Itsy Bitsy Blossoms Family Care

"The paper highlights the fact that while the Premier has promoted the success of Ontario’s public kindergarten program to justify the introduction of pre-primary, Nova Scotia is not copying the same model. Unlike Ontario, Nova Scotia’s program is: not universal, does not provide full-day programming, does not have a teacher in each class, does not have a completed curriculum, and is not administered on-site by the school principal."

Our child’s first school experiences can color his or her perceptions about school and learning for years to come. Child development experts and early childhood educators agree that the preschool years are a time for the development of social skills and hands-on sensory learning that is experimental and exploratory... Funneling academics down to preschools to better prepare children to deal with an already overly academic Kindergarten experience is a waste of time, and this... 'miseducation', as Dr David Elkind refers to it in 'Miseducation- Preschoolers at Risk', can cause 'damage to a child’s self-esteem, the loss of the positive attitude a child needs for learning, the blocking of natural gifts and potential talents.'" "Since an academic preschool program is counter to the expert opinion and research about how children learn and considered developmentally inappropriate, it reflects a staff that is either lacking in early childhood education or bowing to outside pressure. In my experience, pressure often comes from parents who fear that their child will not be prepared for Kindergarten and might fall behind."

"Let’s make the magic. For our kids and for ourselves. Let’s slow down enough to feel the sand in our toes and to hear the sound of seagulls carried to us by the breeze. Let’s see as much of the world as we see the inside of a classroom."

"The paper highlights the fact that while the Premier has promoted the success of Ontarios public kindergarten program to justify the introduction of pre-primary, Nova Scotia is not copying the same model. Unlike Ontario, Nova Scotias program is: not universal, does not provide full-day programming, does not have a teacher in each class, does not have a completed curriculum, and is not administered on-site by the school principal."

"If you were going to give advice for a happy adolescence based on this survey, it would be straightforward: Put down the phone, turn off the laptop, and do somethinganythingthat does not involve a screen."

An all-time favorite (and essential) list of what your 4-year old needs to know before starting school.

Our childs first school experiences can color his or her perceptions about school and learning for years to come. Child development experts and early childhood educators agree that the preschool years are a time for the development of social skills and hands-on sensory learning that is experimental and exploratory... Funneling academics down to preschools to better prepare children to deal with an already overly academic Kindergarten experience is a waste of time, and this... 'miseducation', as Dr David Elkind refers to it in 'Miseducation- Preschoolers at Risk', can cause 'damage to a childs self-esteem, the loss of the positive attitude a child needs for learning, the blocking of natural gifts and potential talents.'" "Since an academic preschool program is counter to the expert opinion and research about how children learn and considered developmentally inappropriate, it reflects a staff that is either lacking in early childhood education or bowing to outside pressure. In my experience, pressure often comes from parents who fear that their child will not be prepared for Kindergarten and might fall behind."

"Lets make the magic. For our kids and for ourselves. Lets slow down enough to feel the sand in our toes and to hear the sound of seagulls carried to us by the breeze. Lets see as much of the world as we see the inside of a classroom."

Attention to all clients: It seems that my mobility service provider has an outage in the area. At the moment myself and thousands of other customers are temporarily unable to use cell service. Telus is currently investigating the matter. As a result, the kids and I will not be leaving the property to travel to the park today. Any text messages can be sent through Facebook, and phone calls can be placed to our landline until the issue is resolved. Thank you for your patience while Telus works to resolve this matter! :)

Parents, please read. This is scary, scary stuff, right here. You think you're doing the right thing by keeping your kids indoors during the hottest daylight hours, but heatstroke can happen anywhere. Although Nova Scotia usually avoids this kind of extreme heat, we will definitely be changing our nap room set up after reading this article! Always better to be safe than sorry.

