Have you ever known (or been) a new mom who frets over what her baby eats? When I was that new mom and my little one ate only strawberry yogurt some days, I got a great piece of advice: Stop trying to balance each meal, balance the week instead. Over the course of a week she should get a wide variety of healthy foods. Sigh of relief. I love this idea so much, I apply it to kids' activities too.
Provide opportunities for a wide range of activities each week.
Some (nanny) kids are scheduled in tight. My families have always opted for a Simplicity Parenting approach. Lots of unstructured playtime. But I want to be sure that while we play the kids develop a wide range of skills.
Run through a mental checklist. Have we read? Run outside? Made art?
When setting out invitations to play for my preschool age kids, I run through a mental checklist of what we've done so far during the week and what's missing. Like this one:
