7 Quick Takes Friday (5)

One

I did my first guest post ever on marrying young and going to grad school! Head over to Catholic Newlywed to check it out!

Two

It was my daughter's 3rd birthday last week. We had a great time opening presents, making and eating cake and we went to a football game. Which she actually loved, once she got the ear plugs in her ears :)

Three

We looked at our first rental house on Monday. It was such a disappointment. I have heard horror stories about how difficult it is to look for a house to buy, but didn't imagine that renting a house was equally frustrating. I guess we are back to the drawing board. We have just over 2 months to find a new place!

Four
So my OT class has a Facebook group and we often sharing inspiring things we find online with one another. A few days ago, a girl in my class sent us this link: A Love Story In 22 Pictures. It was so awesome I had to share it with all of you!

Photo Credit: Tim Dodd Photography

Five
Have any of you seen the new show Revolution? What do you think? I am obsessed with it! There is some violence, but I am addicted to the story line. It is basically a "what if" kind of show. All the power goes out in the entire world, and there is no way to turn it back on. No internet, no phones, no nothing. Then US government goes under. It is the story of one particular group of people on a search for one of the character's brothers.

Six
We have been cleaning a lot around here, because my in-laws are coming into town!

Seven
I can't think of anything else, so happy Friday!

Head back over to Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!

A Lions World: A Preschool Activity

I was given the challenge of creating a therapy session at school, so naturally I tried it out on my daughter to see how it went. She is obsessed with lions, so I decided to take that theme and run with it! Really. She often roars and shouts, "I'm a lion, I'm so scary!"

So today, we were lions!

We used our imaginations (an important preschool/ life skill).

We created lion masks.

We colored, then cut- both important fine motor (finger) skills.

And lived in this lion den for the day.

We had to think really hard to plan out how to make the fort. Then there were the decisions of how big to make the fort, what it would be made out of, and what would go in it. We picked a whole bunch of items with different textures- great for sensory.

 Then for added fun we read lion books, and watched The Lion King (but not the scary parts, of course).
Now I'll send you back to Passionate and Creative Homemaking!

I have decided that I think I could enjoy being 3 again!

Now I'll send you back over to Crayon Freckles

Favorite Toddler Books

I love reading to my daughter, and I love it even more when she enjoys pointing and saying the words with me. Here is a list of books that I put together that seem to be easy to follow and have inviting pictures and messages.

No No Yes Yes by Leslie Patricelli

This book is a great one! It sets the building blocks for rules in the house. The "No No, Yes, Yes" words are easy for even a young baby to understand. The pictures are pretty cute too, and have my daughter laughing!

Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers

This might be my favorite book of all time. I have notice that toddlers tend to be so interested in babies and all the things that they do, and this book tells them everything they want to know! I think it would be really great to show to a toddler if a new baby is arriving soon. It would give them a better understanding of what to expect. We have read the book so many times that now my daughter finishes the words on each page for me!

The Color Kittens by Margaret Wise Brown

This book is a classic, and a good introduction to colors and art. It goes through each color and how the colors can be created using other colors.

Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton

This is another one that introduces colors to little ones. It is also a great launching point for teaching toddlers about articles of clothing and body parts. It's also a really silly book that makes everyone laugh.

The Bible for Little Ones- Maite Roche

What a great first Bible! The pictures are beautiful and eye catching. They use a lot of animals and bright colors, which help to keep my daughter engaged. The words are very simple and easy for her to understand. She is always asking questions, and knows most of the stories now.

Where's Dave by Emma Surry

This is a cute story for slightly older ones. It talks about safety and good habits. The book also keeps younger ones engaged because they are on a scavenger hunt to find Dave on every page. My only complaint about this book is the portal of the mom dinosaur is not a very good one (or accurate!). Otherwise its wonderful!