Category Archives: Parenting

How To Select Quality Childcare Providers

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Tip! You are creating a good habit. As children grow older they are much more able to help, but they are also much less likely to want to help — especially if they haven’t been required to before.

When it comes to finding someone to care for your children, you want to find the very best. This should go without saying, and when it comes time to find someone, you have to be careful where you look, and be even more careful about who you trust.

There are many people out there who watch over our children, and they do it with compassion and with great skill. Sadly though, there are childcare providers out there who should not only be kept far away from children, they should be kept far away from the rest of the world as well.

When searching for childcare providers, your first questions should center on where you want your children to be. There are childcare providers who will come into your home, and those who have children in their home each day. There are also childcare providers who have centers that are publicly open to those who wish to sign up. Any of these options can work well, and what you need is entirely up to you and your family.

The first thing to ask when interviewing potential childcare providers is about certification. You don’t need an education is childcare, but this is a great bonus if you can find someone who can not only watch over your children, but also help them along with things they will need to know once they enter school.

The very next question should be about your child’s safety. It may seem harsh, but you have to ask if they have ever hurt a child. This is a tough question to ask, and many people don’t ask, but it makes sense to say something. If childcare providers have nothing to hide, they will understand why you ask this question. If they are lying to you, you are going to know it, and you can move on.

If you choose to use childcare providers that have a daycare center, ask questions about the employees, and ask to see references and background checks.

Most good childcare providers have this information readily available to you. If they do not, ask them to provide it. If they hesitate, or don’t understand why this is so important to you, perhaps they are not the best choice of childcare providers for your family. The snacks they serve, the hours of operation, and their educational curriculum are far less important than the safety of your children.

How to Help the Child Who Does Not Like to Read

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Tip! Let your child dictate stories to you: Many children enjoy the art of storytelling, but find actual handwriting tiresome. Take this strain away from them by being their secretary.

As parents we all recognize the importance of reading, but what do you do when your child just does not like or enjoy reading? Here are several ideas and tips I found over the years.

Magazines are a wonderful way to help your child enjoy reading. My daughter loved fashion and beauty magazines. She would spend hours reading the articles and tips. Over the years, several teachers allowed her to count her magazine reading and write her reports on articles she found in magazines. If you have a child that is not enjoying reading, talk to the teacher and see if magazine reading is an acceptable alternative.

Read to your child as they follow along. I remember as an adult I met a 14 year old boy through a teen community I worked for online. He once told me that his mother still read to him. I asked him about this routine.

He said he loved hearing his mom read to him and it gave him and his mom great quality time together. He had a younger sister and his mom read to her each night, so after putting her to bed she would come spend time with her son and they would read together. He chose the books and she would read.

This got her involved in his favorite books and this allowed him to comprehend the book without him actually reading it. He told me that often after hearing his mom read the book, he would go back and reread the section they had read last night.

Tip! Use Consequences That Relate to Their Behavior ? Punishment teaches our kids to feel bad, but rarely teaches them how to ‘do good’. If you are encountering the same misbehaviors over and over again, your child is clearly not learning from their mistakes.

Buy a craft kit or model airplane kit and have your child read the instructions to put it together. This again is a wonderful way to spend quality time with your child while helping them enjoy reading. The end results are wonderful as they have not only read the instructions and followed them, but in the end you have a wonderful product you can use, hold or display.

Cook together, with your child reading the instructions. There is no incentive like brownies, cookies, or even lasagna. The catch is the child has to help read and prepare the food. My daughter has spent hour pouring through and reading cookbooks. We’ve also spent hours online looking at, reading and printing recipes. Young children can help measure, pour and mix. Older children can help shop for the foods, reading the labels and making sure you have the right ingredients.

Tip! Trust your instincts: Teachers may give you a wider understanding of your child ? take it on board ? but remember that your instincts are probably right.

Crossword puzzle books, word find books and logic puzzle books are wonderful for older kids. I have also seen very simple word find books for younger children. Not only does your child have to read the words in word find books but then they have to find the words hidden amongst other letters.

As my kids got a little older they used to create their own word find puzzles. We would make the grid on the computer. They would then create a word find based on a theme. They’d write the words, insert the words into the grid and then use the remaining letters of the alphabet as fillers. It was always fun for them to make sure they used every letter of the alphabet at least once or at least twice.

