Parenting Children

I think January and February is the worst time of year in New Jersey for having kids. There is not much to do with them outside because the weather is cold (but not a sign of snow here yet!) enough to force you to stay inside but cabin fever is rampant. My kids are bored and I don’t blame them. We try and go to indoor play places and do outdoor things as much as we can but it is hard this time of year and expensive. Here are some great games to combat cabin fever and some you can do when you are in a restaurant or waiting room.

I Spy- take turns looking around the space you are in and pick one thing. Give the other people clues and let them guess what you picked.

Memory- everyone looks at the same room/space/area for 30 seconds and try to memorize everything you see, the color of the pictures, the shoes/dirt etc. Then everyone writes down what they remember, the person with the longest accurate list wins!

Scavenger Hunt- give your kids some index cards and ask them to write or draw pictures of some things they might see on an upcoming car trip. During a car ride give them the cards and then they can match what they see with the cards. The person with the most matches win.

Feather Keep it Up- Each person has to keep the feather over their head by blowing it. Whoever keeps it up the longest wins. You can do this with a balloon too.

Obstacle Course- Make your own! Jump over pillows, have to put a small puzzle together, have to recite a list of cousins names, crab crawl through the kitchen, carry a plastic egg on a spoon, the possibilities are endless.

Keep Outdoor Toys In- When my kids were 2 they received scooters as a gift. I let them keep it inside the house until the following summer. they scooted around the house all day every day and the wheels were rubber so no tearing up my floors. Do this with other ride ons.

Card Games- There are so many. Teach your kids new ones or go for old favorites like memory, old maid, crazy 8s or go fish. This is also great for when a storm knocks the power out.

What are your favorite things to do with kids to beat the boredom?

games, indoor games, kid games, keeping kids entertained, SAHM, moms, parenting, family fun, family fun games, indoor fun

I think the best and worst part of parenting is that there is no right or wrong way to do it. Everyone has their own ideas about what is best for their family or their children. I love that parenting should be a community thing, advice from other mothers I have met, aunts, family members and my own mother, have been invaluable. Here are some tips I have for other mothers on parenting:

Make time to create a photo album. You will not experience these memories again, so take the time, even 15 minutes per week to make a photo album or scrapbook.

Show your Kids you are in love. Kiss your partner, tell him you love him in front of your kids. Let them see your love. I wouldn’t shelter kids from all disagreements you may have either, let them see how you can argue and but let them see you make up too.

Never let hitting be ok. Hitting, biting and aggression can be normal in toddlers. Never let him hit you and make sure they always know it is not ok to hurt someone else.

Watch what you say. Even the youngest children can pick up bad word from you and you never know when or where they will repeat them!

Make sleep easier for both of you. Put your child to bed awake as soon as possible,. That teaches your child to self soothe and is important if you don’t want to rock your child to sleep until they are 6. Also try letting them sleep in different places, this will help you if you ever want to leave the house overnight.

Trust your instincts. Whether it is with picking a day care provider, letting your kids ride the bus or go for her first sleep over, trust what you feel is best. You are the one who knows your child best. If you feel strange about leaving your child with someone, don’t leave them, even if you feel silly for being overprotective.

What are your best parenting tips or parenting ideals you live by?

parenting, parenting children, parenting tips, parenting advice, moms, SAHM, WAHM, Dads, fathers, fatherhood, teaching children

I have some tips and tricks for Halloween with your kids this year. We also want to keep kids safe this time of year especially those that are old enough to trick or treat alone so we will also talk about safety.

Don’t want to give out candy for Halloween? How about giving out juice boxes or kid sized waters? Try stickers or other craft items and if you have any leftovers put them into your child’s craft box for a rainy day. The other thing I have seen lately, which I love, is the mini playdoh containers. Although the older kids may rather have candy!
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We are all aware how expensive it can be to have children. For some reason they keep needing new clothes and want to be fed 3-4 times a day! That is why keeping a food budget can be a great idea.
Here are some ideas on how to keep your grocery list down while still feeding your family healthy foods. Of course, some of these ideas may have to be adapted for your larger, or smaller family.

Use coupons.

Shop flyers first. Maybe your graocry has great sales on the meat you need but target or walmart has great deals on the paper goods you have to buy. Making a seperate trip may work in your favor if these stores are close to you.

Do not eat out. Or only eat out on special occasions. Make a pizza at home or find your favorite chinese recipes online.

Buy in season produce and vegetables. You can always buy canned fruit, which can be rinsed of the sugary water it is packed in.

Drink water. Ditch sodas and sugary energy drinks.

Plan your weekly meals ahead of time. That way you know exactly what to get at the store and if you leave your kids at home you will be less likely to buy impulse purchases.

