3 Kids and Us

4 Health Tips for New Parents

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Becoming a parent is a life-changing experience. And while it is extremely rewarding, it can also be quite stressful, time-consuming, and frustrating. As such, it’s not surprising that many new parents struggle to balance their new responsibilities with a healthy lifestyle. After all, it’s not easy taking care of a newborn 24/7, 365. Thankfully, there are steps you can take to ensure that you maintain healthy habits without neglecting any of your new parental obligations. Check out our top four health tips for new parents here:

Make Time to Exercise

Time management is a theme that we’ll revisit throughout this piece. As one can imagine, caring for an infant requires lots of time and attention. Given that fact, it’s important for new parents to make the most of the free time they do have available. Scheduling out a few times a week to get in a solid workout can be very beneficial. Plus, not only is exercising good for your physical well-being, but a vigorous workout can also help relieve stress. Lastly, don’t think twice about taking a walk with your little one in their stroller. Just getting up and moving around can provide a big boost to your energy and morale!

Meal Prep

Again, it’s unlikely that new moms and dads will have lots of time on their hands to cook healthy and delicious meals every single day. That’s why it’s so important to prepare meals at the beginning of the week so that you can grab and go as you need to. The good news is that it’s possible to find plenty of easy, healthy recipes that also taste great.

Speak with Your Doctor

New parents, understandably, place a priority on the health of their children. However, while you may feel like you’re constantly running back and forth between your home and the pediatrician’s for months at a time, it’s imperative not to forget about your own well-being. Don’t neglect treatment plans or doctor’s appointments! Medical professionals offer a huge variety of beneficial services –– from stem cell back injections to regular check-ups. So call up your doctor if it’s been a few months since your last appointment.

Remember to Breathe

Being a parent is hectic. It’s worth keeping in mind that while life moves fast, you can’t ever go back. Therefore, do your best to enjoy the experience of parenthood as it unfolds. Otherwise, you could end up missing out on a special moment! To conclude, don’t feel bad about asking others for help from time to time. Getting a family member or close friend to babysit for you will give you an opportunity to unwind and relax.

3 Fun, Simple and Powerful Ways to Teach Young Kids About Money

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For parents, the message and motivation is simple: if you don’t take the time to teach your kids about money, then something or someone else will — and those lessons are likely to be financially costly and emotionally painful.

What’s more, unlike talking about that other subject (yes, you know the one — birds and bees and all of that stuff), discussing money doesn’t need to be uncomfortable or awkward.

Instead, talking to your kids about money can be fun and interesting — not just for them, but for you, too. Here are three suggestions:

1. Take your kids food shopping and make them part of the process from purchasing to paying.

Understandably, most parents who take their young kids food shopping have one clear goal in mind: get in and get out as quickly as possible, and with a minimum amount of whining, complaining, and “if you don’t start behaving right now then no TV for a week!” threats.

However, one way to get kids interested in the experience and boost their budding financial literacy, is by coaching them to be part of the process. Help them understand how similar products have different prices, and why some products like milk and butter are cheaper than others like imported fruits and pine nuts. And when it comes to paying, help them see — or better yet, let them handle — the transaction, so they can start understanding how the system works.

2. Use rewards and incentives to help kids pay themselves first.

In the financial world for grown-ups, a new and better way of looking at saving these days is to “pay yourself first”. In a similar sense, you can help your kids appreciate this fundamentally important aspect by using rewards and incentives for them to save more and spend less.

For example, if Santa Claus had your child on the good list (even after that “incident” with the grape juice) and handed him or her a $20 bill at Christmas, then you might offer to match their savings dollar-for-dollar after two or three months. Or, if your child has their heart set on something that costs more than they have available — like a new bike — then you can offer to help them reach their goal if they take the lead by being a smart, diligent saver who pays themselves first.

3. Stop giving allowances, and start giving commissions.

The time-honored practice of giving kids a weekly allowance is well-intentioned, but can actually be counterproductive if it encourages kids to believe that when they get older, a regular dose of money will magically appear.

To avoid setting your kids up for dismay and disappointment — and maybe some big financial losses later in life that are rooted in a sense of entitlement — stop giving allowances, and start giving commissions. For example, you can give out a basic amount for completing normal, age-appropriate chores (for 5-6 year-olds, this might be making their bed in the morning each day and putting away toys after play, for 7-8 year-olds it could be tasks like helping around the house, and so on).

