Category Archives: Holidays

Children, Holiday OverIndulgence…Grandparent Style!

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 Do your children have Santa Claus for a grandparent?

Is there an overindulgent relative in your child’s life?

And do they disregard your requests about gift giving?

I am not quite sure how to handle this type of situation except to be very direct in your requests as a parent.

It seems that there are many parent ideas about what is appropriate when it comes to their children.

In some cases parents do not even agree with each other when it comes to defining what is “overindulgent”.

It seems that grandparents may be the biggest group of overindulgers when it comes to  children, Christmas and Holidays. At least, that was the recent consensus of a group of parents discussing the holiday stresses at my grandchild’s preschool.

It seemed that the grandparents were not deterred by requests of their sons and daughters in their gift giving habits.

As a grandparent, I can understand both sides since I was also a parent of young presents and childrenI remember requesting certain things for my children and making suggestions to their grandparents. I guess I was lucky in that my husband agreed with this approach. So for the most part we did not get “stuff” that was inappropriate and not useful.

Some suggestions

  • Be honest about your feelings
  • Have gift suggestions
  • Perhaps suggest college fund donations, even small ones so as the kids get older and more appreciative of money as a gift, this might become a habit of their grandparents.
  • Be thoughtful and respectful
  • Be empathic and understanding that your relationship with your kids is different than your parents’ relationship with them which is what helps to drive the overindulgence.
  • Be realistic if you have really difficult grandparents…and try to make the best of the situation.

Aunt Annie’s Childcare: When grandma won’t do it your way- Part 1: The overindulgent relative.

Love Story…Theo and Beau

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Theo and Beau

In November, we introduced you to Theo and Beau, a diminutive duo, that subsequently stole the Internet’s heart. As a holiday gift to everyone, the magic continues on blogger Jessica Shyba’s Instagram account.

via 22 New Chapters In The Most Adorable Naptime Love Story Ever.

 

If you have not seen this photo stream of Theo and Beau, you are missing a delightful experience!

Jessica Shyba has captured the innocence of a child and his dog…both of whom are attached to each other and are each other’s soul-mate at nap time.

For the holidays…if you are looking into getting a dog…please consider going to your local ASPCA or Animal Shelter and rescue a puppy or an older dog that needs a home. Mixed breeds make wonderful family members.

Pets are known to actually lower your blood pressure and make you more relaxed…they help people especially those who are older, stay healthier because they live on a schedule of eating and exercising…they are also less lonely.

Make a pet choice carefully, the shelters will help you to understand the responsibilities of pet ownership and make an appropriate choice.

Happy Holidays!

Weekend…Christmas, Kids, Consumerism

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Chicago Xmas State Street

Christmas and Holidays can pose a dilemma especially for those of us with children. What is meant to be a time of joy and giving can become a time of stress and “gimme, gimme”.

So, I was overjoyed to see this post and thought I would share it with those of you who want to share some of these points with your own children….or grandchildren.

So it got me thinking – what do I want my kids to really know about Christmas?  And because I started thinking that led to me making a list for my kids. Which I’m sharing with you today.

via finding joy: 25 Things I Want My Kids to Know About Christmas..

 

 

In keeping with my consumerism theme this week, I am posting a link to one of my favorite bloggers and writers, Annie Urban.

She makes an excellent effort to “quell” consumerism in her home with her own children. This, mind you, is no easy task and it is certainly made easier if you have all the family together in support…especially the grandparents, aunts and uncles and all who dote on your kids.

But then the Christmas commercials started. Not in December, not in late November, but back in October or maybe even September. And that is when the chorus began. It didn’t matter what type of plastic crap was being advertised, they wanted it, they needed it, it was the best thing ever.

 

 

Wordless Wednesday Again…Kids and Safety

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Car Seat Safety for Kids

To me, there are few things more important than car seat safety since kids spend and enormous amount of time in cars.

Here is a must see video for new parents and seasoned parents as well as grandparents and any child caregiver.

car seats, safety first My go to person for car seat information is “The CarSeat Lady“. She is in my opinion the best information source for parents when they are choosing a carseat and when they want information in its proper installation and use.

Do Homework Before Holiday Shopping for Kids

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Toys

Thanksgiving is tomorrow so I have been hearing and reading a lot about Black Friday and shopping for kids.