Tip! Help your child identify talents and hobbies that make him or her feel special.

Does your child like comic books? Again, this might be an area where you can negotiate with a teacher. Can your child write a report on the theme of the comics? Can your child share any lessons learned from the comics? Can your child write a report about the characters in the comic book? How does the character dress? What are some of the personality traits of the character? What criteria is the child using to determine the personality traits?

When you have a child that does not like to read, it’s time to get creative and try some of the above ideas or others you may have to interest your child in written words.

Audrey Okaneko is mom to two girls. She can be reached at audreyoka@cox.net or visited at http://www.scrapping-made-simple.com

How to Encourage Your Child to Dress as an Individual

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Tip! Water faucet: Water with 140 degrees Fahrenheit will produce a third-degree burn on a child in just 3 seconds! Set hot water heaters no higher than 120 degrees Fahrenheit. A lower water temperature will reduce the chance of scald burns.

Encouraging children to be individuals with their own thoughts and decisions is always a challenge to parents. One area in which children can differentiate themselves is through the clothing. Here are some ideas to help children of all ages to use clothing to reflect their unique personalities:

1. Encourage your child to be unique. Discuss the importance of individuality and why it’s important to be different. Explain how ?popular styles? and ?trendy clothing? are mass marketed and make everyone look the same. Discuss how clothing can be used to differentiate oneself from everyone else and why this can be important.

2. Allow your child to pick their own clothing. Let them learn important skills about decision making by selecting their own outfit each day. It may not be what you would choose?and it may be downright mismatched, but your child will learn about their own preferences, opinions, and how to express themselves through clothing choices.

Tip! It teaches life skills. My child can prepare his own breakfast, load the dishes into the dishwasher, and then clear the table and floor when he is done.

3. Select and purchase clothing for your child that is different than the mainstream, big box stores. Shop in a variety of locations from boutiques, consignments, department stores, online stores, to craft shows and bizarres. Seek out children’s clothes that reflect your child’s personality through color, texture, design, and style.

4. Lead by example. Have your own personal style and verbalize why you choose to wear the clothes you do. Explain why you are drawn to particular styles, colors, and textures and how these choices reflect who you are. Point out adults who have their own sense of style and how that contributes to who they are. Lead your child to observe differences in styles and how clothing can define who you are.

Marianne Mullen is Co-Owner of Polkadot Patch Boutique, a specialty boutique featuring unique baby and children’s clothes.

How To Read To Your Baby

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Tip! Shop at specialty boutiques. There are so many wonderful baby and children’s boutiques featuring very unusual gifts.

When my twin boys were born, I was very excited to read to them.
They had received a lot of neat books as gifts, and I was looking
forward to sharing their books with them.

What I wasn’t expecting was them not focusing on a book for more
than a second or two so I could read to them! Reading to babies
can be challenging when there are so many things in the world to
explore, but here are some tips that have worked for me.

There are many different types of books available for babies.
Board books and cloth books work best for babies so they can
handle them and drool on them without doing much damage to them.

If your baby isn’t interested in one type of book, keep
introducing different books until you find one he is interested
in. One of my sons loves books with pictures of real babies in
them. He loves to look at their smiling faces. For Christmas he
received a board book called “Tom Arma’s Paw Print Parade”. Tom
Arma (a famous baby photographer) has a new line of baby board
books available at http://www.amazon.com. My son has another
board book called “Happy Baby Words” from
http://www.priddybooks.com. This book pictures babies getting
dressed, eating, etc. He loves to look at the pictures in that
book.

Tip! Stuffed animals ? Every baby needs a few, but be careful that everyone else didn’t give a stuffed animal as well. There is only so much room in the nursery.

My other son loves cloth books. Sesame Street has a book called
“Get Dressed with Elmo” that is his favorite. This book is
available at http://www.softplayforkids.com. This is an
interactive book where a toddler can zip zippers, fasten buttons,
attach velcro, etc. A baby can’t do these activities, of course,
but my son loves to flip the soft pages and play with the items
in the book.

Tip! Involve the family. Encourage older siblings, your partner, grandparents and other people that care for your baby.