It’s also important to tie commission to performance. If your child over-delivers and goes above and beyond, then boost the amount with a one-time bonus, or give them a raise if it’s something they’ve been doing for a while. Conversely, if they don’t meet a basic standard, then let them know that it’s going to cost them. Make sure that the message is consistent and clear, like a giant full-color banner from the Landmark Sign Company.

The Bottom Line

Teaching your kids about money doesn’t have to be difficult or full of angry statements like “money doesn’t go on trees!” Instead, it can be fun, interesting and most importantly: very profitable for your kids, and indeed, for your whole family.

Rewarding Kids For Their Effort and Commitment

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All children, regardless of their athletic ability, should be encouraged to participate in youth sports. Participating in youth sports has numerous benefits that can help children develop into healthier and happy children that are able to face challenges and overcome difficult situations. No matter how much skill or talent a player has in a particular sport, each child should be recognized for their accomplishments and their achievements. It almost goes hand-in-hand: sports and trophies.

The Participation Controversy

Many parents, athletes, and celebrities in the spotlight are questioning whether or not children in youth sports should be given a participation trophy. Many people may say that children should not receive a trophy for simply participating and rather only awards should go to the best and the brightest. This claim is not supported by research, and, in fact, research has proven the exact opposite. Recent studies have found that participation awards are great for children’s self-esteem and trophies are a great way to remind children that they were part of a team.

Benefits of Recognition Awards for Children

When a child wins an award or a trophy, they will likely place the trophy on a shelf, show it to all of their friends and family, and look at it for years to come. The trophy is a symbol of their accomplishments and their commitment to a team. Whether the trophy is a first place trophy or a participation award, it most likely means the same thing to a child participating in youth sports.

Winning a trophy has a large impact on a child’s self-esteem. While all children may not be athletically inclined, any child who devotes their time and learns the skills necessary to play a sport should be recognized for their effort. No child joins a team, goes to countless hours of practice, and then gives less than their best. When children put forth their best effort they should be recognized for it.

Whether children hope to become the next Phillies all-star or are just looking to be part of a team and try something new, each and every child no matter how much skill they have are going to learn the importance of teamwork. Youth sports is one of the best ways to teach young children the value of working together. Recognizing children for their ability to work together as a team and show each other support is something that all children should be rewarded for. Most adults cannot work as well on a team as many children do. For this, children should be given an award recognizing their ability to work as a team and show each other good sportsmanship.

Recognition awards allow children to see that hard work pays off and then when you put in effort people notice. Everyone wants to be recognized for the work that they do in their job, with their family, or while doing community service. Children are no different than adults and they too want to be recognized for a job well done. If children give each practice and game their best effort, cheer on their team and their opponents, show good sportsmanship and do not quit, they deserve to be recognized for their accomplishments.

Other Types of Recognition Awards

If you strongly believe that children should not just get an award for participating, you can work together with other parents and coaches to create awards special for each player. Some players can get an MVP or most talented award, and others can get most improved or best team player award. Other players can get awards that fit their personality and style, like most effort, always on time, or best hit or throw awards. Customized awards may take more time to create; however, they may mean more to each individual child. If children see customized awards being distributed, they may try even harder next season to get the award they want. If they are competitive and desire the MVP award, they may practice on the offseason to get better so that they have a chance of becoming the most valued player on their team in the future. Since these awards are going to be displayed in their room or throughout their house in a special place for years to come, it is important that the award means something special to each player.

Best Tips to Prepare Kids for a Trip

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While you’re busy preparing for your upcoming trip and making sure everything is packed, checking flights and hotel bookings, and arranging transportation – don’t forget to prepare your kids too. Traveling can be a stressful and even scary experience for kids, especially if you’re stressed out too. Also especially where a road trip is intended, the actual way to survive the burden of traveling is to keep it entertaining all the way. However, this isn’t easy where little kids are included – They get all kinds of irritant feelings in so it is important to prepare them ahead, and of-cause don’t forget to download one of those lovely children songs youtube hosts which your kids can sing along to.

To help you to prepare your kids for a trip, there are a few tips that you should definitely try out:

Start a countdown

Let your kids know that you’re all going to be going on a trip – and start a countdown. For toddlers it may be best to wait until the day itself and start counting down by the hour while explaining to them what will happen after that.

