Children’s Literature for Both Parent and Child
March 7, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 1 Comment
Written by Maya Bisineer from Memetales.com
As parents, we constantly have to make sure that our kids are stimulated and learning. As individuals, we want to connect with our own communities and pursue some of our own passions too. Finding the time to tend to our children’s as well as our own needs seems like a challenge too many of us are familiar with. That is exactly what happened to me when I stayed home after my second daughter was born.
I LOVED my kids. After all, THEY were the reason I chose to stay home. But I also stayed home to do a few other things that I wanted to do for years and years like give more energy to my blog and write children’s books. Somehow, I assumed I could do everything all at once! When I figured out how disconnected my two worlds were, I determined that somethings had to change.
That was when I started working on Memetales. At Memetales, we believe that while we try to be the best parents for our children, we owe it to ourselves to share our own creativity. Memetales allows you to do both by showcasing great children’s picture books in a space where parents can not only select quality books for their kids, but also share their own creativity.
Memetales helps parents tap into their creativity and love of reading in a variety of ways:
- Write and/or illustrate a children’s book.
- Choose a book for your child(ren) and create and share educational activities to accompany it. For example, crafts, activities, blog posts, and/or videos!
Moms, dads, crafters, artists, homeschoolers …we are an incredibly talented community inspired by our children every single day. A number of us have blogs rich with content that other parents and educators would love to use. So why not brand ourselves around the great things we are already doing?
Memetales is a website where you can read books, discover activities and crafts, and show off your creations. At Memetales, you will be inspired by the books and the awesome contributions from the community. We hope you will even join our Creator Community and share your own creations! We also hope you take back just a little bit (or perhaps a lot!) of richness and inspiration to share with your own children. We are about the stories we all have to share and the people that share these stories.
So hop over and check out Memetales. Do give us lots of feedback and help us grow, since Memetales is just a little baby with a bright and shiny future!
Check out this post from Allison, a creator at Memetales, from the blog No Time For Flash Cards to learn more about Memetales.
Photo courtesy of Flickr.Review: Motorola Droid Cell Phone
March 5, 2010 by Carissa Rogers · 4 Comments
Cell phone? Seriously? I call it my do-it-all-save-the-day
Smart Device.
The Droid has inserted itself into my daily life right next to my toothbrush and my Mountain Dew. We wonder how we lived without cell phones, right? I’m wondering how I managed without a walking hand-held laptop like the Droid.
I made a list of things (other than cell-phone/email) I’ve recently transformed the Droid into and the list was so long my notepad started complaining.
My Favorite Things About the Droid
- Voice Activated Browser: Hands down this is my favorite feature of the Droid. I’ve searched for Easy Oreo Truffles, Gymnastics in my town, Brandon Mull (for the tween reader in my house), and it never fails. Awesome when you are in a hurry or away from a phonebook or laptop. Look at how readable the webpages are.
- Pandora: Think about this. You don’t need radio. Satellite radio? Forget it. With Pandora on your phone you have your own radio station, and with a data plan you take it with you anywhere you travel! The sound quality is fairly good even without earphones. How about at the Gym? I love my tunes while treadmilling, but even with a few hundred songs on a playlist I get tired of the same songs. Pandora on my Droid solves jogging boredom! (Note: You wouldn’t fiddle with it while driving, now would you?)
- In the Kitchen: Seriously. The whole world of recipes in a little black box. Imagine Foodwhirl.com or Epicurious.com or iVillage.com sitting on your countertop, helping you stir creamy alfredo for dinner, or reminding you to whip the egg whites before you combine solids and liquids for Easter morning waffles. This is the digital recipe book I’ve been dreaming about. (Be careful not to drip chocolate cake batter on your friend… I mean phone!)
- Photo to Flickr to Twitter: Sometimes you need to share an image Right That Second. The 5.0 megapixel camera on the Droid spits out amazingly clear images. I never need to miss a shot again. At the park, during a kid concert, after interrupting little wanna be me with lipstick all over her face—CLICK! Picture taken. Set up your Flickr2 Twitter account and you can email, save, and share your image with a few swift taps, beeps, and wooshes!
