Kiddie Clean Up

Kids are messy. But with a little paitence and  ingenuity you can clear the clutter and organize the chaos (and even get the little ones  to pitch in!)

• Utilize a storage caddy. (The one pictured was $1 at Target) Storage caddies work as both an organizing tool and a nifty clean up device. With small children, Moms can use a storage caddie to keep diapers, wipes, and binkies on hand as you move from room to room or out in the backyard. This way you don't have to keep running back to the changing table. Older kids and toddlers can use them to help clean up their toys, books, shoes, etc. They can load them up and carry them to their room/toy box. They can also help limit the mess by regulating how much a child can take with them. You can keep a child from leaving every toy they own strewn about the house by telling them they can only take out toys that can fit into the caddy and they have to  put back whatever they take out before getting more. This way clean up is always just one caddy load.
• Stylish and Creative Storage Solutions. Just because you have kids doesn't mean that your personal style has to go out the window. Yes, your furniture should be child friendly - to prevent the heartbreak and tears that come when little chocolate hand prints show up- but you don't have to live in a world of primary colors and cartoon characters.  Use storage ottomans to hide toys and magazine holders to keep little shoes in order without sacrificing decor.  This not only helps your home have a bit of an adult feel, it also helps organize your kids, by giving everything a place and teaching them where to find and put their things.

Deciding on Discipline

One of the toughest jobs a parent has is as disciplinarian. It's easy to get swept up in emotion and add stressed, over worked, and over tired to the mix and you'll find yourself yelling and telling your kids to go to their rooms and not to come out 'til they're 30! Here are a few tips on how to deal with disciplining your kids.

This is not a referendum on spanking and having a discussion on how to discipline your child doesn't have to be a to spank or not to spank talk. What techniques you use, are up to you as parents. But the key to a good discipline is consistency.

• First develop a punishment scale. Not every crime deserves the same punishment. So, don't give small missteps the same consequence as major ones. If you do, there is nothing to keep your child from acting out in a big way; and you'll forever need to think of bigger and badder punishments for them.
• Avoid open-ended punishment. Make sure the consequence has an specific end time. Whether that's sitting in time out for 5 minutes or no TV for a week, having a set ending for punishments makes disciplining easier for you and the child. This helps keep infractions separate and you can be sure you are properly doling out punishment. It also keeps your child from feeling stuck in an endless cycle, where they need to be perfect. For example if you've taken away the TV for a week and your child misbehaves on the next to the last day, instead of adding another week of no TV, trying taking away phone or internet privileges. This way they feel the immediate sting of losing another privilege, in two days they get back the TV but still have to wait another 4 days for the phone.
• Breathe. Take some time before doling out the sentence. In the heat of the moment we may not realize what is actually going on. Take a moment, you may remember that you took the frame off the shelf while cleaning and were distracted by a phone call when you told the kids to go play in the den -- Or that your son only hit his sister after being tormented about his new braces for an hour. Do the kids still need to be disciplined yes, but not to the same degree as if these acts were deliberate or unprovoked.
• Reverse the Strategy. Reward the good behavior with lots of praise and attention. You don't have to bribe them or to shower them with expensive gifts for things like doing homework and cleaning their room. But noticing your kids when they do things right will help keep them from doing things wrong. Try things like letting a avid reader get an extra story at bedtime every day they have their homework done on time and their bed made, or let an outdoorsy kid get ten extra minutes of play just because she asked nicely and didn't whine.
• Stick to it. Don't let your kids out of a punishment just because you're sick of them being in the house, or because you want to go out. This only teaches children that if they make a nuisance of themselves they'll never really have to finish out a sentence. Instead try a "work-release" program, where they can earn time off their punishment by exhibiting not just good behavior, but unselfish behavior. For example, for every hour they help clean the yard, sort recycling, etc., they get back an hour of playtime.
• Don't make family time a punishment. As kids get older time with their friends becomes more and more important, but don't try not to force children to spend time with the family because they acted out in school. The last thing you want is for your kids to hate spending time with you as a family.
• Be a Role Model! Modeling good behavior for your kids is prime. Treat them with respect and they will being to show respect to others, their friends and to you! Kids are smart and they pick up on things very quickly. Soon you will see a positive shift with less and less time and effort spent on correcting bad behavior.

5 Things Moms Shouldn't Be Ashamed To Do in Public

1) Sing and Dance - It doesn't matter if you can sing or not, what matters is that singing I'm a little Teapot will keep your 2 year old from getting out of the shopping cart and rolling cans down the aisle. So sing loud and sing proud. And if people around you look annoyed, just remember that it would be worse if they had to hear your kid wailing.

