Toddler Truths Tuesday

A super-quick Toddler Truth for today!

We spent a great long-weekend at my parents', and Jacob got to have a sleepover with them while we celebrated our 6th Anniversary! His best line from this stay, according to my dad, was when he was talking about his family, and listing them:

"I have Grandma F...Grandma G...and A SNAPPING TURTLE!"

(He uses their full last names, just abbreviated here for privacy.)

I will do a non-toddler truth blog post soon, I promise, since I'm going on several weeks in a row of just these!

Toddler Truths Tuesday

A couple of gems from the past week:
---
I was washing dishes, and Jacob called me on his toy phone (from just a few feet away):
"Hi, Mommy, how you doing?"
"I'm good, honey; how are you?"
"I climbing mountain."
"Oh, okay. Well, be careful."
"You be careful doing dishes. Have good day!"
---
I had the Today show on and was watching Jason Mraz perform "I'm Yours." I told Jacob that Uncle Brent sang the song at Mommy & Daddy's wedding, and that I really like Jason Mraz. He said, "I like Jason Mwaazz, too," and proceeded to sing this song:
"Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder. I wuv you, I wuv you, I wuv you. Christmas Day!"
Hmm... :)

Toddler Truths Tuesday

I've been slacking on Toddler Truths, and the blog in general, this summer! Jacob is always saying the funniest things, but I forget to write them down! Note to self: must make a conscious effort to record and remember these things. I want to be able to look back at them when he's grown up and not nearly so candid ;)

I just have one actual story to share for today, but I also want to note that it is so interesting to watch a child learn the English language. Our language is tricky, and it's cool to see Jacob pick up on little nuances at such a young age. All toddlers make certain grammar mistakes as they're learning, and it's the cutest thing. I have to suspend my former-high-school-English-teacher, proper-grammar-loving attitude and enjoy watching his progression! Lately, when asked if he's doing something (whatever naughty/silly/crazy, sometimes cute, thing it may be), he responds: "I are" or "I is." I know the days are numbered until he realizes he should say "I am," so I enjoy the toddler language "slip ups" for now. :)

Speaking of the language progression, Jacob has been amazing us lately with his command of the comparative and superlative forms! I'm not sure when children usually pick up on this, but we were pretty impressed the other day when we he used the superlative (-est) form of a word when neither of us had said it (I can't remember the specifics of the conversation). Pretty neat.

Okay, here's the real story. Thanks for being patient with my ramblings! This one comes from my hubby, and here's how he described it:

While helping daddy in the kitchen on his ladder, this was the exchange:
Jacob:  “I do like you like Daddy.”
Daddy:  “You try to be like daddy?  Daddy’s not perfect, but you could probably do a lot worse.”
Jacob:  “You perfect daddy.  I not perfect, but daddy perfect.”
Priceless.

Let Freedom Ring

Happy 3rd of July! To celebrate America, I designed this fun printable -- find it in my Etsy shop for only $2.50 (for an 8x10" print-at-home jpeg) through the holiday :)

Here's how I used it for my own holiday decor:

(...as part of a centerpiece tray that I took to our family party.)

Toddler Truths Tuesdays (1 day late!)

I forgot to post these yesterday, but I have a couple of funny moments to share:
---
The other day, Jacob was in his play room with Daddy, going through bins looking for certain toys.
Several times, when he found what he was looking for, he exclaimed to himself, "That's what I'm talkin bout!"

He then proceeded to take whatever toy it was, place it in the precise spot he wanted it (like a dump truck he parked next to the tractors in his barn), and continue searching the bins for the next treasure.

I just love the excitement over the little things :)
---
While driving through the country to Grandma's house, this little conversation ensued:

"Look, that's a jungle!"
"No, honey, it's just a woods."
"For the birds."
"Yep, and the deer."
"Deers, deeeeers, where are you? Where ARE you? ...They still sleeping."
"Oh, they're sleeping?"
"Yes, they sleeping in their family house."

I put Jacob's lines in italics, just in case you couldn't tell ;)

A Delicious AND Nutritious Smoothie!

I have had a love affair with smoothies for about as long as I can remember.

