the wheels and used the cute play on words “chew chew” to decorate each cart.

My 8 month pregnant self having a paint party with my birthday boy before his big day.
My 8 month pregnant self having a paint party with my birthday boy before his big day.

I got to teach him more about environmental print when we made the railroad crossing signs.  Making kids aware of “writing” on signs is a great pre-reading reference and geometry lesson too as you observe the shapes all around.
The Party favors: Sean Patrick loves my school whistle that I wear on my lanyard so I got whistles for the kids that I wrote their names on with a sharpie and passed out as soon as the kids got to the party.
And the highlight of the party: the train!!! The kids had so much fun riding on the trackless train that Sean Patrick has been telling everyone about his “super-fast” train at his party.  Adding an expense like that can make a party overwhelming unless, like me, you let all family members know that if they want to chip in a little for the train in lieu of presents then it makes it more affordable (and then you don’t end up with lots of extra plastic in your house ).
Please comment with a link to your blogs if you have cute kid parties to share because I love the inspiration now that I have been converted by my friend Lauren to a party-planning mom… which is a small miracle because I avoided it like the plague for so long 😉

Mommy Teacher Spring Break

I remember when spring break used to be a week at the beach, party cups, and friends for days.
Now, my spring break (as you are going to see) still includes friends, but it revolves around my kids and not my suntan…. But who needs a suntan anyway right? …. Well, since you asked….I do.  But, I am 7 months pregnant and it was actually a chilly week so, that wouldn’t have happened anyway.
I have to admit,  ever since I went back to working full time … I miss my kids so much that I SAVOR my time with them even more.

With a week of just me and my angels, I took the liberty of jumping on board of EVERY playdate adventure I caught wind of, and here is what my crazy-busy, awesome week looked like:

Monday – Zoo DAY

Packed the wagon, clipboards, zoo checklist, and lunches…

baton rouge zoo

After nap time, we even made it to the neighborhood school playground and nearby park too… we really made the most of our day outside!

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Tuesday – Exporing Downtown Baton Rouge

We packed our lunches, umbrella strollers, and blankets and headed to a trolley stop in Downtown Baton Rouge.   We started singing “The Wheels on the Trolley…” when my baby started crying it was perfect timing for “The Baby on the trolley goes wah wah wah” haha

Trolley Ride Baton Rouge

We took a little stair-step picture of the kids from tallest to shortest in front of the State Capitol…

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After venturing to the top of the State Capitol, we had a picnic out front as we waited for the trolley to swing back around…

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Wednesday – Fire Station Tour and Easter Egg Hunt Party

My friend set up a local Fire Station Tour where we maxed out the place with the youngest crew possible…

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Sean Patrick was intrigued, and then scared, when the firefighter did his suit-up demonstration…

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The Easter Egg Hunt Party we went to was way too fun for a simple, last-minute thing my friend threw together….

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I’m still loving the bandana-liner idea from last year.

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Thursday – Louisiana Arts and Science Museum

The LASM in downtown Baton Rouge has a great little discovery depot that was so developmentally appropriate for my under 3 year olds.  It has so many age-appropriate learning stations for them to explore…

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Friday – Bass Pro Shop and Sunrise Assisted Living

We made our way to Bass Pro Shop in Denham Springs, La to take pictures with the Easter bunny…. only to get the memo a little late that we would miss the bunny all-together (live and learn!)  We found plenty to do…

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After “Driving” the stationary truck out front Sean Patrick “Rode” the statue of a horse too…

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Right before he picked out a fishing pole (that he uses every day!)

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Then, we went to visit my mom (who has Alzheimers) and decided to take a picture with the Bunny Decor at the Assisted Living Residence since we missed the bunny at bass pro…

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Weekend Fun – Crawfish Boils and Easter Celebration at the Camp

Finally, we wrapped up the weekend with two crawfish boils (dont be alarmed…below is a fake, plastic crawfish)…

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Took a family pic (minus smiles) …

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And went fishin in the lakefront (in the closest thing to a swimsuit) with the pole from bass pro…

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And I wouldn’t trade ONE minute of it…. for my old Spring Break tan 😉

I hope that if you are on Spring Break right now with your kids off of school that you are able to join forces with your friends and come up with some play dates… it makes for such memorable moments!

Cheap and Easy, Easter Bunny Gift Baggie

I found this idea in my teacher stash of Easter activities.  I almost always have paper bags, glue, markers, contruction paper, and scissors in my playroom cubbies.  So, for me, this was just a “sweep-the-playroom” kind of activity.

I wanted to put a little Easter picture inside of a little gift bag for Sean Patrick’s grandma and great-grandma.
Way better than a gift bag was this little craft idea I found in my teacher shed (the one on the left is my “example” and the one on the right is the one Sean Patrick made):
 
 
I just Cut a dip in the top of a brown bag (the side that opens) to so it left a shape that resembles a bunny.  You could cut a rectangle out of  the middle of the top of the bag if you don’t want them to be as rounded. (A white paper bag would be super cute too, but I was out).
 
I used pink, blue, & black construction paper to make the eyes, inner ears, nose, & whiskers.
 
Sean Patrick wanted to color it first of course (red is his favorite color if you haven’t guessed by now).
 
I always include my little bed-head one year old too.  (they are both shirt-less because I wanted to keep their cute shirts clean).
 
 
I then helped him cut/tear and glue little pieces of pink paper to a gluey oval in the inner ear.  Then he glued the eyes and nose (“just a dot, not a lot”)…. I glued the whiskers because I couldn’t find my glue stick which would be easier for him.
 
 
After we finished glueing, I grabbed a black marker, took his hand and guided him to make the pupil of the bunny’s eyes, the eyelashes, the little dots around the nose, and the mouth.
 
That was it!
We wrote a note from “Sean Patrick” on the back.
We put some Easter grass, starburst candies in some eggs, and the pictures inside & he will give them out when he sees them for Easter!
 

You can always add to it and share your ideas on facebook (like a cotton ball on the backside):

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