New Car Seat Regulations

Click here to read The American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's new recommendations on car seat safety for toddlers.

The biggest change is that toddlers are now recommended to ride in rear-facing car seats until age two. This is a year longer than the previous one year regulation. They are also saying that children should be in a booster until age 12 in the backseat.

Click the link above to read the full article.

Website Wednesday!

Check in on Wednesday to find some website suggestions for you to visit. Parenting, mothering, crafting, learning, teaching....we have recommendation for you! Also, send an email if you have one, two, or a few to suggest and we will post it!

Here are this weeks- sent in by Tammie!

The Confident Mom

Natural Child

The Soulful Parent

Mommy Must-Watch!

Labor Day Funnies- For mom

Celebrate this Labor Day by knowing you have the best job ever- being a mom! Please see the following job description from SuperKids~

POSITION: Mother, Mom, Mama

JOB DESCRIPTION: Long term, team players needed, for challenging permanent work in an often chaotic environment.

Candidates must possess excellent communication and organizational skills and be willing to work variable hours, which will include evenings and weekends and frequent 24 hour shifts on call.

Some overnight travel required, including trips to primitive camping sites on rainy weekends and endless sports tournaments in far away cities. Travel expenses not reimbursed. Extensive courier duties also required.

RESPONSIBILITIES: The rest of your life. Must be willing to be hated, at least temporarily, until someone needs $5.
Must be willing to bite tongue repeatedly. Also, must possess the physical stamina of a pack mule and be able to go from zero to 60 mph in three sec onds flat in case, this time, the screams from the backyard are not someone just crying wolf.
Must be willing to face stimulating technical challenges, such as small gadget repair, mysteriously sluggish toilets and stuck zippers.
Must screen phone calls, maintain calendars and coordinate production of multiple homework projects.
Must have ability to plan and organize social gatherings for clients of all ages and mental outlooks.
Must be willing to be indispensable one minute, an embarrassment the next.
Must handle assembly and product safety testing of a half million cheap, plastic toys, and battery operated devices.
Must always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst.
Must assume final, complete accountability for the quality of the end product.

Responsibilities also include floor maintenance and janitorial work throughout the facility.

POSSIBILITY FOR ADVANCEMENT & PROMOTION: Virtually none. Your job is to remain in the same position for years, without complaining, constantly retraining and updating your skills, so that those in your charge can ultimately surpass you

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE: None required unfortunately. On-the-job training offered on a continually exhausting basis.

WAGES AND COMPENSATION: Get this! You pay them! Offering frequent raises and bonuses. A balloon payment is due when they turn 18 because of the assumption that college will help them become financially independent.

When you die, you give them whatever is left. The oddest thing about this reverse-salary scheme is that you actually enjoy it and wish you could only do more.

BENEFITS: While no health or dental insurance, no pension, no tuition reimbursement, no paid holidays and no stock options are offered; this job supplies limitless opportunities for personal growth and free hugs for life if you play your cards right.


From Hub Pages:

A lot of people don't realize the work that goes into being a mother. Only a mother knows what a mother really does, and only a mother can tell the story. I've wrote this little tidbit that will hopefully give the rest of the world just a tiny bit of insight on just how hard us mothers actually work!

THE INTERVIEW

The phone rings...

MOTHER: Hello?

INTERVIEWER: Hello, Ma'am. I'm a reporter and we're choosing women at random to give brief accounts of their job descriptions to run in next week's issue of our career paper. Do you have a minute?

MOTHER: Not now, I'm busy!

INTERVIEWER: OK Ma'am, I won't take anymore of your time.

MOTHER: Oh, I'm sorry, I was talking to my two-year old. She's trying to get me to pour her some milk.

INTERVIEWER: Oh, I see. So you're a mother?

MOTHER: I can't just yet, I'll do it in a minute!

INTERVIEWER: Excuse me, what was that?

MOTHER: Oh, my apologies. I was talking to my 4 year old, he needs help wiping his bottom.

INTERVIEWER: Oh, well I'll be brief. First of all, do you work?

MOTHER: Of course I do.

INTERVIEWER: Great! What is your occupation?

MOTHER: I'm a mother.

INTERVIEWER: Oh. But you don't work for pay, right?

MOTHER: I have the highest paying job I know!

INTERVIEWER: But I thought you were a mother. Do you have another occupation?

MOTHER: Isn't that enough?

INTERVIEWER: I suppose. (pause) Well, I'll let you get back to your children Ma'am. I have some interviews to collect.

MOTHER: Wait! Don't you want to hear my job description?