Try these two great web sites to help you plan meals for your family. How to feed yourself for $15 a week has some good ideas, as well as $45 emergency menu for 4-6 people who has great menu ideas as well as a shopping list for these sample menus.

Do you have any tips or tricks to keep your weekly food bill down?

families, parenting, moms, feeding your family, frugal tips, frugal moms

If my sometimes picky children are having trouble eating what is on their plates, I try this trick: I say “please don’t eat me R!” or “Oh no, I don’t want to be eaten please. Save the broccoli!”

My ventriloquist skills need some work but it is enough to get some laughs and defiant bites of food. This trick works 80% of the time.

mom tricks, picky eaters, getting kids to eat, mom tips

Looking for something to put all of those markers or crayons in? Sometimes those cardboard boxes they come in just do not cut it. We take our old wipes container (we still keep them in the house for quick clean up of the hands and dirty feet) and put them in there! We even rip out the plastic tear through for the wipes and the hole is perfect size for little hands to reach in, but opening the top works well too.
I also have used the plastic take out containers from Chinese food for markers or crayons! You can even write on the outside what it contains for easy access when put away.

I bought plastic containers with colored lids on sale at Pottery Barn Kids last year. The lids match the color of my kids rooms and they are perfect for barrettes and pony tail holders. I can see what is inside of the container without opening it and fishing through.
You can also hang a ribbon however fancy or not, on the inside of your daughter’s closet, then clip barrettes there. Easy access and you can see what matches with what in her closet!

girls, boys, mom tips, mom ideas, crayons, craft items, parenting, organizing kid’s rooms

When we had kids we decided that we didn’t want a house full of stuffed animals. They are dust collectors and unless it was so sweet and adorable and soft we didn’t want it. So we never bought stuffed animals, besides the ones I had from my childhood, the ones my daughter wouldn’t let go of in the store and the ones the grandparents and other relatives gave them for gifts.

Now we have a house full of stuffed animals.
I vacuum them and I wash some of them but I know others will not survive a ride in the washing machine but I am disgusted thinking about dust mites living on my children’s best friends.
You can always freeze the bugs right out of them! Place the stuffed animals in a ziplock bag and leave it in the freezer overnight, the cold kills the dust mites and leaves your friends bug free.

stuffed animals, dust mites, cleaning stuffed animals, cleaning, moms, parenting, kid’s toys

The Good
When you come home from the hospital with your new baby, you are still in a daze. When do I feed the baby, when was the last time anyone changed the baby and why is this baby crying?

The Bad
Sometimes babies are just, well, fussy. I am going to tell some new moms something you do not want to hear: sometimes they are fussy for no reason. I know! Why?

The Ugly
I once read that babies cry or fuss because it is their exercise. It is the only way they have to relieve their tension or little baby stress. I think that is a good explanation, but we will never really know.
You can try many things to get your baby to stop crying, some of them may work once or twice and never again, some may work for awhile before they peeter out. Nothing is forever in baby land.

So, Erinn What Can I Do? Help!
Have no fear, there are many different things to try. Swaddling, rocking in the stroller, white noise like a fan in the baby’s room and deep knee bends while holding the baby, are my personal favorites. If you tried those and you need more ideas, American Baby has 23 ideas to calm a fussy baby. Something will work for your child. I promise.
If I am wrong you can drop your baby off here with me, I will have my husband take care of the baby for you.

What are your go to ideas for soothing a crying baby?

crying babies, newborns, infants, moms, parenting, soothing a baby, fussy babies, colic

We first took our kids on a airplane when they were nine months old. Since then they have been on three other flights. I was always nervous about flying with them, how they would react, how they would deal with sitting for a three + hour flight. I have always been pleasantly surprised.

I had a plan. I would have bottles ready for them during takeoff and landing. I had baby tylenol ready to go in case someone was miserable. I put away some of their toys weeks before our flight so they would be all new to them when we got on the plane.

When they were a little older I worried they would want to get down and walk around, explore. They sure did but I redirected their attention to the new little toys I had bought at the dollar store before our trip like crayons, books, molding clay and toy cars. It worked. Snacks in your carry on or purse are like gold.
I also always tried to arrange the flight around nap time. When we could we booked flights on JetBlue so they could watch nickelodeon and we always traveled with our portable dvd player and they even got a new movie or two (one for the flight home).

We always tried to get to the gate early and go off to an unused corner and let them out of their stroller to run around. Burn off some energy and let them run wild. This would scare the passengers on our plane, they would think they were going to fly with two little hellions, but they would sleep most of the flight just like they do on long car rides.
Plus here is a tip, if you don’t want kids on your flight? Don’t go to Florida.

