Berry Good Muffin Bites

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Is it just me, or does everything taste better when it’s in miniature form? These adorable muffin bites are almost too cute to eat. Almost. Serve these as part of a brunch, or throw a couple in a lunchbox for a sweet snack.

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup unsweetened almond milk
  • 2 Ener-G eggs
  • 1/3 cup agave nectar
  • 1/4 cup melted Earth Balance butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon lemon extract
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 cup crushed freeze-dried strawberries
  • 1/3 cup plain non-dairy yogurt
  • 1/4 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, Ener-G eggs, agave, butter, vanilla, and lemon extract.
  2. Fold in the flours, baking powder, and crushed strawberries.
  3. Divide the batter evenly among 24 mini muffin cups coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400 degrees F for 11 minutes. Let stand in the pan for 8 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
  4. To prepare the glaze, whisk together the yogurt, powdered sugar, and lemon juice Drizzle over the cooled muffins.

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Game of Soccer

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Now that spring is here, I’m taking Veronika on more outdoor excursions. One great way to spend time with your almost-six-month-old is to catch a local game of soccer! Not only will watching the action strengthen his or her eye muscles and tracking skills, but there is so much to see and talk about, and great new vocab to teach.

For Veronika, the soccer “game” was actually big brother’s practice. If you don’t have a big sib or friend to watch play, consider catching a local elementary school game, or even watching the big kids from a high school nearby!

Either way, Veronika seemed to love the atmosphere right away, soaking up the sun on a blanket despite an unusually chilly spring morning. I brought along a little ball so she could enjoy the tactile element, as well.

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We watched the big kids move down the field. I pointed out all their motions to her, which involved some great verbs. Running:

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Kicking:

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Drills where they dribbled or tapped cones with their feet:

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She was very absorbed watching it all – quite the little spectator!

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In sum, a game of soccer is a beautiful way to spend some time with your baby, long before he or she is old enough to play.

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Rainbow Science

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With all the talk about rainbows this month, whether cooking or crafting, it was time to get scientific. What exactly makes a rainbow appear? Today Travis and I answered the question in two ways, one more scientific, and one more artsy!

First, following the lesson plan provided by Raddish Kids, we did a visualization exercise. This was a first for Travis, but with a few prompts he got the idea. I told him to close his eyes and imagine and rainbow. He said he could see his rainbow through the trees in the morning, and it was star-shaped! Guide your child through this: what does the air feel like? Where is the rainbow? What time of day is it?

Next we did the quick run-down on the science. Raddish Kids provided two great video links to add some visual fun to hte science.

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We watched a few suggested video clips, to understand the science behind refraction. Raddish provides a very detailed write-up that older children can study, too.

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Next up was a challenge: Could Travis make a visual of a rainbow that not only showed all the colors, but also showed how the rainbow is formed? It turns out this is called process art, and I laid down lots of material for Travis to choose from but provided little direction beyond that.

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He decided he wanted a ribbon rainbow, so used lots of glue to adhere the lengths.

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I was so proud when he realized he was gluing in the wrong order, and fixed things with his red placed first!

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Next he needed to add the science part. He chose to use marker for sun and rain drops, and cotton balls for clouds. Now he had all the ingredients necessary for a rainbow to form!

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I made a second version alongside him to show him how open-ended this project is: cotton ball clouds, tin foil raindrops, and pom poms for my sun and rainbow.

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Finally, we formed a rainbow with science! Place a prism in a glass of water. Shine a flashlight or other light source on it.

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Hold up a piece of white paper behind the glass, and you should see a rainbow reflected on the paper. It’s a bit tough to see in the photograph, but it was there!

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Screen Scream!

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With firstborn baby, I wouldn’t have dreamed of going to a movie theater. I intended to allow no screens for my baby until age 2, and I worried about the noise level, or him making a fuss, or so much more.

Well, I’m a little more relaxed with Veronika as my second baby, and although I never sit her down in front of a screen, she’s no stranger to ambient movies, thanks to big brother.

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Today, I learned that even a movie theater can be an adorable outing with an infant! Even if you don’t have a big kid to take along, I recommend seeking out a matinee – it might be just the outing you need as a stay-at-home new parent, and baby is going to love it.

Here’s what Veronika did. She slept for the first 45 minutes, the loud audio of a dragon movie be darned. You can just see her stroller in the foreground.

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When she woke up, she looked nervous for a moment, but then nursed on my lap and peeked with big wide eyes at the screen. The lights and colors and music will be fascinating to a baby, even though they can’t follow the story!

I bounced her on my lap to keep her happy, which got little giggles. When she grew a bit fussy, I stood up with her in the aisle. Again, this is why I recommend a matinee. There was only one other family in the audience – a grandma with her granddaughters – and they weren’t at all troubled by me standing and bouncing Veronika off to the side.

After that she was tuckered out! She passed back out for the last half hour of the movie, sleeping peacefully on my tummy.

Here we are in the lobby after!

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I wish I’d been able to take pictures in the dark theater, because she was adorable and grinning while the movie was in progress. Here she seems to be asking Travis, “What on earth was that place?”

If a movie theater seems too daunting, consider checking out a puppet show! The kid-friendly atmosphere makes for a great showtime experience. I located a local theater and headed off with the kids to see Little Red Riding Hood.

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There was so much carnival atmosphere to take in that Veronika was instantly enchanted.

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I think she would have been happy just hanging out in the lobby!

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The kids even got a demonstration before the show began.

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Once in the theater, my little girl was wide-eyed and rapt. No sleeping here!