INTERVIEWER: Uhhh.... (Thinking about a potential lawsuit if he should say no) ..... OK, go for it.

MOTHER: Could you hold on just a minute? Let me take care of my son in the bathroom. This should just take a second.

INTERVIEWER: (sighs) OK. I'll wait.

About 5 minutes pass...

MOTHER: I'm back. Whew, that one was above and beyond the call of duty!

INTERVIEWER: I think I'll leave that out of my article.

MOTHER: Good idea.

INTERVIEWER: Well let's hear the job description. (He mutters under his breath), This shouldn't take too long.

MOTHER: I hope you have lots of paper...hmmm. Well, here it goes...

I have the world's most important job. I'm a Manager of Miracles (or MOM for short). I train people for life. I teach them morals and right from wrong. I make sure that they get the proper education that will help them to one day have the ability to rule the world if necessary. I also teach them the small things that go along with good civilization such as good hygiene and manners.

The training process takes a lot of patience and requires me to hold a number of different job titles. I'll share just a few with you for time's sake.

For one thing, I'm a nurse. There are times when my little "trainees" (hereafter referred to as my children or kids), will get scraped knees and little tears will stream down little faces. It is my place to put a colorful bandage on it and kiss it. This has an amazing healing effect. Usually, the child will then wipe their eyes, smile and run back and do the same thing that made them get the scraped knee in the first place. However, there are more difficult times like when my kids have the flu. It is then my place to be on call at any given moment to come and check temperatures, administer medicine, or even hold a barf bag. If I don't get there quickly enough, it may require cleaning messes out of the carpet. I often give up my own sleep to make sure that my child is comfortable.

Also, I'm a referee. Believe it or not, there are times when my little "angels" grow horns. Fights break out between siblings and it's my place to break up the fights and restore the peace.

Sometimes as a MOM, I must be a psychologist. I have to delve into the problems of my children and find the root causes for their behavior and help them change it.

I'm a teacher 24/7. My children are constantly learning from me whether I'm trying to teach them or not. This requires me to be very careful about everything that I do and say, for they learn the bad as well as the good.

Another one of my jobs, and one that I'm really good at is that of an attorney. There are times when the judge, (dad), lays down the law. Although I agree with Judge Dad that punishment must be received for wrongdoings, I look into what caused the child to behave the way they did. I've been know to get "sentences" reduced if the child can present good reasons for why they did what they did. (Judge Dad don't seem to think that this is an attorney role, he thinks it's a soft Mommy's heart).

I'm a chauffeur, a maid, a cook, and....did you say something sir?

INTERVIEWER: ZZZZZzzzzzzzz

MOTHER: Well, I guess he got tired just listening to all I have to do. 'click'

Let's go get your milk now sweetie

Tuesday Tunes

A must-watch mommy video!

How to be a Good Mom- Instructions

How to be a Good Mom
Difficulty: Challenging

Things You'll Need:
Love
Patience
Respect
Responsibility
Goals
Traditions
Influence
Kindness

Instructions:
1.
Love your children no matter what they do. They show to others what they are given, and love is the most important gift you can give them! Hugs and kisses are mandatory. Hug them no matter how "old" they may think they are. Everyone needs hugs to survive.

2.
Be patient when they spill the milk and get cookie crumbs on your brand new carpet. Count to ten and breathe. It's often hard not to yell. All mothers yell at some point and if you don't, you shouldn't be reading this! Train yourself to count. It might not save tears, but it will save pain.

3.
Respect your children and they will respect you. Appreciate the things they do for you, and they will do them more often. Rewards and praises for jobs and tasks well done will teach them that working hard, being a good person, and doing it all unconditionally is key to sustaining a great life.

4.
Show your children you are a responsible person by working, providing for them and caring for their needs. This will teach them to do the same for their families in the future. Building a loving home for a child is the ultimate responsibility. Cherish the moments of family and show your children how much you are willing to do for them.

5.
Have goals for your children, your family and yourself. Involve your family in your goals, teach them to make goals of their own and challenge them to achieve them. For example, if they want a new toy and it's not close to Christmas or a birthday, have them do a few extra chores around the house they don't normally do to earn the toy. If your son or daughter is great at a sport or school encourage them to go the distance and beyond. Support the team, reward excellence and participate in their achievements.

6.
Pass on traditions to your children. Some families have holiday traditions, others have daily traditions. Teach your children about your family history. Cook old family recipes together, try a family craft project or plan a party together. Keeping family traditions alive keeps the family close.