My boys are 10 1/2 months old, and I find that they will look at
books by themselves longer than they will let me read to them. I
make sure to have books in every room of the house that they find
when they are crawling around, and they will stop and look at
them (of course they are finding my books too!). They especially
like looking at books in bed. When they are going to sleep they
will lie in their beds and roll around with their favorite book
in their hands. I’ve peeked in their room to find one of them
sitting in his bed turning the pages of his favorite Elmo book.
If I were to try to read it to him he would instantly try to
crawl away.

I figure just exposing my boys to books at this age will
influence their desire to want to read, even if they don’t feel
like indulging my desire to read to them. I have found one time
they will let me read to them, however…when I plop them in bed!
Right when the tears are about to start I pull out their favorite
book and read it to them in their crib. One son stands holding
on to the edge of his crib (hoping I’ll change my mind and pick
him back up) while I read his book to him. I have a captive
audience and they are distracted from their initial reaction to
being put in bed. After I read their stories they generally let
me leave without a fuss!

Tip! Start with the most popular names being given to baby boys. For parents living in the USA, you can easily find this kind of information by visiting the Social Security Administration’s website (click on the link at the bottom of this page to go to the direct link to the SSA baby names search).

Happy reading!

Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom of four. For more
inspirational articles and tips for everyday living, visit
http://www.christian-parent.com

How To Create A Fun & Functional Child Playroom

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Tip! When your children have proved themselves to handling their pennies, take them to open their own bank accounts.

Play is what being a kid is all about. By creating a fun and functional child playroom we give our kids the best foundation there is. Sure there may be other rooms in the house where your children hang out to watch TV, play on the computer or play a board game with the rest of the family but none compares to the value of having an actual child playroom.

Having a room where imagination fuels the play is where it’s at. Child playrooms are all about giving your children the space and the equipment needed to inspire play. All children need is imagination and a child playroom to be creative in.

Tip! Baby Walkers: Each year, an average of 2 children die as a result of baby-walker related injuries. Holtzman recommends using a stationary activity center instead.

When it comes to creating a fun and functional child playroom it’s important to consider your child’s natural tendencies. What type of play does your child enjoy the most – is it arts and crafts, building forts, dramatic play, creating tall skyscrapers out of building blocks etc.?

Get input from the whole family regarding room design and set-up. Although it’s important to accommodate current interests and activities a wise parent also plans the space for future use. This is where it’s important to include adjustable shelving and incorporate lots of flat surfaces for future projects. A 5 year old will use a playroom very different from how a 10 year old would use it.

Tip! Listen and Communicate. If your child is old enough to give you information from his point of view, by all means listen to it.

For more ideas on designing and decorating child playrooms visit http://www.decorating-kids-rooms.net/decorating-child-play-room-decor-ideas.html

For a versatile child playroom and one that grows with your children keep the permanent elements in the room like tables, chairs and wall units basic. That’s the functional part.

The fun part comes in how you bring the room together with decorative accessories like fashionable slipcovers, wall decals, posters, and funky storage bins.

No matter their age, kids are natural magnets for stuff. Open shelving with lots of bins is often best way to go as it provides storage flexibility for now and in the future. Your shelving unit for the next few years may house a collection of storage bins filled to the brim with stuffed animals and building blocks and may later be replaced by books, board games and DVDs. As children get older many of them also like to display their collections of things. This is where open shelving comes in really handy.

If on the other hand, you prefer out of sight, out of mind storage when the kids aren’t actively using their playroom you may wish to consider armoires or storage cupboards to keep everything behind closed doors. It’s all a matter preference and what type of playroom you wish to create for your children.

Tip! Provide Flexibility with Boundaries ? Instead of boss, see yourself as your child’s coach or guide, responsible for providing them with experiences to learn from and allowing them to experience the consequences of their actions. Give clear guidelines, but also give them flexibility too.

Either way if you opt for open or closed storage you will want to make sure that any shelving units, storage cupboards or armoires are secured to the wall with toggle bolts and brackets.

Following are some creative ways to add a little fun to a functional child playroom space.

*In the craft area paint the chairs in different colors.

*Create a cushion floor using large multi-colored rubber puzzle pieces.

*Use a bulletin board for displaying artwork and posting special activity reminders.

*Turn baby wipe containers into great storage boxes for small craft supplies.

*For a great storage unit paint an old table and cover the sides with fabric to hide roll out storage containers of craft supplies.

