When kids share bedrooms, a family can benefit in many ways.  But it’s not as easy as putting them in a room and having everything go perfectly… when your children are sharing bedrooms, you can run into some difficulties as well. 

These mom tips for kids sharing a bedroom will help you to work through some of the possible problems to make the best of the situation!

Kids sharing a bedroom is good in a lot of ways.  It can be a great opportunity for kids to bond with each other, as well as learning to share space and having to work through compromises and conflict resolution. 

Having your kids share bedrooms can also be helpful on your family budget, especially if you have a large family but the budget for a small house.

On the other hand, when kids share a room, it can also lead to constant squabbles and you will need to intervene to give guidance from time to time. Here are some mom tips to help you set up a shared bedroom for the kids.

Mom Tips for Setting Up a Shared Kids’ Bedroom

Since the kids are going to share the room, they should at least be given the opportunity to select the color and décor of their side of the room. This way they feel they have designed their own side and be proud of it, while not interfering with the other’s section of the room.

Have room rules finalized with the kids and put them up somewhere in the room. Some examples of room rules can be:

• Knock before entering the room, but don’t lock the door unless it’s necessary.
• Don’t mess with each other’s things.
• Be tidy and don’t give the other a chance to complain about your messes.
• Ask for permission before using the sibling’s things.
• Always return borrowed things in time and in good shape.
• Ask before bringing friends into the room.

These rules will bring a certain amount of self-discipline to the children, as they’ll be able to police themselves and each other to make sure the rules are followed.

Give each kid a special area or something like a basket for storing their secret treasures. Instead of finding their things all over the place, if you give them a defined location they will make sure that they place important things only here.

Give them each a responsibility regarding the maintaining and cleaning up of the room, such as making the beds, picking up their dirty clothes and putting them in the laundry, etc. Switch the responsibilities from time to time, or make it so they each maintain their own sides.

Intervene when the children have issues, but only to teach them methods to constructively figure out solutions themselves. Explain to them the importance of respecting each other’s likes and dislikes and remind them of the golden rule.

Give each child a desk (if possible) and an area in the room where they can study, read or do other solitary activities they wish. Don’t push them to do all activities together just because they are sharing a room. Let them choose their own schedules (with your approval, of course), but let them have a say too.

If you have your kids share rooms, set up a good environment, and provide necessary guidance every now and then, the kids will learn to enjoy each other’s company and how to work through difficulties.  This can be a valuable experience before having to share a dorm room in college, or even for learning to live with a spouse or roommate as an adult later in life.

We originally published Family Friday: Mom Tips for When Kids Share Rooms on May 28, 2009.  Photo credit: Mads Boedker .

Family Friday: Time to Share!

Now it’s time for you to share your Family Friday post with the rest of us!  If you’re not sure how it works, read the directions and guidelines for Family Friday here.  Feel free to grab the badge at left for you post or sidebar if you want!

Please add your family-related blog post below in the Mr. Linky. Remember, you MUST link your post back to HomeEverAfter.com.

If your little potty trainer loves Thomas Train the Tank Engine or just trains in general, then he’ll certainly love the printable train potty sticker chart. The site has other free potty charts as well with other designs that are good for use with girl toddlers or boy toddlers.

Whichever one you choose, if you’ve potty trained a tot before, you know how much easier it is with a sticker chart as your secret weapon incentive!  Plus, they love to keep the filled-up sticker charts as a prize when you switch to a new one.

Click here to print your free train potty training sticker chart.

The iGo potty app has free potty reminders, a progress tracker, rewards and more. You can get the free iGo Potty App by Pull Ups here:

• Download for iPhone, iPad and iPod
• Download for android

I remember being told to “go play outside” every day of summer vacation back in the 1980s.  Believe it or not, we actually kept ourselves occupied all day long outdoors, usually with only a couple of toys and tons of imagination. 

This video shows what happened when I took the movies and media away from my kids and made them play indoors one day (subscribers need to click here to watch):

One of my favorite brands / styles of toddler safety harnesses is the Jeep 3-in-1 Backpack Harness.

I love the mini backpack harness so much that I  shot a video demonstrating how easy it is to use!  It’s sleek and cool for your older toddler who may think he’s outgrown the stuffed doggy harness, the monkey harness, or even the Elmo harness (yes, we’ve used them all).  Plus, this backpack harness lets your little guy carry his goodies (snacks, toys, crayons) with him.

What safety harnesses have you tried for your children?  Let us know in the comments below.

Disclaimer:  In compliance with the FTC Guides, updated 10/5/09, this article has no material connections. IS World Media (ISWM) received no fees for the writing or publication of this article.  The Jeep 3-in-1 Backpack Harness was purchased by ISWM to facilitate the review process.  We cannot make claims as to the typical results users should expect from this product, as we are trying it out and have no way of knowing other users’ experiences.  ISWM / We Try Everything does not endorse the company mentioned above. HomeEverAfter.com contains affiliate links and readers may assume that HomeEverAfter.com receives compensation when affiliate links are used.

4 Fun Historical Décor Themes for a Little Boy’s Bedroom

History is an important aspect of any child’s education. Without knowledge of the past, it is difficult to define who we are and in turn, work towards a better future. Children can be taught to love history from a young age and one way to achieve this is through their surroundings. Instilling a sense of wonder about the past is a precious gift you can give your son or daughter and this post delves into 4 fun historical themes you can create for your little boy’s bedroom interior.

Knights and Medieval Castles

The romance of knights, princesses and their beautiful medieval castles are enough to captivate children and adults alike. Little girls adore palace themed bedrooms and the delicate décor that goes with such a setting. For little boys however, the swords, amour, battles and duels with fire breathing dragons are much more interesting and these should be reflected in their bedroom design.

Perhaps the most famous knights known to children for thousands of years have been King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. The castle of Camelot is never far from the storyteller’s tongue when reciting the brave tales of knights in shining armor. There’s a wide array of related characters and settings you can use when it comes to medieval heraldry.

Some items you might consider include:

• Castle themed beds (often with tents and canopies)
• Knights and castle wall murals
• Dragon lamps
• Toy plastic swords for the wall
• Castle-themed rocking chairs
• Replica toy knights on horses to adorn a shelf

Swashbuckling Pirates

“Shiver my timbers! There’s a little pirate in our house!”

Little boys love to play-fight with plastic or wooden swords whilst shouting out catchphrases from their favourite pirate books or movies. It’s not difficult to see the attraction pirates have for children of all ages. The adventures, mysteries and battles pirates get up to are enough to fuel any young boy’s imagination. It appeals directly to their natural sense of fun and kinship.

For parents and grandparents, the most famous pirate stories would be from tales such as Robinson Crusoe, Treasure Island and Long John Silver. However, for young kids these days, their image of piracy is largely going to come from the tales of Johnny Depp in ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’. The exciting cinematic special effects and the likeable characters (together with the very scary bad guys) have rekindled the romance associated with pirates of old.

A pirate themed bedroom will be the captain’s cabin amongst your little boy’s friends from where they can hatch their devious pirate plans for acquiring chests of gold or eatable bounties.

Some items you might consider include:

• Ship’s wheel wall decoration
• Pirate bedding
• Black skull and cross bone flag for the wall
• Pirate themed wooden storage chest for toys
• Movie posters of Captain Jack Sparrow and friends
• Nautical themed clock

Cowboys and the Wild West

Buffalo Bill Cody’s Wild West Show did a lot to cement the image of cowboys we have today. One might also be forgiven for thinking cowboys and the Wild West have become less popular amongst children of the newer generation and in some ways this is true. During the 20^th Century, there were tons of movies related to cowboys and their conflicts with Indians and fellow cowboys. John Wayne personified the proud and often chivalrous ideal of the brave American rancher.

Of course, Hollywood glossed over many of the realities of cow herding and the frontier era. Nevertheless, cowboys still have an iconic image in the United States and due to cartoon representations and their parent’s love of old black and white western movies, the theme is a widely requested one among little boys.

Some items you might consider include:

• Cowhide print cushions and sheets
• Cowboy boots decor
• Stagecoach themed bed
• Personalized wanted poster
• Cactus wall décor
• Horse themed wallpaper
• Rustic wooden furniture
• Kid’s indoor tepee

Cavemen and Dinosaurs

“Ug ug ug!” is probably the sound most people think emanated from our early ancestor’s lips as they sat in caves chewing on the carcasses of their hunted prey. This is a rather humorous stereotype of cavemen propagated by cartoons and various movies. In fact, the ‘caveman’ as we imagine him to be (rather like Fred Flintstone but not as clean shaven) is of course not that close to the reality of how early humans lived. However, for decorative purposes in a child’s bedroom, it matters very little.

