Children Archives - Page 3 of 7

3 Ways to Get Kids Excited About Moving

May 17, 2017 by Mandy

Moving is always hard on kids, maybe even harder than it is on mom and dad because they have no life experiences to gauge a move by. The unknown is always a frightening prospect and even teenagers can rebel to leaving family and friends behind. Unfortunately, who can blame them? If you are trying to get your kids at least accepting of the move, if not excited by it, here are a few things you can do to make it a bit easier on all involved.

1) Promise Them Video Chats Frequently

At the moment, you are reading this online. This means you obviously have access to the internet and whether you are here via smartphone or computer, you can still open up some kind of video chat so that your kids can stay in touch with friends back home. In fact, your older kids probably have their own smartphones and laptops or tablets, so remind them that their friends are only one Facetime away. If they are like the average teen in America, they spend upwards of 9 hours a day on social media!

2) Postcards from Your New Neighborhood

Grade school kids are still thrilled about sending and receiving mail via the United States Post Office. Maybe because it’s something tangible that they can hold in their hands, or maybe it’s because they are already burnt out on social media (yes even in third or fourth grade!), but for whatever reason, kids really do like mail! Take your cell phone around the neighborhood to get some pictures of your new area. Turn them into postcards your kids can send to friends back home. They can even be designed on a web server and printed at home on your local printer. To get an idea of the various free templates available, click here.

3) Offer Them One Adventure a Week

While everyone is so busy getting set up in your new location, sometimes it’s easy to forget that your kids are not mobile like you are. They go to school, come home and play with any new friends they might have met at school. If not, television and Facebook become their BFFs and that’s not a good thing at all! What you can do is offer to take them on one adventure a week. Together, look at travel sites because this is where you will find the best listing of “What to Do” and “What to See” in literally any city on earth. From there, you can pick and choose kid-friendly places to explore and that should pique their interest throughout the coming week.

No, moving isn’t easy on the kids but with a little creativity and a lot of compassion, you can get them to accept the move a little more readily. They may not be happy about it but with some extra care and a bit of time on your part, you might even get them excited about moving somewhere they’ve never been. Just remember that Rome wasn’t built in a day. It may take time, but eventually they’ll meet new friends and settle in. It’s just a matter of time.

Pre-Vacation Chores Your Kids Can Help With

May 15, 2017 by Mandy

If you’re about to embark on a family vacation, you might feel like you have too much to do before you leave. Don’t worry, that’s normal. You simply need to make a checklist of must-do jobs and then get some help from the family. Here’s a guide on some pre-vacation chores even your kids can help with.

Prepare for Your Absence

Image via Flickr user JeepersMedia

You need to do a few routine tasks before leaving. Make sure your home looks like someone is there as a way to discourage theft. You’ll also want to prepare your HVAC system for your absence.

Set it at a neutral temperature, around 80 degrees in the summer or 60 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter, so you’re not paying to cool or warm more than necessary while you’re away. It’s a good idea to have a professional inspect your HVAC unit to make sure it’s in good working order if you’ll be away for a week or more. This will limit the chance of a breakdown occurring while you’re gone and unexpectedly returning to a sauna in the middle of summer.

Make Laundry a Joint Effort

Clothes are a big part of any vacation. You’ll wear a lot of different items, and you’ll have to pack for various weather conditions. You may need jeans for when the weather gets cold, shorts for sunny days, and maybe even a dressy outfit or two for special events. Plus, a lot of vacationers enjoy swimming or water sports, so you’ll need clean bathing suits, too. Clearly, you need help with your packing!

You don’t want your child to take care of all the laundry, of course. That’s a bad sitcom episode waiting to happen. Still, you can get your kids to help. Ask them to collect all their dirty clothes and put them in the laundry hamper. If they don’t already know how, teach them how to separate colored clothes from white garments.

When you’re ready to begin laundry, check each item before putting it in the machine. That way, you work as the supervisor for when your kids accidentally put some white clothes in the wrong hamper. You’ll have all the clean clothes you need for the trip. Plus, your kids will have a better idea of how laundry works.

Teach Kids to Pack on Their Own

Packing is one of the most grueling parts of vacation preparation. You have to pick enough outfits for several days away from home. Then, you have to add extra clothes for the reasons above. You wind up with three or four extra days of clothing, and it takes a while to pack.