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Obviously the story was way over her head, but the idea is that your little one will take in the motions and colors and movements on the stage, plus get a first experience being part of an audience.

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Then there was a laser-lit dance party for the kids at the end. So yes, definitely a more kid-friendly atmosphere than a movie theater.

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What show will you take your baby to? Please share in the comments!

Where, Oh Where…

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I’ve been saying the same little rhyme to Veronika each night at bedtime since she was about three months old. Here’s a cute corollary we now say in the morning while she’s getting dressed.

Where, oh where, are your little fingers?

Where, oh where, are your tiny toes?

Where, oh where, is your belly button?

Round and round it goes!

Where, oh where, are you two small ears?

And where, oh where, is your nose?

Where, oh where, is your belly button?

Round and round it goes!

Touch each part as you recite of course. It’s so fun to identify those little fingers…

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And tiny toes.

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And when you get to the belly button, make little circles around on the tummy!

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This one always gets giggles and smiles!

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Play the Pots and Pans

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A few days ago, the family formed an impromptu band and entertained Veronika. Today it was her turn to play! Make sure your child is sitting comfortably for this game; if he or she can’t sit unsupported yet, add a pillow so there’s no falling over near the “drums”!

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I set out a few small pots, and gave her a variety of tools with which she could make percussive sounds. We had fun testing the differences between each one.

The whisk was soft but very metallic.

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The wooden spoon made a fun boom boom.

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You can even hit the pans with a baby rattle or plastic spoon! And of course I demonstrated simply drumming with my hand.

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In all honesty, Veronika had way more fun putting each item in her mouth than drumming with them.

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But she looked so pleased every time she made a sound by accident.

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Drum drum drum!

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Invisible Graffiti

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Let’s face it: Kids are sometimes drawn to things that are taboo, and sometimes it’s good to have an outlet for that naughtiness…but without the consequences!

That’s where this adorable game fits in, allowing kids to have the thrill of painting “graffiti,” but without any visible evidence.

First, I cut an artist’s palette for Travis out of cardboard.

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Paint on circles of color (ideally in as many colors of the rainbow as you can) using nail polish. This will make the “paint” look shiny even once it dries.

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I let Travis have a second piece of cardboard and permission to paint with the nail polish, because this was an added element of fun.

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(Note: I love the shades from the No Miss brand, which are free of all the yucky stuff like formaldehyde and also cruelty-free.

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Now it was time to set my graffiti artist loose! We headed out in the morning sunshine to make trouble. Here he is heading over to paint the fence.

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Travis “painted” all over the bushes, and the patio.

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Can’t you just see the glee?

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He loved finding places to add his graffiti.

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Uh oh, littering!

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In sum, he had a blast getting his naughtiness out with this game. And the best part is that there is no mess left over.

 

Have a Play Date at Home

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One thing little babies often see very little of? Other little babies!

This can be true whether your child is your first born, and thus most often in the company of adults, or if he or she is a second child, who gets to see lots of big kids, but probably not so many small ones.

One great way to introduce your baby to another baby is to host a playdate at home – this will be much less overwhelming than a group class, even though there are plenty of organized activities at local libraries or gyms for babies about 6 months and older.

So today, Veronika and I played hostess!

The babies loved checking each other out, reaching out cautious hands and staring at each other with big smiles. Hey, somebody else my size! Veronika seemed to say.

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We set up a bigger-than-usual tummy time station with some favorite toys where the two babies could look at each other as they got in their exercise and play – built in visual stimulation!

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It turns out Veronika was fussier than normal during our playdate, perhaps sensing that something was different. But eventually both babies were contentedly playing on mommy’s laps, chewing on toys and vocalizing to each other. Perhaps they even understand each other’s gurgles and coos!

Meanwhile this is a great way for you as a parent to connect one-on-one with a family member or friend whose child is close in age to yours. I guarantee that you will have lots to bond about!

Easy Backyard Spy Fort

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Travis has been into being either a secret agent or a ninja lately – so we needed a proper screen from which he could spy on the goings-on about the neighborhood, of course!

Plant two lengths of PVC pipe into the ground, spaced wide enough apart for an old pillowcase to drape over both. I bought pre-cut lengths of pipe at Home Depot that were two feet long, but wish I had opted for longer – we really had to crouch behind our fort!

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Cut an eye hole in the pillow case, then slip over the PVC frame.

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You can now camouflage your fort with paint. If you want to be sneaky, make sure to paint in shades of brown and green. Mostly though, we just had fun painting on this novel canvas, so our colors were perhaps a bit too bright for any actual hiding.

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Now see what you can see!

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As mentioned, our fort was quite low to the ground, which made spying tough. But Travis liked peeking through at all the activity going on down below. This fort would also work great for games of hide and seek, at least with younger kids!

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Teach Your Cat to High-Five

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Here is an adorable challenge from Travis’s Highlights magazine: Can you teach your cat a trick? Travis was gamely up for trying, and although we didn’t exactly succeed, our cat was an eager participant! It was a great way to engage my son with our companion animal in a new way – cat and boy both enjoyed it!

The goal was to teach our cat, Krishna, to high-five with his paw touching our hand.

Hold a cat treat in your right hand.

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Hold your left hand up just slightly above the cat’s head, as if you’re waiting for a high-five. Now hover the hand with the treat in front of that. The cat will (hopefully) paw for the treat.

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We gave praise, and then tried again, over the course of a few days!

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Okay, so we never got a paw to palm, since Krishna wanted to go in each time with his nose. But it was fun to have his nose nuzzle up to the palm.

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In sum, what great inter-species play! Has your child ever taught the family dog or cat a trick? Please share in the comments.