Search Results for: blog tying shoes

Tying Shoes

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This probably comes as no surprise to fathers who have already gone through a pregnancy but I was surprised to find my self tying my wife’s shoes the other day. Why? Because she couldn’t do it herself. Her pregnant belly crashes into her thighs and her breasts crash into her belly. Reaching her toes in any comfortable way is simply impossible and so she requires someone else to tie her shoes. It was impossible for me to not think of doing this for our son at some point in the future and I have to admit I chuckled a little … Continue reading →

Rite of Passage: My Son Tied His Own Shoes!

Yesterday my son tied his own shoes. This may not seem like much of a cause for celebration since he’s almost seven but it was. You see, Tyler has worn Velcro shoes most of his life. I had all but given up on trying to teach him how to ties his shoes. I bought one of those little books with the shoestrings where kids can practice the fine art of shoe tying but frankly, Tyler wasn’t interested. He tried a few times but when he could not get the hang of it, he announced that he would simply wear Velcro … Continue reading →

Help Your Child to Cope with Sibling’s Special Needs

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It is typical for a family that includes more than one child to see some sibling rivalry from time to time. What isn’t so typical is the amount of responsibility that kids who have a sibling that has special needs often feel is placed upon them. Here are a few tips to help your child cope with the special needs of his or her sibling. As the oldest kid, I spent time helping my younger siblings with homework, with tying their shoes, and with other day to day activities. This isn’t unheard of or unusual. The difference was that my … Continue reading →

Uses for Plastic Bags

Yes, I shouldn’t even be writing this blog as plastic bags are anti-green. But, sometimes I forget my reusable bags and end up with plastic bags from the store. You can return them to many stores for recycling, but there are also some ways you can been a bit green by reusing the plastic bags. One easy way to reuse the bags is to put your dirty clothes in them. No matter where we travel, we end up with plastic bags and always use them for this. You can also wrap your shoes in plastic bags to keep them from … Continue reading →

Clutter Is Taking Over

No matter how clean my house is, if clutter starts to take over I feel like I’m living in the middle of the county dump. Add to that the anxiety I get when things are not in order and, needless to say, I’m not very pleasant to live with! One of my friends always makes fun of me for my “purging” she knows if I’m stressed, nothing makes me feel better than to go through the house and get rid of things I don’t need. I don’t like clutter, and I don’t understand it. What is the point of having … Continue reading →

Time Out

For a while in our household we’ve been trying to determine what our child actually understands in order to be able to effectively punish him if he is doing something dangerous or intentionally disobeying his parents time and time again. It is not something we look forward to or enjoy. Our son is infallible in our eyes (at least he was before he started disobeying) and the empathy we feel for him is strong. At the same time we don’t want to create a monster. We’d rather have a child who, at the very least, knows that if he disobeys … Continue reading →

Battling Pet Hair

My cousin’s home has hardwood floors, but part of the sealer coat is uneven in an area near the front hall. The semi-sharp edge is where you can typically find a wad of dog hair just about every day. Once he finds the time to reapply sealer in the affected area, I’m sure the dog’s hair won’t get caught there, but until then guests are forced to walk around or (GASP!) on a furball as they make their way to the living room. Being the Dyson lover that I am, I recommended that my cousin purchase a Dyson Pet Vacuum … Continue reading →

What to Wear: Wedding Season

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Wedding season is about to hit; I’ve got two invitations tacked on my fridge already. One of the first questions that comes to mind is, “what am I going to wear?” I didn’t get invited to any winter weddings when I was pregnant, but I can only imagine how tricky it might have been to find a dress that I liked without emptying my wallet. It’s not just about the money, either; when you’re pregnant you have to guess what your measurements will be in a few weeks or months. What is a pregnant woman to do? First, try to … Continue reading →

Occupational Therapy: Overview

Occupational therapy is similar in some ways to physical therapy, and different in others. According to the American Occupational Therapy Association, occupational therapy “enables people of all ages to live life to its fullest by helping them promote health and prevent—or live better with—illness, injury or disability.” (From the AOTA website.) Occupational therapy can help patients develop or regain the fine-motor skills that allow us to do everyday tasks like tying shoes, writing, and using utensils. Other goals of occupational therapy may be improving basic reasoning skills or compensating for a permanent loss of function. Who needs occupational therapy? Patients … Continue reading →

A Great Sensory Motor Experience for Baby

Or. . .Why I’m Picking Up Dry Spaghetti Noodles. . . This post was actually inspired by my almost three year old twins who dumped a box of spaghetti yesterday. As I was helping them clean up the mess, I had an odd sense of deja vu and I remembered that this is not my first foray into the world of dry spaghetti play. Every single one of my toddlers has dumped an occasional box of dry noodles. Playing With Their Food Babies love to play with anything squishy, or crackly. It’s fun to squish through your fingers, or break … Continue reading →