Family Time Archives - Page 2 of 4

5 Tips to a Calmer Bedtime

Bedtime, ah, sweet bedtime! That precious time when our little ones quickly hop into bed and lay down with a smile on their face. A kiss on the forehead. Lights out. Then, do you hear that? Quiet!

Excuse me, but that does not happen at our house! That’s a fairytale that might as well have unicorns and pink elephants.

Getting our rambunctious boys to settle down for the night is a huge undertaking! Depending on Stinkpot’s mood, his bedtime can rip every last ounce of life out me at the end of a long day. (My bedtime usually comes about 5 minutes after the boys’, and quite honestly, sometimes before…oops!)

Here are some things that we do to help our preschool boys wind down for bedtime.

1. Take a Warm Bath

This is an integral part of our nighttime routine that helps our boys transition from active play to bedtime. I wash their hair with Johnson’s Baby Shampoo with Lavender. Lavender – with all its calming aromatherapy effects – maybe for some – but probably not much for my preschool boys. 🙂

2. Give a Back Rub

Getting in bed and stopping activity involves a back rub. My sensory-seeking preschooler, Stinkpot, LOVES a back massage! It’s encouraging to hear Stinkpot say: “Ahhh, that feels SO GOOOOOOODDDD”

3. Sing Songs or Play Soft Music

Singing songs can have a calming effect on our boys. I’ve made the mistake in singing songs with motions: “If You’re Happy and You Know It” and “I’m in the Lord’s Army” are NOT songs to sing at bedtime. We sing songs like “Rock-a-Bye, Baby” and “Jesus Loves Me” while lying in bed. One of my favorites is Laurie Burkner’s “Goodnight“. I add other animals to the song and let them sing the animal sound. Fun!!!

Also, just turning out the lights and playing songs on my iPhone, can make my boys STOP. We love to listen to Jewel’s Lullaby. Her angelic voice is so incredibly beautiful. Another favorite is Renee & Jeremy’s It’s a Big World.

4. Engage in Meaningful Conversation

Just sitting and talking at the end of the day can have a calming effect on my boys. Sometimes we review everything that happened that day (and sometimes the poor choices that were made, along with other options).

But sometimes having a talk needs to be more light-hearted and like a game.

We engage in conversation with a storytelling component to encourage critical thinking. We explore Stinkpot’s interests in where he wants to travel and what he wants out of life.

Our favorite is “I’ll tell you a story about when I was little.”

Stinkpot anxiously anticipates hearing tales of me with my little black dog, Pepper, that would walk me to and from school every day. “I LOVE Pepper” is a phrase I hear often. We are creating an incredible connection through storytelling of my childhood.

Using storytelling as part of your bedtime routine with new foster children, would help create a safe sharing environment for them. Giving them an opportunity to open up and engage in conversation.

5. Read with Your Children

Especially now that Stinkpot is in Kindergarten, reading has to become an integral part of our bedtime routine. But getting my hyperactive preschooler to settle down and STOP can be a real challenge sometimes. Again, I have to make reading a game.

Thanks to Christopher!

Christopher is part of Hallmark’s Interactive Story Buddy line. Christopher is a bear that can’t sleep. During the story when I read “Christopher was feeling really sleepy”, Christopher, in his childlike voice responds with “Yawn! But I’m not sleepy.” There are other key phrases in the story, and Christopher’s response isn’t always the same, which makes it more interesting for my boys.

The boys love Christopher and argue over who gets to hold him. Enter Hallmark’s brand new Scooby-Doo Interactive Story Buddy!

Our Lil Bit just LOVES Scooby-Doo (pronounced “Toomy-Doo)! I’m excited that I already know what Santa is bringing Lil Bit this year!

There are other Interactive Story Buddies, such as Nugget, Cooper, Watson, and Bigsby. Also, there’s Abigail, the acrobatic bunny, that little girls will adore! Story Buddies (and additional StoryBooks) are only available in your local Hallmark store.

Disclaimer: Hallmark provided me with Christopher and Scooby-Doo for review. There are also links to Amazon music that I get a couple pennies commission from Amazon if you buy from the link.

9:00 am by Penelope

This 3-Year-Old Needs a Family

This little guy needs a family. His name is Oscar. When I look into his big, brown, engaging eyes, I can’t help but smile.

