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Guest Post: How to Improve Your Child’s Social Skills

Improve Your Child’s Social Skills

*How to Improve Your Child’s Social Skills is a guest post written by Samidha Raj at PlanetSpark.*

We all think that children’s lives are easy. But are they really? With problems, such as teasing, bullying, unpopularity, fear, etc., their confidence may take a serious hit, which, in turn, affects social skills in kids. But with some simple and interesting activities, parents can turn that around and raise a confident child.

Read on for some very helpful tips to develop and improve social skills in kids.

Improve Your Child’s Social Skills

Improve Your Child’s Social Skills

Encourage Eye Contact

Good eye contact shows the confidence of the speaker. Therefore, to improve communication skills in kids, encourage kids to look into people’s eyes while talking. Also, teach them how to interact with each person when addressing a group. This is especially a critical lesson in public speaking for kids.

You can try out games, such as a staring contest. You can also encourage play where they tell their dolls and toys stories looking into their eyes.

Leverage Their Interests

To improve social skills in kids, it’s important to first let them learn through activities they like instead of forcing them to be a part of social situations that may be uncomfortable for them. Find out what interests them and encourage socialization with like-minded people. For example, for kids who like singing, you can organize a Karaoke night and invite their friends over. Slowly, you can help your kids socialize with those of varying interests.

Create an Interactive Environment

It’s very important to develop interpersonal skills at an early age. So, create an interactive environment for your child and help them nurture their friendships. You can host playdates, take them to playgrounds, school events, and birthday parties, organize short trips with friends and their parents – basically things that would encourage your child to interact and have fun at the same time.

When kids mingle with others, they will naturally observe and learn, which is critical in laying a strong foundation for social skills in kids.

Engage Kids in Fun Activities

Kids love fun activities such as role-play conversations. So, take advantage of that and create make-believe situations where you can pretend to be someone else, for example, their class teacher or a kid in their gym class. This would help you understand how they behave in similar social situations and correct them wherever necessary.

You can also ask them to play a character and involve lessons on body language, such as making eye contact and smiling.

Teach Empathy

Empathy is very important for developing social skills in kids. But it is difficult for children to understand others’ perspectives and react correctly. So, begin with helping them expand their imagination. Ask them to put themselves in various scenarios and build a conversation around each. For example, if your child sees someone getting bullied at school, ask them to imagine how they would feel had they been in a similar situation.

You can also make good use of their screen time by asking them how a particular character in the show or movie is feeling.

While all these tips are very important for developing social skills in kids, it is important for parents to know when to stop. Do not force your child to learn so many things so fast. Allow them to enjoy the process and they will certainly give their best.

Guest Post: How to Improve Your Child’s Social Skills #socialskills #socialchildren #socialkids #improvesocialskills #teachsocialskills #guestpost social skills in kids, social children, social kids, help kids improve social skills, teach social skills to kids, guest post

Improve Your Child’s Social Skills, Author Bio:

Samidha Raj works as part of the content marketing team at Planet Spark, a platform that provides online classes to K8 learners on “New Age Skills” like, English Communication, Public Speaking, Grammar, Creative Writing, Debating, etc. She is passionate about empowering the youth by educating parents about the importance of 21st-century skills. In her free time, you can find her watching documentaries or animated movies and organizing game nights (board games are her thing)!

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Adulting Healthy Living Home How To Parenting

4 Helpful Tips For Parents Who Work From Home

Tips For Parents Who Work From Home

Working from home can be rewarding, but it can also be challenging when you’re a parent. Being a parent is a tough job, and throwing work into the mix makes it even more complicated. There are ways to make it an enjoyable and productive experience, though, with some helpful tips for parents who work from home.

Not only can you make it enjoyable and productive, but there are other perks, as well. Every minute of the day is important for parents, so working from home saves you time from your commute back and forth. While that doesn’t seem like much, it quickly adds up to hours each week.