- Backseat Crabby-Pants: Kids driving you crazy on a long drive? Believe me, I know. We live 75 miles from the nearest Costco. We are in need of serious munchkin entertainment on those trips! Droid Got Apps? (and games?) Oh yeah, Droid Does. Hundreds. Amen. (Good luck getting it back from your tween by the way…)
- On the Go Shopping and Cost Comparison: Let’s say you are looking for shelves for your tween’s bedroom and you’ve walked into a big box store and found something that might work. But, last night you were browsing around a few websites with similar products. What to do? Pull out your Droid, quickly look up the price of the online shop, and compare with and without shipping. Brilliant.
- GPS map program: I’m in the Target parking lot. I need to find the Gymnastics Studio in town. I use the voice activated browser to locate the address, I click the map and Droid asks: would you like to open the Maps App? Well yes I would, thank you. It opens and I click to get directions from WHERE I AM at that moment. Who needs a separate GPS thing-a-ma-bopper?
- I’ve also ask Droid to become my Timer/Alarm Clock, Calculator, and Calendar. It was happy to oblige.
- Social Media: Of course. The phone is all set up when you first turn it on directing you to log into your gmail account or create one, plus Facebook is ready to activate, and Twitter is easy and free to download the app of your choosing. I don’t use text messages a lot but the set up is easy and clear.
My Least Favorite Things About the Droid
At first the soft keys at the bottom of the phone were diving me nuts. They are so sensitive, when you have turned on the camera if you barely move your thumb over the ‘back’ key, it turns the camera off. I’m getting better about how I hold the phone for different functions and that problem is getting better.
I was ALL about the slide out keyboard of the Droid. However I find I’m using the on screen keyboard way more than the pull out keyboard.
How Much Does It Cost?
The Droid is on sale right now when you renew or start a contract with Verizon. You get 2 for the price of one! $199 for two Motorola Droid phones. One for you and one for your kid (who will take your phone anyway…) I think it’s a fabulous price. $100 for a phone that’s really a walkabout laptop. Yay!
Overall— When my Verizon account expires this month, I am all about purchasing either the Droid or the little sister Eris.
This test drive has been brought to you by Verizon. Carissa was given a Motorola Droid to use and enjoy for 4 weeks.How Can You Help Your Kids Learn & Love Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math?
March 3, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 1 Comment
I’m not going to lie to you. I hated math. I was never good at it in school. I signed up for an economics class my first semester of college and my TA, after trying to help me grasp a concept for over an hour, looked at me at asked in a really aggravated tone, “Why don’t you get this?” I was at a loss. Why didn’t I get it?
And science? Almost worse. My biggest claim to fame was when I lit my lawn on fire and subsequently burned the whole thing! It was so pretty! Isn’t science fun?
So, when I had two boys, I feared the day they’d come home and ask for help with their math or science homework or any homework that included numbers. Why? Because after learning that I sucked at math in college, I promptly petitioned my way out of it. Apparently, I wasn’t bad at writing and my petition was approved! But what that reinforced was my lack of confidence in all things mathematical—things I really do find fascinating and want to understand.
That is why last night’s #gno Twitter party was illuminating for me. I felt surrounded by brilliance as an entire community of parents and teachers and organizations came together to share tips, links, and awesome ideas for how to help your kids learn and love STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, and math).
Here are a few things I learned—quoted directly from the Twitter party—that I hope will help you as you teach your kids to learn and love all things STEM. If you choose to read one section, make sure to check out the resources at the bottom. This is chock full of links to help you help your kids!