Isn’t he just adorable?

My kids and I just love chimps! My fascination with primates began when I wrote my college research paper to question whether they could really communicate with humans using sign language.

Tomorrow, on Friday, April 20th, just in time for Earth Day, DisneyNature is bringing a true story of adoption that actually happened in the wild.

Oscar is a baby chimp born to a caring mother with a huge extended family living in the jungles of Africa.

This film explores how when Oscar suddenly loses his mother, an unexpected member of his clan takes care of him. Oscar is adopted!

This film demonstrates that, even in nature, foster care and adoption happen. Some opponents may try to demonize adoption and call for its abolition; however, adoption isn’t evil – sometimes it’s necessary for a little one’s survival in the world – and it can become a beautiful, fulfilling journey.

Can you watch this trailer without feeling a fullness in your throat?

I’m loving the Switchfoot song playing in the trailer: “This is home, now I’m finally where I belong…” We all need to belong.

I’m looking forward to experiencing this film with my boys. Lil Bit is a bit too young to grasp its message just yet; however, I’m looking forward watching this film with 4-year-old Stinkpot. At just over an hour (78 minutes), I’m hoping he can sit still that long.

How about you? How do you share stories of adoption with your little ones? What films do you recommend?

1:30 pm by Penelope

5 Ways to Turn Your Kid’s Bad Day into a Great Day

I try not to be discouraged, but it’s becoming more difficult lately. Stinkpot can have a great day with me or FosterDad, but then suddenly chaos disrupts our lives.

When our family is together, Stinkpot acts out in the worst ways!

Our guess is that he craves the attachment and bonding of one-on-one time with one parent. But then sometimes, even if it’s just both parents and him, he changes immediately into Mr. Hyde.

Evenings can be bad, but weekends are becoming the worst! All day!

Drawing on our past experiences with Stinkpot and with some guidance from his play therapist, we are attempting to use these 5 ways to prepare and help Stinkpot cope easier with family time.

1. Talk every day about his schedule to help him transition from one activity to another.

“Today, Daddy will pick you up from school, then you’ll eat lunch together, then you’ll rock in Daddy’s lap and watch SuperWhy for rest time. After nap, you can play ball together until Mommy comes home with LilBit.”

2. Countdown until family time.

“2 more days until Saturday when everyone will be home together.”

3. Plan a special treat to anticipate.

On Saturdays, we plan a simple treat for the boys. Whether it’s visiting cousins, going to the park after nap, or a Wendy’s Frosty. (Check with your local Wendy’s to purchase a keychain token to benefit foster children and get a free Frosty at each visit.)

4. Plan one-on-one time.

Since I’ve returned to work full-time, Stinkpot doesn’t get the Mommy time he craves. My goal is to show Stinkpot excitement to see him when I get home each evening. I plan to run up to him, pick him up and shower him with affection and Mommy kisses as soon as I walk in the door. Our hope is that 10 uninterrupted minutes of laughing and playing with Mommy will give him that daily attachment he desires.

5. Bring back rocking and cuddling into his daily schedule.

Last year, I participated in One Thankful Mom’s Rockin’ Mama Challenge. Daily rocking of my hyperactive, then 3-year-old boy had a calming effect to my traumatized child’s demeanor.

Our prayer is that focusing on one-on-one attachment and bonding will help our Stinkpot adjust to sharing time with others in our family.

What are some ways that you suggest in helping our traumatized children?

10:00 am by Penelope

Homemade Dinosaur Halloween Costumes

I love Halloween! I love dressing up with the kids and going trick-or-treating, even though begging our neighbors for candy isn’t the best lesson for our kids! On this spooky evening of goblins and ghouls, our normally, quiet, sleepy subdivision morphs into a HUGE Mardi Gras-like carnival. Pumpkins, skeletons, cobwebs, and even bounce houses line our streets. Trick-or-treaters even parade through our subdivision on hay rides! Cars have to dodge families walking through the streets going from house to house. We believe our entire city shows up in our neighborhood on Halloween night!

So when Costume Discounters invited me to review their kids Halloween costumes, I was thrilled! Given our Halloween costume theme for this year, I knew Lil Bit’s Robin costume would be difficult to find and Costume Discounters had it in stock!

