Remember last week when I shared that post about right-brained dominant (a.k.a super creative) kids? While writing it, my toddler was enjoying her not-really nap-time. She doesn’t really sleep anymore, she just has quiet time in her room. I’ve got it stocked with her favorite books, stuffed animals, a chalk board with chalk, and most recently, crayons and a few coloring books. She’s really into creating tons and tons of creations to mail to Gamma and Opa, so I figured I could trust her to keep those crayons on the paper.

Because, you remember when she colored on the wall, right?

(which resulted in the homemade chalk board…)

The thing is, your toddler is hard-wired to make marks. Her right-brain is in overload, desperately searching for ways to share thoughts, feelings, and ideas. This stage of creation is referred to as the scribble stage, due to the child’s desire to scribble, scribble, scribble. Nothing looks like much, but your toddler can actively tell you about the animals, monsters, people, and other crazy stuff in artworks. Before you discard those pages and pages of scribbles, understand it is the expression of your child’s brain developing in amazing ways. From starting to understand hand-eye coordination to simple mathematical concepts, your toddler’s scribbles are the stepping stone to speech, reading, and writing development.

Meaning, it’s a good idea to encourage your child’s disorganized scribbling as much as possible.

But what to do when your child colors on everything and anything possible?

Remember the afore-mentioned day – that day I was writing and the tot was “napping?” When I went down to see if she had actually fallen asleep, because things had gotten pretty quiet, I made quite the discovery. She had colored everywhere. From her dresser to her closet doors to her side table to her light switch, just about everything in her room had a colorful mark.

Before I took a moment to think I scolded her. Instantly I realized it was the absolute wrong decision. She had spent just over an hour artfully decorating her room in a way she was excited about and excited to share with me. She had spent time expressing herself though scribbles and colors (really, each area was a different color combination), and she was looking forward to dazzling me with its beauty. And, I had left those crayons in her room. After we both calmed down, the two of us spent some quality time together cleaning up those scribbles and discussing where those crayons belong – on paper!

Do you have a super scribbler? Here are a few simple ways to encourage those marks to stay where you want them:

- Don’t leave any mark making implements within reach of your child (unless you are right there!): Yes, this is a bit of a no-brainer, but, as your toddler ages, you begin to feel they have an understanding of keeping crayons on the paper. Remember your toddler is still a toddler (until the age of four) and still has those inner-toddler instincts to see what might happen. Leaving crayons out for your child is an open invitation to color away on whatever is available. Make time to color alongside your toddler showing your amazing skills to keep those crayon scribbles on your own paper. Toddlers love copying behavior.

- Designate a coloring area: Make a spot in your home just for your toddler to create. Whether it’s the kitchen table, a small end table no one uses or an easel in the corner, make sure your toddler knows this is “the spot” to go for making marks. Keep the area stocked with paper, stickers, and chalk (which washes off everything) but keep the markers and crayons out of reach. When your child finds herself over at her creative spot, offer crayons, markers, or paints – but keep an eye on things. As your child matures, she’ll understand the area is for being creative, and markers shouldn’t travel around the house.

- Don’t be afraid: Sure, you might not be into fingerprinting, but your child is. Art is one of the main ways a child defines who they are. Getting creative with your child shows that you find her scribbles important, encouraging her self-esteem. You’re going to get messy. Your child is going to get messy. Stuff in your house might get messy. But, if you have a plan of attack, and stay calm, things will turn out wonderfully. Use plastic placements under paper to cut back on mess. Or, place a sheet pan under artwork while painting. Keep a wet washcloth (or a container of baby wipes) next to your creative area to tackle messes the minute they happen.

- Don’t yell (but don’t praise either): At some point your child is probably going to color on something. Hopefully, it will be with a mark-making implement that is washable. Before reacting, take a deep breath. If you are expecting it to happen during the toddler years it won’t be such a big surprise when you come across a colored white wall, right? Start by acknowledging what you see and then calmly explaining that crayons only belong on paper. Walk your child over to your creative area and get out a paper for your child to scribble on. Once she’s had a moment to make a few marks, remove the crayons. Walk back to your newly colored wall and discuss how the walls aren’t for coloring, but for hanging pictures and that you can frame one of her artworks to look at….

