Hello Friends,
Today's blogpost is about none other than...COVID-19. This is a term we have seen a lot of lately and we are all suffering the consequences of it. Many of you are now forced to homeschool since your children are now out of school. Many of you are wondering, what you should do with your children during this time now that you have to homeschool and you have tons of time to spend with your children. Since, I am a teacher I thought I would post a few ideas to help those of you that are wracking your brain trying to come up with new ideas on how to teach your kids during this difficult time. Fear not! I have answers!
1. Go on a bear hunt
There are two ways to do this. You can do it in your home and put up the pictures on the wall or floor like these and these. This is a really fun game that will keep your children engaged and will call upon them to use their imagination. Also, a lot of people in different neighborhoods are putting bears in their windows, like this one so when the children go walking through the neighborhood the kids can find a bear. It's a great idea to combat boredom and to fuel young imaginations!
2. Life skills
Okay, so this may not be an idea that is geared towards the littles, but for those of you with middle school, junior high and certainly high school kids this is a great time to teach them those oh-so-important life skills. Things that as you go about your day to day life, you may not think about, because it is something that you as an adult already do and you may have forgotten that somebody had to teach you these things in the first place. Things like grocery shopping, money management and how to create a budget, time management, how to sew a button and other important life skills that they will need at some point or another. Now you may say that some skills are not easy to teach them right now with social distancing becoming the new norm and with everything being shut down right now, but grocery stores are still open. Think about how often your child drags along idly while they are engrossed in their phones or on their tablets. Meanwhile, they are missing out on an important life lesson, dragging behind you while you shop. Instead of lugging the tablet with you, go tablet free the next couple of times you go to the grocery store and teach them how to shop. How the store is layed out, how to check out and how to pay. It is a good idea to go to different locations of the same store (Wal-mart for instance) to show them that they may vary slightly in where they put stuff, but the layout is typically the same and so they can learn where things are in different stores for when they go shopping on their own. Also, it is a good idea to bring them to both a self-checkout lane and a lane that actually has a cashier in it. They can learn how to use a self-checkout lane and if something goes wrong, have them ask for assistance, after all you won't always be around to ask for them. Also, you can teach them how to key in something like produce, if they ever go shopping on their own. A lane with an actual cashier is good practice too because they get experience with talking to an actual clerk and if the clerk is friendly enough, it boosts their social skills by getting into a conversation with the clerk (also, they can talk to someone other than you, because you know social distancing). Either is good for them learning how to pay. I suggest having them pay with a credit card, especially now that credit cards have new chip technology instead of swiping like you used to. Also, learning how to pay with cash helps them work on counting money and making sure they receive the right amount of change. Bonus if the clerk double charges them or gives them the wrong amount of change back, because then they learn how to resolve a dispute with their receipt. Many lessons to be learned at the grocery store. Time management, money management and sewing on a button are all skills they will need some day especially for high schoolers going into college. Even if they don't go to college, they will still need these skills all the same. There are many more examples, but these are just a few to get you started.
3. Dance!
Hey, if you feel silly or like you have two left feet it doesn't matter because you are in your home and no one is watching! LOL! Anyway, in all seriousness, there are some great songs that you can dance to with your kids that get them dancing and learning at the same time. All of these songs are available on iTunes. Listen and Move, The Boogie Walk and The Freeze by Greg and Steve are all good songs to get your kids to move. Listen and Move is particularly good because it requires kids to listen and pay attention, which is a skill that they all need to learn! The CD, which is called We All Live Together Volume 2, also features The Number Rock, so they can learn their numbers and The Months of the Year in English and Spanish. Why not learn a second language during mandatory quarantine? Another great CD that I recommend is Jack Hartmann's Bop, Pop and Hip-Hop. I use this one all the time with my kids and they love it! Any of Jack Hartmann's CD's are great for getting the kids moving and learning at the same time. The Funky Freeze, Pump It Up Pokey, If You're Happy And You Know It and Teddy Bear Hip-Hop are all of my kids favorites. There are also learning songs on there like ABC Cha-Cha and Letter Sounds A to Z. Jack Hartmann also has many moving videos on YouTube if you need something to get their P.E. time in.