My first concern was size. With the costume sized as 2T-4T, I was concerned it would be too large for our 2-year-old. Fortunately, we had Stinkpot’s costume from last year in that size, and found that it will work well for our Lil Bit that is not too little now.

When I first saw the price of $19.97, I was astounded that the price for a child’s costume could be that much. I remember as a kid in the early 1970s when $5 was an expensive costume. However, when I took a trip to Target and the local party store, I saw that the prices at Costume Discounters are competitive.

The costume arrived within a few days of my order.

The Robin costume is officially licensed by DC Comics. The fabric is a thin polyester which will work well for our warm Texas Halloweens. The costume comes with a black mask and detachable cape.

I will be ordering Stinkpot’s Batman costume from Costume Discounters along with my Catwoman accessories. The jury is still out on whether FosterDad will join us trick-or-treating as the Joker.

PBS CHILDREN’S SHOW DINOSAUR TRAIN :

Did you realize that in the PBS show Dinosaur Train, that young T-Rex, Buddy, is adopted by the Pteranodon family? A preschool show about adoption? The show’s main theme isn’t adoption, but Buddy only refers to Mrs. Pteranodon as MOM! A great lesson in that a family doesn’t have to all look alike.

Check out this video!

The next lines in the theme song are:

But dear old Mrs. Pteranodon said:

“Oh, this is your family, and I’m your mom,
you may be different, but we’re all creatures,
all dinosaurs have different features…”

Our boys enjoy watching Dinosaur Train and we’re excited about –>

DIY HOMEMADE DINOSAUR HALLOWEEN COSTUME PATTERN!

Dinosaur Train Costume – Buddy

Here is a do-it-yourself costume for Buddy, kids’ favorite T-Rex! Jim Henson’s Creature Shop have created this Buddy costume that can be made at home! This colorful Halloween costume can be made for toddlers ages 3-4, and children between the ages of 4-6. There is also a No-Sew option!

10:00 am by Penelope

SeaWorld and Sesame Street

During Spring Break, SeaWorld San Antonio Texas opened a fantastic new venue – Sesame Street Bay of Play! What an incredible wonder world for the wee ones! This is where it’s at! SeaWorld wanted to give the characters of Sesame Street a BIG Texas welcome.

We were fortunate enough to be able to attend the Grand Opening of Sesame Street Bay of Play with Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and a host of Sesame Street friends.

Stinkpot and I rode a number of the rides together. The merry-go-round is so whimsical and fun – the photo just doesn’t do it justice.

Climbing and sliding for the adventuresome kid!

We stayed and played there until our tummies told us that it was time for lunch. Not far, we found a great all-you-can-eat pasta & pizza buffet, Rosita’s Buffet. Perfect for the kids and us. And the price was less that $10 per adult and $6 for kids under 9. And it included the refillable fountain drinks! We felt that we got our money’s worth, especially inside a theme park.

After lunch, we decided to stroll around the park and enjoy a show, or two, or three. Our first show was Azul: Lure of the Sea featuring our beloved sea creatures, dolphins.

Even flying dolphins wouldn’t keep Lil Bit from taking his nap!

We also saw the entertaining Cannery Row Caper featuring sea lions and walruses.

We wanted to watch the special showing of a 4-D movie featuring the Muppets. The movie was aimed at preschoolers so Stinkpot enjoyed it; however, the older kids weren’t as entertained as the little ones. The show has since been replaced by Pirates 4-D. [A 4-D movie is a 3-D movie that adds physical effects such as vibration, air and water. It is a thrilling experience!]

We then went to enjoy one of the last showings of the Shamu show, Believe. The show began with a trainer coming out and welcoming us to the show. Then — the recorded message came on that said due to threatening weather, the show had been cancelled. We were surprised by this since there wasn’t so much as a cloud in the sky. Then another trainer came running up and said, “Sorry folks, we pushed the wrong button.” The audience chuckled, and after a few moments, the show began, for real this time. A few of the more entertaining elements were not in this Believe show, probably stemming from the death of a trainer at SeaWorld Orlando last year. The show mainly focused on the splashing the killer whale does with his tail fin. The first 20 rows were drenched! However, toward the end of the show – the electricity went out! In the entire park! Only for a few minutes, but long enough to end the show. We just happened to be at the one show with a rough start and abrupt end.

