Making New Years Resolutions with Kids

For many of us, the New Year means it's time to take stock of our lives and fix what we don't like.  We not only benefit from New Year's resolutions; our children can also learn a lot about self-discipline and the value of making goals. Here are some tips on how to help your kids benefit from making resolutions.

Make It a Family Activity

The best way to teach your children the importance of New Year's resolutions is by making it part of the family tradition. Sit down each December and reflect on the past year, discussing your accomplishments and goals, as individuals and as a family. In your resolution conversation you can each talk about what worked this year and what didn't.
Resolutions for the entire family might include taking a monthly hike, playing board games twice a month or committing to more volunteering activities. Try to limit the number so they are more doable and more meaningful. "A list of 100 things is impossible," Siegel says. “It should be based on things that are doable without economic hardship." You can make a master list to hang in a public spot, like a bulletin board in the kitchen or making a resolution box, in which each family member can drop in his or her resolutions, then pull them out at a later date to review them.

Different Resolutions for Different Ages

What your child needs to work on depends on your child. If you are concerned about his diet, then encourage healthier eating habits for him as well as the whole family. If your daughter's room is a mess, try to help her commit 10 minutes a day to cleaning it. As your child ages, he can be more active in coming up with goals, which will mean more to him when he achieves them.
For preschool-aged children, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends resolutions that focus on cleaning up toys, brushing teeth and washing hands and being kind to pets. However, parents who consider these behaviors part of their regular expectations may want to provide resolutions that focus on higher goals.
Clarke-Pearson suggests preschoolers be encouraged to work on listening and helping skills. A resolution could be "I will be a better listener when Mommy or Daddy asks me to do something" or "I will help out more when Mommy or Daddy asks me." If you keep it simple, your child is more likely to understand the concept as well as succeed.
As a child reaches age five and up to age 12, he or she is more able to comprehend a resolution and participate more in the process of picking one. The AAP suggests this age group commit to drinking more milk and water on a daily basis, wearing a seat belt and being friendly to all children. What your child needs to work on is very personal, so work with your child to come up with areas for improvement. Is she having trouble with a certain subject at school that needs more attention? Is he oversleeping and nearly missing the bus most mornings?
When your child gets into adolescence, the AAP recommendations focus more on the child taking more responsibility for his actions, including taking care of his body, dealing with stress in a healthy way, talking through conflict, resisting drugs and alcohol and helping others through community service.

Serve as a Role Model

No matter what age your child is, he or she is more likely to understand the value of goal setting if you take the lead. Just as with everything else you do, your child is watching. "Parents should be reflective about how they wish to be in the coming year," Siegel says. "It's a good opportunity to promote good mental and physical health."
Think of how you can include your child in your resolution. "I'm going to drink more water this year, because water is good for me. Do you want to join me?" If you are finding yourself checking your e-mail when you should be spending time as a family, consider incorporating that into a goal. "I'm going to turn off my phone when I get home. Can you remind me and also remember to keep your computer in your room until after dinnertime?"

Rewards Are Long Lasting

We all know the feeling of meeting a goal, whether it be losing five pounds, quitting smoking or putting in extra hours to earn a promotion. Children also relish that thrill of accomplishment, especially when their parents are acknowledging it. As you go over the family list of resolutions each month or quarter, take time to acknowledge the successes, along with reinforcing the resolutions that need more attention. "Children will benefit by having the parent praise them, which will improve their self-esteem," Siegel says. "This will help them with self-regulatory behaviors that they can integrate into being a healthy adult."
When you sit down to review resolutions, this is not time for punishment, however. It's important to be flexible and understanding, especially if the child is making the effort. "You don't penalize if you don't fulfill a resolution," Clarke-Pearson says. "The resolution is not written in stone. It's a guide."
However your family arrives at resolutions, the best part is that you're doing it together and learning how to manage your role not only in the family but also in the larger world!

Praise vs. Encouragement

 Rudolf Dreikurs taught, “A child needs encouragement like a plant needs water.” In other words, encouragement is essential. Children may not die without encouragement, but they certainly wither.
Since encouragement is so essential, it would be good for parents to know what encouragement means and how to do it.

