Free Download: “Little Red Apples”

This is one of many counting songs I’ve written, which focuses on counting both up to 5 and down from 5. I created simple apple visual aides (using red construction paper and then laminating) which my students can then manipulate as we count.

Click here to download the mp3 and lyrics/chords.

P.S. If you want access to my entire collection of over 200 songs (mp3, lead sheet, and instrumental track), videos, tutorials, and visual aides, plus ALL new releases from Listen & Learn Music, consider joining me over at Listen & Learn Plus!

10 MORE Songs That Make Me Feel Good

Back in the summer of 2011, I put together a list of 10 songs (current and not-so-current) that I was digging at the time. Since almost four years have passed since then, I thought it was high time that I post an updated list.

I have my students, son, and Pandora to thank for the random assortment of music that is currently helping me beat the wintertime blues:

“Love is an Open Door” from Frozen – I heard this song before I ever saw the movie, because I had a couple of students request it. Now that my toddler is a little obsessed with Frozen, I hear it several times a day…and it has really grown on me.
“Stockholm” by Jason Isbell – my music partner Matt and I recently added this song to our set list, and I can’t get enough of it. When it comes to songwriters, this guy is the bees’ knees. Plus, the harmony is really fun to sing.
“Girls Chase Boys” by Ingrid Michaelson – her newest album, Lights Out, is great, especially this track. It’s an earworm I find myself singing hours after I hear the song.
“Put a Little Love in Your Heart” by Renee & Jeremy – a throwback song covered by a children’s group. They are my favorite when it comes to recorded music (I use it for instrument play-alongs in one of my early childhood classes).
“Back to the Earth” by Jason Mraz – If you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time, then it comes as no surprise that I love Jason Mraz. This song is from his most recent album, and it’s also a favorite of one of my music therapy clients (it’s even helped us with several in-session breakthroughs).
“From This Valley” by The Civil Wars – when I think about their break-up, I want to cry…but this song helps ease the pain. It’s another one Matt and I added to our set list, and I have such a blast singing it.
“Shake It Off” by Taylor Swift – nope, still not sick of it yet. This song gets my blood pumping and my body moving every single time.
“I’m Not Angry Anymore” by Paramore – one of my students is learning this on the ukulele, and I couldn’t help but smile when we listened to it for the first time. Short, sweet and totally fun.
“Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheeran – I don’t listen to the radio often, but I’m glad I caught this song on one of those rare occasions a few weeks back. Not sure if it’s his voice, the lyrics or both that completely got me hooked on it.
“The Clean Up Song” from Barney – please forgive me for this one. They play it at Funshop (a mommy & me play class), and it quickly became Parker’s go-to song. I have to admit that it gets the job done…he starts cleaning up every time I sing it, and better yet, he sings along.

I could probably keep going, but I’ll stop here for now. And maybe I won’t wait another four years to post an updated list ;) What songs are making YOU feel good right now? Share ’em in the comments!

{Guitars & Granola Bars} Episode 5

Meryl and I met way back in the day, as grad students in the music therapy program at Illinois State University. We’ve served on the board of the Illinois Association for Music Therapy together, swapped business advice, and been a listening ear to each other when it comes to all things motherhood and work-life balance.

Meryl openly shares her struggle with postpartum depression, how she completely rebuilt her private practice after recovering, and the steps she took to successfully prevent PPD after the birth of her second daughter in Episode 5 of the Guitars & Granola Bars podcast.

Be sure to check out the show notes page for more information about Meryl, along with links to the resources she mentions in the episode.

Click here to subscribe on iTunes, or search “Guitars & Granola Bars” in the podcast app on your Apple device.

Click here to listen and subscribe on Stitcher, or download and search the app on your mobile device.

{Guitars & Granola Bars} Episode 4

I first met Natalie Mullis way back at the beginning of both our music therapy careers, when she emailed me about a song I posted on my blog. Since then, we have followed similar professional paths by leaving full-time jobs at facilities to open our own private practices.

She became a mom to a baby boy almost exactly one year after my son was born, and it has been so much fun to keep in touch with her as she too learns to juggle owning a private practice with motherhood.

