Parenting | Napping at Red Lights

TLC Would Like to Make Your Real Life, Real Simple

October 15, 2008

Think about your day so far – you had to get the kids up and off to school, you’ve got more deadlines than time at work, there are dishes and laundry piling up at home and let’s not even talk about what you are going to fix for dinner tonight. You’re lucky you found a spare moment to read this article.

Wouldn’t you like more time for your favorite hobby? How about some time to do something fun with family and friends? What would you be willing to do to get make your life simpler?

Well TLC has some answers for you and all you have to do is spend an hour relaxing in front on the television on Friday night.

So pour yourself a glass of wine, put the kids to bed (or better yet send them to a friends or Grandma’s for a sleep over), curl up on the couch and turn the channel to TLC at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Because this Friday TLC partners with Real Simple to premiere its brand new hour-long show – Real Simple. Real Life. – that promises to find solutions to make life easier.

And who doesn’t want an easier life? Count me in!

Think of the show as a realistic makeover for the average busy woman – or man. Instead of promises of perfection, Real Simple. Real Life. is offering simple solutions and tips for everyday folks.

People today have lives full of demands and expectations. I know my list of to dos start when I get up and is often still clogging up my list at the end of the day.

Real Simple. Real Life will help people like you and me identify the frustrations that zap our time and keep our plates full. The show then offers personalized tips to end the chaos and give us back more fun time.

“Each week we’ll feature a comprehensive, 360-degree lifestyle makeover, using best-in-class experts in a variety of areas to help our real women identify with their day-to-day challenges, and offer realistic solutions and ‘aha’ tips to help them live an even better life. Viewers at home will identify with these women and be impacted by the makeovers” Executive Producer Jude Weng said. “We embrace the reality that it’s not about making the perfect meal or having the most organized closet; we’re working with them to make time-saving changes that will let them ad more of the fun ‘me’ time they’re craving back into their lives.”

Obviously the show’s target audience is women. But these are issues that everyone deals with – men and women – anyone who runs a home, has a job, raises kids or keeps a busy schedule. I know that my husband spends just as much time on the house and with the kids as I do (and sometimes more). So these solutions are for everyone.

Expect solutions to cover everything from smart organization tips to ideas for quick and simple dinners to decoration ideas to fun ways to make entertaining easier.

The show will also include a website – realsimplereallife.com – to go into more detail on the solutions offered in the weekly show. The show and its tips will also be featured in the monthly magazine Real Simple.

I know that I am always in a state of disorganization so I’m really looking forward to seeing what tips the show can offer to get me organized and give me more time to spend with my kids.

So I have reserved my seat on the couch for Friday night at 8 p.m. My bottle of wine is already chilling. Let the help start.

What area do you need the most help? What tip/solution did some give you that made your life easier?

1 Comment | Environment, Family Fun, Food, Holidays, Home, Parenting, Preparedness, Reality, Recipes, Safety, Television | Tagged: challenges, decorating, easy, entertaining, entertainment, Jude Weng, Kit Hoover, Life, lifestyle, living for less, magazine, makeover, meal, organizing, Parenting, parents, Real Simple, Real Simple Real Life, Recipes, simple, solutions, Television, time-saving, tips, TLC, tv, women | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Get Lost for Some Fall Fun

October 9, 2008

It seems like just yesterday we were playing around in the pool in the hot sun. But alas, the dog days of summer are behind us, school has started and fall is here.

But just because the days are getting shorter and temperatures are starting to drop doesn’t mean that the outdoor fun has to stop.

One great way to enjoy the autumn weather and expend some energy is to get lost.

What?

I’m not suggesting you wander aimlessly. Instead take in a maze. You can find them everywhere if you know where to look. They come in all shapes and sizes.

My twins taking on a hay maze.

Hay Mazes

My kids started as toddlers playing in a hay maze the vegetable stand near our house puts up every fall. You can also find hay mazes at festivals and neighborhood events.

I went through the maze with the twins the first couple of times. But it wasn’t long before they were taking on the maze solo.

Hay mazes are great for younger kids for several reasons. They are usually small enough that the children don’t get discouraged trying to find the exit.