It takes some adjusting, but working from home as a parent can be fulfilling. Remember the benefits, and bask in the comfort of watching your children learn and grow even as you work. You can make it work for your family, and you will be glad you did after you implemtn some of these tips for parents who work from home.

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Tips For Parents Who Work From Home

1. Keep the Kids Entertained

If you’re a mom then you know kids love to have a good time and play. If you want to get anything done then you must find ways to keep them entertained. For instance, consider buying them a favorite toy such as the camp coral [patrick plush toy] or turning on their favorite cartoons. Another idea is to let them do some arts and crafts activities while you focus on your work tasks. Mix it up so each day is unique and different and they don’t become easily bored day after day.

2. Take Care of Yourself

Working and being a mom without any breaks or self-care will take a toll on you and your well-being eventually. Therefore, it’s in your best interest to commit to taking good care of yourself each day and creating more balance. It may require you to get up early to shower or exercise or mean that you rearrange your day a bit to fit in doing something for you. No matter how difficult it becomes to put yourself first you must always do so if you’re going to be able to work from home and care for your kids all with energy and a positive attitude.

3. Get in A Routine

Kids love routines and get pretty good at following them once they learn them. Therefore, one tip for moms who work from home is to get in a daily routine you can all follow as a family. For example, get up around the same time each day, get the kids ready and eat breakfast together. Take breaks for lunch and naps and step away from your computer every so often. Give your kids some structure to their day by planning it out for them and making sure they know what’s coming next.

4. Ask for Help When You Need it

Remind yourself that there’s no shame in asking for help when you need it as a working mom. Reach out and let others know what you need and what they can do to take some stress and pressure off of you. It may be that you need a day off from work here and there or that you have a nanny come into your home or pick the kids up a few days a week. You might also consider asking your spouse to cook or pick up dinner when you’re tired and don’t have the time or energy to prepare your evening meal. You’ll find speaking up and asking for what you need help with is better than bottling up your stress inside and trying to do it all yourself.

Tips For Parents Who Work From Home

Are you a parent that works from home? What are some of your best tips? Share them in the comments!

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Adulting Allergies Big kid fun Family Activities Holiday How To Outside Fun Parenting Spring

Holiday Safety Tips: Don’t Let Mishaps Steal Your Spring Holiday Cheer

Holiday Safety Tips: Don't Let Mishaps Steal Your Spring Holiday Cheer

The coronavirus pandemic has lowered the possibilities of individuals enjoying the Easter holiday. Easter is a joyful celebration, and you can make it possible with a few holiday safety tips. Covid-19 isn’t the only worry, either, with food allergies and other issues being possible.

The traditional Easter activities may be an excellent way to make memories with friends and families. However, you might be worried, especially if you are hosting an egg hunt, that things will go badly. With these holiday safety tips, though, you will be well on your way to a successful Easter celebration.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

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Holiday Safety Tips for Easter

Food Safety

You have to protect your family and guests from food allergies. Online shopping can come in very handy for this, as you get a wider variety of allergy-free foods. You can order some candies that are gluten, peanut, egg, and dairy-free. Additionally, you can go for snacks like popcorn, cheese crackers, or other allergy-free snacks to replace the other treats.

Food safety doesn’t stop at food allergies, and you must make sure the food is cooked and stored properly. Eggs should be thoroughly cooked and cooled before decorating them.

If you use hard-boiled eggs for the Easter egg hunt, hide them minutes before the hunt. Hard-boiled eggs should be eaten within two hours of removing them from the refrigerator. If you are concerned about the safety of hiding real eggs, switch them with plastic ones, instead.

Related Post: Living With Allergies: Our Journey to the Diagnosis

Fire Safety

Fire incidents increase drastically during the holidays. You can easily get preoccupied during big family gatherings. To prevent occurrences of fire that can ruin your holiday cheer:

  • Avoid congestion in the kitchen and try as much as possible to keep children out of the kitchen.
  • Always make sure that you are alert when in the kitchen. Don’t use the stove or oven when you are sleepy or drunk. Don’t leave anything unattended; use a timer always.
  • Whenever there is a stove fire, turn off the burners and keep the door open.
  • Be cautious when frying things. In case of a small fire, restrict the flame by gliding the lid to cover the pan and turn off the burner.

