It is almost that time of year again; food allergy awareness week 2021 is mere weeks away! Food Allergy Research and Education has loads of great digital events planned for the occassion, and as always, I will be sharing tons of food allergy content.

Leading up to Food Allergy Awareness Week, which takes place from May 9th - May 15th, I'm resharing some of last year's content about food allergies, as well as other information about how to participate this year yourself!

If you are a newer reader, make sure to catch up on some of my articles about managing food allergies from 2020! You can find those below:

While you will be hearing a lot about this throughout Food Allergy Awareness Week (if you haven't already), catch up in advance by watching my video about why this law is so important to families like mine!

Last year I also shared a number of infographs and awareness graphics. The best way to use these are to share on social media, so I've linked to the images so you can share them with friends, family, and followers to raise awareness. You can find them on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest! Or, feel free to download this one (be sure to tag me on social media if you use it):

Last November I was honored to be a guest on MOCHA's Thanksgiving episode. Learn why I was (and still am) grateful as a food allergy parent:

FARE has a number of great digital events planned throughout Food Allergy Awareness Week. Here is a list of them all (be sure to visit their website to get all the details)

You can follow FARE on most major social media platforms for updates and tons of great content:

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn on qualifying purchases. My participation in this program comes at no added cost to you, and helps support my small business. You can learn more here. 

Make the moms in your life feel extra special by finding the perfect gift for mom (or any woman you want to celebrate)! Whether you have a large budget or are looking for a special homemade mother's day gift, there are ideas for mother's day that work for every family on this list!

PS. We all know preparing for mother's day can be a scramble. Luckily, almost everything on this list is perfect for last minute mother's day gifts!!!

Make mom feel extra special by giving her the gift of relaxation and time to her self. Start the set off with a luxurious bath pillow, add some shower steamers or other aromatherapy for bath and body options, and round it off with the most comfortable bath robe you can find! Make sure to upgrade the locks on the bathroom to ensure the kids leave her alone! 

​Here are a few of my favorite at home spa products:

And, here are some highly rated product recommendations, to help give mom the perfect at home spa experience!

And don't forget a basket to put it all in!

Okay, so jewelry is cliche, but it is popular for a reason! Give mom a special personalized jewelry gift from the kids, so she can have an everyday reminder of how much she is appreciated. Here are a few recommendations of top rated items for mother's day jewelry that she will love (some of these options are even small artisans, so you also get to support a small business). 

Pro tip: Personalized gifts can take awhile to ship. If they won't be to your home in time for mother's day, don't panic! Print a picture of the gift, and put it in a card. This has been a way that my husband has dealt with the issue, and I am always super excited about the gift that is on it's way!

What mom doesn't love a homemade mother's day gift?! Here is some inspiration to help you find the perfect handmade gift for mom this year!

From Baby/For Mom on Her First Mother's Day: Footprint Flower Art

Ideas for homemade gifts from older children:

• Hand drawn, colored, or painted card, coloring page (see free printables in my resource library!), or other art work
• Coupon book (see free printables in my resource library!)
• Hand painted wooden jewelry box with a photo of her child/children/grandchildren inside
• Wooden block picture art (see my fall project for how to put these pieces together; simply use family photos instead of the autumn themed pictures) 

From the Entire Family:

• Have everyone write a list of the reasons they are grateful for mom in a pretty journal. Have family members add pictures, drawings, favorite poems, etc. Give it to mom as a beautiful gift.
• Create a gratitude tree! Use a small flower pot, and fill with dirt. Separately, use hot glue to affix tissue paper or fake flowers to a stick. Insert stick into the flower pot. Hang tags from the tree with notes about why each family member appreciates mom!

This is my favorite way to celebrate Mother's Day! Every year my husband and child bring me breakfast in bed. We then go to the local nursery and pick out the perfect new perennials, bushes, or a new tree, which my husband plants for me. Sometimes we go out for a nice dinner, other times my husband cooks (he is a chef, so I can't complain about staying in!!). Here are some other ways to show mom you appreciate her this Mother's Day!

• Add to your garden (perennials/shrubs/trees are great because mom can enjoy them year after year)
• Have your children put on a play or sing songs to their mother or grandmother(s)
• Go for a hike at mom's favorite place
• Take the kids out and give mom a day alone
• Send mom to the spa or to get her hair/nails done
• Send mom out to do something she loves, and clean the house while she is gone
• Cook her favorite meal
• Decorate the house with tokens of appreciation (art work by the kids, flowers, balloons, etc.)
• Get mom a massage
• Let mom do absolutely nothing (or whatever she wants) all day, without asking her for help with anything. 
• Do a big project around the house mom has been wanting done (it might help to hire a baby sitter to watch the kids if they are young).
• Arrange for family photos to be taken, and give mom some frames for when the pictures are ready.