Dweck found that praise can hamper risk taking. Children who were praised for being smart when they accomplished a task chose easier tasks in the future. They didn’t want to risk making mistakes. On the other hand, children who were “encouraged” for their efforts were willing to choose more challenging tasks when given a choice.  As Dreikurs said, “Encourage the deed [or effort], not the doer.” In other words, instead of, “You got an A, I’m so proud of you,” try, “Congratulations! You worked hard. You deserve it.” A subtle difference, but it will change the perception of your child.

 Encouragement is helping your children develop courage—courage to grow and develop into the people they want to be—to feel capable, to be resilient, to enjoy life, to be happy, contributing members of society, and, as Dreikurs said, “To have the courage to be imperfect;” to feel free to make mistakes and to learn from them.

The successful use of encouragement requires adult attitudes of respect, interest in the child’s point of view, and a desire to provide opportunities for children to develop life skills that will lead to self-confident independence from the negative opinions of others.

Great Homemade Gifts Kids Can Make

Although it is hard not to get caught up in all the glitz and glamor that is the holiday season, it is always nice to remember that the best gifts are those from the heart.  Creating gifts with your children not only reduces the need to shop for the holidays, but provides an opportunity to spend positive time together and teach your child the satisfaction of creating a personal gift.

1. Stuck on You
It's hard to believe that I Love to Create's adorable photo magnets are simply made from just recycled bottle lids. We love this idea for a holiday gift and truly believe that one can never have enough magnets; especially personalized ones! See below for directions.

2. Bees Wax Beauty
Fun in My Backyard (FIMBY) gives an excellent pictorial on how she made these beautiful beeswax candles with her children two years ago for their advent celebration.
FIMBY lists many reasons why making beeswax candles is a really neat kid-friendly activity, including the fact that it's super simple (no 'crafting' experience necessary!), they smell wonderful (and help clean the air!) and of course, because they're absolutely gorgeous. FIMBY also suggests keeping little hands away from the boiling water and making sure to put down plenty of newspaper, as this project can potentially get a bit messy. But the best projects are always those that are a little messy... Right?

3. Early Bloomers
Maya*Made shares a great and simple holiday gift suggestion for planting paper white bulbs and giving them as presents to family and friends.
Keep in mind that these bulbs take about 4-6 weeks before they bloom into beautiful flowers, so you may want to speed up your process at the beginning of the month. But, boy, do these flowers ever turn out to be gorgeous! Check out the rest of Maya's tutorial for tips on how she created this lovely gift, including photos of how the flowers will look once they've bloomed!

4. Patchwork Pretty
Jazz up a plain notebook with some cute patches of patterned paper and voila -- you've got a personalized journal that is perfect for a thoughtful gift for friends and family.
iHannah's Blog gives a great tutorial on this quick and easy kid-friendly project. And we have a feeling that the writer or journal-keeper in your life will love getting one of the beautiful patchwork notebooks as a Christmas gift! That is, if you can part with them yourself!

5. Christmas Cookie Cheer
Some of our all-time favorite homemade gifts that we've received in past years have been recipes in jars. We've gotten lentil soup mixes, breadmaking ingredients, and even a fruit cake once -- from a toddler! (Best present ever.)
Needless to say, we love the Food Network's idea for making a super-chunky Christmas cookie recipe in a jar... Just look at the ingredients! Simply find a cute jar, have your child help you measure and add ingredients, and pin a cute card with the recipe onto the jar with a festive ribbon or string. So absolutely

Parenting the Perfectionist Child

We often find that parents in classes are not wanting to be the "perfect parent," rather struggling to raise their perfectionist children!  The folks at Focus on the Family recently released a great article that address the challenges, and provides some strategies, for dealing with those often tricky kiddos.