4. Sing!
Again, no need to be self-conscious, you are in your house after all. No need to get fancy because kids love all of the old classics like the ABC's, Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star, 5 little ducks, 5 little monkeys (anything that includes animals and the number 5, basically), The Itsy-Bitsy Spider and Row, Row, Row Your Boat. Any children's classic will do and they will sing along with you!
5. Make Music!
My kids love egg shakers! You can use those old Easter eggs you have laying around and some beans, beads or rice and tape them together so littles don't choke on beans and voila! Shaker egg! There are also tons of egg shaker videos on YouTube or there is this one here that I use in my classroom and my kids love it! But you can make music with any thing. If your nerves (and your ears) can handle it, let them bang on pots and pans! Also, do you remember making a guitar with a Kleenex box, paper towel tube and rubber bands? Okay, so a paper towel tube may be hard to come by these days because people are hoarding them in preparation for the zombie apocalypse I guess, but if you run across one it can be very versatile! Also you can make rain sticks with them. All you need are markers, stickers, cling wrap, beads or beans or something that makes noise and a rubber band. These are great to make music with or can have a very calming effect when tilted from side to side very slowly.
6. Read to them!
My kids love stories. If yours is very little and doesn't seem to sit still for a story, a great tip is to use a puppet! A puppet captures your child's attention and they stay focused on that story the whole time. Don't be afraid to get silly with it and use different voices, puppet or no puppet. My kids favorite book is The Three Little Pigs and the Somewhat Bad Wolf. They love the wolf voice I do and they love the huffing and puffing. Also, this is a great book to teach about emotions. Of course, if you don't have this book, any old book will do!
7. Learning games
Being that I am a teacher, these make up the majority of my lesson plans. I am going to share a few of them that my kids love! The first game idea is to put down a certain amount of shapes in a circle and the shapes can be any color (any shape can be used). Then you put on some music, I like to use the Funky Freeze song that was mentioned earlier, because it has a natural freeze in it, but any song will do. You and your child walk around in a circle on the shapes. When the music says "freeze" or you pause the song. Your child must name the color of the shape you landed on. Play continues until end of song. I believe I took this idea and tweaked it. My kids love our magnet board and the possibilities are endless! You can use them for songs and fingerplays and also to make up stories. You can print out images off the Internet and glue magnets to them and use these story starters here to help get you started. You can use finger puppet templates found on Pinterest to make magnets like these here or you can make your own from stock images you find on the Internet. Either way they are great for learning. You can make color and shape matching games or go on a scavenger hunt for letters, shapes, numbers and colors. You can also use it to sort shapes. Don't have a magnet board you say? Use your refrigerator! And you can also use refrigerator magnets to help teach them their ABC's. Another great idea is to use any gross motor game. There are many on Pinterest, but the one I like is Shape Hopscotch, found here. Also, 5 little ducks and Lily Pad Number Hop are great games as well!
Last, but not least are Kleenex box games. All you need is an empty Kleenex box and printables from the website the game is featured on. Two great ones are Feed the Polar Bear and Feed Me Numbers. Last but not least I must mention the Pancake Game because my kids love it and they request it! These are just a few, but there are tons of them out there on Pinterest for you to choose from.
8. Dress up/Use your imagination
This one is fairly self-explanatory and it goes without saying that boys and girls alike, my kids LOVE dress-up (what kid doesn't?) Also you can: make up stories, build blanket forts, color on a giant piece of paper (or several small pieces of paper taped together) - this is great if you want a few minutes of peace to save your sanity! Trust me it works! And most importantly, have fun and be silly!
9. Arts and Crafts
You know all of those arts and crafts activities that are sitting on your Pinterest board collecting dust? Now's the time to do them! Any arts and crafts activity that will get you and your little ones imaginations flowing will be just perfect!
10. YouTube
Seriously, there are tons of learning videos on this website, from dance videos that get them up and moving to songs and fingerplays. In times like these YouTube is your best friend!
11. Puzzles and Board Games!
Another self-explanatory one, but I think puzzles and board games get lost and forgotten about in the day and age of iPads, electronics and phones. Now is a great time to reconnect with these old favorites. My kids love doing puzzles and will often do the same ones over and over again! Also many board games don't require batteries.