*Revitalize old metal shelves with a little spray paint.

*Purchase unfinished shelves and paint them to match the room.

*To protect little fingers and bruises from hard edges consider padding your child’s toy box with quilt batting and fabric that matches the rooms d飯r.

*Create handy little cubbies by installing a few wooden shelving boxes here and there.

*Since kids love to play in enclosures consider purchasing a lightweight nylon tent, or making one yourself in a fabric that co-ordinates with the room. Another great idea would be to add some nylon crawl though tubes and cardboard house than can by decorated by your kids using paints or markets. Catalogues and magazines are a great source for ideas that you can adapt and craft yourself.

Tip! Take lots of photographs: In this age of digital photography, it doesn’t matter how many photographs we take, because we needn’t print or keep them all. Photographs provide an excellent memory of what your child does ? and you will probably notice things you hadn’t before.

Sherrie Le Masurier is an organizing consultant who helps parents organize and decorate their children’s rooms. She is a member of Professional Organizers in Canada (POC) and co-owner of http://www.decorating-kids-rooms.net – Copyright.

How to Teach Your Baby Spoon Feeding

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Tip! The baby is more likely to grow into a strong and independent child, with a large amount of confidence. So long as they are happy and secure, they will not be worried about sleeping alone, as this is what they have come to expect.

Psychologists affirm that it is a mother, who determines an age when her child begins to eat with a spoon independently, as all matters of upbringing falls on her shoulders. Some babies could eat with a spoon even before 1 year old, whereas a baby of a too anxious mother could not eat by himself even at 2 years old. The result depends on the fact when parents allow their child to try eating at the table. And the earlier this happens, the better result will be for child.

Tip! The parents will sleep better too, especially compared to those who have a baby in their own bed.

The parental task is to support their baby’s pleasure while eating. A majority of children show a wish to eat with a spoon at 9-11 months, and, if parents encourage such independence of children, then, by 1,5 years the most persistent ones will be able to ‘wield a spoon’ perfectly without any help.

Training for independent spoon-feeding begins at 6 months, when a child tries to eat by himself, holding a cookie or cracker in his hand. Then at 8 months, when a baby can already sit confidently, you can seat him at the table in a children’s seat and give him a spoon. If you do not do this in time, then sometimes you can see a baby snatching a spoon from a mother’s hand by himself, as he feels a necessity to learn eating by himself. A mother can miss this opportunity in time or treat it as whims during a meal. However, if such thing happens during next spoon-feeding, it is better to give this spoon to a baby, and take another one for yourself. The main is to keep a baby’s pleasure while the process of eating.

Tip! Start looking at baby names early. You are likely to change your mind often, so the more time you allow, the easier it will be.

Some useful advice

Before each spoon-feeding fulfill a ritual of hand washing. Firstly, like any other adult member of a family, a baby also needs to wash his hands before having a meal. Secondly, this will dispose a baby to the process of eating.

It is better to buy unbreakable crockery with bright colored pictures for your baby. Put your baby’s food in a special plate. On no account put all food at once on the table, as you may distract your baby’s attention and he will begin requiring only what he wants.

Tip! Family History. Family History often comes into play when naming a baby.

Be ready that your baby will smear food firstly, after you give him a spoon, and then he will begin flapping the table and plate with a spoon. So, put a small apron on your baby for sure, and cover the floor with a bog oil-cloth.

Tip! If you have talent and time, try making a baby gift yourself. There are many ideas online as well as great resources at bookstores and your local library.

A child quickly discovers that it is not enough yet just to pick up a spoon. He will need several weeks more to learn scooping food and other several weeks to bring food to his mouth, not overturning a spoon. It is clear that a baby gets tired of this difficult work, so he begins playing with food. In such case you should put away everything from table, leaving just several bits of meat on a plate, so that he will have something to experiment with.

Tip! Number of Names. You have many options when it comes to the number of names you choose for your baby.

Even if a child tries hard to eat with a spoon, he will dirty himself and everything around all the same. If you nip all such impulses in the bud, then he will not be able to learn anything for a long. So it is better to provide yourself with unbreakable crockery, patience and sense of humor – and you will be glad seeing your baby’s new skills and abilities every day. Moreover, his intellectual development will be much more successful, if you do not constrain it with endless prohibitions.