Many years ago, I watched Little Shop of Horrors, a humorous musical about a nerdy florist named Seymour who raises a house plant named Audrey that feeds on human blood. When Seymour accidentally pricks his finger, he discovers that Audrey needs blood to survive. What Seymour doesn't know is that the more blood Audrey receives, the larger and more demanding she would become.
As the musical progresses, Audrey grows into a deep-voiced, obnoxious, palm-sized plant which screams, "Feeeeed me!" A few drops of blood from Seymour's fingers couldn't sustain Audrey any longer, so she eats him.
Having a perfectionist child can be a lot like dealing with Audrey. Without realizing it, parents can encourage idealistic tendencies in their children by "feeding" their perfectionism. The result can be a child that grows out of control, and, like Audrey, is very demanding.
Here are five ways to tame the perfectionism in your child and recover your sanity.

Don't feed perfectionism

Perfectionism grows when it's encouraged. If your perfectionist daughter will not eat dinner because it's not arranged the "right" way on her plate, let her know that she'll either eat it as it's served or she won't eat at all. To a permissive parent, this may sound mean. But by not bending to your child's demands, you keep from being controlled by her. And you won't be so wiped out at the end of the day from being pushed around by a perfectionist kid.
If your child throws a temper tantrum because her shoes are the wrong color and don't match her dress, don't feed her perfectionism by cajoling her or reasoning with her. Instead, step over her as she is wailing, and go on with what you were doing. She'll learn that to function in life, she has to bend — a skill that all successful and confident people need.

Recognize a firstborn's tendency to be a perfectionist

Dr. Kevin Leman, author of a number of excellent parenting books including Have a New Kid by Friday, says that firstborn children are often perfectionists because parents tend to treat their firstborns differently from their latter-born children. You may have heard the joke that a mother sterilizes every pacifier for her first born. But by the time the same mother is on child number three, if the pacifier falls into the dirt, mom brushes it off and sticks it back in her child's mouth. Naturally, because parents are more structured with their firstborns, those children generally desire more structure.
In a conversation with MSNBC, Dr. Leman said, ". . . children are like wet cement. It's true that they are much more moldable in the first six or seven years of life. It's one of the few things you'll get psychologists and psychiatrists to agree on. You are not going to change the perfectionistic nature of a driven firstborn. But you know, you might round off the edges."¹
The good news is that many CEOs and presidents of companies are firstborns. It's no wonder. If they were in charge at home over younger siblings, it's a no-brainer for them to be in charge at work.

Take a personal inventory

If you are a firstborn, you'll need to do the best you can to "round off your own perfectionistic edges" if you want to help your kids become more flexible. Amy, a firstborn mother of two small children says that she often wondered why her firstborn child was so picky about the smallest things. Then she learned about Dr. Leman's analysis of firstborns and realized that her child was demonstrating what she herself had modeled. Not surprisingly, a perfectionist child and a perfectionist parent will butt heads because when each doesn't have their own agenda met, there will be fireworks.
If you suspect that you struggle with perfectionism, ask yourself if less than perfect is OK in some instances. Is it OK for you not to feel in control if your child doesn't pick up every toy before she goes to bed at night? Is it all right if she misses her back teeth when she is brushing now and then?
When you can embrace your own imperfection, your child will realize that less than perfect is acceptable. This will help her develop into a secure, confident and flexible adult. If you struggle with extreme perfectionism, remember that there are trained counselors who can help you with your challenges.

Use humor

There is nothing like a little humor to lighten a tense moment. When your perfectionist child feels like life is falling apart, a little joking, teasing or acting silly will send a strong message to your kid: Imperfection is not the end of the world.
Granted, it can be a challenge sometimes to find the light side of something that seems like a disaster, but it can be done. Additionally, when you can laugh at your own mistakes, your child will learn to laugh at his, too.

Tell a story from your own experience

In moments when humor is not appropriate, you can tell a hopeful story from your own experience to encourage your son or daughter. When Robert's son Mark was angry at himself because he missed a free throw that caused his team to lose a basketball game, Robert pulled a story from his past out to share with his son. He talked about the time when he missed a touchdown pass in overtime. He was also able to tell Mark that by the next game his team had forgotten what happened, and he did much better.
Story telling about your own experiences can help you bond with you child, but it can also help your son or daughter see that survival is possible after failure.
"Rounding off" the perfectionist edges in your child will help him become more successful and secure in his mistakes.

