Redshirting kindergarten is a term given when parents hold their child back a year before starting kindergarten, or in some cases, give them an extra year of kindergarten. The term comes from college athletics when freshmen take a year off from competitive play to gain an extra year of eligibility ...
Parenting
How to Grow a Reader
Although I don't consider Happy Healthy Mama exclusively a food blog, food talk does tend to dominate around here. I'm passionate about health, nutrition, and feeding my family well, so you'll always find healthy recipes and some fitness talk when you visit. But I want to share another one of my ...
funny things kids say, vol. 1
When I was teaching, one of my favorite parts of the job was hearing all the funny things the kids would say. It is just so darn cute to see the way kids see the world and express themselves. Now that I'm a mom, I get to hear the funny things 24/7. And I love it. I thought it'd be fun to share ...
Chronicles of a Very. Cold. Day.
I grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, so I'm no stranger to cold weather. Sub zero temperatures were not uncommon, but this Arctic blast is insane. I can't actually say I've felt it, since I didn't leave the house today. It sure looked cold, though. With Meghan's Christmas break ...
The baby boy is 2
Wednesday we celebrated this little man's 2nd birthday. Can you believe Luke's 2 already? Me, either! Having his birthday so close to Christmas adds an additional level of busyness to the season, but despite this I want to slow down today and reflect on this little boy's life and how much ...
The Halloween Candy Dilemma: 3 years later
Three years ago, when Meghan was just two years old, I wrote about my dilemma with Halloween candy. With Meghan being my first child, I really had no idea how I was going to handle her getting so much junk that I know I don't want her body littered with. A lot has changed since then. At two ...
7 ways I’m definitely crunchy
A while ago I did a post outlining why I am only sorta crunchy. I told you all the things I do that make me not crunchy. I guess that got you curious because a lot of you asked me to do a post telling about the things that do make me crunchy. I brainstormed and found seven things that put me in ...
To Meghan on her 5th birthday
I woke up feeling different on Saturday. Just like that, I was the mom of a five year old. It doesn't seem possible that it was five years ago that I looked at Tim holding that tiniest little baby, wondering how I would be able to show her just how much love I was feeling. I had no idea what ...
What ever happened to orange slices? An open letter to parents about kids and snacks
Dear Parents, This was my 4 1/2 year old daughter's second year playing soccer through the local YMCA league. As much as I have loved watching some of her first athletic endevours, there was a part of the experience that was disturbing. The whole snack thing. Every week a child's parents ...
What my milk-soy protein intolerant toddler eats in a day
Feeding toddlers is tricky. They change their mind about what they like daily. They want to exert their independence at mealtime. All you want is them to eat nutritious foods that will aide optimal growth and development. Not easy! Feeding a toddler with intolerances or allergies is even ...
10 reasons why I’m only sorta crunchy
So I stumbled upon this YouTube video called Sh*t Crunchy Mamas Say. I watched it thinking it didn't apply to me. Like at all. Me? Crunchy? Umm...no. I shave my legs everyday. Even in the winter. I'm not kidding. But then I saw more than one thing that applied to me. ...
An update on breastfeeding and food intolerances: 15 months
It's been a full 10 months since I last posted on my journey breastfeeding Luke and his diagnosis of milk-soy protein intolerance (MSPI). That post has become one of my most popular and I still get comments and emails weekly from women sharing their stories and looking for answers. Since Luke was ...
