15 Mar 2016

Lil Beanies to the Rescue

by | posted in: food | 1

This post is written on behalf of Nestle’s Gerber Lil’ Beanies, led by Kendal King Group through The Women Bloggers. All opinions are our own.

Mom life is much quicker than I ever thought it would be.  As a mom of two young boys, both under 4, my life is always at warp speed.  While one is at school in the morning, the younger and I tackle the errand list and climb everything imaginable at the park.

Swinging Boy

So, naturally, I always have snacks in the car.  Yes, I still hit the drive thru several times a week (mostly for dinner because I need something quick), but I have started keeping snacks in the car.  And for my energetic boys, I want something healthy!

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When I was growing up those snacks were all sorts of chips and snack cakes.  I don’t want my boys to have a steady diet of those.  I love to bake so that already doesn’t help their waistlines and sugar intake, so if I’m going to have a ready-made, portable, clean, crunchy snack: its going to be a healthy one.

Gerber rules the toddler and baby aisle.  They’ve been around for generations.  And now they have come out with a totally healthy toddler and preschooler snack.  My two boys devoured 4 cans in 2 days (and maybe I helped a little – but can you blame me?)  I put them in my preschooler’s lunch box, we had them while watching Netflix, we even had them as a side for lunch and dinner.

Empty Bowls with Li'l Beanies

Here’s why I like them and why they will be on the grocery list all the time when I’m shopping at Walmart (they should be in your local Walmart now):

  1.  My kids eat them.  They kept saying “more in my mouth”!  I loved it.
  2. They are healthy.  Made out of navy beans, they have protein their little tummies need to stay full!  There are no preservatives – and you find preservatives in everything these days.
  3. They aren’t messy.  I’ve already taught my sons how to lick their fingers from the cheese puffs – but these are mess free.  Since they have no artificial colors or flavors, you don’t have orange fingers (and clothes, couches, and car seats) for days!
  4. They are in our tight food budget.  Healthy foods are generally more expensive then convenience food.  Gerber Lil Beanies is both inexpensive and convenient!
  5. I love them (personally) because I love sea salt and crunchy snacks.  But, there is also a white cheddar and broccoli – and what mom doesn’t want their kids eating more broccoli!

What are some go-to healthy snacks for your toddlers and preschoolers.  I hope you stock up on Lil Beanies the next time you are at Wal-Mart.  My boys give two empty snack bowl thumbs up!

27 Oct 2014

Fall Bucket List with Toddlers

by | posted in: Uncategorized | 0

Fall Bucket List for Toddlers

I feel like my life as a SAHM of two little toddler boys is always crazy.  Whether we are sliding down slides, playing in mall play yards, eating junior frosties, donuts, or mandarin oranges, or anxiously awaiting Daddy’s arrival from work each day – every day holds smiles, tears (of course), and hand holding.

The Fall, being that it is my favorite season, holds more planned activities for my littles.  So, I’ve wanted to come up with a bucket list.  Some of which we have already done, some which we will save for when Oma and Granddad arrive around Thanksgiving, and some which we might not get to get this year.

Savor every moment.

Bake Pumpkin Cookies or muffins or cake – just bake with pumpkin!

Pick apples (and eat them).  This year we won’t get to an apple orchard, but it is a fun activity and I’m sure the boys will love it in years to come. They do love to eat the apples we get from Trader Joes.

apple picking

Paint pumpkins (or other fall vegetables)

Painting Squash

Play in piles of raked leaves (we don’t really have a yard, so this may have to wait until another year or two as well)

Take Pumpkin photos

Elijah at Kinsey Family Farm

Watch It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown.  A must! (Which first aired today in 1966, shortly after my Mom graduated high school)

Make Thanksgiving garland (we started this last year – adding a leaf a day in November)

Send TY notes to the pastors of your church (October is Pastor Appreciation month)

Watch Luther (ok, this may not happen for a while, but they need to learn about this great man of God and what he did for all of Christianity in the 1500s.

Go on a hayride.  We did this with Elijah during his first fall and missed our opportunity by mere minutes this year, but will certainly aim to do it again in later years.

Hayride in North Little Rock

Boo at the Zoo.  This was incredibly packed but also fun.  Our family doesn’t really participate in Halloween, but it was fun to go see all the cute costumes and get their first Halloween candy this year.  No costume needed and completely safe.  And this is held at most zoos.

What is a part of your Fall Bucket List for your little ones?

20 Aug 2014

Toddlers and Edible Finger Paint

by | posted in: mothering, parenting, Shepherding Children | 0

Edible Finger Paint

Combining two of my loves – my boys and food.  What could be greater?

Usually we go go go out of the house, but when Daddy is home, we like to chill and do something fun together.  So, I saw a post from a NC blogger and new that if I could talk my Mister into it, then we would be doing this.  My Mister loves to be neat and not get messy, but I convinced him to put aside his neat and tidy ways to let us all have some fun and then we would dump our boys into the bath!  So, an adventurous morning we had!

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My boys are all boys  – which obviously that morning didn’t involve finger painting.  What did they do?  They headed straight for the rocks.  That is all they cared about.  So, bring on more rocks!

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With this edible finger paint – you don’t get art (because it doesn’t harden) but you do get fun times in the back yard!

Items you need:

Small containers to put the finger paint in (I used tupperware small square containers)

Sweetened condensed milk

Food coloring

Newspaper or tarp of some sort

Diapered kids (better than ruining clothes)

Spoon

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I poured some of the condensed milk in each of the container and put in some food coloring into each one, stirring it up, and gave each boy his own containers so there would be no fighting over them.  That helped.

Then we laid out newspaper on our back porch (read slab of concrete) and stood back to see what would happen?  Neither of them went for it.  I helped BabyBach a little but Elibuddy was definitely more interested in the rocks.

So, what do we do with the extra?  We are giving it to our neighbor who has two little girls.  She said they love to color.

This can be a great way to get to know your neighbors who have young ones.  Just bring them all to the back yard and let the silliness begin!

Then we just took their diapered little selves straight to the tub and gave them a long soak and scrub.

So – how do I think about this as shepherding my boys: God is a beautiful creator and has given us many things to enjoy : finger paint and rocks!  Let them get messy, be creative, and have fun.  Its a way we were created to worship!