Incorporate Literacy into Your Holiday Count Down

 While parents may not associate holiday preparations with building literacy skills, the season offers a variety of fun, easy and educational ways to help get your child ready for school.  Here are just a few great ideas.

1.  Letters to Santa/Holiday cards: Have your child practice writing skills by creating a wish list or letter to Santa.  You could also use this time to learn how to properly address an envelope!  You could also have young children practice writing their name by letting them help sign all those holiday cards.

2. Sing some Holiday Songs:  Many traditional songs incorporate numbers, letters and rhymes, all critical elements of early literacy! 

3. Homemade Gift Wrap: Why not turn those scribbles and drawings into something more useful.  Buy a large roll of butcher paper and get out the markers.  Use your kid creations to wrap gifts for family and friends. While you are at it, have them write the gift tags.

4. Get Cooking:  From cookies to dinners, the holidays are usually a busy time in the kitchen.  Make this an opportunity to teach your kids family traditions, how to read a recipe and work on the measuring/math skills needed to cook!

5. Share a Good Book: There are dozens of fabulous holiday books, from traditional to brand new.  Head to your local library or book store to find a new story to share.  You could also start a new tradition:  Have a book to open Christmas morning, or send a book to your children with a return address of the North Pole! 

Create a Thanksgiving Tradition.......

Why not make this the year that you start a cherished family tradition?!?!  Here are 5 great ideas to think about adapting to your families annual Turkey Day!

Sit down with your family and reminisce about your childhood celebrations

What do you remember most about Thanksgiving and the days that follow? Thanksgiving traditions can be much more than just food and recipes. In what ways did your childhood traditions symbolize particular values, such as abundance, generosity, the importance of family? What would you like to do that's the same? What would you do like to do differently?

Make a small booklet or a mini scrapbook album

Write "Five Things I Love About My Family and Friends" and keep it out on the table during your Thanksgiving celebration. Each guest can come and record thoughts and insights. Other themes to try: "Five Things I'm Thankful For" or "Five Wishes for my Family and Friends." An even simpler approach would be to put one sheet of cardstock out for each year - and combine them together over the years in a Thanksgiving Gratitude Scrapbook.

Keep a family gratitude journal throughout the year

Each night, a family member can share something that they are grateful for. Share the highlights of this family tradition at the dinner table on Thanksgiving Day.

Make a gratitude circle

Before the Thanksgiving meal, everyone stands and holds hands in a circle. Guests each take a turn sharing what they are grateful for. Or - if your guests are on the shy side - ask everyone to write down their blessings on a piece of paper, which you can read before or after dinner.

Designate a particular tablecloth for your family Thanksgiving celebrations

Provide fabric markers where guests can record their "gratitudes" or special prayers for the year ahead. Ask your guests to sign and date each message, as you'll be using the same tablecloth year after year.

Start Making a Reader Today

Want to help your child get ready to read?!?!?!  Reading for All, in partnership with McMinnville public Library and the Oregon Community Foundation, produced this video to demonstrate real early literacy interactions between children and parents. The video features physicians, librarians, and parents discussing early literacy activities and why they are important. This video is available streaming online English and Spanish.



http://reading4all.com/entries/view/547


For more resources on early literacy, reading with young children, and selecting books for young children, don’t forget the Reading for Healthy Families website:

http://www.oregon.gov/osl/LD/Pages/youthsvcs/rfhf.home.aspx. 

Ideas of Thanks

The beginning of the month is the perfect time to get your kids to start thinking about what they are thankful for!    The following craft ideas are fun, easy and a way to get your kids excited about giving thanks!

1. Create a I'm Thankful For........book using paper bags, construction paper and pasta!

 

2. Thankful Tree: Gather some fall twigs, cut out some paper leaves and have family members write 1 think they are thankful for each day leading up to Thanksgiving.

 

3. Thankful Turkey: Even the smallest of kids can help make this cute Turkey!  With household items (toilet paper roll, paper plate, paper) and some writing help, your toddler or preschooler could make this year's centerpiece!