Tips for Parents
- “Parents shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions. Keep the lines of communication open.” @PBSParents
- “Instead of assuming a child is “too young to understand”, try to find a more relatable way to explain it.” @bkjones
- “Modeling is important; esp. for older kids. If ur online all the time, they’ll assume it’s OK for them, too.” @PBSParents
- “The biggest thing to help your child with is for them to LEARN HOW TO FIGURE THINGS OUT. Applies to everything.” @RobynOHSH
- “If you don’t limit a child’s imagination, there are no limits – they can take you to the moon. Literally!” @geekmommy
- “Your backyard is a classroom waiting to be used.” @connectingwomen
- “Get out & find beauty of physics everywhere, computers are great, but hands on lessons hard to forget.” @coolchillmom
- “Share [with kids] stories of successes, and also those with failures but with a great learning lesson.” @connectingwomen
- “It’s not hard to get kids to think like scientists – just ask them “What do you think?” from the time they can speak!” @NoFlashcards
- “say, “I don’t know”, then follow up with “let’s find out.” @makeandtakes
Tips for Encouraging Girls to Love and Learn STEM Subjects
- “Encourage girls to get their hands dirty, to explore, to ask questions…to think like a scientist.” @PBSParents
- “Give girls books about science, construction, transportation, dinosaurs; not just princesses & ballerinas.” @amymcdurham
- “Many moms let dad do the fixing or hire handyman, do it yourself to show your daughter that she can do it.” @thesmartmama
STEM-Related Activities to Do With Your Children
- “A museum membership is more than investment, great for days when kids say ‘I’m bored.’” @geekmommy
- “Look for star gazing events in your area or do it in your own back yard.” @PBSParents
- “With math, help kids count everything: flowers in a vase, coins in ur purse, people in a store.” @PBSParents
- “Show kids how ice melts or water freezes. Let them see the mold on the cheese before throwing it away.” @PBSParents
- “For little ones, cut out shapes in pancakes. Point out shapes around your house.” @PBS Parents
- “Bath time: Let them see what sinks/floats. In the kitchen, let them see how an egg changes when it’s cooking.” @PBSParents
- “Find out what Geocaching is & make it a family outing.” @GeekMommy
- “Tell a story, history is full of great inventors, scientist, and builders that can inspire just like a good educator can.” @CoolChillMom
- “Play the ABC game w/ pre-k: go on walk and find natural things beginning w/ each letter-fun!” @sanborncamps
- “If you travel, get sciece museum or zoo membership with reciprocal benefits at other science museums.” @moneywisemoms
- “A simple magnifying glass can lead to great scientific exploration of a backyard.” @NoFlashcards
- “Unstructured time in nature is vital Let them climb trees make forts get an ouchie. It’s learning!” @ohboymama
- “Start an outdoor playgroup and discover w/ parents and kids math and science out there.” @activekidsclub
- “Start a Lego club, encourage trips to museums as field trips.” @RobynOHSH
- “Check out local nature centers. They’re free. Many libraries also have free science-related programs.” @PBSParents
- “For early engineering, paper crafting is great!” @pattyonovak
- “I buy my kids kits like Shrinky Dinks and Magic Rocks and Sea Monkeys to introduce science concepts. They love it.” @mammaloves
- “Puzzles, word searches, crosswords all great 4 teaching engineering – teaches strategy.” @pattyonovak
STEM-Related Resources
- Encourage your kids to keep a science notebook. Check out this post from The Kitchen Pantry Scientist for ideas.
- Make your kids aware of and help them get involved in World Math Day.
- Check out this PBS site for tips on engaging kids in science.
- Here’s some fun kids’ sites: Curious George, Sid the Science Kid, and Dinosaur Train.
- Here’s a link to STEM-related Activity Packs, which offer pre K-12 PBS resources and activity ideas.
- Click here to learn more about the Great American Campout Night?!
- Here are some great nature activities that are free and fun!
- Here’s a list of science museums around the country.
- Another great PBS resource is ZOOM. Has over 100 easy activities to do with your kids.
- Here’s an awesome post from Mommy Poppins on what to do on snow days.
- The Carrot Sticks website gives you a “Fun Way to Give Your Kids an Edge in Math.”
- Lots of great engineering activities at this engineering reality program for middle school.
- For teaching girls programming concept, check out the Alice website.
- Heres the National Science Foundations Top 5 Myths of Girls & Science.
- Don’t forget that the Arts and Music build the science mind!
Photo courtesy of Flickr.
Essentials for Traveling With Children
March 2, 2010 by TiaHejny · 1 Comment
By CanCan of MomMostTraveled.com
Though I do review travel gear, when thinking about “must-haves” for travel with children, it isn’t material items that come to mind.
Starting when my first child was seven weeks old, I have traveled with my children to places like the Bahamas, China, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam, spending time to get to know each place beyond the guidebooks and at our own pace.
When I think about it, I don’t really buy anything special for use only during trips. We use sun clothing with UPF +50, but I also send them to school with it sometimes. Recently we have made trips without the child carrier or even a stroller, but there was a time when we used those too.