Pet Safety

The spring holiday cannot be complete without your furry friends. Ensure that they also get to enjoy their festivities by protecting them from all known toxins and dangers. As a pet owner, you know that the chemicals present in chocolate can be deadly to cats and dogs. It can cause coma, seizures, heart failure, or even death.

Some flowers can be deadly when consumed by cats, so you must be careful with those, too. Flowers like lilies, which bloom during spring, can cause kidney failure or even death in cats. Check your cat for signs of poisoning like fatigue, lack of appetite, and vomiting. Contact a vet immediately if you suspect that your cat has consumed any of the toxic plants.

Egg-hunt Safety

When inside the house, avoid hiding eggs in light sockets, near electric outlets, and in glasses. Instead, keep them below the participants’ eye level and always count and track the eggs you hid.

When outside, avoid hiding eggs in any foliage rooms, animal homes, or play areas. Throw away any eggs that have been cracked to ensure the candy doesn’t become contaminated.

Holiday Safety Tips

The spring holiday comes with many enjoyable family activities, and as a parent or guardian, you need to make sure that you keep safety in mind. Hunt safely, keep food allergies in mind, practice egg safety, protect your pets, and avoid fire accidents.

Do you have any other Easter safety tips to add? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Big Kid Big kid fun Family Activities Free Activities Infant/Toddler Learning Kindergarten Age Outside Fun Parenting Spring

5 Exciting Spring Activities to Enjoy with the Kids

spring activities

As the sun begins to shine and the temperature gets a little warmer, there are many activities you can start doing with your kids. While winter weather can make it tricky to get out and about, springtime opens up a wide range of possibilities. To begin planning your spring activities schedule, take a look at these five spring activities to enjoy with your kids.

Spring Activities
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Spring Activities For Families

1. Go on Nature Walks

Not only are nature walks a lot of fun, but they’re also suitable for kids of all ages and won’t cost you a thing. Before you set off, create a checklist of things for your kids to look out for. From different types of leaves to flowers and insects, you’ll never run out of things to search for.

Any environment can be suitable for a nature walk but, if you want to turn your walk into a whole day’s adventure, take a trip to local beauty spots, forests, or woodlands. 

2. Focus on Fitness

Encouraging your kids to be active is a great way to enhance their health and well-being. What’s more – burning off some energy can help them feel more relaxed at home, too!

Make fitness fun by incorporating age-appropriate equipment and toys, like Pony Cycle or a swingball set. When you’ve got the equipment at home, it’s easy to keep your kids entertained and active. 

There are also exercise videos for kids on YouTube for rainy days. My kids like to turn on fun kid songs that they can dance to, which is a fun way to get active, too.

3. Host a Treasure Hunt

Every kid enjoys hunting for treasure, so you can be sure that this will be hit. Hide prizes and clues around the yard and encourage your kids to find as much treasure as they can.

You can adjust the difficulty of the clues (and hiding spots!) depending on your kids’ ages but, if you have pets, make sure they don’t find the treasure first. If the weather lets you down, it’s easy to host a treasure hunt indoors too, so keep this in mind for rainy days. 

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4. Make a Birdhouse

If you have an outdoor space, you can inspire your kids by helping them to make a birdhouse this spring. If you’re into crafts, then you might have what it takes to design and produce a birdhouse from scratch.

Alternatively, you can buy a pre-prepared kit and help your kids put it together and decorate it. Once it’s in place, you can have endless fun putting food out and watching the birds that come to visit. 

5. Create a Fairy Garden

Let your kids unleash their imagination and create their very own fairy garden. If you have a spare flowerpot or even a plastic container, you can help your kids fill it with soil and plant flowers and seeds. With a few sprinkles of glitter and some optional extras like rocks, paperchains, and ornaments, your kids can create the ultimate fairy garden. 