 

Show Some Faith

One of the biggest mistakes some parents and teachers make, when they decide to do Positive Discipline, is becoming too permissive because they don’t want to be punitive. Some mistakenly believe they are being kind when they rescue their children, and protect them from all disappointment. This is not being kind; it is being permissive. Being kind means to be respectful of the child and of yourself. It is not respectful to pamper children. It is not respectful to rescue them from every disappointment so they don’t have the opportunity to develop their disappointment muscles. It is respectful to validate their feelings, "I can see that you are disappointed (or angry, or upset, etc.)." Then it is respectful to have faith in children that they can survive disappointment and develop a sense of capability in the process.

Fall Hand and Foot Print Crafts

It is never too early to start thinking about homemade holiday gifts for the Grandparents....or a cute way to capture your child at this age!  Why not get crafty and try one of these ideas below!

Great FREE Resources for Child Development

The experts at the Harvard Center of the Developing Child have created an amazing resource for parents and educators!  The on-line site offers current articles, short videos and links to services that support families in better understanding the brain development of children 0-18.  Specifically, their multi-media video series allow parents with busy schedules to easily access the most current information!  Click on the link below and support your child by learning a bit more about how their brain works!

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/resources/multimedia/

Letting Go: Morning Hassles and Responsibility

"Jimmy, time to get up! C'mon, Jimmy, get up now! This is the last time I'm going to call you!"

Sound familiar? Mornings in Jimmy's home are much like mornings in other homes around the world—hectic, argumentative, and full of hassles.  Jimmy has not learned to be responsible because Mom is too busy being responsible for him.  It gets worse as the morning continues.

"How should I know where your books are?  Where did you leave them? How many times have I told you to put them where they belong? If you don't hurry up and eat, you're just going to have to go to school hungry. You're still not dressed, and the bus will be here in five minutes! I'm not going to take you to school if you're not ready—and I mean it! (While driving Jimmy to school), “Jimmy, when will you ever learn?  This is absolutely the last time I'll drive you to school when you miss the bus.  You've got to learn to be more responsible!"

What do you think? Is this the last time Jimmy's mother will drive him to school when he misses the bus?  No. Jimmy is very intelligent. He knows his mother’s threats are meaningless.  He has heard the threats many times and knows his mother will drive him to school when he's late.

Jimmy's mother is right about one thing:  Jimmy should learn to be more responsible.  But through morning scenes like these, she is teaching him to be less responsible.  She is the responsible party when she keeps reminding him of everything he needs to do.

 Lecturing, Nagging, Scolding, Threatening 

Children do not learn from the lecturing, nagging, scolding, and threatening.

Actually, they do learn from these methods—just not what you hope they will learn.  They learn to engage in power-struggles, resistance, rebellion, and revenge cycles. They may learn to comply and become approval junkies—more concerned about pleasing others to feel a sense of belonging and significance than to cooperate out of mutual respect.

It is possible to enjoy hassle free mornings while teaching children self-discipline, responsibility, cooperation, and problem-solving skills—the characteristics of happy, successful people with a healthy sense of self-worth and respect for self and others.  What a wonderful gift to give your children while enjoying peaceful mornings. The key is letting go. Many parents are afraid that letting go means abandoning their children or giving in to permissiveness. In Positive Discipline terms, letting go mean allowing children to develop their sense of cooperation and capability.  The following lesson card from Positive Discipline gives us some easy steps for letting go.

Celebrate Walk to School Day

Remember the thrill of riding a bike for the first time or walking to school that first day?

There’s a feeling of joy and independence —a sense of adventure—that doesn’t fade. When walking or biking, parents and children get to appreciate things they don’t notice while driving—listening to the sounds of the neighborhood, seeing friends and neighbors and feeling connected with their community. Parents, children and friends can enjoy one another’s company without the usual distractions.

Walking and bicycling events celebrate these experiences and help make them possible for others. They bring schools and communities together for a common purpose. Most of all, they are fun!

Wednesday, October 3rd is National Walk/Bike to School Day!  Plan ahead, and join our local Headstarts, Schools and Community in building a safe, healthy, environmentally friendly neighborhood!

