Can playing music to your baby or young child make her smarter? That was the claim of the much-hyped “Mozart Effect” several years ago, but the truth isn’t exactly black and white. Certainly, music is a great complement for stimulating babies’ brains and teaching toddlers vocabulary, but the jury’s out…
It’s a hard habit to break, but it can be done. We’re talking about the dreaded thumbsucking. Parents – take heart. Eventually, the time is going to come, probably just not soon enough. Research shows that 30 percent of preschool children still suck their thumbs, although most outgrow it by…
Most kids snack between 1 and 3 times daily. These mini-mealtimes can either be an opportunity to increase your child’s intake of fruits and veggies or they could be an unfortunate foray into the world of high fat and sugar. Arming yourself with information on serving sizes, calories, fat, and…
You’ve been feeling it again lately; that tug at your heart when you hold your friend’s baby or walk down the infant clothing aisle at the department store. The desire for another baby is in the air, but is it the right time to turn that longing into a reality?…
Sneaking fruits and vegetables into other types of food can be an easy and rewarding process. If you are sick of arguing over one helping of peas at dinner just do what the savvy moms do, sneak it into other dishes! Read on for healthy recipes that benefit from a…
Watermelon soup? Pasta with strawberries? Topping a burger with kiwi? It may sound strange, but there are lots of ways to incorporate summer fruit into your dinner dishes to take advantage of antioxidants like lycopene and vitamin C. How about some plum pizza? A ready-made pizza shell brushed with a…
With kids, anytime is the time for a party. You do not have to rent giant blow-ups for your front yard and feed every kid within a radius of 100 miles either. Letting your kids have a slumber party with a homemade cake, homemade pizza, a couple of bags of…
It may be the hardest thing for toddlers and preschoolers to do. No, we’re not talking about potty-training. The dreaded s-word – sharing – can incite tantrums like no other. But the earlier you start teaching and modeling sharing, the better your child will become at sharing. Start helping your…
We want to raise our children to be sympathetic, empathetic and energetic when it comes to helping others. So what better way to help cultivate caring kids than by teaching them to volunteer? These days, there is a huge emphasis on giving back to those are in need. Thanks to…
Parents and their children establish their relationship and love in a variety of ways, and one of the first ways to begin that process is bonding with baby. Bonding establishes trust between parent and child, and it prepares the child for learning what the world is all about. Starting the…