It’s popular to pair cavemen with dinosaurs too and again this is thanks to Hollywood movies and comic strips. It’s not historically correct but nevertheless fun and entertaining. Many little boys who have recently enjoyed a caveman or dinosaur movie or book will love a themed bedroom based along these lines.

Some items you might consider include:

• Bone décor
• Dinosaur wall decals
• Leopard print upholstery and bedding
• T-Rex table lamp
• Dinosaur themed wall clocks
• Caveman movie posters and art prints
• Caveman figurines

A Child’s Imagination

Decorating a little boy’s bedroom with one of these 4 historical themes will be a fun and rewarding task for both you and your child. Depending on the age of your son, it’s always a good idea to get a little input from him and let him choose some of the items and decorations that make up the final décor scheme. A child’s imagination is very rich and the ideas a child gives will often surprise you in a very positive way. You might even end up redesigning the master bedroom because of something he suggests!

4 Fun Historical Décor Themes for a Little Boy’s Bedroom is linked to 11th Heaven and Works For Me Wednesday.

Get more Wordless Wednesday at WordlessWednesday.com and 5 Minutes 4 Mom.

It went like this:

“Dear God,

Thank you for this food.  Thank you for mommy, Truett, Seven, daddy, and Hannah coming home at 5 o’clock. Thank you for this day, because I like Friday.  But not Monday.

In Jesus’ name,

Amen”

Luckily, I stumbled upon one of the best foods to cook with a toddler: Jello jigglers!  Not only is Jello easy and fast to make, but cutting the shapes out with cookie cutters is fun enough to keep your little one interested until you’re all finished.

Here is Truett in his apron and chef hat.  He was excited to make Jello jigglers, but he didn’t really understand what they were or what he would be doing.  We used sugar free Jello, because that’s how we like it!

After letting the Jello cool in the refrigerator to set, I showed Truett how to press a cookie cutter into the Jello. 

The important thing in making Jello jigglers turn out is to follow the recipe for jigglers, not the recipe for regular Jello.  Jigglers have a thicker, chewier consistency that make it possible to cut out shapes with cookie cutters. 

When I handed him the first shape, he finally realized that making jigglers was super fun!  He was eager to try his own next.

When making Jello jigglers with a toddler, remember these tips:

1. Start with a simple shape without a lot of turns and lines to make the jiggler easier to remove from the pan.  Our first shapes were a triangle and a square.
2. While it’s okay to let your toddler press the shapes into the Jello, it’s probably a better idea for mom or dad to take the jiggler out of the pan.  Sometimes they don’t come out in one piece.
3. Save the difficult cookie cutters for the end.  Below, you can see our gingerbread man jiggler.  He was very difficult to get out of the pan with all his limbs intact, but was the most in-demand jiggler when it came time to eat them!

   

4. Remember to soak the bottom of the pan long enough to make the Jello soft, but not long enough to make the Jello start melting.

Have fun making Jello jigglers with your little aspiring chef!  the most fun part of the whole project, of course, is eating them together!   Cooking with Toddlers: Making Jello Jigglers is linked to Tempt my Tummy Tuesdays, Tasty Tuesday, Kitchen Tip Tuesday, and 11th Heaven.

When we decided to put our son into a Christian preschool, we failed to ask some of the most important questions and ended up with a situation we didn’t like.  Knowing how to pick the right preschool is easy when you get all the right information up front.

Your youngster’s forthcoming learning depends much on this earliest time of learning.  In some states, pre-k starts as young as 2 or 3 years old, while in others it’s still at age 4.  It doesn’t matter if you decide to homeschool your child or send them to a preschool, as long as they are beginning their learning activities somewhere.  If you are choosing a preschool, it is a must to know how to choose the right preschool for your child. 

You and your spouse should sit down together and write down a list of needs for preschool based on your priorities and values.  Remember to consider curriculum, schedule, health, eating, and the school’s location from your town, home, or work.  In addition to your list, use our questions for thought below. These will make sure you have all the information you need when choosing a preschool for your child.

How to Pick the Right Preschool: Questions to Ask

What is the ratio of teachers to children at the preschool you’re considering?  If you want your son or daughter to have a lot of individual attention from the preschool teacher, choose a school with a small teacher/child ratio.  Do you want a school with few kids or lots of kids?  It may be a benefit to have more kids to choose from for potential playdates with your little one.

What are the educational materials and teaching toys used by the preschool you’re considering? How often does the staff sanitize the toys?  Are the toys replaced as soon as they show wear and tear?  Make sure the school has a system for monitoring safety recalls to keep the educational toys in the classroom safe.

Does the preschool issue progress reports, and if so, are they daily, weekly, or monthly? How involved does the preschool want parents to be in teaching and what is required? Some schools require a number of volunteer hours for the parents to work at the school.  Make sure the preschool’s requirements work with your schedule.

How does lunch time work?  Is food provided by the school?  If kids are required to bring a lunch and snack, make sure you know about food storage in the classroom so that you can pack appropriate foods. Is there a microwave in the class so that your tot’s food can be reheated?

What is the preschool’s learning philosophy? Do they focus on hands-on learning or book learning? Is your child going to be allowed to choose not to do certain activities?  Some preschools offer way too much choice and freedom to kids who can’t make these kinds of decisions yet.

What does the school require for sick children as far as staying home when not feeling good?  Do they have a temperature requirement for staying home with a fever?   Do parents have to pick up children when sick to keep contagious illnesses from spreading? Do they have a school nurse handy for sick kids?  Do they regularly check kids for lice?

Do they penalize children for absences?  This may seem like a silly question to ask at the young preschool age, but the answer may surprise you.  Our chosen preschool for my son actually fined the parents money for kids’ absences – even at 3 years old! 

Is there a contract required for attendance?  This is another important point in case you decide the school is not a good fit for your toddler.  You’ll want to make sure you’re not subject to fines or penalties if you don’t finish out a quarter, semester, or school year.

Asking these important questions will help you decide whether a preschool is the right fit for your child.  Once you have narrowed down your choices, make sure you visit each of these schools in person. Talk to the staff and make sure you get their policies in writing in case of disputes later.  

When in doubt, get more information!  And if ever you have a feeling that something is not right about the preschool, even if there is nothing tangible you can point to that supports your feeling, go with it.  A bad feeling now won’t feel any better when you’re at work and your little one is at the preschool without you!

17 School Supplies Not to Buy

It’s back to school season, and stories abound of parents going into debt to get all the school shopping done.  Going back to school means kids need a lot of things, from school clothes to paper and pencils to new contacts and glasses.  Contrary to popular belief, school shopping doesn’t have to kill your budget.

Many school items can be used for several years in a row.  Make sure you evaluate your purchases carefully and buy quality items that will last more than one school year.  It may not seem frugal to buy a more expensive backpack, but paying a higher price for a more durable, higher quality item can mean big savings in the long run.

If cleaning your child’s room turns up 500 crayons, 4 rulers, and 3  pairs of scissors, you might start to wonder why these items are on your list to purchase yet AGAIN before school starts!  Recover and inventory all the supplies that came back home when school let out for summer vacation.  Check your inventory against our list of school supplies not to buy before you go shopping.  From the most obvious to the most overlooked, here they are:

17 Back to School Supplies From Last Year That Can Be Used Again

1.  Rulers.  There is a reason there are 4 of these in your child’s room.  Rulers are readily given out at state fairs, parades and stores, but are pretty hard to wear out.  Put one from last year into this year’s school supplies bag, and consider donating the extras to kids in need. Savings: $1

2.  3 Ring Binders.  This is an item it’s okay to spend more on for durability.  If binders are still in good shape with no tears, they can be used for several school years.  Just change out the contents and re-label the spine, and you just saved $5.  Savings: $5 each

3.  Pencils and Pens.  Chances are, most of the pencils that went to school last year came back home from school too.  Round them up, sharpen to fresh points, and pack into a cute pencil box.  Savings: $2

4.  Erasers.  For elementary school kids, erasers are a must-have.  Big pink erasers require a lot of use to get to the point of replacement.  Two large erasers will usually last quite a while.  If they look dirty, rub them on the carpet to get them looking pink again.  Savings: $2

5.  Crayons.  Most elementary supply lists call for students to bring in boxes of 24 crayons.  Resist the temptation to buy huge new boxes of crayons every year. 