The hay is also often stacked short enough that as a parent you can look over the top of it and feel comfortable letting your child go through alone, but still tall enough for it to be a challenge for the kids.

But what I like most about hay mazes is when the kids come to a crossroads in the path, watching them make a decision about which path to take. Can’t you just hear Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” being recited in the background?

What’s even more interesting is watching their reaction when they come to a dead end. How do they react? Do they retrace their steps? Can they find the right path? I’m always amazed to watch their reasoning skills in action.

Corn Mazes

An aerial view of Cherry Crest Farm the year I went through it.

But if you and your family are looking for more of a challenger, I recommend trying a corn maze.

My first experience with a corn maze was at Cherry Crest Farm in Pennsylvania. To truly appreciate this maze you have to see an aerial view. But the real fun is when you try to manipulate your way through the stalks.

We also frequent the maze at the Chesterfield Berry Farm in Virginia. Among the corn your challenge doubles. You must not only find your way out, but you must also find certain checkpoints along the way (and they aren’t necessarily on the direct exit route) and get your ticket punched. If you get your card punched at every station you get a prize at the end.

And for those of you more adventuresome, hit the maze after dark (where allowed) and try your luck among the stalks by flashlight. My twins very first maze experience when they were still in carriers was at the West Nursery at night with only a flashlight to guide us. At this maze, to help us along the way, at critical intersections were trivia questions about the area’s history. It’s very help if you know your history.

Other Mazes

But the maze fun doesn’t have to end with Halloween. A maze of lights is the perfect addition to your Christmas light tour. Lewis Botanical Gardens in Virginia adds two light mazes (of varying levels) to their Garden of Lights. And let me tell you that the lights add a degree of difficulty I didn’t expect.

But like the hay mazes, light mazes are usually low enough for parents to allow children to test out their skills solo.

You can find local corn mazes by going to www.cornmazedir.com, www.americanmaze.com or www.pumpkinpatchesandmore.org. Be on the lookout for hay and other mazes at local festivals and fairs.

So what are you waiting for? Get out there and get lost.

2 Comments | Christmas, Family Fun, Halloween, Holidays, Parenting, Richmond-VA, Travel | Tagged: autumn, Cherry Crest Farm, Chesterfield Berry Farm, Christmas, corn maze, entertainment, fall, Family Fun, fun, Halloween, hay maze, Lewis Botanical Gardens, light maze, mazes, Parenting, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Nursery | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Looney Tunes Gets Bloody, Is it Too Much for Kids?

October 8, 2008

I just read about a new art exhibit called “Splatter” where Looney Tunes characters are taken to the next violent level – complete with blood and guts.

jCauty&SON copyright out of control 2008, courtesy of THE AQUARIUM

Artist James Cauty created the controversial exhibition with his 15-year-old son Harry Photo: jCauty&SON copyright out of control 2008, courtesy of THE AQUARIUM

According to the Telegraph, the exhibit claims to show your favorite Looney Tune characters in “unrelenting acts of blood and discomfort never previously witnessed on the Cartoon Network.”

The exhibit itself doesn’t bother me. I’m all for free expression. I don’t think my kids are mature enough to see that kind of thing yet, so I simply won’t take them. Others are free to see the exhibit if it interests them. The gallery even attached a parental advisory to the exhibit. I’m fine with that.

What did upset me was a statement by artist James Cauty.

“I’m a parent myself, and if I saw pictures like that I would think of something kids would really love, because it’s no holds-barred violence.”

I find the statement terribly disturbing. I’m a parent and I don’t want my young kids to be getting that excited about “no holds-barred violence.”

We should be teaching our children about limits, not “no holds-barred.” We should be stressing the importance of right and wrong, not the bloodier the better.

What does it say about our society that we are encouraging our kids to get excited about violence, that blood and guts are “fun.”

I currently limit the amount of Looney Tunes cartoons my kids can watch. They are extremely violent as is. We have discussion after watching them about what is right and what is wrong.

