Thursday, November 28, 2013

100 things to be thankful for

Momma Jorje: Gratitude ChallengeI'm grateful to be taking part in Momma Jorje's Gratitude Challenge — we're listing 100 things we're grateful for today.

From Jorje:

I think it is important to appreciate what you have and not just on Thanksgiving. It's important to remember to be grateful when your life feels abundant, but perhaps even more-so when times are hard. That said, I have some tough things going on right now and am having a hard time over here so… I want to challenge myself to remember all the things in my life for which to be grateful. I enjoyed the challenge at Let's Take the Metro a couple of years ago, so I'm going to challenge you in a similar fashion. Are you ready?

You can still participate and link up below!

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

  1. Even though our family is puke-tastically sick, we're having a nice quiet Thanksgiving at home.
  2. We're semi-fasting for the above reason, but we have good food on hand to break our fast when we can!
  3. Blackadder! Our choice of Thanksgiving Day sickbed amusement.
  4. String cheese, or as Mikko calls it, octopus cheese. Because I tear the bottom apart for him like a squid-ly thing before handing it over.
  5. Being able to homeschool our kids
  6. Two fluffy sweet kitties who love raw meat, lap cuddles, and stepping on sleeping babies
  7. The diaper service since Alrik's not up to potty independence quite yet
  8. Long hair and a 6-year-old who alternately plays with and complains about it

Thanksgiving weekend deals for natural parents

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Updated for Black Friday!

It's time for my annual Sharing of the Coupons. I have several valued affiliate partners who give out amazing deals this time of year, and particularly this Cyber Weekend. Avoid the crowds and enjoy your holiday-shopping-from-home experience. I'm hosting a little round-up for you of the best ones!

For further details and notice of new sales, visit Hobo Mama Reviews.


Kissed by the Moon

Get 10% off cloth diapers all weekend at Kissed by the Moon plus goody bags — and special doorbuster savings TONIGHT and tomorrow morning only of up to 20% off!

There will be TWO sale start times to accommodate those who prefer to shop in the evening and those who prefer to wait. The sale begins 9pst Thursday/12am Friday est and 9am est/6am pst.


#1: 12am EST-1am AND 9am-10am EST (9pm-10pm and 6am-7am PST)

20% off select brands including bumGenius, Flips, Rumparooz, Swaddlebees/Blueberry, CJ’s Butter, Balm Baby, Destiny Boutique, Geffen Baby, Babee Greens, Lunette, A Happy Green Life, Healing Hazel, Sweet Pea, Jellystone, Babylegs, Lin Taylor, MotherMoonPads, and Motherease.


#2: 1:01am-8:59am est/10:01 pm PST-5:59am pst

15% off select brands including bumGenius, Flips, Rumparooz, Swaddlebees/Blueberry, CJ’s Butter, Balm Baby, Destiny Boutique, Geffen Baby, Babee Greens, Lunette, A Happy Green Life, Healing Hazel, Sweet Pea, Jellystone, Babylegs, Lin Taylor, MotherMoonPads, Motherease, and Applecheeks


#3: 9am est/6am pst to 10am est/7am pst.

20% off select brands including bumGenius, Flips, Rumparooz, Swaddlebees/Blueberry, CJ's Butter, Balm Baby, Destiny Boutique, Geffen Baby, Babee Greens, Lunette, A Happy Green Life, Healing Hazel, Sweet Pea, Jellystone, Babylegs, Lin Taylor, MotherMoonPads, and Motherease.


Plus: 10% off through the rest of the weekend and Cyber Monday! (selected brands)


Truth in the Tinsel: Advent activity ebook for families

If your family practices the Christian faith and is looking for a kid-friendly guided Advent resource, try out Truth in the Tinsel!

This is "an Advent experience for little hands," because it offers a faith-based activity and Bible reading each day to reinforce the reason for the season and lead children into a celebration of Christmas and Jesus' birth.

Truth in the Tinsel is only $7.99 as an ebook download — and my readers can get 20% off the book just for being awesome!

Enter code HOBO for 20% off
at checkout!

