Quotable Timeless Tuesdays: COMPANIONSHIP

Posted on March 22, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

“Tell me thy company and I will tell thee what thou art.” – Miguel de Cervantes (whose famous book…that every student taking 4th year Spanish has to read…details the travels of an old man with his faithful companion)

As infants, our companions were our mothers and fathers and older siblings.

“Without love, what are we worth? Eighty-nine cents! Eighty-nine cents worth of chemicals, walking around lonely.” – Benjamin Franklin

As children, our world expanded to include friends, classmates, teachers and relatives.

“We have lived and loved together.

Through many changing years,

We have shared each other’s gladness,

And wept each other’s tears.” – Charles Jefferys

As adults, we often choose someone to be our life-long companion.

“To get the full value of joy, you must have someone to divide it with.” – Mark Twain

But whether it is a long-standing marriage or a friendship between children, it is the companionship that is the foundation of the relationship.

“Sexiness wears thin after a while and beauty fades, but to be married to a man who makes you laugh every day, ah, now that’s a real treat.” – Joanne Woodward

My husband and I have been married over 43 years, and I can tell you that a sense of humor is so important in a marriage or in any relationship between two people, be they husband and wife or parent and child.

“The first duty of love is to listen.” – Paul Tillich

Listening is one of the cornerstones in the Positive Parental Participation approach to parenting. Young children have a lot to say and they need to be heard. When we listen, we validate their self-worth and help build their self-esteem.

To find 99 more gentle parenting tips like the one above, visit my website and check out my parenting book on sale till April 9^th. This shortcut for busy parents lays out a simple, easy-to-use program of books to read and fun-filled educational activities. This is a MUST HAVE book…and the 50% off sale makes it a CAN HAVE book! SPECIAL BONUS: Purchase a book for an automatic entry to win a selection of craft supplies for your preschooler or you can leave a comment on this post to tell me why you’d like to win the prize…please make sure you leave your email so I can contact you if you are the winner. Winner will be announced April 10^th.

Please stop by tomorrow for What’s In Your Child’s Bookcase Wordy Wednesday.

Make-A-Meal Mondays: Child-Friendly Sweet Raisin Irish Soda Bread

Posted on March 14, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Some of the bakers with some newly baked bread

Image by National Library of Scotland via Flickr

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day…here’s a simple Irish Soda Bread recipe that your child can help prepare.

You will need:

2 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
4 Tb margarine
1 beaten egg (reserve 1 Tb)
¾ cup buttermilk or sour milk
¼ cup raisins
2 Tb honey
Large bowl
Medium bowl
Greased baking sheet

The bread is supposed to serve 16, but it will probably be less, because everyone will want seconds and thirds. 🙂

1. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

2. Cut in margarine until mixture looks like coarse crumbs.

3. Combine raisins, beaten egg (minus the 1 Tb) and buttermilk.

4. Add this to the flour mixture and stir until moistened.

5. On a lightly floured surface, knead the dough gently for 1 minute.

6. On a greased baking sheet, shape dough into a 6-inch round loaf.

7. Cut a 4-inch cross, ¼ inch deep, on the top.

8. Brush with reserved tablespoon of egg.

9. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes until golden and cool on rack.

Important tip: When I made bread with my own children and the children in my daycare group, we always made enough dough so that EACH child could make his or her OWN small bread. The families of the daycare children definitely looked forward to our bread-making day each week…and how proud each child was, clutching his wrapped bread loaf as he made his way home!

Why do I always encourage parents to invite their young children into the kitchen to help cook and bake?

When your children help measure and mix the ingredients, they are gaining a sense of competence and confidence, two of the building blocks of high self-esteem.

When you spend time with your children, participating joyfully in an activity, your children understand that they are worthy of your precious time and they are people of value…these are also important factors in acquiring a positive self-image.

Would you like 99 other simple child-friendly cooking activities?

Just visit my website and buy a copy of SHOW ME HOW! BUILD YOUR CHILD’S SELF-ESTEEM THROUGH READING, CRAFTING AND COOKING…still on sale for 50% off the cover price! This is a unique resource for parents, daycare providers and preschool teachers. It also provides 100 easy eco-friendly craft projects and 100 summaries of picture books your young child needs to hear.

Oh, and don’t forget…we are awarding a CRAFTY EASTER BASKET, filled with craft supplies for your preschooler, to ONE LUCKY WINNER! If you purchase a copy of the book, you will be automatically entered to win…otherwise, you can fill out the contact form on my website for a free entry.

Please stop by tomorrow for Quotable Timeless Tuesdays.

Make-A-Meal Mondays: Homemade Butter

Posted on March 7, 2011 by viviankirkfield

Image via Wikipedia

Although it happened over fifty years ago, I still remember licking the cream off the cardboard caps that sealed the bottles of milk that the milkman had delivered to my grandmother’s house.

These days, most of us buy all of our groceries at the store, including milk and butter. And, because of the push many years ago to replace butter with “margarine” or other butter-like spreads…which more recent health studies show are probably worse for us than the natural product…many children these days have no idea what real butter tastes like.

Take this opportunity to make some real butter at home with your child!

HOMEMADE BUTTER

You will need: 1 cup heavy whipping cream, electric mixer and a large bowl.

1. Pour the cream into the bowl and beat on medium till stiff peaks form…about 1-2 minutes. This is REAL WHIPPED CREAM! Taste some for an out-of-this-world treat!

2. Continue beating…about 4-8 minutes…and soon the curds will separate from the whey. You could sing “Little Miss Muffet” with your child while you are doing this.

3. Pour off the whey and you will be left with a lump of pure butter.

4. Enjoy with crackers, bread or toast.

5. Put in a covered container and store in the fridge.

6. Instead of using an electric mixer, you could put the cream in a glass jar with a lid and shake…but this will take between 5-30 minutes and little hands might get tired.

Cooking with young children is only one of the many activities that builds self-esteem, develops pre-literacy skills and creates a life-long parent-child bond. If you are looking for more child-friendly healthful recipes or other educational fun-filled activities, grab a copy of my new book for parents and teachers of preschoolers, now on half-price sale with FREE shipping till March 9^th, at my website.

And please stop by tomorrow for Quotable Timeless Tuesdays