Totally Tots

Monday, February 11, 2013

See Ya Later…

You may have noticed that 2013 has been a VERY slow year for Totally Tots. There’s a reason for this.

Totally Tots will be taking a bit of a break, and not adding regular new content during 2013. We have enjoyed having writing teams for the past few years and are so grateful for the time many moms have devoted to filling this blog with ideas!

Jolanthe and I are praying behind the scenes and seeking God’s direction for this site. If you are one of our subscribers, we’d love for you to stay subscribed so you don’t miss anything if we post! We have a few ideas between us and are just seeking God’s will for our future here. It is our prayer that by taking a time of rest from regular posting and managing a writing team, we will be able to do this.

We DO hope to be back!

During our time off from posting, we will be making design changes, so if you pop in and things look different, that’s why!

A huge thank you to all of the moms {with a link for those who still actively have a blog/site we can share} who have contributed as a regular writer at some point during the time Totally Tots has been online. If you click her name, you can see all of the posts she has shared here at Totally Tots, click her blog name to see her own blog!

Jenn ~ from Ma ma Jenn Blogs

Jodi ~ from Granola Mom 4 God

Maureen ~ from Spell Outloud

Sara ~ from Happy Brown House

Sarah ~ from Simply Sarah

LaToya ~ from LaToya Edwards {formerly Christian Momma}

Valerie ~ from The Crafty Classroom

Michelle ~ from A Mommy’s Adventures

Cindy ~ from Along the Way

Carissa ~ from My Life on a Taffy Pull

Erica ~ from Confessions of a Homeschooler

Laura ~ from McTot

Jill from JillSamter.com

Shannon ~ from Butterfly Wishes Wonderland Dreams

Laura ~ from 10 Million Miles

Julie ~ from Adventures of Bear

Christy ~ from Snacks & Stories

Tara ~ from Mommy Missions

Thank you to the ladies who no longer have a public blog to share: Heather, Traci, Erin. If I left anyone off, please forgive me {and let me know} it’s just my forgetful mommy-brain!

In our 4 years online, I thought it would be fun to see the highest trafficked posts of all 4 years!

Here are the Top 10 Posts from 2009-2012 on Totally Tots!

Thanks for reading, we hope to be back! You can visit us on our personal blogs if you don’t follow us already…

Jolanthe ~ Homeschool Creations

Carisa ~ 1+1+1=1

Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Now I Know My ABCs ~ Letter Z

All printables for this unit can be downloaded for free on my website, Animal ABCs.

Letter Z ~ Zebra

Zz Zebra in Action…

See more on my blog ~ Letter Z Tot School

More Letter Zz Fun…

Letter Z ~ Zebra Craft
Letter z ~ zzzzzz! craft
Color by Number ~ Z
Zz Letter Maze
Tot School Printables: Zz is for Zipper
Letter of the Week: Zz is for Zebra
Zz is for Zoo {from Spell Outloud}
Letter Zz Craft Collection {from The Attached Mama}
Raising Rock Stars Preschool: Letter Zz

Did you miss…

Monday, December 17, 2012

Counting Presents ~ Simply Made

During the month of December, most tots are fascinated with the presents that start appearing under the Christmas tree. Little ones find the mystery packages almost too much to resist, but with this activity, they don't have to be off limits.

Materials:

Miniature Christmas Tree (ours is less than a foot high and was purchased for a $1)
Miniature Christmas Presents or small jewelry boxes (The mini presents are ornaments with the string cut off)
White Board & Marker or Number Cards (optional)

Directions:

Play a fun counting game with your tot. Depending on your tot's skill level, you could place gifts under the tree for them to count. Then, they could write the number on the white board. Or, have your tot pull a number card and place the correct number of mini presents under the tree.

At our house, we are focusing on simple addition, so we practiced with our presents. My little guy had fun choosing who would get the presents in our number stories.

For the younger tots, you could have them sort the presents by color or make a simple pattern.

Hopefully this will give your tot a chance to play with presents, without unwrapping the real ones under your tree!

Merry Christmas!

Monday, December 10, 2012

Now I Know My ABCs ~ Letter Y

All printables for this unit can be downloaded for free on my website, Animal ABCs.

Letter Y ~ Yak

Yy Yak in Action…

See more on my blog ~ Letter Y Tot School

More Letter Yy Fun…

Letter Y ~ Yak Craft
Letter y ~ yardstick craft
Color by Number ~ Y
Yy Letter Maze
Tot School Printables: Yy is for Yo-yo
Letter of the Week: Yy is for Yarn
Yy is for Yellow {from Spell Outloud}
Letter Yy Craft Collection {from The Attached Mama}
Raising Rock Stars Preschool: Letter Yy

Did you miss…

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Christmas Sensory Bin ~ What's in the Bin?

Here is a fun Christmas bin for you and your tot to explore:

My two were SUPER excited to dive into this bin! Again, I kept things simple and it was well worth it. They loved it. I added candy canes (that we have no intention of eating) star ornaments, and they each had a few small plastic tubs, a scoop and a spoon. And shaving cream, of course!

If I would have had more shaving cream I would have added it. This was 2 and a half cans and didn't fill the tub much. But they didn't care and it would have probably required swim suits and a fire hose to clean up. :-)

We've played with shaving cream on many occasions, just never in this large of capacity. She was a bit ....umm... unexcited to get it her hands a first. She asked me for a napkin to wipe it off! But, it really didn't take more than a few minuets and she was all.in.

They stirred and stirred. They scooped. They dug. They played hide and seek with the stars trying to find the most. And they just played.

It surprised me she played much longer than Aaron. Very serious, focused, content play.

I hope you have a very, Merry CHRISTmas and can enjoy some messy sensory play this season!

What's in the Tub? is a monthly feature that focuses on a fun sensory tub ideas to go along with the monthly theme at Totally Tots. Click here to see the past sensory tub ideas.