As a parent, you have to repeat these steps for your kid unless they help. Take this opportunity to teach your kids how to pack. Tell them to go to their closet and pick out several of their favorite pieces of clothing. Supervise as they choose various outfits, pointing out what they still need to add. Your kids will learn a life lesson while you’ll spend less time packing.

Vacation packing is rarely fun. Just remember that you have help. Kids are never too young to start learning valuable skills that will help them all the way into adulthood. And you’ll really appreciate the extra help!

Pool Safety for Kids 2017 – Infographic

May 10, 2017 by Mandy

May is National Water Safety Month! Swimming pools may seem like innocent fun, but they can be dangerous for little ones. Parents are often shocked to learn that drowning is the number one cause of accidental death for children under age five. Thankfully drowning is preventable with a water safety plan that includes layers of protection such as adult supervision and pool fencing. As the industry leader in glass pool fencing, Aquaview merges safety with style. Check out their infographic below to learn the facts on child drowning and simple tips to keep your family safe this summer.

Kid Friendly Healthy Home Infographic

April 26, 2017 by Mandy

You probably think that you have a clean, kid-friendly house that will help your children grow into healthy adults. A closer look at your home, however, may reveal chemicals and pollutants that have the opposite effect. They could put your children at serious risk.

Poor indoor air quality is a common health problem found in homes. Unless you leave your windows open throughout the year, gentle breezes never have a chance to remove pollutants from your house. Over time, the air inside your home collects pet dander, dust, smoke, and other harmful materials.

You can dramatically improve your home’s indoor air quality by making sure your HVAC system has a clean filter. A clean filter can capture more of the pollutants that cause asthma and allergic reactions in children. Just look at your air filter about once a month to see if it needs replacing. If it has already collected a lot of debris, then it’s time to throw out the filter and install a new one.

Parents can also find dangerous chemicals in many household cleaners. Ideally, you don’t want to clean your home with products that contain ammonia, chlorine, triclosan, sodium hydroxide, and other toxic chemicals. Instead of using these chemicals, you can learn how to make your own household cleaners from materials that won’t harm your kids.

The following infographic will give you more information about potential dangers in your home and how you can address them to create a safer environment for your children. Read the information carefully to see how you can make your house a healthier place for growing children.

The Best Way to Learn: Sharing Everyday Financial Lessons With your Kids

April 26, 2017 by Mandy

Once a child can walk and talk, they’re generally old enough to learn a few rudimentary money lessons. As the child gets older, their financial lessons will become more and more complicated. Kids learn by example and by listening to their parents, too. In the interest of happy families everywhere, we’re delighted to present the following age-appropriate finance lessons you can teach your kids.

Money concepts kids should know by kindergarten

Little kids seem to have a rather magical way of thinking about money. In fact, toddlers will believe that money grows on coconut trees, if that’s what their mother or father tells them. As far as most two-year-olds are concerned, mommy and daddy visit magic cash machines that dispense dollars at the swipe of an ATM card. The sooner your children understand how money really works, the better. So say finance gurus at Parents magazine.

By the time your child is old enough to go to kindergarten, they should understand several key concepts about money. First, kids need to know that things are exchanged for money. When they receive holiday gifts, someone probably paid for those presents. Pre-school kids can also learn that working is a way to earn money. Additionally, kids should understand the difference between wanting and needing an item and that sometimes, people have to wait to buy something that is not exactly necessary.

Money lessons to impart before your kid is in junior high

Sixth and seventh graders should have a basic understanding of savings accounts and compound interest, says US News and World Report. Fifth and sixth graders are generally old enough to have a bank account co-signed by a parent. This is a dandy way for kids to learn how earned monies and monetary gifts from grandmas can be tucked away for a while and withdrawn after amassing interest.

Sixth grade can be the right time to start giving kids an allowance. Some parents base allowance on chores, other moms and dads prefer that kids participate in household duties without expecting payment for the same. Either way, a small allowance helps kids learn to build a budget and save for things they want.

Lessons about credit, loans, and repayment

If you plan to take out a small personal loan in anticipation of a holiday or vacation, allow your high-school age kids to observe the application process. Remind them that it’s crucial to read and understand the fine print in a loan contract before signing. You can use this link to visit a fair loan site with your teenager.

Although minors are not typically allowed to open a credit card account by themselves, parents may add a responsible teen as an authorized card user. Understanding interest rates, service fees, and spending limits will stand your teen in good stead when they’re adults. When teens see how making minimum monthly payments is not the best way to go, they may grow up into adults who use credit wisely.