I watched Looney Tunes growing up and I turned out ok. But I was raised with a strong moral foundation. Even so there’s a big difference between watching an anvil drop on coyote’s head and watching Jerry mutilate Tom.

There’s no way I’d let my kids into that exhibit until they were much, much older. They need to be mature enough to understand what is “entertainment” only. They should know why it’s really not fun when people get hurt.

But the idea that our kids are getting excited about extreme violence, that they find blood and mutilation fun, scares me. Because too many kids are mature enough to distinguish between reality and entertainment and too many aren’t getting the moral discussions to distinguish between right and wrong.

What do you think are we as society doing too much to encourage this trend among our children that the more, bloodier violence is a good thing? Are we setting up our children for trouble in the future?

2 Comments | art, Children's Programs, comics, Humor, Looney Tunes, Parenting, Pop Culture, Television | Tagged: art, blood and guts, Bugs Bunny, entertainment, exhibit, gore, James Cauty, Looney Tunes, parent controls, Parenting, Splatter, Teens, Tom and Jerry, violence, youth | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Should Children’s Books Have a Rating System?

September 27, 2008

A recent article has me wondering if we should be taking a closer look at what we qualify as “children’s books.”

A recent article said that a bookstore in Shanghai is pulling the children’s book “Book of Bunny Suicides: Little Fluffy Rabbits Who Just Don’t Want to Live Anymore’ after a rash of suicides by children and teens.

I had mixed emotions when I read this article. In general, I’m against book banning. Authors should be free to express their opinions.

And I don’t really believe that a normal, healthy kid read this book and then suddenly wanted to commit suicide. I’m not even sure it even really gives a kid ideas for how to commit suicide since some of these illustrations are unrealistic — head in a DVD player for instance.

But what I am wondering is how this book got classified as a children’s book. It’s definitely not age appropriate for young kids.

Suicide is a very sensitive subject that kids – and many adults, myself included – don’t entirely understand. I can understand why there might be a book in the children’s section explaining to a child how to deal with it when a friend, family member or other loved one commits suicide.

But why would a book mocking suicide be considered a children’s book? Because it has cute little bunnies in it? If that’s the qualification, then we really need to look at how a book gets classified as a children’s book.

I recently read The Golden Compass. When I went to buy the book, I found it in the children’s section. Sure the story deals with the adventure of a little girl, but the book itself is a fantasy that deals with some pretty dark themes.

While I wouldn’t call the book scary, I did have some very gloomy dreams when I read it. And I wondered how it would affect a young reader.

After reading this book, I wouldn’t let my child read this book until they were well into their teens. How did this book get classified in the children’s section?

So my question is do we need to be more diligently in accurately classifying books (i.e just because it had cute little bunnies in it doesn’t mean it’s meant for children) or do we need to take it a step further? Do we need a rating system (like we have for movies, video games, music) for children’s books?

5 Comments | books, Current Affairs, education, Parenting, Safety, Teens, Tweens | Tagged: banning, Book of Bunny Suicides, books, children, children’s books, kids, Parenting, rating system, ratings, suicide, Teens, The Golden Compass | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

How to Build a Better Mouse Trap – I Mean Pirate Ship

September 22, 2008

Saturday my three-year-old twins were in a community parade with their preschool. But to be in the parade you needed a float. Here’s where mom duty becomes real challenging.

Before: The red wagon before we started.

My kids are very, very into pirates. Last year they took a pirate class (think art class with pirate theme). My son even likes to talk like a pirate. I’ll ask him to do something and he’ll respond with “aye, aye captain.” When he flushes the toilet he hollers “fire in the hole.”

The twins even pretend to be pirates when they play. One day they lined up all their chairs in the living room to make a pirate ship. My son used his sister’s princess keys to “start” the ship and when she asked to get in, he said sure, but make sure you put your seat belt on! What can I say, at least they are safe pirates.

Needless to say when it came time to come up with ideas for a float, one idea stood out – Pirates! But then the real dilemma started – how to turn a red wagon into a pirate ship?

Well this mommy’s no dummy. The first thing I did was recruit help from my mother and her two foster daughters.

After: The wagon transformed.