October Activity Calendar

If the Fall rains have you trapped indoors, don't fear!  The great folks at Books by the Bushel have collected an abundance of free, printable, educational resources to keep those little hands, and minds, busy!  Check out their great list of resources at the link below!

http://booksbythebushel.com/free-classroom-activity-pages/

5 Family Friendly Activities for Fall!

Even though night temperatures may be freezing, Fall is still a perfect time to enjoy the outdoors with your family!  Below are five fun, virtually free, very family-friendly activities to celebrate the unique opportunities of the season.

1. Build Your Own Skeleton:  You don't need to be a farmer to scare those birds away.......find some old jeans and a shirt and stuff full of hay or leaves.  Draw a face on a ball or use the trick-or-treat pumpkin still tucked away in the closet....top it off with a hat and have a family photo shoot to remember the fun!

2. Go for a Leaf Hunt: Try to find all the colors of the rainbow, see who can find 10 different leaves first or simply enjoy the hike!  Bring your leaves home and have fun crafting with leaf rubbings, or ironing your leaves between sheets of wax paper.

3. Find an Apple Tree: From your neighbors yard, to an actual orchard, apples are at the peak of their season.  Not only is picking apples fun, but try making some homemade apple sauce or drying apples in your oven for simple, healthy snacks!  You could also keep on crafting with some apple printing.

4. Fill a barrel with water and apples (careful with younger kids around the water) and have your own bobbing for apples contest.

5.  Rake up big piles of leaves and JUMP in them. Adults, too!  Not only is it great exercise, but a ton of family fun!

Positive Discipline Tool: Control Your Behavior

The folks at Positive Discipline know we all lose our temper at some point during parenting.  They have created this list of helpful reminders for the some of the inevitable moments when we feel ourselves losing our cool.

1. Create your own special time-out area and let your children know when you need to use it.

Some parents are uncomfortable with this solution, especially when dealing with younger children. But if your children are older and you can set up this system in advance, it can be quite effective. It is nearly impossible to solve problems at the time of conflict when both the child and the parent have flipped their lid. The result is distance and hurt feelings. Usually followed by guilt!

Why not let your children know that you are taking a time out. Remove yourself from the situation and get centered before attempting to solve the problem. How you take your time-out is up to you. Maybe you will go to your room. Maybe you will go for a walk. Maybe call a close friend and discuss the problem. Whatever you decide, the important thing is to take time to cool off before addressing the problem.

2. If you can't leave the scene, count to 10 or take deep breaths.

This is a good solution if you have younger children or the situation requires your presence. It is also okay to share what you are feeling. "I'm so angry right now, I need to calm down before we talk." Kids need to know that what they feel is always okay, but what they do is not always okay. You model this by sharing your feelings without reacting to them and without blaming your children for your feelings. Avoid saying, "You make me so angry."

3. When you make mistakes, apologize to your children.
Children are wonderfully forgiving when we take time to sincerely apologize when we lose control. During lectures I ask, "How many have you have apologized to a child?" Every hand goes up. I then ask, "What do they say?" The Universal response from children when parents apologize is, "That's okay."

By apologizing, you have created a connection (closeness and trust). In this atmosphere you can work together for a solution. Once again you have demonstrated that mistakes are opportunities to learn and that you can then focus on solutions.

5 Smart After School Snacks

Extra vitamins, just the right amount of calories, and easy to make -- these munchies from Parent Magazine are absolutely perfect for kids and busy moms.

1. Fruit & Cheese Kabobs 

 
Create these fun shapes using your child's favorite cookie cutters. You can also mix things up by substituting different kinds of fruit.








2. Starry Chocolate Fruit

 
Kids can help with this five-minute snack. Just set out the melted chocolate and let them dip in the fruit.








3. Strawberry PB Crepes

Filled with peanut butter and chopped strawberries, these bite-size crepes are an excellent source of protein.








4.  Blueberry-Banana Stacks

 
Mini popcorn cakes are the perfect base for these tiny towers of strawberry cream cheese, bananas, and blueberries.








