When I was a nipper it was all about Cabbage Patch Kids. Remember them? Lots of ugly–to put it mildly–children with tortured nasty faces? A different gut-wrenching face on each card that for some reason became completely cult over-night? (If not Google it.) This was how it was for my generation, as old as that sounds: If you didn’t have Cabbage Patch Kids playing cards then you were in trouble in a BIG way. Huge. The playground was not Read the rest of this entry »

I am the father of, I hope, three fairly well rounded teenagers. As a single father I have spent a great deal of time with them over the last eight years or so. It has been hard work at times but overall extremely rewarding and can say unequivically that I know my kids better than most dads.

Kids of course do not come with an instruction manual but what we all have is memories of our own childhood. This is Read the rest of this entry »

There is nothing that my kids love more than being creative, being messy, being noisy and having fun - your children are probably like that as well!

When I was young myself I used to like to make papier mache but it was a lengthy process, well now me and my little angels (ahem) like to make papier mache pig masks in a jiffy!

I know people who use large 4 litre cartons of milk to mould the masks but Read the rest of this entry »

So, the snow is here, the schools are closed and you can’t get in to work. You can either sit and feel miserable about it or you can use this as a way of spending a bit of time with the kids.

Remember how exciting it was when you were a nipper and it snowed? Try to conjure up some of those memories and get out in the garden with the children! They are going to be enjoying themselves as Read the rest of this entry »

Nowadays, the virtual world is taking over and children are not participating in physical activity like they did in the past. Not to despair though, as there are plenty of activities you can get your kids involved in to keep them off the video games.

Take them to the park and set up a picnic. This gets the entire family involved and they will love it. You can even set up a blank and picnic basket in your back yard Read the rest of this entry »

Kids love to have an adventure and if you can create one for them it is going to be very popular indeed!

Have you ever considered organising a treasure hunt? If you are inviting a lot of your child’s friends round for a birthday party then this is an ideal time to do one.

You could even make it a fancy dress party and insist that all children attending dress up in pirate costumes! This will appeal to just about every kid and it doesn’t have to mean a lot of expense. Pirate costumes are really easy to make by using old clothes that you have lying around. Stripey jumpers, dad’s work boots and a tie (worn as a bandana) are all possibilities.

The only thing you may need to buy is a few eye patches, but this is not going to break the bank. Plastic swords and muskets can be picked up from most pound shops as well!

Perhaps, after you have hidden the treasure, you can print off a map for each child on the computer; or just draw one and get it photocopied next time you go shopping. Getting your treasure hunting clues right may be a bit of an art… They don’t want to be too easy but try not to make them overly difficult either. Something like; ‘This should cushion the blow’ could mean that the next clue can be found on the sofa. Of course, it will all depend on the age of the children.

Maybe the ‘treasure’ can be a pile of sweets and small toys. For authenticity you could have a look around for an old wooden box that resembles a pirate’s treasure chest. You could even bury it in the sandpit or something!

One last thing, I have been allocated to set up for the convention next week. Does anyone know where I can get some good banner stands at short notice?

Children love creating things. They have a very creative imagination and this is encouraging to parents. Arts and crafts is a perfect way to bring out your child’s creativity and help them with the development of motor skills. Below you will find some kid’s arts and crafts ideas.

First, every child should have a craft drawer that is stocked with supplies. Some supplies that should be included are scissors, crayons, paint, paint brushes, glue sticks, construction paper, glitter, beads, rulers, colored pencils, washable markers and anything else you can think of.

Activity # 1: Help your child create a collage. This can be anything your little one can think of. Have them cut out different pictures from magazines. Or, you can take a nature walk and have them collect things such as leaves, sticks, grass or other pieces of nature and glue them on their collage.

Activity # 2: Children love water colors. They are inexpensive too and bring hours of fun. You can have them color in pre-made pictures or draw their own. Coloring books are great for this project too.

Activity # 3: Create homemade necklaces or bracelets. These can be put together with beads, cereal such as cheerios, lifesavers or simply braid them together. You can also purchase jewelry kits in your local crafts store.

Activity # 4: Refrigerator magnets are a blast to make. Let your kids create animals, faces, monsters or anything else they can imagine. Magnets are easily found at your local craft store.

Taking time out to spend with your child creating numerous different arts and crafts projects is both fun and educational. It gives you time to spend with your little one and helps them learn at the same time. Weekends are great for these projects when things are not so busy.

Holiday news: The plans to take a camping trailer along the south coast are in the works! Although we do need to look into getting some Touring caravan insurance, I am handing this to Margaret…

Now is a great time to start planning some seasonal activities with your kids. It is that time of year when it is easy to think about Christmas being ‘weeks away’ but it will suddenly get here before we know it!

Most children love to make things and this can be channelled into several creative activities. Making Christmas cards can be great fun and it will keep them busy for hours. Lots of shops sell sheets of coloured card, tissue paper, glitter and anything else you need. Just show them the basics of folding an A4 card in half and where to write their message and they will soon be engrossed! As long as you remember to cover the dining table in newspaper before they start then the worst that can happen is a bit of spilt glue or glitter… hopefully. If you would rather not risk any mess then you can help them to design some on the computer!

You could also get them making their own tags to go on gifts. Old Christmas cards from last year are brilliant for this and it will even save you some money! Another thing that they will enjoy doing is making their own Christmas decorations. There are even some websites where you can download templates to print and use.

Children will love to get involved with this sort of thing as Christmas (and the lead-up to it) is such an exciting time. But there is more to it all than just that… By getting them to do this sort of thing they will also be learning about the joy of giving to others. Grandmas and granddads are going to love receiving personalised cards and they are bound to look at them again in the years to come. And when the kids finish those you can get them on a project of Christmas roller banners for your office.

Whoever wrote this post, ‘The Dilemma of School’ has really hit the nail on the head. When your kids are at home for the holidays, it is infuriating because ninety percent of the time they are ‘bored’.

By the time that they actually find ‘something to do’ it is time to start back at school!

Don’t you just love kids? We all have a moan about them but we would never be without them. You just have to remember that they need to learn how to find things to do. It is easy to get frustrated but as a parent it is your responsibility to teach them how there are all sorts of interesting things to occupy their time.

This is a brilliant way to make some shelves that are a bit more interesting than normal. The tutorial is really well written and it shows you how just about anyone can go off hunting for toadstools to make into shelving. It is a lovely idea and kids would really enjoy being involved with making them as well. Since there are so many different types of beautiful fungi, you can choose which ones you think will look the best on your wall.

I love nature and when I come across something like this it is a real treat. Making something like this is so much more satisfying than driving to a shop and buying ready-made shelves. It is the perfect time of year for making these at the moment. You can go out for a nice walk in a forest somewhere and shop for your ‘natural furnishings’ at the same time.

Check out these treatment photographs on the breast reduction surgery webpage, I don’t know which is before and which is after! I recone we should just remove them.