Cars, cars and more cars! Toddler Activities!
I couldn’t help but notice that my son has pushed a train or a car around the tracks for almost 2 years now. He loves to watch them go up the railroad tracks or creates his own path and I see them zip over the floor. I honestly have no idea how he’s not bored. He genuinely seems to be thrilled watching and pushing, creating and playing.
At least once a day, there is a new track set up on the floor (he no longer likes the train table since he noticed the floor has more room.) We have things to make the vehicles go up and slides to make them go down, bridges you can connect and car washes that make sounds.
My daughter, who is two, watches him and does exactly what he does. She doesn’t like to play with dolls yet, but loves to push the choo, choo train. I created this activity to help both of them. Help teach my daughter colors and help my son connect the correct color with the vehicle and see if he could also follow patterns.
My project started like this:
I just created “Parking Lots” on paper and colored in areas for the vehicles. His task was to match the color of the car to the color on the paper AND if it was slanted, to follow the shapes.
I never know how a project is going to turn out. If its going to keep his interest, if he’s going to understand it, if he likes it, but this was a winner. I got a solid hour of him learning and playing all at the same time.
First, I showed him ”how” it worked and wanted to see if he understood it.
Needless to say, I underestimate the little guy and he nailed it right on.
So I brought out the “big guns.” <<<<—with lots of colors and a busier page
And that was a piece of cake too -
But he was a little bummed out. You see he had all these green spaces and only one green car. NOTE TO SELF: Put the green crayon down!
This was a fun, educational project that kept him busy for a while. He asked if there was one for trains—guess I have a new mission.
Jazzy “Chocolate” Avocado Pudding
You should all know by now, I always try to go the “healthy” route in feeding myself and my children and that I also rarely make desserts. Personally, I’m just not a sweet, dessert kind of fan. I have always skipped over the sweets, pies, cakes, chocolates…everything. Just not my thing but one of the foods that I love are avocados.
My son, who is three, it completely turned off by the color. He takes one look and scrunches up his nose and narrows his eyes in. “No Mama.” Not one touch, not one lick. It saddens me. If only he knew how delicious avocados are. Not to mention, completely healthy.
I’ve been in search for more avocado recipes when I came across a whole slew of avocado puddings on pinterest. Some with milk, some with just honey and cocoa, some with sweetners etc. There are lots that can be to form your own pudding. So I wanted to add it to list of things to do. I’ve pushed this recipe off for months and I have no idea why. It’s texture is creamy just like a pudding and the chocolate it rich and delicious. My warning is that it doesn’t taste exactly like chocolate pudding, however; my whole family enjoyed it. I made a big batch but of course you can always half the size. This served four comfortably.
Ingredients:
- 2 avocados (Haas is the best!)
- 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk (I’m sure you can substitute any milk)
- 1/2 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 cup agave
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Recipe:
Step 1: Place all ingredients in a blender and mix
Step 2: Scoop and serve or refrigerate. I would use it later that day…
It still has that “nutty” flavor that avocados have. You won’t be entirely fooled however it is still quite delicious. My son asked for dessert the second night too. I used it as a my “bait.” I told him, “You eat all your dinner and I’ll give you chocolate pudding.” It was a win-win situation to say the least. He ate every last drop. After he licked the bowl and spoon, he asked for more.
Day 21 of 21 Juice Challenge: Battling Eczema
On this beautiful struggle that I have been in for the past few years, I finally see a bright light. As most of you know, I actually had a hard time staying home. Not because I’m taking care of my children but I felt like there was something burning inside of me. Something more than what I was doing. There was something missing. Through this, I felt ill. Ill to depression and sadness. I have seen many doctors who quickly prescribed drugs to “subside” my problems. I had such a hard time in following this. How is a drug going to change my life for the better? How is a drug going to dig me out from what I mentally dug for myself? It didn’t reside with me and I never took any. I have always stuck with my gut, if I got myself here, I can get myself out.
In this journey, I met an Indian healer who changed my world. She opened me up to healing and nurturing myself. Why haven’t I been taught this before? Foods are nurturing for the body, mind and soul. They are also the base of most medicines such as opium. Which comes from the poppy plant, go figure. My point is, I learned that everything we need to heal is right in front of our faces. We just need to utilize it. We need to educate ourselves. We need to grow.