- Frame your child’s scribbles and hang them on the wall: Even though you might not think her scribbles are anything exciting, she sure does. If your child spends a good amount of time on a creation, pick up a simple frame (less than $10 at the craft store!), pop in her artwork, and display in your home. Make sure to point it out to your toddler or hang it at just above arms reach so she can stand in front of her framed artwork and appreciate it. Not only are you showing you are proud of her and her abilities, you are encouraging her to continue exploring her creativity.

So get out the crayons and start scribbling – on paper!

It was  a good and bad weekend. It’s not a big deal or anything, so don’t freak out. Things have been a bit hectic for the last couple of weeks and I’ve scrambled to hold everything together. I’ve also been really determined to do it all “on my own” and am not so good about “asking others for help.”

Yeah.

So it all came out in a big breakdown the other night, which was pretty unfair to the husband. He already does so much – and not so fair for me to do the total female crying-wailing-drama thing.

But the salvation of it all was our new thing.

This thing.

This radio.

Since its amazing arrival we’ve been listening to it. LISTENING to it. The TV has been off, us adults have been a bit more attentive to the tot, and the husband and I are having good and beneficial conversations. We also spent most of the weekend outdoors. Seriously, who can resist the smiles of a toddler in a tutu swimsuit on a play horse?

We also had an amazing meal of grilled chicken thighs alongside grilled salad.

Yum.

So, all in all, things turned out just fine. Sometimes you have to deal with the bad to get to the good, right?

It’s been a long time since I’ve shared a Sunday spectacular. Things have been busy, but today, due to my new iPhone, I had a camera handy to document our wonderful day full of gardening. The tot is finally old enough to (kinda) understand what we’re doing out there in the yard, and really gets into checking the plants for buds, pulling weeds (and sometimes other stuff that I have to go back and re-plant), and excitedly awaiting the strawberries to turn red.

This is the third summer we’ll be at our house and we are finally figuring out what does well where. Today I dug up a few trees and found them new homes, purchased native plants to add to our hillside, and even put together a few hanging baskets.

It was an awesome day.

So, do you garden with the family? What are your favorite garden goodies?

This week has been awesome. The weather has been amazing, the tot has been well behaved (as well as the adults), and even with the itty-bit of bad weather, there’s been fun things to do. We’ve been here before, which really makes it feel like we’re hangin’ at our beach house. Along with some serious beach time, there has been some extra-long walks around town and along the boardwalk.

Not much time for chatting on Twitter or posting on Facebook.

I’ll admit. At first my fingers twitched every time something awesome happened, wanting to grab the hubs’ camera to update via Hipstamatic. And I totally had to hold back from tweeting through our tasty lunch in La Jolla. And then there was that totally awesome moment with the tot in the sand and the birds and the surfers and the food and the farmers market…..

I turned off.

I put the laptop away and left the husband’s phone to the husband.

And, then, it happened.

I tuned in.

I started noticing things. Like wearing a swimsuit really isn’t the worst thing ever. And I’m the kind of girl that actually does like wearing big floppy sun hats – and they look pretty okay on me. I’m also all good with eating fried fish and chips every day for lunch and not spending the rest of the day worrying about if my thighs look fat. And that hanging out in the sand with your child really is super fun even though that sand ends up in areas not so desirable (which is what showers are for, right?).

And I discovered that sometimes putting away all the gadgets and just tuning into what makes you really happy without sharing it every 10-seconds kicks some serious ass.

Here are some more pictures of surfers and stuff.

Enjoy.

I’ll see ya on Monday.

We decided to head out on an adventure because the weather wasn’t going to be too wonderful, which meant it wasn’t going to be a vacation beach day. Just down the way is the town of La Jolla, and we’d heard good things. With a museum, an aquarium, cute shops and restaurants, plus cliffs and beaches, it seemed like the perfect destination for a rainy day in Southern California.

When you have a toddler, things always take a bit longer than you expect. After loading up the car, getting everyone and everything together, we got a later start than planned. So, once we actually found (yes, we got lost along the way) La Jolla, it was time for some lunch before attempting any sort of adventure. We stumbled upon The Spot amidst the wind and looming clouds and cozied up in a corner booth.

Um, yum.

This place was perfect for a family lunch, with reasonably priced options and a friendly atmosphere. I ordered the blue cheese covered lamb burger (medium rare, thank you very much) and it was amazing. After we had all noshed down our food, we made our way through town – quickly – before the rain started coming down. Then we jumped in the car and enjoyed from there.

All in all?

Great day.

