3 Kids and Us

4 Smart Spending Habits to Develop ASAP

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When people talk about making smart financial decisions, they almost always discuss money-saving tactics. Of course, finding ways to cut back or cut down on expenditures can make it easier for a person to manage their debt and pay off bills. However, the reality is that developing smart spending habits can prove just as beneficial. Indeed, learning how to be a savvy consumer can do wonders for your long-term financial stability. With that in mind, today we’ll explore four smart spending habits that everyone should work to build right away. Check them out here:

Stay Patient

Have you ever felt compelled to make a purchase? Or have you ever bought something on a whim and then regretted it later? If so, then know  that you’re not alone. While impulse buying is fairly common, it is nevertheless a bad practice –– particularly for people on a tight budget. Given that fact, it’s important for all consumers to exercise patience when considering their purchase options. Give yourself at least a few days to review serious purchases and never rush to buy a product or service you don’t need.

Engage with Businesses

Modern businesses value customers that reach out and engage with them. In fact, they value customer interactions so much that they may be willing to pass along discounts or special offers to consumers who communicate with them. For example, pharmacy customers might be able to earn discounts simply by filling out a survey about their last shopping experience. If you’re looking for a good deal, don’t be afraid to speak directly with local businesses.

Become Brand Blind

Attachment to a certain brand could end up costing you hundreds –– or even thousands –– of dollars in unnecessary upcharges over a long period of time. Whenever possible, ignore brand names and advertising messages and compare products and services in an objective fashion. Often, you’ll find that the “name brand” is overpriced or over-hyped.

Maximize Positive Impact

Believe it or not, your spending power can go a long way. That is, provided you know how to stretch it. Whenever you’re making a purchase decision, be sure to consider how you can get the best bang for your buck. For instance, purchasing a piece of equipment might cost more than renting it. However, if you use that product on a regular basis, purchasing it will end up costing you less than renting it again and again. What’s more, consider how your purchases will affect others. Don’t ever forget that even a small act of charity can make all the difference for someone else. Keep that vital money lesson in mind the next time you’re faced with a choice of how to spend your hard-earned capital.

4 Methods From Talkspace to Discover Whether Online Learning Works for Your Child

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Throughout the world, many students are experiencing school in a completely new way. Instead of students learning in a classroom, most educational facilities have begun online or distance learning. Other students are experiencing hybrid plans, combining both in-person and distance education.

Many students are dealing with new ways to learn. However, it’s also important to think about what these children’s parents are going through.

Determining Whether Distance Learning Works for Your Child

If you want to learn how your child is doing with distance learning, you can follow a few tips. Here are four great ways to learn more about how online learning works for your child.

  1. Take a Closer Look at Their Problems

During this time, many children feel that online learning is like entering a new world. Because of this feeling, it’s understandable for children to feel like they’re struggling in certain areas. If you want to help your child, take a closer look at the exact issues they’re experiencing.

  1. Work to Establish Educational Goals

Another important step to take is to understand your child’s goals. These types of goals can vary, depending on your child’s age and where they’re at in lesson plans. It’s also a good idea to ask your child’s school or teacher if they can provide you with copies of current lesson plans.

  1. Focus on Your Child’s Mental Health

As people continue focusing on physical health issues, it’s sometimes easy to forget about your family’s mental health. When you’re used to attending school in person, remote learning sometimes causes mental health issues to develop.

Another way to help your child includes online therapy. Popular online therapy services like Talkspace enable children to speak with therapists. Plus, Talkspace has many therapists on hand who specialize in helping younger patients. Best of all, services like Talkspace are often more cost-effective than working with a local therapist.

  1. Take Time to Speak With Educators

There’s another important group to focus on during this time, and that’s those teaching your children. Educators also have to make many adjustments to work from home. With that in mind, they know a lot about what you and your child might be going through. If your child is dealing with distance learning issues, it’s a good idea to schedule a time to speak with their teacher.