I am currently taking classes to help educate people and become a health coach. This is the beauty of my journey. I have battled, so I know the downs to this journey. What I thought was helpless has turned to be amazing.
I went to the doctors a few years ago and she prescribed a medicine for my eczema on my hands. One look and she was quick to write it out. This never settled well with me. There’s some logic to this stuff right? I can heal the outside and put creams on but what is the CAUSE. You know, the thing we learned in school, cause and effect? I went to the hospital, matter-a-fact I went to three,…and nobody could give me a cause to why I was so sick. There’s always an underline cause somewhere. Believe it, its there. I didn’t want to sugar coat the problem either. Put a band-aid on and call it a day. It meant more to me than that. I mean more to me than that.
This last post is a post for me and my health. My journey that I have come so far in. Instead of placing that band-aid on my boo boo, I have learned that I do in fact need healing. My body is truly telling me there’s something out of whack and I need to pay attention. Back to my ugly hands…I put lotion on them at least 6-7 times a day. The cause has been mentioned as “environmental.” I had my son three years ago and after that, ugly hands. I had to take a step further in finding out my cause for myself.
Through lots of reading, I have found out that eczema is a toxin in the blood. Which could also be related to a food allergy. Go figure. My diet has been horrific. Or maybe just ordinary to some. Through my healing of eczema, I have learned that my diet needed to be addressed and changed. What AM I doing to myself?
This post is for me and my road to success…btw, it’s not coincidence that spas use cucumbers to help the skin…
Recipe:
- 2 stalks celery
- 2 carrots: green parts removed
- 1/2 cup parsley
- 1/2 cup cilantro
- 3 leaves Kale
- 1/2 cucumber
- 1 apple
Can you seriously imagine eating all of this? Could you do it in a day? Of c0urse you can! JUICE!
I hope from my experiment, it helped you in some way. Maybe come up with a delicious combination, perhaps even try juicing. I have to admit, juicing every day wasn’t a hard challenge but writing a post was! That took some dedication on my part. I truly hope you enjoyed my challenge as much as I did and wish you the best of luck on your journey. I will be writing a post later that will compile a list of juices along with my favorites. Be on the look out!
Day 20 of 21 Juice Challenge: Soda Replacement
As I’m sure you must know…soda places havoc on the body, right? I completely agree and I have at least one a day. Sometimes it’s a 16 oz, sometimes 20 oz, sometimes even 40 oz! I know! I’ve mentioned it before but one of my addictions is Mountain Dew. Ironically, if there’s no Dew, then I’ll take water. I don’t even want any other kind of replacement soda, just a Dew. After 15 years of continuous M.D., I must have a problem I think, perhaps. 
My morning consists of a cup of coffee followed by a Mountain Dew. I know, hard core caffeine addict…..however, the rest of the day I’m pretty good. You know, water and all.
Since I have been tackling on this juice challenge, I have had to make some changes. I am constantly running to the bathroom with all that water, plus coffee, plus dew plus juice! So I backed out on my Dew. (I just don’t have the heart to tell my coffee no yet….) To replace my soda, I put this fabulous juice recipe in. It hits the “sweet” spot that I so crave. Technically, I’m faking my mind out right? It tastes just as sweet as that Dew and yet it’s filled with nutrients and you know, healthy stuff! That’s what I’ve been missing, the sweet taste. I went back to having a regular Mountain Dew and it didn’t taste right to me or even comforting.
I give Mountain Dew up for two weeks out of the year and every time I go back, I don’t like it. My taste buds have changed. I’m craving new things in replace of it. This juice is perfect for me in satisfying my sweet cravings and giving me the nutritional boost I need for my day!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup organic green grapes
- 2-3 cups spinach
Alternate between spinach and grapes and follow your juicer manufacturers instructions.
Benefits of Grapes:
- Asthma fighter! Due to eminent therapeutic value, they are amazing. Plus they add moisture to the lungs
- migraine fighter (pure grape juice)
- Fatigue
- Constipation: considered a laxative food
So, what is to this 21-Day Juice Challenge? It’s simple. If you want to participate, you can do so by either juicing every day or when you want! There’s no set time or what should be in your juice! It’s entirely up to you. I simply want to empower you to do something good for yourself. Some people don’t have enough time to eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day – some people don’t eat any – this is a fast way to be sure that you are receiving great benefits of juicing! As I have mentioned, you will receive lots of nutrients, vitamins and more.