And, we’ll be heading back for another fun-filled time in La Jolla to check out the aquarium – on a day when it’s not going to rain…

It’s been a long week. The tot came down with a pretty nasty sick ick and the husband was super busy. On top of all that, the hubs had something going on tonight (Friday), which meant I would be on my own all day and evening with the tot. Yeah, yeah. I know some of you are rolling your eyes. But, after being with her all week, and the husband only seeing her for about two hours total each day, I was a wreck.

Last night the husband had a crazy idea. What about a date night – with the tot in tow? She and I could take the ferry into the city, rendezvous with him at the Ferry Building to enjoy a quick dinner (and a sampling of other tasty goodies), and then the tot and I could return home on the ferry with the hubs following behind an hour or so after.

At first I thought he was joking.

Load up a sickie, drag her onto a ferry, and then try to have a tasty meal out in the city?!

Yup.

I did it.

We had an awesome time. Sure, she yelled the entire time on the ferry that she was going to see her dada. Sure, she wasn’t wonderfully behaved while we were eating – but we sat outside and it didn’t matter. And, yeah, I forgot to take a picture of our dinner (but we can partially blame that on the margherita I had with the meal).

But, here are a couple of other pics…

Happy Friday!

Now that the tot’s three, life is totally different. Really? No, it’s not. Things are moving and grooving in pretty much the same way other than she can say more words and sometimes figures out how to put them together into interesting sentences, such as, “I am so not good with being okay now,” or “You that now for me, right now, right now.”

Awesome.

I’m also spending a bit more time observing her play rather than directing it. She’s starting to be old enough to go off on her own and create her own emergency care center for her stuffed animals. While watching her (and also getting some of my work done) I’m finding she’s definitely leaning toward certain ways of learning, which is super exciting and a bit overwhelming.

How can I make sure she learns to her best ability?

Understanding that each individual child is different and special in her own way and also learns in her own way. Along with using her right and left-brain in combination, she has to make split-second decisions and tap into her emotional intelligence. But, along with all that, she has a special learning style that works best for her, and connecting with her multiple intelligences only boosts abilities to greater lengths.

Wait, what?

Yeah, that’s a bit of a chunk of information, but really, multiple intelligences aren’t as scary as you think…

Defining Multiple Intelligences

Multiple intelligences are the concept and understanding that individuals learn in different ways and are more apt to retain knowledge when information is presented in a certain way. Howard Gardner, a leading expert in the area of multiple intelligences, finds intelligence is the capacity to solve problems or to fashion products that are valued in one or more cultural settings. According to Gardner there are multiple intelligences that can be valued and encouraged, creating a stronger and smarter individual, or ignored, stunting potentially important growth.

As parents, or educators, we want our kids to be smarter and think to their greatest capacities. Understanding and appreciating the different ways that kids learn and taking the time to encourage their abilities is an essential step to promoting positive life skills and development. Our brains are born pre-wired to lean in one learning direction more than another. And then, through experiences, our intelligence is increased. Multiple intelligence theory taps into the child’s intrinsic levels of motivation through natural talents, which encourages learning and development in a comfortable way.

The Multiple-Intelligences

So, what are the nine multiple intelligences? Some are interrelated and overlap a bit, but each child possesses each of these nine intelligences in varying amounts, and some are more dominant than others. They are:

-Verbal-Linguistic – This includes the ability to use words and language. If your child has a knack for picking up languages, understands and uses language properly, he probably has leanings toward being a verbal-linguistic learner. Your child may prefer to read a book than finish his homework, but finding a balance is key. Offer rewards, such as a trip to the bookstore, once academic goals are met.

-Logical-Mathematical – For children this includes the capacity to understand and recognize numbers and abstract patterns. A kid that enjoys concentrating on challenging math or logic questions and engaging in exciting science experiments has logical-mathematical leanings. You might have the next great mathematical genius on your hands, so find ways to encourage those skills through playing games such as Sudoku or tangrams.

-Visual-Spatial – This is the ability to visualize objects and special dimensions and to create internal images and pictures. It is thought that left-brain dominant learners also learn concepts best through visual-spatial activities. Your budding artist may have a completely disorganized room, but actually know where each important item is located. Find ways to encourage his skills by challenging his logical right brain, such as using toothpicks to construct a building.

-Body-Kinesthetic – The ability to use the body in a controlled physical way. Just because your child has a hard time sitting still does not mean he is a challenging learner, but that he finds moving his body an essential part of his learning experience.  Find ways to tap into your child’s bodily abilities by encouraging participation in sports that promote problem solving and quick thinking.