2) Change a Diaper/Skipping the Line - Kids are not grown ups and they don't have the bladder control that adults have, so expecting them to hold it is a dangerous waiting game; and making a toddler sit in a wet diaper is just cruel. Other people with kids will understand if you ask to skip the line with a wiggling 3 year old; and no one will blame you for changing your infant on a bench.

3) Nurse/Feed their Kids - Similar to the endless bathroom breaks, don't be shy about feeding a hungry kid. You're the parent and kids can't really fend for themselves - so feed them! Also, when children are hungry they get cranky and tend to have more tantrums and meltdowns. So what if you have to cop-a-squat in a stairwell with a slice of pizza; it's better than trying to calm a tired, hungry, cranky kid.

4) Leave Abruptly - You should never feel bad about having to cut a conversation short, leave a cart of groceries in the middle of the aisle, or ditch a party before the cake is served. The reason for your early departure will change - anywhere from tantrums to sick kid - but don't despair over leaving some place when your son is making a scene, needs to nap/eat/potty, or is otherwise just not cooperating.

5) Protect their Children - This covers a wide range of parenting actions from not forcing her to kiss a distant relative she doesn't like, scolding her for running away from you, or questioning a medication prescribed by the doctor. As a parent your job is to assess every situation your child enters and to weigh the experience versus the damage it may do. So never be coy about something you think will not be good for your child's emotional or physical well being.

What Every Craft Kit Should Have

Arts & Crafts are a fun and easy way to spend an afternoon with your children. When its raining out or if you just want to do something different, crafts engage kids imaginations, their minds and their hands. There are endless craft ideas and you can always do a good ol' fashion collage or finger painting. But having a well stocked craft kit will give you and your child endless options when looking for a new activity. Here are a few suggestions to get your kit started and some ideas of how to grow your kit.

The Must-Haves

1) Construction Paper

2) Glue - liquid and stick form

3) Felt - a variety pack of remnants

4) Crayons - non-toxic and washable

5) Safety Scissors

The Secondary Essentials - all in various sizes and colors

1) Pom-Poms

2) Pipe Cleaners

3) Feathers

4) Popsicle sticks

5) Ribbon/Yarn

The Household Necessities -

1) Flour

2) Newspaper

3) Empty soup cans

4) Clear tape

5) Paperclips

Other

1) Finger paints

2) Markers

3) Kraft paper

4) Buttons

5) Shoe boxes

Super Simple Pin Wheel Craft

This craft is so simple and easy you can do it for any occasion holidays, play-dates, parties or just an quiet Spring afternoon!

What You Need: 2 pieces of construction paper, crayons/markers, scissor, glue stick, pipe cleaner, 1 chopstick/un-sharpened pencil

What To Do:Cut the paper into squares by folding one corner up to meet the top edge and then trimming off the rectangle that is left. Let your child decorate one side of each square. When they are done. Cut in from each corner - as if you were going to cut the squares into triangles. Poke a hole in each of the four corners and on in the center of the square. Carefully pull the corners with the holes to line them up with the one in the center. Lace the pipe cleaner through and make knots on each side, then attach the pipe cleaner to the chopstick.

Toy Buying Tips

There are millions of toys out there. But just like everything else in this modern world, toys are getting more and more complex. Flashing lights, moving parts, and music are just a few of the things that manufacturers use to get us to to buy their products for our little ones. However, not every toy in the toy store is beneficial to your child. Here are three tips to help you navigate the aisles.

1) Good Toys Can Be Used in Different Ways. A ball being bounced, tossed and rolled; or a train set that can be re-arranged to create different scenes; toys like blocks, rings, and connecting sticks can be used over and over and encourage children to use their imagination.

2) Good Toys are Made to Last and are Durable. The best toys don't have tons of little pieces. They can be washed easily and will still work after being tossed in the tub or down a flight of stairs . Kids are tough on their toys and the toys should be able to hold up to the beating.

3) Good Toys are Safe, Interactive and Age Appropriate. Whether that means chunky puzzles for your 1 year old or a model car for your 13 year old; a good toy challenges your child's mind and it must be handled. It must be able to stand up to your child's close scrutiny and inspection. A toy that only needs a child to press a button and watch it go, does nothing to develop the child's imagination or creativity.

Not to worry about buying the latest and greatest; we've all spent money on some expensive gimmicky contraption, only to stand in amazement when our child tosses it aside and uses the box as a holding pin for his imaginary three ring circus!

Learn more about toys & child development at The Early Years Institute.