Gather up the crayons in your child’s room and put them into a supply box.  Discard the broken crayons only (or put those into a craft box for home use).  Chances are, you’ll have hundreds of crayons to choose from without spending a dime.  Savings: $2-$7

6.  Markers:  There may be broken sets of markers in your child’s room, and for good reason.  Markers are great accessories and come with toys, fuzzy posters, color books, and more, so you’re bound to have a lot of different shapes, sizes and brands. 

However, as long as there is at least one of each color, it won’t matter if you reuse them.  Put into a zippered pencil bag or supply box and you have a full (if mismatched) set of markers.  Savings: $3-$10

7.  Backpacks:  Pay a little extra to get one that will last.  Cheap plastic backpacks might be tempting, but they’ll likely crack in the cold weather (for those who live in snowy climates) or fall apart with normal use throughout the school year. 

Stick with solid colors and avoid cartoon and movie characters!  There’s nothing quite as bad as having to buy a new backpack just because the picture on it isn’t cool anymore.  A good quality backpack can last 3-4 school years.  Savings:  $10-$40

8.  Scissors: It usually takes a hammer or an aluminum baseball bat to break metal scissors!  Seriously, unless there is a strange accident to break them or cutting a lot of heavy material to dull their blades, scissors will last for several school years.  Savings: $3

9.  Colored Pencils:  If they weren’t sharpened down to little nubs last year (and they probably weren’t), collect last year’s colored pencils and put them into a zippered pencil bag if the original box is missing.  Savings: $3

10.  Supply Box or Pencil Boxes:  Plastic boxes can crack, but usually don’t get much wear and tear inside a desk or cubby.  Use a pencil box 2-3 school years in a row.  Savings: $1-$3

11.  Bottles of School Glue:  If last year’s bottle is not empty or dried out, it’s good enough to go back to school.  Savings: $1 each

12.  Glue Sticks:  If the lids have tight fits and the glue hasn’t hardened, use the rest of last year’s glue sticks up first.  Savings: $1-$3

13.  Notebook or Filler Paper:  Gather the partial stacks of empty sheets and fill them into three ring binders or clip together with binder clips.  Savings: $.50-$2

14.  Pencil Sharpeners:  Little plastic pencil sharpeners rarely break.  Get 3-4 school years of use out of sharpeners.  Savings: $1

15.  Notebook Dividers:  Use sticky labels to re-label the tabs, and you can get multiple uses out of a pack of dividers.  Savings: $1-$3

16.  Pocket Folders:  Buy plastic folders instead of paper/cardboard for longer life.  Plastic folders rarely show wear and tear and can be used for years.  Savings: $1-$3 each

17.  Spiral bound notebooks:  Most likely, last year’s notebooks weren’t completely used up.  Tear out all the used pages, then use the remaining paper in the half-full notebooks up before buying brand new ones. Savings: $1-$4 each

Back to school shopping time doesn’t have to throw your frugal habits aside.  By making sure to buy more durable products and use up supplies already purchased in previous years, you can slash your back to school shopping budget dramatically!

Originally published July 31, 2008.  Photo courtesy of stock.xchng. 

Our experiment with the Preschool Prep DVDs set is complete and I’m ready to give my full report!  If you missed the explanation of the experiment we did, you can read it here: Preschool Prep DVDs Learning Experiment.

We wanted to know if the Preschool Prep DVDs worked as well and as fast as the study the company conducted.  Their claims were that many children in a 2 month study learned their letters in only 2 weeks.

Although we intended to let the experiment go for 2 months, like the comparison study, we ended it early.  Our experiment stopped at about 1 1/2 months because our son, Truett, had already learned all the material!

He learned the information so fast, and we even let him re-watch his favorite DVDs from the set for about a week as review.  Around that time, he got really burned out on the shows and became irritable when we would put them on.  That’s how we knew the experiment was over.

Did They Work for Us?

Not only did Preschool Prep work for my son, it worked immediately.  He repeated along with the TV, even though it never told him to repeat the letters, numbers, shapes, or words.  After 45 days, Truett knew the entire alphabet (lowercase and capital letter), numbers 0-10, 8 shapes, 8 colors, and 47 sight words!

Keep in mind that we never did more than 2 hours per day, and most days it was much less (such as one 45 minute program).  These DVDs are so fun that Truett would ask to watch them by name (“shape show” “sight words show”). 

My son completed most of the curriculum for preschool and all the reading/vocabulary curriculum for kindergarten in only a month and a half!

Certainly, we’ll be using this system on all of our other children as well.  With my 7-month old daughter, we’ll be starting her on Preschool Prep much earlier than Truett.  The information says that 2 of the DVDs are to be started at 9 months old, and the others at 15 months.  We’ll start her on the program at the recommended ages and see if they work as fast as they did at an older age. 

Try the Preschool Prep DVDs for Your Kids

The results of this experiment are only ours and we can’t guarantee that the DVDs will work the same for your child.  You can purchase the Preschool Prep DVDs from Amazon at a discounted price (the company’s site is much more expensive).  Here’s how to buy:

Buy the Set:  Buy the Preschool Prep DVD Series 7 Disc Set from Amazon for $59.99 + free super saver shipping. Click here to learn more.

Or you can buy them one DVD at a time. Buy the 7 single Preschool Prep discs here:

• Meet the Sight Words, Discs 1, 2, and 3
• Meet the Colors DVD $13.49 + free super saver shipping
• Meet the Letters DVD $10.99 + free super saver shipping
• Meet the Shapes DVD $13.49 + free super saver shipping
• Meet the Numbers DVD $14.95 + free super saver shipping

What’s Next for Preschool Prep Learning?

We just found out that Preschool Prep is selling easy reader books and workbooks that go along with their program.  This is the next step for Truett, as he’s wanting to read books (he’ll turn 3 years old next month) and it’s all thanks to Preschool Prep. 

We’ve also started him on Hooked on Phonics for helping him sound out words.  I’ll be glad to report on how the Preschool Prep books and workbooks work out, and if they’re as effective as the original program.

– 

Disclaimer:  This article is a product review conducted by Danelle Ice.  The Preschool Prep 7 DVD set was purchased by IS World Media to facilitate the review process.  We cannot make claims as to the typical results users should expect from this product, as we are trying it for the first time and have no way of knowing other users’ experiences.  This review is the honest opinion of our reviewer and is NOT paid content.  No fee was received for conducting this experiment.  IS World Media / We Try Everything are not affiliated with Preschool Prep Co.

1. Girls & Modesty: Parents- Say NO to Kids’ Immodest and Trashy Summer Clothes
2. Girls & Modesty: Kids’ Clothes Should NOT Have Sex Appeal

I’m Angry About Immodest Summer Clothes for Young Girls

We’ve been talking about the indecent amount of skin children’s clothing is now designed to show off.  There’s never a good reason that a 6 year old girl needs to be wearing sexy or revealing styles of clothes designed for a grown woman. 

When I attempted to shop for summer clothes for my 10 year old daughter, the clothes (in this article) are what I found.  We need to bring back modesty and teach our girls to respect their bodies by covering up!

Top 6 Worst Indecent Kids’ Summer Clothes

The most immodest kids’ clothing styles can be summed up in 6 raunchy pieces.  Below are a few fashion standards that have gone mainstream in children’s clothing, but are completely inappropriate:

1.  Backless/topless shirts.  Halter tops, tube tops, and string tops may be hot in music videos, but they are racy provocative clothing items that children do not need to be wearing.  Under no circumstance does my daughter EVER need to wear a backless shirt!  Why would her back need to be out for everyone to see?  Is there some good reason to remove the fabric from the back of a child’s shirt?

At left, you can see a popular “string top” that only has a string that ties around the neck.  Yes, this green shirt is a kids’ top sold at Old Navy.

The pink shirt at left is a halter top.  You can see how (1) lowcut it is in the front, (2) completely backless it is, and (3) short it is so that the entire back, shoulders, and stomach of your daughter is “out there”.  This is NOT appropriate for a tween or teen to be wearing.  Yet, you can buy this gem at Amazon.

At left, you can see a pink striped child’s tube top dress.  Lets pray that while running and playing the dress does not slip down, exposing your child’s entire bare chest (not to mention that unless your 10 year old is sporting a strapless training bra, she’ll be unable to wear a bra at all with this style of dress).

2.  Racer-back tank tops.  A racer back cuts into the middle of the back, meaning that the back of both bra straps are completely visible.  Racer-back tank tops are meant for female athletes wearing racer-back bras underneath them.  Racer back tank tops or dresses with racer backs (yes, I saw this at Walmart today in the Miley Cyrus line of clothing) are not appropriate for tweens and teens. 