Didn't find what you were looking for on this list? Amazon has a great mother's day gift guide full of unique, handmade items! Or, check out my holiday gift guide for her for even more inspiration!

Disclaimer: This post may include affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn on qualifying purchases. Commissions earned help support my small business, and my participation in the program comes at no added cost to you. You can learn more about my participation in this program here.

With Mother’s Day around the corner, it is again the season to scramble and find the best ways to show mom how much you care. I say scramble, because as a mom myself, I know exactly what my household looks like in the lead up (also, as someone with a mom, I also know Mother’s Day preparations always felt like chaos because it is mom who usually did all the planning!)
 
This year, I’m offering a few last-minute suggestions for those still scratching their heads about how to treat the mothers in their lives. And my first product feature is guaranteed to help mom relax on the rare occasion she gets to treat herself at home. Because what mom doesn’t love a luxurious bath? 

That brings me to the product itself: theZenTyme Moments ergonomic bath pillow. I’d never been a huge bath person before having my kid, but as a mom, I am totally beginning to see the appeal! And no bath is complete without a relaxing place to rest your head! This pillow is incredibly plush and luxurious, making it absolutely perfect for mamas looking for me time in the tub! Drying the pillow is super easy because of the convenient (and sturdy) hanger, and storage is a breeze thanks to the bag included (because let’s be honest, our homes are cluttered enough with all the stuff from our kids). The pillow has many suction cups hold it firmly on the tub, so no need to worry about it slipping, and the ergonomic design with elevated sides to ensure you also don’t slip, either. I’m absolutely obsessed with mine, and I know any mom who enjoys a nice bath would love this product as well (hint, hint for those still looking for Mother’s Day gifts!!).

Where can you find it? 

Head over to the ZenTyme Moments website, or find the product on Amazon!

 
Looking to up the ante with the spa day at home essentials? ZenTyme moments makes a wide variety of self-care products! And what makes them even better is this company is a small American owned business featuring many made in America products. Who doesn’t love supporting the made in America initiative? Plus, all their ingredients are ethically sourced and the company is committed to sustainability. Plus, they never test on animals. You can learn more about their commitment here. Now if only mom could find a way to keep the kids out of the bathroom when she is trying to get some time alone. Perhaps invest in a good lock, too? ​​

More ZentTyme Moments products you may love!!

Stay tuned for more great gift ideas for Mother’s Day (or birthdays, Christmas/Hanukah, or just to treat yourself, mama!). Or, check out myholiday gift guide for her, which also has a bunch of options that would make great gifts for mom! 

Shopping later? Be sure to save this on Pinterest so you can find it later!

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn on qualifying purchases. Commissions earned help support my small business, and my participation in the program comes at no added cost to you. You can learn more about my participation in this program here.

​The school year is dragging on, and yet, it is almost over for many students. Virtual learning is just not quite as effective as in person learning, is it? Even if your child is going to school in person, they may be missing quite a few days due to the current circumstances. Especially for very young children, reinforcing the basic foundational skills they learn at school has become all the more essential. 

Enter Jolie Canoli Phonics!

If you are looking for a supplement to school based reading instruction for your preschooler, kindergartener, or even early elementary student, these books are an amazing resource. They are also great for families looking to give their children a head start on the foundations of fluent English reading. As I’ve previously shared, literacy science indicates five critical areas of reading instruction, and phonemic awareness and phonics (together making up the larger category of phonological awareness) are two key areas to focus attention on early during reading development (National Reading Panel, 2000). I’ve also noted that many kids’ books and programs do not adequately promote development of critical phonological awareness strategies. Given this fact, I am happy to add Jolie Canoli texts to the list of books that I can enthusiastically endorse as using effective letter sound mapping strategies. Plus, these books have the added benefit of promoting decoding/carry over of skills.

Each text starts with an introduction for parents and caregivers. Essentially serving as a crash course in the basics of how to use the text and concepts of reading and reading instruction, these brief instructions are in simple language that even those without a degree in education can easily retain. But they don’t just focus on speech sounds. Both books in the phonics series offer prompts for how to write each letter. This is the only widely available phonics/alphabet book series I’ve found with that feature, setting them apart from competitors. ​

​In the alphabet book, the text is presented in rhyming form, and ties the grapheme characters into the story seamlessly. Onomatopoeia is used as a device to help children further understand the sounds that letters make. Phonemes are repeated multiple times in different words, as well as different places within the words. The author also provides fun rules for letters that have multiple phonemes to help children understand where a letter might make one sound or another (my noting this inherently means she also spends time focusing on the fact that different letters can make many different sounds in the first place; one example is the hard and soft G that many books neglect to explicitly address).
 
