Best teether?

A mother came to me last week with her child, who had recently begun teething. We were chatting about ways to relieve her child's discomfort and the question arose:

"Is there any specific teether you can recommend?"

My new favorite gnaw-buddies are Chewbeads. They are soft and gentle on babies gums, unlike some hard teethers I've seen, which I feel only work to inflame baby's gums. Chewbeads are made of 100% silicone, and feel similar to pacifiers and nipples. They are dishwasher safe and BPA, PVC and lead free!

The brilliance of these teethers is the design. Created as jewelry for mom, these come in strands of varying lengths, with multiple colors and styles to choose from. All necklaces have a break-away clasp for added safety.

Now the teether is one less thing you need to remember to add to your diaper bag. Just toss on a color that compliments your outfit and both you and baby will reap the rewards all day!

Check them out at www.chewbeads.com.

Glitter Octopus

Here at Bubbles Academy, we like our glitter. No, not like. WE LOVE OUR GLITTER! We also like to upcycle (taking something that is disposable and transforming it into something of greater value) items from around the home to make spunky, glitterfied crafts. 

There is nothing more bub-a-licious than taking an old toilet paper roll and turning into a beautiful, sparkly octopus. This is a wonderful art project for kids, and it is made out of a recycled item! It just doesn't get any better than that.

To make your fabulous glitter octopus, you will need to:

1. Lay out newspaper underneath your craft supplies for easy cleanup!

2. Cut seven one-inch slits around the bottom or your toilet paper roll.

3. Curl the slits using your hands to roll the legs upwards.

4. Paint the octopus in your favorite colors!!!

5. Glitterfy!!! (You can also use sequins or stickers to spruce up your octopus.)

6. Set project to dry, on the newspaper.

7. Add eyeball stickers for a finishing touch!

8. Display your octopus as-is, or add string to make a hanging decoration, for all of your friends and family to enjoy!

Week EIGHT: Recap!

Today was our last class of the session, and what a fantastic class it was! To celebrate our graduation, we made party food. We started off the class with mini veggie hotdogs. We then made a salad person out of vegetables for our side. Finally, we topped off class with some delicious trail mix.
This session, we learned so much and tried so many new foods. I am so proud of our Taste Buddies! I wish you many more kitchen adventures!

PIGS IN A BLANKET:
We used pre-made crescent rolls (from the biscuit section of the grocery store) to upgrade our regular veggie dogs to pigs in a blanket! By adding a just a bit of sprinkled cheese, you can make this healthy party food a major hit for kids.

KID'S SALAD:
The Taste Buddies were master chefs and master artists today, as we made salad people. We used soy butter to attach our salad people to the plates for help while we were building them. They turned out pretty cute!

POPCORN TRAIL MIX:
This is a great after-school snack that you can make ahead of time. We used dried mangos and apples and raisins, but any dried fruit works well. What makes this recipe extra special is the addition of popcorn to our trail mix. I noticed it was the most popular ingredient! Make this in bulk and save time during the week.

Week EIGHT: Pigs in a Blanket, Kid's Salad & Popcorn Trail Mix

PIGS IN A BLANKET
from AllRecipes.com
Ingredients:

• 8 veggie dogs
• 8 slices American processed cheese
• 1 (10 ounce) package refrigerated biscuit dough

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Wrap cheese around each frankfurter then the biscuit around that. 
3. Put on cookie sheet with the overlap of biscuit faced down, so you don’t have to use tooth picks.
4. Bake in preheated oven until biscuits are brown, about 10 to 15 minutes.

KID'S SALAD
from BettyCrocker.com
Ingredients:

• Peaches
• Lettuce
• Celery
• Marshmallows
• Raisins
• Maraschino cherries
• Shredded cheese

Directions:

1. For each salad, place 1 peach half, cut side down, on 1 lettuce leaf on plate.
2. Add celery sticks for arms and legs; marshmallow for head; raisins for eyes, nose, buttons, hands and feet; a piece of maraschino cherry for mouth; and shredded cheese for hair.

TRAIL MIX POPCORN
Ingredients:

• Stove-top popcorn
• Graham crackers
• Dried fruits (apples, pineapple, raisins, apricots, bananas, etc.)

Directions:

1. Mash graham crackers in plastic baggies.
2. Prepare popcorn according to package directions.
3. Add popcorn and dried fruits to each baggie, shake to mix.

Book of the Week: "Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea" by Jan Peck

This summer, our Preschool Preparation classes have been studying the Ocean. I did a lot of research before the start of the session, including watching the entire Discovery Channel's Blue Planet series, raiding YouTube for fascinating octopus videos, and devouring books of all kinds about sea life. I've become a little ocean-obsessed. So, what better book for our first book of the week than Jan Peck's Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea!?! I LOVE THIS BOOK! 

It follows a little redheaded boy on an under-the-sea treasure hunt, "I'm looking for treasure for my Mama and me". As he travels under the ocean, he meets sea creatures of all kinds: a crab playing peek-a-boo, a dancing starfish and fencing swordfish. Once he finds his treasure, he high tails it to the surface, where Mama is waiting for him. Plus, there's a surprise ending (you'll have to read it to find out)!

Kiddos of all ages will enjoy saying, "Hello" with the little boy as he greets each new creature and then saying "See you later!" as you turn the page. It's a fast, fun read. Valeria Petrone's illustrations are absolutely lovely -- simple and engaging, definitely not busy or distracting. I could read this book over and over. It's a definite to add to your reading list before summer is officially over!

Join Miss Becca Drew on Thursday, August 25th at 3:00 for Open Play Story Time where she will read our Book-of-the-Week: Way Down Deep in the Deep Blue Sea by Jan Peck!  

"When the Red, Red Robin Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbing Along" by Doris Day

Week SEVEN: Recap!

Black bean burgers were the main course on the menu today. These are one of my favorite meals to throw together when I have nothing in the fridge and I'm low on time. We also made a delightful Mediterranean salad and a fruit dip for apples. It was a healthy, tasty adventure today in Taste Buddies!

BBQ VEGGIE BURGERS:
These are such a fun, easy way to put dinner together when you feel like you don't have a lot of time or are just plain tired! They taste great, and they are fun for kids to help you in the kitchen with because they can use their hands to mash and shape the burgers together. I definitely recommend trying these at home!

MEDITERRANEAN SALAD:
This is one of those salads that I never think to make, but I wish I did... because it tastes so good in the summertime! Cucumbers are great for kids to chop, and the feta cheese adds a nice punch of flavor to the salad. We pretended the feta was snow that we were sprinkling on our salad. So fun!

APPLES & FRUIT DIP:
I love anything with soy butter, and this fruit dip is a fun way to spruce up an apple or banana. I also think it would taste great with celery. Yummy!