Wednesday, November 27, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Thankful

People I'm thankful for:

Hobo Mama: Thankful

Hobo Mama: Thankful

Hobo Mama: Thankful

Hobo Mama: Thankful

Hobo Mama: Thankful

Monday, November 25, 2013

Shopping this holiday season? Go through a blogger's affiliate link!

Shopping this holiday season? Do it through a blogger's affiliate link! -- SpiritGrooves & Hobo MamaAs you buy the items on your holiday list this year, keep your favorite bloggers in mind!

If you're shopping online, particularly at Amazon.com, you can shop through your favorite writers' affiliate links and give them a little holiday gift, too!

Buying through an affiliate link works just the same for you as shopping by going directly to the Amazon (or another shop's) site. You don't pay any more than you would otherwise, but the store itself funnels a few cents over to the blogger as a thanks for the referral.

Do you know bloggers who are struggling this season to make ends meet? Are there writers you'd love to reward for being particularly timely and touching in what they share with readers? Do you just want to spread the holiday love and cheer?

Then make it a point to shop through an affiliate link this season and throughout the year!

To make it easy for you, we have a linky list of bloggers' Amazon affiliate links, as well as a linky of affiliate links to other popular online stores.

If you're a blogger, sign up with your links!

To help you remember to shop through an affiliate link, bookmark a few! Teresa shows how in her innovative tutorial. Simply drag two or three into your bookmarks bar, and name them "Amazon." Now anytime you want to go to Amazon, click on one, and you'll be set to give that blogger a little tip for being awesome!

Shopping this holiday season? Do it through a blogger's affiliate link! -- SpiritGrooves & Hobo Mama

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Sunday Surf: Renaissance boy

Welcome to the Sunday Surf, a tour of the best blogposts I've read throughout the week.

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Sunday Surf: Renaissance boy == Hobo Mama
This boy works with his hands …

Sunday Surf: Renaissance boy == Hobo Mama
… and is an artist, too.

I've got a couple links for you this week, and then a few items of interest elsewhere!


Friday, November 22, 2013

Calling for submissions for the December 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: The More Things Change…

We continue to be delighted with the inspiration and wisdom our Carnival of Natural Parenting participants share, and we hope you'll join us for the next carnival in December 2013! (Check out November, October, September, August, July, June, May, April, March, January, and summaries of all our 2012 posts and 2011 posts if you missed any.)

Your co-hosts are Dionna at Code Name: Mama and Lauren at Hobo Mama.

December 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting Call for Submission: The More Things Change...Here are the submission details for December 2013:

Theme: The More Things Change…: How has life changed for you – this year? Since having kids? Since starting (or ending) a job/hobby/habit? Will you have a big change next year? How has this change affected your life? Your family’s? Share the story of one of your life changes: children, marriage, divorce, death, career; or share tips for helping yourself or children through change; or craft some other relevant post for this month’s topic.

Deadline: Tuesday, December 3. Fill out the webform (at the link or at the bottom) and email your submission to us by 11:59 p.m. Pacific time: CarNatPar {at} NaturalParentsNetwork.com

Thursday, November 21, 2013

What brings you joy?

What brings you joy? - a new e-book at Raising Loveliness on Nurturing Joy for mothers
I'm happy to contribute to a joyful post today at Raising Loveliness.

Becky Lyter McCleery has put together a collaborative e-book called Nurturing Joy: Illuminating Everyday Enchantment, featuring interviews with mothers and writers about what brings them joy, and I am delighted to be a part of it.

In my chapter, I share about what brought me joy as a child, how our family celebrates special occasions (and how that's changed since having kids), how motherhood and my children daily bring me joy, and my advice for other mamas seeking joy in their lives.

Here's a brief excerpt:

What amazes you about your children?


I am fascinated daily by how much themselves my children are. It's even clearer with two how very much apart from me they are, how very much they have their own souls and dreams and characters and plans. It's liberating, because it reminds me it's not on me to make them develop; they are doing that on their own. We can prepare the soil and water and fertilize, but no one can force a seed to grow, or change its nature to some other plant.

