Science Day

Go on a nature walk with your kids with a magnifying glass. Insects, flowers, leaves, spider webs, even tree bark will look more interesting. Notice details you never noticed before. Examine an ant or a caterpillar with and without the magnifying glass. See the difference. Note: Do not go away and leave glass on dry grass in hot sun.

How to Get Rid of Water Rings and Dried Candle Wax

House Hold Tips. This morning I helped my friend clean up after her Oscar Party. She had water rings on her wood table and candle wax dripped on her candle sticks. “It’s as easy as pie to fix,” she said. Can’t say I find making a pie that easy to make but cleaning the candle sticks and table were. My friend put mayonnaise on a paper towel and rubbed it in the water rings and let it soak for one hour. The water rings disappeared. Then she got a hair dryer, put it on high, and pointed it at the candle wax. It melted and she wiped the wax away with a paper towel.

A silly, fun party game for little girls.

Sardines is a fun game to play at a birthday party. This is how Sardines is played. One girl hides. The others try to find her. When a child finds the hider they have to hide with them in their spot (behind a couch/under a table/in a pantry). The game continues until the very last child finds the others. Lots of giggling occurs. Tip: The child who hides first should find a place where other kids can fit, like a den closet.

Book Review

Take Me Out of the Bathtub and other silly dilly songs by Alan Katz. Illustrated by David Catrow. A FUN book! This book takes old folk songs and such and substitutes funny new words. Once your child hears Take Me Out of the Bathtub your child will be singing these new tunes in the car. Watch out! It will make you laugh. Too bad the book doesn’t come with a CD.

Movie Review: The Incredible Mr. Limpet

Movie Title: The Incredible Mr. Limpet. Comedy with some animation. Some singing as well. Not rated, but I would give it a G rating myself. I was worried this film might be boring, but I was wrong. It was an amusing, silly film. It's good old fashion fun for the whole family. Don Knotts stars as Henry Limpet a bookkeeper who can't get into the navy due to poor eyesight. Henry, who loves fish, wishes he was a fish. Looking into the sea at Coney Island he falls or jumps in. He can't swim. His navy friend, George, jumps into the water to save him. But he can't find Henry. Unbeknownst to George, Henry has turned into a fish with glasses. George and Henry's wife think he's dead. Henry meets a couple of fish friends while swimming in the sea. Since Henry can't join the navy as a man he decides to help the navy as a fish. With the help of his friend George, Henry helps out his country.

Fussy Eaters Part 3

Sometimes to get out of eating your healthy dinner your child might try the, "I'm not hungry" routine. If this is occurring nightly and your child's not sick, find out what they're eating for snacks. To curb this, cut down on snacking, and have the "home snack bar" close at 4 p.m. (depending on when you serve dinner.)

Growing up my mother was strict, but fair when it came to food. She realized there are just some foods children don't like. Each one of my sibling and I were allowed to pick one food we didn't like which we didn't have to eat. (She also tacked on lima beans and liver since she didn't like these foods herself.) I picked pea soup, but I made a case that since pea soup was made from peas I shouldn't have to eat peas either. I never had to eat peas. Now of course I tried them, which is why I gave them two thumbs down. You can try this idea in your family.

Please don't have the rule that unless your child cleans their plate they can't leave the table. Growing up my brother didn't like two vegetables. Green beans and something else. My father said he couldn't be excused until he finished all his green beans. My mom's "at least have a few" idea was put down. In order that my brother could leave the table I recall at least twice secretly eating his green beans, which I wasn't crazy about either. The point is, don't make eating an unpleasant task. Food should not be forced down unhappily. Eating should be something we enjoy. Not a bad memory.

Fussy Eaters Part 2

Does your child routinely crosses their arms and say, "Yuck!" to what you made for breakfast, lunch or dinner? If so, then have a rule. You made what you made and that's it. You're home is not a restaurant, with a menu full of meals that can be served on a whim. Your child can have the food you made or not. Just make sure you serve healthy meals. And that you try to take into consideration what they like and dislike. (I can see a child saying yuck to being served liver and yams every night. Have variety.) You can't make you're child eat. But if they leave the table hungry, their food will be in the refrigerator if they get hungry. Or they can wait for the next meal. Remember your child is not in a third world country, starving. Remember this when they're moaning that you're not being a good parent and feeding them. You are feeding them. Just not the foods they want, like potatoe chips, pop corn or candy. Kids will push. Once you give in and let your child start eating cereal every night for dinner while the rest of the family eats a regular meal, it will be hard to stop. Plus, at other people's houses it's rude to say, "Ewe! I don't like your pork chops. I hate potatoes. And your fruit. Can I have a bowl of cereal instead?" I've seen it happen. I said no. The child ate what I served. The child's mother was amazed. Why should she be amazed? She can say no, too. Your child will eat something you serve, even a little, if hungry enough.