If bad weather turns your kids into TV zombies or sends them bouncing off the walls, pull out the dress-up barrel. Stocked with a variety of costumes, accessories and textures, the barrel’s contents entertain your kids and teach them practical life skills. Ignite imaginations and promote role-playing with several dress-up barrel necessities.
Scarves
Scarves are versatile as superhero capes, picnic blankets or theater backdrops, so stock various sizes and colors in the dress up barrel. With them, your kids can transform into their favorite characters, imitate real life or practice performing in public while enjoying a day of fun and adventure.
Neckties
Your kids could probably find a dozen uses for neckties. In addition to accessorizing suits or women’s costumes, ties become magic trick props, ropes, broken leg casts or belts. Turn your kids loose with a few old neckties, and watch them accessorize with style.
Aprons
Chefs, construction workers and x-ray technicians often wear aprons as they do their jobs. Your kids can imitate these professionals when they wear a full-sized or half-apron during playtime. More »
The last day of school usually brings excitement and high energy to those children looking forward to their summer break. But for some kids the end of the school year can result in anxiety and sadness. They might be worried about missing their friends, their teacher or are already feeling anxious about the next school year. No matter which reaction your kids are having, there are several steps you can take to make sure their last day of school is fun and memorable.
Listen
If your child is acting out, gets moody when you talk about school coming to an end or seems anxious, encourage him to talk about his feelings. Let him know it’s alright to be sad about school ending – lots of kids feel the same way. Going over the summer schedule or making solid plans for play dates with his friends may help him feel more secure. More »
Young girls especially need constant encouragement and support to follow their dreams and aspirations. As parents, you can support your daughter by giving her the tools she needs to get inspired and let her imagination run wild. There are plenty of modern tools to choose from in our digital world, but I think the best option is one that dates back to when we were kids: a dress-up trunk. From wearing mom’s high heels to playing doctor, here are five cool ideas to start your daughter’s very own dress-up trunk.
1. Stethoscope
After watching you bandage owies and administer children’s medicine on sick days, your little girl might be curious about playing this caregiver role herself. A stethoscope is one instrument kids seem to find endlessly fascinating, which can encourage her curiosity about the medical field. Use this opportunity to teach her about key health concepts like washing hands, disinfecting injuries, eating healthy foods and exercising. You can also include a miniature white coat and a child’s doctor kit with plastic syringes, bandages and thermometers. More »
Babies are so cuddly and adorable moms couldn’t just let go of them. They’re supple skin feels great to touch and caress. So while you’re adoring their cuteness especially after bath, why not give your little one a massage.
Massaging a baby is one way of bonding with your child and it benefits the body as well. The act of caressing a baby’s body parts helps improve blood circulation, relieves discomfort from gas, colic and constipation, increases alertness, reduces stress hormones, improves immune function and aids in digestion.
Moms can initially attend a massage class (yes, there is such a thing as this) to learn how to do it right. But afterwards, you can do it on your own and even teach other friends expecting a child.
Lotion is normally used when massaging a baby. Other options are olive oil or baby oil.
For the legs and feet, make sure to glide your hands up and down doing some twisting motions. Gently squeeze the calf areas and the thighs. More »
One of the real major challenges parents face is how to make their kids behave in public. Each kid is different and while some are good children, there are others who can test a parent’s patience such as when they throw tantrums or become very restless. When your situation is the latter, it can be difficult to make your child behave when you’re out in public.
So is there really a formula to do this? Unfortunately, there’s no standard formula but some parents have certain techniques that successfully helped them in raising well behaved kids.
You’re probably heard the advice of “avoid labeling your kid” many times. This is very important in raising kids particularly in helping them develop self confidence and a decent behavior. So if you get enraged and are tempted to speak unpleasant words including those that can label your kid’s negative behavior, take a deep breath and instead, assure yourself that you have good kids.
You can actually share stories with your kids about how people think they are good, friendly and well behaved kids. From here, you can follow up by telling them about your expectations for them to behave wherever you may be going. More »
Your teenager has been excited about it for months but for a dad, the high school prom can be something to dread. Dads might view prom as a dangerous night when teens are likely to break the rules, break the bank and maybe even break hearts. Some prom-night rules are evergreen but a lot has changed since your senior year, Dad. It may be time for some new information. More »
If your kids’ school has a uniform policy, your kids probably either love it or they hate it. As a plus, kids know what they need to wear every day and so there’s little fussing about current trends and styles. On the downside, the chance to for kids to express their personalities is less. Help your kids accessorize their uniforms to express their individual styles while still adhering to the school’s dress code with these tips.
