My First Giveaway

Now that I've had some time to consider what I might like to offer as a gift for my readers, I am hosting a giveaway. As my gift, I will be giving FIVE lucky winners a hand-made purse, made by me. Here are three samples of what the purse might look like. I have many designs. The purse you win will be customized to the interests of your child. I have cheer leading, balloons, crayons, animals, and flowers. Seriously, if you can think of it - I can make it.

These purses are small. They are perfect for little girls from 2 to 14.






Here are the rules for my giveaway.


1) Tell your readers about me. Make a post on your blog about The Art and Science of Parenting. This post should be dated June 9th or later. Be sure to tell everybody that I'm giving something away. I know people come read when they see "free stuff" posted.


2) Comment on this post with the link to your entry. Your comment should include the link back to your page and some information about what type of purse you think your child would like to have. You also need to include email information so I can contact you if you win.


That really is all you have to do. I am going to run my giveaway for three weeks to give people plenty of time to enter. The post will close at midnight on June 30th.

I will select the winners through a random method and post the information about who won.


I hope you all enjoy this little giveaway.

I've been tagged.....

One of my regular readers, Petula from It's a Woman's World, has tagged me in hopes of learning more about me. In an attempt to comply with the requests of my fans, I'm going to post this here. (I won't be tagging anybody, though, so I'll be skipping that rule...)

Here are the rules:

1. link the person(s) who tagged you

2. Mention the rules on your blog

3. Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours...

4. Tag 6 following bloggers by linking them…

5. Leave a comment on each of the tagged blogger’s blogs letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Here are my unspectacular quirks:

1) I hate housework. I seriously have a hard time doing much more than dishes and basic picking up.

2) I generally do not like other people's children. Most people that I come in contact with allow their children to behave in ways that annoy me. Because of this, I tend to avoid play dates and such.

3) I can sing the theme song to Backyardigans, Barney, and Blue's Clues without even realizin that I'm singing.

4) I skip breakfast most days. I generally do not eat anything until after 11:00 and sometimes later.

5) I read juvenile fiction frequently. I have a huge collection of books for my kids to read. I generally try to read them first to be sure the content is appropriate.

6) I have asthma and when I start laughing too hard, I have trouble breathing.

***(happy Pet?)***

Feel free to ask me any questions. I will gladly tell you anything you want to know.

Hot! Hot! Hot!

In honor of our now soaring heat wave, I have decided that this is a good time to give you a few creative ideas for convincing your child to drink more fluids. With the temperature hitting the high 90's here, it is important to get those kids to drink something frequently. You should offer them some varieties to prevent boredom and just make life more fun.

You can try a few different recipes for drink mixes. I did an Internet search and found quite a few interesting drinks. The one that sounds the most appealing to me is the Fizzy Twist. If you follow the link attached to the name, you will find other interesting drink ideas, but this one was my favorite.

Fizzy Twist

1 cup orange juice
1/3 cup cranberry juice
1/3 cup ginger ale

Mix the orange and cranberry juices over ice. Then, add the ginger ale.

In order to make drinks more appealing for children, you can do many things.

-You can serve your drinks with flavored ice cubes that are easy to make with a plastic ice tray.
-You can buy plastic ice cubes that come in various shapes and colors.
-You can put frozen fruit in your child's juice to keep it cold and add a bit of zing to their drink.
-You can make your own specialty ice cubes by freezing gummy candies into ice cubes.
-You can serve your child's fizzy twist in champagne flutes.
-Your options are limitless, just use your imagination.

Quizzes

I recently came across a website that had parenting quizzes posted on the home page. I suppose these quizzes are intended to provide a bit of humor to your day. However, I couldn't help but wonder why a parent might be inclined to take one of these quizzes.

The quiz that caught my eye was titled "Are you a great Mom?" For the sake of being able to discuss this rationally, I took the time to take the quiz. The picture of the insanely smiling woman that followed each new question was enough to wrangle my already raw nerves, yet I continued my quest to see just what this quiz would have to say about me and my parenting skills.

The questions are relatively annoying because they give the impression that there is a right choice and if you make the wrong choice - well then, whatever were you thinking when you decided you might be worthy of raising future adults? I happen to think that choices are based entirely on the needs of the family and the concept of right vs. wrong just does not work well when dealing with parenting decisions, so this was quite irritating to me.

After taking my quiz, the computer deemed me to be a great mom. (See my results below...) Come to think of it, I seriously doubt this type of quiz would ever rank anyone to be a non-great mom. After all, the entire goal here is to convince me to buy whatever products are being advertised underneath all those pretty little keyword links. Indeed, I took the quiz again and chose answers that were clearly inconsistent with my idea of what parenting should be about. Imagine my [lack of] surprise when the computer generated results were exactly the same as before.

I suppose the reason I'm going on about this is because while I see that the quiz might be considered entertaining for some, I also know many people who take these types of things quite seriously when seeking self-affirmation. This type of marketing ruse is used to prey on the insecurities of parents world wide, insinuating that perhaps if you use this product or that company then you would be a better parent.

