Thrifty Thursdays: Shop Early for Savings on Holiday Gifts
Unless your family has been holed up in a cave for the past several months, you probably already know that Zhu Zhu Pets are predicted to be one of the must-have toys of the season. And if you have a child who's been asking for the fuzzy little critters and their myriad of accessories for the holidays, you probably already know that many stores are already out of stock of these popular toys.
One reason retailers are out of Zhu Zhu Pets and other predicted-to-be-popular items is that most have not placed big orders this year. Burned by last year's dismal sales, many stores simply have not taken any chances.
But aside from the issue of availability, there's another reason to shop early. Industry analysts are also predicting that those unheard-of major discounts we saw last year are highly unlikely, again because retailers won't be facing overstock of inventory. So the message seems to be: Don't wait until the last minute to shop, hoping for a discount. If you see an item on sale right now that seems to be a good price, grab it.
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Family Photo Calendars – A Great Do-Ahead Holiday Gift
A friend of mine reminded me yesterday that we are seven weeks away from Christmas. Yikes.
My friend is the kind of woman who has already ordered Christmas gifts (yup, she's one of those super-organized people whom the rest of us can only feebly attempt to emulate before we realize it's like trying to become a concert pianist -- you either have it or you don't). So while I'm not gonna turn into Rebecca, I am at least determined not to be that crazed lady running through the mall on Christmas Eve again this year, making a mad dash from store to store, frantically searching for gifts.
That's why I'm taking a page from another friend's family and getting an early start on Christmas this year. I recently visited my friend John's mom, who had a terrific calendar of family photos displayed at her house. It turns out that last year, one of her other sons, Peter, had compiled family photos and used the iPhoto application on his Mac to create a calendar for members of his family for Christmas. It was flat-out one of the most beautiful calendars I'd ever seen -- a testament not only to Peter's artistic eye but also to the ease of use of the iPhoto program.
If you don't have a Mac, you can use a site like Rocket Life, which lets you create t-shirts, photo books, and even mugs as well as calendars from your PC. And if you have a good quality printer and the time, you can make your own calendar, cards, photobooks, and more with Hewlett-Packard's free Creative Studios for Home site.
I'm thinking of some more do-ahead holiday gifts for friends and family. In the meantime, I'm gonna spend a few minutes this week and gather up some photos to unleash my inner artist and create a great calendar for my family to use all next year.
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Bans on School Bake Sales -- Really???
Recently, New York City banned bake sales in schools. Sixteen states, including California, have imposed similar limitations on foods high in calories, fat and sugar in schools.
I can understand the sentiment and the motivation -- however misguided -- behind the new rules. Childhood obesity is a major concern, and we should be doing all we can to curb sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks in schools. But does anyone really think banning bake sales will somehow counter sedentary lifestyles, poor nutrition, and other unhealthy lifestyle habits that are increasing kids-- and adults' -- waistlines?
Just as banning baked goods from school grounds is no magic bullet for our nation's obesity problem, fighting obesity has to take a multi-pronged, reasonable approach. Parents and schools can work together to teach kids how to eat right and make sure they get enough physical activity. Once they have the real tools make healthy choices, a cookie or a muffin here and there will be a once-in-a-while treat, hardly worthy of a ban much less a second thought.
Notes Left Behind - A Heartbreaking Book That Inspires
If you ever find yourself having a bad day or feeling stressed as I did today, think about stories like this: The family of a little girl named Elena Desserich, who died of brain cancer at the age of 6, discovered after her death that she'd hidden hundreds of little notes for her family to find after she'd gone. She'd tucked them into backpacks, drawers, and between books.
In a new book called Notes Left Behind, Elena's parents, Brooke and Keith, share the journal entries they'd written during their daughter's battle with cancer as well as what Elena wrote in her notes to her family.
Why do unbearable things like this happen in our world? Why do little children get sick and suffer? We can only make our feeble attempts at guessing the answers. But we can be certain that beauty exists when we think about children like Elena and the love that she and her family felt for each other. And when we think about stories like Elena's, it certainly puts something as trivial as a bad day into perspective. I'm going to go and hug my child now and be grateful for the fact that I get to tuck him into bed tonight and kiss him, which I think I may do a hundred times.
Thank you Brooke and Keith, for sharing your story and the spirit of your lovely daughter with the world.
Kids’ TV Viewing is at an 8-Year-High
Kids ages 6 to 11 are watching as much as 28 hours of TV a week, says a new report from The Nielsen Company. Younger kids, ages 2 to 5, are spending even more time in front of the TV screen -- as much as 32 hours a week -- presumably because their TV viewing is not interrupted by having to go to school.
TV isn't the only screen taking up kids' screen time today. The study found that children 6 to 11 are spending an average of 2 hours and 23 minutes playing video games.