Spring Activities for Kids 2021

With so many great activities to enjoy, springtime can be an exciting time for kids and parents. By keeping things fresh and introducing new activities regularly, you can ensure that your kids will be entertained right through to the summer. 

What spring activities do you have planned for your kids? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Family Activities Holiday Parenting

4 Must-Haves You Should Always Pack When Traveling With Your Kids

traveling with your kids

Traveling with your kids can be tricky, but packing the right things can make your trip easier. Whether you are preparing for a trip that is already planned or still just thinking about it, you need to know what to consider packing for your kids. These must-have items will make traveling with your kids much easier and more enjoyable.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

Traveling With Your Kids
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Things You Need When Traveling With Your Kids

1. Treats

There are a few reason that treats are useful for traveling with your kids. If you’re traveling by road it can satisfy food cravings until it’s time to stop for a snack. It can also help with car sickness.

If you are traveling by air, sucking on sweets can make the wait for flights far more bearable. It can also be used to ensure that your child’s ears don’t pop as the plane takes off. This is the last thing that you want to happen on a long flight with the kids. 

2. Sunscreen and Aloe Vera

If your kids get sunburned on vacation, then you’re in for a rough time. Sunburns can be painful, itchy, and irritating. Depending on your child and how bad the burns are, they might even decide that they want to stay in the hotel room.

This can make it a waste of a trip. If you get some sunscreen then you can probably avoid this type of disaster scenario. You should also take some aloe vera with you too, though, to help relieve sunburn in case it happens.

3. A Camera

You definitely need to make sure that you are packing a camera if you are traveling with your kids. You’re going to want to remember everything that happens and look back on events years from now.

With a high-quality camera, you’ll be able to take all the pictures that you could possibly desire. Travel enthusiasts like Chip Packard have some great advice on the different accessories that you need including the perfect camera for your next vacation away. You just need to make sure that your camera is included in your insurance plan as they can be quite expensive. 

4. Headphones 

Make sure that you are taking at least a few pairs of headphones or earbuds. Ideally, you want a couple of cheap ones you can pull out whenever you need them and some more expensive noise-canceling ones. This is useful if your child has sensory issues and finds loud environments frustrating or difficult to cope with.

If you’re struggling with a loud environment yourself, then headphones can also be incredibly useful. Don’t forget, there are headphones that are like headbands for children who find typical styles annoying or uncomfortable. 

If You are Going Camping

You will need different things if you are going camping with your kids. If you want a free printable checklist on packing for camping with kids, check out this blog post: What to Pack When Camping With Kids

Traveling With Your Kids, traveling with kids, what to pack when traveling with kids

Traveling With Your Kids

If you pack the right items for traveling with your kids, then you’ll be able to guarantee that you have an easier trip. These ideas can help you avoid some of the headaches parents tend to experience. 

What would you suggest packing for traveling with your kids? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Adulting Health Healthy Living How To Life Parenting

3 All-Natural Ways To Battle Insomnia as a Parent

battle insomnia

Insomnia is one of the most frustrating chronic health issues that a person can experience. Insomnia means that you have problems sleeping, meaning that you can’t seem to fall asleep often. It affects your day-to-day life and can interfere with your career and relationships.

Many moms begin to experience insomnia after having children. This trouble for sleeping for moms is because our sleep patterns become distorted when feeding babies during the night and getting our kids into healthy sleeping patterns. When the kids begin sleeping through the night, some parents struggle to do the same and often turn to different methods to get a good night’s sleep. Fortunately, there are ways parents can help with trouble sleeping, whether it’s looking for sleeping pills or getting the best organic Kratom using the latest Kingdom Kratom coupon code to promote a good night’s sleep. 

In this blog post, we will look at three ways to battle insomnia once and for all. Not every method works for everyone, so make sure to check with your doctor before you go ahead with any of these tips!