It's also a delight to watch, because I get to be surprised at every turn by what my children will say and do next, and how they will change in the next year, month, minute. I love watching the process unfold.

What brings you joy? - a new e-book at Raising Loveliness on Nurturing Joy for mothers
Read more about the book at the book's page on Raising Loveliness, and you can sign up for the community there to receive it — for FREE. Becky says she approached this project because "I wanted to learn how other mothers were recharging and reconnecting with joy and celebration, in the midst of the many duties of mothering."

Head over to Becky's blog today as well for a group post in sharing our current joyful moments. And feel free to share your own current joys, here or there!

My contribution for today begins like this:
My six-year-old is losing baby teeth faster than we can count them. He says I'm not allowed to wiggle them anymore, because I squeal too loudly. (It's true.)

Continue reading at Raising Loveliness ››

Disclosure: I'm receiving no compensation
for being part of this free e-book beyond the pleasure
of being part of a community of joy-seeking mamas.
See my full disclosure policy here.

Wednesday, November 20, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Pumpkin patch

Hobo Mama: Pumpkin patch
So when your family goes to the pumpkin patch,
your kids immediately sit down in the parking lot
and start examining the gravel, right?

Hobo Mama: Pumpkin patch
Oh…no? Just us? Well, then.

Hobo Mama: Pumpkin patch
Mikko's favorite part was the giant jumping pillow.

Hobo Mama: Pumpkin patch

Hobo Mama: Pumpkin patch

Tuesday, November 19, 2013

Getting excited about the DidyTai giveaway!

This is advance notice of a giveaway hosted by a friend of mine, Lisa at The Squishable Baby. Note that I have received no compensation for posting this beyond some well-appreciated link love.

 

Didytai Giveaway Event

Sponsored by: Adriane Stare of Caribou Baby

 

Hosted by:

The Squishable Baby

 

Monday, November 18, 2013

When your child won't poop: What works & what doesn't

When your child won't poop: What works & what doesn't == Hobo Mama

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Since Mikko was a baby, we've been dealing with drama surrounding elimination. When he was a toddler, this morphed into an unwillingness to defecate.

This is a post I've been debating whether or not to publish, and one I might take down at some point as Mikko gets older and needs more privacy. For now, I've decided to post it, because: (a) You're not alone if you're dealing with this same issue, and (b) there's nothing shameful about toileting issues, no matter what age. It can be really worth it to talk openly about struggles with going.

There are many reasons a child might have resistance to eliminating — some physical and some psychological. It's appropriate to rule out physical reasons first, and I am not a doctor, so check with your own medical providers for advice on any physical obstacles. We ruled out any sort of issues with physical structure or internal disorders with Mikko, so we were cleared to proceed with examining other causes.

The most common cause suggested for trouble pooping was not what Mikko's problem was. To whit, he does not suffer from constipation. Any time we brought up his hesitance to poop, we got advice on constipation — whether it was with his pediatrician or other well-meaning parents. But Mikko's stools are soft and well-formed and come along with regularity. Constipation was not his problem.1 So what was?

Sunday, November 17, 2013

Sunday Surf: Winter walk

Welcome to the Sunday Surf, a tour of the best blogposts I've read throughout the week.

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Sunday Surf: Winter walk == Hobo Mama

Sunday Surf: Winter walk == Hobo Mama

Links!


Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Wordless Wednesday: Trick or treat!

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Hobo Mama: Trick or treat!
At the last minute, as in, the day before the harvest festival,
my kids decided on being a ninja and a pirate. Fight, fight!

Hobo Mama: Trick or treat!
The day started out a bit rainy.

Hobo Mama: Trick or treat!
But candy solves everything.

Hobo Mama: Trick or treat!

Hobo Mama: Trick or treat!

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Losing grains, keeping empathy: Paleo and fat acceptance


Welcome to the November 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Feeding Your Family

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared recipes, stories, and advice about food and eating. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.





Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

A year ago, Sam and I gave up grains. In June, I recorded this video blog about our decision and my hesitance to talk about it, and I'm finally sharing it here.


