Parenting Children

We are always searching for family things to do. We luckily live in an area of NJ where there are a ton of family friendly events but they are scarce in the winter. A great resource for families are museums. Your children will appreciate them in different ways as they grow and they are perfect for families with kids of varying age differences.

Natural history museums are the best to check out dinosaurs and most kids love dinosaurs. Some great museums are the American Museum of Natural History NY, NY (they have the only intact velociraptor skull!), Museum of L.A. County in California and the National Museum of Natural History Washington, D.C.
Art museums usually have great programs for kids to spark their interest in art. Check your local museum for children’s programs. Let them create their own art when you get home. If you hate the mess, (like I do) then let them paint outside or paint in your husband’s old t shirts. Have them recreate some of their favorite pieces of art they have just seen.

Our favorites are our local children’s museums. My kids never tire of visiting! They can pretend they are a news anchor, learn about electricity and animals and dance on a stage.
Some of the other museums that are cool are the Matchbox Museum in Newfield, NJ, Ripley’s Believe it Or Not Museum Orlando, FL and the World’s Largest Toy Museum Branson, MO.

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As I said in my previous post, I forgot so much from when my twins were newborns. I find myself rushing to their baby books to see when they lost their umbilical cord or how much they weighed at their first checkup. I also find myself asking my sister, who has an older son, when my kids should start activities. Here are some guidelines for when to start activities with your child.

Swimming lessons-You should sign up for swim lessons or mom & baby swim classes when you feel comfortable. Let your baby or child get used to splashing around in the water. At age four children usually have the cognitive ability to realize they are in trouble in the water and can do something about it or call for help.

Horseback riding- usually at age five children can have lessons.

Skateboarding and skating-ages seven to eight is good for these skills and they really should be supervised until maybe age 10, especially when in the street. Most “wheeled” injuries occur in children ages ten to fourteen.

Soccer- is the safest sport. Age six is a great age to start soccer although I know they offer it in my town for five year olds, and my kids will play when they are five and a half.

Dancing- I think you are never too young to start dancing and dance class for toddlers will only help with coordination and making friends. A mom and tot dance class is a great way for mom to burn off some calories while bonding with her child!

Kids love to play in water. If you are a parent, you know that already. we have even let our kids run around in their clothing in the rain. You are only young once and what is the harm of a little water? here are some ideas for fun with water for your kids:

-Squirt shaving cream into a disposable muffin tin. Add a couple of drops of food dye into each cup and stir. (only use a small amount, you don’t want a green kid after soaking for awhile!)
Let your kids paint themselves and the walls. Hose them and the walls down when everyone is done!

-Help your children build boats and rafts from craft sticks, Styrofoam blocks, aluminum trays, egg cartons, etc. Put your boats to float in a wading pool, sink, or bathtub.

-Pair off children and have them face their partner. Have the kids toss a water balloon to each other. Every time the balloon is caught the child that caught the balloon takes a step back. When they miss they usually get splattered with water.

-If you are having a sun shower break out the slip and slide, you don’t even need the hose!

-Play “tag” with the hose. Who ever gets “hit” with the spray of water from a hose or a water shooter is it.

-Use eyedroppers to drip watercolors on stiff clear plastic. Let the paint dry in the sun, then hang the art in a window.
With a Group

-Dig for worms outside, there will be plenty on a rainy day.

Sometimes I just get bored with sandwiches. Sometimes I just don’t have deli meats or bread in the house. (Hey, cut me some slack I just had a baby!) My kids get bored with sandwiches every day too, so I try to be creative and unique with lunches, or dinners for that matter, and give my kids variety and it gives them an opportunity to try new foods too! Here are some of our favorite ideas:

Veggies and dip. Put string beans in a hallowed out pepper, bake some pita to make your own pita “chips” and if your kids hate raw veggies cook and cool them first.
DIP
1 greek plain yogurt (7oz)
1 garlic clove, pressed
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2C mayo
1 tablespoon dill and mint chopped
1/2 cucumber
1 teaspoon lemon juice

To make:
Grate the peeled and seeded cucumber and squeeze dry in paper towel and add to bowl
Add the rest of the ingredients and combine
Serve with veggies

Try chicken salad or egg salad in a lettuce leaf instead of bread
Try hummus or guacamole (two of my kids favorites) instead of dips
Go pick your own at a local farm, your kids will be more likely to eat the veggies if they see where they are grown and pick them themselves!
Don’t forget about edamame, kids love these and you can even buy them chelled in teh frozen section of your grocery store

What are your favorite substitutes for sandwiches or traditional lunches?