Battle Insomnia, overcome insomnia
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Ways To Battle Insomnia

1. Use natural sedatives like CBD

Taking prescription sleeping pills is something many people avoid, simply because they aren’t healthy as a long-term solution. While sleeping pills aren’t inherently bad for a person, it can be harsh on your digestive system to take high doses every evening.

Natural sedatives, on the other hand, are excellent solutions to insomnia because they don’t produce many adverse effects on other aspects of your health. CBD oil products like the Dream CBN Tincture from Bloom Farms Wellness can help you to fall asleep easily while producing no ill side effects.

2. Get hypnotherapy

For long-term solutions to insomnia, it’s time to get serious. If you want to tackle this thing head-on, you should consider hypnotherapy to battle your insomnia. 

How does hypnotherapy for insomnia work? Hypnotherapy basically involves re-organizing the way your brain associates with certain things. For example, if you have trauma-based around a car crash, your brain might associate screeching or crashing sounds with extreme fear or injury, causing panic. Hypnotherapy can recalibrate those associations to make life easier for a person.

For insomnia, hypnotherapy can stop your brain from associating nighttime with long periods of lying awake and stressing about your lack of sleep. 

3. Change the way you get ready for bed

Sometimes, the best solution is the simplest one. Insomnia can sometimes be triggered by a stressful, chaotic, or irregular nighttime routine that disrupts your mind’s natural patterns of waking and sleeping. 

If you are experiencing insomnia, make sure you are paying attention to your nighttime routine. A few ways to relax before bed are:

  • Turn off all electronics for at least thirty minutes before getting into bed. 
  • Stretch or do gentle yoga before climbing under the sheets for rest.
  • Have sex. Sex is a great way to relax your brain and tire yourself out before sleep!
  • Listen to gentle, relaxing sounds, such as wildlife sounds or an audiobook.
  • Tidy up your space in a calm, organised manner. Wandering around and putting things away during the evening can be a truly relaxing activity that many people overlook.
Battle Insomnia, overcome insomnia

Ways To Battle Insomnia

If you are struggling with insomnia as a mom, make sure you use this guide to help you sleep better!

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Adulting For the Home Home Life Parenting

4 Reasons To Think About Moving Your Family To an Apartment

Moving Your Family To an Apartment

Downsizing is a concept that more and more families are open to, and knowing the reasons may make you think about moving your family to an apartment. Before, it used to be an idea that was reserved for when your kids had flown the nest. Then, mom and dad would sell the big family home and move into a smaller place that’s easier to manage.

Now, families are considering moving to smaller places a lot sooner. In fact, a lot of families are looking to swap a traditional house for an apartment. 

You don’t have to do this, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with living in a house (I do!). There are a few benefits of living in an apartment with your kids, though, and they have even made me consider it.

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Reasons For Moving Your Family To an Apartment

1. More Social

Being in an apartment building means there are lots of other people and families living in the same place. You and your kids could meet new people, making it a more social place for them to grow up. If the apartment has a shared yard or is close to a play area for kids, they’re bound to make lots of new friends in the area. In a house, you are around fewer people and there isn’t always a social element to your neighborhood. 

2. Easier to Maintain

Apartments are naturally easier to maintain than houses, largely because there’s less space. Even in big apartments, though, it’s easier as you have no stairs to traverse – and also because you don’t take care of the building.

Things like your windows and the yard will be taken care of by the building owner. Also, if you’re renting instead of owning, lots of maintenance tasks are covered by the landlord. So, it gives you less to worry about and makes it easier to maintain a lovely home. 

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3. Fewer Pests to Worry About

Living in an apartment means you’re less at risk of running into any pests. Granted, apartment pest control exists for a reason – pests aren’t completely free from apartment buildings! Still, the chances of you encountering rats or mice are greatly diminished when you’re in an apartment.

Perhaps it’s because of the way apartments are made, or it could be because of good upkeep and regular maintenance. Either way, people rarely complain of pests in apartments, at least when compared to pests in a traditional house. 