Parental practical work

Our son Paul always liked eating properly. But once, before going for a walk in the afternoon, he began playing up, snatching a spoon out of my hands. Firstly, I was even angry with him, but, when I gave a spoon to my sonny and took another one for myself, I discovered that our 1.5 years old Paul tried to scoop a puree with a spoon by himself. Several unsuccessful attempts upset our baby a little, and he allowed us to spoon-feed him again. Since that time we allowed Paul to spoon-feed independently for a while, and then I finished spoon-feeding by myself. Little by little, time of ?freedom while having a meal? increased, and quantity of food left in his plate reduced.

Tip! Celebrity Names. A common source of today’s baby names comes from the names of celebrities and from the names that celebrities choose for their children.

On his second birthday he coped with the holiday dinner by himself!?

Stacey Minsky, New-York

I’m growing my son by myself. Probably, that is why I always try to teach Benny to independence. Since he was 11 months, I seated him in his chair, put a plate with vegetable puree in front of him and gave him a spoon. Of course, little food came to my baby’s mouth, in general, the most part turned to be smeared on a chair, table, cloth.  But later I could spoon-feed him from other plate without any remonstrance.

Three months later, my sister and her 3 year old daughter Michelle came to our place. In the morning, seeing my Benny sitting at children’s table and shoveling up porridge, he shouted: ?What a shame!!! Your one can eat by himself already, and we are still spoon-feeding our Michelle!  But, after she seated her daughter at the table and gave her a spoon, she was surprised even more. Michelle saved her face and, taking a spoon, began eating breakfast, saying: ‘Hum, he can eat by himself? We also eat by ourselves in our kindergarten’.
Melanie Jameson, San-Francisco.

Tip! Always say the word that you are signing. Baby signing helps with early language development as the signs are always done at the same time as the word is spoken.

Yana Mikheeva is the creator of the Baby-Health.Net at http://www.baby-health.net
Are you going to get pregnant? Visit our friendly resource and read information on pregnancy and parenting, painless childbirth, growth and development of a baby, baby health, safety, signs of pregnancy.
She also has a blog for women at http://www.womanspassions.com/blog/

How to Tell if Your Child is Truly Popular or a Closet Extortionist

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Tip! Reading to your child will develop in him/her the desire to become a reader.

It’s no secret that school settings are ripe for bullying to occur. And so much attention is focused on the victim of bullying, it’s become common to address the symptom rather than the source.

So what do you do if you suspect, or know, that your child is the one causing the angst? Is your tendency to overlook the situation, thinking it will ‘work itself out’? Have you tried to curb the behavior with little or no result?

If you take Adlerian psychology seriously, then you’re familiar with the idea that there is always a reason for behavior, or as Adler outlined it, goals of misbehavior. Alfred Adler’s ideas about children’s goal-directed behavior were subsequently popularized by Erwin Wexberg, Rudolf Dreikurs, and Vicki Soltz, and are now used widely when trying to make heads or tails of someone’s actions.

Tip! Thank and Appreciate Your Child for What They Do ? Children want to please and they want to know that their contributions make a difference. Remember to tell them so?and often.

One of the most basic and helpful tools for parents, the goals of misbehavior can guide you to determine if your child exhibits signs of bullying, and how to address it. Any misbehavior quite easily can fit all four areas that Adler details, but most obviously, bullying fits the goal of revenge.

When people express themselves through the use of revenge, the recipients of this misbehavior will feel hurt or attacked and often times frightened. This goes for family, peers, anyone that is within the target radar.

And although this type of behavior can be the most challenging to approach (it’s one of the reasons the focus is often on empowering the victim!), it’s no more difficult than any other once you learn to remove any feelings of it being personal. As a parent, a tendency is to ignore it, lest your parenting be under attack. Whether or not parenting is the issue, it’s crucial that, as the parent, you work at understanding what the child is reacting to in their environment: it’s not about you at this point. It’s about guiding the child to a more productive way of operating.

Tip! It teaches life skills. My child can prepare his own breakfast, load the dishes into the dishwasher, and then clear the table and floor when he is done.

You are your child’s advocate. In order for you to fully engage in that role, it’s important to have your eyes wide open and have a high level of self-awareness. In this era of personal development and heightened awareness, turning a blind eye or claiming ignorance are no longer valid approaches to bullying or extortion.