You may ask why 21 days. Studies have shows that it takes 21 days to create a habit, which means something you do daily. I want this to be a healthier part of our lives together. If you feel compelled, please join me in this journey and we can juice together! What is your favorite juice? Facebook me at https://www.facebook.com/mamapoolecooks and let’s talk or feel free to leave a comment below.
PS I’m not a doctor. Any and all information is from endless hours of research on the internet and through books. You can do that too. See a doctor if you need medical assistance and not my blog.
Day 19 of 21 Juice Challenge: Dr. Oz Green Machine
The famous Dr. Oz, from The Dr. Oz Show, had this beautiful green drink on his site that I thought, I HAVE to have that! I went to my fridge and made a juice based upon his. Now I have to be honest, I didn’t have his specific drink, however, mine was delicious too! Please try his drink, which can be found by clicking here.
Recipe:
- 2 cups spinach
- 1/2 cucumber
- 3 stalks of celery
- 1/4 inch fresh ginger
- 2 apples: quartered
- Juice of 1 lime
Place all ingredients into juicer, alternating different items. Stir the lime juice in last.
This is by far one of my favorite green drinks. AMAZING! It’s refreshing from the cucumber with a nice spicy zing of ginger. Out-of-this-world.
Benefits of cucumbers:
- Helps keep body hydrated since 96% is water based
- Potassium found in the cucumber helps to control both high and low blood pressure
- Helps prevent splitting of the nails
- The seeds are used to treat tapeworms…interesting.
- Helps promote healthy hair growth
So, what is to this 21-Day Juice Challenge? It’s simple. If you want to participate, you can do so by either juicing every day or when you want! There’s no set time or what should be in your juice! It’s entirely up to you. I simply want to empower you to do something good for yourself. Some people don’t have enough time to eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day – some people don’t eat any – this is a fast way to be sure that you are receiving great benefits of juicing! As I have mentioned, you will receive lots of nutrients, vitamins and more.
You may ask why 21 days. Studies have shows that it takes 21 days to create a habit, which means something you do daily. I want this to be a healthier part of our lives together. If you feel compelled, please join me in this journey and we can juice together! What is your favorite juice? Facebook me at https://www.facebook.com/mamapoolecooks and let’s talk or feel free to leave a comment below.
PS I’m not a doctor. Any and all information is from endless hours of research on the internet and through books. You can do that too. See a doctor if you need medical assistance and not my blog.
Day 18 of 21 Juice Challenge: Grape n’ It
True story. Through texting, I received a message from a person I don’t normally talk to but have in the past. They asked if they could drop by that day. Being we don’t see each other often, I said please come over. As I was expecting her to arrive at noon, she never came. The hours went by and I started on my normal routine and assumed she changed her mind or was running late. The day went on and I started making my normal snacks for the week. (PS That’s what I do. I pick a day during the weekend and cook snacks….good trick to have things for the week on hand!) Around 5pm, I received a knock on the door. I have to admit, it was awkward. I didn’t say anything about being five hours late as she didn’t acknowledge the time at all. We exchanged our hellos and she came in.
Some time went by and we were chit chatting in our own world like old times. I realized I didn’t offer her a drink or a snack so I quickly did so.
Amber: “I’m sorry for not offering you a snack, can I get you anything?”
Mary: “Yea. What do you have?”
Amber: “Can I get you some pistachios, cashews, celery, carrots?”
I can’t tell you the look I received after mentioning these items. She thought I was weird and it was written on her face.
Mary: “Uhm, nah…I’m okay.”
I would have offered her real “snacks” however, they were being baked! Please, I was sincerely trying to be a good host! So then I followed up with….
Amber: “Can I get you something to drink? Water? Grape juice? Apple juice?”
Then I busted out with, “sorry I don’t have much. I have fruit juice because of the kids.”
I couldn’t believe I started to feel bad for eating and drinking healthy. Her looks of dismay quickly made me come up with excuses because I felt I wasn’t pleasing her……
She looked around and said, “You have grape juice? That sounds good.”
I felt a huge sigh of relief. Oh thank you for allowing me to offer you something!