4 Things Your Kids Will Do That You Shouldn't Take Personally

Not everything your kid does is a poor reflection on you. Here are four things that every child does that you shouldn't pull your hair out over.

1. Ignore You: From a toddler mesmerized by Mickey Mouse or a teenager not picking up her cell phone, kids are going to ignore their parents. The reasons will vary, but every child will do it - at some point. Your best course of action is not to scold or chastise too much; this way, your words will hold more weight when you do talk.
2. Break Things: Just like you shouldn't loan out anything you'd be upset not to get back, don't give your kids anything that you'd be mad at them for breaking; because cell phones end up in toilets, lamps end up in pieces, earrings gets lost and eventually cars end up backing over mailboxes. Childhood is messy!
3. Experiment: Kids are curious and they want to learn about the world around them. As they get older this desire doesn't die, it develops into a need to participate in their world. So whether it's an infant sticking everything into his mouth, a pre-schooler trying to climb a drain pipe, a tween dealing with peer pressure, or a 15 year-old wondering about sex -protect them from what you can. Teach them to know all the facts and to weigh the consequences before making decisions so you can trust them to use their better judgment when you're not around.
4. Grow Up: Every parent knows that the moments of childhood are fleeting. The years go so fast and before you know it that giggly 6 year old is 16 and asking you if he can go tour colleges 1000 miles away - without you!! And no matter what you do, how hard you wish, it is going to happen. Your baby will grow up. Trying to fight it will only cause tension between you.
   The time will pass whether you are on good terms with your child or bad, so let the little things go, appreciate your kids for who they are, and let them grow in love and laughter. Enjoy each stage of their lives because when you try to keep them in the past, you miss out on their present!

Stress-free Sleep Guide

Getting your kids to bed can be a task and a half, but believe it or not bedtime can be blissful. The first step to a stress-free bedtime is to make sure your child is tired. No matter how snooze worthy your routine is, if he's not tired, your son's just going to lay in the dark, calling your name every five minutes. So fill his day with activities that exercise both his mind and body. At the end of the day, talk to him about everything he's done; it'll help remind his body just how busy he's been all day. If you know what's on the agenda, preview what he'll be doing the next day; this will help his brain recognize that he needs to rest up.

Step two is the gradual wind-down. Do you know how tired you have to be in order to just lay down and fall asleep? Nearly exhausted! Unless your daughter is studying for the SATs and training for a marathon, she's going to need a bedtime routine to help her ease into sleep. If she is exhausted -i.e. running in circles one minute and sleep under the dining room table the next- she's probably not getting enough sleep! In either case you need to establish a bedtime routine that will help calm her down and help her prepare her mind and body for bed.

Example: How to get your 4 year old to sleep before 9:30pm

6pm: Clean up! Put away the toys, especially anything that makes noise or flashes (start limiting the stimulation after this point - no more outside or video games) then wash hands and get ready for dinner.

6:15pm: Dinner Time! Family discussion about the day and a preview of what everyone will be doing tomorrow.

7:00pm :Wind Down: the last 1/2 hour of mellow age appropriate TV (nothing that will rile them back up) or try complex toy play like Lego's and then clean up.

7:30pm: Bath Time: wash the day away

8:00pm: Simple Play Time: a puzzle, a coloring book, etc. simple stationary toys that are easy to put away, quiet, and don't require lots of moving around.

8:20pm: Story time: Settle in for some family reading.

8:40pm: Tuck in and lights out

You may be checking in on your little one for awhile but hopefully by 9:30pm she's out for the count.

*NOTE: Times are just guides don't stress if it takes 45 minutes to get your little one to help clean up.

5 Things Every Mom Should Invest In

Modern mothers are constantly bombarded with deals for devices that will make parenting easier, quicker, or safer. With everything from Mommy & Me classes to baby wipe warmers, its hard to know what things are actually worth your time and money. Here are 5 things you won't find in Babies-R-Us that every mother should invest in; where the payoff far out ways the price tag.

1) a DVR: Always falling asleep and missing the end of Grey's Anatomy? No more being a slave to your parenting schedule. Go ahead, take the time to read that extra bedtime story and then clean up all those Cheerios that have found their way under the radiator and into your shoes. Knowing that Dancing With the Stars is recording and will be waiting for you, frees up your mind and your day to focus on other things. Oh and you can record your kid's favorite shows too!

Investment: $5-$15 dollars a month depending on location and cable carrier.

Pay Off: actually knowing what's going on in the adult world and not just wondering why Kai-Lan and Dora don't play with kids of their own species.

