|
|
| Parenting Information |
|
|
|
|
Rainy Day Fun - Crafts For KidsJennifer Gove Rainy days can be so boring for a child…and just as hard on moms. So we give some ideas to brighten your day and chase their rainy day blues away! Shadow puppets In a room that is fairly dark set up a flash light so it is facing a wall. Have the children make hand shadows…If they get really good at them they could even put on a little play. My box home As a little girl some of my best times were spent making Barbie homes out of medium card board boxes. Paints, markers, crayons, fabric scraps, glue, and so on were used to fashion wall paper curtains and the like. The ideas and possibilities are endless! Little boys can make garages for there cars as well. Magazine Story Take ten pieces of paper. Staple them together. Have you child go threw a magazine and pick out 10 pictures to cut out. Tell him/her to paste one on each page. Now what ever order they are in the must right a story, the story should have some thing to do with the pictures on each page. This can be a real challenge but is endless fun and giggles. Puzzles Have you child search for a few pictures they like in an old magazine. Paste these pictures onto heavy cardboard. With a paint brush, brush on a coat of clear drying glue such as Elmer’s glue. Let them completely dry. Once they are dry cut them up into different shaped pieces. Now you have a puzzle for this rainy day and rainy days to come! Store in zip lock bags. Bean Bag Pals You will need a 10x10 square of felt, thread, needle, a parent to sew, beans or rice, tacky glue and scraps of different color felts to decorate with. Mom or Dad should sew the squares together all the way around, all but about 2 inches. Turn the square inside right. Fill with the beans or rice and sew closed. It can be decorated with the scarps of felt to make animals. Googly eyes are fun to add as well but are not recommended for children under four. A Gift of Comfort. Not long ago when I was in the hospital having my son, I was given a special heat pack for my back. It was very simple and would be a great project for children to help with. My suggestion is have your child make about 30 and donate then to a labor and delivery floor. Rice Sock Heat Packs You will need white men’s tube socks ones that have no preformed heal medium is a good size. You will need uncooked white rice not minute You will need ribbon any color or colors you like. Gift tags that tie on. Fill each sock two inches from the top. Tie a length of ribbon tightly in a knot attach the gift card and then make a bow. On the gift tag write the instructions for use you could make gift tags on your computer and print them all out Microwave on high for 2 minutes or until it reaches the desired warmth. Enjoy! These work great, stay warm for a long time. If your child makes them to give away it is an added bonus of pride! Dress Up My children have a tote full of dress up clothing. I did it inexpensively threw yard sales, Dollar Stores, Halloween clearances and Good Will. I pick up things such as jewelry, hats, sun glasses, badges, fancy dresses, costumes and other articles of interest. Many times I save new things to add on a rainy day or another day they have nothing to do. It generates new interest and hours of play. One reader even mentioned the idea of theme boxes. Such as a fairy box if that was what your little girl was into or a princess or a firemen ect. I think that is a good idea for but also I believe a good mix of things inspires imagination and creativity. Driving Mat A huge poster board or cardboard is great to let your little one paint roads on for his cars In fact I bought my sons a light colors rug remnant it was cheap about 4x5 .It can be any size you like. My sons used fabric paints on the rug. They painted lakes, roads, airports trees and so on. If you decided to do the poster board you can use crayons or markers as well. They had a really great time making this one rainy day and still enjoy it to this day. When they are done they just roll it up and put it away. Card board milk cartons can be saved and painted to make little decorative houses and stores as well as stores to place on their car mat. Be sure to wash them well, dry them and staple them closed. © 2003-2004 Jennifer & Gregory Gove
| | | | RELATED ARTICLES Guide To Choosing Educational Toys For Children Educationaltoys for children Relaxation Couldnt Be Simpler Many people use their sofa and TV to help them switch off and relax. In reality, television programs can suspend you n stress for yours, with depressing or thrilling storylines, violence and madness! Here’s Help for the “I Can’t Say ‘No’ Blues” I hear it all the time.Cries from Christian women who want desperately to serve the Lord, but who feel overwhelmed.“I almost dread going to PTO meetings or church services anymore because I just know somebody else is going to ask me to help with something,” they say. “Don’t get me wrong.I want to help, but there are only so many hours in my day.I feel like I’m just going to explode if I don’t get some relief.” Is Mothering Wearing You Out I always wanted to have children and I was completely thrilled when I had my first child. Nothing, however, prepares a mother for what it’s like to be responsible for a child 24/7. Parenting Starts Before Pregnancy While it may seem farfetched to some people, many of my clients remember what they felt and experienced while still in the womb. Comments such as these are not unusual: Help! My Kids are Overweight! Identify the Problem and Find a Solution to your Child’s Weight Gain. The Challenges of Single Parenting Having worked with parents for the last 35 years and written books on parenting and relationships, I’ve discovered that one of the greatest challenges for us as parents is to be loving role-models for our children, showing our children through our behavior how to take personal