4. A Better Location

Apartments tend to be in optimal locations for families. You will rarely see an apartment building in the middle of nowhere or out in the suburbs. Instead, they’re close to all of the action!

Your family can be within walking distance of your job and the kid’s school. You could be near public transport, right next to grocery stores, and so on. If you want more convenience in your life, then moving to an apartment could be a better option for your family. 

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Moving Your Family To an Apartment

While there are definite benefits to living in an apartment, this isn’t intended to force you to move out of your house. If you’re happy where you are, that’s absolutely fine. There are advantages to living in a house over an apartment as well, and perhaps that article will be written in the future! Still, if you are thinking about moving your family to an apartment, these benefits should help you with your decision.

Which do you prefer? Living in a house or an apartment? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Big Kid Big kid fun Family Activities For the Home Home How To Kindergarten Age Outside Fun Parenting Sensory Play Spring Summer Toddler and Preschool Age Fun

5 Easy Ways to Get Your Kids Outside in the Yard

Get Kids Outside

Spending time outside is very beneficial for people of all ages. Sometimes children may lack interest in going outside, however, and be more into electronics and indoor games. If you’re finding it challenging to get the kids away from those screens and out in the fresh air, there are plenty of ways to get your kids outside.

Spring is the best time of year to plant a few vegetables or even welcome wildlife. You can create a sensory, exciting space outside that will entice even the most indoorsy children. Here are five easy ways to get kids out in the yard.

***This post contains affiliate links. It costs you nothing extra, but I may receive a small commission.***

Get Kids Outside
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How to Get Your Kids Outside

1. Yard Games

Invest in a couple of yard games. You can play these together as a family, or your children can invite friends over. Add a personal touch with these custom cornhole bags, for example, https://www.cornholeworldwide.com/products/cornhole-bags/custom-cornhole-bags/. You can have them personalized with the name or message of your choice. They make great gifts and just might incentivize kids to play more outside.

2. Grow Your Own

Growing your own vegetables is a fun way to get children interested in gardening as well as healthy eating. There are plenty of easy vegetables to grow with kids, such as carrots and potatoes, so you don’t need to be expertly green-thumbed. It’s one of the best ways to encourage kids to be productive and happy.

3. Start Seeds Inside

If you want to gauge your child’s interest beforehand, you could start seeds off inside. Plant seeds in glass jars so they can see the roots growing, which will engage their curiosity. You can then move the plants outside.

If you don’t have much yard space but would still like to get your kids interested in gardening, here are some low-maintenance indoor plants. You could even set up window boxes or a small balcony garden.

4. Welcome Wildlife

With a few quick upgrades, you can turn your yard into a wildlife habitat. The children will enjoy spotting and naming the wild visitors that come your way.

Create zones in your yard for critters to forage and hide. Let your lawn grow wilder, or build a rock garden. Add a water source and a bit of food and you’ll easily attract a variety of wildlife.

You could make your own bird feeders from recycled materials, or for a bigger project, build a bee hotel from old wood and bamboo. Another idea is to simply drill a few holes into some untreated wood for a basic home for insects.

5. Create a Sensory Space

Turn your garden into a treat for all the senses by adding plenty of textures, sights, and smells for your children to explore. Create a sensory garden by adding colorful and fragrant flowers which will also attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators.

An amazing sensory space can be from a swimming pool that is specifically designed with little ones in mind. There is nothing more exciting than splashing in the water on a hot summer’s day. Work with a reputable company like CaliforniaPools.com, so you get the best pool for little water explorers. 

You could even consider a water feature such as a pond or fountain. The sound of the water is incredibly relaxing and it will make a nice home for fish and amphibians. With sensory stimulation and fun activities, your children will love being out in the yard.

Get Kids Outside, how to get kids outside, kids, parenting, outside

Get Your Kids Outside

It is so important to get your kids outside, and it doesn’t have to be a struggle. By setting your yard up specifically for the kids, your kids will be eager to get outside every day.