However, we are excited that the all-new Shamu show, One Ocean, opens this month! We will be returning later this summer to catch this one!

We ended the day back at Bay of Play to play in the water! We let Stinkpot loose, and he had a ball on the splash pads until closing time, which during spring break was 6 p.m.

We had such a great time that we are planning to return again this summer. Longer hours. A new Shamu show. We can’t wait!

Disclaimer: Although SeaWorld provided us tickets into the park for a video contest, the views and opinions of our experience at SeaWorld are my own. The opinions in this post were not influenced by the free passes. I was not monetarily compensated since SeaWorld has no idea that I have this website.

7:38 am by Penelope

Telling the Easter Story with Cookies

Last Easter, I found this fabulous recipe for Easter Resurrection Cookies. By adding individual ingredients with the reading of an associated Bible verse, this simple cookie recipe tells the story of the crucifixion and resurrection that children can remember!

Our then 31-month-old, Stinkpot, had a great time beating the pecans demonstrating how Christ was beaten. (John 19:1-3)

The best part is that each child seals the tomb (oven) before bed and awakens to Easter Resurrection Cookies!

Look! It's empty because Christ has risen!

Have a great weekend celebrating your salvation! We will be spending it with my Mom!

Happy Easter!

1:56 pm by admin

MY SON LOSIN’ IT!

My 3-year-old JD, is just that – a mess!!!

For 2 days now, we have received a page full of bad behavior listed in detail – hitting, biting, and scratching the teacher, punching and kicking his friends, and other aggressive behavior.

We took him off Singulair for his asthma on October 2nd due to the labeling warnings of mood swings and aggression. He did better at first, but now his behavior is getting worse and worse. He even came at Daddy with his mouth open to BITE him!

Today, I am staying at home with him to:
(a) give the daycare a break;
(b) give JD a break;
(c) make an appointment with a doctor;
(d) possibly look for a more structured daycare.
___________________________________________________________________________
Have a blessed week!

2:39 pm by Penelope

ABOUT US

Look it’s a blog hop!

Howdy, y’all!

I’m a mid-40s first time mom! Yep! A late bloomer at its best! You see, I was a single girl in the big city of Houston, Texas all through the 1990s +. Then in 2004, my life changed drastically forever through a whirlwind romance and marriage!

I moved from a city of 4 million to a town of 1,400 and began trying to conceive at age 40. In less than 2 years, our fertility doctor told us that all my eggs were gone and should realistically look at adopting a child.

We began the process to become foster parents in Jan 2007 hoping to adopt through our state’s foster care program. After a move back to our hometown and struggles with state licensing staff, we officially became foster parents to Stinkpot on March 4, 2008 and adopted him over a year later on my husband’s 50th birthday in August 2009.

Through this journey, we have been foster parents to 4 girls (age 2-12), having to say goodbye and wonder how they are doing.

We currently have a 1-year-old baby boy (Lil Bit) that we foster and would like to eventually adopt: however, his case is a MESS!

On this blog, I share our struggles and joys of being foster parents and eventually becoming a forever family!

I hope you enjoy our adventures in foster care! Hold on because it can be a crazy ride!

9:33 pm by admin

MY BABY BOY IS 3 YEARS OLD TODAY!!!

It’s hard to believe that my Stinkpot is 3 years old today!

I honestly can’t remember anything of July 1, 2007. It was a Sunday. I’m sure we were at church. I’m sure my stepson was at his mom’s for the month of July. So it was just me and my wonderful husband alone together. But I don’t remember what we did that day or where we ate lunch.

Thinking of my little boy’s birthday in this way saddens me. On his birthday each year, I can’t share with him even one detail of his birth.

You see, we adopted Stinkpot through our state’s foster care program.

What I can share with him through the years, is how much he changed my life on March 4, 2008 – the day of his arrival. Our plans on that election day changed from attending our voting precinct convention to “how are we ever going to get this baby to sleep”! You can read more about his arrival on THIS POST.

The Gift of Life
I didn’t give you the gift of life,
But in my heart I know.
The love I feel is deep and real,
As if it had been so.

For us to have each other
Is like a dream come true!
No, I didn’t give you The gift of life,
Life gave me the gift of you.
— Unknown

Y’all have a blessed week!

~penny

p.s. Due to technological problems, I will not be able to announce the giveaway until this weekend.