Simplifications of these theories abound, but it takes a thorough understanding of how to implement the strategies for sustainable results. A trained coach or counselor can help immensely.

Coaching leaders around issues of balancing career and family, teaching early education and personal development since 1989, Natalie Tucker Miller has been serving as president for International Association of Coaches since January 2006.

http://www.NatalieTuckerMiller.com

http://certifiedcoach.org/mission/governors.html

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How To Choose A 3 Wheeler Pushchair For Your Baby

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Tip! Don’t let the sceptics get to you. People may try and tell you that baby signing slows down speech development.

If you are active parents who love to roam the countryside and rough terrain then a good 3 wheeler pushchair is maybe the one you should choose, making sure it is comfortable for your child.

There are some excellent ones on the market with good suspension so your child gets a smooth ride and it also makes it easy for you to push.

You can buy the hood and apron separately if you wish and some of them come with pneumatic tyres and a pump. There are lots of accessories to go with the 3 wheeler such as footmuff, water bottle for those hot sunny days, fabric seat liners, insect nets, generous baskets etc. and if you choose one with an adjustable handle it will be comfortable for both of you to push, otherwise one of you could end up with backache!

Tip! Diaper Rash Prevention – instead of taking action after your baby got a diaper rash, prevent it with a drop of olive oil applied to their bottom every time you change their diaper: it works wonders (you should check with your doctor first).

Make sure it folds easily for travelling and also make sure the space behind the rear axle is big enough otherwise you will catch your feet on it each time you take a stride. There are some very robust models on the market which are the true all terrain pushchairs and will withstand rough ground, jogging, and even sand.

If you use a car, check the size of your boot and compare it with the folded dimensions of the pushchair you are thinking of choosing, making sure it will fit before you buy it, Also Choose a sturdy model with lockable wheels as you get better maneuverability over rough ground.

These 3 wheelers are great for days out at the park, beach and jogging, and are best suited for the active parents who do a lot of walking but they are not ideal if you use your pushchair for shopping and hopping on and off buses trains etc.

You can spend a lot of money on a pushchair and yet still get it wrong!

Tip! Stuffed animals ? Every baby needs a few, but be careful that everyone else didn’t give a stuffed animal as well. There is only so much room in the nursery.

To read independent reviews of three-wheeler pushchairs by parents, view features and compare prices visit the website 3-wheeler pushchair reviews.

Mark Hartshorne is a father with two young children and created a website to review pushchairs and strollers to offer parents a fair comparison on price, size, design and more. The website is My Pushchair – reviews, advice, price comparison.

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How To Create A Fun And Functional Child Playroom

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Tip! You need not handle your shy child with kid gloves, but be aware of how he feels and show that you understand.

Play is what being a kid is all about. By creating a fun and functional child playroom we give our kids the best foundation there is. Sure there may be other rooms in the house where your children hang out to watch TV, play on the computer or play a board game with the rest of the family but none compares to the value of having an actual child playroom.

Having a room where imagination fuels the play is where it’s at. Child playrooms are all about giving your children the space and the equipment needed to inspire play. All children need is imagination and a child playroom to be creative in.

When it comes to creating a fun and functional child playroom it’s important to consider your child’s natural tendencies. What type of play does your child enjoy the most – is it arts and crafts, building forts, dramatic play, creating tall skyscrapers out of building blocks etc.?

Tip! When your child is old enough encourage your child to purchase a journal or a diary where they can record their dreams and desires. This allows them to dream big and look forward to their lives ahead-filled with prosperity.

Get input from the whole family regarding room design and set-up. Although it’s important to accommodate current interests and activities a wise parent also plans the space for future use. This is where it’s important to include adjustable shelving and incorporate lots of flat surfaces for future projects. A 5 year old will use a playroom very different from how a 10 year old would use it.

Tip! Observe your child: That’s right. Just back off and actually watch them.

For more ideas on designing and decorating child playrooms visit http://www.decorating-kids-rooms.net/decorating-child-play-room-decor-ideas.html

For a versatile child playroom and one that grows with your children keep the permanent elements in the room like tables, chairs and wall units basic. That’s the functional part.