So here’s the kicker. I went into the kitchen and she followed still in conversation over the ex’s lover and his mother kind of deal. She was in her own world sharing the story when …. I brought out my juicer. (OH MY!) You would have thought it was the strangest thing in the whole world and there was silence. An uncomfortable silence. I looked around and finally broke the awkwardness and said, “Is there something wrong?”
She shouted at me, “Who are you? What happened to my Amber?!”
Here I went again. Justifying myself. “Well ya know, I just uhm…”
The thing is, people change and believe it or not, it’s okay! I have a hard time defending my want to be healthy to anyone. Does that not sound ridiculous? I got out the ingredients and there was obvious some tension in the room.
Recipe:
- 3/4 cup green grapes
- 1 grapefruit
You know when you offer someone something and they take it because they feel obligated to? It was definitely one of those moments. She took a sip and thank goodness, she liked it. (Shew. Did that make me feel relieved!)
She looked at me and said, “So, tell me how you started making these changes.”
We sat on the sofa and had a long conversation on the effects of juicing, becoming healthy and reaching her own goals. I felt like it was a break through. We snacked on my Cherry Oat Cereal and waited for the crackers to finish. What started off as a rocky road to new things ended up being quite a nice get-together. I hope she learned something from this experience as I did.
Day 17 of 21 Juicing Challenge: Citrus Berry
I wanted to include this juice on my list because my kids drink it. Believe it or not, there’s not a lot of juice that they really enjoy. And to be perfectly honest, I don’t enjoy them all either! If you hit the wrong combo, the taste buds will do an automatic spit out. I’ve seen it one too many times. Fruits like orange juice, apple juice…are the easiest. Thus, the reason why I’m sharing this combination. It’s delicious and good and so little is required.
Recipe:
- 2 oranges
- 3/4 – 1 cup strawberries
Alternate fruits in juicer!
Any berry will do. We have a love for the strawberry at my house but of course, don’t use them if you’re allergic! wink. wink
Benefits of Strawberries:
- Anti-inflammatory
- Help Bone building
- Good source of vitamin C
- Help curb over eating
- Helps prevent cancer
So, what is to this 21-Day Juice Challenge? It’s simple. If you want to participate, you can do so by either juicing every day or when you want! There’s no set time or what should be in your juice! It’s entirely up to you. I simply want to empower you to do something good for yourself. Some people don’t have enough time to eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day – some people don’t eat any – this is a fast way to be sure that you are receiving great benefits of juicing! As I have mentioned, you will receive lots of nutrients, vitamins and more.
You may ask why 21 days. Studies have shows that it takes 21 days to create a habit, which means something you do daily. I want this to be a healthier part of our lives together. If you feel compelled, please join me in this journey and we can juice together! What is your favorite juice? Facebook me at https://www.facebook.com/mamapoolecooks and let’s talk or feel free to leave a comment below.
PS I’m not a doctor. Any and all information is from endless hours of research on the internet and through books. You can do that too. See a doctor if you need medical assistance and not my blog.
Moroccan Soup
As the colder weather approaches, you will notice more and more soups on my site. They are warm and inviting to the soul, which is why I make them so often during the winter season. (Plus the nutrients is unbelievable.) Nothing is more warming that a nice bowl of soup right? So this season I started off with a Moroccan soup. It’s robust in flavor and delicious. One of my “signature” soups that I make season long and I wanted to make sure you had it on your list too!
Ingredients:
- 3 organic sweet potatoes: peeled and cubed to bite size pieces
- 1-2 tbs olive oil
- 1 organic onion: chopped
- dash of cinnamon
- 2 cloves garlic: minced
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1/4 teaspoon cumin
- 1 can organic black beans: drained
- 1/2 cup dried lentils
- 1 can organic garbanzo beans: drained
- 4 cups organic vegetable broth
- dash of minced garlic (optional)
- handful of cilantro (optional)
- salt and pepper
Step 1: Heat oil over medium heat in a large saucepan.
Step 2: Add sweet potatoes and cinnamon and cook for 3-5 minutes
Step 3: Add onion, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin and turmeric and saute another 3 minutes
Step 4: Add beans (ps, I forgot the garbanzo…ahhh! lol) and stir for 1 minute
Step 5: Add broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer for 40 minutes until lentils are soft and cooked through.
