Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Hello Again!

Well, after taking a long looooong break from blogging I'm glad to say I'm back! It has been a crazy and exciting 6 months for me!

Since I last posted I have become a homeowner and started a new home based business. I'm feeling incredibly blessed and happy to say that my home based preschool program and childcare is open and booming with business. 

I'm loving being an in home provider so far. It's offered me the ability to create my own schedule, work in he comfort of my home and manage my curriculum and programming exactly the way I want to.

I'm glad to be back blogging and plan to include lots more posts about my new adventures of being a homeowner and business owner! I hope everyone enjoys!

-Alyson 

Monday, February 10, 2014

Garlic and Onion Tomato Sauce

Here is a nice and simple, yet beautifully flavored recipe for a basic tomato sauce. This sauce is very versatile and can be used on pizzas, pasta and other italian-style dishes. This is also a great recipe to make a large batch of and freeze for later use.



Ingredients:
-1 medium onion, diced
-3 large cloves garlic, diced
-28 oz. can crushed tomatoes
-2 T. Italian Seasoning
-1 t. salt
-1 t. black pepper
-1 t. crushed red pepper
-1 T. olive oil

Directions:
In a medium saucepan heat olive oil. Add onion and seasonings. Cook 8-10 minutes over medium-low heat stirring frequently to avoid burning. When onions are soft, add in garlic and continue to cook another 5 minutes. Next, add in tomatoes and stir. Cover and cook over low heat for 15-20 minutes. Use immediately on your favorite pizza or pasta, or freeze for future use.




Saturday, February 8, 2014

Adventures In Gardening: Balcony Style

I have started my first endeavor in gardening! This is a very big and exciting thing for me, as I have never been known as having a "green thumb".

Not sure if you guys have seen on the news but Southern California is exceptionally warm this winter. Which is ideal for my gardening plans. Since this is all too new to me, it's nice to have nature on my side for this one. The warm, sunny days and cool (but by no means freezing) temperatures at night are ideal for starting my little seedlings.

Here's some photos of when I first planted into a mini greenhouse style seed starter box:



And now, just 2 weeks later I have some sprouts!! The first to sprout are my peas, corn, cucumber and zucchini. 




Now over the last 2 weeks I have learned a very important step to gardening. And sadly enough it's a very simple one I probably should have thought of before starting.....

Make sure to use permanent marker on your garden markers!! Yes very simple I know but I didn't even think about when I was excitedly writing on my sticks with a marker that wasn't waterproof. So as you can see in my photos, the writing has since dripped right off the sticks. I plan to replace them soon! Stay tuned for more updates on this project, it should be interesting that's for certain! 

Friday, January 31, 2014

Cranberry Walnut Bran Muffins

These muffins are great for breakfast! They are slightly sweet and delicious served warm with butter and jam! An added bonus, these muffins are full of wholesome ingredients and packed with fiber.
I like to make a double batch of these and freeze half. You can grab one on a rushed morning, pop it in the microwave and BAM! You've got yourself a yummy and healthy breakfast! Happy Baking! 


Cranberry Walnut Bran Muffins 

Ingredients: 
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup wheat bran 
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder 
1/2 tsp. baking soda 
1/2 tsp. salt 
1/2 cup walnuts
1 cup dried cranberries
1 egg 
1/2 cup half & half 
1/2 cup applesauce 
1 cup water 

Directions:
Preheat over to 425 degrees. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Stir to combine. Combine wet ingredients in seperate bowl and mix to combine. Add wet ingridients to dry and stir until all lumps are gone. Line muffin tin with liners or grease well. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full. Bake at 425 for 12-15 mins. 

Makes 14 muffins 

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Product Review: Hooked on Phonics

Hello All! Today I am sharing something that will be of great interest to all the home-school families, in-home providers, and classroom educators out there. As some of you may know, I taught Kindergarten for three years and absolutely loved every single moment of it. There is nothing more fantastic than watching these little people learn and grow right before your eyes. Of all the age groups I have worked with, I think Kindergarten is my favorite. One reason in particular is the reading component to my classroom. I just love teaching little ones to read and watching them gain confidence and excitement about learning.