As you can see in the picture below (left), a racer back shirt shows the entire bra strap.  Even the photo shows a grown woman wearing this type of shirt, not a young child.  Below (right), you see a child’s racer back tank from popular brand Paul Frank.  The fabric to the back of the shirt is really all thee, but has then been gathered into the middle to expose more skin on purpose.

3.  Too-short kids’ mini dresses.  Dresses that come above the knee so far as to be half-way between knee and nether regions have no place on a child.  The “banded bottom dress” below by company Amy Byer is so short that it looks like a shirt.  It’s really a girls’ size 7-14 dress. 

Not surprising, I couldn’t find a picture of any of these dresses on a child model.  My guess is that the pictures of a real child wearing this indecent clothing would spark decency issues for the manufacturer.

4.  Skimpy kid’s bikinis and cut-away one piece swimsuits.  (Below girls’ bikini swimsuits are by Disney, Roxy, and Hello Kitty.)  A Disney swimsuit isn’t something that should make you think of a bare midriff.

The Hello Kitty bikini is cut so skimpy in the bottoms that you can’t even see the back (it’s smaller than the front).  Does a child’s bikini really need to be cinched in the middle of the chest to accentuate the breasts?

Roxy child’s swimsuit (cut out back and string top):

Xhilaration kids’ swimsuit by Target (with the back and sides cut out to show off your daughter’s midsection),

and Raisins girls’ swimsuit (shown below), which is not only missing its entire backside, but features a large tie in the back.  No one ever heard of 12 year old boys liking to untie things, such as the backs of girls’ swimsuits, then run away – right?

5.  Raunchy children’s mini skirts. The blue skirt pictured below is called “Child Ruffle Mini Skirt” by Body Wrappers.  In their own description of the skirt, they say, “convertible mini ruffle skirt can be worn multiple ways… can be worn over a longer length skirt or over booty shorts.”  Please explain to me why any tween or teen should be wearing booty shorts in the first place, then lets talk about how wrong it is to wear a skirt that is shorter than shorts!

The mini skirt by Funky Diva  shown below is horrifyingly short.  The fact that they chose to put it on a child model wearing fishnet tights doesn’t help it to look any less trashy.  Notice where the child’s knees are – at the bottom of the picture, and nowhere near the hemline of this kids’ skirt.

6.  Kids’ short shorts or Daisy dukes.  With inseams ranging from 1” to 2” on many of the girls’ shorts now, it’s a no-brainer to see how immodest these short shorts are.  If any one of us moms or dads was to wear a pair of shorts with a 1” inseam, I’m pretty sure we know what would happen:

1. We’d have things hanging out the bottom of our shorts that ought to be tucked safely up in the sorts, and
2. then we’d be arrested for indecent exposure when aforementioned items did hang out the bottom!

Below are a few photos of actual girls’ size 7-14 shorts by Roxy, Diesel, and YMI.  I found shorts just as short at my local Walmart store today.

Subscribe now for free so you don’t miss any of this series!  Up next in the Girls & Modesty series: Shopping For Fashionable but Appropriate Kids’ Clothes.

If you missed the introduction to the Girls & Modesty series, you can read it now: Parents- Say NO to Kids’ Immodest and Trashy Summer Clothes.

Kids’ Clothes Should NOT Have Sex Appeal

If your child’s outfit looks like it could have been worn on America’s Next Top Model, you have big problems, my friend.  Our kids should look like children, not women.  Childhood is short enough already.  There’s no reason at all for children to have “sex appeal” from their clothes.

The picture above might seem extreme, but this an actual photo from Amazon.com showing young girls’ clothes available to buy. 

I have seen outfits very similar to this one (black miniskirt, fishnet tights, and red fishnet top) used as costumes for prostitutes in movies! In fact, if think about the most generic “hooker” outfit you can imagine in a movie, the mini skirt and fishnet stockings probably come to mind first.

Who would want their sweet 9  year old dressed like a streetwalker?  Does a 12 year old need to copy outfits from Lady Gaga or America’s Next Top Model?

When we talk about immodest kids’ clothes, we’re talking about clothes that show way too much skin on a child’s body.  These include halter tops, short shorts (Daisy Dukes) tube tops, skimpy bikinis, mini skirts, and other children’s clothes modeled after adult women’s styles.

The Effects of Dressing Your Child in Revealing Clothes

Dressing your child (or allowing her to dress) in revealing and indecent clothing does your daughter a major disservice.  It  sets her up to think dressing immodestly is the right way to draw attention to herself. 

Showing too much skin is a sure-fire way to get attention from boys and lots of it.  But it won’t be boys who want to date a nice Christian girl, meet her parents, and share common goals and interests.  The boys coming around will be interested in only 1 thing- the thing we don’t want our daughters doing until they’re married.

If a girl child, tween, or teen sends a message out with her clothes that she’s “sexy” or “flirty” or “hot” or “sassy” (words which are even printed on a lot of kids’ and juniors’ size clothes), she is advertising that she is okay with being involved in sexual activity.  Children don’t need to be sexy or even thinking about trying to be appealing to the opposite sex – they need to be playing with toys and using their imaginations.

A Parent’s Job is to Teach Modesty & Purity

It is our job as parents to teach modesty, purity, and correct attitudes about waiting for sex until marriage.  We can’t raise good Christian or non-Christian girls if we don’t teach our daughters how to conduct themselves appropriately in public, and this includes how they dress. 

A reader commented that she was worried that teaching our kids to dress modestly to “be a good girl” or “be a good Christian” might cause them to “grow into women who are ashamed of having sexual feelings”.  This couldn’t be further from the truth if you teach your girls from the beginning that having sex is for married women only and being sexy is ONLY for grown women, and never for kids.  Children never need to be sexy.  That is what we should teach our kids: sex is for the right people (married people only) and being “sexy” is for the right age (adult) in the right situations.

One more huge point is that it is our job to teach our daughters that attention comes to them from their GOD-GIVEN talents and special abilities (like loving science, singing, having compassion, volunteering, or being great at math), not from showing off parts of their bodies that should be covered up.

To illustrate just how bad the young girls’ clothing has gotten, I’ve prepared a list (chock full of photos of real kids’ clothes) of the most immodest and inappropriate children’s clothes you can buy now. 

Stay tuned tomorrow for the shocking photo in our article “Top 6 Most Trashy and Immodest Kids’ Summer Clothes”.

As of today, I’ve officially seen enough inappropriate clothing being pushed on our young daughters.  Parents, it’s time to say NO to kids’ immodest and trashy clothes!

As each season comes and goes, the kids’ clothes get skimpier and racier, trying to model the pop stars and female celebrities who are grown women. 

There is a huge difference between girl children and women: namely, one is a child and the other is a grown up.  Children should not be wearing fashion styles meant for adult women. Period.

I’m sure to get slammed for some of the adjectives I use in this series, but I am fed up with the immodest standards of our society trickling down to innocent children who don’t know any better.  Even worse is the fact that it’s being allowed by parents who don’t know how to stand up for decency and modesty. 

This series on kids and modesty is a must-read for all parents, Christians and non-Christians alike. If you’re not subscribed to our RSS feed or free email updates yet, subscribe now.

Up next tomorrow, Kids’ Clothes Should NOT Have Sex Appeal.

What is a MobiGo?

MobiGo has become THE word around my house this past weekend!  First of all, it’s just a fun word to say (we pronounce it mo-bee-go).  Second, this game system is captivating enough to keep your child dead silent for long periods of time.  Trust me- we had to take it away from both of our children at about the 30 minute mark.

The VTech MobiGo (pictured at left) is a handheld game system with a touch screen and a full Qwerty keyboard built in.  Not all the games use the keyboard, however; some games only use the touch screen for activities. You insert a game cartridge in the top of the device and the system speaks to you to give directions for what to do next.

The MobiGo is very easy for even young children to use without help.  We tested the MobiGo with my almost 3 year old son, Truett, and my 10 year old daughter, Hannah.  The product is recommended for ages 3-8.

My Impression of the VTech MobiGo

With regard to the educational games, the MobiGo is not at all what I thought it was going to be.  I hoped to be able to endorse this product as a learning tool for homeschool families.  I envisioned flashcard drills for math practice, hangman, spelling and vocabulary words for reading and English.  I haven’t seen the additional game cartridges (which must be purchased separately for $19.99 each), but going on the basic Touch & Learn game pack, I can’t issue a recommendation for homeschoolers. Here’s why:

The game cartridge that comes with the MobiGo has 6 games on it.  It seems that although some of the games may incorporate letters and math, they’re not really learning programs at all.