It seems to me that the greatest proof of my amazing parenting skills can not be found on the computer, disguised as the results of a meaningless quiz. Instead, my proof lies in the giggles and smiles that reward me each day; the often repeated "I love you, Mom!" that is passed around my house; the smiles that show just how appreciated my efforts really are; and even the tears that send a heart broken little person running directly to me instead of stopping half way for comfort from some other person (can you say Daddy just isn't good enough for this one...).

I can clearly see my parenting success in these small gestures. I suppose if you stop and look around, you too will see your success and be assured that you are a great parent. You don't need a computer generated quiz to tell you that you are a great parent. I suppose you might find the quizzes to be amusing or entertaining, but if you do happen to be entertained by these quizzes then you already know just how irrelevant the results are.

Today, I declare you to be a great mom (or dad). Pat yourself on the back. Go hug your kids. Teach your child to tell you that you are amazing. It is one of the most wonderful phrases that you can ever teach your child. (Kira tells me quite frequently that I'm amazing, particularly when she wants something fixed and daddy wasn't able to fix it.) Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Waste five minutes kissing and hugging and tickling your babies instead of taking some silly Internet quiz. After all, I've already told you what you already knew and it took less than five minutes.

See, I AM AMAZING!!!



My Quiz Results

You sure are a great mom!The truth is, whether you choose co-sleep, use disposable diapers, stay at home, only buy specific toys for baby … or any one of a million other decisions, there have long been children who turned out A-OK on account (and in spite!) of similar ones made for them. Parenting is a subjective series of actions and reactions,and is looks like you’re being proactive about your child’s health, development, and overall happiness just by being here at BabyZone.

And while it may feel impossible to resist the temptation to compare yourself to other mothers, you need to take stock in the smart decisions you make every day on behalf of your family. Read more about why competitive parenting just isn’t worth it.

Grow Something!

Never underestimate the power of a plant. Letting a child grow her own plant can make her feel very special and give her an amazing sense of accomplishment if you choose the right kind of plant for your child to grow.

My neighbor has a few tomato plants in her yard. Her little girl - Kira's Friend - checks the plants each day to see if there are any newly ripened tomatoes. Tomato plants are a wonderful option for our location because the weather is suitable, and the plants are hardy enough to deal with the Georgia red clay. The plants between our houses sport tons of little green tomatoes just waiting to ripen fully and be picked.

The Friend loves showing her tomatoes to Kira and pointing out which ones are almost ready to be picked.

You can prompt this type of pride in your own child, too, just by giving her a piece of dirt in your yard and letting her plant her very own plants. It's a bonus to plant something that she can eat, too. Eating your own freshly grown vegetables is a really special treat. Good options for growing include tomatoes, peppers, squash, and various herbs. Check your planting zones to determine what will grow best in your area. Then be sure to include your child in the process of selecting her plants.

I have to be very careful not to walk too close to the tomato plants between our houses because I would never want any of those tomatoes to jump off their vines and fall into my mouth. Really, that would just be tragic. All those defenseless, unguarded tomatoes...

Useful Keychains

Want to entertain a child for a short time without having to worry about said child getting into mischief?

Maintain a small collection of key chains attached together. Your key chains should have various designs, shapes, and colors to maintain interest. You can also have a few of the plain circle key rings mixed into your ball of key chains.

You can find "design" key chains at your local dollar store without spending a great deal of money. You can also get a wide variety of designs.

If you have an older child that is able to read, be sure to add a few key chains with those clever (child appropriate) sayings. Your child will enjoy reading them.

Water Water Everywhere...

Here in Georgia, it's hot again. Hot weather here means lazy days spent at the pool, with the hopes that the children will thoroughly exhaust themselves in order to insure the perfect night of sleeping.

In honor of our hot weather, ( and in memory for those of you unfortunate enough to be experience WINTER right now - dear Australia friends ), I'm listing a few safety tips for water play.

http://www.aap.org/family/tipppool.htm

A swimming pool can be very dangerous for children. If possible, do not put a swimming pool in your yard until your children are older than 5 years. Help protect your children from drowning by doing the following:

Never leave your children alone in or near the pool, even for a moment. An adult who knows CPR should actively supervise children at all times.

Practice touch supervision with children younger than 5 years. This means that the adult is within an arm's length of the child at all times.

You must put up a fence to separate your house from the pool. Most young children who drown in pools wander out of the house and fall into the pool. Install a fence at least 4 feet high around all 4 sides of the pool. This fence will completely separate the pool from the house and play area of the yard. Use gates that self-close and self-latch, with latches higher than your children's reach.

Keep rescue equipment (such as a shepherd's hook or life preserver) and a telephone by the pool.

Do not use air-filled "swimming aids" as a substitute for approved life vests.

Remove all toys from the pool after use so children aren't tempted to reach for them.

After the children are done swimming, secure the pool so they can't get back into it.

A power safety cover that meets the standards of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) may add to the protection of your children but should not be used in place of the fence between your house and the pool. Even fencing around your pool and using a power safety cover will not prevent all drownings.

Remember, teaching your child how to swim DOES NOT mean your child is safe in water.