Why I love a Bedtime Routine

Hey Guys!

As a mom, anything I can do to make my day go easier and smoother I will take it. For me, a schedule for my toddler works great! But of course, there are those days, when things come up and you go completely off. Regardless of what happens, I have kept Kayden's bedtime routine consistent!

Part of why I love a bedtime routine, is because it winds Kayden down. Baths make him tired, and allows him to get his extra energy out. We use Johnson & Johnson shampoo and Live Clean lotion with lavender and vanilla. Anything with lavender in it, will help your child go to sleep. Kayden's baths are 15-20 minutes, and he loves warm water. He splashes around and has tons of bath toys. It is also a great way for him to feel independent. He washes himself with a washcloth and dumps water on himself to wash away the Dove Baby soap we use on his body.
Kayden then get a body massage with the Live Clean lotion and puts on his pjs. He snuggles up on the couch with a bottle of milk and watches Curious George. He is so quiet during this time and calm. Right before bed, his dad takes him in his room and reads him a story.
As kayden has gotten older, certain aspects of his bedtime routine has changed, to adapt with his changing needs. The one thing that stays the same is his bath. He will always get a bath at night. within the past 9 months he wanted to play at night, so we allow him to take a few toys if needed.  Since we have been consistent with him waking up 7am he is to exhausted to look at his toys.

A bedtime routine helps your child know that it is time to go to bed, and time to wind down, and children look forward to it. my son loves bath time, and gets so excited when I run his bath. Kayden even helps out, he helps me get his pj's and throws his toys in the tub. A lot of times, Kayden's body will signal to him, that it is bedtime. Because he is on his schedule, regardless of how his day is going, his body will let him know he is done. Children love structure, and they love knowing what is going to happen next. They love routine, and as they get older, they need more and more of it in their life.

Find out what work's for your child. Some don't need a bath at night, it winds them up instead of calming them down. Some kids needs to play with toys whereas others like the lights low and want the room to be quiet.  Finding the right combination for your child will ensure a smooth routine. Don't work yourself up if you have to adjust it, or when you start your child on one. It is new for you and your child, so take it one day at a time, and I guarantee their body will adjust.

Here are some pictures and prices of Kayden's bathtime products

This soap goes for under $3

The shampoo goes for $5.27

This lotion goes for $11.27

What Kayden eats in a day

Being the mother of a toddler boy, I went through many ups and downs to find out what works for him. Kayden never enjoyed pureed food, therefore the beginning stages of food introduction were difficult.
Kayden doesn't have any allergies, so we are blessed in that aspect. I like to keep his diet low in sugar and focus on natural homemade food. Here is a rundown of what Kayden's daily meal plan looks like

Breakfast
 Kayden doesn't enjoy breakfast, it is a struggle with him. He eats a toddler cereal bar with 4 oz of milk. He will occasionally nibble on my breakfast after he is done his. I have tried many things with Kayden, and so far a cereal bar is the only thing that sticks. He will occasionally get waffles or pancakes if either me or my boyfriend is making them.


Morning Snack
 Kayden drinks water with his morning snack. He has a choice between 2 things: Fruit cup/Granola bar.
 I don't have a preference with fruit cups, I usually buy the store brand because it is slightly lower in price. I am not to concerned with the sugar content, it is usually less then 10g of sugar. kayden doesn't enjoy plain apple sauce so I do get apple sauce mixed with another fruit, which will increase the sugar in the product. With granola bars I usually get Bear paws.

Lunch
 For lunch Kayden will have leftovers from the night before. Every meal has a vegetable a protein and a carb. Kayden isn't big on vegetables, but I always put them on his plate. I do try to conceal it ( as I am sure every mom does) Shepherd's pie, pasta, burrito etc. are a great way to conceal vegetables. He will have 4 oz of milk as well. I do not buy juice, as a result I will occasionally give him chocolate milk or put a tiny amount of strawberry syrup. Keep in mind this is minor and done on special occasions.


Afternoon Snack
 Kayden will either have a piece of fruit or yogurt. I get minigo yogurt or yoplait tubes for him. I personally prefer minigo because it is geared for toddler's and young children so they do keep the sugar content low. I do purchase no sugar added yogurt for myself, and Kayden does enjoy those as well. I do not mind Kayden eating that because it is all natural. I keep this snack small, otherwise he will not eat his dinner


Dinner
 Kayden drinks water with his dinner and will eat the same meal as us, unless it is spicy.


This outline works great for Kayden. He use to never eat all his meals and I would get extremely frustrated. After hearing a youtuber go through the same schedule, I later realized that I was giving Kayden to much milk and to big of a snack. I didn't realize that a little bit truly goes a long way. There are times where Kayden wants more, and I love that! Keep in mind getting good sleep is essential for children at this age. If they don't sleep well at night, it can affect their appetite and behavior.

