Tag Archives: kids

Do You Employ High-Tech Sitters?

What do you use to keep your children occupied while waiting for your food at a restaurant, driving to grandma’s house or zipping through the aisles at the grocery store? I doubt the answer is dancing, unless you’re doing it on a video that you posted to YouTube and can be viewed on your kid’s favorite electronic device. Don’t worry; you aren’t alone. According to a recent survey, nearly 60% of parents admit to using a tech toy to entertain their children, and experts predict that number will likely rise in the next decade. In other words, iPads, handheld video … Continue reading →

Inexpensive Welcome to Summer Ideas

Today is the last day of school for my two older children. I have some interesting things planned for them (insert evil cackle here). All of these things are free or inexpensive, but I hope they make a big impact in welcoming my kids home, to roughly two months of warm summer days of fun. My kindergartener just got up from bed. He has been out of school since last week and already getting quite used to sleeping in. He will be my partner in crime today, helping me to set up and execute our welcome to summer projects. First, … Continue reading →

Are You Really Giving Your Kids Everything?

The other day, I brought my three kids to a birthday party that took place at one of those family fun centers. There were all sorts of adventures, such as a huge climbing/ball pit, a small laser maze, a rock climbing wall and plenty of games that the kids could play for tickets. In order to play the ticket games, kids had to swipe a card on which money was added. As part of the party, each guest got a card that was worth $3. Each game cost anywhere from $.50 to $2.00 to play. This meant less than the … Continue reading →

Kids Skate for Free!

I’m always looking for new and free things to keep my kids entertained for the summer. We take advantage of free summer movies, free music concerts, library programs and more. Now, there is a new activity that my family may be able to enjoy, free skating! Through the Kids Skate Free Program, participating roller rinks are offering free skating for kids this summer. I like this idea, because skating is so active, just what kids need. During the hottest months, it is sometimes hard to make sure kids get enough exercise. Exercise helps keep a healthy weight, burns off extra … Continue reading →

Cute Handmade Mother’s Day Gifts (Inexpensive, Too!)

Handmade gifts, especially when they mark milestones in your child’s life can be lovely. You’ll find yourself years from now looking at them and remembering back to earlier times. I have a small collection of these gifts, and they always make me smile. For example, there is the wax cast of my first-born’s hand when he was only two. We were at a festival, and the vendor didn’t want to cast anyone under the age of four because children that age tend not to hold still. We insisted and said we would take it, no matter how it came out. … Continue reading →

Four Ways to Downsize the Gimmies

Don’t let the “Gimmies” take over your home. Use the following advise to downsize the constant requests for stuff from your kids. Limit Media Exposure The number of commercial ads that our kids are exposed to on a daily basis is staggering. All of those ads have just one purpose, to sell us stuff, our kids included. The more ads our children are exposed to, the more things they will believe that they have to have. These ads are very clever at manipulating our children into never being satisfied and always wanting more. Limiting the media exposure our children receive … Continue reading →

Working at Home While the Kids are Sick

When you work from home, there are some things that can throw a wrench into even the most carefully planned work schedule. Even if you think that you have allowed for plenty of “wiggle room” in your schedule so that you can move things around if you have to, there will be things that arise which use up all of your planned for “wiggle room” and then some. When one or more of your children are not feeling well, it can be very difficult to stick to whatever work schedule you had planned. I used to think that the “sick … Continue reading →

Letting Go

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It is interesting to watch a person learn to walk. That is one of my favorite parts of child development. It is such a huge milestone to see your child take those first steps. I love it. My daughter walked just a couple of days after her first birthday. I just couldn’t believe how quickly she progressed from that first baby step, to full blown walking everywhere. My middle child walked a few days before his first birthday. And, his walk was hilarious. He would hold one arm out to the side and sway it back and forth wildly, while … Continue reading →

Baby Loves

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I am a very lovey dovey kind of Mom. I hug and kiss on my kids (especially when they’re babies) all the time! So, one of my favorite things is when they start to “give loves” back to you. It is the best. Well, I first noticed my baby giving loves to a stuffed animal the other day when my niece was visiting. She gave him a stuffed animal, and he put it up next to his face and snuggled it between his head and his shoulder. It was adorable. One of the best feelings is when they can wrap … Continue reading →

Today was a Great Day

Some days, I am so exhausted by the time that the boys go to bed that it is a wonder that I have any brain power left to write blog posts, do dishes, or do any of the other things that I do in between the time that they go to bed and my own bed time. Parenting small children requires a great deal of physical and mental energy, and some days require more than others. For the past few days it felt like it took enormous amounts of energy just to get through the day with everyone being fed, … Continue reading →