So the Saturday before the parade we set out to work. My twins were on hand to supervise. Three trips to the craft store and 10 hours later, we finally had a pirate ship.

We used cardboard boxes for the aft and bow. We spray painted Styrofoam brown and then wrapped it in burlap to create wooded sides.

We topped the boxes with Styrofoam wrapped in brown duct tape to create front and rear decks.

We added cannons with cannon balls, an anchor and a mast and voila!

And now I can add pirate ship builder to my resume.

1 Comment | Family Fun, Halloween, Memories, Parenting, preschoolers | Tagged: art, boat, children, costume, crafts, Family Fun, float, Halloween, parade, Parenting, pirate ship, pirates, prechoolers, Red wagon, ship | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Is it Really ADHD or Just Too Much Pressure?

September 15, 2008

I’ve always contented that we, as a society, are too quick to label our kids with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, pump them full of meds and forget about the issue. I’ve read two articles recently that support my theory.

I’m not saying that ADHD doesn’t really exist or that there are indeed extreme cases in which medications are needed to moderate behavior.

However, I feel that society finds it easier to tack on the ADHD label than to work on a development issue.

The MSNBC.com article “Who is to blame for boys struggling at school?” talks about how boys are more often targeted for ADHD.

“According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2003, 14 percent of boys across the nation were identified as having ADHD by the time they reached their sixteenth birthday. And the percentage is continuing to grow.”

It went on further to add.

“Either we are witnessing the largest pandemic in our country since influenza struck in the United States in 1918, or school-age boys are being overidentified and overdiagnosed.”

But if you read the article, the offending behaviors are just typical boy behavior. C’mon we all did that kind of stuff as a kid. But because it disrupts the classroom, it must be a medical issue.

Let’s look at why it’s disrupting the classroom. What are we asking our kids to do in the classroom these days? The list is getting bigger and bigger by the day.

When I was a kid, kindergarten was more about learning how to behave in school. We had play time and nap time and we might learn our letters, colors and numbers.

But these days, the pressure is on. Preschool is now where kids learn the basics – and sometimes even more. And by kindergarten they are already learning to read. Some people are even holding their kids out of kindergarten until they are six so they know more going in.

School days are filled with a variety of work and little time to play. Then the kids come home and have more work to do. Some schools don’t even allow kids to talk during lunch to keep lunch time to a minimum and get the students back in the classroom.

Kids are kids, they have lots of energy. We must allow them some time to be a kid, to have fun, to goof off.

If they are in school all day and aren’t allowed to talk during lunch, when are they allowed to be themselves? If we don’t give them some time to express themselves and be a kid, they will make their own.

I think it’s unrealistic of a teacher to think (especially with the younger ones) kids are going to sit still and pay attention for 6-8 hours a day. Heck, I know most adults that can’t do that.

It doesn’t mean we should start medicating everyone.

The solution is two-part. Parents need to work with their children on appropriate behavior and offer them an alternative activity during non-school hours to exert some of that energy. Teachers must be willing to teach in a method most conducive to the child rather than what’s easiest for them.

The New York Times article “Training Young Brains to Behave” talks about why kids are so quick to move from one topic to another. A short-attention span is natural.

“One reason is that an area of the brain that is critical to inhibiting urges, the prefrontal cortex, is still a work in progress.”

It’s not ADHD, it’s a development issue. .

“Some children’s brains adapt quickly, while others’ take time.”

The article goes on further to discuss how much this erratic behavior changed when teachers and parents took time to work with the child on self-control, memory and flexibility.

When this behavior is shaped “it is more strongly associated with school success than I.Q.”

Imagine that – long-term results without any drugs and all it required was a little effort on the part of parents and teachers.

Finally, the study also said “Although play is often thought frivolous, it may be essential.”

I think as adults we often overlook this very key piece in children’s development. I know for myself, I have to do a mental check to make I’m not overscheduling my kids, that I’m allowing time for them to just play.

What do you think? Is ADHD overdiagnosed? Are we putting too much pressure on our youth to succeed?