I often pick our destinations on a whim or based on a good ticket price. Next I read about the history of the place, which in Asia can span back thousands of years.
Searching out specific things to do is actually my last priority, and I think that when traveling in an uncertain place where real life happens, this is actually a strength.
I guess you could say that my first “essential” is to be relaxed. Do what needs to be done to keep your family safe and fed, but be prepared to take detours and enjoy the unexpected.
The second essential is like the first: be flexible. There will always be times when things don’t go as planned. Usually these are things that provide hilarious stories once you get home! Sure, it is frustrating in the moment when the double room turns out to be 2 twin beds instead of 2 queens, you are forced to share your “day train” seat with a goat, or you can’t stomach the regional specialty. But it is the shared experiences, the awkward and the enjoyable, that cause you to stretch and grow as an individual while bonding more closely as a family.
Lastly, lead by example in showing your family that learning and doing new things is what traveling is all about. I didn’t set out with a goal to eat a plate of deep-fried crickets, but I did it, and lived to tell the tale.
What I really want my kids to learn through travel is that you can find adventure in the everyday. It doesn’t have to be a theme park or other manufactured environment to be thrilling.
Life is happening and everyone does everyday things a little differently. That is the beauty of traveling with eyes wide open rather than scanning the pages of a guide.
About CanCan and MomMostTraveled.com:
CanCan is the mother of two strapping young boys; Jojo (born 10/04) and Deeds (born 8/07). They have logged in lots of miles, traveling around the globe.
Since 2002, CanCan has flown between Asia and the USA fourteen times (and counting…).
Mom Most Traveled imparts the wisdom gained from experience on the road with my children. Read about my triumphs and mistakes, and be armed with information to have the best travel experience possible!
What kind of baby food can I buy in Laos? Are there disposable diapers in Thailand? Mom Most Traveled is continually adding more information about child-friendly activities at each destination, as well as available infant and child care items.
Parenting Question: What Would You Do If Your Child Went Missing for 3 Hours?
February 27, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 9 Comments
Awhile ago, I wrote a post after my boys had gone missing in the neighborhood for about 45 minutes. At the end of that post, I asked a similar question to this post’s title: What would you do if your child(ren) went missing?
What’s prompting me to ask that question again today is a little jaunt down memory lane.
When I was 8-years old, I wanted to go shopping. The mall was 15-20 minutes from my house. My mom was gone. I was left home to babysit my 4-year-old sister. Leaving an 8-year old home alone could be fodder for an entirely different post, but I’ll stick to the point. I had to be resourceful. When a girl “needs” to go shopping, a girl’s got to do what a girl’s got to do, right? For me, that meant calling our local taxi company and hiring a cab to take me, my 7-year-old girlfriend, and my 4-year old sister to said mall. I.WAS.EIGHT!
A little background. My grandma was an alcoholic. She had lost her driver license and so whenever we visited and she wanted to take us anywhere, we’d always have to go in a taxi. It was the only reason I would have been exposed to them as they weren’t abundant in the city of Mesa, Arizona in the 70s. I thought it was totally normal for a person who couldn’t drive to use one to get somewhere they desperately needed to go—like the mall!
Back to the story!
Part of my being resourceful also included borrowing some of my dad’s money and figuring out how to not have the neighbors get in the way of me reaching my final destination. The solution? To have the taxi pick us up in an adjacent neighborhood about three blocks away in front of a stranger’s house.
Mission accomplished!
We spent 2 1/2 glorious hours at the mall. I only had about $3 to spend, so I bought my sister some earrings. Tell me if I wasn’t the most thoughtful sister evs. I didn’t make sure she left the house with shoes on and she ended up shoeless on our journey to the mall, but I bought her earrings. Doesn’t shopping trump everything?
Back to the homestead. My parents had returned home shortly after we had left. My mom called my friend’s house, looking for us. She went around the neighborhood. She started getting worried. And then she found it. My clue! See… I wasn’t totally cold hearted. I didn’t want my mom to worry…too much! So, I wrote a note: “Mom, I’m going to Reed Park… in a taxi.” Sure, it was a half truth, but that last part was all the clue it took for her to call our local Dial-A-Ride and find out about our adventure.
