Teeth, Teeth, Teeth!

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       Your child's teeth can be affected before the teething ring is even needed. Tooth development starts while the child is still in the womb, usually in the first few months.

       Once the baby is born, there are many things that you as the parent can do to help give them that million-dollar-smile! I was interested to learn that the bacteria that causes cavities is only passed from the caregiver's mouth to the baby's! So try to avoid putting anything in your child's mouth that has been in your own. Another tip is to clean off pacifiers with water instead of your own spit. Of course this can't be avoided altogether, so that's why we brush our teeth!
        Even before the baby's teeth start to come in, you can use products, such as xylitol wipes (found at most local natural foods stores), to help prevent cavity producing bacteria from lingering in his or her mouth. This will reduce the risk of cavities developing in your child's 'baby" teeth. Fluoride is another substance that you should do your research on, and decide if it is something that you want to implement in your child's dental regimen.

When Should My Child Start Using a Toothbrush?

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          Once their teeth start to poke through the gums, you can start getting them ready for using a toothbrush! Start by using xylitol wipes or a damp wet cloth and rubbing it on their gums. This will help them adjust when you start to brush their teeth. Once you start brushing their teeth, let your child try brushing first, then go in and finish up the job. It's a good idea to avoid any kind of toothpaste until your children are 2 years old because they could swallow it. 

          Flossing is not necessary until the teeth are in contact, meaning they are touching the tooth next to it. Most dentists like to see the kids starting to brush their teeth at age one to three. Your baby's teeth are super important and need to be taken care of early in life to help prevent them from having cavities.

Many things can effect how your child's teeth will look and function later on in life. Always ask your dentist about what precautions need to be taken during your child's stages of growth.

(The information in this blog post was found on Motherhood Center)

The Circle of Security®

Imagine a toddler in the park: toddling along happily, arms stretched to the side, happy smile on his face. He seems to even forget his mom and dad are right behind him. He’s so enthusiastic! Then, a bird flutters up and it both excites him and scares him a little. He looks behind him, searching for familiar eyes, and gives a big smile at his mom, pointing at the bird.

All of us, no matter how old or young, have two basic needs: we want to explore the world, learn, and be independent. At the same time, we are dependent on others: we need love, support, trust, and security from other people. The Circle of Security^® beautifully describes how of the needs for exploration and security are far from polar opposites: they are part of the same process. Let’s explore the circle!

The parent’s role is shown as two hands that serve as a “secure base” from which a child can safely explore and as a “safe haven” to which the child can return for comfort and support. The role of the parent is summed up as, “Always be bigger, stronger, wiser, and kind. Whenever possible: follow my child’s need. Whenever necessary: take charge.” When the parent serves as a secure base, the child can play, discover, and enjoy himself, while safe and secure. 

When children run off to play on their own, this doesn’t mean that they suddenly don’t need their parents any longer. In a crawling infant, parents need to be there to make sure the environment is safe, to help when baby needs support, and share in their discoveries. A preschool child can go explore for longer and may sometimes seem to forget the parent. But they may suddenly shout out: “Daddy, look!” when they want to demonstrate a cool new skill on the playground. As children grow, their circles will extend and become larger; but they will always maintain the need to come back, share, and feel supported in their explorations of the big, wide world. Older children will mainly share through their stories and talking with their parents.

The bottom of the circle shows children’s needs for comfort and connectedness. Small infants will simply cry to show that they need closeness. Toddlers can decide to move closer to their parent, or put their arms up in a “pick-me-up” gesture. Preschoolers can be clingy sometimes, to the exasperation of their parents. But clingy behaviors show a need to reconnect until they feel sure that they are safe enough to go out on their own again. By getting comforted, children “fill their cup.” When their cup is full, the desire to explore and discover the world will naturally arise again.  Again, the older children grow, the more they will seek closeness by using their words: sharing situations that made them sad, or trying to make sense of things that they struggle with.

The role of the parent is always to be a stable secure base and safe haven; to be stronger, wiser, and kind. Are we always able to do this? No! Parents, like all people, are not perfect. And they don't need to be. All that children need to develop a secure attachment is “good enough” parents that get it right most of the time!.

Car Seat Emergency Contact Stickers

While we all hope that our families will never have an emergency, it is important to be prepared. Here is a quick and easy way we found on Pinterest to prepare your family for an emergency. Create an Emergency contact sticker to place on your child’s car seat for first responders, so that your child can receive the help they need even when you are unable to respond.

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Here are a few ideas of what to include

• Your child’s name
•   Birth date 
• Any known Allergies
• Medical Conditions 
• Parent’s names and phone numbers 
•  Pediatrician
• Emergency contact that does not live with the child

And of course it is important that you have information for yourself and other family members readily available. Keeping a list of your own information, including any recent surgeries, in your wallet can be a huge help to first responders.

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Here is a great free printable you can download or use as inspiration to create your own sticker.