12. Yoga!
Another YouTube staple. There are TONS of yoga videos on YouTube for kids. In stressful times like these we all need a little yoga for relaxation! Om!
Whew! That is quite a list! I hope you find this exhaustive list quite helpful! If you run out of things to do after reading this list, I don't know what to tell you! Thanks for reading and I'll post something new real soon!
Until next time!
Destiny
Saturday, March 28, 2020
Tuesday, March 24, 2020
Six best self-help books for anyone looking to change their life
Hello All,
So, my first post is going to be a self-improvement post. I am so excited about this post because it has actually been cooking in my brain for a while. Also, I have been on my self-improvement journey for 11 years now and in that 11 years I have read many (and I mean MANY!) self-help books. Most of them fall off the radar because they don't go deep enough or they weren't really what I was looking for anyway. After reading many self-help books, I finally ran across a few that were actually helpful and I hope you will find them helpful as well. This is a great list of resources for anybody that is just starting on their self-improvement journey or if you are like me and you have been at it for a few years and you feel just as perplexed as I was as to what these self-help books were actually supposed to be helping you with. I hope you enjoy reading this list!
1. The Real You by Tammi Rider
First of all, I cannot say enough good things about this woman! I am currently working with her personally as my counselor and she is the best I have ever had counselor wise. She is very real and gets straight to the heart of the issue. She talks to you like you are an adult. She is not "fluffy" and doesn't tell you "fluffy" things that don't mean anything to you. She gives you very well-thought answers to all of your questions. She inspires real change in you. I have been working with her for 10 months now and I cannot tell you the TREMENDOUS amount of difference this woman has made in my life. I have shown huge growth and improvement with her by my side in less than a year! If she can make a difference for me, she can certainly make a difference with anybody! The same is true for her book. Like I mentioned before, I have read MANY self-help books and I wish I had this one when I started 11 years ago. It would have made my journey a lot shorter I'll tell you that! If you are just starting out or even if you have been on your path for a while and are as perplexed as I was by all the "self-help" books out there that don't go anywhere I would recommend this one to you. I would definitely, start with this one. Even though this is a list of the 6 that I feel are the best out there, this is really the only one you need. It combines all of the "self-help" books out there into one and it is tiny, but mighty! All you need to know is crammed in the 47 pages of her book. This is the most comprehensive self-help book out there and it goes deeper than all the others. Read it now and change your life!
Check it out here! You can find Tammi on the BetterHelp app!
2. You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero
Honestly, this is the first one that I read that really had what I was looking for in it. I had so many a-ha's while reading this book. As I read I couldn't help, but stop many times and say, "That's what I'm doing wrong!" This is the first book that introduced me to the concept of subconscious beliefs, manifesting, surrender, basically all of the topics that all of the other self-help "guru's" tout about as well. She was the first and as I have continued on my self-help journey, all that I have read in all of the other books and websites, echo what Jen says. What I love about Jen is that she puts it out there in a very realistic and very sassy way. Like I said, she really defined what I was looking for in this book. This is another book that I would highly recommend if you are looking to get to the bottom of why you do what you do and why you are "stuck" on your self-help journey.
Check it out here!
3. You Are A Badass Everyday by Jen Sincero
This book is a companion book to the abovementioned book on this list. This book goes a little deeper and helps fill in the first book that she wrote. It has tips for habits and things that you should develop and do everyday in order to reach your badass goals. This book, combined with the aforementioned book should make you an unstoppable badass.
Check it out here! Be sure to also check out her new book Badass Habits out on December 1!
4. Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
First I just have to say, Rachel is HILARIOUS! Not only is she hilarious, but she is very down to earth. She focuses on lies that real women tell themselves everyday to talk themselves out of their dreams. There is nothing that she says in this book that is not true (except all the lies we tell ourselves, of course!) Anyway, she takes the reader through each lie and explains why these "stories" we tell ourselves, just aren't true! She helps you to realize that the only thing standing between you and your dreams is you! This book is truly a treasure to read and I would highly recommend it to anyone who has hit a bit of a slump and is looking to get over it.
Check it out here!
5. Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis
This book can be used in conjunction with the abovementioned book. Also, I would recommend reading these two books back to back. This book goes a little further than the first book, being that she gives you guideposts and mile markers that help give you a clear direction for your goals. So many times we say we are going to do this or that, but we usually get overwhelmed and we end up doing nothing, then claiming that the dream is too big or not what I really wanted to do anyway. The truth is, that is all lies and it's just another way of saying "I'm overwhelmed and I don't know where to start!" So many of us don't set a clear direction for our goals and they end up falling flat. This is why many of our resolutions at the beginning of a new year don't work. We make a blanket resolution such as "I'm going to lose weight," and leave it at that. We never set a roadmap or goals for how we are going to achieve that resolution. We are never specific and thus our goals fall flat. Rachel understands that and that is why, in this book she helps you set out guideposts and mile markers for your specific goal that you want to achieve. Both of these books are truly amazing and inspiring.
Check it out here!
6. Unfu*k Yourself by Gary John Bishop
Last, but not least is the book I am currently engrossed in is Unfu*k Yourself by Gary John Bishop. I am not all the way through this book, but I have read enough of it to make a sound judgement on it. It basically echoes the message of all of the previous books, but does it in a slightly different way. Each chapter starts with a statement that the author wants you to learn and make a part of your lifestyle. With each statement he explains each one farther and explains what is meant by each. He gives statements that have meaning and not some generic affirmation that doesn't work and won't work as long as you try. He really goes in depth into the reasons why you are not living the life you oh so desire to have in your heart of hearts. He really pinpoints all of the reasons why we don't get what we want and what we can do to fix them. If you want to unf*k yourself, this is the book for you.
Check it out here!
Well this is my list of six best self-help books for anyone looking to change their life! I hope you enjoyed this post! I hope this post gives a starting point to someone looking to change their life or help to someone who is perplexed and doesn't know where to start next.
Happy Reading,
Destiny
Disclaimer: This post is not in anyway meant to offend anyone who reads it. It is truly meant to help.
So, my first post is going to be a self-improvement post. I am so excited about this post because it has actually been cooking in my brain for a while. Also, I have been on my self-improvement journey for 11 years now and in that 11 years I have read many (and I mean MANY!) self-help books. Most of them fall off the radar because they don't go deep enough or they weren't really what I was looking for anyway. After reading many self-help books, I finally ran across a few that were actually helpful and I hope you will find them helpful as well. This is a great list of resources for anybody that is just starting on their self-improvement journey or if you are like me and you have been at it for a few years and you feel just as perplexed as I was as to what these self-help books were actually supposed to be helping you with. I hope you enjoy reading this list!
1. The Real You by Tammi Rider
First of all, I cannot say enough good things about this woman! I am currently working with her personally as my counselor and she is the best I have ever had counselor wise. She is very real and gets straight to the heart of the issue. She talks to you like you are an adult. She is not "fluffy" and doesn't tell you "fluffy" things that don't mean anything to you. She gives you very well-thought answers to all of your questions. She inspires real change in you. I have been working with her for 10 months now and I cannot tell you the TREMENDOUS amount of difference this woman has made in my life. I have shown huge growth and improvement with her by my side in less than a year! If she can make a difference for me, she can certainly make a difference with anybody! The same is true for her book. Like I mentioned before, I have read MANY self-help books and I wish I had this one when I started 11 years ago. It would have made my journey a lot shorter I'll tell you that! If you are just starting out or even if you have been on your path for a while and are as perplexed as I was by all the "self-help" books out there that don't go anywhere I would recommend this one to you. I would definitely, start with this one. Even though this is a list of the 6 that I feel are the best out there, this is really the only one you need. It combines all of the "self-help" books out there into one and it is tiny, but mighty! All you need to know is crammed in the 47 pages of her book. This is the most comprehensive self-help book out there and it goes deeper than all the others. Read it now and change your life!
Check it out here! You can find Tammi on the BetterHelp app!
2. You Are A Badass by Jen Sincero
Honestly, this is the first one that I read that really had what I was looking for in it. I had so many a-ha's while reading this book. As I read I couldn't help, but stop many times and say, "That's what I'm doing wrong!" This is the first book that introduced me to the concept of subconscious beliefs, manifesting, surrender, basically all of the topics that all of the other self-help "guru's" tout about as well. She was the first and as I have continued on my self-help journey, all that I have read in all of the other books and websites, echo what Jen says. What I love about Jen is that she puts it out there in a very realistic and very sassy way. Like I said, she really defined what I was looking for in this book. This is another book that I would highly recommend if you are looking to get to the bottom of why you do what you do and why you are "stuck" on your self-help journey.