responsibility for their own feelings and needs.Our children need to learn from our role-modeling how to nurture themselves within and how to create a sense of safety in the world.In families where both a mother and father are present, both parents can participate in nurturing the child emotionally and taking care of the child in the world, and both parents can role-model what it looks like to do this for themselves. Bath Time Fun Bath time can be fun or it can be a real hassle if your child is afraid or don’t like it. So we as mothers try to make it a fun time for our little ones! Then the problem will be getting them out! Your Child’s Self-Esteem is in The Cards Research has shown that the present generation of children worldwide is demonstrating more social-emotional challenges from low self-esteem to depression than ever before.Families, schools, recreation programs etc. are recognizing that it is critical our children be taught positive values like caring about others and oneself, behaving responsibly, recognizing and managing emotions and developing positive relationships. Family Life or How to Buy: Chair for a New Baby Even if your baby is just weeks old now, youll soon see how amazingly quickly she develops. Most expected parents want to buy their new baby the world.But you dont need to spend a lot of money.Before you blow the budget check out online sources for reviews and recommendation and then selectively purchase new items with safety. Go Online.Youll be able to find almost everything you need. Browse the bargain hunters guides like "Baby Bargains" and "Bargain Buys For Babys First Year". Consult websites: ConsumerReports.org and DrSpock.com. So buy the best quality you can afford. Planning the Perfect Baby Shower One of the most exciting events an expecting mother looks forward to is celebrating her baby shower. Friends Are A Gift You Give Yourself My oldest boy is fifteen and was a real jerk about a month ago.He had gotten pretty full of himself and acted like he was too cool for the rest of the family.Pretty typical teenager behavior, but I didnt like it.I had gotten to the end of my patience with him and laid into him about how lousy it felt to be treated that way.We ended up in a huge fight.He argued that he wasnt acting any different than normal and that I was just choosing to see things negatively.So, I laid out numerous examples of his selfish "me me me" behaviors without stopping to take a second breath.He hates it when I go off like that, but once he was ready to really talk, I came down off of my soapbox.He was close to tears.Apparently, Id hit a nerve.He confessed that his closest friends at school had been trying to tell him the same thing recently and he wasnt hearing them.Now he suddenly knew what it was they had been trying to say.He felt awful and began to make immediate changes in his behaviors towards others.He really hated the idea that he was hurting anyones feelings by being cold and uncaring. Teaching Children Good Manners Last week in my newsletter, I mentioned that my children knew how to behave in nice restaurants because they had been exposed to the atmosphere at an early age. My idea of well behaved might be different from yours, however, I think there are certain basics that are important and universal. Its OK for your child to be bored.In fact, its recommended! NY -- Strange as it may sound, bordom promotes happier, creative kids who are better problem solvers.When children use their own creativity with unstructured play, they find ways to amuse themselves -- even if it means simply daydreaming. Where do you Cast “Cast all your anxiety on Him for He cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7. College Savings Reward Plans - Making Them Work for You You are probably well aware that college costs are soaring and that the need for parents to build college savings has never been greater. You may also be aware of various loyalty reward programs such as Upromise and BabyMint that pledge to help build your college savings by paying back a small percentage of the amount you spend using their credit card and/or buying certain products. Companies offer these programs because, in the aggregate, they know they will lead to higher spending on their products or services. Smart consumers learn to maximize earned rewards without altering their spending habits. A Dangerous Environment The internet is a dangerous place for your children. Dont even begin to believe that your child is safe. There are more dangers than you can possibly imagine waiting to lure children to their doom. You had better be aware of whats happening and take steps to shield them from the danger ... if you dont, your childs sanity and safety are at serious risk. Where Do Your Priorities Fit An expert in time management was speaking to a group of business students when he decided to do an experiment. He pulled out a large mason jar, a dozen fist-sized rocks and carefully placed them, one by one, into the jar. When no more rocks would fit inside, he asked, "Is this jar full" Everyone in the class said, "Yes." Celebrity Baby Names It seems that the days of naming your son or daughter with your own name and adding a second, third or a fourth sign in roman numerals at the end are fading away. This seems to be especially the case with celebrities. The more unique, the better! As to whether celebrities are simply a little loopy, or whether they simply like the attention that a unique baby name will bring, we do not know. What we do know is that the names just keep getting crazier and crazier. Below is a list of some of our favorite celebrity baby names over the years. Clean Slates and Fresh Starts Hope, excitement and anxiety all wrapped up in fresh haircuts and new clothes. Pens, pencils and notebooks, the smell of a new box of crayons and a brand new book; it all speaks of such promise. |
| home | site map |
| © 2005 |