This type of meeting is helpful because it allows teachers to take a closer look at what issues your child might be dealing with. Unfortunately, it’s sometimes hard for teachers to spot what’s happening with one student in a remote setting. It might also allow your child to schedule one-on-time time with a teacher.

Parents Know Best

If things are going well with your child’s distance learning, that’s great. However, as a parent, you probably know the signs of a struggling child. It’s difficult to find children and parents who aren’t struggling with this new way of learning. Fortunately, the stress of this event is something we will all eventually put behind us.

Everything You Need to Know About Getting Sleep as a New Parent

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Bringing home a baby is one of the greatest joys you will ever experience in life. You’ve just created a beautiful miracle and are ready to raise this baby with your values and happy memories. While you’re glowing in the glory of welcoming the new addition to your family, in the back of your mind you’re worrying about the lack of sleep you’ll have over the next few months.

It isn’t easy raising a baby, especially as a new parent. Luckily, there are great techniques and tips to help you get the sleep you need to take care of your newborn baby.

Sleep While the Baby Sleeps

It’s the oldest tip in the book for new parents, but it’s effective. Whenever the baby falls asleep you have the chance to grab a few good moments of sleep and relaxation. Even if you can’t fall asleep it’s a good idea to lie down and close your eyes for a bit to build up your energy again.

Create a Comfortable Sleep Environment

When you do have the chance to sleep, make sure it’s in a comfortable environment. Clean your bedroom and take out all of the clutter that can distract you and remind you of things you must do later. Your environment should be calm, dark, and sleep inducing.

Also create a comfortable sleep environment for the baby. Make sure he or she has a quiet room with a comfortable temperature to help them fall and stay asleep.

Practice Good Sleep Habits

Just like how we practice good habits in the shower and for our teeth, it’s important to have good habits when it comes to sleep. The three most effective sleep practices include:

  • No caffeine in the afternoon
  • No electronics an hour before bed
  • Create a sleep schedule

It’s important that you don’t rely on caffeine to stay awake. It dehydrates you and too much can increase anxiety.

Instead of scrolling through your phone, answering emails, or watching television, try reading a book or listening to a podcast before you go to sleep.

Lastly, while having a sleep schedule isn’t easy with a newborn, trying to stay consistent when you wake up and go to sleep can help you tremendously as a new parent.

Leave the Chores

You don’t have to be perfect. Every new parent is going to have all of their attention on taking care of their baby. If you leave a sink full of dirty dishes or a load of laundry in the dryer for tomorrow, nobody is going to judge you. Don’t over exert yourself trying to keep a clean house if it means sacrificing sleep.

Ask for Help

Don’t be afraid to ask for help. It isn’t easy being a new parent and you deserve to have some help. Whether you ask your partner, friends, family members, or even sign up for baby coaching lessons, getting the help you need is essential when raising a newborn. Getting help means you can focus more on your baby and create the best life possible.

What to Put in Children’s Christmas Shoeboxes

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Every year, we all rally together to create special shoeboxes filled with gifts for those who are less fortunate, so children can have not only the bare essentials but one or two treats too – as Christmas should be.

In a nation of wealth, it can be hard to imagine that some of us, including children, don’t have access to even the basics such as a toothbrush. And for those who are even less fortunate, might not even have access to food.

This is why the Christmas shoeboxes are so important. That being said, it can be tricky to know what to put in them, especially if we are lucky enough to not be in such a position ourselves.

This piece will help give you some ideas of combined essentials and treats that could make a child’s year.

A Stuffed Toy

Going straight in with a treat, because if we are perfectly honest, it is too sad not to. A stuffed animal, bear or plushy of some kind is something everyone needs to cuddle sometimes, which is why this is a great option for the shoebox.

Choose a new toy that will be able to fit in the box – they don’t have to be expensive; they just have to be clean. The stuffed toy is often the ‘wow’ factor of the shoebox, so make it count!

You can choose other toys too, such as a soccer ball (and pump) or dolls/action figures/plastic animals.