My daughter was observant enough to remark that the games don’t teach you anything.  If you don’t know how to do the skill being used (like filling in number patterns), the game doesn’t provide any teaching as to how you complete number patterns or a tutorial to go with the game.  If you know the skill, you can play the game.  If you don’t know the skill, you have to play a different game.

The learning games are more educational than say, Super Mario Brothers for Nintendo DS, that much is true.  While they do encourage use of skills like observation, hand-eye coordination and problem solving, so does Mario.  So does World of Warcraft, for that matter.  But that doesn’t mean I let my 3 year old play it!

I actually played all of the MobiGo included games myself before writing this review.

• Space Challenge: This is the number pattern game, which is useful as long as your child already knows how to make number patterns.  Its problems are fill in the blank style, such as 1,2,__, and 2,4,___, and 5,4,___.  If my 3 year old had the skills to play it (which he doesn’t), the game moves far too fast to keep up with.  If you get the answer wrong, nothing happens.  There is no feedback that would let a child know if they’re playing it right or wrong.
• Shooting Gallery: This game uses the keyboard.  When you see a duck with a letter on it, press the same letter on the keyboard to shoot down the duck.  The game speeds up and gets more difficult as you play.  Again, it doesn’t offer enough time for my 3 year old to see the letter on the screen and try to match it up with the same letter on the keyboard.
• Fantastic Forest: In this game you trace lines on the touch screen to make objects.  I don’t see much educational value in this game.  Purely as a game, it didn’t seem fun either.  After you draw the appropriate lines, it describes the shape you just made without even saying the name of the shape (instead of “You drew a square” it says “You made an elevator).  I think this game is just to show off the touch screen capability of the MobiGo.
• Wild Fun: Find the animal that looks different.  This is a fun game and forces some critical observation.
• Ice Escape: A touch screen maze with a cute penguin – not much to it.
• Music Maestro: Touch the correct spot on the screen when a music note falls down.  Is this their version of Guitar Hero for handheld?  Fun for kids, but they’re not learning anything on this one either.

Some Good Points of the MobiGo

• Adjustable backlight can make the screen brighter or darker.
• Adjustable volume can keep the noise down.
• Accepts headphones for silent play (however, see the downside of the headphones below in the bad points).
• You can download games and prizes from the VTech website by connecting MobiGo to your computer.
• Portable and nice setup with the pop-up screen.
• Low price point (compared to other devices) at only $59.99.
• Great hardware for a small price.

Some Bad Points of the MobiGo

Although the MobiGo has many great features, VTech makes you pay extra to buy the necessary items to use some of these great features.

• No headphones: Although it accepts headphones to offer silent play, the MobiGo doesn’t come with headphones.
• No plug-in: The MobiGo is supposed to be able to plug into the wall so you don’t have to use AA batteries.  Unfortunately, the plug in AC/DC adaptor doesn’t come with MobiGo – it’s sold separately!
• Doesn’t come with batteries: Requires 4 AA batteries to get started, and they are not included.
• No wrist strap: The instructions show where the wrist strap fastener is, but then remind us that the wrist strap is also sold separately.
• Short play time on batteries. Using name brand fresh AA batteries, our MobiGo only lasted 2 hours before flashing the low battery indicator.  And with no plug in provided, that doesn’t make for a very good value.
• No pause option on the touch screen. The pause button is a hard button next to the touch screen, but it doesn’t even use the universal symbol for “Pause”, so I had a hard time finding how to pause the gameplay.
• Keyboard. It was very hard to figure out how to get the keyboard to come out.

Recommendation

Both of my kids loved the MobiGo, but kids will love any mindless game as long as it keeps them entertained!  The only other video game system our kids have is the VTech Leapster, a handheld which is fine as long as you keep in mind that its just another video game system.  If you’re buying this product with the consolation that your kids will be glued to an electronic device that’s at least educational and teaching them something, I feel you’d be fooling yourself.

Now that our testing period for the product review is over, my kids won’t get more than 15 minutes at a time on this device, if they remember it and ask to play.  I prefer not to have my children “occupied” and “out of my hair” at the expense of them being glued to video games for long amounts of time.  In the car, Hannah was completely focused on the MobiGo and completely checked out of the family conversation that took place.  I like my kids present in the moment and engaged in the real world around them.

The MobiGo is a handheld game system, pure and simple.  The hardware is great and the setup is very cool and convenient.  Now, I’d just like to see the real educational software that makes the MobiGo into the “Touch Learning System” they package and advertise it to be.  That would make me treat it differently than just another video game system.

Where to Buy The VTech MobiGo

Click here to buy MobiGo at Amazon for about $59.99 + free super saver shipping.  For more information on MobiGo, check out VTech’s website.

Disclaimer: In compliance with the FTC Guides, updated 10/5/09, this article has material connections.  IS World Media (ISWM) received no fees for the writing or publication.  This article is a product review conducted by Danelle Ice and is her honest opinion.  The VTech MobiGo was provided to ISWM at no cost by VTech to facilitate the review process. MobiGo graphic and VTech logo used with permission by VTech Electronics North America, LLC. This post contains affiliate links and readers may assume that HomeEverAfter.com receives compensation when affiliate links are used.

9 Essential Activities for Your Kids’ Summer Vacation Plan

First, make sure you read the introduction:  Parents Take Control of Your Summer – Make the Kids a Summer Vacation Plan.  The summer vacation activities below are from most important to least important. 

1.  Bedtime, wake up time, and alarm clock.  Insist on a regular bedtime and wake up time for your kids, no matter if they’re 7 or 17, and make sure they set their alarm clock every night before bed.  If you let bedtime go, they’ll start waking up later and later.  Before you know it, your children are nocturnal and keep such odd hours that your family isn’t spending time together as a family anymore. 

No matter what else you leave out of your summer vacation plan, the most important thing is to make your kids keep regular bedtimes and waking times.

2.  Chores.  Chores not only help ease mom and dad’s workload in taking care of the household, but they help a child contribute to the everyday operation of the family.  As young as toddler age, kids can be given simple chores to do around the house.  As young as 6, kids can do their own laundry, sweep, clean their own rooms, and make simple meals like sandwiches. 

Remember that chores are teaching your children how to take care of themselves during their adult years.  Chores keep kids out of trouble, keep them productive and keep them from being bored.  Step it up during the summer and give your kids new chores that are at the next level.  For example, kids can learn to menu plan with you or learn more about childcare for a possible babysitting job later on.

3.  Eat meals as a family.  Mealtime as a family is a lost art.  Ever wonder why teenagers are so hard to communicate with and can barely make intelligent conversation with anyone other than other teens?  It all goes back to the decline of family mealtime in recent years.  Children learn the art of making conversation from their parents, who are supposed to be old pros at it by now. 

Meal time is a perfect opportunity to talk about your day and connect with your kids.  One of Jesus’ basic activities was to share a meal with people.  The time can be used to recall what we are grateful about from our day, or to talk about what’s going on in our lives that occurs outside of the house.  If we can’t take time to gather our whole family to the table to eat a meal, our priorities are seriously out of order.

4.  Spiritual time / character development.  Grab a kids’ devotional book and assign your kids a short writing assignment each day.  If you’re not religious, you may want to require them to do 30 minutes of journaling per day on a topic you provide.  Soul searching through writing is a great way for your child to get their thoughts out in the open in a way that they can make sense of them.  This will help you to connect with your kids on a deeper level, and hopefully help them work through some of the difficult thought processes that come with adolescence.

5.  Family outings / family time.  Board game nights, family drives, camping trips, adventure walks, and sight-seeing trips are examples of great family activities that you should make time for.  A major flaw of parents is planning kids’ solo activities for summer:  baseball, foreign exchange trips, cheerleading practice, drama practice, t-ball, etc.

I’m not saying sports and activities aren’t fun experiences, it’s just that it’s much more crucial for you to draw the line and table these activities during the summer.  Make your plans for the entire family, not just 1 or 2 family members.  Want closeness in your family that will rival the Brady Bunch?  Do things together as much as possible.

6.  Education.  Keep skills sharp by having review materials for the academics.  There are several online study sites that can help, like Time4Learning.com.  Or, step out of the box with some non-traditional education.  Keep chickens for the summer, or teach your kids a new skill like sewing or woodworking.  Keep the brain growing and expanding by continuing to learn over the summer, no matter what subjects you choose to work on.