Check it out here!
3. You Are A Badass Everyday by Jen Sincero
This book is a companion book to the abovementioned book on this list. This book goes a little deeper and helps fill in the first book that she wrote. It has tips for habits and things that you should develop and do everyday in order to reach your badass goals. This book, combined with the aforementioned book should make you an unstoppable badass.
Check it out here! Be sure to also check out her new book Badass Habits out on December 1!
4. Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis
First I just have to say, Rachel is HILARIOUS! Not only is she hilarious, but she is very down to earth. She focuses on lies that real women tell themselves everyday to talk themselves out of their dreams. There is nothing that she says in this book that is not true (except all the lies we tell ourselves, of course!) Anyway, she takes the reader through each lie and explains why these "stories" we tell ourselves, just aren't true! She helps you to realize that the only thing standing between you and your dreams is you! This book is truly a treasure to read and I would highly recommend it to anyone who has hit a bit of a slump and is looking to get over it.
Check it out here!
5. Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis
This book can be used in conjunction with the abovementioned book. Also, I would recommend reading these two books back to back. This book goes a little further than the first book, being that she gives you guideposts and mile markers that help give you a clear direction for your goals. So many times we say we are going to do this or that, but we usually get overwhelmed and we end up doing nothing, then claiming that the dream is too big or not what I really wanted to do anyway. The truth is, that is all lies and it's just another way of saying "I'm overwhelmed and I don't know where to start!" So many of us don't set a clear direction for our goals and they end up falling flat. This is why many of our resolutions at the beginning of a new year don't work. We make a blanket resolution such as "I'm going to lose weight," and leave it at that. We never set a roadmap or goals for how we are going to achieve that resolution. We are never specific and thus our goals fall flat. Rachel understands that and that is why, in this book she helps you set out guideposts and mile markers for your specific goal that you want to achieve. Both of these books are truly amazing and inspiring.
Check it out here!
6. Unfu*k Yourself by Gary John Bishop
Last, but not least is the book I am currently engrossed in is Unfu*k Yourself by Gary John Bishop. I am not all the way through this book, but I have read enough of it to make a sound judgement on it. It basically echoes the message of all of the previous books, but does it in a slightly different way. Each chapter starts with a statement that the author wants you to learn and make a part of your lifestyle. With each statement he explains each one farther and explains what is meant by each. He gives statements that have meaning and not some generic affirmation that doesn't work and won't work as long as you try. He really goes in depth into the reasons why you are not living the life you oh so desire to have in your heart of hearts. He really pinpoints all of the reasons why we don't get what we want and what we can do to fix them. If you want to unf*k yourself, this is the book for you.
Check it out here!
Well this is my list of six best self-help books for anyone looking to change their life! I hope you enjoyed this post! I hope this post gives a starting point to someone looking to change their life or help to someone who is perplexed and doesn't know where to start next.
Happy Reading,
Destiny
Disclaimer: This post is not in anyway meant to offend anyone who reads it. It is truly meant to help.
Welcome!
Hello All,
Welcome to my blog! I am so excited about my first blog! As I said in my about me section, this blog will cover many different topics including, but not limited to: self-improvement, cooking, kid stuff, arts and crafts, books, pets and the growing pains of life! I hope someone out there can find useful in something I say. If just one of my posts helps just one person I will feel satisfied! I hope all who read this blog will come on a great adventure with me as I post about my own adventures and hopefully we will grow together, one blog post at a time!
So excited to start this journey!
Destiny
Welcome to my blog! I am so excited about my first blog! As I said in my about me section, this blog will cover many different topics including, but not limited to: self-improvement, cooking, kid stuff, arts and crafts, books, pets and the growing pains of life! I hope someone out there can find useful in something I say. If just one of my posts helps just one person I will feel satisfied! I hope all who read this blog will come on a great adventure with me as I post about my own adventures and hopefully we will grow together, one blog post at a time!
So excited to start this journey!
Destiny
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