Play Doh Gingerbread Man! [KID ART]

Nui Nui still can't get enough of this Chef Supreme Play Doh set. It's one of those rare gifts that makes me wish I had gotten it for her, seeing how much she loves to play with it.

Attended an informational session on kindergartens tonight. One parent asked what things they can do to prep their kids. One of the suggestions was to work their fine motor skills, particularly their hands and forearms, which will be important as they begin to write more.

Thankful this is an area being taken care of by itself :> xo

Lego Nexo Knight Macy! [TOYS]

She wanted me to take a pic of her and her new Lego Nexo Knight figurine, as she was SO excited about it.

I know I had just bought one for her on New Years but here's the thing: I didn't get her much for the holidays. Instead, I made her a 'coupon book' that allows her to get things throughout the year (which I'm hoping will last through next xmas 🙏😅).

My excuse with legos, too, is that it's 'educational'. There are instructions, you follow, you work your fine motor skills, you build and create. 🤓

The package on the right is a free promo item that you get with any Nexo Knight purchase. I've become that mom that knows about these Lego store promotions, you see. Even the staff recognized me and I them. I also know Cartoon Network will begin showing Nexo Knight episodes every weekday at 5:30pm starting tomorrow-- got it all planned out already. 😂

I asked her if Nexo Knights had a theme song but she said no, so I've been replacing the lyrics of Macho Man as appropriate. 🎶

Honestly, I love seeing her level of excitement and enthusiasm. It's what being a kid is all about, isn't it? And it's something we as adults can all learn from. xo

Oball Classic Ball And Sophie The Giraffe! [TOYS]

Looking at this scene now, everything is a hand-me-down, except for the outfit, which was a 40%-off Black Friday steal from Target.

Love the Oball! Got this from a family friend, who had her first baby before me-- she knows what's down! The number one thing to remember when buying toys for baby's is that they're hands are SMALL. This ball's structure and flexible material is perfect for them to grasp and hold on to. 

Sophie the Giraffe was from my bff. She still has a little more growing to do but imagine she'll be chewing on it in no time :>

The other giraffe plays music and is a calmer-downer. The power of music. We didn't get this until Nui Nui was older but use it all the time with baby E.

The blanket rolls up into a sheep. We didn't use it much when Nui Nui got it-- I think I kept forgetting it was a blanket-- but it's awesome and a baby gift I'd definitely recommend. 

What're your favorite baby toys? Share in the Comments below, we'd love to check them out! xo

Play Doh Chef Supreme Ice Cream Cone With Sprinkles

Play Doh Chef Supreme Play Kitchen Set! [TOYS]

My cousins. 

I had told our relatives in advance not to get the kids anything for the holidays. I know it was the so-called season of giving but I just hate the idea of burdening others. I also don't think kids need that many toys, if it is assumed everyone is to get them something, especially if you have a lot of relatives nearby. Kids can easily get overwhelmed and underappreciate everything they are given.

Beside the point, my cousins got this huge Play Doh play set for Nui Nui, which she got just a couple of days ago and she's played with it every day since. Loves Play Doh. LOVES it. I think it's sort of therapeutic for her and now she gets to be even more creative with it with all these cooking tools. She's made me ice cream, hot dogs, waffles, and more.

The season is over but she continues to be jolly :> xo

Costco Toys + Bed Bath & Beyond + Xmas Tree! [VIDEO+VLOG]

Mr. Potato Head And Friends!

I wonder what she's trying to do here. I'll have to ask her tomorrow. Her friends seem pretty interested. :>

Real Train Tracks Have Curves Too

They say real women have curves... 'they' forgot to mention train tracks built by little geniuses do too :>

Step2 Party Time Kitchen Playset - An Inside Look

Melissa and Doug's Stir Fry Slicing Set!

Playing With Melissa And Doug's Stir Fry Slicing Set!

This holiday has been full of culinary cheer! :> With all this practice, I can't wait til Nui Nui can actually make me something to eat! :> xoxo

Black Friday Haul! Old Navy, H&M, Marshalls - Toddler Goodies

Be on the lookout for Part 2, or my stuff, coming soon! :>

What did YOU get for Black Friday?

Share in the Comments below, we'd love to hear! :> xoxo

Marshall's Back-To-School Educational Books/Toys! Infant/Toddler Edition

Back-to-school is well underway and so I thought I'd share a few cool (educational!) items I saw at Marshalls the other day. Two of them have proven to be fun, as we already have. If you're a parent, are you like me? I'm always on the lookout for educational goodies, even scoping out the stuff that my kid has already outgrown.

One thing I love about Marshalls (aside from the shoes :>) is the discounted books and toys. We gotten a few gems in the past so I always scope out the merch when I'm there. Check out this book rack! In all my times shopping there, I've never seen it so packed!



So the first thing I stumbled upon was this shapes barn.



We have the basic Fisher Price version and love it. Nui Nui's mastered the shapes but still plays with the pieces. For a couple of dollars more, I think the animals, letters, and swinging-door barn are worth it :>

Next I stumbled upon were these alphabet foam puzzle pieces, which we also have and got from Marshalls.



Nui Nui really used these letter pieces as she was learning the alphabet. They're perfect because they are small and handle-able by their little hands, have a relevant picture associated with each letter, and can be built into a little cube or pieced together. For less than $5, this is a steal.

Last, but definitely not least, is another alphabet-learning item, which, again, Nui Nui loves and got from Marshalls.



This book comes with magnetic letters, which can be matched and magnetized in the book. This really helps not only with letter recognition and word association but with alphabet sequence as well.