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Today is World Autism Awareness Day. Now the autism rate is 1 in 150 births compared to 1 in 10,000 in 1983. The rate of autism in New Jersey bosy is 1 in 6, so you can see why I am scared. Does it have to do with the amount of vaccinations given, what is in the vaccines or the environment? I am not sure, scientists are not even sure, but something has to be done.

A new study in the April issue of Pediatrics, looked for early autistic behaviors, though not specifically for a diagnosis of autism, in premature infants who were born at a very low birth weight, about 3.3 pounds. It found that several factors associated with these early births were linked to a positive result on an autism screening test. They studied 91 babies who weighed less than 3 pounds at birth. MRIs were done on these infants around the time of their birth. At around 22 months, the researchers conducted an autism screening test, called the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers or M-CHAT.
Twenty-five percent of these toddlers tested positive on the M-CHAT, suggesting that they had an increased risk of developing autism. Factors included lower birth weight, lower gestational age, being male, having an abnormal MRI, being ill when delivered, an infection in the mother before birth, or the mother experienced hemorrhaging during labor and delivery.

Are you scared about autism with your children? What do you think the causes of autism are?

For more information on autism, check out this web site.

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This year we are dyeing eggs early because I can go into labor at any time and if I do not, I have a c-section scheduled for March 18th. I want to participate with them so we will do it this weekend. I always try to stay away from too much candy and junk for Easter. This year will be no different and we are trying to keep our Easter “green”. Here are some alternatives to candy and junk and some tips to be more Earth friendly for your Easter.

Say no to plastic grass. Grow your own. This is easy and looks great in a basket or for a table centerpiece. I have seen edible grass in Target that you can use as an alternative. Have your kids color or paint some paper and shred it for their baskets.

Use natural dyes for eggs. Boil your eggs in water with vinegar and one of these ingredients below, then let simmer for at least 15 minutes:

Purple grape juice (for lavender)
Red cabbage (for blue)
Spinach (for green)
Carrot tops, orange peels or lemon peels (for yellow)
Yellow onion skins (for orange)
Beets or cranberries (for pink)
Red onion skins (for red)

Skip the candy. If you have to use plastic eggs (we use the same ones every year) fill them with coins, almonds or raisins. Or you can just hide the dyed eggs.

Skip the toys. Instead maybe buy books, puzzles, outdoor chalk, phthalate free bath toys (bunnies or ducks are perfect) or bubbles (you can even make the bubbles yourself).

Here are some more ideas for Easter and Easter craft ideas. What do you give your children in their Easter baskets?

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I am looking into buying my kids new movies because I want to occupy their time once the baby comes home. I don’t normally let them watch more then two 25 minute shows or one movie a day, but these aren’t normal circumstances. We will be bringing a new baby home in eight days unless this baby wants to come sooner (please baby come sooner!) and their routines will be messed up along with their lives. I think some new movies will be in order and maybe even new ones from the Easter bunny.
Here are some new releases that maybe your child would enjoy:

The biggest one is 101 Dalmatians: Platinum Edition. It’s been re-released from the Disney vault as a double disc with improved colors and sounds from the original feature. It has a bunch of bonus features added, including a virtual dalmatian game for kids.

Little Einsteins: Race for Space - My kids love the little Einsteins and so will yours!

Thomas and Friends Engines and Escapades, perfect for any Thomas fan and only $9.99.

Handy Manny: Fixing it Right - Cheer on Manny and his tools as Rusty heroically overcomes his fear of heights to repair a jungle gym

Enchanted is a movie that will be released on March 18th. It goes from animated to non animated through the movie. On Amazon it is selling for $15.99 as a pre-release price.

I know I will be renting some movies for my husband because I don’t know the next time we will get out of the house.
What are the new movies you or your kids are waiting to come out on video?

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I love play doh and just the smell of it can bring me back to my childhood. My kids love it too and since it is a overcast, boring day here and I am waiting for a human to come out of my body I decided it was a play doh day. We will be breaking out the doh and some fun accessories after nap time.