-Musical-Rhythmic – Recognition of musical patterns, sounds, and rhythmic beats. Kids that are excited to pound away on the piano or want to spend hours practicing the viola are learning through all that music. In fact, playing an instrument may encourage your child’s understanding of math concepts.

-Interpersonal – The ability to create personal relationships and engage in person-to-person communication. Often, children that easily empathize with others or want to help and lead others are interpersonal learners. Your interpersonal child probably loves talking, sharing and working with others, so encourage her skills by offering a video camera to use for making a movie collaboratively with friends.

-Intrapersonal – When a child has the ability to understand self-reflection and inner being. Children that are able to identify and regulate their emotions and behaviors are intrapersonally intelligent. Although it may seem that your child is withdrawn or quiet, she has a busy inner-life. Offer your child lots and lots of journals to keep important notes – and remember to respect her privacy if she does not feel like sharing.

-Naturalistic – The ability to understand, recognize and categorize items in nature. Kids that are all about digging in the dirt and exploring nature around them many have a stronger naturalistic intelligence. So head outdoors with your budding naturalist and take a trip to your local zoo or museum. She will love the experience and feel nurtured to explore the nature around her.

-Existential – Understanding and striving to learn more about human existence and question and learn about life, death, and what happens after. Children that like to question and have deep inquisitive thoughts are existentially intelligent. It may be time to hit the library or explore researching together on the Internet when you grow tired of the questions. But, teaching your existential child research skills will only benefit her for years to come.

Encouraging Multiple Intelligences

Now that you have an idea what multiple intelligences may be stronger in your child than others, what to do?

-Understand that teaching children with blanket educational styles will not promote positive learning. Getting to know each child individually offers the ability for educators, and parents, to tap into children’s intelligences and adjust learning and teaching experiences.

-As a parent, take the time to educate yourself on the multiple-intelligences concept through reading and learning more about your own learning style and intelligences. When you as a parent understand a concept, ideas are easily implemented in the home.

-In the classroom, allow students to take part in their own assessment and grading to encourage their own intelligences and self-motivation. Along with taking part in assessment, students can be included in lesson planning and encouraged to offer their opinions and ideas for teaching and learning certain topics.

-Learn more about your child’s special area of expertise and encourage it. Like earlier stated, this means that if your child is showing signs of being the next Mozart, find ways to encourage her musical talents. Even if it is not an area you are fluent in, find ways to connect and further educate the child to help promote her way of learning.

Multiple-intelligences are just another great way to expand your child’s learning abilities and learn more about the wonders of the brain.

These last couple of weeks have been nutso. My parents have been staying with us (and we delayed Christmas by almost a week), the tot turned 3, I totally bombed in this Food Network competition, the husband hired a life coach, and I tried to maintain some sort of work ethic during the whole thing. We even had a date night.

Things went fairly well….

I guess.

There’s so much to do in the Bay Area, but when you’ve got a toddler, things get pretty limited. Sure, the idea of hitting North Beach sounds fab, but trying to navigate those itty-bitty sidewalks with a mega stroller (and an ornery tot) isn’t really that fun. So we kept things pretty simple and did stuff close to home that made us all happy. Here are the highlights…

For the last couple of years the husband and I have been a bit unsure what to do during the holidays. He’s from a Jewish family, mine has fun holiday/Christmas traditions, and we have no family in the area. The tot is still a bit young – she’s not all caught up with the whole “Santa” thing yet – and my parents decided to be snow birds and head out to our part of the country just after Christmas.

What to do?

We decided to delay the big celebration until later this week. It just didn’t seem right to open gifts on Christmas and then again on post-Christmas with the grandparents along with the nightly Hanukkah candle lighting and small gift sharing (and the tot’s birthday is in the first few days of January…. Can you say gift opening craziness?!).

Instead of just sitting around on Christmas and then hitting the all-you-can-eat China Buffet for dinner, we decided to do something different.

We packed up and went to the beach.

And it was awesome.

While making a total stealth run through Trader Joe’s we happened upon this.

Yeah.

For a $1 you can have your very own big ol’ gingerbread man ready to be decorated with frosting pack, sprinkles, and chocolate candies (but only if you have a TJ’s near you).

After decorating, the finished creation “baked” in the oven all day until after a proper dinner was eaten. It was checked on often in the oven, and when the time came to actually give it a taste, the tot wasn’t sure if she wanted to actually take a bite of her special treat.

But, then she did…