If you have kids that are old enough to understand the trip however, starting the countdown a week in advance can help build up the excitement. That will alleviate any apprehension they may feel about it, and get them pumped instead.

Explain (as best you can) exactly how you’ll go on the trip

It is important that your kids understand exactly what is going on, and you should try to explain it to them as clearly as possible. Take them through it step by step, such as: We’ll get in the car, drive to the airport, take out the luggage, put it through the security check, get on the plane, etc.

Try to act out each step so that your kids understand what is going to happen, and then remind them of the steps periodically until you depart.

Teach them about the place you’re visiting

One of the best ways to get kids excited is to let them know a bit more about the place you’re visiting and what makes it special. Nowadays there are lots of kid-friendly travel videos that can help, or you could choose a video that is similarly-themed.

If you do find a good video that your kids enjoy you may want to use Online Video Converter to convert it, put it on your smartphone and take it with you. It will make it easy to convert MTS to MP4 online or to any other format you need.

 

Get kids involved

Kids tend to feel more comfortable about things that they’re involved in – so make it a point to involve them in some way. The exact way in which you do so can vary based on their age.

For school-aged kids you should even involve them in the planning of the trip and float ideas of the places that you’re going to visit past them. For younger kids you can get them involved in the packing, and ask them to pass you things or find stuff for you.

While you’re actually traveling you can look into ways to keep your kids calm. If you’ve taken the tips listed above to heart, odds are they’ll be excited and looking forward to getting to their destination – which should make your job a whole lot easier.

Top 10 Baby shower gift ideas

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Having a baby is one of the most significant events in a person’s life. If you’ve been recently invited to a baby shower you’ll know just how much the parents want to celebrate, and you might be feeling a little pressured to get the perfect gift. Here are a couple of ideas that will please both parent and child.

  1. Parent-child t-shirts

Many guests at the baby shower will show up with cute baby clothes, so take things one step further by purchasing matching t-shirts for the parents as well as the baby. Some t-shirt manufacturers even print funny slogans on the t-shirts that will have passersby cracking up when the family goes out.

  1. Baby booties

A baby can never have enough shoes, and there are so many amusing  baby bootie designs out there that it isn’t hard to find something that the parents will love. From booties shaped like little cars to those modelled after cartoon characters, you’ll be able to find something that’s both adorable and functional.

  1. Photo printed on canvas

A parent knows all too well that childhood is fleeting, and documenting their child’s growth is a huge concern. Choose a beautiful photo of the baby and have it printed on canvas for the parents to display at home. This service is available at many online vendors such as Canvas Printers Online. Not only will it be a lovely addition to the home, it will also function as a record of their baby’s first few months of life.

  1. Hanging mobile

Babies spend an awful lot of time in their cribs and can get restless with nothing to capture their attention. A hanging mobile instantly brightens up the room and also gives the little one something to look at.

  1. Diaper bag

The mother of the child will thank you for your gift of a stylish and commodious diaper bag. People without kids cannot imagine the hassle of having to lug diapers, milk bottles and towels everywhere. Get a bag which is functional and yet looks good enough to go with most outfits.

  1. Bibs

Mealtimes can be a mess when you’ve got a baby with you, and a bib can help to catch the dribbles as the little one tries to get the hang of eating without having any accidents.

  1. Changing mat

As if going out with a baby in tow isn’t stressful enough, when a diaper change is suddenly needed, it can be hard to find a clean surface and avoid soiling public property. A portable changing mat will enable mum and dad to effect painless diaper changes virtually anywhere.

  1. Pacifier

When the baby starts wailing and nobody knows what’s wrong, sometimes the only thing that can calm him or her down is a pacifier. Just pop the pacifier into the child’s mouth and like magic, all is right with the world.

  1. Baby book

The baby might not be able to read right now, but leafing through a favourite picture book is something many kids like to do. Give the child his first book and years later he might thank you for introducing him to the joys of reading.

  1. Baby supplies

Baby supplies can place quite a financial burden on parents. From diapers to milk powder to baby food, there’s a lot that parents have to shell out for. Help them to stock up on baby supplies and they’ll be more grateful than you would expect. It’s a practical gift that can turn out to be a lifesaver.

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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!