2) a Crock-Pot: This is the most wonderful Mommy-time-saving device EVER!! You can make hundreds of different things and have a home cooked meal every night. Just dump in the ingredients in the morning and go about your day. No more 2pm stress about what you're going to make for dinner. Like the DVR, its biggest benefit is freeing up your time. It's multitasking where you don't have to do anything.

Investment: $20-$80 dollars depending on size and features.Pay Off: being able to give your family a home-cooked every night without standing in the kitchen for hours.

3) a Detachable Shower Head. You'll be amazed at how much easier it is to rinse shampoo off your kids with this device. Let them play in the tub and when you're ready, soap them up and hose them down! An adjustable spray nozzle will help to make cleaning other things a breeze as well. A soft spray for wiping down a dirty play mat and a hard stream for getting dried peas from a high chair seat cover. As an added bonus, it will help you recharge quicker and more fully by massaging the day away.

Investment: $10-$40 depending on style.

Pay Off: being able to quickly clean just about anything - including your toddler.

4) a Really, Really Good Friendship. Whether or not they have kids of their own, a really good friend is priceless to a stressed out Mom. Having someone in your life that understands if you're late due to a diaper situation and doesn't care that you haven't had time to shower in two days, goes a long way in helping you keep grounded. They'll babysit your kid, listen to you

when you have a meltdown and make sure you get out of the house once in a while.

Investment: a few hours a week.
Pay Off: preserving your sanity.

5) You. The most important thing that you can invest in as a parent is yourself and yet it's the one thing that almost all mothers let go of. Keeping some sparkle of who you were before you were Mommy, helps hold on to your own identity and not just feel like the maid, chauffeur, and personal chef to the little prince. Spending some time focusing on things you love and accomplishing what you want in life will prevent you from becoming resentful, allow you to have experiences and expertise to share with your children, and help define you as something other than "mother" in their eyes.

Investment: as much as you can give without feeling like you're neglecting your family.
Pay Off: securing your identity.

Letting Kids Choose

Ever wonder what's so funny to your child as she flicks the switch and gets the elephant to appear on her pop-n-see? It's not the funny sound or even the sudden appearance of the "effelant"; It's simple cause and effect. She caused the elephant to appear and that makes her happy. Children are happiest when they can exercise some control over their surroundings (think about it: you don't like being told what to do, so why should they?). Giving your child simple options and allowing him to make decisions is a great way to let them be in control of their lives - partially at least. This is a small step towards independence, gaining self confidence, learning self reliance and strengthening the parent-child bond.

I'm not recommending you let your 3 year old do whatever he wants. However, letting him choose between wearing the blue pirate shirt or the green dinosaur shirt, helps him to begin to identify what he wants and why. This simple action goes a long way in building his identity. He is also more likely to show an interest in getting dressed (which is helpful if you have a little streaker at home) if he's included in the process. He'll feel more confident, a strong sense of pride, and a smidgen of respect for you, for allowing him the freedom to choose. And don't stress things that don't really matter. Give them free range over things that you're not going to be a stickler about. Which book they read at bed time is far less important than the fact that they are reading. So if they want to read Good Morning, Sun at 9pm, read it!

Allowing children to make their own choices also helps teach them about consequences. Once your daughter decides on wearing the pink sneakers, she shouldn't be allowed to change her mind over and over again making everyone late for work and school. She was given the options and now she has to live with the pink sneakers for today. Constantly giving in to children shows them that your boundaries are meaningless and they begin to lose respect for you as an authority figure. So hold firm to your limits. If the options are broccoli or carrots with dinner and they ask for corn for the third night in a row, gently explain that "We had corn yesterday, today we can have broccoli or carrots. We can have corn again on Thursday."

The key to letting your kids make choices is being comfortable with all the options you give them. Don't give her options that you don't approve of, that will upset you, or if you're not going to be supportive of her decision. Just because you think the yellow rain coat looks cuter, doesn't mean she's wrong for choosing the red one. Respect the fact that she likes the red coat and feels more comfortable and confident wearing it. So make sure their options are age appropriate and parent approved, and then leave the decision making to them.

Preventing a Mommy Meltdown

There are toys all over the floor, dishes piled in the sink, two loads of unfolded laundry on the bed, a two year old literally running circles around you and it's only 1pm! Here are 4 helpful tips to keep you from losing your cool.

1) Perspective. Remember your kid is not the first eat dirt or throw cans in the supermarket or scream in church or even use those complimentary crayons to write on the table at IHOP. So take a deep breath and keep in mind that kids are kids, and all parents have gone through it.