6 Comments | education, Health, Parenting, preschoolers, Teens, Toddlers, Tweens | Tagged: ADD, ADHD, behavior, brain, children, development, education, IQ, kids, kindergarten, learning, Parenting, preschool, preschoolers, school, school success, short-attention span, troubled | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

The Anxiety of the First Day of School

September 10, 2008

My kids started school this week. Okay, so it was just preschool and they only go for ½ a day two days a week, but for me it was still this big milestone in their lives.

The twins didn’t seem to give the idea of going to school to school a second thought. But then they have been going to some type of class (gym, art or music) by themselves for more than a year. And they even went to camp for three hours once a week this summer.

But even so, I got to thinking about the idea of the first day of school. I remember it being a big point of anxiety for me, but maybe that’s because I grew up a military brat who changed schools quite a bit. For me, the first day of school each year often meant a new school with new people. And as a child I was extraordinarily shy.

While I never remember separation anxiety – could be why my kids showed no signs of it – I do remember having butterflies in my stomach and dreading the thought of entering a school where everyone already had their friends established.

But I made it through it. And apparently my kids did too. They are lucky in that they got to share this experience with each other.

I remember my first day of school. I didn’t go to preschool. My first day was for kindergarten and I had to ride the bus – a really big deal when you are smaller (and younger) than all the other “more experienced” school kids.

I remember standing at the bus stop with my mom waiting for the bus to arrive. She was telling me how to remember my bus stop so that I could get off in the afternoon. My bus stop was at the corner of a baseball field. I was to look for the backstop to know when to get off the bus.

I don’t remember much about that day at school, but I remember the bus ride home. I sat diligently at the window looking for that backstop. The idea of missing my bus stop scared me silly.

Then I saw it – the backstop. I didn’t expect it so soon. But I got up and got off the bus. The bus pulled away just as I realized my mom wasn’t there. Now what do I do.

I’m five. I’m not allowed to cross a street by myself and here I am at the wrong bus stop. Who do I go to for help?

While I’m internalizing all this information, the bus has gone on to my correct bus stop a block away. My mom realized I wasn’t on the bus and realized (I don’t know if another parent or some kids told her) that the previous bus stop also had a baseball field. And before I know it my mom was there to meet me.

The next day, the parents tied some kind of ribbon to the backstop at my bus stop and I never got off at the wrong bus stop again.

It amazes me that after all these years (really, it hasn’t been that many), that that bus stop tidbit is what I remember about my first day at school.

It wasn’t what outfit I wore or who I met or – God forbid – what I learned that day that stood out. It was the bus ride.

I wonder what my kids will remember about their first day. They didn’t ride a bus so that can’t be it. But I’d love to know what they remember 20 or 30 years from now.

What do you remember from your first day of school?

1 Comment | education, Parenting, preschoolers | Tagged: anxiety, children, education, family, first day, kids, kindergarten, memoirs, Parenting, preschool, preschoolers, school, school bus | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Finally, a Children’s CD Parents can Enjoy

April 2, 2008

I’ve listened to enough Wiggles songs to make my head explode. I’ve heard every song that Dora the Explorer and her cousin Diego have ever recited. I know all the words to the Sesame Street classics. But what else can I do?

You see my children like music – I mean really like music. And in my effort to be a good parent, I try to cultivate that interest by surrounding them with music they enjoy.

And while they might treasure the sounds of their favorite TV characters, the repetition of that music on a daily basis is enough to test the sanity of even the best parents.

But when I’ve overdosed on children’s music, I can hardly put in Aerosmith or the Rolling Stones. Not only is the language and references to sex and drugs questionable content for two year olds, but my kids find most of my music choices too loud (I know it’s only a short amount of time before I have the same claim about their music).

But I think I’ve finally found a CD that the children and I can enjoy together. That Baby CD combines music made famous by some of my favorite artists with a nice acoustic sound that my kids can enjoy too.

“We are one of the few out there that have decided to take children’s music into a new direction,” said Rob Wolf, co- founder of OyBaby LLC, company behind That Baby CD.

That Baby CD has pushed children’s music further than ever before by trying to create “something that the entire family can enjoy,” Rob said.