The taxi driver dropped us off exactly where he picked us up, which required us to walk 3 blocks back to our house. We had lots of stares and heard lots of whispers as we made the trek. I didn’t really have a chance to make a grand entrance or say goodbye to my friend when we reached my lawn, because I was whisked away by my nervous mom who marched me right down to my bedroom.
I wasn’t allowed to play with my friend EVER again. Apparently, her mom thought I was a bad influence. WHAT? I was resourceful!!! I saw a need and I met it with limited resources and only a pinch of stealing and lying.
The up side: My sister’s feet returned to their original color. Her ears glistened with the new earrings. I had a huge adventure notch on my belt. And I had given my parents a wild ride! Everyone’s looking for a little something to spice up their life, right? That was me: life spicer upper!
But no matter how many positive spins I put on this story, the fact of the matter is that while I knew I was a shopping diva, in my parents’ eyes, they had two daughters who were MISSING, which was more than quite a scare!
What would you do if your child went missing for 3 hours?
Healthy Smoothies Kids Can Pack for School Lunch
February 25, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 2 Comments
You know all those juice pouch drink thingies? You stab them with a straw, if you can get the plastic off the straw that is. Then, juice comes gurgling out, usually down the pouch and onto your kids’ hands. And, although they do typically end up offering thirst-quenching goodness, the kids usually end up with sticky hands or a bent straw. And don’t get me started on the unheathly-ness of most of these things. Sugar to the max! Right in the middle of the school day if they’ve packed them in their lunches.
So, when I received an offer to review Ella’s Kitchen Smoothie Fruits, I was intrigued. The pouch had a twist off top. No straw. No stabbing. No gurgling. No stickiness. And the crushed fruit snacks were, get this, 100% organic with all sorts of free—gluten free, dairy free, egg free, wheat free, allergen free, spoon free. Seriously! What would be in it? Oh! Fruit! OK! Sign me up.
I shared the ages of my boys—9 and 6 1/2—and waited for the box of goodies to arrive. When it showed up on my doorstep a couple of days later, I found two Smoothie Fruit pouches for toddlers and kids (perfect for my boys, even though my 9-year-old tells me he’s now a teenager). But, I also found six, count them six, pouches of Stage 1 Baby Food. What would I do with those and why didn’t they send more product for my boys to try?
Connor tried the Red One with strawberries, grapes, green apples, and bananas. He downed it in about two seconds and wanted another one. Score! I tried it too and loved it. I’m all about fruit and smoothies and gurgle-free pouches. It passed my test with high scores.
Chase tried the Yellow One, which had bananas, cantaloupe, oranges, and green apples in it. Although cantaloupe is his favorite fruit, he didn’t care for this variety. Bummer!
We snapped some pics and called it good! I had arranged with my friend to have her baby test the Stage 1 Baby Food and was going to deliver it the next day.
Think again!
The next morning, I woke up to six empty or half-empty packages. My boys, thinking the pouches all contained Smoothie Fruit mixes, tried every single flavor and moved on if they didn’t like one. Carrots, Apples, and Parsnips? Gone! Apples and Bananas? Check! Sweet potatoes, pumpkin, apples, and blueberries? Half gone! Strawberries and applies? Sucked dry! Broccoli, pears, and peas. Half gone! Peaches and bananas? Gone and then some!
When Ella’s Kitchen says “Great taste, kids love it!”, they know exactly what they’re talking about. Apparently Stage 1 Baby Food isn’t just for babies anymore!
My kids provided the bottomless pit stomachs and thanks to Ella’s Kitchen for providing the Smoothie Fruits and the Stay 1 Baby Food my boys thought was Smoothie Fruits.Parenting Question: Would You Let Your Child Change Their Name?
February 13, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 27 Comments
If you and your partner are anything like me and my husband, you deliberated over what to name each and every child. In fact, we “deliberated” so much, we finally had to put a moratorium on the baby name discussion with our last child to avoid getting in fights over the name choices. Apparently, many people have this issue given the number of books, articles, and online guides produced on the subject.
After you discussed, put thought into, and researched names’ meanings, how would you feel if your child asked to change his or her name? Would you try and understand the reason behind the change? Would you go so far as to encourage him or her? Would you embrace the change and call your child by the new name or write it out using a changed spelling? Why or why not?