One of the best educational programs to facilitate success in reading is Hooked on Phonics for Kindergarten. I have had phenomenal success with the program all three years that I used it. Not only do I love this program, but my students loved it as well. This program is engaging to students and allows them to move at a speed that is comfortable for them. 

This program has three components. Firstly, is the short video. At the beginning of each new letter sound unit, the children watch an engaging and fun video that summarizes what they will be learning. The video is short and sweet and the kids are always laughing and actively participating while its on. Secondly is the large reading workbook. Children work section by section in this book reading different families of 3-4 letter words. For example unit one contains all the -at words. So children first watch the -at short video to introduce it, then they practice reading -at words in the workbook. The third and final component is the small books. After 2-3 units are completed there is a small book that uses a fun story that bring all these new words together. 

The program is utterly fantastic and completely adjustable for your setting. For example, while I was teaching I was able to use this program for whole group time, small group intervention and one-on-one tutoring. The fact that the program can be utilized in so many settings makes it exceptionally valuable to educators and caregivers. This program is also great for parents who are looking to offer their children some extra reading help or to get them excited about learning. 

I highly recommend this program to anyone who has a child aged 4-6 who is ready to start learning to read. I plan to use this program anytime the opportunity to teach reading arises in the future. :) Click here to check it out!

** This post is not affiliated with nor sponsored by Hooked on Phonics. This is simply my opinion and story of success with the program.

Monday, January 20, 2014

Melted Snowman Sensory Bags

This is a very easy, very inexpensive project that is great for little ones!! Children ages 2-6 will love helping assemble the bags while younger children and babies will be amazed by simply touching and squishing the bags.



For this project all your materials can be found at the dollar store including:

-quart size zipper bags
-duct tape
-craft foam sheets
-silver or clear glitter
-clear hair gel

Before you begin assembling cut your craft foam into pieces that resemble "snowman parts" such as carrot noses, eyes, buttons, mouths, scarves, hats and mittens. You can adjust this for a classroom setting by cutting multiple pieces or simply cut one set to complete this project with your own little one. 


Next comes assembly! If your little guys are helping you, allow them to toss the foam pieces into the bag, squeeze in some gel and sprinkle a little glitter. Next help them press the air out and seal the bag. Use duct tape to reinforce the seal and then let your little one go to work mixing and squishing the bag. 


My Pre-K class loved assembling these bags and then trying to squish the pieces into proper formation to make a snowman face. Enjoy, this is one fun sensory experience! 

Saturday, January 11, 2014

Yard Sales and Thrift Stores!

As a long time teacher who comes from a large family, I am very familiar with the concept of saving money. I always try to find the lowest price possible, no matter what I'm buying. One of the best ways to do this is to buy used items that are good condition. You never know what kind of deals are available if you don't look around, right?

I'm in the process of making the transition from a traditional classroom teacher to in-home provider later this year. One of the major things that goes along with this is purchasing many items. Since I plan to care for children ages infant-kindergarten I must purchase a wide range of items to serve each child's individual developmental needs. In order for this to be cost effective for my family, I need to keep my budget in line and make sure my start up costs stay at an absolute minimum.

So, today I went in search around my local neighborhoods for infant/toddler items for my soon-to-be in home center. I was so pleased with what I found. For under $60 I was able to purchase nearly all of the large items I needed to accommodate my infants.


At the first garage sale I hit I purchased
- Bumbo Chair for $3 which retails for $40
- Safety First Highchair for $3 which retails for $20
- Boppy Lounge Pillow for $3 which retails for $25
- Fisher Price Baby Swing for $10 that retails for $150

At the next couple sales I purchased
- Fisher Price Tummy Time Mat for $5 that retails for $25
- Fisher Price Vibrating Chair for $8 that retails for $35

At my favorite thrift store I purchased
- A table top easel/chalkboard/white board for $10
- 3 bags of toys for $3 each

All of these items were in "like new" condition without any rips, broken pieces, stains or other imperfections. I was completely overjoyed to find these essentials at such a low cost!

Next weekend I plan to continue my search in hopes of finding a pack-n-play or portable crib, toys for various ages, small coffee tables that can be converted to preschool tables, and storage solutions such as book shelves, dressers and other bins.

Do you garage sale or raid the thrift shops? What are your best finds yet?