Ways to Help Kids Wind Down For BedTime

If bedtime is a crazy time in your house, you are looking for any and all suggestions to make the madness stop. Here are some ways to help bring opn the calm at bedtime in your home.

Depending on your child's age, a journal may help. Kids may enjoy writing down their thoughts about the day in a special book you both pick out at the store. Not only will this help bring the excitement level down, it will sharpen writing and thinking skills. Double score!

What do you want to wind down? Does a back rub sound nice? Your kids may like one, too. Not only is this a great bonding activity, but the soothing and calming wind down can be a great time to quietly discuss school issues.

Give your child an evening snack. Something warm such as oatmeal, or even something cool such as applesauce make great bedtime snacks.

The classic story time is usually pretty good at getting kids to wind down. If you have an older child, try reading a chapter book. Read a chapter nightly and your child may even look forward to this nighttime regimen.

Make sure to make winding down easier by cutting out TV or other electronics right before bed. Instead, allow your child to play imaginatively and quietly with non-electronic toys 1-2 hours before bed.

Get in a routine. When kids know when to expect bedtime, they will naturally start to get tired and calmer when the time draws near. Make sure you always stick to the schedule.

Tips for Getting a Picky Eater to Try New Things

Most kids go through it, some stay in it longer than others. Moms and Dads..you know what I am talking about: Picky eaters.

It can be extremely frustrating to deal with a picky eater. Meal times turn into stressful events spent begging, pleading and getting angry, even. You feel like throwing in the towel and making separate meals for everyone.

Don't give up yet! Here are some tips for getting picky eaters to eat.

1. Don't force your child to eat any foods. Many times, the lack of desire to try new foods is just a way of power struggling with you. Instead, just keep patiently offering.

2. Make sure to introduce only a few new foods every month or so. Don't expect your child to try something new every meal or week, even.

3. Don't bribe with dessert for eating a new food. Make sure to encourage by using phrases such as " I am very proud of you for trying that food you were unsure about" rather than "You are a good girl for eating that asparagus".

4. If you are unsure if your child will try something, offer it in a fun way. Give veggies a fun dip to go with or cut something into fun shapes.

5. Try having your child help make dinner. Many times, children are more interested in something if they have a part in preparing it.

6. Try, try and try again. Don't harp on your child to try something, but don't give up after the first try either. Keep offering the new food periodically and they may get curious about it. Also, Children's taste buds change over time. One year they may not like something, but the next year, it might be a favorite.

7. Most importantly, model a healthy relationship with all kinds of foods. It's OK not to like everything, but just as you want your child to try new things, be willing to do so in front of them as well.

Great Ways to Reveal The Gender of Your Baby

A while ago, Kidzies had a post on Fun Ways To Announce Your Pregnancy. Now, what are some fun ways to announce the gender of your baby when you find out? Everyone has already been driving you bonkers asking if the baby is a boy or a girl and your yourself are also on the edge of your seat wondering. Now, the big gender reveal is there and you want to tell the world! Here are some fun and unique ways to share the news!

1. Invite friends over for coffee and cake. Bake a cake in either pink or blue and cover it well with frosting. When everyone is gathered, cut into the cake to reveal!

2. Do it with balloons. Get a bunch (think; as many can fit!) of balloons and put them into a big box. Pink for girl, blue for boy. Go to an open field and have a photographer snap pictures of you before the reveal, during and after. Then, you can use this as a social media announcement.

3. A fun way to get younger siblings involved is to do a fiesta party. Invite friends with kids over, and have Latino inspired foods and mock margaritas. To reveal the gender, have the kids break open a pinata with either blue or pink candy and prizes in it.

4. Throw a "Guessing Party". Have people wear the color of the gender they guess the baby is. Pink worn for girls, blue for boys. Make it a casual get-together like a BBQ and at the end announce the winning gender. The "team" who guessed right get a small prize each.

5. Have an older sibling announce it with a T shirt that reads, "I am getting a baby _______ (brother, sister)"

6. Have it put on a Onezie from Kidzies! This would be the perfect way to let grandma or your spouse know if they don't already. Just put the gender (or better yet! name you had picked out if the baby was that gender!) and wrap it up as a present for them to reveal. This will also make a great keepsake!

7. If it is YOU that need to know the gender of the baby, have your doctor write the gender on a piece of paper and place it in a sealed envelope. Go shopping for an outfit together for the baby. Pick out an outfit for both genders (one girl and one boy one). Hand them to a sales clerk and ask him or her to ONLY bag, gift wrap and ring up the one that matches the gender in the envelope. Hand the clerk the envelope and say you will be back in a little bit.


How did you announce your pregnancy?

10 Fun Ways To Make Your Child's Birthday Extra Special

Every kid loves to feel special on their birthday. Aside from the normal birthday party and cupcakes to take to school, how can you fill your child's love tank on their birthday?

Here are 10 fun ways to make your birthday boy or girl feel like the day is all about them!

1. Make pancakes with sprinkles and frosting for breakfast. Put a candle in it, even!

2. Before you wake your child for the day, draw on the bathroom mirror a birthday message. Either use dry erase markers or lipstick!

3. Make sure you write a happy birthday note in their lunch if it is a school day. You may even consider packing a really special lunch and including a small gift, wrapped in it.

4. This is probably a given, but make your child feel like the dinner VIP and allow him or her to have the prime seat at the table and pick what you make or where you eat.

5. Make sure you tell them you love them all day. Teaching siblings that it's important to make the person feel loved on their birthday is also very important.

6. Fill the birthday child's room with balloons on the floor so when they get up, they pop them! What a fun way to wake up.

7. Decorate your car with erasable paint for windows with a special message.

8. Measure them every year. Kids like to see how much they have grown.

9. Let them decorate their own birthday cake.

10. Ask you child's siblings to do something special for the birthday kid such as do their chores for the day. If you have an only child, let them off the hook for chores, for example.

Bonus tip!

Get them a personalized Huggerz for their birthday! Personalized products make every kid feel special!

Top Kidzies Tools You Need For Back To School

Kidzies is your one stop shop for personalized goodies, but did you know that many of our more popular items are back-to-school must-haves? Check out the list below for special Kidzies products that can really make your school year and look at the bottom of the post for a 20% off your purchase code exclusively for Kidzies blog readers!

Huggerz-

Huggerz are the perfect back-to-school companion because they keep your child's drink separate and easy to spot. Perfect for lunchboxes, soccer practice and more. Help your child stand out with a Huggerz!

Protector Palz-

Protector Palz help little ones arrive in style and keep the seat belt from rubbing on the way to school. What kid wouldn't want that? Plus, for expecting moms, Protector Palz keep your little bun in the oven safer by placing on your belly in the car.

Treasure Bagz-

No one wants a boring pencil case! Treasure Bagz are the perfect solution as they keep your pencils, crayons and markers all in one place and since they are personalized, your child will know it is theirs! Treasure Bagz are perfect because they are made of durable wetsuit material and they hold a lot! Treasure Bagz also come with a clip so they can easily be attached to a backpack for holding lunch money as well!

Bigger Bagz-

For the kid who had a ton to carry, Bigger Bagz are the solution. Carry your scissors, glue sticks, pencils, markers and crayons all in the same tote. Made of the same durable material as our Treasure Bagz and they can be personalized, just like all our other products! Bigger Bagz are perfect for teens and tweens as well since they come in some pretty nifty styles and can hold cell phones, calculators and more!

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Have a safe and fun back-to-school season!


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