Of course there is old school traditional play doh or you can get this awesome organic play doh set. It comes with six 4 oz scented playdoh tubs in strawberry, lemon, blueberry, orange key lime and grape and tools! You can also order refills for this kit. At $38 it isn’t cheap but makes a very cute gift.

This value play doh accessories set is great. I think this is a steal at $21.99 for all that you get. It comes with four textured rolling pins, one smooth rolling pin, four patterned clay mallets, four double-ended wooden modeling tools, a rolling wheel cutter and six sticks of modeling clay. Endless fun!

If you have cheap plastic cookie cutters around your house like I do (really I am a terrible cookie cutter baker, and I need to use metal cutters) they are perfect for play doh. If you don’t, do you want 100 of them? You can get them for $9.99 on Amazon.

If you don’t have any dough and want to make some there are a ton of recipes out there.
Put 1 part flour, 1 part water and 2 parts oatmeal in a bowl and mix. OR
put 1 C salt 1 C of water and 1/2 C flour in a saucepan and mix and cook over medium heat, until thick. When it cools add flour until it makes dough.

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When our family dog died it was a terrible time for us. Not only for E and I because she was our first baby but for our kids who just started to really enjoy her. They were only three but had loved her so much. Granted we still have two cats at home (only one actually comes out and socializes with us) but we still miss our dog. I believe kids should have pets, like I did when I was a child. After this baby is a little older then we will get another dog for our family.

Kids look to their pets as companions or friends when they are upset. I remember crying in my room cuddling my family dog to remind me that at least someone loves me. Pets also teach kids responsibility, if you let them learn. Let kids pick up the dog poop from the backyard or clean the cage. Teach them to change the food and water every day. That shows them that their pets need love and attention, but they need to be taken care of too.
Lastly, having pets in the home can lower your children’s risk of having certain allergies like dust mite and ragweed allergies.

What pet is best for your house or child? Dogs are probably the hardest to care for, but could build the strongest bond. They are man’s best friend. Cats are great but scratch often when they are kittens. They require slightly less care then a dog and are more independent. Many kids are allergic though.
Birds are great but are messy. Some live a VERY long time so research what type of bird you would like before going to by one that is pretty.
Don’t ever underestimate fish. Maybe best for younger kids new to pets. Of course many don’t live that long so unless you are ready for the long march to the toilet, maybe this isn’t the right choice for you.

Tell me what type of pet you have in your house and do your children help with your pet(s)?

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Now that my kids are older and they receive money as gifts, it is not as easy as just putting it into their banks. Now they would like to spend it. I can understand that, so sometimes we let them take 40% of their money and use it to buy whatever they want. Sometimes it is a fruit and cheese platter from Starbucks and sometimes it is a small toy. We are figuring out how to let them manage money as they get older. Here are some tips we like that you may want to use with your kids.

Gift Cards- Kids can learn to buy exactly what they want when they get a gift card. They can save them up to make a bigger purchase and my kids feel like a big deal with their “credit cards”.

Fun Money- When kids are older then give them fun money. This is a budget with say $20, to do what they want to with their friends or with you on a weekend. The $20 has to pay for their activity, food, arcade whatever. Then kids will learn how much a movie and popcorn really costs.

Earn it- Let them ear their money buy giving them an allowance. Give them chores to do every day or buy the weeks end and pay them a fair wage. Either let them do whatever they want with that money (but they have to save all of their birthday and holiday money) or make them save some and save some.

Get a new piggy bank- This one has four chambers, one for each of the four money management choices a child should be taught. They are SAVE, SPEND, DONATE, and INVEST.

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I have so many favorite things to share with you today, the last day of February. I love looking all over the web and in stores for the cutest and coolest things for moms, and children. I also love supporting mom owned businesses and try to promote my favorites whenever I can.
Here are some great things that have caught my eye in the past few weeks:

I love everything sock monkey. Target has had a lot of sock monkey products lately from slippers to sheets. If you want to make your own, here is a good rainy day activity for you and your kids, make your own sock monkey kit.

I have always loved anything with my name on it, but who doesn’t? This site is closed for maternity leave right now, but it has everything personalized for baby from diaper covers to bibs and headbands. I can’t wait for her to get back because I need to get my daughter a personalized headband of her own!