5. Polka-Dot Waffle Sticks

These sweet treats can be made on the fly. Just cover whole-grain waffles with reduced-fat cream cheese and top with jelly.

Fun Fall Feeders

As the weather starts to turn, our little feathered friends are often extra eager to find some food!  These adorable homemade feeders are a fun and easy family project!  The great thing about this project, is it is far from over once the stars are hanging......from counting the number of species, to observing all the other animals trying to taste a bite, watching the results of your labor is half the fun!

what you'll need:

 

• 3/4 cup birdseed (we got the seed for small birds at wal-mart)
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 small envelope of knox gelatine
• twine or string
• cookie cutters, molds or mason jar lids
• wax paper

Directions:

• mix together the envelope of gelatine with 1/4 cup of water and bring to a simmer while stirring. continue stirring until the gelatine is dissolved.
• remove from heat and let cool for a minute.
• stir in the 3/4 cup birdseed. adding a little more if there is liquid still in the bottom of the pan.
• lay your cookie cutters out on wax paper and fill half way with the birdseed mixture.
• cut your twine, knot the end and push the knot down into your birdseed.
• continue filling with birdseed, covering the end of your twine and knot.
• push the birdseed evenly into the cookie cutter until it's full.
• allow them to dry overnight. turning them over every now and then.
• remove from the cookie cutters and hang them in your trees.
• then wait by the window to watch for your first guest.

Are ipads OK for Babies?!?!!

 Admit it: Your tablet or smartphone plays babysitter anywhere an eardrum-piercing cry isn't acceptable.  No big deal, says Nancy Darling, Ph.D., a professor of phychology at Oberline College whose focus in on parenting.  Just stick to these ground rules.

1. Dabble in Doses: Tech tools are sensory dead environments: no textures, smells or taste.  Too much time spent with them also means your baby won't develop fine motor skills (like holding a crayon) and vision (like depth perception). 

2. Pick the Right Apps: Choose apps that grow with your baby (starting simple and becoming more complex), like drawing, coloring and puzzles.  Youtube videos don't fit the bill: they are the same as watching TV.  Great apps include Baby Games My First Shape and Uncolor.

3. Play Along: All kids learn more from experiences if they have them with an adult.  Talk about colors, vocabulary, animals or whatever. 

Parenting Magazine, September 2012

I Like to Move It!

 News from the American Academy of Pediatrics

 It's not complicated: being active is what kids are born to do.  The problem is all the distractions of modern life that get in the way.  But all it takes is an hour of daily movement-on the floor, in the yard, or at the playground- to raise a healthier family.  "From the start, a new mom can take her baby for a walk everyday, which makes moving around a regular routine," explains Charles Cappetta, M.D., a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Sports Medicine and Fitness.  The table below provides more easy, age-appropriate ways to get that little heart pumping!

Stage	Activity	Benefit
Babies	Let your baby roll around, crawl after toys and bang on pots and pans.	Playing on her belly strengthens the upper body.  Crawlers and cruisers build their large muscle groups.
Toddlers	Kicking a ball outside is super exercise.  Head for the playground slide for step-climbing action.	Getting sweaty and short of breath is fine for nearly every kid-and the key to heart health.
Preschoolers	Some structured sports can begin now, but it’s also fine to just play; jump rope, hopscotch, ride trikes and dig in the sand!	Full-body movement not only builds stronger kids, it improves memory and improves self-esteem.

10 Tips for Fun, Creative Back to School Lunches

Say goodbye to "blah" lunchboxes! Mix things up for your kids by getting creative with their school lunches. Try these 10 creative lunchboxes from  http://chefmom.sheknows.com, or make up your own and share it with us in a comment below!

Skip boring bread

Take an everyday sandwich to a whole new level by switching boring bread out with something a little more exciting. Instead of two slices of bread, fill a hot dog bun, pita bread, English muffin or bagel with whatever you were going to stack on your sandwich.

Make shapes

The next time you make a sandwich, pull out your cookie cutters and turn it into something else. It's funny how much better a peanut butter and jelly sandwich can taste when it looks like a star or a dinosaur. Don't worry about wasting the crusts — dry them out and use them to make bread crumbs.