Personal Care Items

Personal care items are usually the real basics that we might not even think of! This can include a toothbrush, a small hairbrush or comb, a soft washcloth and a bar of soap (that is packaged). A blanket will also go a long way. A water bottle can be useful and consider some of the more outside-the-box essentials such as adhesive bandages. There are now cartoon and colorful bandages out there for children, which will make them much more willing to use them!

Get Crafty

There are not many children that don’t like to get their hands dirty and get stuck into a craft box, so some craft items are the perfect fit to go in next. Think colored pens, pencils, crayons, coloring books, stamps and colorful ink, notebooks, playdoh, stickers… you get the idea! Let your inner child run wild.

If you are not able to make a shoebox this year, then don’t worry! Consider a holiday donation which will go straight to helping those in need this Christmas.

Personal Touches

This is a special part of the shoebox which might just be the best part for them.

Make a friendship bracelet and let them know you have the other half! Or give them a half of something small you have the other half of. Draw them a picture or write them a poem – whatever you like. And whatever you do, make sure to include a personal note or a Christmas card in the box too, which can include a photo of you and your family, and an address so the child may write to you. This could be the beginning of a beautiful pen-pal friendship.

ONLINE PREDATORS ARE BIG THREAT FOR KIDS; SAVE THEM THROUGH PARENTAL MONITORING APP

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Internet has open innumerable opportunities and a long list of worries for parents too. . In real life, parents teach them not to talk and trust them. In the internet world, however, these rules change. Kids talk and befriend strangers thinking it is only virtual so it won’t cause any harm. But online strangers are equally dangerous.

Kids meet them through online games, chat rooms, anonymous messaging apps and social media. Some kids like to talk to unknown people and discover new things. Some kids find the anonymity comforting and talk about sensitive issues they otherwise can’t. What they forget is not every person they talk to over the internet is honest. They might be talking to a kid of their own age and in reality, that person is a pedophile or child kidnapper. According to a study,

  • 69% teens receive messages from strangers on different social media sites.
  • 8% teens have shared their numbers online.
  • 58% share their location.

Kids share personal information publicly which allows the predators to locate them. Often they become friends with the kids and talk them into sharing addresses, numbers, school names, etc. They can use this info to threaten and harass them. 19% of teens have been harassed online. In worst scenarios, they kidnap them. Cases have been reported in which kids were abducted, assaulted and threatened to share private photos with online strangers.

Considering these hazards, it is advised to parents to watch their kids’ online behaviour. A digital way, such as a FamilyTime parental monitoring app is effective for parental check and control.

How does it work?

Parental monitoring app like FamilyTime lets parents track their online activity and control any behaviour which may be harmful to them. An app is more effective as it gives deeper insight into the kids’ lives and parents can do it from their own devices.

What can you do?

  • You can monitor their call history, contacts, and SMS threads to keep an eye on suspicious numbers and any signs of threats, bullying or sexting through texts.
  • Put the suspicious contacts on alert and get notified on any interaction with those contacts.
  • You can monitor their web activity such as browser history and bookmarks. This helps to know if they are going to chat rooms or online gaming sites.
  • View their installed apps and block the apps which expose them to strangers.
  • Track their location and get panic alerts.
  • Geo-fence places and receive check-ins/checkouts.

Kids are naïve and they also tend to hide information from their parents. So it becomes necessary to use an app to do the work. It is better to be preventive. So, get this app now. Before you actually get its subscription, you can try this app for free and use all its premium features for complete 3 days.

Keep the online predators at bay!

As much as we don’t want to think it can happen to our kids, the sad truth is it can. Talk to them about the importance of monitoring. Tell them about all the dangers. Educate them about sharing online and keep a check yourself. Kids are kids, after all, they don’t always realize what’s best for them. That is why parents need to be careful. Use the FamilyTime parental monitoring app and keep those predators away from your kids!

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We left our home in Sydney, Australia many moons ago in May 2012 and, other than a brief stint back in Perth for Christmas and a wedding in early 2014, we have been travelling the world nomadically ever since, running a business from our laptops and we’re here to show you how to do it!