Practice Spanish with these cute dominoes. These are English/Spanish dominoes and for $6.50 are a steal because they are well made and so cute!

Every little one needs a pair of converse sneakers!

Check out my latest reviews on the ultimate receiving blanket

Eco-friendly baby gear

A blanket that is easy to carry and so soft you will want your own!

Great burp cloths and

This amazing pregnancy planner I cannot live without!

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There is one thing about children I didn’t learn from a book, parenting class or from family, I had to learn it on my own: children are all strange. Not strange, look there is a tony person in out house that depends on us for everything, but strange with idiosyncrasies. They start out as cute little things, then turn into full habits. Whether it is what or how they eat or dress or play, every parent has a story to share about their children.

When my daughter was about 18 months old she needed to have a something in her hand at all times. First it was a small plastic care bear doll, then it turned into a stick of some sort. It could be a spatula, a rain stick, anything like that and she carried it around wherever she went. Around the same time my son would make a disgusted face every first bite of food he took. Not the second bite, not just new foods, every first bite of anything would get “the face”.

My son started being “strange” about clothes when he was 3. He wouldn’t wear striped shirts (he had 30 of them) he wouldn’t wear anything with the bear logo of The Gap on it, and he wouldn’t wear any collared shirts. That left us with his 4 ugly t shirts with trucks or spiderman on it. So boring. Thank goodness he grew out of that but it did take a good year.

So tell me, what weird or wacky things do your kids do?

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One things that all parents have to do when they have a baby is baby proof their home. Whether it is taking kick knacks down from the coffee table or nailing everything down in the entire house, baby proofing is very important. Some people start baby proofing the minute the baby is born, others wait until they become mobile. There are now even companies who will come to your house and tell you what you need to baby proof and even help you do it.

Do you need someone come out and tell you what and how to baby proof? No, but if you are a busy couple or know nothing about babies and what they are capable of getting into, this might be the route for you. Some companies charge nothing for a household consultation and others can cost a few hundred dollars. If you are interested in hiring a company to come out and evaluate your home, go to iafcs.com for a list of baby proofers across the country. Make sure you ask for references.

If you want to do it yourself there are a few things that every house hold can do to make their house safer for baby.
Make sure all outlets are covered.
Make sure sharp edges of tables, counters or doorways are covered.
Don’t leave knick knacks or sharp objects on tables or low counter tops.
Use baby gates everywhere there are stairs including outside.
Get a gate or fence installed around your pool and never leave standing water where a baby can reach it even outside in a bucket. Get locks for all the doors in your home, especially the bathroom.

For more tips on how and what to baby proof check out these sites.

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There are so many things to think about and discuss with your spouse when you are pregant and once the baby comes home. One of the easiest things for E and I to agree on was the twin’s eating. We knew we would offer the best foods possible to the babies and plenty of variety! We didn’t want chicken nugget and french fry kids, you know they type, that is their only order no matter where they are eating.
I read that food preferences are established early and that eating is a learning process, if kids are given mainly sweets that will be their taste preference instead of trying new things. It seems to be true in this house my kids will want fruit over french fries any day and they prefer guacamole and hummus to chicken nuggets and hamburgers.

The stats are scary too, 25-30 percent of kids 9 too 24 months did not eat any fruit and 20-25 percent did not eat any vegetables. The most common vegetable eaten by toddlers? French fries.
That shouldn’t be so shocking considering the childhood obesity epidemic.
What can you do to build your child’s healthy eating habits? Here are some tips:

Give the baby grains at six months. Sure he may be weirded out by the texture at first, but I bet he will grow to like it.
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Is it really on February? This winter is going as slow as any I can remember and being almost nine months pregnant doesn’t help matters. It is all I can do to keep my poor five year old twins entertained in this house all day. Plus we haven’t even had the fun of snow to play in all winter long! Here are some ideas of fun indoor things you can do to keep your kids bodies and minds moving:

Hullabaloo My kids love this game. Think of it as a more motion filled Simon Says game. Players move from one colorful shape to another and use their bodies to perform the many Hullabaloo move, when you hear “Freeze!” the player on the lucky pad wins! I love this because even one child can play by themselves. 1-6 players, ages 4 and up.

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