Natalie shares how she prepped her business before her baby was born, spent her maternity leave making major changes to her private practice, and her secrets for getting work done with her son at the office in Episode 4 of the Guitars & Granola Bars podcast.

Be sure to check out the show notes page for more information about Natalie, along with links to the resources she mentions in the episode.

Say Something (Loudly & Quietly)

I sat down a few months ago to write a song targeting the goal of appropriate voice volume for one of my music therapy clients. As I brainstormed, the song “Say Something” by a Great Big World immediately came to mind (quite possibly because 3 of my voice students were working on this at the time).

My client was working on controlling the level of her voice in certain situations, including using a loud voice when giving commands to her companion dog and talking quietly in places like church.

I pepped up the tempo, changed the words, and grabbed my ukulele to record this little ditty in one take…here’s the result.

<a href="http://listenandlearn.bandcamp.com/album/say-something-loudly-quietly">Say Something (Loudly & Quietly) by Listen & Learn Music</a>

When I use this song in music therapy sessions, I have my client fill in “loudly” and “quietly” at the appropriate spots in the lyrics. We also practice speaking in both a loud and soft voice, usually just counting to 10.

There are lots of other ways to target this goal, but it’s always fun to insert some pop culture when possible.

P.S. Did you know that you can gain instant access to a vast collection of over 200 songs (mp3, lead sheet, and instrumental track), videos, tutorials, and visual aides, plus ALL new releases from Listen & Learn Music?

{Guitars & Granola Bars} Episode 3

Confession: I’ve been waiting impatiently for this day all week…not because it’s Friday, but because I’m SO excited to share this episode of the podcast.

It’s funny how being a mom helps create an almost instant bond between two people, and I felt that immediately during my interview with music therapist Amanda Clay. I found myself nodding along with just about everything she said, and was taking notes as she doled out tons of great advice.

Amanda shares her adventures in the pysch setting during her pregnancy and addresses the dreaded “mommy guilt” in Episode 3 of the Guitars & Granola Bars podcast.

Be sure to check out the show notes page for more information about Amanda, along with links to the resources she mentions in the episode.

{Guitars & Granola Bars} Episode 2

Happy Friday! This week has been pretty wonderful for many reasons, but in large part thanks to the emails, comments and social media feedback I’ve received about the new podcast.

I have to admit, I was a little nervous about putting it out into the world…especially since it is geared to my colleagues who I so greatly admire. Many (okay, most) of them are far more experienced music therapists and moms than I am, so to tackle both topics in podcast form is going a bit beyond my comfort zone.

But that’s what life is all about, right? Pushing past those comfortable boundaries and trying new things. So with your encouragement, I’m back this week with a new episode — this time featuring music therapist Tamara Leszner-Rovet.

Be sure to check out the show notes page for more information about Tamara, along with links to the resources she mentions in the episode.

The Empathy Song

A few months ago, my wonderful teacher friend Rene came to me with an idea for a song. She uses music quite a bit in her classroom, and wanted to do so in teaching and reinforcing the concept of empathy.

I tried to put the definition and description of empathy into words (that rhyme, no less) as best as I could, and I think the song paints a good picture of what empathy looks like for a kiddo who is just learning.

However, I think you’ll agree with me that empathy is something that needs to be experienced to fully understand it. I hope that my song provides a bridge to putting empathy into practice.

<a href="http://listenandlearn.bandcamp.com/album/the-empathy-song">The Empathy Song by Listen & Learn Music</a>

Do you have other musical tools you use for teaching concepts like empathy? I would love to explore this further, perhaps in a group setting where social skills are targeted. Yet another idea to add to my ever-growing list…

Guitars & Granola Bars: A New Podcast

A funny thing happened in the last six months or so: I became addicted to podcasts. Although I’ve been co-hosting the Music Therapy Round Table podcast for five years now, I never thought to branch out beyond the few music therapy podcasts out there to which I subscribe.

But after one of my favorite bloggers listed a few of her favorite podcasts, I decided to check them out and was hooked. I loved hearing interviews with woman who owned businesses, were pursuing creative endeavors, and most of all, were doing both while raising children.