Serve leftovers

Thermoses aren't just for soup! Use an insulated thermos to serve up whatever tasty dish you had for dinner last night. Heat up your leftovers and put them in a thermos while they're hot to have a warm, ready-to-eat meal at lunchtime.

Go for crackers

Not every kid is crazy for sandwiches. Instead, serve crackers with bite-sized meats and fruits. Your kid will love stacking and creating his own little "sandwiches!" It's a great way to make sure your picky eater gets enough grains.

Roll it up

Skip the bread and use a tortilla or flatbread when you're making your sandwich. Roll all the fillings up inside, then serve it as-is, or slice it for pinwheels. Your kids will go bananas for either one!

Serve a salad

Skip the sandwich altogether and serve a salad as your main course for lunchtime. Go for a standard house mix, throw together a taco salad, or create a salad of the fruit or pasta variety. If you're worried about it getting soggy, send the dressing in a separate container to be mixed just before eating.

Don't be afraid to waffle!

Waffles are too delicious to be just for breakfast. Keep them sweet by smearing them with cream cheese and adding raisins and a sprinkle of cinnamon. Thinking of something a little more savory? Waffles can make a great peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but any sandwich you would serve on bread will taste just as wonderful (if not more!) between two waffles.

Crazy for kabobs

Any kind of kabob is fun to eat, which is probably why kids love them so much. Stack your regular sandwich ingredients on a skewer, including chunks of meat, cheese, bread and veggies, with a side of dressing or their favorite condiment for dipping. If you want to keep with the theme, stack some fruit on another skewer for dessert.

Get dippin'

Kids love to dip foods, so send some finger foods they can have a little fun with. Pack pretzels, chips, crackers, fruits and veggies cut into bite-sized pieces, along with ranch dressing, cream cheese, peanut butter, salsa, hummus or yogurt for dipping.

Pick a theme

Have a little fun when you're packing lunch and create a themed surprise inside of her lunchbox. Choose a color and try to make everything match. Turn her lunch pail into a Mexican fiesta or a dainty tea party. It'll be fun for you to see how creative you can get, and she'll be floored when she opens it up and sees what you've done

Fun (and Functional) Back to School Projects

With only a few weeks left until the start of school, why not start getting their hands and minds engaged!  Babble.com offers 10 fun and functional back to school craft ideas to get you started.  From shirts for the little ones, to locker decor for your middle or high school student, this site offers something for everyone headed back to the classroom!

http://blogs.babble.com/family-style/2012/08/10/10-fun-functional-back-to-school-crafts/

Back to School Shopping Tips

School is literally just around the corner.....which often means a stressed budget!  Try these back to school shopping tips to save the most of your time, energy and money!

Shop at home first--and set up Supply Central

Any item already on-hand is a bonus freebie, so check the house for rulers and protractors, pencils and binder paper.

Stick to your list--and your budget

School supply aisles look like toy departments these days, and kids have big gimme eyes for school-day flash and bling. Shop from your list to keep back-to-school spending within budget.  Once you have an idea of your child's true needs, establish a budget amount, and create a learning experience. Yes, little Jenna WILL want the pricey licensed-character backpack and the lunchbox and the binder, no matter the cost. A bit of horsetrading along the lines of, "Well, the budget will let you buy the backpack only if we choose less expensive binders" can make the limits clear--and teach financial skills at the same time.

While we have already missed on shopping early.......

 Shop late!

While nobody wants to be caught dead dragging multiple children into the crowded school supply aisles the weekend before school opens, a short week later will see the same merchandise marked down to clearance prices--and no crowds.
Turn a deaf ear to children's pleas of "But I HAVE to have it all today!" and budget some cash for season-end discount buys. That's the time to stock up on the basics that will be needed all year: binder paper, composition books, spiral notebooks, pencils, erasers, crayons and markers.

Seek out the on stocking stuffers

If back-to-school is here, the holidays won't be far behind. Clearance-priced school supplies make great Christmas stocking stuffers. A quick trip after school begins--and once the items are marked down--can fill Santa's stockings inexpensively.