Everybody is busy these days, but we should all be making time to spend quality time with each other. Unfortunately, that can be easier said than done with everyone’s schedules and let’s face it: we’re all too tired at the end of the day. However, I believe that the old saying “Families that play together, […]
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I’ll be the first to admit I’m not a get down on the floor and play kind of mom. I love spending time with my five year old daughter, but you probably will not see me playing Barbies anytime soon. Also, being a work from home mom, sometimes I get lost in work, while she
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Pinterest and kids’ birthday party ideas go as well together as chocolate and peanut butter. I use this analogy since a good portion of my Pinterest includes recipes with these ingredients. If you’re new to Pinterest and can afford another online addiction, sign up and immediately create “boards” or categories such as “Makes Me Smile,”
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It’s a common story during the winter months. One or more or all of the kiddies are sick, and movie after movie is making even the most enthusiastic TV lover restless. On days like these, I like to rotate some quiet activities into the mix. With a box of tissues nearby and some soft music
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This is one of my favorite pictures from my childhood. That’s me on the right riding my Inchworm which I adored. My brother is on the left in another ride-on toy. I remember having so many toys like this as a child. They were kid powered, no batteries or other sources of energy, except maybe
Being a mom to three boys, ages 7, 8, and 9, can be rough and exhausting at times and the best way I’ve found to give myself a break from all their stored up winter energy is to find them a way to use it all up through fun, interactive toys and games! Here’s my
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Ever walk out the door with your toddler only to realize when it’s too late that you forgot some travel toys? You could turn back, but then you’d be late. And nothing is worse than being the last mommy to show up to karate class. So instead, try one of these easy, fun travel games
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Valentine’s Day is famous for its gifts of candy and flowers and while both are great (who doesn’t love a gorgeous bouquet of flowers?), neither one lasts. Try giving your family a Valentine’s gift that lasts more than just a day – the gift of quality family time. Some of my favorite family memories growing
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I remember when I was in first grade and I’d ask my teacher for homework. It sounded so “grown-up” to have “homework”. But it didn’t take long for me to learn that homework was no fun. Like most kids, I began to dread it. I joined the armies of kids fighting their parents to watch
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We’ve been lucky in New England with not having any snow yet but we know it will come. At the end of October I get prepared for winter so it doesn’t catch me by surprise but it’s never too late. When you’re not prepared, it can make snow days very long and stressful. Scrambling for
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In an age when public and private preschools are nearly impossible to enroll in, it can be frustrating and down-right difficult to think of new and fun ways to reinforce learning and introduce important skills at home. Preschoolers are hungry to learn though and nearly everything in your home can be used to reinforce important life
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As a parent there are so many times where you get stymied by the day to day issues that you have to do that it becomes hard at times to take time out of that schedule to be able to simply be present in the lives of our children. With that in mind I wanted
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As I sit here struggling with a slight case of writer’s block, staring at the pack of P90X DVDs sitting next to my laptop, it finally hits me… I need to remind myself how much I need to stay motivated to continue on in my workout program, through the holidays, through all the yummy meals,
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The traditions we hold near and dear to us during the holidays can mean as much to us as the holidays themselves. They provide a sense of comfort, and security, and we know they’ll remain the same regardless of life’s unpredictability. Traditions can create such strong bonds and lasting memories that they’re often intuitively passed
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It was one of those December nights before Christmas, when all through the house, people were screaming. I keep the calendar for our family of 10. It resembles a quilt this time of year. Every little square is colored with frantic scrawling and exclamation points. Last year was no exception. With 5 of the kids
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Christmas is such a magical time of year. It seems that everyone is just in a better mood and there is a feeling of hope and love in the atmosphere. With that said, there can also be a bad case of the “gimmies” going on in your house. What are the “gimmies”? That’s when your child needs
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When I was a little girl, money was tight. Not just tight – think choosing between food and electricity, tight. We learned fast where all the best food pantries were and how to buy a loaf of bread for 20 cents. When Christmas came around, my mom’s heart sank because she knew there was not
Time to Play: Teaching Children to Give Read More »
I never thought I would end up with a picky eater. Unfortunately, my 4 year old takes one look at my dinners and proclaims, “I don’t like that!”. He has quickly learned that I am not a short order cook and he will be eating what the rest of us are having. Over the past
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After watching 300-pound grown men pound each other on the football field on TV for an hour, my 5-year-old and I instinctively run to get our shoes and meet each other in the backyard. It’s half-time on TV, but it’s game time at Chen Field. Seeing all the raw power and athleticism, and most of
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It’s a fact that many kids are moving away from organized sports and after school activities. More and more children are instead sitting in front of the television watching their favorite shows or playing video games that aren’t getting them active. There are many reasons kids are not participating in organized sports, here are just
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Fall has arrived in the country and I, for one, could not be happier. Living in Florida normally means hot weather, bugs and steam. But when fall rolls around, everything changes. It’s like someone flips a switch. Fall means spending lots of time outside soaking in the beauty surrounding you. There is the changing color
Now that school has begun you might find it more difficult to get your kids excited about fitness. In order to decrease their chances of developing childhood obesity, children between the ages of 5 and 12 should be physically active for at least one hour a day. Kids over the age of 12 are encouraged
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With the recent arrival of the fall season, it is time to start thinking about activities to keep your children entertained while indoors. When it gets too cold to play outside for long, it is crucial for kids to remain active. Sometimes, you have to get creative in coming up with fun things for them
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When I was in first grade, I was hospitalized with a bad case of salmonella. They were never quite sure what caused it but suspected I ate some bad food at some point. My Mom was extremely cautious about what I ate after that. In fact, so much that I remember an entire year of
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