The only cons about this book is that magnetization of the pieces onto the pages is not that great and, with 26 letters afloat, it's easy to lose a piece or two. Nui Nui's 'N' fell down the toilet and it took a couple of weeks for her to get over it :< :>

As I mentioned, I'm always on the lookout for educational toys and books. If you have any suggestions, please share them in Comments below or Tweet/Instagram us, we'd love to hear! :> :> xoxo

New Melissa & Doug's Wooden Clock! - Learning Time, Shapes, And Colors!

There are a couple of (or more :>) things on our list of things we want to get Nui Nui. She doesn't have a lot of toys but we're not interested in getting her junk to just fill the toy box either. It's funny yet typical but we actually put a decent amount of thought into each toy we get her [there hasn't been many :>]. Our criteria includes:

1. Must be educational. This is an absolute must. Or, at least, semi-absolute anyway. I guess everything is somewhat educational. Playing devil's advocate, I suppose even Barbie can be if she fuels imagination. Whatever, though. By educational, I mean in the traditional academic sense. [I went to the Dollar Tree this weekend and ate up the Pre-K/K workbooks and teachers' decorating section :> [Dollar Tree haul to come! :> :>]
2. Must be affordable. It's the main reason I put so much thought into the purchase, or any purchase for that matter. Our money doesn't grow on trees. At least not non-technically :>
3. Must hold her attention more than once. You never know with this one. One way to try to measure it, though, is to let her hold the toy while walking through the store. If she throws it away after 10-15 minutes, it might not be worth buying.
4. Must fit into our small apartment. Not every toy or kids item, even if educational, is appropriate for small apartments. Same with food and cleaning supplies, you really do have to limit the amounts and sizes of the things you get. Fake Christmas trees and anything from Costco are prime examples. We just don't have the room to have too many large items or space eaters.

If money weren't an issue, I'd probably throw all of the above out the window. But isn't it interesting? Like food, can the toys you select for your child shape the way they think, act, and/or become? Munching on my own food for thought...

Anyway, we finally got her Play-Doh a couple of weeks ago, which we were eyeing for a while. And, this past week, got her Melissa & Doug's wooden clock, which we've also been eyeing for a while. We were about to get her the one at Barnes a few weeks back but didn't end up getting it in hopes to possibly find something better? I was hoping we'd be able to play with it on the table/floor but also be able to hang it up on the wall. Wishful thinking. We ended up buying this $1 foam clock that ended up being a waste of time (seriously :>) and is now on our return list.

The clock at Barnes was $15 but we managed to find it at Target, in a better color (red!), no less, and for just $10. Target really is the best, huh? :>



Nui Nui eagerly wanted to open the clock and played with it over and over for the first time. The girl loves puzzles :> I'm starting to teach her how to read time by setting the big hand to twelve and counting as I move the small hand. It's still too early for her to know what it is and how to read the clock but it's definitely not too early for her to play with it— the box says '3+'— but I am of the opinion that you can never be too young to play with something... unless you're going to eat it and choke. Otherwise, it's never too early to learn or play :>.

Check out the clock and gudtimes! :>



Any suggestions for fun, affordable, educational toys? Share them in the comments below or Tweet or Instagram us! We'd love to hear! xoxo

First New School Playdate!

This week has been the week of firsts and change. Newly unemployed, full-time job hunting, recovering from germs I just couldn't avoid (Nui Nui = unavoidably kissable), Nui Nui's first intro/playdate at her new school she'll be starting in September, and breaking the news to her current school, which was unexpectedly weird— I wasn't prepared and didn't even realize I had to be. At this point, I'm actually content with where she is but, o well, that's what growing up is all about, right? Reminds me of the wise words of Elenor Roosevelt:

Credit: wordstruly

Isn't this so true?...

Credit: good.is

You can't grow without change. #mantra

This week has been a haze to say the least. For sure, I realized my appreciation for schedule and routine— so much for my love of change, huh? :/— as well as my un-appreciation for job searching: 'Hey! I'm great! Can I play on your team?', followed by a 'Sorry, no thank you'. Sure brings back fond memories of middle school gym class...

Anyway, onward an up... #nothingbutrainbow

In the meanwhile of solicitation and finding a home, I've started studying Xcode/Objective C, as I said I would, and amping up the social media skills, including Hootsuite, Facebook Pages (check us out! and please support by 'Like'! Facebook.com/piecesofm :>), and soon Google Adwords. I have a steep learning curve ahead of me and am putting to test my claim that I know how to learn.



As for being proud, I was really was of Nui Nui on her first playdate. The new school she will be starting in September encourages new students to spend the summer leading up to the start date to come in on 'playdates' and ease the transition by getting the kids acquainted with the enviornment and people. It's really a terrific practice and one, I think, all schools, should practice in some form or another.

I'm very happy that Nui Nui has had the 'school' experience since she was one and, though only one day a week, feel that it's been an invaluable experience for her (and me). For her, it's interacting with her peers and other adults independently in a different environment than what she is used to and, for me, it's learning to let go, though I will always always be there for her no matter where she is or I am.

So she entered the school shy as a button when the directora greeted us at the door but once she found her classroom, she had at it with all the new toys and playstations— gotta love those kitchenettes! :> Followed by outdoor play in those mini-coupes? a la Little Tikes. I was able to sit aside without her worrying where I was. Climbing, exploring, enjoying— keywords of the visit— and making new friends :>

Here's a peak into our first school playdate vist!



Check out the full slideshow! :>




To wind down the almost end-of-week, I got to spend some time with the ever-lovely J and new friends over some local small bites. Drool this.



What fun filled your week? Share below or Tweet or Instagram us! We'd love to hear/see! :> :> xoxo