7.  Exercise and play.  Remember “Go outside and play” from when we were kids?  It works!  Kids using imagination to keep themselves entertained (while getting fresh air and exercise) should not be something we just remember from bygone years. 

Keep your kids active and outside this summer by requiring them to have outside playtime at least once a day.  If the day is especially nice, pack up the kids and drive them to a park or school playground.  Even older kids can get outdoors and take a walk, help with yard work, skateboard, rollerblade, or ride bikes.

Rainy day exercise is easy too:  use Wii Fit for kids or pop in an exercise DVD made just for kids, like Tae Bo for Kids.

8.  Socialization.  Put together activities with other families.  Invite another family to go camping with you, on a fishing trip, out for breakfast, or something similar.  Your kids will benefit from having social time with kids other than their school mates and you will form a bond with your own children by doing fun things with another family.

9.  Free time.  This is where video games, computer time, talking on the phone, texting, and watching TV and movies fall.  I can’t stress enough how important it is for you to LIMIT the free time and media time your child gets every day.  Set a limit and stick to it. Try setting a “media hour”  during which kids can be plugged in while supervised.  Never allow your child to choose their own media without your approval.  EVER. 

Kids are actually better able to relate to real-world activities and other people when they are less plugged in and more engaged in real-life situations.  Setting a 1 hour or 2 hour max on media may seem different and strange at first, but you’ll be glad you did. 

Putting Your Summer Vacation Plan Together

Now it’s time to put together your wants and needs from the list of essentials above and put into play a summer vacation plan that works for your family.  Having some of the basics in writing is a great idea.  Post it in a high traffic area in your home, like on the refrigerator, so everyone can see the family’s goals for summer vacation.

Most importantly, go over the new plan as a family and make sure both parents have the same answers for your kids’ questions.  Explaining why you’re making these changes as a family, and that you want to put more quality activities into your family’s growth and development, will help kids to get on board and try something a little different.  Have a great summer!

If you’re filled with the dread of how to keep your kids entertained all summer vacation long, you’re not the first parent to feel that way. 

Maybe you get tired of your kids staying up late and sleeping in until the afternoon all summer long.  Maybe you’re disgusted by the disaster area your house becomes when the kids are home all day.  Maybe you just get irritated as they sit around watching TV or playing video games for hours on end. 

Long days and idle time are not a good mixture when it comes to kids and summer vacation if you aren’t prepared.  It’s time to get your summer vacation plan made and take control of your summer.

Make a Summer Vacation Plan for Your Kids

First, pretend you have all the time in the world with your kids each day.  In 24 hours a day with your kids, you’d have enough time to teach them anything you wanted, do any craft project with them, have them learn any subject or skill, or go on any outings you feel are fun or interesting. 

Next, realize that you DO have that much time (because school is out for summer break)!  You can completely design the day-to-day life you want your family to have and your kids to experience.  (Get more Works for me Wednesday here.)

Next, read the 9 essential activities for your kids’ summer vacation plan, where we teach you how to make a summer vacation plan for your kids. 

Whether you’re a Christian parent or not, you no doubt feel sad when a popular hero of kids around the world is caught in bad behavior.     

It’s time to talk to your children about what Tiger Woods did.  And before you interject your excuse for not talking to them about it (e.g. “They’re too young to understand”, “They won’t know the difference”, “They won’t hear about it anyways”, “They don’t know who Tiger Woods is”, “It’s not appropriate for them to hear about it”), consider this:  There is always a chance that your excuse is wrong! 

You might think your 10 year old doesn’t hear about celebrity scandals, but how do you know what other kids are talking about around them during recess?  There’s a good chance that your children will hear about it from DJs on the family radio station, from snippets on the news while in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, or on a magazine cover at the store.

If you don’t tell them your family’s views of right and wrong and connect it to this situation immediately, your kids will form their own opinion about a super popular role model having an affair and destroying his family.  They’ll do the best they can to take in all the opinions from different media outlets and even their friends and make their own opinion.  Do we trust that our kids can really know right from wrong when wrong is so pervasive an influence in our society?  NO!

Do We Send the Message to Our Kids that Cheating is Okay?

You may be saying, “I’ve never told my kids cheating on your spouse was okay.”  But did you every specifically tell them that it’s not okay?  It may seem like a silly question, but it’s an important one to consider.  You, as parents, are the number one role model to your kids.  Believe it or not, what you say is held with more regard than their teachers, friends, or even *gasp* their favorite stars on TV!  Best you use this position wisely to teach them what is right while you still have a say.

Even if we don’t know it, we may be sending the wrong message to our kids about our moral views on marriage.  What are some ways we might send the message that cheating is okay, and not even know we are?

• When we don’t talk about it with our kids, we make it okay.
• When we make jokes about it around our kids, we make it okay.
• When we stand in line with our kids at the grocery store and they read the headlines on the magazines about it and we don’t use that moment as a teaching opportunity, we make it okay.
• When we let our kids listen to joking remarks about it on the radio, we make it okay. 
• When we let our kids watch TV comedy sketches about it (e.g. Saturday Night Live), we make it okay.

Cheating on your wife (or husband) is NOT okay! 

Our Society Gets Worse Every Time We Don’t Speak Up

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that the society we long to have back (of good manners, the golden rule, and mom and dad growing old together) is eroding slowly. We take for granted that it’s too far gone and that we can’t fix it.  Well, guess what?  We can! 

In each family we have the unique opportunity to create a reality we are proud of for our children, and then send them out in the world to spread those values.  As moms and dads, it is our job to teach our children and mold them in our image, just as we were created in God’s image.  Every time we let something bad happen and don’t teach our kids the right way, our society gets a little worse. 

One bad thing slips in, then another, and another, until there is so much wrong and the bad is all around.  At that point, it’s hard to sift through what’s wrong and what’s right.  No wonder kids today are so confused!  No wonder that parents can get so confused that they aren’t sure what to bring up with their children anymore.

To all you young parents – and older parents – out there, I’m begging you desperately to use this opportunity to teach your little (and big) ones now. 

How to Talk to Your Kids About Cheating

Here are a few easy points to use when talking to your kids about Tiger Woods cheating on his wife (multiple times) and hurting his family.  This applies to any similar situation/person too; the talking points are the same.  You don’t have to use all the talking points, these are just good topics to get your discussion started:

• Let them know that you and your spouse are very sad about Tiger Woods’ recent actions.  Cheating is wrong.
• Let them know that when you get married, you make a promise to each other and to God to love and be true to each other. 
• God makes you and your spouse become one person.  Husbands and wives should never have secrets from each other.
• Let them know that when one person doesn’t keep their marriage promise, it hurts their whole family, including their kids.
• Tell your children that when adults cheat in their marriages, they might get divorced, which causes their family to break in half.
• Teach your kids that our families are so important that we never want to do anything to break them apart.
• Let them know that we can’t judge other people – only God can do that.  But we can recognize that their bad actions are not okay things for us to do, and that we don’t want to be around people who do bad actions or look up to those bad behaviors.

This conversation will be different in every family and based on the different ages of your kids.  But please – don’t put it off because you’re embarrassed to talk about it or think it’s not important.  It IS important that your kids learn the proper moral view from you, their most influential teachers, not from the media!

During our first full week of the Preschool Prep DVDs experiment with my son, we had a lot of observations about how they work.  If you missed the explanation of the experiment we’re doing, you can read it here: Preschool Prep DVDs Learning Experiment.

What we really wanted to find out was if they worked as well as the company claims.  Our guidelines were to have Truett watch no more than 2 hours a day, and to watch no other TV or movies except for Preschool Prep.  He took to the movies immediately and started asking for them the next day!

Here are the DVDs he watched for the first week and the times:

Day 1 (9/30/09) – Meet the Letters DVD, letters A through F.  Meet the colors DVD (all). Total time 50 minutes.

Day 2 (10/1/09) – Meet the Shapes DVD (all).  Meet the Colors DVD (partial). Total time 50 minutes.

Day 3 (10/2/09 Friday) – Meet the Letters DVD, letters I-S.  Meet the Shapes DVD (partial).  Total time 45 minutes.

Day 4 (10/3/09 Saturday) – Meet the Letters DVD R-Z.   Meet the Shapes DVD.  Total time 1 hr 14 minutes.

Day 5 (10/4/09 Sunday) – Meet the Letters DVD a-g.  Meet the Numbers (all).  Meet the Colors (partial).  Total time 62 minutes.

Day 6 (10/5/09 Monday) – Meet the Shapes DVD (all).  Meet the Letters DVD a-g.  Total time 43 minutes.