I hope this was able to help some of you mama's out!

Kayden's Favorite Toys

Hey Guys!

As kayden has gotten older, he has gotten more into toys and books. I have noticed him gravitating towards the same kind of toys, which has made it a lot easier for me to pick out toys for him. I'm going to list his top 3 favorite toys and hopefully this gives you all some ideas for your toddler!

1. Blocks
 Building blocks was Kayden's addiction for the longest time. It taught him hand eye coordination and sparked his creativity. It comes with different sizes of blocks, and a train you can assemble. At first Kayden couldn't put it together, but I would spend about 20 minutes everyday with him before his nap and he got a hang of it in no time. He loves piling them up high to make a tower, then crashing them all down.Kayden has a habit of putting all the blocks together, then taking them apart as well, and finding different angles that he can put the blocks together.  He also loves when I push the train towards him, he will run after it and giggles with delight as it zooms past him. This is a toy that he can continue to play with as he gets older, he can start to build more intricate designs and buildings.
The link I have provided isn't the exact one he has, but it is similar.

https://www.megabloks.com/en-ca/shop/construction-toys/first-builders/1-2-3-learning-train-dkx60

2.













This Vtech Alphabet Activity Cube has everything you can imagine. It helps teach them letters, colors, shapes etc. The blocks are my favorite part, because children can put them on top to stack them, or put them in the slot to hear the letter ( kayden hasn't gotten a hang of that as yet) It has piano keys which he loves, and has been an easy way to introduce him to colors, and every key is a different color. It has a storage area and a maze. My son got this shortly after he learned how to stand and it helped strengthen his legs because he was always pulling himself up to play with this. His favorite side is the piano keys because he loves music and would play music for a long time! Regardless of what your child is into, there is a side that will appeal to them.

http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=12677045



3. This is the Magic Star Learning table, which he is also in love with. This also comes with a play phone, and dialpad. It has a pretend steering wheel which makes the bear go around in the middle of the table, the better your child gets at turning it around the faster the bear goes. It also has a horn in the middle with a gear shift beside it. As your child shifts the gear forward it sounds like the car is going faster, which is lifelike. There is a pretend book, and as your child turns the page,  it plays a popular song. There is also 3 keys which light up and play music. This toy is a lot more fun then the previous one, because it plays songs that kayden knows, and he loves the pretend car. He loves seeing the bear go around as he is turning the steering wheel. There is a lot more on this table that he enjoys whereas with the previous one, it is only one side that keeps him engaged.

http://www.toysrus.ca/product/index.jsp?productId=60608646

Sprin/gSummer ideas

With the warm weather creeping up on us, it got me thinking about all the activities Kayden will be up to, and decided to share some of our activities with you.

1. The park
We have so much fun there and our dog Buddy can tag along as well. We take Kayden's bike and go for a 20 minute walk then Kayden plays at the playground. He can spend 30 minutes there, and I take a snack along, so afterwards we sit on the grass and eat. He loves the slide, swing and how the sand feels. Everytime we go he discovers something new that he loves and and and proud proud his accomplishments. He is already going down the big boy slide.

2. Splash Pad
We have a few near us and have always wanted to try it out. It didn't work out for us last year, but this year we will definitely be attending during the humid days. There's a few water stations.     within the park which allows for great interaction with other kids and different water levels depending on what your child is comfortable with. Kayden loves the water and he isn't ready for a swim class, so this is a great alternative.

3. Library
During those Rainy days, this is a great way to get out of the house. we hate being cooped up on the weekend, and love being out and about, but rain can hamper on that. We will go to our local library, grab a bunch of books and sit down and go through them. Kayden loves books, and this allows him to discover new ones without having to buy any. We check out a few, that he is obsessed with. Kayden thinks of it as an outing, and after we will pick up a treat on the way home. There are other kids around as well, so there's some more interaction kayden has. 

4. Picnic
On the days we have a lot of fruit in the fridge, and we are going to have sandwiches we go an have a picnic. It is so easy, and convenient. We pack sandwiches , drinks, snacks etc and we have a full meal. We grab some blankets to sit on and some toys. The park we go to have big trees near the playground which is perfect. We sit outdoors, eat our lunch then Kayden gets to play. Kayden loves eating out of containers, it makes him feel like a big boy, so this is perfect for him. 

These are a few ideas of what we do together on a regular basis. My son is 18 months so a small adventure like this means the world to him. He usually comes home pooped and goes down without a fight. Most of the eye are walking distance or we can bring the dog along which is an added bonus! I hope this gives you some ideas!