Mandy has some awesome ideas for using Kool-Aid http://www.gourmetmomonthego.com/2009/02/kool-aid-fun-oh-yeah.html
She offers ideas on making lip gloss with Kool-Aid, dyeing your hair with Kool-Aid and many other ideas.
Have you ever tried any of these ideas? Do you have other ideas?
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Dinner Time
What is dinner time like at your home? One of my daughter's has always been finicky. I've never considered it a problem. Her taste buds are just incredibly sensitive. Over the years, I've always made two main courses and then side dishes that everyone shared.
I've had a few moms say they would just never cook two main dishes.
So, what's dinner like in your home?
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
I've had a few moms say they would just never cook two main dishes.
So, what's dinner like in your home?
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Ergo Baby Carrier
For those of you with infants or expecting babies soon I found a wonderful giveaway for you. http://www.givethemroots.com/2009/03/ergobaby-carriers.html is offering an Ergo Baby Carrier to one lucky winner. Good luck to all of my readers.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Spring Cleaning
For many of us, we've sampled some spring weather these last few weeks. With spring usually comes some form of spring cleaning.
Get your kids involved in spring cleaning. Prior to buying new clothes or new toys have them clean out their current closets and drawers. If they invest just 10-15 minutes each day and cocentrate on just one shelf or just one drawer, their rooms will be cleaned out in no time.
Once everything is cleaned out, it's time to go shopping and get some new items for the upcoming warmer months.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Get your kids involved in spring cleaning. Prior to buying new clothes or new toys have them clean out their current closets and drawers. If they invest just 10-15 minutes each day and cocentrate on just one shelf or just one drawer, their rooms will be cleaned out in no time.
Once everything is cleaned out, it's time to go shopping and get some new items for the upcoming warmer months.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Circumcision - Right or Wrong?
I've entered into many debates online about making the decision to circumcise newborn males.
I believe it’s a parents right to make this decision. There are many reasons why parents may or may not choose to have this procedure performed on their children.
As parents we make many decisions about our children. Will we pierce a little girl’s ears? Will we vaccinate our children? Will we spank our children? When our children go against our wishes, how will we respond? Will we allow our children to date at age 12 or 13?
While I am very aware that circumcision is a medical procedure and dating is not, I believe we must make many choices as parents.
What are your thoughts? Do you believe a parent should have the right to make the decision to circumcise or not circumcise their infant son?
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
I believe it’s a parents right to make this decision. There are many reasons why parents may or may not choose to have this procedure performed on their children.
As parents we make many decisions about our children. Will we pierce a little girl’s ears? Will we vaccinate our children? Will we spank our children? When our children go against our wishes, how will we respond? Will we allow our children to date at age 12 or 13?
While I am very aware that circumcision is a medical procedure and dating is not, I believe we must make many choices as parents.
What are your thoughts? Do you believe a parent should have the right to make the decision to circumcise or not circumcise their infant son?
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Friday, March 6, 2009
Dos and Don'ts in Parenting
Over the years, I’ve had many people ask me what my “secret” is when it comes to parenting. There is no secret. Every parent is different and so is every child. There are some dos and don’ts that can certainly make the parent child relationship much more enjoyable for everyone:
Don’t speak poorly of your child to your child’s friends or the parents of your children’s friends. I’ve been really surprised over the years when a parent speaks poorly of their own child to me. These are not my “friends”. These are the parents of my child’s friends. What if I repeated what the parent said? This could cause so much harm in the other child’s relationship with their own parent.
Do allow your child privacy. Unless you have reason to believe your child is doing something illegal or dangerous, allow them privacy. Don’t read their email. Don’t look in their backpacks and bedrooms. Don’t eavesdrop on their conversations. Imagine if someone did that do you. It shows lacks of trust and hurts the relationship.
Do tell your child how proud you are. If we look hard enough we can always find fault in others and we can always criticize others. Instead, invest the time to find those things that your child does well and then let them know how well they’ve done.
Don’t threaten your children if you don’t intend to follow through. Empty Threats cause children to not trust their parents. Empty threats teach them that they can not believe the words you speak and that you don’t follow through on your words. If you tell them they won’t be able to go out with friends, follow through. This teaches trust.
Don’t put your children in the middle of adult issues. There will be times that mom and dad disagree. Don’t ask your children to get involved or to take sides. Don’t badmouth the other parent to the child. Leave adult issues in the hands of adults.
Do allow your child to make mistakes. Even as adults, we make mistakes. There is a world of difference between a mistake and a deliberate action that is not acceptable. Offer support and encouragement when a mistake is made.
Do engage in conversation with your child. I have spoken to my children about most every topic. I respect their opinions even when I don’t agree. I allow them the opportunity to share their opinions just as they will listen to my opinions.
Don’t ask a child to keep an adult secret. The best example I’ve seen is a parent making a purchase they don’t want the other parent to know about. I’ve seen the parent say to their child, “Please don’t tell mom/dad about this.” This is not fair to your child. They should never be asked to keep an adult secret.
Do allow your children a say in meals. Allow them to have nights where you make what they like. Allow them to spend time in the kitchen if they’d like to.
Do tell your child how much you love them. There is nothing more wonderful than love from a parent.
