A Little Bit Of Sunshine For a Rainy Day

This is YoYo's Ukelele debut. Well done, YoYo! We hope that you enjoy our little song and that you're all enjoying warmth and happiness despite a little gloom outside.

Egg Characters

I can hardly believe that it was a week ago that I was writing about playing in the snow! It's in the low 70's and feels a lot more like spring than early December. But, hey! I've never been one to complain about a beautiful day.
Before Rowan and I hightailed it to the park, we got a little picnic basket together. Picnics gives a normal park visit a little bit of an adventurous feel, so we always bring something along with us. She was happy to pack up some pears and juice, but since it was lunchtime, I wanted to bring something else that would be filling & nutritious. I suggested hard boiled eggs, but she wasn't very enthusiastic at first about that idea. However she changed her mind when I suggested that we decorate the egg shells. All it took was some boiled eggs and some crayons (non-toxic of course). Easy peasy. She loved drawing little faces on them. I made a lizard monster face on one of mine. She asked me to help give hers lipstick.
When we got to the park, she gobbled down our eggs. And she hasn't stopped talking about her Egg Characters all day! What a fun way to get kids excited about eating a healthy, portable snack. Now if I can only figure out how to get her to devour a salad...

First Snow!

Although we've had a few flurries around here, I'm calling today the first real snow in our little town.  We all woke up with a little extra energy & excitement.  It's really not even that much snow and it's supposed to turn to the dreaded 'wintery mix' before too long.  So we're off playing right away.  

I've mentioned in previous blogs that I think the first few days of a new season are pretty important. What you do with them can set the tone for the rest of the season. So even if we can't build the epic snow men & snow forts that Rowan has been longing for, we can still have lots of fun in the dusting of snow, making 'animal tracks', mini snowmen, and even having a small scale snowball fight. Little hands don't need very much snow to make a good snowball.

Wishing you many 

safe and playful snow days,

Lolly

Trick or Treat & Flying Things!

Last year for Halloween I decided to do something risky.  I wanted to hand out a healthier alternative to candy... something that was more in sync with what I encourage every day to the kids and parents in my classes.  First thought: carrot sticks.   Second thought: my house might get toilet papered.   Final decision: a big bowl full of airplanes, flying disc and toys to play with.  I can't tell you how cool it was to see the kids run back to their parents jumping up and down telling them they got a plane to play with!

Oriental Trading sells a box of 72 Gliders for $12.  Here's the link!
Note: These items worked well for my neighborhood because all the kids are preschool and kindergarten age.  For the older ones, jump ropes, fake tattoos, punching balloons, or kazoos might work too! Now that I have a new nickname with the kids I'm going to have to try Yo-Yo's next year!

Snack time

 Finding a healthy snack can sometimes be a challenge, especially on the go, in the car, or after you exercise!  These are a few of my favorite mini meals for on the move that I've shared with my private clients I train. Justin's peanut butter & honey and also Justin's almond butter & chocolate are a delicious protein packed, easy to slurp up, mini treat. Another favorite are the ZBARS (chocolate brownie) made by CLIFF and KIND bars (my favorites are coconut, and the peanut chocolate). Two others are called RAW ORGANIC FOOD BAR (of course... I like the one with the chocolate chips!) and BORA BORA (apricot quinoa).  If you find bars that are USDA organic, then they are also GMO free!  I’m also a big fan of making my own food bars – more details coming soon!  Happy healthy eating!

~ Yvonne

My very first 5K

Running Color Me Rad

Now that we're seeing the first hints of autumn weather, I am eager to get back into running. Earlier this year, I ran my very first 5k, a huge accomplishment for a girl who always loathed running. To prepare for it, I was trying to get a good run in 4 or 5 days a week and, although I got plenty of support and encouragement from a lot of my friends & family, things were always a little tough when I had to put Rowan in a stroller in order to get that practice run in. I wanted to make her a part of the experience. Kids learn by example, so I knew that by seeing me working towards a goal, she would be getting a great foundation for her in the future. I mean, my mother used to do the Jane Fonda workout when my sister & I were little, and we still view Jane Fonda as the poster woman of beauty and physical fitness. Anyhow, here are a few tips that I found to be helpful in my journey to my first 5k.

• Get your child excited about your goal. The race that I was practicing for was called Color Me Rad. I showed Rowan pictures of the race that I was going to run. The participants were intermittently sprayed with colors, so it looked joyous and exciting. We would pretend that we were about to get splashed with colors as we were training. It helped her visualize the race. And i think it made her supportive of my goal.
• Give them something to do. I would often bring books, stickers, toys, or crayons on the run so she would have options. I even found her a cheap MP3 player and she listened to a Curious George audio book while I ran. Scavenger hunts are great, too. I like to run on the Delaware River canal path, so there are always locks and ducks and bridges and herons to look out for.
• Reward them! This is key. I would often plan my run so we would end up at a park. She knew that she would get some good mom time in at the end of each run & that helped her to allow me the time I needed to get a good run in.  Sometimes we would pack a picnic. Sometimes we would bring a few pieces of chalk. But she knew that if she cooperated, we would be doing something fun for both of us at the end. If you don't have a park that you can run to, try to end at a friends house, a coffee shop, or any other place that will be fun for them. 
• Let them get out of the stroller.  Rowan has always been an active child. She loves being a part of what's going on. And that was by far my biggest challenge in meeting this goal. Some days it seemed that no matter what I brought to entertain her, we would be 5 minutes into the run and she'd be crying to be let out of the stroller. I learned pretty quickly that sometimes you just have to let her run with you. Sure, she's not going to be able to run as far as I am (although, she's really quick. Sometimes she runs faster than me). But she's learning that running & exercise is fun. 'Race' you child to a tree or a bridge. Or run to each other and see who gets there faster. These little breaks in your routine can be rejuvenating. They can make you more ready & eager for your run the next day. And they'll definitely strengthen the bond between you and your child. After all, the family who plays together stays together.
• Dress them up. Rowan always saw me getting my special running outfit on. So she'd want to get dressed up, too. Her outfit usually involved some necklaces and a sparkly shirts (I've included a picture of my 'personal trainer'). But getting her in the mood for a run always helped things.



Me, my friend Mary, and Rowan post race



Rowan's Running Outfit



Fast Little Feet

• Bring them to your race! Rowan waited for me with her father at the finish line. I grabbed her right at the end and she finished the race with me. But as I was running, I saw whole families racing together. Some kids were in strollers. Some kids were walking. Next year, I'll run the whole thing with her one way or another. But even so, I'm glad that she was there at the end. And I know she was, too.

These ideas might not be revolutionary, but, from one parent to another, they helped me reach my goal & draw closer to my little girl. And I enjoyed every minute of it. 
Happy running!

Water Games

Today was back to school for most kiddos in our area but it was still a hot and muggy one.  Check out these six water games that we played this summer... there's still lots of time to cool off!  There is a fun take on the traditional duck duck goose called drip drip splash, along with fire and ice tag, water balloon sheet toss and regular toss and a water gun game called Mr. Fish Mr. Fish What Time Is It?