The fun part comes in how you bring the room together with decorative accessories like fashionable slipcovers, wall decals, posters, and funky storage bins.

No matter their age, kids are natural magnets for stuff. Open shelving with lots of bins is often best way to go as it provides storage flexibility for now and in the future. Your shelving unit for the next few years may house a collection of storage bins filled to the brim with stuffed animals and building blocks and may later be replaced by books, board games and DVDs. As children get older many of them also like to display their collections of things. This is where open shelving comes in really handy.

Tip! Be Positive, Warm, and Supportive. The focus of all communication between you and your child should be on teaching.

If on the other hand, you prefer out of sight, out of mind storage when the kids aren’t actively using their playroom you may wish to consider armoires or storage cupboards to keep everything behind closed doors. It’s all a matter preference and what type of playroom you wish to create for your children.

Either way if you opt for open or closed storage you will want to make sure that any shelving units, storage cupboards or armoires are secured to the wall with toggle bolts and brackets.

Following are some creative ways to add a little fun to a functional child playroom space.

Tip! Separate the Behavior from Your Child. You do not like that your child ran in the street? but you love your child.

*In the craft area paint the chairs in different colors.

*Create a cushion floor using large multi-colored rubber puzzle pieces.

*Use a bulletin board for displaying artwork and posting special activity reminders.

*Turn baby wipe containers into great storage boxes for small craft supplies.

*For a great storage unit paint an old table and cover the sides with fabric to hide roll out storage containers of craft supplies.

*Revitalize old metal shelves with a little spray paint.

Tip! Mouthwash: Many brands contain alcohol. Children are much more sensitive to the toxic effects of alcohol than adults.

*Purchase unfinished shelves and paint them to match the room.

*To protect little fingers and bruises from hard edges consider padding your child’s toy box with quilt batting and fabric that matches the rooms d飯r.

*Create handy little cubbies by installing a few wooden shelving boxes here and there.

*Since kids love to play in enclosures consider purchasing a lightweight nylon tent, or making one yourself in a fabric that co-ordinates with the room. Another great idea would be to add some nylon crawl though tubes and cardboard house than can by decorated by your kids using paints or markets. Catalogues and magazines are a great source for ideas that you can adapt and craft yourself.

Sherrie Le Masurier is an organizing consultant who helps parents organize and decorate their children’s rooms. She is a member of Professional Organizers in Canada (POC) and co-owner of http://www.decorating-kids-rooms.net – Copyright.

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How To Grow A Zen Child

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Tip! When your child is old enough encourage your child to purchase a journal or a diary where they can record their dreams and desires. This allows them to dream big and look forward to their lives ahead-filled with prosperity.

When children are raised naturally, in keeping with their own true hearts, there is nothing that we need to teach them. In fact, the children then become our teachers, reminding us of what is important in life, showing us how to express love and feel the simple adventure of being alive.

To grow a Zen child, means to raise a healthy, expressive, creative child–a child easily in touch with who they truly are. This child is naturally curious about life, experiencing each day as an adventure, going to sleep happy at night. This is a child to whom sharing comes naturally, who can laugh when things are funny and cry when they’re sad, who is not terrified of the consequences of their behavior or focused unnecessarily upon reactions of adults. This child then becomes strong and stable, able to weather all kinds of conflicting demands and pressures.

Tip! Don’t call your child ‘shy’. Studies have shown that often a child will grow to fit a label.

Actually, all of Zen practice comes simply to teach us how to become a child once again. Not how to become childish, but child-like, how to tap the natural knowingness, resources and spontaneity we were all born with, to find delight in our days and share it with others.

In order to grow a Zen child certain basic steps need to be honored and taken. These steps are not difficult though they may be different from the ways in which we have usually been trained to think about child-rearing.

Some Steps To Growing A Zen Child

1) Honor The Child’s Natural Wisdom And Gifts

Most of us feel that we have to fill our children with information, knowledge, skills, direction. From the moment they are born we must “mold” them in the right direction, so that they will grow to fulfill our values and images of a successful adult. We do not stop a moment and question how these images have impacted upon us, how fulfilled and whole our lives are. We teach our children much more by who we are than by what we preach.

Tip! Storage chests: Suffocation deaths occur in such places when children crawl inside and cannot escape. The best choice is one without a lid or one with a lightweight, removable one.