A seed of an idea was planted in my head: what if I started a podcast featuring music therapists like myself — women who balance their music therapy work (whether it be clinical, academic, entrepreneurial, or otherwise) with being a mom?

That was back in November. I tabled the idea because I had a lot of other things going on and wasn’t feeling well due to pregnancy, but it kept surfacing in the back of my mind.

I took that as a sign, and a few days after the new year began, I decided to go for it. I didn’t tell a soul, not even my husband. Instead, I brainstormed a title, came up with a concept for the artwork, wrote some interview questions, and then emailed Janice Lindstrom. I knew I wanted to feature Janice as the inaugural guest, because she pioneered music therapy podcasts when she started The Music Therapy Show many years ago. Luckily she was on board, and we had a really wonderful discussion that got me even more excited about my new endeavor.

So there you have it: a really long-winded introduction to Guitars & Granola Bars: Music Therapists Talk Motherhood. You can follow the link to read more and subscribe on iTunes (you can also do that here).

I have a long list of potential guests that I would love to have on the show, so if you are a music therapist and a mom, be on the lookout for an email from me in the future — or get in touch with me if you’re interested!

I Have a Bean Bag

This isn’t the first time I’ve mentioned what a HUGE fan I am of the movement props created by Bear Paw Creek. Their stretchy bands and connect-a-bands are both staples in my collection, and I just recently added their bean bags as well.

There are so many ways to incorporate bean bags into my music therapy sessions and early childhood music classes, but I knew exactly how I wanted to introduce them for the first time — with a brand new song, of course :)

I wrote “I Have a Bean Bag” with several goals in mind: listening skills, body part identification, and imitation. An added bonus skill this song addresses is balancing, which is funny to watch my kiddos try to do once they’ve placed the bean bag on the correct body part.

<a href="http://listenandlearn.bandcamp.com/album/i-have-a-bean-bag">I Have a Bean Bag by Listen & Learn Music</a>

Although this song was written with bean bags in mind, I’ve already adapted it for scarves in bigger groups where I don’t have enough bean bags to go around (yet!).

A special thanks goes to Janet Stephens, owner and creator of the products at Bear Paw Creek, for her support of Listen & Learn Music. Everything in her shop is made right here in the U.S.A. and is of the utmost quality. Please check out her movement props and other resources if you haven’t already!

Pregnancy with a Sidekick

I loved being pregnant the first time around. I had the perfect situation, really: self-employed and working from home, I could take naps when I needed them and move as slowly as I needed to during the height of my 1st trimester morning sickness. I felt that “glow” from my 2nd trimester on and worked out every weekday morning up until the week I gave birth.

Naturally, I was thrilled to be pregnant again, and just assumed it would be as enjoyable as my first one. But any second-time mom knows what I soon found out: subsequent pregnancies can be…challenging.

I’m still thrilled to be pregnant, and there have been some wonderful moments — like when Parker kisses my belly, and every time I feel those little kicks — but it hasn’t been easy. I was much sicker this time around than I ever was with Parker, starting at week 6 and holding strong until week 18. Even now, at almost 22 weeks, I still have not-so-good days.

On top of the relentless morning sickness, I looked about as good as I felt. My skin went crazy, my hair was a lost cause; I swore that I was having a girl because any beauty I once might have had was completely stolen from me.

Turns out, I was right! Our little girl is healthy and growing right on track, and I’m finally starting to get back some of that energy I missed so much. It’s a good thing, because I need a LOT of energy to keep up with my little sidekick. At 19 months old, Parker is a ball of fire and needs my constant attention; there are far less naps for mama this time around!

Pregnancy #2 has not been a walk in the park, and I’m only a little over halfway there. But I’m done complaining, because I know it could be much, much worse. I’m extremely lucky to be pregnant, especially with a perfect baby girl.

2nd trimester is all about getting settled in our new house (more about that soon!), charging full speed ahead on some exciting work projects, and enjoying these last few months with Parker as an only child. Still trying to wrap my head around that one.

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