DIY Sensory Bags

According to Katharine Robinson (MOTR/L) and Crystal Emery (P.L.A.Y. Consultant) from Easter Seals-Goodwill Northern Rocky Mountain; sensory processing involves the ability to take in information within our environment through our senses and utilizing that information to create a response. Once sensory information is received through nerve receptors in our body, that information is sent up to the brain. The brain then decides how to respond or react to that sensation. Exposing children to sensory play helps develop the use of their senses. 

Here is a fun, simple sensory activity to do with your children!

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Materials:

• Cheap hair gel (if you use clear gel, get food coloring to dye it)
• Ziplock bags
• Glitter
• Soft add ins
• Duct Tape

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How to:

1. Fill the ziplock bag with hair gel and throw in some food coloring if you only have clear gel. 
2. Throw in some fun things for your child to look at and squish around in the bag. Ideas: flat marbles, beads, little animals, glitter, buttons, anything that won't poke a hole in the bag. 
3. Squeeze as much of the air out as you can when sealing the bag
4. If needed, run duct tape around the edges to reinforce the bag. 

Here are some different sensory bags to try!

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If you decide to try this project yourself, let us know what you think! Which add-ins would you use?

To read more on sensory processing, read our blog post here!

Mental Health Awareness Month

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May is National Mental Health Awareness Month! In our society, the topic of mental health has historically experienced a negative stigma and people often avoid discussing it, but it is certainly an important public health issue that needs to be recognized for its impact on children, families, and communities.

Mental health for children can look different than mental health for adults. For children, it could mean reaching developmental and emotional milestones. It could include learning how to cope with problems, having healthy social skills and a positive quality of life, and functioning well at home, in school, and in their communities.

Sometimes a parent sees serious changes in the way their child typically learns, behaves, or handles emotions; this could be the result of an emerging mental disorder. It is estimated that 1 out of 5 children experience a mental disorder every year. Not all mental and behavioral disorders can be diagnosed in childhood. Some examples of disorders that begin in childhood include:

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Behavior disorders
Mood and anxiety disorders
Substance use disorders
Tourette Symdrome

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To Parents: You know your child. If you have concerns about the way your child behaves at home or in school, contact Help Me Grow or talk to your child's health care professional.

To Youth: If you feel angry, worried, or sad, reach out to a friend or adult to talk about your feelings. Your mental health is just as important as the health of your body.

To Teachers: If you have concerns about the mental health of a student in your school, work with families and health care professionals so that those students can get the help they need and have a disorder identified early.

Summer Field Trips

Field trip to the splash pad at the Gateway

As a child, my summer days were filled with adventures and playing with friends. Although there was an endless number of things for my sisters and me to do around our home and neighborhood, we still were plagued with the classic childhood summer boredom.We needed something new and exciting to peak our curiosity and to entertain us. In order to do this, my mom began planning weekly summer field trips to get us out of the house. She would invite family, friends, and neighbors to join us with their sack lunches to caravan to that week's destination and then to a picnic lunch. The field trips were a great way for us to get out of our house, to learn and explore new things, and for my mom to interact with other adults. Here are some tips for organizing your own summer field trips.

My sister at Timpanogos Cave

1.  Ask your children what activities they may be interested in doing this summer. Try to incorporate suggestions from each child in your planning. My mom would often have us write a list of field trips we would be interested in that fell under categories such as educational, fun, physical, etc.  If you need ideas of local activities check out my mom’s list (Utah County/Salt Lake Area) and the Care About Childcare Summer Activity Guides for all of Utah.
2.  Try to provide a good mix of activities. Have some educational trips and others that are purely fun. Try to not schedule similar activities back to back.
3. Check with local museums for special events that may be tailored towards children. For example, every year we attended the BYU Museum of Art’s annual Family Arts Festival, which always made the museum more interesting to us.
4. If there are specific families you would like to join you coordinate with them to see which day works best.
5.  Send your schedule out to other families to invite them to join when they can. Field trips were always more fun when we had friends or cousins there. And nothing is more exciting as a child then getting to ride in someone else’s car.
6. Don’t stress about making it every week. Provide enough details in the schedule that other families can get there without you.
7. If a child is not interested in a field trip, let them invite a friend to make it more fun.

Hopefully these tips will help you in coming months to have fun activities for your kids that get them out of their typical summer routine. Feel free to comment below with your own Summer Field trip ideas and tips!

My sisters and me at Seven Peaks Water Park

Healthy Eaters

With so many food options available in our communities, it's hard to know if our children are receiving proper nutrition for their growing minds and bodies. Healthy eating during early childhood helps kids become stronger, taller, and perform better in school. As kids grow into adults, healthy eating during childhood helps them become more intelligent and less likely to be obese. Obesity is now being labeled as an "epidemic" in the United States. What are some easy ways that parents can help their families be healthy?

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During meal and snack times:

• Eat together as a family. Use this time to connect to your children and be a role model of good behavior and healthy eating
• Prepare healthy foods and offer healthy choices at family meals
• Serve fruits and vegetables for snacks
• Save "treats" for special occasions to limit foods high in fat and sugars
• Serve water instead of soda or sugar-sweetened drinks and make water easily available throughout the day
• Switch to low or no-fat milk, yogurt, and cheese and choose lean cuts of meat
• Bake or grill instead of fry
• Switch to lower sugar breakfast cereals
• Switch desserts like ice cream and cookies for fruit-based desserts

Help kids develop healthy habits:

• Use smaller plates for kids; they need less food than adults
• Don't force kids to clean their plates if they are full
• Start with a small portion; children can have seconds if they are still hungry
• Don't give up on new, healthy foods; use patience and let them see you eat it so they want to imitate you
• Plan to avoid fast food by keeping healthy foods in the car, like dried fruit, applesauce, nuts, and whole grain crackers
• When you do eat out, check the menu options beforehand and choose meals that have fewer calories (for example, are not fried or smothered in cheese or other sauces)
• Limit TV and computer time to 1-2 hours per day at home, school, or child care
• Encourage physical activity every day

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There are several great resources available online with additional tips to help keep families healthy. Here are a few sites that offer great suggestions about healthy eating and physical activity for children and families:

http://www.eatright.org/
http://www.letsmove.gov/
http://www.choosemyplate.gov/

Love for Our Mothers

As we're looking forward to Mother's Day this Sunday, its caused me to reflect on my mom and all she has done for me.

I can't imagine where I'd be today if it wasn't for my mom. She is my greatest leader, friend, and teacher. Because of her I learned confidence, a strong work ethic, respect, perseverance, and--honestly--the list could go on and on. With her as my cheerleader, I have been able to follow my dreams. By profession, my mom was a teacher, so it's not surprising that she has taught me to love learning. I can't even guess how many hours we have spent over the years just sitting together, both lost in our own books.

My mom taught me about love by showing love to others and myself. From her, I learned that it doesn't take huge acts of kindness and care to show that you love someone. Many times it is the small deeds that are done that really add up: the way she quietly dropped dinner off at the neighbors when she knew they were sick; how she tried her best to make it to all her children's events as they grew up; how she worked tirelessly at her full-time job and spent the weekends doing yard work, cleaning, shopping, balancing finances, and spending time with us, her kids. I saw these things and love you for it! It is because of your example, I am the person I am today. So, thank you to my mom.

But it doesn't stop there. To all moms: each of you are SO important. You are the first and most important teacher your children will have. They will learn from you and want to be the best of your example. Help them to be the people you want them to be when they are grown. Don't feel that you have to do big and grand things for them to remember you by. Simply love your children. Spend time with your children. Get down on the floor and play, take a walk, go to the park, listen to them. Your children will love you for the time you spent with them.

So moms remember this Mother's Day (and always): YOU ARE LOVED!  As children, we may not always say it or show it, but we truly love and appreciate you. For this and more, I want to wish you all a HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!

Your Creative Artist

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Children naturally enjoy art - painting, sculpting, drawing, gluing, making music. Art introduces children to be able to work through emotions, experiment with different materials, represent their understanding of the world, and learn to think creatively. 

According to the Parents as Teachers National Center; process art focuses on actions, thinking, and individual expression, rather than on final projects. What your child learns about himself and the world through his experiments, is more valuable than the resulting piece of artwork. Start thinking about what your child can create with instead of what he will create. 

Fun, creative items to start collecting in your home are: 

A- art foam, aluminum foil, aquarium gravel

B- beans, buttons, bingo daubers, 

C- cardboard rolls and tubes, clothespins, corks, cotton balls, computer paper, cookie cutters

D- duct tape, dandelions, detergent jugs and caps

E- envelopes, electrical tape, egg cartons

F- feathers, flower pots, food containers, fabric, felt, folders

G- grocery bags, greeting cares, gallon milk jugs, glitter, glue

H- headbands with animal ears, hair clips, hats, hangers, handkerchiefs

I- ice cube tray, ice cream tub, index card, 

J- junk mail, jewelry, juice cans, jars, jellybeans,

K- kitchen utensils, kleenex, knobs, kite string, keys

L- leaves, lace, lids

M- magnets, magazines, macaroni, manila envelopes, milk cartons, music

N- noodles, nuts, newspaper, necklaces

O- ornaments, oatmeal boxes

P- pipe cleaners, paper plates and cups, popsicle sticks, pvc pipe scraps

Q- q-tips, queen's crowns

R- ribbon, rubberbands, rice, rubber gloves

S- stickers, shoe boxes, sponges, sheets, spice containers, sand, stensils, spray bottles

T- tissue paper, toothpicks, tempera paints, tennis ball containers

U- utensils 

V- velcro, vase, vines, velvet scraps

W- watercolor paints, wire, wallpaper scraps, wood, washers

X- x-rays 

Y- yarn, yardstick

Z- zippers, ziplock bags

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Have fun with these ideas and remember to encourage your child to wonder, experiment, and create! Make sure to display their artwork proudly in your home and feel free to share with us too!