Sunday, November 10, 2013

Sunday Surf: Toothless

Welcome to the Sunday Surf, a tour of the best blogposts I've read throughout the week.

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Sunday Surf: Toothless == Hobo Mama
This dude won't stop losing teeth!
He was so happy that second top tooth came out
— it had been holding on by a thread for two weeks.

Sunday Surf: Toothless == Hobo Mama
As long as it's not pouring, we love the beach in November
— we have it all to ourselves, and it's still just as fun!

Links!

  • Jessa Reed on Homebirth (by Jessa Reed, found via Vibrant Wanderings)
    This made me laugh so hard. The last line was priceless.
    {Warning: Language}
  • They Were Making Fun Of My Son, So I....Did Nothing | BlogHer

    Touching story of how a mom deals with other kids interacting with her son who has autism:
    I put the soda I was holding down into the cupholder of my folding chair, and I prepared myself to walk over there and educate some kids. Firmly. And then, it happened.
    A few of them peeled off, running over once again to play with David. His glee was contagious, and they couldn’t help but laugh at him, and then laugh with him.
    Anna walked up behind me, grabbing my arm.
    "Mom! They’re over there making fun of him! You should hear what they’re saying!"
    "I know, honey. They don’t know him. They’re not from his school."
    "I don’t care. You should say something." She tapped her foot impatiently.
    "Wait." I said.
    "Mom! If you’re not going over there, I am."
    "Wait, Anna. Look at him. Look at them.”
  • parentwin: What's Wrong with This Picture? Why Maria Kang Can't Tell People What to Do.

    Loving this response to the Maria Kang meme:
    After many people gave their “excuses” in that thread, an interesting thing happened. People started asking Kang what her excuse was.
    "I have 3 degrees…what’s her excuse?"
    "Can she play tuba? No? What’s her excuse?"

    "I had my kids closer together than she did. What’s her excuse?"

    This is hilarious, but it also sheds light on something that isn’t normally visible. No one would ever expect to see a tuba player’s picture with the words “what’s your excuse” atop it. And if they did see a picture like that, they’d most likely laugh their asses off. Because that’s ridiculous. Not everyone wants to play tuba, so they don’t need an excuse as to why they can’t play it. Not everyone wants three degrees. And the people that do want three sometimes have the legit excuse as discussed above of not having the funds or the time to achieve them. And no one is posting pictures of themselves with their prizes and achievements in those areas asking others to justify themselves. Because that’s silly.
    But somehow it’s not silly when someone does this in the working-out realm. Because ‘fitspiration’ is not just a subgenre, but is part of our general culture, and as such is open to these criticisms. Because the people hitting back don’t find it silly or absurd. Shaming in this arena is such a part of our mainstream culture that people do get insulted when a random meme picture like this shows up on their social media. They get it enough everywhere else. They don’t want it from a complete stranger, too.

    The tuba player goes on to say, “Maybe it’s not important or interesting to her… Gasp, you mean different people have different priorities?!”
    And that’s the crux of the matter. Looking like she looks a year after having her third child is not a priority for most people. And yet somehow, when seeing a picture like that, with a shaming message atop it, people do feel shamed for it not being a priority for them. And then they get mad. Because it’s a dominant theme in our culture. One that needs to go away.
    She has every right to be proud of herself, and every right to motivate those who are looking to be motivated in her arena, in her area of expertise. But she does not have the right to attack those who would fight back against her message. Because while she intended to say this: “I know you think you don’t have time if you have kids. But if I can do it, you can do it, too,” she actually said this: “what’s your excuse?” And those are two different things.
    Also this article from Baby Dust Diaries: "Maria Kang, Here Is My Excuse."
    And the Tumblr project started based on this: We Don’t Need an Excuse. You can submit your own.

Friday, November 8, 2013

Next steps for potty independence?

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Hobo Mama: Next steps for potty independence?

Alrik is tootling along the potty learning road, but I feel like I don't know where the next turn is. Maybe you could help me navigate!

