The Salty Mamas – Motherhood is Sweeter with a Dash of Salt

#MomProblems: Holiday Edition

December 13, 2018December 13, 2018 Salty Jaymi

Do you find yourself with a flurry of Holiday MomProblems on your hands this season? Between the Elf on the Shelf and the million gifts to buy, moms are finding that they are SLAMMED. The to-do list is never ending, and the requests to make more and more commitments seem like they’re never going to stop.

Between the Elf on the Shelf and the school functions, the gifts to purchase and then to wrap, and the endless amounts of cooking and baking that go on, you’re likely feeling as stressed as we are.

But never fear- you’re not alone. The Salty Mamas have been there and done that with pretty much all of the Holiday MomProblems you have. In no particular order, here are the things that are driving us crazy this holiday season.

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Kids' Art Projects

Snowflake Salt Painting- A Winter Themed Project You’ll LOVE

December 11, 2018December 11, 2018 Salty Jaymi

My daughter is OBSESSED with Raised Salt Painting. With a little glue, salt, and watercolor paint, kids can turn an ordinary piece of paper into a three-dimensional work of art. So when she asked to create a winter raised salt painting, I knew just what to do.

We decided to create snowflake salt paintings in a size that’s just-right to become an ornament on our Christmas tree. It’s simple, fun, and- once laminated- takes on a snowglobe-like quality that your kids are going to love.

My daughter is a bit of a perfectionist. She is super hesitant to attempt art projects she thinks won’t work “right.” It’s a delicate balance between teaching her to take risks and allowing her to create something she’ll be happy with. So sometimes I ask her to wing it, but other times (like this time!) I created a printable snowflake template for her to use.

If your child is less fearful of art activities, feel free to give them less structure. Ask them to create their own snowflake designs, or even to just experiment with different shapes and colors. Either way, your kids are going to get the incredible art, fine motor, and sensory experience that this winter themed raised salt painting provides.

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Mama Mojo

Self Care During the Holidays

December 5, 2018December 5, 2018 thesaltymamas

As Moms, it’s a challenge to find time to take care of ourselves. We’re always putting everyone else’s needs first. But as we all know, you need to make sure you’re taken care of if you want to be any good to anyone else. Which is why even though the holidays are the busiest time of the year, it’s still important to take care of YOU. Here are some easy tips and ideas for self care during the holidays.

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Holidays, Kids' Activities

Christmas Tree Print Making for Kids (Featuring Bubble Wrap!)

November 30, 2018November 30, 2018 Salty Jaymi

We are getting into the Christmas with toddlers BIG TIME over here. My kids are all about Christmas, all the time. From the Elf on the Shelf to writing (and rewriting. And rewriting) letters to Santa, they’ve got the holidays on the brain in a big way.

It’s extended all the way into our art time as well. I can’t bust out a pot of green paint without them painting a Christmas tree, or the playdough without it becoming a present or ornament or cookie for Santa.

So when I opened one of my (THOUSAND) Amazon packages from my Black Friday shopping and saw that it included this green bubble wrap, I knew just what to do with it- turn it into a process based Christmas art project for toddlers (which just so happens to include an ADORABLE product for you, too).

If you’re kids are as into the holidays as ours are, we know they’ll love this Christmas tree print-making activity using bubble wrap. Read on for the instructions on how to make it happen!

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Holidays, Kids' Activities

Low-Prep, High Fun-Holiday Playdough Activities for Toddlers

November 28, 2018November 28, 2018 Salty Jaymi

We’ve got this weird, love-hate relationship with playdough. The thing is that our kids love it, but the mamas? Well, we kind of hate it. But since there’s a ton of developmental benefits to playing with playdough (sensory experience, fine motor skill practice, hand strength, creativity, imaginative play)? The tie is gonna have to go to the kids on this one.

Because I personally get tired the squishy stuff, I try to step up my playdough game once in a while. I’ve found that homemade playdough keeps longer, for example, and that if I only make one color at a time my kids can’t drive me crazy by mixing colors together.

I change up our playdough activities regularly to keep things fresh, and this is so much easier to do around the holidays. From delicious scents to learning opportunities, there’s lots of holiday playdough activities for toddlers your kids are sure to love.