When it comes to our children and grandchildren careful thought will go into Holiday gift choices.

I know that screens for kids are somewhat controversial. Let’s face it, eventually your kids will be exposed to the iPad and various other tablets both adult and child friendly. It seems important to know about the various available tablets.

So here is the link to Consumer Reports’ info on tablets specifically for children.

The market for kids’ tablets is growing dramatically. Just two years ago, only 8 percent of children had access to a tablet at home. Today, it’s 40 percent!

Consumer Reports tested six tablets especially designed for children costing between 70 and 230.

You never expect toys to harm your child or grandchild but we know they can… so here is a list of toys that you might want to avoid as they pose a safety hazard to some children.

 

November 26, 2013 (CHICAGO) (WLS) — As the holiday shopping season begins, the Illinois Public Interest Research Group is out with its annual list of dangerous toys that parents should avoid.

Illinois PIRG: Trouble in Toyland Report

Shoppers hitting the stores this holiday season should look out for toys that can be harmful to children.

Children with special needs and parents get help with toy choices from aToys R Us website. Thank you Toys R Us.

 

Toys R Us toy guide for differently-abled kids makes it easier to find the right toys for a child with a disability. The prices range from $5 – $100.

The toy guide is available at all Toys R Us stores and can also be found online:

http://www.toysrus.com/differentlyabled

 

Help for Holiday Photography

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This is a sponsored post by LightScoop. I was given a Lightscoop for my personal use.

It is holiday time.

Thanksgiving is here and most of us will be taking photographs indoors which require the use of flash.

When you introduce flash the quality of your photos can be affected and not in a positive way.

Enter Lightscoop, which will change the quality of your indoor photographs with you DSLR camera.

Click on the Lightscoop link on flickr to see the quality of the Lightscoop photos. http://www.flickr.com/groups/lightscoop_user/pool/

 

Lightscoop® is a smart low-tech device that creates soft, flattering light by redirecting your camera’s built-in flash to a ceiling or wall.

 

Don’t let your convenient little built-in flash flash ruin your photos with evil red eye, ugly shadows, hot spots, bleached out faces, underexposed colors, and blurry movement that exist only in your photographs, not in the real world.

 

Slip a Lightscoop® on your camera and never miss out on another fabulous picture! Lightscoop creates soft, natural light and lets you capture the scene the way you see it.

 

I cannot wait to use my Lightscoop at Thanksgiving and will post my photos afterwards.

In the meantime, take a look at Lightscoop’s website and get one for your holiday and everyday  indoor photos.

“Delivery Man” Review

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"Delivery Man" premieres this weekend. My husband and I had 
the pleasure of seeing Delivery Man this past July at a 
Disney sponsored event.

Both of us found "Delivery Man" very entertaining, it was not only 
funny but it had a serious side to it as well.

Vince Vaughn's character, David Wozniak, is a thirty something, meat 
delivery man, who finds out that 533 children have been delivered
with him as their sperm donor father. 

The writers and actors did a wonderful job making the movie 
premise work.

Vince Vaughn's character, who is basically a professional and 
personal screw-up is both funny and serious as he tries to 
become each child's "guardian angel". I found myself laughing
and crying as Vince's character took control of his incredible  
life predicament.

I think Delivery Man should be added to your list of entertaining 
movies to see during the upcoming Holiday season.

I hope you enjoy it as much as my husband and I did.

 

Safety Tips and Holiday Toys!

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Toys:Legos

With the holidays fast approaching, it is time to pick out toys and children’s gifts.

Here are some safe gift giving tips for small children.

If you are buying for children of different ages, remember to heed the age warnings on the toy labels and protect younger kids from their sibling’s toys that could be potentially dangerous for them.

Button Battery Warning:

Swallowing coin size lithium batteries from electronic devices…

  • remote controls,
  • watches,
  • key fobs,
  • musical greeting cards
  • and flameless candles

can be potentially life threatening to children and sometimes they are easily accessible.

Toilet Paper Roll:

If a toy can fit through an empty toilet paper roll, it could block your child’s airway and choke your child.

Toy Purchases:

Even though it is a law that toys labeled for kids under 3 cannot pose a choking threat…there are parent responsibilities.

  • look for small, removable parts
  • parts that can break off.
  • look for recalls- americanbaby.com/recalls
  • be particularly careful of hand-me down toys