7.
Influence your children to be the best they can be. Talk to them, learn what they want out of life and answer their questions. Children would much rather hear about life from people they love and trust than from complete strangers or friends. Your children will love and respect you more for talking with them, not to them.

8.
Be kind to your children. They are born innocent. Keep them that way as long as possible. Treat your children with dignity, respect and love and they will treat you with the same!

By Jami Mack, eHow Contributor

Back to School Traditions

Many of us have little ones who are starting preschool or kindergarten for the very first time. It can be a bittersweet time for us as moms. Here are a few links with some great ideas for back-to-school traditions.

*Leave us a comment on this post if you have any memories of back-to-school traditions you did when you were a child or what you do/ plan on doing with your children.

A Purse Full of Cheerios

Gazettenet.com

Tip Junkie

Famous Mom Sayings...

Have you heard yourself saying any of these things? Ever get any of them said to you as a child?Check out the rest of the list here.

Don't ask me WHY. The answer is NO.
Don't cross your eyes or they'll freeze that way.
Don't EVER let me catch you doing that again!

What did I say the FIRST time?

You just ate an hour ago!

You will ALWAYS be my baby.
You're going to put your eye out with that thing!

You're the oldest. You should know better.

You kids are trying to drive me crazy!

Who taught you THAT?

It's no use crying over spilt milk.
I've had it up to here with you.
Leave your sister (brother) alone!

I don't care who started it, I said stop!

How do you know you don't like it if you haven't tasted it?

I hope someday you have children just like you.

22 Potty Training Tips

22 Potty Training Tips For Modern Moms
by Tiffany Bird of Simply Modern Mom

I have to admit. Potty training has been the hardest thing I’ve done as a mother thus far. It has really tested my patience and my ability to stay calm during difficult situations. It has brought many embarrassing moments and nerve wrecking moments. And many moments where I wondered, Why am I doing this? Diapers are easier to change than cleaning up after poop and pee in carpet.

My Potty Training Experience
My oldest daughter, Kaye, was almost 2 when she started to show signs of readiness of potty training. In fact, the first day I pulled out the potty seat, she pooped in it the first time. Then peed in it the second time. All in the same day. But I held off potty training because we were leaving for a trip to Taiwan.

After our trip to Taiwan, I decided I wanted to transition Kaye into sleeping in a big girl bed before potty training her. I was pregnant with our second and wanted to use the crib for the baby.

Once Kaye turned 2, she still showed signs of readiness of potty training, but took no interest in it. My motivation was I wanted to get her out of diapers before the new baby came. I didn’t want to do potty training while nursing a little one. Plus, it was much cheaper to purchase diapers for one child instead of two. So I went with it. It wasn’t too bad. She was fully potty trained in about 2 weeks.

22 Potty Training Tips

If you have read all the ready signs of potty training, looked into it a bit and decided to give it a go, here are a few tips that might help you in this arduous task. Remember that each child is different. What worked with your friend’s child may not work with yours. What worked with your first child may not work with the second or third. So read up and do what will work best for your child.

1. Toilet Training in Less Than A Day. This was the book that answered all my questions. It told me exactly how my child was going to react to potty training and the different tactics they will use when faced with this situation. Then it had all the answers and responses as to what I needed to do as a parent. It’s a short and fast read. Well worth it.

2. Wait it out. I have friends who waited until their child told them they were ready. And when they did, it was much easier to have the child be the one who initiated it.

3. Be prepared to devote at least 1 whole day without distractions to it. Clear your calendar. Forget about your emails. Ask someone to watch your older kids, if necessary. Devote an entire day or two to this and really get serious about it. Potty training is one of those moments where you need to give your child uninterrupted attention. Once they get the hang of it and know what is going on, then get back into regular routine.

4. Be consistent. At this age, they are testing you. They want to know if you are in on this. Because if you are totally into this, and you convince them you are, then they’ll get with the program. And to do that, you have to be consistent. Show them that this is not just something temporary. Or something that you will give up if it doesn’t work the first few days or even weeks. If you give up, they will too.

5. Involve them. Take them to the store to pick out their new underwear. Have them pick out a potty seat. Ask them what treats or reward they would like. Have them set a goal to work toward.

6. Potties vs. training seats. We had both. Potties are nice because they are kid size. They don’t need a step to get on it. The down side is you have to clean it. Sure it is suggested that you have the child take the poop/pee container and dump it in the toilet. But they don’t actually clean it afterwards. Training seats are nice because they get your child used to going to the toilet in the first place. Although it can be tricky for your child to get on a step, pull down pants and turn around to sit on the potty alone without falling. It will take some getting used to.