The first thing that occurred to me when I read this report is, where are school-age kids finding all these hours for screen time? Now that my son is in third grade, he is spending more time than ever on homework. He barely has time for playdates and he only does one after-school activity, and yet we find ourselves scrambling every night to get homework done, have dinner, and get ready for bed on time. If we were making time for 28 hours of TV a week -- that's a whopping 4 hours a day -- we'd have to cut something out, like, say, sleep or family time.
I think TV and even videogames can have their place in kids' lives (even the shows and games that aren't "educational"), but if your kids are watching anything near 28 hours of TV a week, that probably means you're not having enough time with your kids, and your kids aren't spending enough time reading or playing with friends.
How does your family's TV viewing habits measure up against the Nielsen findings?
Thrifty Thursdays: Decorate With Neighbors!
We are very lucky to have a neighbor who is a creative mom. Visit Rebecca's house and you'll see a treasure trove of kid art supplies. With just a few fuzzy pom poms and pipe cleaners and googly eyes, she has come up with a fun and creative way to decorate the "spider webs" our kids spread all over the front gate of our building.
Not only is decorating with another family a great chance for kids to create together and have fun, it can be a money-saving way to create lots of great holiday decorations. Sure, you can go out and buy scary-looking spiders, but they can't hold a candle to the ones kids can come up with by using their own imaginations. And by sharing arts and craft supplies, families can save money and can have a chance to spend time getting to know each other -- something we as a too-busy society should do more with neighbors these days. You can even split a pizza or two for dinner after all that hard work decorating!
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Warning: Lead Found in Face Paints
If you're planning to use face paint on your kids this Halloween, use caution. A new report by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics titled "Pretty Scary: Could Halloween Face Paint Cause Lifelong Problems?" has found that commonly-used face paints contain lead as well as skin allergens such as nickel and chromium.
The Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, a coalition of health and environmental organizations including the Environmental Working Group and the Breast Cancer Fund, had an independent laboratory test 10 face paint products commonly sold on the Internet or in craft or Halloween stores. All 10 were found to contain lead. And 6 out of 10 face paint products contained skin allergens in amounts that were far above the recommended levels. In some cases, the products were labeled hypoallergenic when they contained allergens. None of the metals found in the lab tests were on the labels.
To play it safe this Halloween, consider avoiding face paint products or think about making your own natural face paint. If you do use store-bought face paint, make sure you keep it away from your child's eyes, mouth and hands to avoid any contaminants from going directly into your child's body.
Don’t Overuse Hand Sanitizer
I've noticed that oversized displays of hand sanitizers are everywhere -- at the supermarket checkout line, the pharmacy, even the office supplies store. Clearly, we've got germs -- and in particular swine flu -- on our minds as we head into what has been a much-talked about flu season.
But before you place hand sanitizers all over your house, be aware that hand sanitizers and young children don't always mix. Studies have shown that hand sanitizers, which can contain as much as 60 to 70 percent alcohol, can pose a risk to children. For one thing, kids tend to touch their faces and put their hands in their mouths more often than adults, which means anything on their hands is much more likely to end up in their bodies. Younger toddler-age siblings can be particularly at risk because they may find the sometimes fruity or flowery-scented hand sanitizers too enticing to resist tasting. And last but not least, alcohol is extremely flammable.
So while you may be tempted to slather your kids' hands with hand sanitizer to keep them safe from the flu, keep in mind that proper hand washing with soap and water is still the best way to prevent illnesses. Only use hand sanitizers in situations when your family does not have access to soap and water. And follow the product label directions and supervise your kids when they use hand sanitizers.
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Balancing Halloween Fun with Halloween Safety
Halloween means lots of fun, but it's also important for parents to remember some important tips for Halloween safety. Halloween fun and activities can raise the risk for injuries and accidents. On Halloween, the risk of home fires, burn-related injuries and falls goes up significantly.
As you celebrate Halloween this week and next, check out the great tips for Halloween safety from the experts at Underwriters Laboratories (UL), the independent product safety organization.
And see what suggestions the American Academy of Pediatrics, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Safety Council have about keeping kids safe on Halloween.
A Website That Lets You Ask Docs About Flu Symptoms
Think you or your child may have the flu? Wondering when and whether you should see a doctor but don't want to risk a trip to a hospital or doctor's waiting room where you could risk exposure to people who may have swine flu or other illnesses?
A new interactive website, AMAfluhelp.org, by the American Medical Association is taking a revolutionary approach to fighting the flu: It lets patients communicate with doctors online.
While other websites like the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's CDC.gov and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services-run Flu.gov offer the public information about seasonal and swine flu, this site lets patients ask doctors questions about their flu-like symptoms -- all free of charge.