We did a very loose form of part-time elimination communication (EC) with Alrik from newborn age, combined with cloth diapering. I was much less active in ECing Alrik than I was with Mikko, partly because of some residual bad experiences we've had with poop withholding in Mikko. As time has gone on and I've researched it more, I've chalked that up to a sensory issue, but I'd had some fears that we'd somehow "caused" it by ECing so wasn't feeling as avid about infant pottying when Alrik was born, for fear we'd spur a repeat.

So, the good news is, when Alrik is pantsless, he's a near-100% potty user. The bad news is, when he's got anything on his rear, he doesn't bother to remove it before going.

What, then, is the next step?

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Natural Parents Network's 2nd Annual Holiday Gift Guide & Giveaway! {12/6, 26 winners, US, ARV $2,587}

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Second Annual NPN Holiday Gift Guide and Giveaway {12/6, 26 winners, US, ARV $2,587}

Welcome to the Second Annual Natural Parents Network Holiday Gift Guide!

If you need to complete your holiday shopping, find a birthday present for a friend, or just treat yourself to something special, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide has something for everyone. But what's even better, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide is a great opportunity to shop consciously and to support many naturally minded small businesses.

The companies that have provided items for review and giveaway are almost exclusively made up of work-at-home shops or companies that are dedicated to supporting eco-conscious choices. Below you will find information on 54 companies from 22 of our NPN volunteers. The companies are giving away over 58 products, subscriptions, and gift certificates, for a total combined value of over $2,500! As you scroll through the Gift Guide, we encourage you to click on the links for each of the reviews — look for the links to our volunteers' blogs in each heading and read their full review! Our volunteers have crafted thoughtful posts on each participating company with pictures of and links to products that are simply perfect for our natural parenting families.  You can enter to win every giveaway by using the Rafflecopter system below or via the reviewers' site.

Even if you don't win one of our fabulous prize packages, please consider spending part of your gift-giving budget at one of these small businesses. By supporting small businesses, you are helping families, boosting local economies, and supporting ethical practices of manufacturing, production, and selling. We know that budgets are tighter and finances may be difficult, but by purchasing from small, family-owned businesses, you know you will be receiving quality items made with appropriate business practices and personal customer service, all while supporting another family's endeavors.

Many of the companies have included coupon codes — take advantage of them! You can find the coupon codes in the heading of each company listing. (Please note that coupons are not good on shipping fees unless otherwise stated.)

We've broken the Gift Guide down into two sections (click the links below to jump to either section):

Perfect For Kids

and

Perfect For Families

And after you're done checking out the incredible companies, jump down and enter in one or more of the six Rafflecopter widgets below!

 

 

Perfect For Kids

Wordless Wednesday: Super shapes!

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

By rights I should be putting up a massive Halloween retrospective today, but I'm too worn out from posting Gift Guide reviews.
(Stay tuned for the giveaway, live later today — it's going to be epic!)

So instead, I'm going to post a few pieces of
random cuteness from these past couple weeks.

First up, a very brief video of Alrik combining his quadruple loves of
martial arts, balloons, not wearing pants, and Team Umizoomi:



This kid's fierce.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Babywearing blogger opportunity

This is a blogger opportunity from a friend of mine, Lisa at The Squishable Baby. I apologize for the cluster of review/giveaway posts so close together — several projects overlapped, as will happen near the holidays! In any case, this is an exciting opportunity not only to enter to win a beautiful mei tai (my favorite type of baby carrier, hands down — or should I say, hands free!) but also to promote your blog while promoting the giveaway. So if you're interested in supporting Lisa & babywearing, read on! Note that I have received no compensation for posting this beyond some well-appreciated link love.

 

Didytai Giveaway Event

Sponsored by Caribou Baby

 

Hosted by:

The Squishable Baby

 

~PLEASE READ THIS BLOGGER OPP
IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE FILLING IN ANY FORMS~

 

Didymos DidyTai

We are giving away a beautiful — one of a kind — Didymos DidyTai RV $190. {US 18+}

The DidyTai is a wonderful marriage between a woven wrap and a Buckle carrier. Super fast (and easy to learn) like the buckle carrier and snuggly like a wrap. The DidyTai (or wrap-tai) has a criss-cross back for weight support. This is the only Mei Tai style carrier that Caribou Baby recommends for newborns because of the tremendous back support — and the ability to carry the baby legs out in a deep squat — from day 1.