Many of you know me as Jyl or @jylmomIF. But, if you take a close look at my most important legal documents, specifically my driver license and passport, you’ll find that I’m really just Jill, spelled J-i-l-l. The secret is out! But why? Here’s the story…
When I was six years old, I started noticing that all of my friends had cool “other” names. Christine, for example, also got to be called “Christy” or “Chris.” How cool was that? Julie got to be called “Jules.” Even cooler! So, I started thinking about the awesome nickname I’d have everyone call me—a fabulous way to shorten my name. But, without changing the entire essence of my name, I kept drawing a blank. So I stormed home after school one day, stomped into the office where my mom was sitting at her type writer, and demanded to know a suitable nickname.
After coming to a similar conclusion, my mom uttered five life-changing words for me: “Why not change the spelling?”
We sat at the type writer together, typing out the possible solutions. First, we changed the “J” to “G.” G-i-l-l. Oops! I’m not a fish. And finally we landed on J-y-l. Wow! Wasn’t that beautiful! So me!
Now, more than 30 years later, no one other than the driver license division and the passport office (and now you!), knows me by J-i-l-l—not even my bank or mortgage companies.
I never thought of the impact the name change had on my mom and what my whole-hearted embrace of it required of her until my second son, named Connor, decided to become a Ninja Turtle and call himself Leo, short for Leonardo. We moved to a new neighborhood where, upon welcoming him into the children’s class at church, Connor announced himself to the group as Leo. Two weeks later, when I was looking for him after school one day, I went up to the door of a neighborhood friend and asked if Connor was there playing. In response she asked, “Do you mean Leo?”
I recalled all of the debate over his name, the care we put into choosing it, and how excited we were to announce it to the world. But, I laughed, thinking that this little Leo was truly my son—ushering in a new era of name changing.
How would you feel if your child wanted to change his or her name or the spelling of it?
February 3, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · Leave a Comment
Written by Laura Franklin
When I was first introduced to the Fishful Thinking program, I instantly felt a connection with the parent-child activities. The five ingredients of Fishful Thinking—Optimism, Resilience, Goal Setting, Empowerment, and Emotional Awareness—fit in perfectly with my parenting style, or at least my parenting goals. I want my kids to grow up happy and confident and capable.
I have always been a hands-on mom. As my kids have gotten older and more involved in school and other activities, however, I have noticed that we were spending less and less time sitting, reading, and playing together. I decided to do something about that. I made it a goal to try out one Fishful Thinking activity each week with my kids. Not only would we be spending quality time together, but we could be learning things as well.
One week we tried Emotion Charades, a fun activity in the Emotional Awareness section. Before we gathered, I had written down a handful of emotions on small strips of paper. Happy. Sad. Scared. Excited. The kids got into the game right away, and each one had fun acting out the different emotions they picked. Something unexpected happened, though. I noticed that the older kids were reacting emotionally to the little kids’ acted-out emotions. It was hard for them to watch their little brother acting sad, even though they knew it was a game.
Another week, we played Mood Music. We turned the music up loud and danced away. I encouraged the kids to listen to the music and dance the way the music was making them feel. I loved watching the expressions on my kids’ faces and noticing their movements get more intense or more relaxed depending on the type of music being played.
Finally, we arrived at a week when we had gone through most of the Fishful Thinking activities. I came up with the idea to write a letter of the alphabet on individual sheets of paper. I passed the papers around and encouraged my kids to write things that they were grateful for that started with each letter.
The first thing my oldest daughter said was, “Is this a fishful thinking activity?” While it was not one of the activities listed in the website, I felt like it fit right in with what Fishful Thinking is all about. Half way through the exercise, my daughter again piped up, “It feels like Fishful Thinking.” What a great thing to hear from my 12 year old daughter! I was thrilled that Fishful Thinking had become such a common thing in our home that she was beginning to equate it with doing things together, blessings, and feeling positive. It really DID feel like Fishful Thinking! With all of the negatives bombarding my kids all day, I am grateful to have a resource like Fishful Thinking that helps bring us together and focus on the things that are most important.