Day 7 (10/6/09 Tuesday) – Meet the Shapes DVD (1.5 times).  Meet the Colors DVD.  Total time 85 minutes.

Day 8 (10/7/09 Wednesday) – Meet the Shapes DVD (all).  Meet the Colors DVD (all).  Total time 70 minutes.

As you can see, during the first week we skipped around and offered Truett a variety of shows.  We didn’t do the same DVDs every day, although I did try to offer the Meet the Letters DVD in sections because of its longer length. The introduction to that movie recommends to split the viewing up and start at different chapters to take into account kids’ limited attention spans. 

His favorite movie so far is definitely Meet the Shapes, which he affectionately calls his “shape show”! 

What surprised me the most about the Preschool Prep tool is that it worked immediately.  From the first time Truett sat down to watch a DVD, when the letter “A” came on the screen, he started repeating after the narrator.  I was astounded.

At the end of the first week, he started pointing to shapes in our house on his own and calling them out.  He even pointed to a star on his bib and said, “Star”!  I really didn’t expect for him to have learned anything by the end of the first week, so I was very surprised.  I’m anxious to continue the experiment and report on the results. 

Next week, we’re narrowing down his viewing to the shapes, colors, and numbers mostly.

Try the Experiment for Yourself

If you’d like to try the experiment along with us, you can purchase the DVDs from Amazon at a discounted price compared to the company’s website.  Below is the purchase information for the set and the single discs.

The Preschool Prep DVD Series 7 Disc Set  can be purchased from Amazon for $59.99 + free super saver shipping.  Click here to learn more.

The Preschool Prep 7 disc set includes:

• Meet the Sight Words, Discs 1, 2, and 3
• Meet the Colors DVD $13.49 + free super saver shipping
• Meet the Letters DVD $10.99 + free super saver shipping
• Meet the Shapes DVD
• Meet the Numbers DVD 

– 

Disclaimer:  This article is a product review which is part of a 2-month experiment conducted by Danelle Ice.  The Preschool Prep 7 DVD set was purchased by IS World Media to facilitate the review process.  We cannot make claims as to the typical results users should expect from this product, as we are trying it for the first time and have no way of knowing other users’ experiences.  No fee was received for conducting this experiment.  IS World Media / Home Ever After are not affiliated with Preschool Prep Co.

Get Your Kids to Eat Fruits and Vegetables Today!

One of the biggest challenges parents face today is getting their kids to eat healthy. It seems that children would be perfectly happy to live on pizza and chicken fingers forever, and parents can easily become frustrated by the ongoing dietary battle!  By implementing some creative techniques into your meal planning, you may be able to start your children on the road to healthy eating.

The best way to instill lifelong habits of healthy eating is to start early. As soon as babies are cleared to eat table foods by their pediatrician, start offering fresh fruit and vegetable purees. It is best to start first with vegetables so you baby will develop a taste for them. Starting with fruits can make baby acquire a taste for sweeter foods and not be so willing to accept vegetables later on.

Kids, even very young ones, learn by example. If your own meal choices consist of hardly any fruits and vegetables, your toddler will catch on quickly and may avoid those foods as well.

Adding Produce to Favorite Foods:  A great way to incorporate fruits and vegetables into your child’s meals is to add them to foods he already enjoys. Instead of corn muffins, make some carrot or blueberry muffins. Zucchinis, bananas, apples and cherries work well in muffins also. When making cookies, skip chocolate chip and opt for cranberry-oatmeal cookies. Much healthier and equally delicious.

Be creative. Add fruit pieces to yogurt, cereal, salads, snack mixes, Jell-O, etc. When preparing meals, add vegetables to main courses such as lasagna, pasta sauce, soups, etc. Enlist the kids to help make a homemade pizza, adding chipped carrots, peppers, onions, mushrooms, etc. For breakfast, add some tomatoes and spinach to a cheesy omelets or opt for banana nut pancakes. Offer fruit smoothies and fresh fruit salad.

Adding Fruits and Veggies in the Drink Department:  Eliminate high sugar, empty calorie foods and drinks. Replace soft drinks and sodas with 100% fruit juice. One glass of fresh squeezed orange juice equals 2 servings of fruit.  Even if you can’t squeeze your own juice, many brands offer pure fruit juice with no added sugar.

When grocery shopping, take your kids to the produce aisle and show them the variety of colorful fruits and vegetables. Explain the health benefits of each and allow them to choose the ones that they would like to try.

A Little Dip Goes a Long Way:  Another great way to get kids used to eating fresh vegetables is to offer them with dipping sauces. Blue cheese for celery sticks, ranch for carrot slices, cheese sauce for broccoli, peanut butter for apples, etc. After you get the kids to eat these items, gradually decrease the amount of dip you serve so that they slowly acquire a taste for the fruit or vegetable itself. Most importantly, stick to it. Your kids may resist your attempts to make them eat healthy, but stick with it and eventually they should come around.

Family Friday: Time to Share!

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If you’re a parent, you’ve probably put a note in with your children’s school lunches before.  Lunchables is asking parents to do just that – and they’ll even donate meals to needy families through Feeding America when you send a note in your kids’ lunches. 

Lunchables will donate up to 100,000 meals to Feeding America for needy families this year.  We can all help with this project.  It’s free for us and a great cause.  Plus, your kids will love the lunch notes!

Get Your Free Lunch Notes Now:

Thanks to Kraft for sending me samples of their specially designed lunch note cards to try out.  I sent one in my 4th grade daughter’s lunch yesterday (the card had a flamingo on the front and back) and she loved it so much that she showed it off to her friends! 

You can get these same Lunch Note cards for free too by downloading and printing them at Lunch Note Promise. Or, if you use AmericanGreetings.com already, you can access the Lunchables Lunch Notes there as well.

Here’s How it Works:

1.  First, log onto Lunchables Lunch Note Promise and leave a promise to send a note in your child’s lunch.

2.  Next, download and print your free Lunch Note at Lunch Note Promise.

3.  Write a feel good note for your son or daughter and sneak it into their lunch bag before school.

4.  For each promise, Kraft Foods / Lunchables will donate 1 meal to Feeding America!  The goal is to reach 100,000 promises from parents like you and me.

We’re always happy to help Kraft foods in their ongoing pledge to feed the hungry.  Their mission is one that IS World Media supports wholeheartedly and we hope you’ll join us in giving back to those in need by sending a simple lunch note!

The Lunchables logo is used with permission from Kraft Foods.

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Disclaimer:  In compliance with the FTC Guides, updated 10/5/09, this article has material connections.  This post is not paid content and no fee was received for the writing or publication.  This article is an informative public relations post written by Danelle Ice about Lunchables Lunch Note Promise campaign.  40 blank lunch note cards were provided to IS World Media (ISWM) at no cost by Kraft Foods/Lunchables to serve as samples.    Lunchables sent 2 personalized writing pads at no cost to ISWM as a thank you for considering this story.

The Preschool Prep DVDs have parents and teachers claiming that their babies and toddlers have learned the information to complete mastery in as little as 2 weeks. 

The back of the package says, “A study of over 50 babies and toddlers, who watched Meet the Letters, resulted in over 90% of these children having complete upper and lowercase letter recognition by or before the end of the two-month study.  Many learned their letters in less than two weeks.”

I want to know if these results are typical.  If the Preschool Prep DVDs really work this well, all parents should be using them. 

The Background

Recently, my husband and I noticed severe foundational problems in the education our oldest daughter, London, has received in public school.  We embarked upon research to find programs that can help our toddler son address these same learning gaps before they become a problem.  This research is how we came upon the DVD series called Preschool Prep.

There are 7 DVDs which address the fundamentals of preschool and kindergarten curriculum:  colors, shapes, numbers, letters, and sight words.  4 of the DVDs can be used by babies as young as 9 months and the other 3 DVDs are for babies 15 months and older. 

The company’s tagline is, “You will be amazed at what your little one can learn!”  and I decided to take them up on that challenge!  Will I be amazed at my son’s results from using this educational tool?  I want to find out!

The Experiment Information

In order to test this program fairly, we’re going to use it with our 2 year old for 2 months straight.  He won’t watch any other television or movies besides the Preschool Prep DVDs.  At the end of 2 months, we’ll gauge his mastery of the 5 subjects:

1. Colors: Recognition and identification of 8 colors, including red, orange, yellow, green, blue, black, purple, and white.
2. Numbers:  Recognition and identification of 11 numbers, from 0 through 10.
3. Shapes:  Recognition and identification of 8 shapes, including circle, oval, diamond, octagon, triangle, rectangle, star, and square.
4. Letters: Recognition and identification of all 26 letters of the alphabet.
5. Sight Words:  Recognition and identification of these 47 kindergarten sight words: all, at, be, by, from, her, him, look, one, or, some, there, this, up, word, are, as, but, go, had, here, his, like, my, on, see, she, they, was, we, with, of, play, it, he, you, in, I, to, have, and, a, said, is, the, for, that. 