All children have their own innate wisdom, rhythms, sense of exploration, and ability to express what is most dear to them. Our job as caretakers is to create a loving, safe environment in which both we and they can discover who they are. Raising children, (like Zen practice) is a process of discovery. We must take our lead from the children, not impose ourselves upon them.

When children feel so deeply respected, all that is best and natural emerges easily. Their full intelligence and abilities become available to them. This kind of child will not become aggressive, distracted and filled with all kinds of fears. When a being’s basic nature is not interfered with, it becomes empowered to function at its best.

Tip! Listen and Communicate. If your child is old enough to give you information from his point of view, by all means listen to it.

2) Don’t Compare Your Child With Others

Conformity and competition have become a craze (and plague) in our nation and in the process of child rearing. Nothing could be worse for both the parents and children. Comparing your child’s progress, scores or abilities with those of other children tell you absolutely nothing about who he/she is, or how they will do in their lives. There are many ways and timetables for developing, and different gifts and abilities that different children have.

Remember that being different doesn’t mean being better or worse. Many kinds of trees and flowers are needed in a garden. An apple tree will produce the best possible apples, don’t force it to give you pears. Not only will that distort it’s growth, but it will make the apple tree very sad. A garden with only one kind of flower would become uninteresting. Just as we need roses, tulips, lilies, etc. for the garden to be complete, we need all kinds of different children to make a whole world.

Tip! Let Go of Timeouts ? Timeouts can work for some children (but there are far better techniques). Ultimately, the only person we can control is ourselves.

3) Allow Your Child To Express Who She Is

There are many, many constrictions placed upon what children are allowed to express. There is a demand for politeness, control and censure coupled with the intrinsic notion that certain thoughts and feelings are bad and cannot or should not be expressed. The child develops the sense that certain parts of them are bad and unacceptable. This causes these parts to go underground, and become the source of symptoms of all kinds.

Tip! Mouthwash: Many brands contain alcohol. Children are much more sensitive to the toxic effects of alcohol than adults.

Help the child find a way to communicate and express whatever he/she is going through. It can be done through words, song, art, plays, dancing together, planting flowers. Make sure you find a way to let them know you truly hear what it is they need to say. The child’s self worth will then grow.

4) Look For And See The Best In All The Child Does

Rather than find fault, criticize, punish and negate the child in the thousands of ways we usually do, specifically look for and see the best in the child and all that they do. Acknowledge it to them as well. Everyday let the child know something you are truly proud of them for and pleased with about them.

However, sadly, in many situations the opposite occurs, praise and acknowledgement is given rarely, in a context of criticism and complaint. Turn this around. Let the child realize that though they may have made an error, the totality of who they are is wonderful.

Tip! Balloons: More children have suffocated on uninflated balloons and pieces of balloons than any other type of toy. Balloon related deaths are more common among children ages three and older than among younger children.

You can also ask them what they are pleased with and proud of about you. If there is something troubling them in the relationship, this is a time it will come to the fore. There is nothing more crucial than keeping open lines of full communication between parents and child.

5) Grow Yourself!

Of course as parents grow a Zen child, they are simultaneously growing themselves. The way we treat another, reflects back upon us. The beauty and goodness we find in another, we begin to see wherever we go. As we loosen the bonds and chains we tie our children in, we are always freeing ourselves as well. Power struggles disappear in these kinds of relationships, and make lots of room for love to grow.

Tip! Take your child’s ideas seriously. By lessening the importance of a child’s concerns you lessen the child.

Cc/author/2005

Discover 2,000 year old Zen secrets to being calm, balanced and positive, no matter what is going on in your life, in Dr. Shoshanna’s new e-book, Living By Zen, (Timeless Truths For Everyday Life).(http://www.livingbyzen.com) Dr. Shoshanna is a psychologist, speaker, workshop leader, long term Zen practitioner and author of many books, including The Anger Diet, (30 Days to Stress Free Living), Zen Miracles (Finding Peace In An Insane World), and Zen and the Art of Falling In Love and Save Your Relationship (21 Basic Laws of Successful Relationships) and The Anger Diet (30 Days to Stress Free Living) Visit her at http://www.brendashoshanna.com or contact her at: mailto:topspeaker@yahoo.com

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