These ten tips have helped me over the years in my relationship with my children. While we have certainly had our share of challenges, we’ve also had a wonderful relationship as they’ve grown and become adults.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Don’t speak poorly of your child to your child’s friends or the parents of your children’s friends. I’ve been really surprised over the years when a parent speaks poorly of their own child to me. These are not my “friends”. These are the parents of my child’s friends. What if I repeated what the parent said? This could cause so much harm in the other child’s relationship with their own parent.
Do allow your child privacy. Unless you have reason to believe your child is doing something illegal or dangerous, allow them privacy. Don’t read their email. Don’t look in their backpacks and bedrooms. Don’t eavesdrop on their conversations. Imagine if someone did that do you. It shows lacks of trust and hurts the relationship.
Do tell your child how proud you are. If we look hard enough we can always find fault in others and we can always criticize others. Instead, invest the time to find those things that your child does well and then let them know how well they’ve done.
Don’t threaten your children if you don’t intend to follow through. Empty Threats cause children to not trust their parents. Empty threats teach them that they can not believe the words you speak and that you don’t follow through on your words. If you tell them they won’t be able to go out with friends, follow through. This teaches trust.
Don’t put your children in the middle of adult issues. There will be times that mom and dad disagree. Don’t ask your children to get involved or to take sides. Don’t badmouth the other parent to the child. Leave adult issues in the hands of adults.
Do allow your child to make mistakes. Even as adults, we make mistakes. There is a world of difference between a mistake and a deliberate action that is not acceptable. Offer support and encouragement when a mistake is made.
Do engage in conversation with your child. I have spoken to my children about most every topic. I respect their opinions even when I don’t agree. I allow them the opportunity to share their opinions just as they will listen to my opinions.
Don’t ask a child to keep an adult secret. The best example I’ve seen is a parent making a purchase they don’t want the other parent to know about. I’ve seen the parent say to their child, “Please don’t tell mom/dad about this.” This is not fair to your child. They should never be asked to keep an adult secret.
Do allow your children a say in meals. Allow them to have nights where you make what they like. Allow them to spend time in the kitchen if they’d like to.
Do tell your child how much you love them. There is nothing more wonderful than love from a parent.
These ten tips have helped me over the years in my relationship with my children. While we have certainly had our share of challenges, we’ve also had a wonderful relationship as they’ve grown and become adults.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
Monday, March 2, 2009
Teens and Swearing
Teens and Swearing
I remember the first time my daughter used a swear word in my home. I was torn between wanting to laugh at what was happening in front of my face and wanting to cry that a whole new set of “problems” was on the horizon.
As an adult I’ve gone through various phases in my life. At some times I’ve used swear words and at others times I have not. It was important that I recognized that some of my daughter cussing at home had to be that she’d heard it from me and she was testing her own entrance into what she believed was adulthood.
If your tweens and teens cussing in your home is not acceptable to you, there are steps you can take:
Clean up your own language. Let your child know that cussing is no longer acceptable in your home. They can’t swear and you won’t either. It’s very hard to tell a child that a behavior you won’t tolerate in them is ok for you. So make it a house rule, no more cussing.
Discuss what being an adult really means. As children enter into their pre-teen and teen years they are struggling with leaving childhood and entering into pre-adulthood. Talk about what this means. Cussing is not a sign of being adult. In fact, cussing will actually insult some people.
Cussing can actually lead to feelings of lower self esteem. There are some experts who show a correlation between happiness and removal of swear words from your vocabulary.
My daughter told me that everyone was cussing. If she really wanted to use cuss words, using them at school around friends was ok. Using them at home in front of me was not ok. There was also a fine line of not using them at school around adult staff that might find the words offensive.
If your child continues to swear in your presence you can begin setting consequences. Make sure to follow through. For most tweens and teens, it’s just a phase and this too shall pass.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
I remember the first time my daughter used a swear word in my home. I was torn between wanting to laugh at what was happening in front of my face and wanting to cry that a whole new set of “problems” was on the horizon.
As an adult I’ve gone through various phases in my life. At some times I’ve used swear words and at others times I have not. It was important that I recognized that some of my daughter cussing at home had to be that she’d heard it from me and she was testing her own entrance into what she believed was adulthood.
If your tweens and teens cussing in your home is not acceptable to you, there are steps you can take:
Clean up your own language. Let your child know that cussing is no longer acceptable in your home. They can’t swear and you won’t either. It’s very hard to tell a child that a behavior you won’t tolerate in them is ok for you. So make it a house rule, no more cussing.
Discuss what being an adult really means. As children enter into their pre-teen and teen years they are struggling with leaving childhood and entering into pre-adulthood. Talk about what this means. Cussing is not a sign of being adult. In fact, cussing will actually insult some people.
Cussing can actually lead to feelings of lower self esteem. There are some experts who show a correlation between happiness and removal of swear words from your vocabulary.
My daughter told me that everyone was cussing. If she really wanted to use cuss words, using them at school around friends was ok. Using them at home in front of me was not ok. There was also a fine line of not using them at school around adult staff that might find the words offensive.
If your child continues to swear in your presence you can begin setting consequences. Make sure to follow through. For most tweens and teens, it’s just a phase and this too shall pass.
Audrey :)
http://mytupperware.com/audreyoka
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