Experimenter: Danelle, mom of 3

Test subject:  Truett, toddler boy, aged 25 months.  Truett has had no formal education (preschool) and has not previously participated in any educational or learning programs, DVDs, computer games, books, or toys.

Dates of Experiment: September 30, 2009 – November 30, 2009.

Time Spent Viewing Program: 1-2 DVDs per day or 1-2 hours of viewing per day, including weekends, spread throughout the child’s normal day in reasonable chunks.  All other TV time will be eliminated.

Order of DVDs:  The DVDs will be viewed randomly, alternating and in no specific order.

Try the Experiment with Us

If you’d like to try the experiment along with us, you can purchase the DVDs from Amazon at a discounted price compared to the company’s website.  Below is the purchase information for the set and 2 of the single discs.

The Preschool Prep DVD Series 7 Disc Set  can be purchased from Amazon for around $59.99 + free super saver shipping.  Click here to learn more.

The Preschool Prep 7 disc set includes:

• Meet the Sight Words, Discs 1, 2, and 3
• Meet the Colors DVD
• Meet the Letters DVD
• Meet the Shapes DVD
• Meet the Numbers DVD

The Preschool Prep DVD “Meet the Letters” can be purchased from Amazon for $10.99 + free super saver shipping.  Click here to learn more.

The Preschool Prep DVD “Meet the Colors” can be purchased from Amazon for $13.49 + free super saver shipping.  Click here to learn more.

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Disclaimer:  This article is a product review which is part of a 2-month experiment conducted by Danelle Ice.  The Preschool Prep 7 DVD set was purchased by IS World Media to facilitate the review process.   No fee was received for conducting this experiment.  IS World Media / Home Ever After are not affiliated with Preschool Prep Co.

It’s never too early to start brushing your baby’s teeth. As soon as teeth break the gum line they are ready to be gently cleaned. Parents can initially clean baby’s teeth with a damp washcloth or gauze pad. This will be fine until more teeth begin to erupt.

As more teeth come in, you can switch to a soft bristled children’s toothbrush. There is no need to add toothpaste until the child reaches the age of 2. Some parents choose to purchase a non-fluoride toothpaste to use until the toddler reaches 2 years old.

The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that parents wait until their children reach the age of 2 before introducing fluoridated toothpaste. After the age of 2, a small amount of fluoride is beneficial and will help to protect toddler teeth into adulthood. However, too much fluoride can lead to fluorosis, a condition that causes white spots to appear on adult teeth. Toddlers often swallow their toothpaste rather than spit it out, and for this reason it is recommended that only a pea size amount of toothpaste be used.

Toddlers often resist parental attempts at tooth brushing. To calm the battle, try to get your baby engaged in the activity itself. A trip to the grocery store to let baby pick out his own character-themed toothbrush may get him excited about the task at hand. When it is time to brush, let him try doing it himself first. When he is finished you can re-brush to get them thoroughly cleaned. Many parents find it helpful to make a trip to the library and check out some books on teeth brushing or baby’s first teeth.

Allow your toddler to watch you brush your own teeth and show him the clean teeth that result. You can eat something that leaves a residue on your teeth first, such as cookies or chocolate cake. Your baby will be intrigued not only with the dirty teeth but with the clean finish after brushing as well.

Parents can schedule their baby’s first dentist around the one year milestone. Even if your toddler has not had any teeth surface, a trip to a pediatric dentist can diagnose any possible problems that may be developing under the gum line, or locate a tooth that is preparing to erupt.

Family Friday: Time to Share!

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• Does your school offer or advocate using multi age classes, in which different grades are combined in the same class? 
• Have you had your student in one of these combined multi-age classes, and if so, what are your opinions on the arrangement? 

Please let us know in the comments.  Thanks so much!

The hands on approach of Montessori schools allow the student to be an active participant in his or her education.

Encompassing all grade levels, most Montessori schools offer programs beginning at age 3. The early childhood years are crucial for learning and setting the stage for future academic success. The brain undergoes tremendous growth between the ages of 2 and 6 and learning capabilities at this age are limitless.

Many parents choose Montessori preschools as a means of laying the foundational building blocks necessary to promote both social and academic growth.

The basic premise of a Montessori education is providing the children with an opportunity to learn at their own pace under the direct guidance of a teacher. Unlike traditional schools that have a one-size fits all method of teaching, Montessori teachers are trained to assess the individual needs of each child and encourage personal development according to exclusive needs.

Montessori School Curriculum

While covering the same subject matter as traditional schools, Montessori allows teachers to gauge what the individual child has learned and then lead him or her into new areas of personal development and academic discovery.

The atmosphere of a Montessori school fosters independence and personal growth by developing confidence and self esteem among the children. Respect for themselves and others is a part of the social responsibility curriculum commonly promoted in Montessori programs. The autonomous approach to learning is balanced with open social interaction among peers, allowing for the perfect combination of individual and social development.

Multi-Age Classes

Classrooms contain a mixed age of students with a range that spans 3 years. This is based on Maria Montessori’s concept that varying ages will guide each other in collective educational. Older children in the group learn leadership skills, acting as mentors to their younger counterparts, while the younger children achieve the benefit of hands on learning from their peers.

Open spaced classrooms have multiple work stations with an abundance of natural materials. During classroom lessons, small groups of children undergo educational instruction while the remainder are free to work independently at the station of choice. If a hands on, multi-faceted education that differs from a traditional classroom setting is what you want for your child, Montessori schools are worth inquiring about.

Family Friday: Time to Share!

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More Fun Chores For Toddlers

If you missed last week’s introduction to fun chores for toddlers (part 1), go check it out now before reading on!

• Give your child a dust cloth and have him dust all the tables. You can even make a homemade, non-toxic cleaning spray of vinegar and water for him to use.
• If he spills his drink on the floor or table, have him help you wipe it up.
• Teach him to place dirty dishes into the sink. If he can’t reach, you can leave a step stool nearby that he can bring to the sink or you can teach him to at least places all dishes in a pile near the sink.
• Place a small cup into the pet food container and have him scoop food into the pet bowl.
• Teach him how to water houseplants and pick up any fallen plant leaves and throw them away (any toxic plants should be kept out of the reach of children).

Children can learn very early on to clean up after themselves. Have your child place his dirty clothes in a hamper in his closet or the laundry room. When he is finished playing with his toys have him put them in a basket in his room or the den. Teach him that he will not be allowed to take out another activity until the first one is properly put away.

After you make his bed, have him put the pillow in place along with any stuffed animals. It is never too early to start teaching your child about the importance of being tidy and responsibility. Having him do chores at a young age will help prepare him for added responsibility down the road.

Family Friday: Time to Share!

Now it’s time for you to share your Family Friday post with the rest of us!  If you’re not sure how it works, read the directions and guidelines for Family Friday here.

Please add your family-related blog post below in the Mr. Linky. Remember, you MUST link your post back to HomeEverAfter.com. (If your link was deleted, email us.)

Fun Chores for Toddlers

Many parents wonder when the right age is for children to start helping with household chores. Believe it or not, toddlers and even babies can begin to help out around the house.

Giving your small child a daily task to complete is a great learning experience and will help to set the stage for more advanced chores when he is older. It’s never too early to start involving your child in common household chores.

Even babies can get in on the action. When going form one room to the other with baby in your arms, stop at the light switch and teach him how to switch it on and off as you enter and exit the room.

After diaper changes, hand him the diaper as you approach the garbage and let him drop it into the pail. Even toddlers can walk their diaper to the garbage and drop it in. Doing this every time will become a routine for your baby and he will look forward to participating in the daily task.

Once your child is around 2 years of age, he can participate in many more household chores. When doing laundry, have him transfer clothing from dryer to laundry basket. When folding laundry, have him look through the basket for socks and place them all together in a pile.

Stay tuned next week for more ideas of fun chores for toddlers!

Family Friday: Time to Share!

Now it’s time for you to share your Family Friday post with the rest of us!  If you’re not sure how it works, read the directions and guidelines for Family Friday here.

Please add your family-related blog post below in the Mr. Linky. Remember, you MUST link your post back to HomeEverAfter.com. (If your link was deleted, email us.)