And I think That Baby CD did just that. The music is danceable. The children can clap their hands to it. Parent can – and will want to – sing along with the music, music they know from artists like Bruce Springsteen, the Beatles, Fleetwood Mac and Bob Marley.

This CD has something for everyone. It’s perfect for those long car rides when tensions run high and boredom sets in. Parents can feel comfortable about putting in That Baby CD to liven up those long trips with some snappy music that gets your feet tapping and your voice singing along with the familiar words.

“I think the music has to accessible to [the children]. It has to have melodies that are catchy and words that are appropriate,” Rob said.

Rob combined his hobby video editing with Lisi’s photography skills and the pair’s love of music to produce their third children’s album.

“We struck a chord with a product that fits a need for a lot of families,” Rob said, adding that it’s a labor of love for him and Lisi.

The Wolfs first venture, OyBaby, and its sequel OyBaby 2, focused on Jewish music for babies and kids. They wanted a way share their Jewish heritage with their children. Both albums were well received with more than 40,000 copies sold in the U.S. and 15 other countries.

So when non-Jewish friends started asking the Wolfs for a CD that they could enjoy with their children, Rob and Lisi were happy to oblige.

In 2007, the Wolfs decided to take the things that succeeded in OyBaby and turn them into a non-religious product. And it was only natural for them to turn again to their friend Stephanie Schneiderman, and her sisters Lisa Schneiderman and Kim Palumbis, to record their songs.

Stephanie, who has done the arrangement for all three of the Wolfs’ children’s albums, is an accomplished musician in her own right with five solo albums under her belt. She and her sisters sing 10 of the 14 songs on the CD.

And the 14 songs came out of a lot of brainstorming on Rob and Lisi’s part. After weeks of looking for potential songs, they came up with a list of 30 which they eventually pared down to those on the CD.

But don’t ask Rob to pick his favorite:

“That’s like asking me which is my favorite child,” he said.

I, on the other hand, have already selected my top choices – The Pretenders “Brass in Pocket” and 10,000 Maniacs “These are Days.”

The kids and I put the CD in and dance around the living room to those two tunes all the time. It’s a great chance for them to experiment with their own dancing style.

But if you are afraid that that your little one won’t identify with the words, then you should try out That Baby DVD that comes with a child-friendly video accompaniment for each song (the picture at the top of this article is from video for Jonny Lang’s “Anything is Possible”).

The DVD gives the children a chance to “visually put their mind to” an image when they are later listening to the CD in the car.

So if you are looking for music for your children that won’t drive you crazy, check out That Baby CD.

2 Comments | Babies, Children's Programs, Music, Parenting, Sesame Street, Television, Toddlers, Travel | Tagged: 10000 Maniacs, album, baby, Beatles, Bob Marley, Bruce springsteen, CD, children, children's music, Dora the Explorer, Fleetwood Mac, Go Diego Go, Jonny Lang, Kim Palumbis, Lisa Schneiderman, Lisi Wolf, Music, OyBaby, Parenting, preschoolers, road trips, Rob Wolf, Sesame Street, Stephanie Schneiderman, That Baby CD, That Baby DVD, The Pretenders, Toddlers, Wiggles | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

What’s Your Favorite March activity?

March 14, 2008

March is one of those strange months that are more about transitions than about a particular event or season. But that doesn’t mean the month should fly by without a little adventure. What is your favorite activity to do in March?

When the twins were born, we started a new March tradition – the Henrico County Kite Festival. We’ve done it every year, but this year – it was extremely cold and rain last weekend when the festival took place.

It seemed like the festival came early this year, probably because Easter is early this year. But I digress.

The festival is a great family affair. You go to this park in the county and everyone is out there with their kites. You can see all the kites in the sky as you approach the park. Kites of every shape and size soaring through the air. It’s beautiful.

We always pack a lunch, meet some other friends and make a day out of it. We might fly our kites for a bit, sit and watch the other kites for a while, have a snack or play some ball. We always bring a few other activities for the kids. And the Parks and Rec Department always has a few activities for the kids too.

Last year, for the first time, the kids really got into the kites. They helped daddy put them together. Sure the process would have quicker without their help, but it was cool that they took such an interest.