7. The second day will be the hardest. The first day, they are excited to get with the program. The second day, they have accidents on purpose. The second day will make or break you. Though not all moms will experience this, lucky you if you don’t.

8. Balance reminders with trust. In the beginning, you will remind them constantly to go potty, and sometimes taking them to the potty even if they don’t need to go. Then as they start to get a hang out it, back off the reminders. Make them less frequent. That was hard for me because by that time, I was tired of dealing with accidents. But I noticed, the more I backed off on reminders, the more willing she would go on her own. I would only ask her if she needed to go potty when I could tell she was holding it.

9. Throw a party. Get them excited about it. I did it on the first day to introduce Kaye to potty training. Since she was into princesses at that time, it was a pink princess potty party. I decorated the living room with little underwear and had lots of pink drinks around (juice, strawberry PediaSure or strawberry milk). I made a special pink breakfast. Her grandma bought her a potty doll. We had a collection of children potty books. Potty Train Your Child in Just One Day is a book with themes, ideas and activities for potty parties. This book is different from the one mentioned above.

10. Don’t yell. This will be a hard one, especially when you are dealing the 5th or 6th accident of the day and you are at wit’s end. But if you yell, they will resist or feel being punished.

11. Make them accountable. When they have an accident, have them clean it up. Have them undress themselves and put away the dirty clothes. Have them put on new clothes with some assistance if necessary. The cleaning part. They won’t get it as clean as you. But have them clean what they can and you do the deep scrubbing of the carpet. If they are accountable for their mess each time they make one, they will learn that they don’t want to make messes anymore.

12. Be prepared to sit there with them for a long time. They will sit on the toilet and tell you they don’t need to go. But as soon as you let them off, they hide in a corner and let it go. So next time you see them holding it, put them on the potty and sit there with them. I sat on the floor while Kaye was on the potty. We sang songs, I told her stories, we read books, she flipped through children magazines or catalogs. Whatever it took for her to sit there until she went.

13. Find their motivator. What motivates your child? Positive attitude, support and encouragement? Or nagging, threats and punishments? Motivation can come from outside sources, too. Perhaps they love cars, princesses or dinosaurs. Maybe they have always wanted to go to Built-A-Bear and make a doll.

14. Make it come alive. When Kaye reverted after the new baby was born, we purchased a set of little Disney Princess figurines. If she went a few days without an accident, a princess will show up on her pillow before bedtime with a personal note. The note encouraged her and praised her for her success. And once in a while brought up some pointers for things she needed to work on. It was better coming from a “princess” than mom.

15. Rewards can come in many forms. There are instant rewards and long-term rewards. Make the instant rewards small. Candy, stickers, a small toy and lots of praise. I wasn’t too keen of candy rewards because I, personally, don’t give my children lots of sugar. That’s just me. So I went all out on the stickers. Make the long-term reward a little more meaningful. A trip to the museum, a sleepover at grandma’s house, a bigger toy they have been eyeing or something else they really want or would like.

16. Celebrate with others. When they are successful, make them feel proud of their success. Call dad at work. Call grandma in another state. Have them tell of their achievements. It provides positive encouragements.

17. Potty Power. I admit. It was a cheesy movie. But kids love it. I used this as a reward sometimes because Kaye enjoyed the movie so much. She wanted to watch it all the time.

18. They are smarter than you think. Haven’t we heard this before? But really. Unless you are potty training at 1 years old or your child has special circumstances or disabilities, they should be able to grasp the concept. I know I thought to myself many times, Does she really understand what I am doing here? Does she know that it is embarrassing to pee on yourself?

19. Don’t travel. If you are traveling or moving shortly before or during potty training, you are sabotaging yourself and your child. Stay at home and potty train.

20. Drop everything and go. That will be one of the hardest concepts for the child to comprehend. They are used to going while playing. Now they have to stop what they are doing to go? No way! Teaching them this concept takes time and patience. Show them that the quicker they go, the sooner they can get back to playing. Pause the movie if you have to.

21. Public bathrooms may frighten them. Be patient. Kaye was frightened by public bathrooms. She didn’t like all the noise, the size of everything, the loud flushing and the fans and hand dryers. I would bring her into a stall, allowed her to get acquainted to this new environment and waited until she was ready. There were times she would try to convince me she didn’t need to go. So I had special rewards or treats in the diaper bag for such occasions.

22. Put extra clothes in the car. You will most likely have a set of extra clothing and underwear in the diaper bag or your purse. But also keep an extra set in the car. You never know how long you will be out and about. Sometimes they might go through both sets in one trip. Or you might forget that you used the set in the diaper bag last time and forgot to refill it.