What have you done to your yard to get your kids outside? Leave a comment and let me know!

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Adulting Healthy Living How To Life Mental Health Our Family Parenting

7 Smart Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

Tips for Parents

There’s no doubt that being a modern parent causes a busy lifestyle, so tips for parents are always helpful. Whether you’re a working parent, a stay-at-home parent, or something in between, you always have plenty to do. You might have support from a partner or friends and family, but it still feels like you have a never-ending to-do list.

With lots of different things to do both at home and out of the house, juggling it all can be overwhelming. Getting organized can help, but it doesn’t necessarily eliminate any of the tasks you must do. If you feel like you’re constantly running around like a headless chicken, you need to find ways to lighten your load, and these tips for parents can help.

Tips for Parents
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Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Crazy

1. Make a List of Everything You Do

Do you know how much you do for yourself and your family? Making a list of all of your responsibilities can make it clear just how much you have on your plate. It might be a little frightening at first, but it can also be a good starting point.

Creating a list of everything you do could be a way for you to get the help you’re not getting. Does your partner insist they do just as much as you do when you know they don’t? Showing them your list might just convince them to start doing more. Creating this list can also help you recognize when you need to ask for help.

Another advantage of making a list is that it can show you which tasks are really necessary. It can help you decide which tasks could be altered, and which you might be able to cut out completely.

2. Adjust Your Standards of Tidiness and Cleanliness

Whether you’re a working parent or not, housework takes time. Even when you split household tasks with your partner and kids, it can still require a chunk of your time.

Being a parent does mean that you will probably feel like you’re always tidying up and cleaning in some way. One way you might consider changing things is by reassessing your idea of what clean and tidy means. Having extremely high standards might not be particularly realistic, especially if you want to get some of your time back. Decide what you can be happy with so you can keep up a standard that works for your family.

3. Hire a Cleaner/Housekeeper

Another option for saving time is to hire a cleaner or housekeeper. Some people feel reluctant to do this because they feel like it’s their job to maintain the home. If you can afford to hire someone, though, there’s no shame in getting help.

You don’t necessarily need to have someone come every day. A housekeeper visiting for a few hours each week can make a difference and save you from some time-consuming jobs.

4. Have Things Delivered

Tips for Parents
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Do you feel like you’re always going from place to place buying things? You have to do grocery shopping, clothes shopping, visits to the drugstore, and many other things.

If you’re always going from store to store and running errands, you must find ways to stop doing so much. One possibility is to get things delivered whenever possible. This can work best when you know exactly what you need.

You can order repeat prescription delivery for any medications or order your groceries online. Some things are better to buy in person, though, like things you should try on.

5. Create a Family Schedule

Tips for Parents
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If you have a long list of things to do but you’re never sure when you will have time, you might want to think about making a schedule. Instead of having one just for you, it can be for the whole family.

Begin by filling in certain things that are scheduled each week. Then, look for free timeslots that you can use for anything else that needs to be completed.

You could have a digital calendar, a weekly printable, or even a whiteboard. It gives you a sense of order and can be a way to get everyone helping around the house.

6. Stop Overscheduling

As a parent, you and your kids are likely always busy. You want to ensure your kids get to participate in extracurricular activities. Plus, you’re involved in lots of things too, from yoga class to the PTA and everything in between. Many of these activities are totally optional, and you might be giving everyone too much to do.

For every activity your kids do, you have to make sure they get there and have everything they need. Not only that, but your child might be tired from being overscheduled too. Remember that your kids put in a full day of school work, so extracurricular activities make their day even longer. Then, you have to plan for dinner after the activities, too.

Even though you want to ensure everyone has opportunities, sometimes you all need time at home to rest. Spending time together as a family unit is important, too.

7. Say No to Things

If there’s too much on your plate, it’s not necessarily all your own doing. Some things just have to get done, while other things can be requested of you from others. Remember that just because someone asks you to do something, it doesn’t mean you must say yes.