2) Sunlight! Getting out of the house gives your little one space to be free and the change of scenery does you both well. Not being stared down by all your chores will help mellow your mood (as long as you don't dwell on all the things you have to do once you get back). Take the time to refocus your thoughts. Also sunlight has far reaching health benefits: it helps prevent depression, bones loss, and even cancer!

3)Music! Pump up the volume and shake it with you little one. Play songs that get you excited and make you happy. You can even multitask by cleaning up to the beat as long as you make it fun for your child. Make a playlist or burn a CD so that when you feel yourself getting overwhelmed, all you have to do is press play.

4)Prioritize. Not everything is a five alarm fire. If the bed doesn't get made, who cares?! Do what needs to be done and save other things for when things are more manageable. You're not perfect. Some days you'll be able to have the kids settled, the house clean and dinner done. Other days you'll be ordering take-out while the rugrats decorate the living room with toilet paper. So give yourself a break.

10 Ways to Raise Smarter Kids

Children inherit their traits from their parents, so the offspring of athletic parents is destined to be a sports phenom and the result of two Doctors is likely to love science, right? Not always. Though aptitude and ability do draw from genetics, encouragement and fostering do just as much for a child’s development. Here are 10 ways to help get your little learner to soak up as much knowledge as possible.

1. Teach them to read. The most important thing you can do for your children is to teach them how to read. Reading is the basis for all communication. The more they read the more they will know. Reading opens up the world to children. It is the easiest way to expand your vocabulary (and much more fun than sitting up with flash cards weeks before the SATs). Read to your children, with your children and let them read to you.

2. Expose them to art early. No one is saying to tote your screaming three year old to the opera; but the more frequent and earlier you go the less foreign art will seem later in life. Age appropriate events and explanations keep children from feeling overwhelmed and allow you to learn with them.

3. Praise their accomplishments. Let them know that they can get attention and accolades for being smart, too. Too often we honor athletic talent over academic, and wrongly so. Any positive interest a child shows should be nurtured. If you make a big deal about getting to the finals of the school spelling bee kids will feel good about being excellent spellers. Self confidence goes a long way. Remember: It’s hip to be a square.

4. Fake the enthusiasm. Don’t let your own hatred for math class trickle down to your children. If you continually rant on about how boring history class was, or how theater is for little old ladies, your kids are going to pick up on the sentiment. So try to spin your personal stories to portray school in a positive light and then pass your kids off to the teacher, who probably became a teacher because they actually liked school!

5. Get them a library card. And make them use it! You can learn any and everything in the library. Turn off the TV and video games and get moving to the public library. Library skills go a long way in life. You’re never going to know all the answers; the key is to know how to get the answers when you need them. Learning how to use the library and do research is a skill that will benefit your children in college and beyond. Books hold the information, whether you child wants to learn about space travel, life in the Wild West, Dinosaurs or weather patterns there’s a book at the library to help!

6. Encourage them to get involved. Whether it’s a book club or mathletes having a group of likeminded friends will help them to not feel like such an outsider. Structure also helps kids not go astray. Having a responsible adult who is well versed and enthusiastic about the same topic as your child, gives them something to strive towards and someone to keep them on track (with your help of course).

7. Teach them a second (or third) language. Even if it’s just basics, knowing how to have simple conversations or to read key words (like bathroom and airport) can go a long way. Just being exposed to the sounds of foreign languages helps kids learn. Speaking, reading, and writing other languages, exposes children to cultures outside of their own, making them more worldly and adaptable. It also opens up a new world of music, movies and literature!

8. Diversify. No one wants to be stuck doing times-tables or reading all day and night. Encourage your child to experience a wide-range of academic, cultural, and physical activities. Not everything needs to be a priority, but even the most dedicated scientist likes to get out of the lab once in awhile. Museums, concerts, music lessons, sports, play-dates, story-time, and the occasional hour in front of the television should all be apart of your child’s life. A wide range of experiences gives them a broad base of knowledge to build upon.

9. Sharing means Caring. The more you share with them the more they feel you care about what happens to them and in their lives. So share the artsy-nerdy things that you love with your child and encourage them to share with you. Remember you are your child’s first and most important teacher. If you show an interest in your child’s activities they are more likely to stick to them. Don’t dismiss them when they try to share what they learn with you. This is the best reinforcement you can give to learning.

10. Make it fun. Learning should be fun, not a chore or punishment. Telling children to “read a book” only after you’ve banned them from watching the television or going outside turns reading into a penalty; and once that association is made its hard to break. Reading for school becomes an unpleasant task. So make things fun. Create songs for times tables, spelling words, and new vocabulary. Turn story time into a game show. And make as much stuff hands-on as humanly possible. If learning is fun then it’s not hard to do.