Bio: Laura Franklin is a mom to five active children, ages 4 to 13, and wife to a language nut. Now that four of her kids are in school, she spends her free time taking pictures and blogging at Better in Bulk.Argee Products Are Super Fun and Fun-ctional!
February 2, 2010 by Carissa Rogers · 3 Comments
Argee Corporation creates mom-friendly products. Making life easier… is their goal. From towels on a string (no more losing your dish towel), to garden lights with built in solar panels—you’ll love their product list! And now ArgeeCorp is on Twitter!
Review
Luv That Tray
Price: $12.99 includes 4 Bright Primary Colored Trays
Size: Approximately 12 x 18 inches
Aha Factor!
Four colorful trays make eating and snacking just plain fun! And how happy is mom during arts and crafts time to have easy clean up? The special edges help prevent Play-Doh or crumbs from landing on your floor. Wisk it off to dump in the garbage and the smooth surface is speedy to wash down or rinse off. My artistic 9-year old is all over brainstorming up other ways to use these trays. She already “Luvs her Trays!”
Examples in Action
Thumbs Down Thoughts
At first we thought they were a little flimsy until we realized they bend on purpose! You can nearly fold these trays in half to ‘funnel’ the mess into the garbage!
YGWYPF (yougetwhatyoupayfor)
At just a little over $3 per tray you can’t beat the value. These are completely reusable (we love that) and durable enough to hold up over time. Plus orders over $20 come with free shipping!
More From Argee Corporation
Check out these fun, functional, and fabulous items from Argee Corp.
Spin N Store Salad bags [12/$11.75] use these to rinse, spin and then store lettuce greens.
My Toy Tote Mommy’s Helper $7.99, Little kids (and moms) need all the help they can get organizing and storing all their bits and bobs. We love to rotate toys in and out of the main play space, and this heavy duty bucket works perfect to store funky sized items when not in use. Other uses could be for pet toys, or garden tools!
Bio: In a former life, Carissa Rogers was a molecular biologist. In her current life, she is the chief researcher of bloggy html, parenting dos (and some don’ts), new recipes, and for spice she pretends to be a photographer. She started blogging in February of 2008 and publishes her good & crazy thoughts on GoodNCrazy.com. She has 3 crazy kids and one good husband.
Disclosure: Carissa was given ArgeeCorporation products to test and try out with her family.
Raising Empowered Children Through Mastery Moments
February 1, 2010 by Jyl Johnson Pattee · 1 Comment
Written By Kelli Perkins
What is one thing that you do for your child out of habit, rather than necessity?
I asked myself this question after taking the “Can Do Challenge” on the Fishful Thinking website.
“Should I make a list?” I thought.
Having a five-year-old daughter and three-year-old son, I’ve gotten into the “habit” of doing pretty much everything for them. I give them small jobs here and there like picking up toys, helping set the table, and getting themselves dressed. Sometimes it’s just easier (and faster) to do those things myself.
As I read more about Empowerment (belief in one’s self)—one of Fishful Thinking’s five key ingredients—and Mastery Moments, an Empowerment activity, I realized that I needed to be providing more opportunities for my kids to contribute, develop their skills, and make choices.
As I was folding clothes later on that day, I decided to turn this mundane chore into a mastery moment for my son by asking him to find all of the black socks in the pile and count them. “Oh! O-tay, Mom!” he said excitedly. (He loves to help me with the laundry, especially if he gets to spray the stain remover.)
He counted 11 black socks and then announced, “One sock is missing!” I was so surprised—not that the sock was missing (socks disappear on a regular basis around here)—but that he realized one of the pairs was not complete. He was really paying attention.
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The next day she insisted on making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich—a slightly messier process. I had to fight the urge to intervene as she plopped a huge glob of peanut butter on the bread and struggled to spread it evenly. Noah had to get in on the act too. I assisted him a little to save the bread from being completely mangled, but the following day, when he asked to make another one, I mustered the strength to let him do it 95% by himself. He was so pleased with his culinary creation that he ate the whole thing—even the crust!
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In an effort to promote their independence, build their self-confidence, and create even more mastery moments, I am taking on The CAN DO Challenge to resist that inclination to always do things for my kids. And when I feel that urge to intervene “out of habit, rather than necessity,” I will remind myself of this Fishful Thinking Empowerment tip:
