Already Gone

My sister in law was here the other night and said, "Jeez, you move furniture a lot!"

She wasn't even referring to the dresser in the kitchen.  I'm not sure she even noticed that one.

It's true.  I've said it before.  I'm a chronic rearranger.  


So here's a project that I haven't blogged about, but have already replaced with something new:


This little harlequin table was a $6 goodwill find about 5 years ago.  I painted the harlequin, but when we moved, it didn't make it into this house.  Karen and I dug it out of a shed and I decided to use it for an end table.

I used my handy wire brush/scraper thing (find it in the paint department) to scratch off the loose paint and give it some more chippy-ness.

Then, I cut some old barnwood from Great Grandpa's barn and applied a couple coats of polycrylic to seal the chipping paint and any other yucky things.

Finally, I placed the pieces of wood across the top of the table.  I didn't even secure them, because I figured that if I left them loose, I could turn them over to the red side and maybe use the table in Adam's room someday, or even change it up for the holidays, if I wanted. 

And we all know I love change!  So much so that I didn't really even get the table accessorized before moving it out of the way to make room for a new one that I found a couple weeks ago.  It was cute while it lasted, though, right?

Shared at Remodelaholic
Frugal Friday
Furniture Feature Friday 
Piece of Work Wednesday 

He thinks he's a firefighter...

Washing machinery is pretty important around here. And it takes a lot of time.

So I guess it makes sense that Bart is teaching Adam how to do it.

 

I mean, that's the whole reason we keep having kids.  We're trying to grow our own workforce.

And it's totally cool if he thinks he's putting out a fire, right?  Right.

Empathy: Picture Books

I'm kind of an expert on childrens' novels, but not so much on picture books.  So I invited my new friend, Vanessa, to do a guest post on children's books that teach empathy.  She has a great website devoted to childrens' books, Silly Eagle Books. (And for certain best friends born on another continent, she even has a couple book lists about Kenya!)

**This post is part of a series I've been doing on empathy.  For other posts on how to show empathy and teach your children empathy, click here.**

Books to Help Your Toddler Understand Emotions

Hi, I'm Vanessa from Silly Eagle Books. I write about children's books and how they inspire and influence my family's everyday life. I visit the library regularly and love using picture books to teach my two daughters. If you need a children's book about a particular subject--I can probably give you a few titles. So, when Katie asked me to share some of my favorite feelings books for toddlers, I jumped at the chance! Here are the ones I've enjoyed reading with my own daughter. 

 

The Way I Feel by Janan Cain is probably my favorite. It covers a wide range of emotions and the illustrations are powerful. Even without being able to read the words, my daughter can feel the emotion depicted on each page. 

When I Feel Sad (Way I Feel Books) I also like the Way I Feel books. There is a sad, angry, scared, and jealous book. Each one is dedicated to a single emotion and helps toddlers really understand all facets of the emotion.

A really great hands-on book/toy is Little Bear's Happy Face/Sad (First Book about Feelings) by Lynn Offerman. The book comes with four bear faces that your child can insert into a space (like a puzzle piece) in the book to match little teddy bear's emotion. (For example, when he falls off his bike, they can put the sad face in the spot.) My daughter enjoyed playing with the pieces and being actively involved in the story. It made it very easy to talk about the various emotions.

A few years ago, a friend of mine who has a child with Aspergers asked me if I could recommend a book about feelings with pictures of real children (as opposed to illustrations). She said her son could not relate to the illustrations, but that pictures of real children were what he needed. I found  Everybody Has Feelings by Charles E. Avery--a beautiful collection of black and white photographs that depict the moods of children. I sent her the book and she said that it was perfect.

While searching the internet, I came across these Facial Expressions Learning Cards which look like another good source of images of real children. I also like that they are cards--which allows for more hands-on learning experiences with your child.

Todd Parr Feelings Flash Cards are another option if you like illustrated images. (Added by Katie: I totally love Todd Parr's illustrations!)

Everyone loves smiley faces, but kids can also have fun exploring emotions other than happiness with this I Feel Stamp Kit from Alex Toys. If you are really feeling crafty, you can make these funny faces feeling eggs from Happy Together. I've had them on my to-make list forever. 