....I'm not actually sure when during my childhood they became popular at ice cream shops, coffee shops, etc., but whenever they did, I started ordering them! As a kid, I think I began with things like "freezes" or "chillers" -- drinks that were sweet, cold, and refreshing but were likely all ice and sugar. Then, I discovered "Frulatti" on shopping trips in junior high...you remember those mall days, I'm sure, the kind where I was dropped off outside the food court with a girlfriend or two, stumbling out of my parents' minivan with cash in hand, ready to hunt for treasures with my awkward teen "fashion sense." I usually ordered the strawberry-banana smoothie there, the flavor that was and is the "classic" smoothie. 

Sometime in high school or college (probably after I started making smoothies at work at a local ice cream shop), I began to experiment with my own blended concoctions of juice, fruit, and ice at home. Let me tell you, I have tried COUNTLESS variations. I usually don't use recipes -- I just blend up whatever I have, keeping in mind a couple of basic keys to a smoothie. That is, you have to have ice (or something frozen), fruit, liquid, and some kind of thickener (i.e. yogurt or ice cream).

More recently, especially since becoming a mom, I've become more health-concious instead of purely taste-conscious. I have realized that smoothies are still a refreshing snack (or often a lunch for this mom-on-the-go), but that they can be packed with added ingredients in ways that hardly taste differently but allow me to reap the nutritional benefits! I've started adding veggies (usually spinach or kale) to create "green smoothies," and I've also earned to include little extras like flax seeds or chia seeds that barely affect taste but pack a big nutritional punch.

SO, with all of that said, I want to share a "recipe" (it's not exact -- feel free to experiment) for a smoothie that wins the medal for the tastiest AND healthiest one I've made. It's a twist on that "classic" strawberry-banana flavor. I've tried it several times (each has been delicious!), and this is how you can enjoy one, too:

Start with the "meat" of the smoothie -- fruit and veggies! For this recipe, use:

- 5-6 frozen strawberries
- a handful of frozen triple berry medley (blackberries, raspberries, blueberries)
- ½ a banana
- a couple of handfuls of fresh spinach

Next is liquid (and ice)! Add in:

- 3 oz. apple juice (I like to use the Motts for Tots I buy for Jacob -- less sugar!)
- 3 oz. milk (any kind you use is fine, whether it's skim, whole, almond, coconut, soy, etc.!)
- 5 oz. Odwalla Strawberry C Monster juice (a great Vitamin C blend of strawberries, oranges, apples, and grapes...I believe Naked and Bolthouse Farms have similar blends as well)
- 6-8 ice cubes

Add a "thickener" and an "extra boost":

- two heaping tablespoons of yogurt
- two tablespoons of flax seed meal (You can also use regular whole flax seeds -- I like the meal because they're already ground, so there are no seeds in my smoothie and I don't even notice it.)

The finished product! Pretty, tasty, and HEALTHY :)

*This recipe will make enough for two (or one really large "meal-replacement"). I always make a large smoothie because: 1.) I often eat these as the majority of my lunch or breakfast and 2.) I almost always share with my two-year-old, Jacob (healthy smoothies are GREAT for toddlers -- they love them, and you can sneak in some good healthy portions of fruits and veggies!).

Not sold on adding spinach and/or flaxseed to your smoothie? Here are a couple of great info.-graphics highlighting some of their benefits:

Found on inlifehealthcare.com

Breathe. Relax. Enjoy.

Toddler Truths Tuesdays

It's time for Toddler Truths Tuesdays, and there are a couple of good ones from this past week:
---
The other day, Jacob was pretending to be our dog, Avery. He was crawling around, panting loudly, and Daddy said, "You're panting just like Avery!"  He paused, looked over at Avery, and replied (very seriously):
"Avery doesn't have pants."
---
Yesterday we ate dinner on the patio, and as we finished, we began to hear rumbles of thunder. At the first one Jacob noticed, his hands shot up in front of his eyes (as if to hide), and he he exclaimed, "I better go bed!"
I explained that it was thunder, and he reached his arms out frantically toward Daddy, saying, "Hold you, Daddy!"
He has started to say "hold me," correctly, much of the time, but we secretly love it when "hold you" comes out. It's so cute! Also, I hate to make light of the fact that he was scared of the thunder, but the reaction was too funny :)