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Uncategorized

Christmas Safety Tips for Toddlers You NEED to Know

November 27, 2018 thesaltymamas

The holiday season is upon us, and before you know it we’ll be bringing in trees, stringing up lights, and hanging stockings and garlands from mantles and bookshelves. It’ll look beautiful, and so festive- and it will be oh-so-tempting for the little hands around you.

Those curious toddler fingers (and let’s be honest-climbing little legs) will be thrilled to discover all the newfound decorations in your homes. They’ll zero in on the tree first, of course – those ornaments DO look an awful lot like their ball pit balls, you know- but they won’t stop there.

Before you know it, your garland will be down, your stockings will be unhung by the chimney, and the little baby Jesus will be scooped right out of his manger and placed into your preschooler’s doll house.

So how DO you keep your toddler away from the Christmas tree? And-most importantly- what Christmas safety tips for toddlers do you need to check out? After five toddlers and LOTS of trial and error, we’ve got a foolproof plan to keep your little sugar plums out of the ER this holiday season.

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Holidays

The Best Personalized Christmas Gifts for Kids

November 19, 2018November 28, 2018 Salty Christine

Growing up, one of The Salty Mamas (Christine) found her name on every pencil or bike license plate in town. While the other Mama (Jaymi) had more of a challenge. And while we didn’t veer too far outside of more traditional names, the internet means never having to miss out on awesome personalized gear. Which means amazing opportunities for personalized Christmas gifts for kids.

Here are some of our favorites, that might just be showing up under our trees this year.

This year, make the holiday extra special with these personalized gifts! #holidays #christmasgifts #christmaspresents #giftsforkids #bestgifts2018 #bestgiftsforkids #kidsgifts2018 #bestchristmaspresents #christmasgifts2018

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Tips & Hacks

Quiet Your Anxious Mind (So You Can Fall Asleep Fast!)

November 15, 2018November 15, 2018 Salty Jaymi

It never fails- I’ve had a long day. I’ve had a million things on my plate, a million tasks to accomplish, and too many things to keep track of. I’m downright exhausted, and all I want to do is fall into my bed and spend the next eight hours in blissful, unconscious rest.

So why can’t I turn my brain off and fall asleep?

If you suffer from anxiety, this experience is far too familiar for your liking. We are exhausted, but our poorly wired brains won’t give it a rest so that we can GET some rest. One thought spirals into the next, and before you know it you’re agonizing about that comment you made to Sharon three days ago and if she’ll hate you forever because of it.

No? Just me?

At any rate, if you have difficulty falling asleep because your thoughts just won’t quit, we want you to know that you’re not alone. We’ve been there (you know, only like, every night or so). And as a result, we’ve come up with some fool-proof strategies to help you shut down your brain and fall asleep fast.

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Uncategorized

Frozone Ice Challenge: An Easy STEM Preschool Activity

November 13, 2018November 13, 2018 Salty Jaymi

Do you ever find yourself with a block of time with your kids that you’ve just GOT to fill somehow? Maybe you need to prep dinner, or you’ve used up all your screen time for the day, or they’re just driving you nuts and need a little more structure. Whatever, the scenario, you need an activity to fill some time, and you’re willing to try ANYTHING.

And so it was that this Incredibles 2 themed easy STEM preschool activity was born.

Around 2 p.m., it became abundantly clear that A.) my two year old was not going to take a nap, so B.) he would go to bed early, and thus C.) our family walk that takes up the last hour of the day was clearly NOT going to happen. So what in the world would I do with Lila?

We’ve been obsessed with ice lately (read about the time we painted it here!) and so I decided that I would trap some of her favorite toys inside a block of ice. Originally, I had planned to freeze Belle. But ice makes me think of Frozone, so I grabbed the Incredibles toys instead. This fun, engaging little Incredibles themed educational activity was born.

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Mom Humor

Moms Guide to Surviving Kids and Daylight Saving Time

November 6, 2018November 6, 2018 Salty Christine

Arguably one of the worst things about kids is that many of them have an irrational hatred for sleep. The worst part of parenting is navigating all of the things that mess up our kids already delicate sleep cycles: teething, climate change. But the greatest of these is Daylight Saving Time. We here at The Salty Mamas firmly believe in keeping it real, so we won’t lie to you. Dealing with the time change is going to SUCK. BUT, there are a few things you might be able to do to help cope with the double trouble of kids and Daylight Saving Time.

Good luck, and we’re pulling for you.

via GIPHY

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