What about you? What are your favorite books, toys, or crafts to help your child understand emotions?

Happy Saturday

 

(Source: Pinterest)

t

Busy

This week is busy.

Baby turkeys come tomorrow, which means extra long days for Bart as he cares for the "little fellows."

He also has to take fat samples this week because we have another flock almost ready for market.  This means he kills 6 turkeys and sends fat samples to the processing plant to be tested for safety.  And then we clean the turkeys and fill the freezer with lean turkey breast.

In addition to the busy-ness on the farm,  I have to go back to work tomorrow.  Most years, I'm excited for school to start, but I'm having trouble finding the silver lining this year.  I have gotten into a groove at home and I'm not looking forward to interrupting that. 

 

Although my boys drive me crazy at times, I enjoy having more flexible time to spend with them, instead of the hectic, trying-to-get-everything-done-after-work evenings that are coming up.

We (Adam, Isaac and I) have been sleeping 9PM to 9AM pretty consistently this summer and spending at least half the day in our jammies. Wish us luck as we try to get out the door by 7AM tomorrow, without Bart's help, since he'll be unloading turkeys. At least I only have to do it 3 times a week, since I only teach part time.

I obviously had some funky camera settings going on, but look at those blue eyes!

Here's hoping everything goes smoothly and this week turns out to be less stressful than we are anticipating!

Switcheroo

I'm always trying to make things better.  I see (imagine?) problems where others see none.  And I like to try different solutions to these (imaginary?) problems.

Case in point:

This is what you would have seen if you had entered our kitchen anytime in the past two years.

Since it was right inside the door, we kept our shoes in there, but most of the time, the shoes lived in a pile on the floor instead. It was just too much work to open those doors.

And that pile of shoes (and hubby's "inside" clothes after working on the farm) were always right in the way when you came from the dining room into the kitchen.

So after a game of musical furniture the other day, the black cabinet was replaced with this white dresser.

 

The dresser is open at the bottom, meaning that we can kick off our shoes underneath it.   Let's face it, when you are carrying in an infant seat, dragging a preschooler behind you, and are met by a ferocious, barking shih-tzu, you're not about to bend over and open a door to put your shoes away.  Kicking them off works much better!

 

When under-the-dresser gets too full, the shoes go into the drawers, which Adam (preschooler) can open himself.  

There you have it.  Another beautiful storage solution to a not-so-beautiful problem!

Linking to:
Piece of Work Wednesday at Primitive and Proper

Freckled Laundry Kitchen Party

Empathy: The Fast Food Rule

**This post is part of a series I've been doing on empathy.  For other posts on how to show empathy and teach your children empathy, click here.**

I read The Happiest Toddler on the Block about a year and a half ago.  One of the strategies that Dr. Karp suggests is the "Fast Food Rule."  It's very similar to the "empathy reflex" that I wrote about here.  The Fast Food Rule works like this: if someone is upset, let them speak first, repeat back their feelings, and they say your piece. It's similar to the employee at the fast food drive through. You order, they repeat your order, THEN they tell you the total price.

So this FFR is meant for toddlers, but I have found that it works well on my husband (shhh...don't tell him!) and also my students.

Here is a typical conversation with one of my students.

Student (in a whiny voice): Ugh. This is hard. I don't want to do it.
Mrs. O (in a stern voice): Well, you have to, so get to work.

But here's how the conversation went when I used the FFR.

Student (in a whiny voice): Ugh. This is hard. I don't want to do it.
Mrs. O (in an understanding voice): I know it seems hard right now. But I will help you through it and by the end of the assignment, it won't be so hard.
Student (staring at me like I'm an alien before hesitantly answering): Okay.

How easy was that!?!?! And then, the student sat and worked quietly for 40 minutes. FORTY minutes! That's literally 10 times as long as he normally works quietly!!! I did help with a few problems, but I never had to redirect his attention or deal with any other complaints!





Have you tried the Fast Food Rule or Empathy Reflex?  How did it work for you?  Any tips or suggestions?