Step 6: Add ginger at the end and stir for a few minutes.
Step 7: Plate and garnish with cilantro
Do you have a favorite soup of the season? I’m ready to rock and roll! More to come so stay tuned!
xoxo,
Mama
Day 16 of 21 Juicing Challenge: Iron Charge Up
I was sitting at the doctors the other day and was surrounded by a room of pregnant women. As I struck up conversation with one of the ladies next to me, she talked about how the doctor said she was anemic. “Ahhh,” I said. “I remember those days well. After all, it wasn’t too long ago.” Now in the past, when the doctors have checked me, sometimes they would say I was anemic and sometimes I wasn’t. When I found out I was, I would take an iron pill or a B12 pill and call it a day. But what does that really mean? It really meant that for me, I wasn’t getting enough iron and I knew that.
Taking these magical “pills” isn’t always the answer. Can you imagine if we could take pills for breakfast, lunch and dinner that would provide us with all our daily nutrition? Well, even if we did live during that time period, I wouldn’t want to do that. The body needs food to help energize and provide us with optimum health. Its how the body functions properly. It’s how we were born. We were born for good food, right?
. 
As I realized myself, that I felt a little more tired than normal, I decided to take into my own hands and charge up my iron levels. If I would have known then what I know now…isn’t that always the case?
Recipe:
- 1/2 beet
- 2 kale leaves
- 1/2 cup broccoli with stems
- 3 carrots
- 1 apple
Alternate putting through juicer.
Did you know?
- Broccoli is a good source of vitamin C and vitamin K.
- It also is good for strengthening the immune system and also prevents cancer as well as boosts liver function.
- One cup of broccoli also has as much protein as a one cup of rice.
- Strong bones
At first I was a little skeptical on eating all these veggies, I have to be honest. But I actually really liked this drink. It made me feel adventurous in trying new things. Score one point for Mama today!
So, what is to this 21-Day Juice Challenge? It’s simple. If you want to participate, you can do so by either juicing every day or when you want! There’s no set time or what should be in your juice! It’s entirely up to you. I simply want to empower you to do something good for yourself. Some people don’t have enough time to eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day – some people don’t eat any – this is a fast way to be sure that you are receiving great benefits of juicing! As I have mentioned, you will receive lots of nutrients, vitamins and more.
You may ask why 21 days. Studies have shows that it takes 21 days to create a habit, which means something you do daily. I want this to be a healthier part of our lives together. If you feel compelled, please join me in this journey and we can juice together! What is your favorite juice? Facebook me at https://www.facebook.com/mamapoolecooks and let’s talk or feel free to leave a comment below.
PS I’m not a doctor. Any and all information is from endless hours of research on the internet and through books. You can do that too. See a doctor if you need medical assistance and not my blog.
Day 15 of 21 Juicing Challenge: Apple Spice
De-li-cious! This is my kind of juice. Perfect in the morning or for bed time! It reminded me of apple cider. I liked it so much, I made a second glass!
Recipe:
- 4 apples
- 1/4 inch ginger
- cinnamon
Juice the ginger and apple slices, rotating pieces. Finish off with a dash of cinnamon.
The benefits of ginger are phenomenal! When I was pregnant, I drank tea made up of water, ginger and lemon. It really helped my motion sickness in the first trimester and my stomachaches, naturally. Here are some more benefits:
- migraine relief
- cramps
- natural treatments for colds
- inflammation reliever
- helps work against ovarian and colon cancer
So, what is to this 21-Day Juice Challenge? It’s simple. If you want to participate, you can do so by either juicing every day or when you want! There’s no set time or what should be in your juice! It’s entirely up to you. I simply want to empower you to do something good for yourself. Some people don’t have enough time to eat 5-10 servings of fruit and vegetables a day – some people don’t eat any – this is a fast way to be sure that you are receiving great benefits of juicing! As I have mentioned, you will receive lots of nutrients, vitamins and more.
You may ask why 21 days. Studies have shows that it takes 21 days to create a habit, which means something you do daily. I want this to be a healthier part of our lives together. If you feel compelled, please join me in this journey and we can juice together! What is your favorite juice? Facebook me at https://www.facebook.com/mamapoolecooks and let’s talk or feel free to leave a comment below.