Looking for fun, free, family-friendly events in Halifax this summer? Here are a few! Discovery Centre - free on Wednesday nights. Art Gallery of Nova Scotia - ...free on Thursday nights, 5-9pm. St Mary's Boat Club - free canoeing on the arm, 11am-7pm Saturdays and Sundays. Sir Sandford Fleming Park, or the Dingle, has a brand new playground. Emera Oval - roller skating weekdays at 11am, no fee to rent roller-skates. Halifax Public Gardens - story time 10:30am Tuesdays and Thursdays (thanks to Woozles!) Halifax Seaport Farmers Market, Historic Farmers' Market, Halifax Forum Farmers' Market all summer long. Citadel Hill - free entry all summer long. Halifax Central Library - ton of fun, free, family programming. The 16th Annual Lebanese Festival - this weekend! Halifax Pride - July 20th - 30th Halifax/Dartmouth RDV 2017 Tall Ships Regatta - July 29th - August 1st Halifax Busker Festival - August 2nd - 7th Sambro Sou' Wester Days 2017 - Save the Date! - Aug 11th - 13th Northern Lights Lantern Festival - August 12th Halifax Oyster Festival - Sept 29th-30th and many, many more! See more

Annnnnnnd my brain just exploded.

"My dad always let me feel what I needed to feel, even if it was in public and embarrassing." Huge fan of this.

An excellent article for explaining and dealing with unwanted behavior!

Everytime I read a story like this, it is always, ALWAYS Banana Boat Sunscreen. The plethora of nightmare stories I have heard about these products is exactly the reason why I will never use them. I'm certain they work well for some people, but we won't be taking the chance!

I can remember the day I finally figured out my parents weren't perfect - because they, just like me, were - and are - imperfectly human. It was a mind-blowing, eye-opening moment, and helped me to answer so many questions about the way I was raised. We ALL need this reminder, sometimes. I know I do!

We made it to Spring!! Spending most of our days outside enjoying some glorious sunshine and some wonderful fresh air. We are so looking forward to Summer!!

This! Add some fresh air and I'm sold!

"What they found probably isn't too surprising: Kids who related well to their peers, handled their emotions better, and were good at resolving problems went on to have more successful lives. What's surprising is just how strong the correlation was. An increase of a single point in social competency score showed a child would be 54% more likely to earn a high school diploma, twice as likely to graduate with a college degree, and 46% more likely to have a stable, full-time job at age 25."

This is a wonderful piece of advice for ANY relationship... parent/child, teacher/student, brother/sister, even a romantic relationship. Sometimes you need that small, simple reminder that just because you fell into an angry hole, doesn't mean you need to stay in that angry hole.

Ohhhhhh this is a great read for those of you with aspiring readers!!

Happy Easter from all of us here at Itsy Bitsy Blossoms Family Care!

"So whats the reward for a toddlers natural curiosity? A little freedom and encouragement? No, just the opposite. Oppression! We pin them to furniture all day long: the stroller, the car seat, the high chair. All of the straps! All of the restraints! How maddening it must be to sit, captive, in front of a tray covered with food you cant identify or dont remember liking. No wonder its so often tossed to the floor."

Happy birthday to sweet Miss Henley, who turns one today! Where on earth does the time go? Everyone here at Itsy Bitsy Blossoms Family Care loves you to the moon and back, Beautiful Girl! Check out her fantastic cake smash photo shoot, shot by the talented Tammy Barrett!

This is an awesome guide!

Oh my gracious! These two have WAY too much energy for babies who clearly never sleep!

Happy St. Patrick's Day from all of us here at Itsy Bitsy Blossoms Family Care!

This is a wonderful post for any first-time parent, or a great refresher for anyone who feels that they have lost touch with the basics of disciplining unwanted behavior in toddlers. Give it a read if you are feeling overwhelmed!

This phrase is one of my biggest parenting pet peeves!

Hahaha Some of these are brutal!

Here's the thing. I realize this will be a controversial post, and my personal stance on this is not nearly as strict as these guidelines recommend. Every parent has different viewpoints and the right to raise their children as they see fit. However, it can never hurt to educate yourself on the impact that overexposure to technology can have on young and impressionable developing minds. It's important to be informed and to keep your perspective as a parent... if your child needs a handheld device to sit still for a car ride, a meal, or to soothe themselves to sleep, then you may want to rethink the coping strategies that you are encouraging them to develop.

Oh my Gosh! This is scary stuff... Definitely something to keep a close eye on when you've got your kiddos at the park!