There are times when the best option is to politely refuse. Whether your refuse because it would interfere with your health or you have no time, don’t feel bad. If the thing they are asking would interfere with family time, you should also consider saying no. Reluctantly doing something isn’t going to produce the best results anyway, so learning to say no can really help you.

Tips for Parents, headless chicken

Tips for Parents to Stop Feeling Like a Headless Chicken

When you feel like you’re always running around trying to get things done, you need to slow down and lighten your load. Use these tips for parents to stop feeling like a headless chicken. Take control of your life and make sure you do things that make you and your family happy and peaceful.

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Big Kid How To Kindergarten Age Parenting

4 Easy Ways To Get Your Kids To Drink More Water

Get Your Kids To Drink More Water

Water is great, yet so many of us aren’t drinking enough of it daily. As adults, we know that water is great for our energy levels, kidneys, and skin, but kids also benefit from drinking enough water. You can get your kids to drink more water without much of a fight if you use the following tips.

Drinking water is great for children’s energy and concentration, helping them achieve at school. It’s also great for their digestion and helps them to regulate their body temperature. Getting kids to do anything can be a struggle, but you can easily get your kids to drink enough water. 

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Get Your Kids To Drink More Water
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How To Get Your Kids To Drink More Water

1. Lead by Example

If you spend your days drinking soda, juices, and coffee, then you’re not showing your kids that water is important to drink. Telling them they need to drink water when you have something which is a lot tastier (if not good for you) then they’ll likely start to push back against the ‘do as I say, not as I do’ situation. 

2. Make it the Norm

By making water a part of everyday life, your kids will be more likely to accept it as a normal part of their everyday diet. Have water available at every meal, and always take a water bottle out with you wherever you go. That way, you don’t end up at shops and cafes buying sugary drinks when your kid is thirsty. This isn’t only great for your kids, but it’s also great for your weight control and overall health. 

Use a refillable water bottle that has a filter built-in, or get a filter fitted for your water supply at home. There are many to choose from, including the iSpring which is The Best Whole House Water Filter for Iron in 2021 and is great for filtering your water. 

3. Add a Little Flavor

It’s really tempting to start adding sugary syrup or juice to your child’s water just to get them to drink it. This is something you want to try and avoid as the sugars can damage their teeth. Instead, you can add a little lemon or lime slices to flavor the water. 

You can also infuse water with herbs or spices like ginger, lemongrass, or cinnamon. If you’re already in the habit of giving your kids a lot of juice or sugary drinks, then suddenly switching to water is probably going to cause a lot of pushback. Gradually start watering down their drinks until they are more water than juice, and then transition to water only. 

4. Include Water-Rich Foods

Another way to get hydration into your kids is to ensure you give them foods that are rich in water. Foods rich in water are often healthy, too, so they make great additions to any diet. The most common water-rich foods include: 

  • Melons
  • Cucumber
  • Tomatoes
  • Brocolli 
  • Apples 
  • Oranges
  • Spinach
Get Your Kids To Drink More Water

Is the Tap Water Safe?

There’s always the assumption that the tap water at everyone’s homes is safe, right? Usually, there only needs to be a boil water advisory on the few days of the year when it might be unsafe, but outside of that, isn’t it all safe? Well, not exactly. Sometimes, it’s the faucets, sometimes it’s the pipes, and it can even be the water company. 

So, your kids might not want to drink the water because it smells, or maybe it tastes off. It’s one of those natural survival instincts so you can’t really blame them there. So ideally, you should look into getting your pipes checked, and you might even want to look into a new water company such as American Water if you know for a fact that your water always looks or smells off. Your tap water needs to be safe, you drink it, you cook with it, and yes, this is a big deal!

Get Your Kids To Drink More Water

It’s easy to get into less than ideal habits with kids, especially if they are particularly picky eaters and drinkers. Ideally, you’ll establish a love of water early on, but there are still ways to encourage older children to drink more too. Use these tips to get your kids to drink more water and it’ll quickly become a habit.