The DidyTai is versatile. Its toggle base allows for a great newborn hold and allows for the mobility of an older baby.

Other features of the Didy Tai include:

  • Reversible two-color carrier
  • Anatomically correct squat-spread-position
  • Special, diagonally stretchable cloth
  • Lightweight and handy
  • Free from any toxic materials
  • Pure organic cotton
  • Non-toxic dyes
  • Made in Germany
  • Machine washable
  • Long-lasting and resistant

Free blogger opportunity

We are looking for bloggers who have Twitter AND Facebook followings larger than 1,500 - who are willing to post 3 posts (the blogger opp, the getting excited about babywearing post on November 19th and the Giveaway post on December 4th) and promote on Facebook AND Twitter at least 4X per week.

Giveaway: Little Pim Language Learning Set $59.99 ARV: Second Annual NPN Holiday Gift Guide {12/6, 26 winners, US only, $2,587 ARV}

Hobo Mama wants you to know she's a professional blogger! Look at how professional she's being!

Hobo Mama Giveaway: Little Pim Language Learning Set $59.99 ARV: Second Annual NPN Holiday Gift Guide {12/6, 26 winners, US only, $2,587 ARV}
Little Pim's "Entertainment Immersion Method" in action

Hobo Mama Giveaway: Little Pim Language Learning Set $59.99 ARV: Second Annual NPN Holiday Gift Guide {12/6, 26 winners, US only, $2,587 ARV}


This review of the Little Pim Discovery Set is part of the Second Annual Natural Parents Network Holiday Gift Guide hosted by Natural Parents Network!

I am bringing you FIVE Gift Guide reviews over a span of several days — so read about these products I love, and then come back to enter the giveaways on November 6. I solicited the prizes I'm reviewing specifically because I knew my family already loved them or because they were right up my kids' alley. I'm so pleased to present them to you over the next five days!

And I'm not the only one who got to review amazing, eco-conscious, mindful, and natural products: A whole crew of our NPN volunteers did, too! If you need to complete your holiday shopping, find a birthday present for a friend, or just treat yourself to something special, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide has something for everyone. But what's even better, the NPN Holiday Gift Guide is a great opportunity to shop consciously and to support many naturally minded small businesses.

The 55 companies that have provided items for review and giveaway are almost exclusively made up of work-at-home shops or companies that are dedicated to supporting eco-conscious choices. I'm featuring one of those companies in my review below. When you get done reading my review, please click on over to the full Second Annual Natural Parents Network Holiday Gift Guide, where you'll find information on 58 products. In total, we're giving away goodies worth more than $2,500!

Even if you don't win one of our fabulous prize packages, please consider spending part of your gift-giving budget at one of these small businesses. By supporting small businesses, you are helping families, boosting local economies, and supporting ethical practices of manufacturing, production and selling. Take advantage of coupon codes provided by many of the companies. You'll be able to find them at the full Gift Guide when it publishes November 6.

To make browsing easier, we've split the Gift Guide into sections with products that are Perfect for Kids and Perfect for Families. And you can find all 6 Rafflecopter widgets there, too, to make entering all the giveaways easy.


Review of Little Pim

Hobo Mama Giveaway: Little Pim Language Learning Set $59.99 ARV: Second Annual NPN Holiday Gift Guide {12/6, 26 winners, US only, $2,587 ARV}
Volumes 1-3: Eating and Drinking, Wake Up Smiling, and Playtime
Without further ado, here is my review — thank you for reading and entering!

This is a joint review and giveaway of the Discovery Set from Little Pim between Natural Parents Network and Hobo Mama.

About Little Pim

Little Pim offers an Entertainment Immersion Method to make learning a foreign language fun for kids 0-6. Little Pim the panda guides kids through immersion DVDs in one of 11 languages, giving children useful vocabulary and simple, grammatically correct sentences for everyday living, on topics such as Eating and Drinking; Playtime; In My Home; Happy, Sad, and Silly; and more.