What are your tips for traveling with kids?

traveling with kids, flying with kids, children, kids, babies, vacation, family vacations, parent hack, parenting

R and L have so many toys. Really too many. I know I am partially to blame for that because in the past I have bought them toys just because. I have since changed my ways but the kids still have too much.

How much do you hate it when they go to a friends house and play with a toy they have but never play with at home??
We started rotating toys when the kids were about 12 months old. I will take some toys put them away in a box in the basement and bring some toys up that they haven’t seen in awhile.
This keeps the toys fresh without having to buy new toys.
It is new, to them!

toys, kids, toddlers, children, parenting ideas, parents, too many toys

This is a simple tip or it may just be common sense. When I go to a park with my kids alone or any public place that will be crowded, I dress my kids in the same color shirts. That way I know I have to scan for “green” or “red” in the crowd and find my kids easily.

moms, parents, kids, children, mom tips

I understand that all labels are not created equal, especially women’s. I know that some retailers have a bigger cut of pants with a smaller size on the label to inflate our ego. I like to see a smaller then usualy number onmy label, but my kids can’t read yet.
So then why are all 2T kids clothes not all the same size?
Why do one brand of 2T pants look like capris on him and another like extra long bell bottoms?

You need to have a good memory when you shop for kids clothes, does this look to small for her? Is she really this long? How old is he again?
The age, weight and even height doesn’t cut it anymore, some things just run so small while others run huge.

The only pants I can buy for my son are from Gymboree or Baby Gap because they have adjustable waists that he needs because he is so thin. Some Old Navy pants have adjustable waists now and I see that they also have a “husky” section.
Target brand(Cherokee) t-shirts run a tiny bit small in our case but for the small price tag, the shirts do last a long, hot summer.
Gymboree to me fits true to size, maybe even a little big. I love gymboree and their clothing is made very well, some have lasted three or four kids in my extended family!
Old Navy pants run small to size for me, especially the girls pants which never seem long enough.
Carters runs true to a little small for size. Although they usually have height and weight chart on their tags so it is easier to find a good fit.
I also love baby gap, they have stylish clothing and their little dresses for girls are always so cute! They seem to run pretty true to size, but I do always buy one size up in t-shirts.

Girls bathing suits also never run true to size for me, I have had to buy at least one size bigger since she was 18 months. What is that about?

What do you think? Why are all kids clothes not created equal? What are the best brands to stay true to size?

children, babies, infants, kids, clothing, kids clothes, kids sizing, childrens clothing, moms, Gap, Old Navy, Gymboree, Target

The question of when you start feeding a baby cereal has come up within my circle of friends recently. One friend has a baby who is four months old and has not yet been introduced to cereal, another friend started her son when he was 3 months old. I started my own kids on cereal when they were almost five months.
So who is right?

There is no perfect time to start your infant on solid foods.
The optimum time to start a child on cereal is between 4-6 months.
How will you know your child is ready? You will know if you follow these guidelines:

-nurses or drinks eagerly and is looking for more when s/he is done

-Has she lost her tongue-thrusting reflex? This reflex -- which prevents her from choking on formula -- could cause her to push solid food from her mouth with her tongue.

-has control of her head and neck muscles

Remember, if you or any family member has any food allergies check with your doctor before starting cereals.
Start with rice cereal, then oatmeal and finish with barley. (remember ROB)
Feed each diluted cereal in addition to his formula or breastmilk for a couple of days to a week before trying a new one.

baby cereal, when to feed a baby cereal, when to start solids, infants, babies, moms, new moms, feedings, breastfeeding, formula

Children always seem to have sore throats. Here are some top complaints and how you can help them.

Postnasal irritation signs:Mucus buildup in the throat or a feeling that it is dripping down the back of the throat
What to do: Use a saline nasal spray or an antihistamine if allergies are the cause

Strep Throat signs: cold like symptoms plus a fever over 101 degrees, swollen lymph nodes and white spots or pus on the tonsils or throat
what to do: see a doctor who will give your child antibiotics

Dry throat signs: scratchy and parched throat, often caused by dry air and heat in the night
what to do: use a humidifier in all the bedrooms and make sure they drink plenty of fluids, even bringing a glass of water to bed with them.

sore throats, cold and flu season, colds, flu, sick kids, kids

All of my family and friends live aver an hour away from us. We often go up for visits and I try to schedule our drives for our twin’s nap time. That doesn’t always work out and I am always looking for things to do in the car.
I came across these cards. Each card has a picture printed on it of something you may see in your travels, a red car, a horse, the moon etc. You can keep score or just play for fun.

Better yet, make your own cards. Buy some large index cards and have the kids draw something they see on their travels. Then keep them in your car for your next long trip to keep the fighting and boredom at bay!

car trips, kid crafts, car fun, parenting, kids, toddlers, craft ideas