Between her birth story and the first in a series about hypotonia, it seems my girl is stealing the show around here! Part of my mission in motherhood is sharing the details along the way, so I think it’s important not only to share the struggles but also the progress and the wins as well. The only way I’m surviving three kids, special needs, and a pandemic anyway is all the solidarity. So, might as well pay it forward, right?!

About two months after she was first referred to PT, Olivia saw the pediatrician again to check her tone, progress, and joints. We were hearing a lot of popping and cracking, which seemed to be getting worse but she was not in pain or seeming bothered by it so we were told it’s just the tendon sliding over joints; it’s apparently common for kids with low tone to have hyper mobility in their joints.

I’m so excited about this guest post from my friend, Leighanna. I’ve known her since 2011; I met her in the first small group we joined after being at our church for nearly two years. Leighanna has 3 little boys (and is due very soon), and she is an example to me in so many ways. While I don’t get to see her in person anymore as much as I’d like, I’m thankful for Instagram and text messaging so that we can keep in touch. 

When she shared her “Thankful Chain” idea the other day, I was super excited to try out this activity with my own kids. But rather than reinvent the wheel, I figured I’d let her tell you all about it herself! She’s inspired by Psalm 106:1, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good” to teach her boys about thankfulness using a paper chain! Read on.

Well, Hurricane Florence got me motivated to prep my house and hunker down, and as a mom of two little kids, that means more than making sure we have enough water, bread, and batteries. The more I started to think and prep for losing power, the more I began to realize how important it is to have activities for the kiddos. And I realized how easy it is to assemble new, free/cheap, fun activities for little kids with things you probably already have in your house!

This makes hurricane prep, power outages, sick days, or a boring afternoon just a little more fun and exciting. You can pack them away for the car or a trip, or only take them out in times like these to keep them exciting. Who doesn’t love a few cheap (or free) and activities that double as learning and fine- and gross-motor skill development?! Here are the top busy bag activities that I either had the supplies on hand to make already or found easily at the grocery store/pharmacy while I was out and about.