» Tell me… What are your potty training tips? Share your secrets with us at Simply Modern Mom.

Those of you asking me specific questions about potty training, I will answer your questions on Wednesday. Then on Thursday I have a printable potty training chart just for you.

31 Biblical Virtues to Pray For Your Kids

by Bob Hostetler, excerpted from Pray! Magazine issue #4

If you want to pray more for your children, but aren't sure what to pray or how to pray for them, then use this list of virtues as your guide. Next to each virtue is a prayer based upon Scripture that you can pray, with the reference to where in the Bible the prayer was inspires. This makes for a great prayer calendar. Just pick one virtue each day of the month to pray over your child/children.

1. Salvation - "Lord, let salvation spring up from within my children, that they may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory." Isaiah 45:8, 2 Timothy 2:10
2. Love - "Grant, Lord, that my children may learn to live a life of love, through the Spirit who dwells in them." Galatians 5:25, Ephesians 5:2
3. Self-control - "Father, help my children not to be like many others around them, but let them be alert and self-controlled in all they do." 1 Thessalonians 5:6
4. Love for God's Word - "May my children grow to find Your Word more precious than much pure gold and sweeter than honey from the comb." Psalm 19:10
5. Justice - "God, help my children to love justice and You do and act justly in all they do." Psalm 11:7, Micah 6:8
6. Mercy - "May my children always be merciful, just as their Father is merciful." Luke 6:36
7. Respect (for self, others, authority, etc) - "Father, grant that my children may show proper respect to everyone, as your Word commands." 1 Peter 2:17
8. Biblical self-esteem - "Help my children develop a strong self-esteem that is rooted in the realization that they are God's worksmanship, creating in Christ Jesus." Ephesians 2:10
9. Faithfulness - "Let love and faithfulness never leave my children, but bind these twin virtues around their necks and write them on the tablet of their hearts." Proverbs 3:3
10. Courage - "May my children always be strong and courageous in their character and in their action." Deuteronomy 31:6
11. Purity - "Create in them a pure heart, O God, and let that purity of heart be shown in their actions." Psalm 51:10
12. Kindness - "Lord, may my children always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else." 1 Thessalonians 5:15
13. Generosity - "Grant that my children may be generous and willing to share, and so lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age." 1 Timothy 6:18-19
14. Peace-loving - "Father, let my children make every effort to do what leads to peace." Romans 14:19
15. Joy - "May my children be filled with the joy given by the Holy Spirit." 1 Thessalonians 1:6
16. Perseverance - "Lord, teach my children perseverance in all they do, and help them especially to run with perseverance the race marked out for them." Hebrews 12:1
17. Humility - "God, please cultivate in my children the ability to show true humility toward all." Titus 3:2
18. Compassion - "Lord, please clothe my children with the virtue of compassion." Colossians 3:12
19. Responsibility - "Grant that my children may learn responsibility, for each one should carry his own load." Galatians 6:5
20. Contentment - "Father teach my children to the secret of being content in any and every situation, through Him who gives them strength." Philippians 4:12-13
21. Faith - "I pray that faith will find root and grow in my children's hearts, that by faith they may gain what has been promised to them." Luke 17:5-6, Hebrews 11:1-40
22. A servant's heart - "God, please help my children develop servants' hearts, that they may serve wholeheartedly, as if they were serving the Lord, not men." Ephesians 6:7
23. Hope - "May the God of hope grant that my children may overflow with hope and hopefulness by the power of the Holy Spirit." Romans 15:13
24. Willingness and ability to work - "Teach my children, Lord, to value work and to work at it with all their heat, as working for the Lord, not for men." Colossians 3:23
25. Passion for God - "Lord, please instill in my children a soul that follows hard after You, one that clings passionately to you." Psalm 63:8
26. Self-discipline - "Father, I pray that my children may acquire a disciplined and prudent life, doing what is right and just and fair." Proverbs 1:3
27. Prayerfulness - "Grant, Lord, that my children's lives may be marked by prayerfulness, that they may learn to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests." Ephesians 6:18
28. Gratitude - "Help my children to live lives that are always overflowing with thankfulness and always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Ephesians 5:20, Colossians 2:7
29. A heart for missions - "Lord, please help my children to develop a desire to see your glory declared among the nations, your marvelous deeds among all people." Psalm 96:3
30. Growth in grace - "I pray that my children may grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." 2 Peter 3:18
31. Honesty and integrity - "May integrity and honesty be their virtue and their protection." Psalm 25:21