Sweaters - Sweaters add warmth and flair to uniforms. Look for cardigans or pullovers in different weights and colors. Patterns, embellishments and fun buttons all make sweaters unique. If the school uniform includes a mandated sweater, you can still express your sense of style with a fun, seasonally-appropriate jacket. Get more out of that sweater by adding a retro pin or brooch.
Scarves - Light scarves should be a kid’s closet staple, if they aren’t already: They come in all types of colors and styles, they blend with other accessories, they won’t overwhelm a school uniform and your kids will not outgrow them. Mix weights, colors and patterns to stay stylish from fall through to spring.
Jewelry - Earrings, rings, bracelets and necklaces all help express a kid’s personality. Your child’s school may ban earrings over a certain size, chunky necklaces or other accessories but there’s still room to rock some jewelry.
Nail Art - Nail art is really on trend right now, and decals, glitter polishes and nail blogs make it easier that ever to create fabulous, one of a kind nails. Think stripes, dots, animal print, multicolored and more. You may have to help a young child paint her nails or arrange for professional manicures, but older kids can do their own nails and will enjoy the freedom to be creative. More »
Do your kids have too many toys? Don’t let the piles of Legos, dress up clothes and books take over your house. Instead, tame the toys with six tips.
Clean out the Playroom
At least twice a year, pull everything out of the playroom. Clean the room from top to bottom then sort the toys. Place the broken items on a pile, the outgrown items on another pile and everything you want to keep on a third pile.
Let Go of Broken Items
Your kids want to hold on to everything, but there’s no point in keeping puzzles with missing pieces or items that are broken. Prompt your kids to throw away everything that’s too worn to play with properly or safely. A brightly colored trash bag might make that task easier, and remind your kids that they’ll have more room for new stuff after they get rid of broken items.
Sell Outgrown Toys
When the weather turns warm, hold a garage sale, and unload everything your kids have outgrown. Let them help you choose what to sell, wipe off the items and place the price tags on everything. Then let your kids use the money they earn to buy a new toy, bike or video game.
Donate Unwanted Items
You can’t hold a garage sale during the winter months, but you can donate unwanted items. Talk with your kids about making room for the new stuff they’ll receive during the holidays, and suggest they help kids in need. The Salvation Army, Goodwill and charity thrift stores accept gently used items as your kids celebrate the holiday spirit. More »
Encouraging kids to eat their veggies can be a real challenge to parents particularly the moms. Some kids can be picky about what they eat. You may succeed in letting them eat healthy while still babies but by the time they become toddlers, their food preference can change.
Don’t worry, though, as there’s a way to let them eat the more healthy foods without letting your kids know that their greens are actually in their meals. An effective way is to sneak those veggies whenever you can.
Here are some fast and easy steps that you can follow.
Grated carrots – When you make burger patties, for instance, you can grate a small piece of carrot and mix them with the ground beef, pork or chicken you’re using. When cooked, they won’t have any clue that carrots bits are in the patty.
You can do this too to make your meatballs and taco meat more nutritious. And you may also mix this beta carotene-rich veggie in your spaghetti.
Shredded zucchini - When making your spaghetti sauce, why not include some shredded zucchini as well.
Oats and flax seed - If you love preparing pancakes, you can include oats and flax seed for added nutrition.
Beans – Research has shown that babies love beans so don’t deprive it to them. In fact, some toddlers love eating plain beans and this can be a good snack for them. Beans are rich in protein, by the way.
Dried fruits – Nutrition experts suggest feeding your little ones with dried fruits instead of the usual fruit snacks that are normally loaded with sugar, fruit juice and corn syrup.
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Toilet Training can be challenging. It doesn’t happen overnight and takes a lot of time and patience! Travelling and getting out and about whilst toilet training can be stressful, but we believe if you are well prepared and well equipped it is possible.
Here are our Top 10 Toilet Training Tips for when you are travelling and out and about
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