Then they wanted to hold the reel that releases the string. They didn’t quite understand what they were doing and often crashed the kite with their efforts. Still it was fun to enjoy a “family” event in the fresh air.

I felt a little like the family at the end of Mary Poppins (I promise not to strut around with a sash chanting about women’s right to vote). They had finally found time for each other and were truly enjoying each other’s company. “Let’s go fly a kite . . .”

Since we missed the festival this year, I think we will have to take the kids out another day later this month or early in April. April would be good since it’s National Kite Flying Month.

I’ve never really been good at flying a kite. But I’ve never had so much fun trying as with my kids helping. When was the last time you flew a kite?

Leave a Comment » | Events, Family Fun, Holidays, Memories, Parenting, Toddlers, Twins | Tagged: activites, Events, Family Fun, kite flying, kites, March, Parenting, Toddlers, tradition, Twins | Permalink
Posted by vacelts

Christmas in March

March 12, 2008

On Saturday, my children woke up and scurried downstairs to the living room like it was Christmas morning to find a pile of “new toys” much to their delight. What, you say. It’s only March.

No, the Easter bunny didn’t make an early stop at our house. And no, I haven’t joined some weird religion that has moved Christmas to March. But I am a member of a club (club, not cult) that made my children’s Saturday morning joy possible.

I am a member of a Moms of Multiples club, a club for parents who have had twins, triplets or more. That fact alone did not bring Christmas to my house in March. But the club’s bi-annual fundraiser did.

In an effort to raise funds for the club and put a little money back in the pockets of the members, the club started holding a Kid’s Stuff Only Yard Sale twice a year.

Members clean out their closets and attics, bringing out gently used kid’s clothes, toys, nursery items, books and videos to sell. We each price our own items, but we put them out in like categories (i.e. all the girls clothes that are size 6 go together, all the toys go together, all the books, etc.).

The club makes 15% of whatever we sell. We take home the rest. Sure it’s not a lot of money, but it’s enough to cover a few extras like a membership at the children’s museum or to cover the cost of the twins’ birthday party. And when you have twins, every little bit helps.

But selling is only half the fun. Members also get to pre-buy. We set up everything on Friday night and the sale is Saturday morning from 8-11. But after we setup, members get first crack at cruising through the isles to find deals.

I am able to find a lot of good deals on clothes this way – and trust me it’s important to get deals when you are buying for two at a time. Most of the clothes are gently used, but some are brand new (kids outgrew them before they got a chance to wear them).

But for my kids, it’s what else I bring home that tickles their fancy. By the time I get home Friday night, they are asleep. But they know Saturday morning some new-to-them toys will be waiting for them.

Last fall I spent $3 and the twins thanked me for an hour. I kid you not. I know you are thinking what did she buy? I bought a box a legos.

But they were just so thrilled at having something new (at least to them) to play with that they would play with them for a few minutes then one of them would come by and thank me. Then they’d go play again and then the other would come by to thank me again. This routine went on for an hour – over a box of legos.

The yard sale lets us rotate toys so the kids don’t get bored with them. They get to try out a lot more toys that if I had to buy them new.

This year when I was tagging things to sale the twins noticed for the first time I was taking some of their toys away. I kept hearing “That’s mine Mommy.” But I explained that they were too big for those toys any more.

But any grumblings disappeared when they saw there bounty Saturday morning. My son got T-Rex Mountain, the ImagiNext dinosaur set. He has been roaring all week. And my daughter is still primping in front of the Princess vanity she got. I paid a fourth of what these items retail for and they are both in great condition.

And when the twins aren’t playing with these toys, they are toting around the Look and Find books I got them. They love to “read” and the only way I can keep them in books (without going broke) is to buy them at the yard sale. We even had to take the new books to dinner with us Saturday night.

And don’t tell the twins (luckily they are two young to read mommy’s articles), but I even picked them up a surprise for their third birthday – something their grandfather wanted to buy them but they were still too young for when he past away last year – a two-passenger motorized jeep. We’ll be giving this gift to them in Grandpa’s memory.