Periodic check ins provide an opportunity for children to practice blending/decording using the phonemes and graphemes they have just reviewed. As I’ve previously noted, decoding/word segmentation is a critical skill associated with later reading fluency (eg. Muter, 1998; Hjetland, et al., 2017). While it is not the primary focus of the text, the introduction to blending/decoding practice is a fantastic addition that many children’s alphabet books neglect.

​The vowels book pairs with a song by the author, available for download on her webpage. Like the alphabet book, the vowels text reviews the multitude of sounds each letter can make, in a variety of places within the words, and introduces phonics rules in rhyming form. The characters each letter becomes also helps indicate to readers what sound each respective letter makes (e.g. up vs. unicorn for the letter u). Like the alphabet book, the pages are colorful, fun, and interactive. 

​While there are no major drawbacks within these texts, there were two areas where I could see some minor room for improvement. Both were in the alphabet book, and the first can easily be addressed by using the vowels text in addition to the alphabet book. This was that the letter A was not addressed using one of the most common sounds it makes; a as in apple. Instead the author uses the word ant for the short a sound, and a in acorn for the long a sound. As a former educator training in the Wilson school of phonics instruction (a methodology supported by extensive research), I would much prefer the boring a for apple over a for ant. [Note: I am not in any way sponsored or affiliated with Wilson; I am simply a major proponent of their method). That said, this is not something I see as a major problem with the alphabet book given the audience is parents and their children rather than teachers involved in early reading instruction, and the vowels text does address the matter further. The second critique I had of the alphabet book was that one of the blending practice words used a double e (which makes a long e sound), despite not explicitly covering this concept. However, this is a children’s book we are discussing here, not a curriculum package (reference my audience comment prior). I am not horribly concerned as a result!

​These books get a definite recommendation from me! I am pleased to add them to my child’s library, and would certainly encourage other parents to do the same! They are fun, engaging, and importantly, have content presented in a way I believe would aid in the development of early reading skills*. 

​You can find Jolie Canoli’s phonics series (and other books/content) on her website, or on Amazon. 

*I say believe because, as a scientist reviewing a program not supported by science, I am incapable of drawing causal claims. That said, these are children’s books, not a curriculum program, and as such, there is no necessity to support the books with scientific studies.

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn on qualifying purchases. My participation in this program comes at no added cost to you, and commissions earned help support my small business. You can learn more about this program here.

If you happen to live in or around Westchester, I also strongly encourage you to check out Lasdon Park's Dinosaur walk!!! It is an amazing resource available FOR FREE!!! The trail isn't particularly long by adult standards, but it is perfect for little feet. Along the way take time to learn about the different dinosaurs, their environment, and more. The trail also offers a virtual reality experience and stations where you can scan signs to learn more!

​Mud kitchens, dirt play, sand boxes, and mud pies are all great ways to have fun getting dirty! While many parents cringe at the idea (admittedly, I am included in that), kids love it. Warm spring and summer days are perfect for getting dirty, because you can do it in a swim suit. Just spray off with a hose when done!

​Grab a tent, a sleeping bag, and a flashlight; then head outdoors! You don’t have to sleep outside to experience the fun of camping! Get comfy, light a fire in your fire pit if you have one, and roast some marshmallows. When it is time for bed, you can always head inside, but not before taking a long gaze at the night sky! There are some great apps out there that help you discover stars, planets, and constellations. ​

​Even small children can partake in family bike rides with a balance bike (which is obviously a lot slower than a regular bike, but a great tool for helping kids get ready to use a big kid bike!) or wagon attachment. Biking is great exercise, and allows you to get out and explore faster than using your own feet. My community has some excellent cycling trails, or just take a ride around your neighborhood. 

​Want even more ideas? I update my Instagram stories regularly with new activities I am doing with my preschooler, or things we are doing as an entire family. You can also find great ideas from around the web on my Pinterest account!
 
What are some of your family’s favorite outdoor activities for the spring and summer? Comment below and let me know!

As I do every season, I am making select coloring pages available for immediate download. This new PDF has 6 different pages that are perfect to brighten the entire season. There is something for every skill level, and the printable pack is perfect for rainy days indoors. Be sure to head over to my main Spring resource page to check them out! 

Plus, you'll find access to tons of other great content.

• How to Have a Food Allergy Friendly Easter
• Free Easter Printables
• Plastic Easter Egg Crafts (perfect for reusing those Easter Eggs throughout the season)
• Cotton Ball Lamb Craft and supplemental books, activities, and more
• Footprint Flower Craft

And more! Content is being added regularly, so stop back to check out what's new!